by
Who buys? Who buys? 'Tis like a market-fair;
The hubbub rises deafening on the air:
The children spend their honest money there;
The knaves prowl out like foxes from a lair.
Who buys? Who sells? Alas, and still alas!
The children sell their diamond stones for glass;
The knaves their worthless stones for diamonds pass.
He laughs who buys; he laughs who sells. Alas!
In the days when New England was only a group of thinly settledwildernesses called "provinces," there was something almost like the oldfeudal tenure of lands there, and a relation between the rich land-ownerand his tenants which had many features in common with those of therelation between margraves and vassals in the days of Charlemagne.
Far up in the North, near the Canada line, there lived at that time aneccentric old man, whose name is still to be found here and there on thetattered parchments, written "WILLAN BLAYCKE, Gentleman."
Tradition occupies itself a good deal with Willan Blaycke, and does notgive his misdemeanors the go-by as it might have done if he had beeneither a poorer or a less clever man. Why he had crossed the seas andcast in his lot with the pious Puritans, nobody knew; it was certainlynot because of sympathy with their God-reverencing faith and God-fearinglives, nor from any liking for hardships or simplicity of habits. He hadgold enough, the stories say, to have bought all the land from the St.Johns to the Connecticut if he had pleased; and he had servants andhorses and attire such as no governor in all the provinces could boast.He built himself a fine house out of stone, and the life he led in itwas a scandal and a byword everywhere. For all that, there was not a manto be found who had not a good word to say for Willan Blaycke, and not awoman who did not look pleased and smile if he so much as spoke to her.He was generous, with a generosity so princely that there were many whosaid that he had no doubt come of some royal house. He gave away a farmto-day, and another to-morrow, and thought nothing of it; and whentenants came to him pleading that they were unable to pay their rent, hewas never known to haggle or insist.
Naturally, with such ways as these he made havoc of his estates, vast asthey were, and grew less and less rich year by year. However,