The lock-keeper's daughter

An original fiction passage set in the nineteenth century.

Ruth had lived beside Bell's Lock for sixteen years, yet the boatmen behaved as if she belonged only to the cottage. They had seen her carry messages, polish the signal lamp and bring her father his dinner. They had not seen her take hold of the great iron handles, because her father had always reached them first.

That afternoon, he lay upstairs with an injured ankle when a passenger boat appeared beyond the bend. Rain had swollen the canal, and the boat was travelling quickly towards the closed gates. Its captain shouted for Ruth to fetch the lock-keeper. When she explained that her father could not come, he looked past her towards the empty towpath. 'Then find us a man who can,' he called.

Ruth fitted the handle into place. Her first effort released too much water, which struck the lower gates hard enough to shake them. The captain gave a sharp laugh. Ruth closed the opening, waited for the force of the water to lessen, then began again. This time, the lock filled steadily. When a deck boy prepared to jump ashore with a rope, she ordered him to remain where he was. The captain hesitated, glanced at the dark water between the boat and the bank, and told the boy to obey her.

Once the upper gates opened, the boat passed through without touching the stone walls. The captain removed his hat and asked Ruth who had taught her the work. 'I watched,' she replied. Only after the boat had disappeared beyond the next bend did she loosen her aching fingers from the handle and allow herself to smile.

“The passage makes Ruth's growing authority convincing, even though others initially see her as incapable.”

Evaluate how successfully the writer presents this idea. Support your judgement with detailed references to the passage.