The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1902-03-21
TO LET.
..----.--.....-.-..--.-
crowd of complaining women were


n there doesn't know her own mind"
Mr.. Perkins retired meekly from TIL
fray to round up his wife with the peril
nent inquiry:
Why in thunder did you advertise the
fiat for rent, Maria? 1 never heard Of
such a stupid trick"
But Mrs. Perkins was crying over the
insults Of those women" and said SHE
Supposed everybody would know that she
meant one room when she had just moved
in and Perkins tore the sign down say
agely, and told her TO advertise in the
Sunday papers.
On the next Sunday s. remarkable adver-
tisement appeared in The Sunday Record
Herald among the To Rent ads:
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES -.--.---.-..-.........
Handsomely furnished room for :
rent to a gentleman with all mod :
/ ern improvements; no smoker.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.
( Mr.. Perkins literally fell off his chair
when he read it, His wife asked him what
was wrong.
Nothing, nothing" he said, tremulous-
! ". except the punctuation. BY George.
there's a fellow climbing the steps now
with the paper in his hand. Seems 10
have a difficulty with his feet. I'll inter-
view him, Maria"
Which he did by landing him on the
sidewalk with the toe Of his boot, for the
fellow was keyed up for the occasion.
There was no Sunday of rest for Mr.. and
Mrs. Perkins. Every man in the city
who wanted a room came to see that par
ticular room, and all went away without
seeing it. And their ideas OF what they
wanted were as wild as their appearance.
One man said he didn't object to there
being no smoker" though he had al
ways been accustomed to one. He
would smoke in his own room. Another
had q wife and three children, but they
were accustomed to living in one room.
The next day he took possession OF the
room. He had given Mr.. Perkins his
business card, and proved to be a book
keeper in big Wholesale business house.
The cloud in the sky no bigger than
mans hand is omnipresent It came in
hte shape of books-the new tenants IL
brary. Mrs. Perkins had remarked to her
husband:
Mr. Chester has the queerest lot OF
books-all about ghosts, and spirits, and
apparitions-it makes my blood run cold
to read the bindings-let alone the inside.
You don't suppose he's a.
Ghost? No, Maria, he's much too prac-
teal man to believe in any such fool
fshness, Stop looking at his books
they're private property, anyway, and
never mind what he believes in or doesn't
believe, as long as he pays his rent and
conducts himself like a gentleman-as he
does"
When Mr.. Chester's vacation came he
went 10 Maine to visit his mother. lesv-
ing his room locked and the key in Mrs.
Perkins possession. He was TO be abb
sent three weeks, and the family were
much surprised when at Che end Of the
second week they heard their ledger come
in at an early hour and go on upstairs.
That's queer" said Mrs. Perkins. Mr..
Chester left his latchkey and doorkey
with me, and they are in a drawer OF the
sideboard at this moment. He must have
other keys to the house and room"
IN 60 up and see volunteered Mr..
7 Perkins. and he went up. but soon return
ed. looking mystihed and put out.
Hes in the room, all right he said.
'But he said he had no keys but the
ones we gave him. persisted Mrs. Per-
lzins. He must be III. Alfred. I'm going
up to see"
Mrs. Perkins made even a shorter visit
upstairs than her husband. She came
down on run and shut the door after
her as she entered the parlor
It's the queerest thing. He never spoke /
when I called TO him TO know II he wanted !
anything. and yet you can hear him now !
banging drawers open and walking +
around. 7 never knew him to be the least 1
ike that.