Part 13 (1/2)

Aunt Emma showed her how to open the little silver match-box that Ruby had not discovered before in the outfit, and she lighted the taper, and then held a stick of green sealing-wax in the flarown quite soft in the heat, Ruby watched it carefully, and let the big drop at the end fall just at the right tiht place upon her envelope Then she pressed the seal down upon it, and you can guess how proud she hen she saw her initial in the wax

”Won't leefully ”She onder where I got the wax, and I am sure she will hardly believe that I made such a nice seal the very first tie 145froreat difference; and then she was very irls who had been there before, as they crowded about Aunt E their vacation

Maude was not at all pleased when she found that no one paid any particular attention to her, and she sat by herself with a very discontented look upon her face

One of the girls came up to her after a tiame, but Maude refused, sullenly, and after that no one else spoke to her

”I shall go hoet le bit No one pays a bit of attention to me, and my dress is ever so ht co with her aunt, so I do”

But Ruby was very happy where she was She had not forgotten Maude, and when they had first gone into the sitting-room, she had invited Maude to co Ruby to come over to her, she had concluded that Maude wished to be by herself, and was listening to the talk going on about her, without thinking any irls went up to bed, and Miss Chap, and that then they hts out, and not talk any irls ere tired had gone to bed earlier, but most of the scholars had stayed downstairs until that hour The next day would be the first day of regular school, and Miss Chapman told them that she hoped they would all sleep well so as to be fresh for their studies in the

When Ruby was in her room, she realized for the first tiirls who had come quite alone If she had not Aunt Emma she did not knohat she should have done, she should have been so lonely As it was, all her chatter stopped as she began to get undressed, and though Aunt Eht would interest her little niece, yet Ruby's answers grew uessed that she was thinking about home, and the dear ones there fro before

Ruby was really a brave little girl, and when she felt the lu it back, and trying to think only of how pleased her papa would be when he should hear that she had been good and had not cried to come home; but when at last she knelt down to say her prayers in her little white night gown, the tears would come

”I want mamma, oh, I want mamma,” she sobbed

Aunt Emma took her up tenderly in her arirl as tenderly as she could; but no one could take the place of , the tears ca to be brave, Aunt E, I truly am, but it does just seem as if I should die if I could n't see o hoht”

”There, dear, don't cry so hard,” said Aunt E away her tears ”You will feel better to- your lessons that you will not have tiain, you will remember that you have coet well and strong again, and the braver you are, the sooner she will iotten that, had n't you, dear? You know you are helping tosome I shall not think you are not brave because you do, but I know you are going to stop very soon and cuddle up and go to sleep, and wake up as happy as a little bird”

Ruby wiped away her tears after a tiirlarms about her, and not remember how far she ay from home and from her mother and father

CHAPTER XIV

SCHOOL

At half-past six the next h the house, and Ruby sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes, trying to remember where she was, and what the bell was

It did not take her very long to reain, and wondering what the first day of school would be like

By the time she was all dressed, and had put on one of her pretty new school dresses, the bell rang again, and as Ruby followed Aunt Emma out into the hall, she saw that all the other doors down the long passage-ere opening, and the girls were co their collars, as if they had not had quite ti-room and sat in their chairs around the sides of the roo prayers Miss Chape chair at the end of the rooht to herself, like a queen upon her throne As they ca, Miss Chapirls, those who had been there the year before, made a little courtesy as they entered, but the new scholars were too shy to even try to do this, and they only said ”Good ,” and some of theirl next to the to say

After prayers cairls went upstairs to make their beds and put their rooether, and two teachers besides Miss Chapirls called her There was Miss Ketchuirls always thought of her as a teacher, and she soht a class if any of the other teachers were ill or away

Mrs Boardirls how the rooms were to be kept, and she was such a motherly, warirl in her room she would know just how to cheer and comfort her, and help her to dry her tears