Tom moves to Boston and becomes successful, exacting hard terms and showing no mercy to those in his debt. Growing older, Tom regrets his bargain and searches to find a way out of the pact. He becomes zealous in church attendance, prays loudly and publicly, keeps an open Bible in his home, and always carries a small one with him. He does not, however, give up his harsh business practices.
One hot afternoon, dressed in a white linen cap and silk morning gown, Tom is about to foreclose a mortgage. When the poor victim begs for a delay, reminding Tom of the money he previously made from him, Tom replies, “The devil take me . . . if I have made a farthing!” Immediately, there are three knocks at the door, and standing in the street is Old Scratch and a black horse.
Having left the small Bible in his coat and having covered the large one with the mortgage, Tom is helpless to prevent the devil from placing him on the horse, which gallops off down the streets of Boston. The next day, his house burns to the ground, and Tom never returns. It is said, however, that the swamp and Indian fort are haunted by a spirit on horseback wearing a white cap and morning gown. The story is so well-known, says the narrator, that it is the source of the New England saying, “The Devil and Tom Walker.”
