tmost. On first arriving in New York, she had taken a modest suite
of rooms in one of Manhattan's luxurious hostelries, but this she soon
found too expensive for her slender purse. Until it was proved that she
was legally entitled to the fortune her father had left, she could not
touch a cent of it. Meantime, her means were limited. Practically all
the available cash she had was a few hundred dollars left from her Paris
allowance. Mr. Ricaby offered to advance her any amount, but she
gratefully declined his assistance, preferring to husband her resources
by the practice of strict economy. The first step was to move into
cheaper quarters. After a long search she found comfortable rooms at
Mrs. Parkes' genteel boarding house on West Fourteenth Street. The
neighborhood was far from fashionable, but Paula did not mind that.
Indeed, she thought it an advantage, preferring to be quiet and
secluded, hidden away, as it were, from the world until the legal fight
was over and she could take her proper place in the world. Besides, she
was nearer now to the poorer districts to which her daily duties called
her, almost next door to the slums where her youthful enthusiasm,
tireless energy, fine humanitarianism were devoted daily to the noble
work of rescuing the needy and unfortunate. This Settlement work, far
from weighing heavily upon her, she regarded as a blessing. It not only
enabled her to do some good in the world, but it kept her mind occupied
while the lawyers were squabbling in the courts.

Of Mr. Ricaby she saw very little. He was busy, working constantly in
her interests, preparing for the trial. The case, he told her, was
already on the calendar and would come up very soon. Victory, for their
side, was, of course, a foregone conclusion. The other side had
virtually not a leg to stand upon. They must be prepared, however, for
any emergency. Bascom Cooley was known to be unscrupulous, a man who
would stop at nothing to gain his ends. Through trickery and his
political pull he had already scored an important point. The judge
before whom the case would come was an intimate friend of his. They
played poker together and belonged to the same political organization.
Was it not possible that he might be tempted to let his sympathies lean
in his crony's favor? Yet even judges dare not betray their trust too
openly. If right were on Paula's side, the Court would be forced to
render a decision in her favor.

Notwithstanding this le