At the thought of her mother's engaging in such an occupation, when the suggestion was made her mind instantly revolted.

It appeared to her as if disgrace would be the inevitable consequence.
"And you are in earnest in all this ?" was an expression mingling her clear conviction of the truth of what at first appeared so strange a proposition, and her astonishment that the necessities of their situation were such as to drive them to so humiliating a resource.
"Deeply in earnest," was the mother's reply.
"We are left alone in the world.

He who cared for us and provided for us so liberally has been taken away, and we have nowhere to look for aid but to the resources that are in ourselves.

These well applied, will give us, I feel strongly assured, all that we need.

The thing to decide is, what we ought to do.