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The action of the novel begins in the 1880s in the slums of New York, where man is a wolf to man and where there is no place for compassion, honesty, and Christian morality. Una Kelly is a thief and... a con artist, and she knows no other way to survive in this cruel world except for the unwavering adherence to her own set of rules. When Una is falsely accused of murder, she manages to escape and, under a false name, finds a position at the recently opened nursing school at Bellevue Hospital, founded on the principles of Florence Nightingale. She has no intention of studying; she just needs to lie low and hide from the police. However, as she works in the hospital, Una's character changes, and she discovers in herself the capacity for compassion and even self-sacrifice.