Young Teddy Quinn, especially in his scenes with Dan Blocker is guaranteed to do some auricle and ventricle melting in this Bonanza episode. Quinn plays a deaf mute child of Janet DeGore whose father and her first husband Quinn's father were long time Ponderosa employees.
Unfortunately DeGore has a second husband Michael Witney who is an abusive husband and stepfather and a wanted man besides. You'd think someone like him would keep on running. But Witney wants DeGore at his side, but he considers a deaf mute child just a burden.
While Blocker and Quinn develop a real rapport, it's Lorne Greene who has to deal with Witney. In the end that's kind of taken out of his hands.
Kudos also to veteran character actor Frank Puglia who plays a deaf mute monk. A most heart warming Bonanza story.