The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1924-07-19
. STEPHENS ROOM
By THOMAS ARKLE CLARK
Dean of Men, University of
Illinois.

THERE was a note from Stephens
L in the morning mail asking me
to come to his room for a few min
utes he was i'll, and he wanted to see
me. l was not intimately acquainted
with Stephens. He had worked in my
Office for a year or so, l had known
that he lived in d rather remote place,
that he went out little, that he got no
help from home, but l had given him
little serious consideration. He was
always Immediately clean, his clothes
were carefully kept, though he never
had anything new. He had never
seemed to me particularly remarkable
or especially interesting.
| got a new idea of him when |
entered his room. He was seated by
a table a little pale from his illness.
n he ROSE as | came in.
I'm ashamed to have taken SO much
of your time" he said, "but I've al
ways wanted you to see my ROOM"
1t was a cheap little room in the
eommonest house; it was heated by
a soft coal stove, and lighted by a kerr
OSOAC lamp II was III CNCiS way OAQ-
fashioned and unmodern, but it had
distinction and it told me more in a
moment of Stephens tastes and char
Danoond uI4Nuf p~ev-Sdsly ieaf---
during all the months that l had
known him.
Everywhere there was order and
everywhere from the books on the
table and the cheap prints on the
walls to the woven coyerlet on the
beG-it was one his mother had made
as a girl Stephens told me-and the
braided rugs on the floor, there was
refinement and simple good taste. l
had not thought before that a room
could reveal so much of a man.
He paid but four dollars a month
for this room and he had no money
to waste on decorations, but he had
put himself into it, he had glorifed it,
he had surrounded himself with the
most beautiful things he had or could
afford and these things gave him pleas
ure, they added to his self-respect, and
they gave pleasure and satisfaction to
all who came to visit him.
AS | sat looking around at the sim
pie, cheap, but satisfying appointments
of Stephens room, my mind reverted
instinctively to Mrs. Clayton. She is
an impressive snowy woman who
dresses elegantly and almost tasteful
~ and who lives in a ~pretentious
house. When n talks to her she re-
veals the external signs of education
and cultivation. She has Travelled,
she talks easily, she goes with the
best people in town. 1t Is only when
one enters her house that one sees
how vulgar and commonplace her
tastes are. Everywhere the fact is
shrieked in ones ear from the ornate
ugly furniture to the silly tawdry pic
lures on the wall from the expensive
glaring u g on the foo to the clut-
ter of bizarre bric-a-brac huddled to-
gether on every available table and
mantel-piece. Everything in the lit
tie room In which Stephens lived cost
less than one-half as much as the
smallest of Mrs. Clayton's ugly rugs;
he had no money, but he had taste.
Perhaps we should hesitate, many
of US, to have our characters read or
our tastes determined by a ook into
our closets or our bureau drawers, or
q visit to the houses or the rooms in
which we live, but all Of these things
like Stephens room tell q vivid grip
ping tale OF our ideals, our tastes,
and our real characters.
&c, 1924, Western Newspaper Union-)