How we cite our quotes: (Volume.Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
[Helstone's] people were her people. She made hearty friends with them; learned and delighted in using their peculiar words; took up her freedom amongst them; nursed their babies. (1.2.5)
Margaret loves and cares about all the people in her home village of Helstone. She likes to speak their language, to hang out with them, and to take care of their kids no matter how much money they have. At this point in the novel, you'd swear that her compassion extends to everyone in the world. Just wait, though.
Quote #2
Margaret made a good listener to all her mother's plans for adding some small comforts to the lot of poor parishioners. (1.5.1)
Even though Margaret's mother complains a lot about having a small house, she still shows a lot of compassion in her own way. She's always thinking of new ways to improve the lives of the poor people in her village, just like Margaret.
Quote #3
The girl looked wistfully at the flowers, and, acting on a sudden impulse, Margaret offered them to her. (1.8.22)
When Margaret sees a sickly and poor young girl in Milton, her first instinct is to give the girl whatever she has, which in this case is a bouquet of flowers. Again, Margaret is showing us that compassion is something she doesn't even need to think about. For her it's a basic reflex.