A Little Wizard

What happens when a boy's Cavalier father dies and a greedy servant decides to make a bit of a reward off of him? Jack Patten is the heir presumptive to his father's estate, since his elder brother Frank was last heard of as fighting with the Royalists. The Roundheads have no war against children and are puzzled what to do with the estate, since the existence of this younger son had escaped their knowledge until now, and the estate already awarded to a Puritan in light of the traitorism of the father and brother.

The butler sees a chance for personal gain if the child disappears—a chance that there might be a reward offered for his recovery. He takes them to his relatives on the moors, where poor Jack is left mostly to his own devices while the butler pursues his own paths toward wealth. He does his bits for the King, and before the tale is told even Cromwell has taken a hand in the game.

Note about the title: The good people surely cannot believe it when they are outwitted by a mere boy. Thus they term him a wizard, using the excuse that he is cunning because he is in league with the evil one, letting that mask their cupidity and greed. There is no actual witchcraft in the book.