Arizona republican., 1902-11-24
FIat- House in London

often wonder when in the dead of night, I awake and my soul Confronts me with it's thousand and one "quak- ings," what would happen to all the inhabitants of flats if the buildings were to get on fire. For there is no doubt that about one-siXth of the pop ulation of London live in flats. Some of the buildings are six stories high and have four different families living on each floor. 4 long flight of steps goes right up to the top. all front doors open onto these steps, and there is, as a rule very handsome entrance com mon to all. l mentioned my fears to my landlord the other day, and he as sured me that the stairs were built of iron and stone and the walls and cell ings of concrete. I believed hin-till I went to see a friend of mine, who also lives in a flat, and noticed on the dining room wall scratches and obvious signs of a hole. I asked her what it was, and she said:
 "Oh, it's only the man next door who has been having his wall plugged, ill order to put up heavy shelf"
 And yet that same woman assured me she heard no pianos or noises in other flats near her. They must have been a very quiet lot-that's all.
 Of course, there is no doubt that pianos and pianolas are the curse of the fiat today. However thickly padded ones walls or carpets may be, it is inn possible to deaden the eternal jingle of Q piano, and in the summer months, when all windows are flung open (one would fling the walls open if it were possible), the noise is appalling. The lady with the steam whistle voice and the man who sings .'throatily' fiat to an accompaniment picked out with one finger, are nOt-tc- be-desired neighbors.
 Still, on the whole, flats are most desirable places of residence, especially to people wishing to get about a lot and keep up the appearance of a town establishment. One can lock up ones entire establishment-serd the maids home-acd so depart for a clear week without having the anxiety of ones supposed misbehavior of the domestics or the fear of burglary. A fiat thief is, however, to be met with, but he is a very uncommon occurrence. He has three stout doors to open before he gets into your domain, and a hall porter, who, as a rule, is Of a most obnoxious kind, to circumvent. These same doors are a matter of no little annoyance to the late night-outer who has to open all three from the outside with differ ent keys, and tiny ones at that, l heard Of q man who. coming in not long ago at 2 o'clock, travelled slowly up five flights of stairs behind q coffin which was allowed to be brought in only at that time. He assured me that when he got to the top his state of mind was lunatici
 Maids in these buildings have, to my mind, a beautiful time. They have exactly the same food as their masters and mistresses, are allowed out almost every day-in some cases every day and have very little to do compared with the work of a house. They have ncighbors all around-one often wishes they hadn't, for their pleasantries are usually audible when one has a par ticular visitor One is not bothered very much by these noises, except in the early morning. Then, of course, greetings have to be exchanged. The postman must have something dropped on to his head, to remind him that his Lucy or Ada is saying Good morning" to him. And the milkman-"hang the mil6man!" you say-does ten thousand times more shouting and rattling than