At the far end of New York's 72nd Street, near a leafy tree overlooking the Hudson River, there is a statue which has attracted much acclaim since its unveiling in 1996. It is an eight-foot bronze sculpture of Eleanor Roosevelt, standing with ankles crossed in a pensive pose.

This is the west side of Manhattan, Eleanor Roosevelt country, the place where she was born, where she served as a Democratic Party activist, where she faithfully stood by the side of her husband, Franklin D. Roosevelt, when he was elected governor and eventually president of the United States.

Hillary Clinton was recently photographed standing beside the statue and the imagery was lost on no one. More than any other First Lady, Hillary Clinton has sought to model herself on Eleanor Roosevelt. She has been diplomatic in stating her admiration for previous first ladies of this century, but the fact is that Mrs Clinton has been an entirely different kind of White House spouse.

It is challenging to think of what she has in common with Nancy Reagan or Barbara Bush, or even Rosalyn Carter. Her quest to emulate the legacy of Mrs Roosevelt has at times subjected her to the kind of criticism which dogged Mrs Roosevelt during her White House tenure.

Mrs Roosevelt came to the White House with her husband in 1933. She did things a First Lady had never done before: she held news conferences, travelled around the country on her own, gave lectures, conducted a weekly radio broadcast and even wrote a daily syndicated newspaper column called My Day through which she expressed her own political views.

When President Roosevelt died in 1945, Mrs Roosevelt told reporters: "The story is over." But it was not.

Within a year, at the age of 62, Mrs Roosevelt became a spokeswoman for the United Nations, a task she embraced with energy and commitment until her health failed in 1962. She was a role model, an activist, and a strong voice on the issues which concerned her, primarily nuclear proliferation, civil rights for blacks, women's rights, and human rights around the world.

Even while she was in the White House, many speculated on her political ambitions. The January 1940 issue of Harper's magazine ran a story: "The Future of Eleanor Roosevelt". By July 1946, Mrs Roosevelt was herself penning a story for Look magazine entitled, "Why I Choose Not to Run".

Mrs Clinton may soon be writing a similar article . . . or not. When the Lewinsky scandal began 13 months ago, the world looked anew at this Yale-trained lawyer who had remained something of an enigma, and a slightly frosty one at that. Yet Mrs Clinton's grace and dignity in the light of a public humiliation that would have sent lesser souls underground propelled her to unprecedented popularity.

She has appeared on the cover of Vogue; but glamour and iconography are only part of the picture. On the ground, politicking is another. She visited 19 states campaigning on behalf of Democrats in the November elections, and several victories have been attributed to her presence, notably the wins of Senator Barbara Boxer in California and Senator Charles Schumer in New York.

New York, Eleanor Roosevelt country. It is fitting that the crescendo of speculation about Mrs Clinton's future is reaching an extraordinary pitch there. It is also fitting, and telling, that Mrs Clinton is doing nothing to quell the fever.

The rumours began in earnest just after the November elections when New York's Senator Patrick Moynihan announced he will not seek re-election in 2000. New York Congressman Charles Rangel immediately called on Mrs Clinton to consider running for the seat.

"I can't begin to give you the names of labour leaders and politicians and activists who believe it would be a fantastic thing for our state and for our party," Mr Rangel told New York magazine.

Soon afterwards, New Jersey Senator Robert Torricelli, a friend of both Clintons, told reporters he thought it would be great idea. That cemented the rumour, because savvy observers knew that a man as close to the Clintons as Mr Torricelli would not say such a thing unless Mrs Clinton had cleared it.

The polls show Mrs Clinton leading in New York by 56 to 27 per cent over the mayor, Mr Rudy Giuliani, the expected Republican Party nominee. The cover of New York magazine features a huge headline: "New York Democrats to First Lady: SAVE US!"

The precedent is there. Robert Kennedy moved to New York to run for the Senate, and won. And there is another reason New Yorkers would love to elect Mrs Clinton. As New York writer Michael Tomasky puts it: "New York would love one more chance to prove itself less hypocritical and more effortlessly sophisticated than the gaseous capital."

The speculation is obviously so intense that Mrs Clinton will soon be forced to make a statement one way or the other. The New York Post and MSNBC television reported this week that Mrs Clinton had bought an apartment at 290 West End Avenue (only a few blocks from that sculpture). The White House denied it, but a real estate broker told a reporter that the transaction was supposed to be a secret. The question that haunts even those who fervently wish to believe Mrs Clinton will run is . . . why would she? She has no affection for Washington DC, and the prospect of being one of 100 droning senators might lack appeal. Running for office is not what Eleanor Roosevelt did, and several sources say they believe Mrs Clinton is much more interested in international issues.

What is certain is that Hillary Clinton, who came to Washington as a ordinary-looking lawyer, is now seen as a wife who stuck by her husband, a magazine cover girl, and a moral force for honesty and dignity. It makes one wonder if Mrs Clinton read what Eleanor Roosevelt wrote when she was just 14 years old: "No matter how plain a woman may be . . . if truth and loyalty are stamped upon her face, all will be attracted to her."

On second thoughts, it seems certain Mrs Clinton must have read that somewhere.