Jane Coop was maid, adviser and buffer to the girl whom she loved more
than anyone on earth.

Born on the Squire's lands, she had developed a positive genius for
mothering delicate lambs and calves and sickly chicks, so that when a
crisis had arrived almost immediately after the birth of Damaris, the
Squire had bundled the highly-certificated nurse into a motor and sent
her packing back to London, and called upon Jane Coop to rise to the
occasion.

She had risen.

Bonny and plump, she had taken the weakly little bit of humanity, also
the situation, into her strong, capable hands; treated the mother and
babe just as she would have treated a couple of delicate lambs, and
pulled them both through.

From that day forth she had dominated the house, tyrannised over the
Squire and his lady, defied each and every governess who had shown
signs of undue strictness, and found her reward for her devotion in the
love of the child who teased her to death and--in the long run--obeyed
her.

She had shown herself a positive sheep-dog on board the boat. She had
rounded up her white lamb and yapped upon the heels of those who dared
approach with too great familiarity; had bristled and shown her teeth
upon every possible occasion, until those who would fain have led the
girl into new and verdant pastures had fled at the sheep-dog's
approach, leaving them both to enjoy the novelty of everything, each
after her own kind.