The Bozeman courier., 1926-09-17

house but it was an exceedingly comfort
able one. And it cost only a fixed sum
for board and room. No tricky expenses
creeping up on him all the time.
His rooms were on the third floor
front ones and quite as good as the CORES
pOnding ones on the second that Mrs.
Davis had vainly urged him to take to save
himself from climbing another flight of
stairs. Kenneth closed the hall door quiet
ly, and went up the neatly carpeted stairs
He liked to think that in another moment
he would be inside the friendly walls of
his own rooms. Tonight, after the al
seemed especially welcome.
rs he turned the second landing, he
/ saw girl going up ahead of him. 1t was
the Dale girl, doubtless just home from the
newspaper. He knew her slightly for she
had been in the boarding house only a
| couple of weeks and seemed regularly
to absent herself from most of Mrs. Davis
meals.
Hearing his step, she turned.
'HellO," she greeted him, informally.
| "GOOd evening"" said Kenneth
| She had reached the second landing, and
stood with her hand on the railing: A
red scarf matching a dab Of straw hat,
swung from he shoulder
Boarding houses all smell alike, don't
they?'''' she asked, ''eyen the awfully clean
"SmelI?" asked Kenneth, unconsciously
shifting the air.
The girls shoulders raised.
ut may not be an actual smell. It's an
atmosphere. You know when you come in
here that the place doesn't belong to any
one. All institutions reek with shared air. >
"YOu don't sound very sociable," said
Kenneth for loss OF something better.
She confronted him as he came on heI
own level on the standing, her eyes ser
"I'm CHASTITY sociable That's the troubl,
You can't be sOciable with shut doors. II
rooms that are hired"
"No," he agreed. 81 suppose not"
She did not offer to let him pass her
and he could hardly push by. There h'
was, stopped on the landing, with his owl
desirable door in sight, by an intrusive
tomato colOred girl or so he regarded he
in that moment. She seemed lurid to him
His theory Of keeping away from the typ
Of girl that the Dale girl was had grown in
. to a habit he didn't like girls who worke'
r and probably tried to be shocking. He
eyes were on him impudently, but with de
e ceney.
read that you'd lend me? I simply can
r face that room of mine without ammuni
4 ton. My own books haven't come, an
; all I've got are three books I've read {
8 limpness."
"What kind of book do you want7"
Anything to destroy the environment.
Kenneth stiffened.
Sorry" he said I've nothing you woul
She let him pass, and he went into hi
rooms and closed the door, dropping hi
hat and coat with relief that the incident
OF the evening were over. He lit the gree
lamp on his table, and looked. arOun
with satisfaction at the fine stability an
good sense Of his rooms. There were Il
three bookcases, glass doored to keep Ol
the duSt-the fine deep leather chairs, Il
soft Morocco couch. The door to the be-
room was open, an0 be knew that roo
. was in order like this. With his fir
breath OF satisfaction over, he went met
odicaIly to refill his pipe, and began
reflect on the Dale girl. Volatile-di
> cOntented-full Of wrong ideas. Girls WI
: had been brought up as she had in
, balanced luxury and had lost 1t, won
Z be marked. She ought to be glad s.
could live in a place like this and enj'
) the environment without trying to destr
. It. Destroy environment That wasl
what books we're for.
He went over to his bookcases and
B garded the books proudly. OF course,
p could have lent her something Not Co
rad-nOt any Of the political stuff-s
wouldn't care for most Of these. His ey
e fell on q book bound in yellow cloth The
/ was the sort Of thing she was looking
= that book which he had bought By
cident, misled by the title, and which h
= kept him awake one night with Rbeu
mocking magic. He took It out and fing
p ed 1t. He'd Ike to show her ne had
For ten minutes he resisted the imuu
os foreign and dangerous one, then fou
himsl1 going upstairs to the girls roo