Joe woke up to discover a freshly laundered set of clothes lying on the chair beside his bed, which was strange. Then he remembered throwing his dirty clothes on the floor of the wash house. Mentally thanking Hop Sing, he started to get dressed. And then everything started to go wrong again. The pants were too long and too wide. He had to turn up the legs and cinch in the waist with a belt. The shirt was really baggy and the sleeves hung down over his knuckles. He groaned in frustration. He had shrunk again!

Suddenly, he realized what was happening and how to sort it out. Whistling tunelessly, Joe put on his boots, thankful they still fitted and clattered down the stairs to breakfast. He did not mentioned the oversized clothes and Adam and Hoss decided not to either. Obviously Joe had cottoned on to their prank was now playing along with it. Oh well, it had been fun while it lasted!

"I was wondering if I could have a day off today," Joe began tentatively. "Maybe see Mitch, do a little fishing?"

"I don't see why not," Adam agreed. "We were going to ride up to check the herds, but I think you've earned some leisure. You've worked really hard Joe and I'm proud of you." Well, it was the least he owed the kid. Strange, he hadn't thought Joe would take this elaborate practical joke so well. He must be growing up at last, even if his brothers had done their best to persuade him otherwise!

"Yeah, I think you deserve a day off! You see and bring home some fish for tea!" Hoss finished his ham and eggs, drained his coffee cup and then pushed his chair away from the table. "Come on Adam, we'd better get going". As he passed Joe, he reached out to ruffle the boy's hair and noticed the curls were beginning to grow back already. "Hey, your hair grows like a weed in the summer, Little Joe! It'll soon be back to normal!"

Joe gave him a beaming smile. "I sure hope so. Have a good day." He turned back to the table and continued to eat his breakfast. Then he carefully put the left-over rolls and ham into a napkin and called "Hop Sing! I'm going out for the day. Maybe do some fishing, okay?" Hop Sing came bustling out of the kitchen and handed Joe a packet of sandwiches and a paper bag with cookies in it. "Thanks, that's great. I'll see you later".

Hop Sing watched as the boy ran into the yard, stuffed his food into the saddle bag and then vaulted onto his horse. Wiping his hands, he went back into the house to begin clearing up the breakfast dishes.

It was beginning to get dark when Adam and Hoss rode into the yard. It had been a long day and they were both tired. They went straight to the stable, where Cochise was already in his stall, with a saddle blanket over him. "That's strange", thought Adam, "I know Joe babies that horse, but surely he doesn't need a blanket on at night yet". There seemed to be something pinned to the blanket too. Curiouser and curiouser! He walked over and saw that it was a note, addressed in Joe's unmistakable scrawl. He opened the letter and his heart dropped into his boots as he read the contents:

Dear Adam and Hoss

I realize what is happening to me and I know what I must do about it.

Looking back, this all started when my hair was cut. Right away my hat was too big. I suppose it is like the story of Samson in the Bible, only I am losing my height, not my strength. Well, that's okay, as it's growing back already. I reckon I shouldn't shrink much more, but I must go away for a few weeks until my hair is back to normal, and then I should start growing again.

I don't want anyone to see me just now and I know you will understand. Please don't worry about me. I will be okay. I am leaving Cooch because he is a very distinctive horse and I don't want anyone to recognize me while I am still shrinking. Please look after him

Give Pa my love and tell him not to worry

Your affectionate brother

Joseph F Cartwright

Adam passed the letter to Hoss and slumped down onto his heels, his head in his hands. He heard Hoss moan softly and looked up at him, saying "What have we done to him, Hoss?"

At first, Joe Cartwright enjoyed his independent adventure. He made his way along little-used trails and along river beds, making a series of detours to put any would-be pursuer of his track. He camped out the first night and reached his chosen destination the next evening. This was a small cave he'd discovered on a hunting trip with his father two years ago. They kept its location a secret between them, so Joe was confident his brothers would not find him, although it was only about three hours ride from the house.

The cave was actually a fissure at the bottom of a canyon, hidden from casual observers by a rocky outcrop. A river ran through the canyon, so water was plentiful and Joe was confident he could catch rock rabbits with his snares. He leaned back against the sun-warmed rock and ran his hands through his hair. Short curls were already beginning to form and he smiled happily. Everything was going to be just fine.

Adam and Hoss were having the worst few days of their lives. They searched everywhere they could think of and spoken to all Joe's friends, but it was as if the boy had simply disappeared. They were tired, worried and feeling very guilty. They confessed to Hop Sing, who had been more angry then they had ever seen him. Since then, he would bang down plates of food in front of them, saying only "Hope lil' boy no hungry an' cold" and then stalking out. It was all extremely unpleasant.

Hoss noticed thunder clouds brewing and hoped Joe had found shelter. He mentioned this to Adam, but only got a worried look in return. Suddenly, there was an angry rumble of thunder in the distance and heavy drops of rain began to fall. A voice cut across the heavy air "Boys! What is going on and just where is Joseph?"

Things had just got immeasurably worse. Their father had returned.

Ben was beside himself with worry. His youngest child, his precious Joseph was missing. He was only 15, alone and exposed to all sorts of dangers. And all this was because his brothers - his so-called loving brothers - had played a stupid practical joke. He listened with barely contained rage as Adam haltingly explained how he had raised the mirror in Joe's room and the hat rack in the living room. Hoss, speaking in a low voice, told how he had made new, longer stirrup leathers and a bigger gunbelt. Finally, they related the tale of the new longer bath and the larger set of clothes.

As each confession came forth, Ben's face grew darker. "Well, I hope you're pleased with yourselves! You've tormented your brother by preying upon his greatest insecurity and driven him away! No wonder my hair is white!"

The storm continued all night and none of the Cartwrights had slept much. Tossing and turning, Ben had thought and thought of where Joseph could be. His brothers had looked in all the obvious places, and half a dozen he would not have thought of. As the thin dawn began to break he suddenly remembered the cave in the canyon and sprang out of bed, newly invigorated and shouting "Adam! Hoss! Get up! I know where he is! I know where Joseph is!"

They rode out at first light. The rain had stopped, but the ground was heavy under the horses' hooves and drops of water dripped heavily from overhanging branches.

Like his family, Joe Cartwright had not slept well. As the rain grew heavier, it began to seep through the roof of his cave. Each peal of thunder made him jump violently and he peeked nervously out of the cave into the canyon. A flash of thunder lit up the night and Joe could see that the level of the river had risen alarmingly. It was now very fast and deep and he realized that he had to get out of the canyon before it flooded and trapped him.

He buttoned his jacket up to his neck and turned up the collar. Murmuring gently to the horse, he soothed it and quickly saddled up. Coaxing the animal forward, Joe began to make his way down the canyon. The water was high and fast, swirling around the horse's withers and the river bed felt very unstable as the horse made its way gingerly forward. There was another peal of thunder and the horse lurched violently, causing Joe to lurch forward and bang his chest hard against the saddle horn.

"I hate thunder," he thought miserably. "Why didn't I just stay at home?" He felt very alone and was soaked to the skin, plus his chest hurt. Tears began to run down his face, mixing with the rain and for a few moments he sat in the middle of the raging waters, sobbing his heart out. Then he realized how foolish this was and said "Come on, Joe. Pull yourself together. You got yourself into this, so you'd better get yourself out of it! Start behaving like a man and get going!"

Feeling slightly better, he licked the salty tears from his face and urged the horse onwards. Much as he disliked thunderstorms, Joe found that he welcomed the flashes of lightning, for at least they lit up the way ahead. Then a fork of lightning came down less than three feet in front of the horse. The lightning split open a boulder with a reverberating crack and the horse reared in terror. Taken by surprise, Joe was thrown and landed awkwardly. As he hit the ground hard there was a strange sound, like a tree bough tearing loose and a searing pain flared through his ankle, enveloping him in agony.