Bobs

"Oh, Bobs is like a mountain goat when it comes to sure-footedness," she said.

Mates at Billabong 1911

And, anyhow, Bobs is Norah's, and no one else has any say about him.

Mates at Billabong 1911

Bobs is all right with you, of course, but he's a fiery little beggar, and there's no knowing what he'd do with a sack of flour like that on his back.

Mates at Billabong 1911

The alien hand on his mouth had irritated Bobs from the first; it was heavy, and jerky, where Norah's touch was as a feather; and the light, firm seat in the saddle was changed for a weight that bumped and shifted continuously.

Mates at Billabong 1911

But then, Bobs is Bobs, and he's seven years old, and ever so sensible – not like that big four-year-old baby.

Mates at Billabong 1911

"Bobs is your very special property – no one but an ass would ask for him, and I told Cecil last year you were the only person who ever rode him," said Jim indignantly.

Mates at Billabong 1911

Then he called Bobs over to his side of the table.

The Prairie Mother Arthur Stringer 1912

But I called Bobs to me, and tried to quiet his whimpering, and talked to him, and told him Dinkie was lost, the little Dinkie we all loved, and implored him to go and find my boy for me.

The Prairie Mother Arthur Stringer 1912

Apart from the never-failing welcome in Bobs 'loose box, there was the dim, fragrant loft, where the sunbeams only managed to send dusty rays of light across the gloom.

A Little Bush Maid 1910

Len Boogaard talked with a lot of "Bobs" - because of a court order, the victims can't be identified by their true names.

canada.com Top Stories 2010