Ruby's Reward — page 285: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

“No, I am thoroughly warm, indeed the room has been getting rather close, and I shall be glad of bet- ter air,’ Mrs. Gordon answered, and then they went away, leaving Ruby in solitary possession of the library and the pleasant fire, much to her relief. She had only been pretending to read before Ed- mund Carpenter came in, but now the book dropped from her hands and she fell into a fit of Aoutiod musing. Presently Timothy, a handsome maltese cat of which she had grown very fond and made a great pet singe coming to Forestvale, came purring to her side; then, as she put out her hand to smootlt his soft fur, he made a low, satisfied noise, gave a leap and settled himself cozily in her lap. She put her arms abouthim with a sense of comfort, and somehow did not feel quite so lonely or friend- less with him there. She sat thus for a long time, until the fire burned low and the charring embers dropped apart and, one by one, went out. The house was very still, and she could not heara sound, save now and then a low, brief ‘‘check” from the other room, where the chess-players were ab- sorbed in their game, and the gentle ticking of the marble clock on the mantel above her. Suddenly she was startled by a strange sensation upon her foot, and, glancing down, she espied a tiny mouse perched upon the toe of her slipper. She started involuntarily, and the frightened little fellow sprang down and flew over the carpet, disap- pearing behind the great, old-fashioned writing-desk on the opposite side of the room. _ “Timothy, wake up?’ Ruby said, arousing the cat from his comfortable nap. ‘There's a prize for you here, if you will look sharp.” She put him down upon the floor; then, rising, went over to the desk to route his mouseship from his hiding-place and give the cat a chanee to catch it, The desk was a cumbersome piece of furniture, but it was me rollers, oe Pe Be tae her strength, Ruby sueeeeded in pushing it a little way,out from the side of the housh E : onnbeboons.com