POWER OF ATTORNEY



The undersigned hereby constitutes and
appoints John E. Bruno, Katy D. Burke and Cynthia
M. Clarke, and each of them singly as true and lawful
attorneys with full power to them and each of them, to
execute, on behalf of the undersigned, in the capacity
listed below, any and all statements or reports under
Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended, with respect to the beneficial ownership of
reportable securities issued by First Financial Fund,
Inc., High Yield Plus Fund, Inc., Nuveen Diversified
Dividend and Income Fund and Partners Balanced
Trust including, without limitation, all initial
statements of beneficial ownership on Form 3, all
statements of changes of beneficial ownership on
Form 4 and all annual statements of beneficial
ownership on Form 5, and any and all other
documents that may be required, from time to time, to
be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
and any exchange upon which such Fund's are listed,
to execute any and all amendments or supplements to
any such statements or forms, and to file the same,
with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in
connection therewith, with the Securities and
Exchange Commission and any exchange upon which
such Fund's are listed, granting to said attorney, full
power and authority to do so and perform each and
every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done
in and about the premises, as fully to all intents and
purposes as the undersigned might or could do in
person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said
attorneys or any of them may lawfully do or cause to
be done by virtue hereof.

	IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has
set his or her hand on this 11th day of June 2004.




Signature:  /s/ Phillip H. Perelmuter
Name:	      Phillip H. Perelmuter
Title: 	      Senior Vice President and Partner