When Alice became housekeeper to the affluent Mrs Holt it was a relief from a life of drudgery and anxiety and a haven both for herself and for her two year old son Jamie. When her employer soon after gave birth to a daughter it was only natural that Alice should retain her position in the household and that the two children should grow up together but Mrs Holt reminded Alice that her daughter could never grow up to marry her son Jamie as he was simply a son of a servant.