Afurnished flat at $8 per week. it did not exactly beggar description, but it certainly had that word on the lookout
for the mendicancy squad. in the vestibule below was a letter-box into which no letter would go, and an electric
button from which no mortal finger could coax a ring.
in the passage above, the author's word choice creates a mood of
mystery
romance
barrenness
hopefulness