The Rooms That Are Not Taken

What Sarah knew, and what nobody had ever asked her to know, was which rooms were empty.

It was not among her duties. The register was at the desk, the keys were at the desk, and the letting of rooms belonged to the clerks. But a house of three hundred and fifty-six rooms is not run from a desk. It is run from the floors. At six in the morning, when the linen is given out, you know which doors are to be done. At eleven, when the baskets come down, you know which have been used. At nine at night, when the coal goes up, you know which are dark and cold.

In December, with Congress coming in, there were few. But there were some.