loor coverings, it may be well to note that the best
quality leather mat, guaranteed to last twenty years, costs $1.25 a
square foot. A fair imitation may be had for less than half that
figure, and has the same proportion of value. The open-steel mat that
serves best with tenacious mud costs 50 cents per square foot, and for
rubber we must add a half or double the price, depending on whether we
demand the made-to-order article or are content with stock. The old
reliable cocoa mat may be had from 35 cents per square foot up, and is
quite as useful and scarcely uglier than the others.

THE STAIRWAY

For appearance' sake, if our stairway is well constructed of good
woods, we should forbear to hide it. But there is no place in the
house where little Willie can more effectively proclaim to all the
household world his possession of double-nailed heels than on the
unprotected rises of the stairway. Even the tiny heels of the mistress
of the home seem to clump like the boots of a giant in their numberless
journeys up and down. So the hall runner must have a place. Perhaps
the carpet will be of red or green, depending on the walls, but it need
cost little more than $1 per yard for a fair quality. It is put down
with stair pads ($1 per dozen) and ordinary tacks, and the expenditure
of 10 cents per yard for a professional layer will not be regretted.
The amateur who can do a really good job on a stair carpet is a rarity.

[Illustration: An artistic staircase hall.]

RUGS

The Biglow Bagdad domestic rug in 27 by 54 and 36 by 63-inch sizes is
inexpensive but looks and wears well in the hall. The first size costs
about $4 and the second $7. A little better quality in Anglo-Indian or
Anglo-Persian costs a dollar or so more per rug. Where there is
constant direct use in the hall we will do wisely to get either a
moderate-priced article that may be renewed or something expensive that
will wear indefinitely. Sometimes the latter is the more economical
plan. Very often halls are so shaped that a rug must be made to order.
It is better to do this and have a good-sized rug that will lie well
than to risk tripping and slipping with smaller ones.

For the living room a variety of choice in rugs is offered. Attempts
to utilize a number of small rugs are not usually joyous in their
outcome; besides, the floor space is too badly broken up. The large
center rug holds its own, with some reenforcement in the alcove or