This state of affairs justifies the man who lives in an apartment in allowing a larger proportion of his income for his rooftree. The details to which I have referred just now are included in the price paid for a flat, to say nothing of the reduction of work when all the living is on one floor, when stairs do not exist for the housekeeper, and her responsibilities end at her own front door. The selection of a location is determined by the make-up of the family and the man’s place and time of business. These considerations must be taken into account before the house-hunting is begun. Distance from the center of the town usually means a reduced rent, better air, and more attractive surroundings. To counterbalance these are the long journey back and forth, night and morning, the cost of transportation, inability to come home for the midday meal. As a rule these drawbacks do not equal the advantages to be gained by a home remote from the business district. In order to accomplish the strenuous task of finding a home with the least outlay of labor and worry--for in any case there will be enough of both these commodities--as much planning as possible should be done in advance. The number of rooms necessary should be settled, as well as the sum which can be paid for rent. The sections of the city which are suitable should be studied and, if feasible, traversed, so as to get a general idea of them. Sometimes even a cursory inspection of a neighborhood decides the would-be tenant against it. Then, when lists of houses or apartments have been culled from advertisements and secured from real-estate agents the actual work of house-hunting is begun. One resolution to be laid down at first and adhered to positively is not to go over a house or an apartment if the first glance shows it to be undesirable. When six rooms are the limit for a flat there is no more sense in inspecting a ten-room apartment than there is in scanning a house at twelve hundred a year if seven hundred and fifty is the extreme price that can be paid for rent. Such examination not only consumes time and strength, but it also provokes dissatisfaction with smaller and cheaper quarters which may be seen afterward. A few essentials must be fixed in the mind, to which any house or flat should conform. It must be light--not a dim twilight illumination, but, if possible, sunshine, either direct or reflected--in the living and sleeping rooms. The kitchen must not be a dark corner, not only because such work-places affect the health of those who occupy them, but also because of the additional charge there will be for gas or electricity burned by day as well as by night.