She had come down-stairs equipped in this way; and when Mrs. Meyrick said, in a tone of question, "You like to go in that dress, dear?" she answered, "My brother is poor, and I want to look as much like him as I can, else he may feel distant from me"--imagining that she should meet him in the workman's dress. 
She had told Mrs. Meyrick, "My brother is poor, and I want to look as much like him as I can, else he may feel distant from me" - imagining that she should meet him in workman's dress. 