There's another version on CD by Tom McConville on his 2004 CD "Tune for Michael".

He has the title down as "The Auctioneer" and credits it as trad arr. I guess that the different title may have made it difficult to identify an author. It certainly sounds like a composed song or poem to me rather than trad but the sort of thing that becomes thought of as "traditional".

Whatever, Tom's is a fine version as expeceted.