A restless night wind was moaning through the pines that fringed the bank behind him ; the moon shone down radiantly , turning the calm expanse of the bay into a milk-white sheen . He took Marian 's ring from his pocket and kissed it reverently . Then he threw it from him far out over the water . For a second the diamond flashed in the moonlight ; then , with a tiny splash , it fell among the ripples . Esterbrook turned his face to the Cove , lying dark and silent in the curve between the crescent headlands . A solitary light glimmered from the low eaves of the Barrett cottage . Tomorrow , was his unspoken thought , I will be free ; to go back to Magdalen . An Invitation Given on Impulse It was a gloomy Saturday morning . The trees in the Oaklawn grounds were tossing wildly in the gusts of wind , and sodden brown leaves were blown up against the windows of the library , where a score of girls were waiting for the principal to bring the mail in . The big room echoed with the pleasant sound of girlish voices and low laughter , for in a fortnight school would close for the holidays , and they were all talking about their plans and anticipations . Only Ruth Mannering was , as usual , sitting by herself near one of the windows , looking out on the misty lawn . She was a pale , slender girl , with a sad face , and was dressed in rather shabby black . She had no special friend at Oaklawn , and the other girls did not know much about her . If they had thought about it at all , they would probably have decided that they did not like her ; but for the most part they simply overlooked her . This was not altogether their fault . Ruth was poor and apparently friendless , but it was not her poverty that was against her . Lou Scott , who was `` as poor as a church mouse , '' to quote her own frank admission , was the most popular girl in the seminary , the boon companion of the richest girls , and in demand with everybody . But Lou was jolly and frank and offhanded , while Ruth was painfully shy and reserved , and that was the secret of the whole matter . There was `` no fun in her , '' the girls said , and so it came about that she was left out of their social life , and was almost as solitary at Oaklawn as if she had been the only girl there . She was there for the special purpose of studying music , and expected to earn her own living by teaching it when she left .
She believed that the girls looked down on her XXXXX this account ; this was unjust , of course , but Ruth had no idea how much her own coldness and reserve had worked against her .
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