[2]: 1  In 1867 she married Henry William Steel, a member of the Indian Civil Service, and they lived in India until 1889,[3] chiefly in the Punjab, with which most of her books are connected.

[4] She grew deeply interested in native Indian life and began to urge educational reforms on the government of India.

The birth of her daughter gave her a chance to interact with local women and learn their language.

Her interest in schools and the education of women gave her insight into native life and character.

Some of her best work, according to the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, is contained in two collections of her short stories, From the Five Rivers and Tales of the Punjab.