# Mother Jane explained — Lost Man’s Lane

> Chapter companion for Lost Man’s Lane by Anna Katharine Green.

## What happens

Amelia Butterworth encounters William Knollys, who questions her about Mr. Trohm's visit. She deflects his suspicions with a plausible explanation. William then asks her to help deliver a message to Mother Jane, who is in a stubborn mood. They visit Mother Jane's cottage, where Amelia observes the woman's refusal to cooperate and notes the remarkable cleanliness of the home. William grows increasingly irritable, and the chapter ends with an ominous tapping sound from the house.

## Themes in this chapter

### Secrecy and Deception

Amelia deliberately conceals her suspicions from William, and William himself is evasive about the nature of the work Mother Jane is wanted for.

### Isolation and Community

Mother Jane lives apart from the Knollys household, yet is called upon for menial labor; the tension between her isolation and the family's need for her services is highlighted.

### Poverty and Decline

Mother Jane's cottage is clean but sparse, reflecting her poverty; the Knollys family's reliance on such a woman for work hints at their own diminished circumstances.

## Character check-ins

### Amelia Butterworth

Narrates the chapter; confronts William's suspicions about Mr. Trohm and attempts to persuade Mother Jane to work.

### William Knollys

Suspicious of Mr. Trohm's motives; asks Amelia to help communicate with Mother Jane; shows irritation and anger.

### Mr. Trohm

Mentioned as having visited that morning; William suspects him of spying and links him to the police.

### Mother Jane

Found in her cottage in a stubborn mood; refuses to do work for the Knollys family despite offers of money.

### Lucetta

Mentioned by William as distrusting Mr. Trohm and believing he has ulterior motives.

### Saracen

William's hound, heard moaning unhappily from confinement.

## Key lines

> Well, well, what did Trohm want here this morning?

William confronts Amelia about Mr. Trohm's early visit.

_William's suspicion of Trohm is immediately apparent._

> Seventy... Yours, if you will do some work for Miss Knollys tonight.

Amelia offers Mother Jane a coin to persuade her to work.

_Mother Jane's refusal underscores her stubbornness and the family's difficulty in getting help._

> I can count no more. Go away!

Mother Jane mutters that she cannot count further and dismisses them.

_Her fixation on counting suggests mental distress or obsession._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lost_man_s_lane_se/chapters/xxi-mother-jane
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lost_man_s_lane_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lost_man_s_lane_se/chapters