This is an old fashioned adventure story that will capture your interest in seeing Bart succeed despite the forces arrayed against him.
In 1816 Bart is blamed by his stepfather Elmer for the death of his son who was killed and scalped by marauding savages. His mother Anne is also a target for his mean and drunken temper. Bart runs away from Elmer's illegal still but is followed by Elmer and his drinking pal and sheriff Jack Scott. He manages to escape from them. He eludes at least temporarily the savage Blue Legs who hates everybody. He takes the sheriff's horse to Presque Isle and there he joins the fur trade with the Northwest Company. He and his new friend Peter develop a source of needed pemmican from the Blackfeet Indians on the far western plains and help recover stolen ponies from the Crow. He saves Peter's life and survives a life or death struggle with another trapper. He and Peter return successfully to the Northwest Company base in Fort William where he is rewarded and then he takes on the mission to rescue his mother from Elmer.