Baltus Van Tassel

Baltus Van Tassel is Kat's wealthy father and the owner of a rich farm in Sleepy Hollow. New schoolmaster Ichabod Crane sees Baltus's property as the real prize behind marrying his daughter. Ichabod trades on the town's superstitions, flatters the family, and schemes against Kat's true love, Bones. After tricking Baltus into banishing his rival, he persuades the father to announce a wedding Kat does not want. Baltus fails to recognize the manipulation hidden beneath the schoolmaster's respectable appearance. His authority over the household makes him valuable to Ichabod, while his wealth turns Kat into part of a bargain. The situation shows how a parent can be deceived when an ambitious suitor presents greed as devotion.