Then, on to checkmate, the most perfect type of utter finality, clear-cut and absolute. Shah-mat! Checkmate! The king is dead. In most conclusions there is something left ragged; something still in abeyance, in reserve. Here, however, is no shading, no balancing of the scales. We win, not by majority, as in cards; success or failure is unanimous. There was one ballot, and that is cast. No matter how ragged the playing that went before, the end of a game of chess is always perfect. It satisfies the spirit. Always at last comes contentment of soul, though it be our king that dies.

The following subjects are suggested as suitable for treatment in informal essays. They can, in many cases, be changed to suit individual experience, can be made either broader or more restricted. Perhaps they will suggest other somewhat similar but more usable subjects.

PEOPLE

  1. The Pleasures of Selfishness.
  2. Wondering if the Other Person Knows More.
  3. Pipe and Slippers and Dreams.
  4. Middle-aged Kittens.
  5. Being "Tough."
  6. Early Rising.
  7. Scientific Eating.
  8. The Joys of the Straphanger.
  9. Vicarious Possessions in Shop Windows.
  10. Shopping with the Bargain Hunter.
  11. New Year's Resolutions.
  12. The Gossip of the Waiting-Room (of a Railroad Station, Doctor's Office, etc.).
  13. The Stimulation of Closet Skeletons.
  14. Planning Houses.
  15. Keeping an Expense Book.
  16. The Millinery of the Choir.
  17. The Joys of Being Profane before the Consciously Pious.
  18. "Darius Greens."
  19. Tellers of Dreams.
  20. Making the Most of Misfortunes.
  21. The Moral Value of Carrying a Cane.
  22. Souvenir Hunting.
  23. The Person Who Has Always Had "The Same Experience Myself."
  24. Prayer-meeting Courtships.
  25. The Exhaustion of Repose.
  26. "See the Birdie, Darling!"
  27. Politeness to Rich Relatives.
  28. "It must be so; I Read it in a Book!"
  29. "Anyway," as Stevenson said, "I did my darndest."
  30. The Moral Rigor of the Nightly Setting-up Exercises.
  31. "Hooking Rides."
  32. A Society to Forbid Learning to Play the Trombone (or Cornet or Piano or anything else).
  33. A Sophomore for Life.
  34. Country Auctions.
  35. The Virtues of Enviousness.
  36. The Melancholy of Old Bachelors.
  37. Village "Cut-ups."
  38. Early Assurances of Doleful Dying.
  39. Failing, to make Money, through Failure to make Money.
  40. People who never Did Wrong as Children.
  41. "Just Wait till I'm Grown-up!"
  42. Philosophers' Toothaches.
  43. The Morality of Stubbing One's Toe in the Dark.
  44. The Dolefulness of Celebrations.
  45. What to Do with Bores.
  46. The Young and the Still-young Woman.
  47. The Satisfaction of Intolerance.
  48. The Struggle to be an "Intellectual."
  49. Church Socials.
  50. The Revelations of Food Sales.
  51. White-haired Enthusiasm.
  52. "I have It in my Card Index."
  53. The Rigors of Shaving.
  54. The Right to a "Beauty Box."
  55. "Hopelessly Sane."
  56. The "Job" After Graduation.
  57. The Stupidity of Heaven.
  58. The Boon Companions of Hell.
  59. People Who Remember When You Were "Only So High!"
  60. Being a Gentleman though Rich.
  61. Great Men One Might Wish to Have Thrashed.
  62. The Awful Servant.
  63. Morality When the Thermometer Reads 95°.
  64. The Technique of Teas.
  65. Dangers of Criticism.
  66. Starvation or a New Cook?
  67. Superior Profanity.
  68. The Logic of the Movies.
  69. The "Woman's Page."
  70. The Neatness of Men.
  71. On Taking Off One's Hat.
  72. Fashions in Slang.
  73. Ambitions at Thirteen.
  74. The Joys of Whittling.
  75. Learning, without Education.

THINGS

  1. Individuality in Shoes.
  2. Alarm Clocks.
  3. Rail Fences.
  4. Chimney Pots.
  5. Illuminated Mottoes.
  6. "Fresh Paint."
  7. Social Caste of Tombstones.
  8. The Lure of Banks.
  9. The Witchery of Seed Catalogues.
  10. Colonial Windows.
  11. Fishing Tackle in the Attic in January.
  12. The Invitation of the Label.
  13. Stolen Umbrellas.
  14. The Dolefuless of the Comic Supplement.
  15. The Humorousness of Card Catalogues.
  16. The Sweets and Dregs of Tin Roofs.
  17. The Tyranny of Remembered Melodies.
  18. Friendly Old Clothes.
  19. The Age of the Pennant.
  20. The Upper Berth.
  21. Bills in Dining Cars.
  22. Pound Cake.
  23. The Toothsome Drumstick.
  24. Cravats One Might Wish to Have Worn.
  25. Spite Fences.
  26. Personality of Teapots.
  27. "All You Have to Do Is—"
  28. Smoke on the Skyline.
  29. The First Long Trousers.
  30. The New Pipe.
  31. The Old Springboard.
  32. Drinking Fountains.
  33. The Work-savers—now in the Attic.
  34. Candlesticks.
  35. The Cantankerousness of Gas Engines.
  36. Weeds.
  37. The Pride of Uniforms.
  38. Leather-covered Books.
  39. The Pursuit of Oriental Rugs.
  40. Wedding Presents.
  41. Bird Baths.
  42. The Charm of Oil-Heaters.
  43. The Coquetry of Gift Shops.
  44. The Passing of the Hitching Post.
  45. Names One Might Wish to Have Had.
  46. Hall Bedrooms.
  47. The Lure of Historic Tablets.
  48. The Futility of Diaries.
  49. Squeaking Boards at Midnight.
  50. The Caste of Letter Heads.

NATURE

  1. Walking in the Rain.
  2. Skylines.
  3. The Personified Trees of Childhood.
  4. Coffee in the Woods.
  5. The Psychology of Hens.
  6. The Humanity of Barnyards.
  7. The Smell of Spring.
  8. The Perfume of Bonfires.
  9. The Sounds of Running Water.
  10. Tracks in the Snow.
  11. The Spectrum of Autumn.
  12. The Mellowness of Gardens.
  13. The Clamor of the Silent Stretches.
  14. The Innocent Joy of Not Knowing the Birds.
  15. The Rigors of the Sleeping Porch.
  16. Inspiration of Mountain-tops.
  17. Noises on Cold Winter Nights.
  18. Cherries or Robins?
  19. The Airedale Pal.
  20. Snakes I Have Never Met.
  21. The Exhilaration of Winds.
  22. Spring Fever.
  23. The Philosophy of Campfires.
  24. Birds in a City Yard.
  25. The Majesty of Thunderstorms.
  26. The Music of Snow Water.
  27. Hedges.
  28. Mountain Springs.
  29. The Deep Woods.
  30. Summer Clouds.
  31. The Companionable Birds.
  32. The Dignity of Crows.
  33. Trout Pools.
  34. Muskrat Trails.
  35. The First Flowers of Spring.
  36. The Squirrels in the Park.
  37. The Dry Sounds in Nature.
  38. The Honk of the Flying Wedge.
  39. The Pageant of the Warblers.
  40. The Challenge of Crags and Ledges.
  41. The White-birch Country.
  42. Apple Blossom Time.
  43. The Majesty of Rivers.
  44. Old Orchards.
  45. Dried Herbs.
  46. Friendly Roadside Bushes.
  47. The Exultant Leap of Waterfalls.
  48. The Wind in Hemlock, Pine, and Spruce.
  49. Tree Houses.
  50. The Collection of Pressed Flowers.