Connoisseurs of the smart move,
appraising the prices of commodities
and men, they stepped up against
their instincts, their futures anchored
in marriageable daughters,
the grit and astuteness of sons.

Their acquisitive eyes had once
been lit by the weight in tapestries
from Bruges or Ghent, the patience
entwined   

in   

filigree   

work   

or   

lace.
Their solid tables sustained them.

Stripped here to a stark decency,
they are each wearing a halter
as   

they   

shuffle   

beyond
the   

starved   

confines   

of   

town.

Seeming   

defiant,   

one   

has   

stopped,
upright;;   

another   

cowers   

behind   

him.
Without   

recourse,   

all   

are   

abject   

–
bound in the fellowship of those
reaching beyond their fear.