It was an initially ordinary Saturday afternoon at the Ponderosa ranch. But Chinese chef Hop Sing wanted to roast some delicious chickens for Sunday dinner. So that morning, ranch owner Ben Cartwright summoned his 3 sons (Adam, Hoss and Joe) into his office.
“Guys, Hop Sing wants to make fried chicken tomorrow, but you'll have to catch two big and fat chickens”, said Ben.
Hoss got all the water in the mouth when hearing the fried chicken on Sunday.
“Pa, Hoss and I will do that”, Joe immediately offered.
“That’s agreed”, Ben said satisfied.
Adam looked on silently but smiling. His younger brothers started preparing for their chicken hunt.
“Pa, I’m afraid Hoss and Joe will spend their entire Saturday afternoon trying to get two fat and big chickens”, Adam said when they were alone for a while.
“What do you mean?”, Ben asked amazed.
“Because there are no more big and fat chickens. Early this morning, Hop Sing and Mitch caught them”, answered his eldest son.
“Well, don’t tell your brothers about this. They won’t thank you”, advised the rancher.
Adam nodded.
That afternoon in the yard. The chickens just walked around like they do every day. Hoss and Joe threw themselves into their yacht like wild lunatics. They were so busy that the gentlemen didn’t even realize they had an audience. Mitch Cartwright watched amusedly from the porch, along with the sheepdog Cody. The boy was the son of Adam and had a remarkable number of character traits of his father. This was often to the annoyance of his uncles Hoss and Joe. The kid was 4½ and just recovered from a serious accident.
Hoss and Joe were after two chickens that of course didn't get caught..
“Damn, rotten chickens”, scolded Hoss.
Joe said’, “I think Adam told them we were going on a chicken hunt. This prevents us from catching them.”
Hoss thought so, too. He looked at the porch quickly but didn't see anyone looking at him and his brother. Mitch and Cody pretended to play. As the hunt for the chickens continued, the couple watched again. But now Adam had joined them. Mitch silently pointed at his uncles and smiled.
The more Hoss and Joe went after the chickens, the harder they picked up. At first it happened gently, but as it became later in the afternoon the chickens got angrier and the pecking got harder and more painful. For the brothers, then. The chickens even seemed to enjoy it. But they weren’t the only ones. Adam and Mitch were watching a great battle between humans and animals.
By nightfall, the brothers gave up. Adam would have been wise enough to bring his son and dog in time.
“Then no fried chicken tomorrow night”, Joe said disappointed.
Hoss was even more disappointed.
“I’d been so excited since pa told me this morning. I already saw a nice big piece of chicken on my plate”, was his reaction.
“Knowing Hop Sing, that nephew of ours would get the biggest piece of chicken again”, said Joe.
“He's just pulling him ahead of us”, Hoss said indignantly.
They got up and knocked the fabric off their clothes.
Back inside, Hoss said, “Pa, We didn’t manage to catch two fat and large chickens. They kept running away from us and picking us up hard.”
“It was like they knew we were going after them”, said Joe.
“We’ll have dinner somewhere else tomorrow. Maybe Betsy wants to cook for us”, Hoss suggested.
Betsy was Betsy Kent, a close friend of the Cartwrights but mostly of Hoss.
“Hoss, that's what we do”, Joe suddenly said more excited.
Adam and Mitch looked at each other laughing at what Hoss and Joe didn’t see.
The next day, Hoss and Joe left early in the morning.
“Joe, I don’t care what reward there is, but I’m never going to go on a chicken hunt again. Then Hop Sing does it himself”, Hoss said en route.
“I feel the same way”, answered Joe.
However, Betsy did not appear to be home and all the restaurants were closed because it was Sunday. Whatever the brothers came up with and tried, they had no success in getting a blissful meal.
On the Ponderosa, the Chinese cook put in front of 2 delicious roast chickens.
“Eat tasty gentlemen”, said the cook.
“I’m sure we can”, said Ben.
He cut the chickens and gave his grandson an extra large piece of chicken. Adam scooped up the baked potatoes and the warm applesauce their cook had made himself.
“Uncle Hoss and Uncle Joe are missing a super blissful meal”, Mitch said halfway through the meal.
“That’s their own fault”, said Adam.
So did Ben and Mitch. Cody also got some chicken, but without a bone.
It wasn’t until the smell of fried chicken had disappeared and the little Cartwright was already asleep that Hoss and Joe came home hungry and exhausted.
“Slow down, guys. Your nephew is already asleep”, Ben said warning when the brothers came in a little too loud.
They understood that. But they didn’t tell me what had happened to them. The humiliation of the previous afternoon’s chickens was far from being dealt with by Hoss and Joe. And that would take days.