To Abel Zachariah and Mrs.Abel he was a dutiful, affectionate son.

They, too, were proud of him, and looked upon him as the finest lad in the whole land, and Abel boasted that when he grew to be a man he would be the finest hunter on the coast.
It happened that early in February following Bobby's fifteenth birthday Abel wrenched an ankle so badly that he could not go about his duties, or even hobble outside the cabin door.

The responsibility of providing for the little household, therefore, fell upon Bobby.

And Bobby, though keenly sympathetic, was nevertheless glad of an opportunity to show his prowess.
He squared his shoulders, and regardless of cold and storm set about the work, determined to prove that he was a man in the things he could accomplish, if not in years; and he succeeded so well that he won high praise from Abel.

Certainly Abel himself could not have done better with the fox trapping, which at this season was the chief employment.