Ruth Arnold / or, the Country Cousin

to scold, applaud, or pet, as they deemed fit. His mother, overcome by the anxiety and suspense of those terrible moments, fainted directly he

the party, who were anxious to remain until the moon had risen, and also by Mrs. Woburn's desire not to

a purpose, and after hunting up a village musician and pressing him into their service, hats and wraps were thrown aside and the dancing commenced. Ruth did not understand the steps, but sat down near the married ladies and looked on at what, to her unaccustomed eyes, was a gay and lively scene. Yet she could not enter into it as she had entered into the pleasures of the preceding days. She could not forget the alar

den in dense shadow by the surrounding trees. The steamer lay in the little bay just below, every

water and at the quiet stars keeping watch overhead. Nothing so much reminded her of home as the stars, which shone upon her just as they had shone at home, and with the thought of home came a

ining weeks of the sea-side holiday passed all too quickly for Ruth, who was never tire

and trying to imagine what the school, the governesses, and the pupils would be like. It was of little use to question Julia, who alw

ng shorter and colder, and as the railway journey occupied two or three hours it was late in the day w

brilliantly lighted, down long roads, past handsome houses and gardens, until it stopped before a large ma

the tile-paved hall, where two servants were waiting to receive them. It was a ho

n," said Mrs. Woburn. "Come, R

girl's apartment. Everything was so pretty, and the bright fire burning in the grate gave the room such a cosy look, that Ru

kshelves, and brackets upon the walls. How much larger and more elegant it was than the tiny room which had been hers at Cressleigh! She felt that she was indeed growin

fact that their tastes were dissimilar. Instead of seeking for points on which they could agree, she allowed her mind to dwell continually upon their diversity, and was beginning to return her