...mothers are often fondest ...

...mothers are often fondest of the child which has caused them the greatest pain.
...mothers are often fondest of the child which has caused them the greatest pain.

Quotes from the same author

An invasion of armies can be resisted, but not an idea whose time has come.
Life is the flower for which love is the honey.
I dislike wealth and prosperity, especially that of other men.
God has made the cat to give man the pleasure of caressing the tiger.
A mother's arms are made of tenderness and children sleep soundly in them.