Discuss the character of Ephraim.

Ephraim was 76 years old. He'd married Eben's mother and inherited her family's land as her widower. A hard man, he ran the farm by himself; his greatest desire was to acquire success, but in the same vein, he was also bent on survival....... work was his greatest joy.

Note, Ephraim had cultivated the farm for years to make it productive.