From Reuben, Reuben

• Gowan McGland:Am I correct in assuming that you’re one of that endangered species…the native New Englander?
• Frank Spofford:I’m the most displaced of all displaced persons—your native son in a modern town. And, can you believe it, I got displaced by staying put. I saw this town where I was born grow from 1800 neighbors to 20,000 strangers…all of ‘em swarming in from New York or thereabouts. Look there. That’s where they live, and in other subdivisions with names like “Orchard View” and “Vineyard Haven.” All of them named, god help me, for the woods and the vineyards and the apple trees they bulldozed out of existence to make way for the new culture.