Hodgkins (left) finds two cogs in his omelet.
Hodgkins, in some translations Frederickson, (Swedish: Fredrikson) is Moominpappa's best and oldest friend, appearing in Moominpappa's Memoirs. He is also the Muddler's uncle, and by effect Sniff's great uncle.
Hodgkins is well loved by those surrounding him, something he might not fully realize himself. He is an inventor and creator by heart, and as such is more interested in how things work rather than what they do. His life goal is to become an inventor and create a flying river boat, something he has the opportunity to accomplish when he is promoted to court inventor by Daddy Jones.
Hodgkins is the creator of the Oshun Oxtra, which was originally named the Ocean Orchestra after a collection of poems by his lost brother. Later on he rebuilds it into a river boat capable of flight and submersion.