Even with her children the sad restraint never wore off nor grew less.

If they wanted to play, they sought the farmer in the fields, the good-natured nurse, or the indulgent grandmamma--never the sad, pale mother.

If they were in trouble then they sought her.
Dora asked for work.

She would have been dairy maid, house maid, or anything else, but her father said "No." A pretty little room was given to her, with woodbines and roses peeping in at the window.

Here for long hours every day, while the children played in the meadows, she sat and sewed.