According to a 1901 Index article, Cather writes: "One of the quaint 'literary landmarks' of Washington is the little red cottage in Georgetown where for nearly fifty years Mrs. Southworth planned adventures for self-sacrificing chambermaids and noble, though affectionate, factory girls."
Cather continues: "It is true that Miss Corelli has greater facility at her command, a larger variety of adjectives, the advantages of a better education and a more restraining environment, but her real literary idea is much the same as Emma Southworth's."