A hundred, a thousand to one; even so;
Not a hope in the world remained:
The swarming, howling wretches below
Gained and gained and gained.
Skene looked at his pale young wife:--
"Is the time come?"--"The time is come!"--
Young, strong, and so full of life:
The agony struck them dumb.
The gender imbalance is appropriate for the time; Skene’s name is included, but not his wife. 
 She is described as ‘pale, young wife’ to stimulate the reader’s sympathy.  She is young and therefore her impending death is a tragedy. The description ‘pale’ suggests fear. She is also clearly new to India and the fierce climate hasn’t yet affected her English complexion.
In The Round Tower At Jhansi June 8 1857