---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Mansions once Knew their own masters, and…"
description: "\"Mansions once Knew their own masters, and laborious hinds, That had surviv'd the father, serv'd the son. Now the legitimate and rightful lord Is but a ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f79/william-cowper-779_bud_mansions-once-knew-their-own-masters-and_1009278.jpg"
---

#  Mansions once Knew their own masters, and laborious hinds…

![“Mansions once Knew their own masters, and laborious hinds, That had surviv'd the father, serv'd the son. Now the legitimate and rightful lord Is but a transient guest, newly arrived, And soon to be supplanted. He that saw His patrimonial timber cast its leaf, Sells the last scantling, and…” quote by William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f79/william-cowper-779_bud_mansions-once-knew-their-own-masters-and_1009278.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f79/william-cowper-779_bud_mansions-once-knew-their-own-masters-and_1009278.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f79/william-cowper-779_bud_mansions-once-knew-their-own-masters-and_1009278.jpg)

> “Mansions once Knew their own masters, and laborious hinds, That had surviv'd the father, serv'd the son. Now the legitimate and rightful lord Is but a transient guest, newly arrived, And soon to be supplanted. He that saw His patrimonial timber cast its leaf, Sells the last scantling, and transfers the price To some shrewd sharper ere it buds again. Estates are landscapes, gazed upon awhile, Then advertised and auctioneer'd away.”

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The passage describes how estates change hands, with new owners replacing old, turning land into a commodity.

**In simple terms:** Land shifts from family heritage to market sale.

Key Takeaway

Recognize the fleeting nature of ownership.

Themes

inheritance change economics

Mood

reflective somber critical

Type

historical social commentary

When to use this quote

- real estate
- family farms
- urban development
- historical preservation

Key Concepts

transience property market forces

Questions to Reflect On

- What values are lost when land is commodified?
- How can communities preserve heritage amid change?

A Different Perspective

Market forces can erode cultural continuity.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Estates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/estates/) [Extravagance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extravagance/) [Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/father/) [Landscape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/landscape/) [Lord](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lord/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Son](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/son/)

## Related quotes

> [The peace we seek, founded upon decent trust and cooperation among nations, can be fortified not by weapons of war but by wheat and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/the-peace-we-seek-founded-upon-decent-trust-and-cooperation-among/)

[Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/)

> [Where timber vegetation is ruthlessly destroyed, aridity and its sequence sterility will prevail and the hotter the climate, the more to be dreaded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ferdinand-von-mueller/where-timber-vegetation-is-ruthlessly-destroyed-aridity-and-its/)

Ferdinand von Mueller

> [When one is building a ship, one does not begin with gathering timber and cutting planks, but rather by arousing in people the yearning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/when-one-is-building-a-ship-one-does-not-begin-with-gathering-timber/)

[Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/)

> [Rainforest land is mistakenly valued solely for the worth of its timber, mining and oil resources by short-sighted corporations and governments.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kilham/rainforest-land-is-mistakenly-valued-solely-for-the-worth-of-its/)

[Chris Kilham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kilham/)

> [As for conforming outwardly, and living your own life inwardly, I do not think much of that. Let not your right hand know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-for-conforming-outwardly-and-living-your-own-life-inwardly-i-do/)

[Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/)

> [My father was a logger. He cut timber and hauled it out of the woods and had a sawmill. They sawed it into lumber.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-stanley/my-father-was-a-logger-he-cut-timber-and-hauled-it-out-of-the-woods/)

[Ralph Stanley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-stanley/)

> [There is a frightful interval between the seed and the timber.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/there-is-a-frightful-interval-between-the-seed-and-the-timber/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [It is generally supposed that where there is no QUOTATION, there will be found most originality; and as people like to lay out their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-d-israeli/it-is-generally-supposed-that-where-there-is-no-quotation-there-will/)

[Isaac D'Israeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-d-israeli/)

> [I imagine how hard it might be to walk down the runway. Me in heels is, like, deforesting the forest, knocking trees, completely 'timber!'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ireland-baldwin/i-imagine-how-hard-it-might-be-to-walk-down-the-runway-me-in-heels-is/)

[Ireland Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ireland-baldwin/)

> [A girl who bonnets a policeman with an ashcan full of bottles is obviously good wife-and-mother timber.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-girl-who-bonnets-a-policeman-with-an-ashcan-full-of-bottles-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [China is responsible for a lot of the major conservation issues we're facing. It's the main market for rhino horn. Tigers are being killed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-carwardine/china-is-responsible-for-a-lot-of-the-major-conservation-issues-we-re/)

[Mark Carwardine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-carwardine/)

> [I think just vocally I have a little timber in my voice that God gave me that does work - it puts my own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-gokey/i-think-just-vocally-i-have-a-little-timber-in-my-voice-that-god-gave/)

[Danny Gokey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-gokey/)

> [I pictured a low timber house with a shingled roof, caulked against storms, with blazing log fires inside and the walls lined with all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-chatwin/i-pictured-a-low-timber-house-with-a-shingled-roof-caulked-against/)

[Bruce Chatwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-chatwin/)

> [About five years ago, the courses we run in the Field Trials were 52 percent timber. The hawks live in trees, and the quail…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-carlisle/about-five-years-ago-the-courses-we-run-in-the-field-trials-were-52/)

[Rick Carlisle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-carlisle/)

> [In my beginning is my end. In succession Houses rise and fall, crumble, are extended, Are removed, destroyed, restored, or in their place Is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/in-my-beginning-is-my-end-in-succession-houses-rise-and-fall-crumble/)

[T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/)

## More by William Cowper

> [And hast thou sworn on every slight pretence, Till perjuries are common as bad pence, While thousands, careless of the damning sin, Kiss the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/and-hast-thou-sworn-on-every-slight-pretence-till-perjuries-are/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [No wild enthusiast could rest, till half the world like him was possessed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/no-wild-enthusiast-could-rest-till-half-the-world-like-him-was/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [Admirals extolled for standing still, or doing nothing with a deal of skill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/admirals-extolled-for-standing-still-or-doing-nothing-with-a-deal-of/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [“The good we never miss we rarely prize”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/the-good-we-never-miss-we-rarely-prize/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [Thus happiness depends, as nature shows, less on exterior things than most suppose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/thus-happiness-depends-as-nature-shows-less-on-exterior-things-than/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [Stamps God's own name upon a lie just made, To turn a penny in the way of trade.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/stamps-god-s-own-name-upon-a-lie-just-made-to-turn-a-penny-in-the-way/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [But oars alone can ne'er prevail To reach the distant coast; The breath of Heaven must swell the sail, Or all the toil is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-oars-alone-can-ne-er-prevail-to-reach-the-distant-coast-the/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [“Nature is but a name for an effect whose cause is God"...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/nature-is-but-a-name-for-an-effect-whose-cause-is-god/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [But conversation, choose what theme we may, And chiefly when religion leads the way, Should flow, like waters after summer show'rs, Not as if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-conversation-choose-what-theme-we-may-and-chiefly-when-religion/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [Remorse, the fatal egg that pleasure laid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/remorse-the-fatal-egg-that-pleasure-laid/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [“When we don't pray, we quit the fight. Prayer keeps the Christian's armor bright. And Satan trembles when he sees. The weakest saint upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/when-we-don-t-pray-we-quit-the-fight-prayer-keeps-the-christian-s/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [But animated nature sweeter still, to soothe and satisfy the human ear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/but-animated-nature-sweeter-still-to-soothe-and-satisfy-the-human-ear/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [A fretful temper will divide the closest knot that may be tied, by ceaseless sharp corrosion; a temper passionate and fierce may suddenly your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/a-fretful-temper-will-divide-the-closest-knot-that-may-be-tied-by/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [Ten thousand casks, Forever dribbling out their base contents, Touch'd by the Midas finger of the state, Bleed gold for ministers to sport away.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/ten-thousand-casks-forever-dribbling-out-their-base-contents-touch-d/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [The art of poetry is to touch the passions, and its duty to lead them on the side of virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/the-art-of-poetry-is-to-touch-the-passions-and-its-duty-to-lead-them/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

[Explore all 371 William Cowper quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

## More Bud quotes

> [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/)

[Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/)

> [The main thing about money is that it makes you do things you don't want to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-holbrook/the-main-thing-about-money-is-that-it-makes-you-do-things-you-don-t/)

[Hal Holbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-holbrook/)

> [Slow buds the pink dawn like a rose From out night's gray and cloudy sheath; Softly and still it grows and grows, Petal by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-chauncey-woolsey/slow-buds-the-pink-dawn-like-a-rose-from-out-night-s-gray-and-cloudy/)

[Sarah Chauncey Woolsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-chauncey-woolsey/)

> [The donning of the ear buds marks the beginning of teen life, when children set off on their own for the passage through adolescence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amity-shlaes/the-donning-of-the-ear-buds-marks-the-beginning-of-teen-life-when/)

[Amity Shlaes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amity-shlaes/)

> [A rhododendron bud lavender-tipped. Soon a glory of blooms to clash with the cardinals and gladden the hummingbirds!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-beard/a-rhododendron-bud-lavender-tipped-soon-a-glory-of-blooms-to-clash/)

[Dave Beard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-beard/)

> [I still do a bit of this and a bit of that. Some brews and there's nothing wrong with a bud or two!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-money/i-still-do-a-bit-of-this-and-a-bit-of-that-some-brews-and-there-s/)

[Eddie Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-money/)

> [If we cut open the bud of a beautiful rose in order to see how it is 'packed' and what it is going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-gardner/if-we-cut-open-the-bud-of-a-beautiful-rose-in-order-to-see-how-it-is/)

[Ian Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-gardner/)

> [But buds will be roses, and kittens, cats - more's the pity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/but-buds-will-be-roses-and-kittens-cats-more-s-the-pity/)

[Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/)

> [Marmalade in the morning has the same effect on taste buds that a cold shower has on the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanine-larmoth/marmalade-in-the-morning-has-the-same-effect-on-taste-buds-that-a/)

Jeanine Larmoth

> [Divine love is a sacred flower, which in its early bud is happiness, and in its full bloom is heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-hervey/divine-love-is-a-sacred-flower-which-in-its-early-bud-is-happiness/)

[James Hervey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-hervey/)

> [Each bud flowers but once and each flower has but its minute of perfect beauty; so, in the garden of the soul each feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-frederic-amiel/each-bud-flowers-but-once-and-each-flower-has-but-its-minute-of/)

[Henri Frederic Amiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-frederic-amiel/)

> [One day I shall burst my bud of calm and blossom into hysteria.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-fry/one-day-i-shall-burst-my-bud-of-calm-and-blossom-into-hysteria/)

[Christopher Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-fry/)

> [Who would deduce the dragonfly from the larva, the iris from the bud, the lawyer from the infant? ...We are all shape-shifters and magical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-ackerman/who-would-deduce-the-dragonfly-from-the-larva-the-iris-from-the-bud/)

[Diane Ackerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-ackerman/)

> [The American Beauty Rose can be produced in the splendor and fragrance which bring cheer to its beholder only by sacrificing the early buds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-rockefeller/the-american-beauty-rose-can-be-produced-in-the-splendor-and/)

[John D. Rockefeller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-rockefeller/)

> [Perseverance gives power to weakness, and opens to poverty the world's wealth. It spreads fertility over the barren landscape, and buds the choicest flowers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-griswold-goodrich/perseverance-gives-power-to-weakness-and-opens-to-poverty-the-world-s/)

Samuel Griswold Goodrich

Browse all 340 Bud quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Mansions once Knew their own masters, and laborious hinds, That had surviv'd the father, serv'd the son. Now the legitimate and rightful lord Is but a transient guest, newly arrived, And soon to be supplanted. He that saw His patrimonial timber cast its leaf, Sells the last scantling, and transfers the price To some shrewd sharper ere it buds again. Estates are landscapes, gazed upon awhile, Then advertised and auctioneer'd away.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "William Cowper"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/mansions-once-knew-their-own-masters-and-laborious-hinds-that-had/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bud"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/mansions-once-knew-their-own-masters-and-laborious-hinds-that-had/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f79/william-cowper-779_bud_mansions-once-knew-their-own-masters-and_1009278.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f79/william-cowper-779_bud_mansions-once-knew-their-own-masters-and_1009278.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f79/william-cowper-779_bud_mansions-once-knew-their-own-masters-and_1009278.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Mansions once Knew their own masters, and laborious hinds, That had surviv'd the father, serv'd the son. Now…” — William Cowper",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "William Cowper",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Mansions once Knew their own masters,...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/mansions-once-knew-their-own-masters-and-laborious-hinds-that-had/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/mansions-once-knew-their-own-masters-and-laborious-hinds-that-had/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
