His management of the case was so
superior to that of the opposing counsel, and his citations of law
and precedent so cumulative and explicit, that he gained not only an
easy victory, but made for himself a very favorable impression.
After that business began gradually to flow in upon him, and he was
able to gather in sufficient to keep his family, though for some
time only in a very humble way. Having no old acquaintances in the
city, Mr. Ridley was comparatively free from temptation. He was
promptly at his office in the morning, never leaving it, except to
go into court or some of the public offices on business, until the
hour arrived for returning home.
A new life had become dominant, a new ambition was ruling him. Hope
revived in the heart of his almost despairing wife, and the future
looked bright again. His eyes had grown clear and confident once
more and his stooping shoulders square and erect. In his bearing you
saw the old stateliness and conscious sense of power. Men treated
him with deference and respect.
In less than a year Mr. Ridley was able to remove his family into a
better house and to afford the expense of a servant. So far they had
kept out of the city's social life. Among strangers and living
humbly, almost meanly, they neither made nor received calls nor had
invitations to evening entertainments; and herein lay Mr. Ridley's
safety. It was on his social side that he was weakest.
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