Fanny’s father tried to give Fanny as much independence as would be considered proper in the mid-19th century. He was protective over her and wanted her to be happy. Fanny trusted her father to speak for her in tense situations, such as speaking to an old-fashioned male senator about women and marriage.

 “Senator Browning of Ill. dined with us, en famille. At dinner Father told him that twenty, (he meant eighteen) years ago, he had his life insured to provide something for my maintenance when I grew up. He did not want me to marry some scamp & be ill-treated. Mr. Browning thought young ladies (though not thinking too much of it) ought to look forward to marriage as a desirable event. Father thought it was a great risk & chance that even marriage for love was as likely to end unhappy as not, for–at my age I would not be capable of understanding the charades of any man. He wished to provide for my future comforts independent of any consideration of marriage. Mr. Browning thought it was best for young ladies to be married and not be left alone–but our sisters and brothers would marry & leave us. “Some of them will and some of them won’t” said Father looking at Augustus with a smile. Mr. Browning, with his wornout notions of man, the chief end of woman–quite provoked me. It was on the end of my tounge to say that in case of necessity I thought I would be able to support myself–but as he might have asked how!! and I should have had to say something of my hopes of writing, I thought best to be silent. I have a horror of appearing to class myself with the blue-stocking number. So I kept still, and Father maintained the woman side better than I would have done. How great a contrast were his generous and manly sentiments, compared with the conceited old notions of Mr. B. My dear Father is always one who takes the woman’s side of the question without identifying himself with the absurd & ultra woman’s rights theorists.” Jan 22, 1863