It was ilegal and prohibited by the church to marry your brothers widow during that time period.
Mmm to me this looks like after that time period? It was only illegal for about 75 years before they changed the law back to marrying your widowed family members imo this seems like the early 1900s
Richard died in 1893 so the story definitely took place in that time period.
Oh lmao I missed that they were short just a few years
Just to say.. they could have gotten married. In older time periods people would totally marry this widowed sister in laws in the name of "protection" so she wouldn't need to worry or fend off other men. So like he totally could have married her out of "obligation"