She burst into laughter, but she picked
it up and held it lovingly close to her cheek. What fun it was going to
be to see those kittens grow up!
Old Shep padded back softly to the couch, his toe-nails clicking on the
floor, hoisted himself heavily up, and went to sleep. The kitten
subsided into a ball again. Eleanor stirred and stretched in her sleep
and laid her head in utter trust on her little mistress's hand. After
that Betsy moved the checkers only with her other hand.
In the intervals of the game, while Uncle Henry was pondering over his
moves, the little girl looked down at her pets and listened absently to
the keen autumnal wind that swept around the old house, shaking the
shutters and rattling the windows. A stick of wood in the stove burned
in two and fell together with a soft, whispering sound. The lamp cast a
steady radiance on Uncle Henry bent seriously over the checker-board, on
Molly's blooming, round cheeks and bright hair, on Aunt Abigail's rosy,
cheerful, wrinkled old face, and on Cousin Ann's quiet, clear, dark
eyes ... .
That room was full to the brim of something beautiful, and Betsy knew
what it was. Its name was Happiness.
THE END.
End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Understood Betsy, by Dorothy Canfield
*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK UNDERSTOOD BETSY ***
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