THE writer has been an apartment dweller for a number of years and is in a position for the enlightening of the unbelieving. He would therefore say how much cooler in summer is the well-chosen city apartment than the average country-house, how much more comfortable in winter than almost any house, how much more convenient, and how much less one is troubled by his neighbours. Of course the apartment house is no place for small children, but when they have arrived at years of indiscretion, then - but he must switch off his enthusiasm to a consideration of the subject directly in accord with the needs of his readers.

An apartment is a compact assemblage of rooms which, unfortunately, arc apt to be rather small: this compactness and the fact that, except in duplex apartments, the rooms are all on one floor gives a greater publicity to the more private rooms than exists in a house. This comparative publicity, so far from being an objection, is good for the soul's health of any occupant, as it makes for greater attention to beauty and compels the "tidiness" that our ancestors never forgot.

In the apartment there are no attics, closets under staircases, and odd corners for storage, and too frequently the closets are not remarkable either for capacity or number. On the other hand the basements of modern houses are provided with locked "cages", in which may be kept furnishings and trunks, not in immediate use.

Apartment life, therefore, makes for concentration, a consequent freedom from care, and a general simplicity and happiness of life.

In moving into apartments one of the essentials is resolutely to get rid of the things one "may need some day" but never does. The disposal of such hoardings will be found its own exceeding great reward, and having experienced it one is not again likely to suffer an accumulation. It will also enhance the general average of one's possessions; for in many a house the quality of its furnishings is obscured by the few but strongly felt shabby or undesirable pieces, and when these are eliminated and the remainder placed in a new and attractive environment the result is often a surprising improvement.

Even with concentration it seems as if the possessions incident to modern life require an immense deal of room and it is well to set aside a storeroom if possible. In any case it is advisable in selecting furniture to provide as many highboys, wardrobes, secretaries, and book-cases as may conveniently be accommodated. And the box-couch - it may be covered with velour or tapestry and made handsome but it is still a box and will provide storage. In a long hall bookcases are excellent. A book-case is naturally a case for books, but an extra one, if glazed and curtained, may hide a multitude of sins, or it may be a linen-closet - and unsurpassed for its purpose. The closets should be fitted in modern manner and kept immaculate. Such devices relieve congestion and banish those enemies of the happy life - confusion, worry and distraction.

All sizes are relative: even a small room may have an aspect of space and repose if the objects within it are proportionate in bulk and number. If the furniture possessed and which must be used is large, then, naturally, as few pieces should be employed in each room as it is possible to manage with. Furnishings may often be transferred with much improvement in effect. We are all creatures of habit and association, and, though a deal of worry is usually saved thereby, once in a blue moon an uprooting and reconsideration is decidedly advisable. Certain rugs, hangings, or pieces of furniture were bought for a certain room and have been associated in our minds with its other furnishings; so that when planning a change of residence we are unconsciously planning a transfer en bloc. Often a reassembling would be an immense improvement, resulting in a freshening of appearance and increased comfort.

The apartment is the concentration, the epitome, the quintessence, of the house - we may choose the term preferred. In furnishing anew, even more than in the larger home should discretion be used as to the permanent background and manner chosen. The previous sections of this volume should carefully be reviewed and a determination made only when it becomes evident which mode is best suited to the premises and one's own needs and manner of life.