Initially, the man who went around selling small rattraps of wire is called a Vagabond’ for he plodded along the road, left to his own meditations. He is referred to as “stranger” by the narrator while describing his meeting with the old crofter. When he leaves the next day he is described as “the man with rattraps.’ When he returns half an hour later to steal money he is called ‘the rattrap peddler.’
For the blacksmiths at the forge he is an intruder. The narrator now refers to him as a ‘****’. For the rich ironmaster he is a “ragamuffin’. Since he had never seen the ironmaster or known his name, the man with rattraps is called a ‘stranger’. He is described as ‘stranger while he stretches himself out on the floor when the ironmaster leaves. The label sticks to him during his stay at the manor house as a guest. These descriptions also suggest the degree of social difference ^between the persons and the peddler of rattraps and their attitude towards him.
