Her father had died a few months after her marriage, and at the death of her husband she found herself left with an income of about a hundred a year--the interest of the sum for which he had insured his life.
To her surprise she had a month or two later received an intimation from the lawyer who managed her business that a friend had arranged to pay the sum of a hundred pounds every quarter to her account, on condition only that no inquiry whatever should be made as to his or her identity.

Mary Conway had thankfully accepted the gift, which had, however, caused her intense wonderment and curiosity.

So far as she knew neither her father nor her husband had any relations who could have afforded so handsome a gift.

She knew that Colonel Vernon had been most popular with his regiment, and the supposition at which she finally arrived was that some young officer whom he had befriended in difficulties had, on coming into a large property, determined similarly to befriend the daughter of his former colonel.
Had she been alone in the world she would have declined to accept this aid from an unknown benefactor, but for her son's sake she felt that it would be wrong to do so.

The idea that the money might come from Herbert Penfold had once or twice occurred to her, only to be at once dismissed, for had she really believed that it came from him she could not, even for Ralph's sake, have accepted it.