The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1913-01-07
HER UNLIMITED GUEST
BY WILLIAM BURTON.

5 his was curious, 1naSmuch - Sne
was woman not much inclined to
sociability. being fond Of her own 90
ciety. So why in fancy she should
always be furnishing that spare cham
ber laying the gray rug on its noor.
hanging the dimity curtains and
smoothing the Marseilles spread. she
herself could not explain.
She even arranged the books in the
little white case. books calculated to
put guest in good humor with him.
self. books which would bring about
that peaceful state OF mind conducive
to sleep She would have no exciting
novels. no passionate poems, no soci-
illogical frebrands in her guest
chamber. There should be such vol.
umes as 1.-THE Measure Of the Hours. "
Society and Solitude" Sesame and
Lilies" These would become the
shelves and crafty guest even If he
never got beycnd the titles,
| So when by generous increase in
her salary the apartment was made
possible she took one with five rooms
instead Of four. because. as she told
the agent, she must have q spare
ROOM"
The rooms OF reality are never as
we'll furnished as are those In the
houses Of our Imagination. Still, her
guest chamber was marvel Of white
ness and daintiness There was q
lovely gray hand woven flower bcrd-
cred rug on the floor and French
striped paper with pattern Of tiny
rosebuds on the wall. The woodwork
was white. and so were the little IRON
bed and the enameled dresser and the
stiff chair. There WAS another chair.
a rocker, covered with cretonne Of
much tie same pattern as the paper.
and it stood close to low wicker la
BILE on which was plcced IA small rain
bow glass vase. an Indicn basket and
a few books
The covers of the books were of
the same colors as those in the wall
paper-pink to match the buds. or
green, to match the buds lcaves-and
they locked like the kind Of books one
is proud to buy but never has time
TO read. But "The Measure Of the
Hours" Society and Solitude" and
Sesame and Lilies" stood up fresh
and inviting.
1t was a conventional room. but II
had cost much thought and self-denial
to procure It, And 1t was ten times
more costly than her own.
But where was the guest? After
three months of residence In her new
home she had never turned down the
Marseilles spread nor put flowers In
the rainbow glass vase. nor brought
out the guest towel that she herself
had embroidered. or course. all sorts
of imaginary persons had occupied the
room and had expressed themselves
as having slept the sleep Of the Just
and Of infancy. and OF having felt 4
strong desire never to be Obliged TO
emerge from the rose colored com
forter and the Marseilles spread that
covered II.
Sometimes the guest was q cousin
whom she had known In her child
hood and who had gone through Elar
ward and was now practicing law in
Boston; the rose comforter and the
Sesame and Lilies" would be none
too fine for him. Then again II was
an old friend OF her fathers. an arts
tocratic woman, who had visited them
in the days Of their prosperity, and
who, being literary in her tastes.
would be sure to appreciate the qufl.
ity of the quilt and to pounce upon
the Sesame and Lilies"
One day. minute after she had
closed the door on the grocer's shabby
boy. who had consented to deliver hor
groceries after she had returned home
at night. size heard crash Oh 'h'
back porch and the sound Of some one
falling. She opened the door quickly
and turned the electric light upon the
white face OF the boy who but mo
ment before had been explaining TO
her why he had brought white corn
meal instead Of the yellow she had
ordered Now his face was as white
as the meal and he looked as II he
would never again deliver groceries.
He was only mite of a boy and
she had little difficulty in getting him
into the guest chamber and on top Of
the Marseilles spread. where he re-
manned until the arrival Of a strange
doctor. who ordered that he be placed
under this priced coverlet and that
he remain there until able to be re-
moved to his home That was not IN
til the end Of the second week
Those two weeks she declared to
be the happiest Of her life. Though the
guest who occupied her spare cham
Der showed no interest either in
books or bouquets. After he had
gone she used to love to sit alone in
the little rocker. staring meditatively
at the backs Of the books and at the
roses on the wall
But this is not all Of the story. She
married the doctor and turned her
| back forever on tho little room that