It was a shining Spring day. Hoss Cartwright got the idea when he saw his 4 year old nephew Mitch playing on the yard. The boy was mad about games and played them eagerly with his family members. Hoss walked up to Mitch and kneeled down by him.
“Mitchy, we are going to play a funny game”, said Hoss.
“Play hide and seek. I hide and you look for me”, Mitch suggested.
“Then I keep on searching for the rest of the year. Thanks a lot. No, we are going to throw horse shoes. I put a pole in the ground. You get some horseshoes from the storeroom”, answered his uncle.
That happened and quite soon uncle and nephew were playing at the yard. Mitch didn’t need much explanation and threw in his 1st turn all horse shoes around the pole.
“Mitchy, are you sure that you play this game for the 1st time?”, asked Hoss.
“I throw sometimes a ball with Cody but never before with horse shoes. Why?”, asked Mitch.
“That you throw all horse shoes around the pole in 1 turn. Normally only I do that”, answered Hoss.
Mitch thought for a second and announced then, “So now I’m as good as you are. Nice though?”
“If you didn’t look like your father so much yes. But not this time though. Soon you will grab the girls of uncle”, answered his uncle.
“They are too old for me”, was the dry remark of Mitch.
Hoss and Mitch played another game throwing horse shoes which Hoss lost again.
“What must I do to win from you?”, Hoss asked after the 2nd loss.
“Play without me”, Mitch answered calm.
Then Hoss got called inside by his father Ben. Mitch saw Cody coming with a ball and bat. The boy got right away a for him brilliant idea.
“Cody, give that ball here”, he said.
The dog put the ball down so that Mitch could lay it on the pole. Here after the young Cartwright grabbed his bat. He hit the ball far away. The round object came in via the barn through the window of the office of Ben Cartwright. And Ben Cartwright happened to be the grandpa of Mitch and also owner of the Ponderosa ranch where the Cartwrights lived.
Ben saw the ball lying and said to his 2nd son, “Hoss, now I know for sure that I must raise our glass insurance as long as your nephew and my grandson is playing baseball.”
“We can’t leave that little one not even alone for 5 minutes. We were throwing horse shoes when you called me inside”, told Hoss.
Then Mitch came inside running.
“Grandpa, I’m sorry that I broke that window”, he said with a shivering voice.
Ben pulled the boy to him and asked him, “Mitch, I know you didn’t do it on purpose. You surely may play baseball but not too close to the house or the other buildings at the ranch. Do you understand that?”
“Yes grandpa”, answered Mitch.
“Hoss, go play a quiet game with your nephew so that the ranch is still standing before your brothers come home again”, said Ben.
The brothers of Hoss were Adam and Joe. Adam was the older brother of Hoss and the father of Mitch.
Hoss picked up his nephew and said, “Come Mitchy. Then we go and play another game.”
Hoss always called Mitch Mitchy.
“Grandpa, uncle Hoss wants to show eagerly how bad he can throw horse shoes”, Mitch said then.
Ben, who was up till then busy with the administration, said of course right away, “We are going to do a contest who can do that the best.”
Hoss protested right away with, “That little on makes sure that we won’t do that.”
The protest of his nephew was, “I would never do that. And I am Mitch and not that little thing!”
“You always will be that little thing. Even though you get taller than me”, Hoss said laughing.
A moment later 3 generations Cartwright were throwing horse shoes. They had the greatest fun. Hereby Mitch learnt how to play together with others.