The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer  Complete 
by Mark Twain  Samuel Clemens  
 
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with 
almost no restrictions whatsoever   You may copy it  give it away or 
re use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included 
with this eBook or online at www gutenberg net 
 
 
Title  The Adventures of Tom Sawyer  Complete 
 
Author  Mark Twain  Samuel Clemens  
 
Release Date  August           EBook      
 
Language  English 
 
Character set encoding  ASCII 
 
    START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TOM SAWYER     
 
 
 
 
Produced by David Widger  The previous edition was update by Jose 
Menendez  
 
 
 
 
 
                   THE ADVENTURES OF TOM SAWYER 
                                BY 
                            MARK TWAIN 
                      Samuel Langhorne Clemens  
 
 
 
 
                           P R E F A C E 
 
MOST of the adventures recorded in this book really occurred  one or 
two were experiences of my own  the rest those of boys who were 
schoolmates of mine  Huck Finn is drawn from life  Tom Sawyer also  but 
not from an individual  he is a combination of the characteristics of 
three boys whom I knew  and therefore belongs to the composite order of 
architecture  
 
The odd superstitions touched upon were all prevalent among children 
and slaves in the West at the period of this story  that is to say  
thirty or forty years ago  
 
Although my book is intended mainly for the entertainment of boys and 
girls  I hope it will not be shunned by men and women on that account  
for part of my plan has been to try to pleasantly remind adults of what 
they once were themselves  and of how they felt and thought and talked  
and what queer enterprises they sometimes engaged in  
 
                                                            THE AUTHOR  
 
HARTFORD        
 
 
 
                          T O M   S A W Y E R 
 
 
 
CHAPTER I 
 
 TOM   
 
No answer  
 
 TOM   
 
No answer  
 
 What s gone with that boy   I wonder  You TOM   
 
No answer  
 
The old lady pulled her spectacles down and looked over them about the 
room  then she put them up and looked out under them  She seldom or 
never looked THROUGH them for so small a thing as a boy  they were her 
state pair  the pride of her heart  and were built for  style   not 
service  she could have seen through a pair of stove lids just as well  
She looked perplexed for a moment  and then said  not fiercely  but 
still loud enough for the furniture to hear  
 
 Well  I lay if I get hold of you I ll    
 
She did not finish  for by this time she was bending down and punching 
under the bed with the broom  and so she needed breath to punctuate the 
punches with  She resurrected nothing but the cat  
 
 I never did see the beat of that boy   
 
She went to the open door and stood in it and looked out among the 
tomato vines and  jimpson  weeds that constituted the garden  No Tom  
So she lifted up her voice at an angle calculated for distance and 
shouted  
 
 Y o u u TOM   
 
There was a slight noise behind her and she turned just in time to 
seize a small boy by the slack of his roundabout and arrest his flight  
 
 There  I might  a  thought of that closet  What you been doing in 
there   
 
 Nothing   
 
 Nothing  Look at your hands  And look at your mouth  What IS that 
truck   
 
 I don t know  aunt   
 
 Well  I know  It s jam  that s what it is  Forty times I ve said if 
you didn t let that jam alone I d skin you  Hand me that switch   
 
The switch hovered in the air  the peril was desperate   
 
 My  Look behind you  aunt   
 
The old lady whirled round  and snatched her skirts out of danger  The 
lad fled on the instant  scrambled up the high board fence  and 
disappeared over it  
 
His aunt Polly stood surprised a moment  and then broke into a gentle 
laugh  
 
 Hang the boy  can t I never learn anything  Ain t he played me tricks 
enough like that for me to be looking out for him by this time  But old 
fools is the biggest fools there is  Can t learn an old dog new tricks  
as the saying is  But my goodness  he never plays them alike  two days  
and how is a body to know what s coming  He  pears to know just how 
long he can torment me before I get my dander up  and he knows if he 
can make out to put me off for a minute or make me laugh  it s all down 
again and I can t hit him a lick  I ain t doing my duty by that boy  
and that s the Lord s truth  goodness knows  Spare the rod and spile 
the child  as the Good Book says  I m a laying up sin and suffering for 
us both  I know  He s full of the Old Scratch  but laws a me  he s my 
own dead sister s boy  poor thing  and I ain t got the heart to lash 
him  somehow  Every time I let him off  my conscience does hurt me so  
and every time I hit him my old heart most breaks  Well a well  man 
that is born of woman is of few days and full of trouble  as the 
Scripture says  and I reckon it s so  He ll play hookey this evening    
and    Southwestern for  afternoon   I ll just be obleeged to make him 
work  to morrow  to punish him  It s mighty hard to make him work 
Saturdays  when all the boys is having holiday  but he hates work more 
than he hates anything else  and I ve GOT to do some of my duty by him  
or I ll be the ruination of the child   
 
Tom did play hookey  and he had a very good time  He got back home 
barely in season to help Jim  the small colored boy  saw next day s 
wood and split the kindlings before supper  at least he was there in 
time to tell his adventures to Jim while Jim did three fourths of the 
work  Tom s younger brother  or rather half brother  Sid was already 
through with his part of the work  picking up chips   for he was a 
quiet boy  and had no adventurous  troublesome ways  
 
While Tom was eating his supper  and stealing sugar as opportunity 
offered  Aunt Polly asked him questions that were full of guile  and 
very deep  for she wanted to trap him into damaging revealments  Like 
many other simple hearted souls  it was her pet vanity to believe she 
was endowed with a talent for dark and mysterious diplomacy  and she 
loved to contemplate her most transparent devices as marvels of low 
cunning  Said she  
 
 Tom  it was middling warm in school  warn t it   
 
 Yes m   
 
 Powerful warm  warn t it   
 
 Yes m   
 
 Didn t you want to go in a swimming  Tom   
 
A bit of a scare shot through Tom  a touch of uncomfortable suspicion  
He searched Aunt Polly s face  but it told him nothing  So he said  
 
 No m  well  not very much   
 
The old lady reached out her hand and felt Tom s shirt  and said  
 
 But you ain t too warm now  though   And it flattered her to reflect 
that she had discovered that the shirt was dry without anybody knowing 
that that was what she had in her mind  But in spite of her  Tom knew 
where the wind lay  now  So he forestalled what might be the next move  
 
 Some of us pumped on our heads  mine s damp yet  See   
 
Aunt Polly was vexed to think she had overlooked that bit of 
circumstantial evidence  and missed a trick  Then she had a new 
inspiration  
 
 Tom  you didn t have to undo your shirt collar where I sewed it  to 
pump on your head  did you  Unbutton your jacket   
 
The trouble vanished out of Tom s face  He opened his jacket  His 
shirt collar was securely sewed  
 
 Bother  Well  go  long with you  I d made sure you d played hookey 
and been a swimming  But I forgive ye  Tom  I reckon you re a kind of a 
singed cat  as the saying is  better n you look  THIS time   
 
She was half sorry her sagacity had miscarried  and half glad that Tom 
had stumbled into obedient conduct for once  
 
But Sidney said  
 
 Well  now  if I didn t think you sewed his collar with white thread  
but it s black   
 
 Why  I did sew it with white  Tom   
 
But Tom did not wait for the rest  As he went out at the door he said  
 
 Siddy  I ll lick you for that   
 
In a safe place Tom examined two large needles which were thrust into 
the lapels of his jacket  and had thread bound about them  one needle 
carried white thread and the other black  He said  
 
 She d never noticed if it hadn t been for Sid  Confound it  sometimes 
she sews it with white  and sometimes she sews it with black  I wish to 
geeminy she d stick to one or t other  I can t keep the run of  em  But 
I bet you I ll lam Sid for that  I ll learn him   
 
He was not the Model Boy of the village  He knew the model boy very 
well though  and loathed him  
 
Within two minutes  or even less  he had forgotten all his troubles  
Not because his troubles were one whit less heavy and bitter to him 
than a man s are to a man  but because a new and powerful interest bore 
them down and drove them out of his mind for the time  just as men s 
misfortunes are forgotten in the excitement of new enterprises  This 
new interest was a valued novelty in whistling  which he had just 
acquired from a negro  and he was suffering to practise it undisturbed  
It consisted in a peculiar bird like turn  a sort of liquid warble  
produced by touching the tongue to the roof of the mouth at short 
intervals in the midst of the music  the reader probably remembers how 
to do it  if he has ever been a boy  Diligence and attention soon gave 
him the knack of it  and he strode down the street with his mouth full 
of harmony and his soul full of gratitude  He felt much as an 
astronomer feels who has discovered a new planet  no doubt  as far as 
strong  deep  unalloyed pleasure is concerned  the advantage was with 
the boy  not the astronomer  
 
The summer evenings were long  It was not dark  yet  Presently Tom 
checked his whistle  A stranger was before him  a boy a shade larger 
than himself  A new comer of any age or either sex was an impressive 
curiosity in the poor little shabby village of St  Petersburg  This boy 
was well dressed  too  well dressed on a week day  This was simply 
astounding  His cap was a dainty thing  his close buttoned blue cloth 
roundabout was new and natty  and so were his pantaloons  He had shoes 
on  and it was only Friday  He even wore a necktie  a bright bit of 
ribbon  He had a citified air about him that ate into Tom s vitals  The 
more Tom stared at the splendid marvel  the higher he turned up his 
nose at his finery and the shabbier and shabbier his own outfit seemed 
to him to grow  Neither boy spoke  If one moved  the other moved  but 
only sidewise  in a circle  they kept face to face and eye to eye all 
the time  Finally Tom said  
 
 I can lick you   
 
 I d like to see you try it   
 
 Well  I can do it   
 
 No you can t  either   
 
 Yes I can   
 
 No you can t   
 
 I can   
 
 You can t   
 
 Can   
 
 Can t   
 
An uncomfortable pause  Then Tom said  
 
 What s your name   
 
  Tisn t any of your business  maybe   
 
 Well I  low I ll MAKE it my business   
 
 Well why don t you   
 
 If you say much  I will   
 
 Much  much  MUCH  There now   
 
 Oh  you think you re mighty smart  DON T you  I could lick you with 
one hand tied behind me  if I wanted to   
 
 Well why don t you DO it  You SAY you can do it   
 
 Well I WILL  if you fool with me   
 
 Oh yes  I ve seen whole families in the same fix   
 
 Smarty  You think you re SOME  now  DON T you  Oh  what a hat   
 
 You can lump that hat if you don t like it  I dare you to knock it 
off  and anybody that ll take a dare will suck eggs   
 
 You re a liar   
 
 You re another   
 
 You re a fighting liar and dasn t take it up   
 
 Aw  take a walk   
 
 Say  if you give me much more of your sass I ll take and bounce a 
rock off n your head   
 
 Oh  of COURSE you will   
 
 Well I WILL   
 
 Well why don t you DO it then  What do you keep SAYING you will for  
Why don t you DO it  It s because you re afraid   
 
 I AIN T afraid   
 
 You are   
 
 I ain t   
 
 You are   
 
Another pause  and more eying and sidling around each other  Presently 
they were shoulder to shoulder  Tom said  
 
 Get away from here   
 
 Go away yourself   
 
 I won t   
 
 I won t either   
 
So they stood  each with a foot placed at an angle as a brace  and 
both shoving with might and main  and glowering at each other with 
hate  But neither could get an advantage  After struggling till both 
were hot and flushed  each relaxed his strain with watchful caution  
and Tom said  
 
 You re a coward and a pup  I ll tell my big brother on you  and he 
can thrash you with his little finger  and I ll make him do it  too   
 
 What do I care for your big brother  I ve got a brother that s bigger 
than he is  and what s more  he can throw him over that fence  too   
 Both brothers were imaginary   
 
 That s a lie   
 
 YOUR saying so don t make it so   
 
Tom drew a line in the dust with his big toe  and said  
 
 I dare you to step over that  and I ll lick you till you can t stand 
up  Anybody that ll take a dare will steal sheep   
 
The new boy stepped over promptly  and said  
 
 Now you said you d do it  now let s see you do it   
 
 Don t you crowd me now  you better look out   
 
 Well  you SAID you d do it  why don t you do it   
 
 By jingo  for two cents I WILL do it   
 
The new boy took two broad coppers out of his pocket and held them out 
with derision  Tom struck them to the ground  In an instant both boys 
were rolling and tumbling in the dirt  gripped together like cats  and 
for the space of a minute they tugged and tore at each other s hair and 
clothes  punched and scratched each other s nose  and covered 
themselves with dust and glory  Presently the confusion took form  and 
through the fog of battle Tom appeared  seated astride the new boy  and 
pounding him with his fists   Holler  nuff   said he  
 
The boy only struggled to free himself  He was crying  mainly from rage  
 
 Holler  nuff    and the pounding went on  
 
At last the stranger got out a smothered   Nuff   and Tom let him up 
and said  
 
 Now that ll learn you  Better look out who you re fooling with next 
time   
 
The new boy went off brushing the dust from his clothes  sobbing  
snuffling  and occasionally looking back and shaking his head and 
threatening what he would do to Tom the  next time he caught him out   
To which Tom responded with jeers  and started off in high feather  and 
as soon as his back was turned the new boy snatched up a stone  threw 
it and hit him between the shoulders and then turned tail and ran like 
an antelope  Tom chased the traitor home  and thus found out where he 
lived  He then held a position at the gate for some time  daring the 
enemy to come outside  but the enemy only made faces at him through the 
window and declined  At last the enemy s mother appeared  and called 
Tom a bad  vicious  vulgar child  and ordered him away  So he went 
away  but he said he   lowed  to  lay  for that boy  
 
He got home pretty late that night  and when he climbed cautiously in 
at the window  he uncovered an ambuscade  in the person of his aunt  
and when she saw the state his clothes were in her resolution to turn 
his Saturday holiday into captivity at hard labor became adamantine in 
its firmness  
 
 
 
CHAPTER II 
 
SATURDAY morning was come  and all the summer world was bright and 
fresh  and brimming with life  There was a song in every heart  and if 
the heart was young the music issued at the lips  There was cheer in 
every face and a spring in every step  The locust trees were in bloom 
and the fragrance of the blossoms filled the air  Cardiff Hill  beyond 
the village and above it  was green with vegetation and it lay just far 
enough away to seem a Delectable Land  dreamy  reposeful  and inviting  
 
Tom appeared on the sidewalk with a bucket of whitewash and a 
long handled brush  He surveyed the fence  and all gladness left him and 
a deep melancholy settled down upon his spirit  Thirty yards of board 
fence nine feet high  Life to him seemed hollow  and existence but a 
burden  Sighing  he dipped his brush and passed it along the topmost 
plank  repeated the operation  did it again  compared the insignificant 
whitewashed streak with the far reaching continent of unwhitewashed 
fence  and sat down on a tree box discouraged  Jim came skipping out at 
the gate with a tin pail  and singing Buffalo Gals  Bringing water from 
the town pump had always been hateful work in Tom s eyes  before  but 
now it did not strike him so  He remembered that there was company at 
the pump  White  mulatto  and negro boys and girls were always there 
waiting their turns  resting  trading playthings  quarrelling  
fighting  skylarking  And he remembered that although the pump was only 
a hundred and fifty yards off  Jim never got back with a bucket of 
water under an hour  and even then somebody generally had to go after 
him  Tom said  
 
 Say  Jim  I ll fetch the water if you ll whitewash some   
 
Jim shook his head and said  
 
 Can t  Mars Tom  Ole missis  she tole me I got to go an  git dis 
water an  not stop foolin  roun  wid anybody  She say she spec  Mars 
Tom gwine to ax me to whitewash  an  so she tole me go  long an   tend 
to my own business  she  lowed SHE D  tend to de whitewashin    
 
 Oh  never you mind what she said  Jim  That s the way she always 
talks  Gimme the bucket  I won t be gone only a a minute  SHE won t 
ever know   
 
 Oh  I dasn t  Mars Tom  Ole missis she d take an  tar de head off n 
me   Deed she would   
 
 SHE  She never licks anybody  whacks  em over the head with her 
thimble  and who cares for that  I d like to know  She talks awful  but 
talk don t hurt  anyways it don t if she don t cry  Jim  I ll give you 
a marvel  I ll give you a white alley   
 
Jim began to waver  
 
 White alley  Jim  And it s a bully taw   
 
 My  Dat s a mighty gay marvel  I tell you  But Mars Tom I s powerful 
 fraid ole missis    
 
 And besides  if you will I ll show you my sore toe   
 
Jim was only human  this attraction was too much for him  He put down 
his pail  took the white alley  and bent over the toe with absorbing 
interest while the bandage was being unwound  In another moment he was 
flying down the street with his pail and a tingling rear  Tom was 
whitewashing with vigor  and Aunt Polly was retiring from the field 
with a slipper in her hand and triumph in her eye  
 
But Tom s energy did not last  He began to think of the fun he had 
planned for this day  and his sorrows multiplied  Soon the free boys 
would come tripping along on all sorts of delicious expeditions  and 
they would make a world of fun of him for having to work  the very 
thought of it burnt him like fire  He got out his worldly wealth and 
examined it  bits of toys  marbles  and trash  enough to buy an 
exchange of WORK  maybe  but not half enough to buy so much as half an 
hour of pure freedom  So he returned his straitened means to his 
pocket  and gave up the idea of trying to buy the boys  At this dark 
and hopeless moment an inspiration burst upon him  Nothing less than a 
great  magnificent inspiration  
 
He took up his brush and went tranquilly to work  Ben Rogers hove in 
sight presently  the very boy  of all boys  whose ridicule he had been 
dreading  Ben s gait was the hop skip and jump  proof enough that his 
heart was light and his anticipations high  He was eating an apple  and 
giving a long  melodious whoop  at intervals  followed by a deep toned 
ding dong dong  ding dong dong  for he was personating a steamboat  As 
he drew near  he slackened speed  took the middle of the street  leaned 
far over to starboard and rounded to ponderously and with laborious 
pomp and circumstance  for he was personating the Big Missouri  and 
considered himself to be drawing nine feet of water  He was boat and 
captain and engine bells combined  so he had to imagine himself 
standing on his own hurricane deck giving the orders and executing them  
 
 Stop her  sir  Ting a ling ling   The headway ran almost out  and he 
drew up slowly toward the sidewalk  
 
 Ship up to back  Ting a ling ling   His arms straightened and 
stiffened down his sides  
 
 Set her back on the stabboard  Ting a ling ling  Chow  ch chow wow  
Chow   His right hand  meantime  describing stately circles  for it was 
representing a forty foot wheel  
 
 Let her go back on the labboard  Ting a lingling  Chow ch chow chow   
The left hand began to describe circles  
 
 Stop the stabboard  Ting a ling ling  Stop the labboard  Come ahead 
on the stabboard  Stop her  Let your outside turn over slow  
Ting a ling ling  Chow ow ow  Get out that head line  LIVELY now  
Come  out with your spring line  what re you about there  Take a turn 
round that stump with the bight of it  Stand by that stage  now  let her 
go  Done with the engines  sir  Ting a ling ling  SH T  S H T  SH T   
 trying the gauge cocks   
 
Tom went on whitewashing  paid no attention to the steamboat  Ben 
stared a moment and then said   Hi YI  YOU RE up a stump  ain t you   
 
No answer  Tom surveyed his last touch with the eye of an artist  then 
he gave his brush another gentle sweep and surveyed the result  as 
before  Ben ranged up alongside of him  Tom s mouth watered for the 
apple  but he stuck to his work  Ben said  
 
 Hello  old chap  you got to work  hey   
 
Tom wheeled suddenly and said  
 
 Why  it s you  Ben  I warn t noticing   
 
 Say  I m going in a swimming  I am  Don t you wish you could  But of 
course you d druther WORK  wouldn t you  Course you would   
 
Tom contemplated the boy a bit  and said  
 
 What do you call work   
 
 Why  ain t THAT work   
 
Tom resumed his whitewashing  and answered carelessly  
 
 Well  maybe it is  and maybe it ain t  All I know  is  it suits Tom 
Sawyer   
 
 Oh come  now  you don t mean to let on that you LIKE it   
 
The brush continued to move  
 
 Like it  Well  I don t see why I oughtn t to like it  Does a boy get 
a chance to whitewash a fence every day   
 
That put the thing in a new light  Ben stopped nibbling his apple  Tom 
swept his brush daintily back and forth  stepped back to note the 
effect  added a touch here and there  criticised the effect again  Ben 
watching every move and getting more and more interested  more and more 
absorbed  Presently he said  
 
 Say  Tom  let ME whitewash a little   
 
Tom considered  was about to consent  but he altered his mind  
 
 No  no  I reckon it wouldn t hardly do  Ben  You see  Aunt Polly s 
awful particular about this fence  right here on the street  you know 
  but if it was the back fence I wouldn t mind and SHE wouldn t  Yes  
she s awful particular about this fence  it s got to be done very 
careful  I reckon there ain t one boy in a thousand  maybe two 
thousand  that can do it the way it s got to be done   
 
 No  is that so  Oh come  now  lemme just try  Only just a little  I d 
let YOU  if you was me  Tom   
 
 Ben  I d like to  honest injun  but Aunt Polly  well  Jim wanted to 
do it  but she wouldn t let him  Sid wanted to do it  and she wouldn t 
let Sid  Now don t you see how I m fixed  If you was to tackle this 
fence and anything was to happen to it    
 
 Oh  shucks  I ll be just as careful  Now lemme try  Say  I ll give 
you the core of my apple   
 
 Well  here  No  Ben  now don t  I m afeard    
 
 I ll give you ALL of it   
 
Tom gave up the brush with reluctance in his face  but alacrity in his 
heart  And while the late steamer Big Missouri worked and sweated in 
the sun  the retired artist sat on a barrel in the shade close by  
dangled his legs  munched his apple  and planned the slaughter of more 
innocents  There was no lack of material  boys happened along every 
little while  they came to jeer  but remained to whitewash  By the time 
Ben was fagged out  Tom had traded the next chance to Billy Fisher for 
a kite  in good repair  and when he played out  Johnny Miller bought in 
for a dead rat and a string to swing it with  and so on  and so on  
hour after hour  And when the middle of the afternoon came  from being 
a poor poverty stricken boy in the morning  Tom was literally rolling 
in wealth  He had besides the things before mentioned  twelve marbles  
part of a jews harp  a piece of blue bottle glass to look through  a 
spool cannon  a key that wouldn t unlock anything  a fragment of chalk  
a glass stopper of a decanter  a tin soldier  a couple of tadpoles  six 
fire crackers  a kitten with only one eye  a brass doorknob  a 
dog collar  but no dog  the handle of a knife  four pieces of 
orange peel  and a dilapidated old window sash  
 
He had had a nice  good  idle time all the while  plenty of company 
  and the fence had three coats of whitewash on it  If he hadn t run out 
of whitewash he would have bankrupted every boy in the village  
 
Tom said to himself that it was not such a hollow world  after all  He 
had discovered a great law of human action  without knowing it  namely  
that in order to make a man or a boy covet a thing  it is only 
necessary to make the thing difficult to attain  If he had been a great 
and wise philosopher  like the writer of this book  he would now have 
comprehended that Work consists of whatever a body is OBLIGED to do  
and that Play consists of whatever a body is not obliged to do  And 
this would help him to understand why constructing artificial flowers 
or performing on a tread mill is work  while rolling ten pins or 
climbing Mont Blanc is only amusement  There are wealthy gentlemen in 
England who drive four horse passenger coaches twenty or thirty miles 
on a daily line  in the summer  because the privilege costs them 
considerable money  but if they were offered wages for the service  
that would turn it into work and then they would resign  
 
The boy mused awhile over the substantial change which had taken place 
in his worldly circumstances  and then wended toward headquarters to 
report  
 
 
 
CHAPTER III 
 
TOM presented himself before Aunt Polly  who was sitting by an open 
window in a pleasant rearward apartment  which was bedroom  
breakfast room  dining room  and library  combined  The balmy summer 
air  the restful quiet  the odor of the flowers  and the drowsing murmur 
of the bees had had their effect  and she was nodding over her knitting 
  for she had no company but the cat  and it was asleep in her lap  Her 
spectacles were propped up on her gray head for safety  She had thought 
that of course Tom had deserted long ago  and she wondered at seeing him 
place himself in her power again in this intrepid way  He said   Mayn t 
I go and play now  aunt   
 
 What  a ready  How much have you done   
 
 It s all done  aunt   
 
 Tom  don t lie to me  I can t bear it   
 
 I ain t  aunt  it IS all done   
 
Aunt Polly placed small trust in such evidence  She went out to see 
for herself  and she would have been content to find twenty per cent  
of Tom s statement true  When she found the entire fence whitewashed  
and not only whitewashed but elaborately coated and recoated  and even 
a streak added to the ground  her astonishment was almost unspeakable  
She said  
 
 Well  I never  There s no getting round it  you can work when you re 
a mind to  Tom   And then she diluted the compliment by adding   But 
it s powerful seldom you re a mind to  I m bound to say  Well  go  long 
and play  but mind you get back some time in a week  or I ll tan you   
 
She was so overcome by the splendor of his achievement that she took 
him into the closet and selected a choice apple and delivered it to 
him  along with an improving lecture upon the added value and flavor a 
treat took to itself when it came without sin through virtuous effort  
And while she closed with a happy Scriptural flourish  he  hooked  a 
doughnut  
 
Then he skipped out  and saw Sid just starting up the outside stairway 
that led to the back rooms on the second floor  Clods were handy and 
the air was full of them in a twinkling  They raged around Sid like a 
hail storm  and before Aunt Polly could collect her surprised faculties 
and sally to the rescue  six or seven clods had taken personal effect  
and Tom was over the fence and gone  There was a gate  but as a general 
thing he was too crowded for time to make use of it  His soul was at 
peace  now that he had settled with Sid for calling attention to his 
black thread and getting him into trouble  
 
Tom skirted the block  and came round into a muddy alley that led by 
the back of his aunt s cow stable  He presently got safely beyond the 
reach of capture and punishment  and hastened toward the public square 
of the village  where two  military  companies of boys had met for 
conflict  according to previous appointment  Tom was General of one of 
these armies  Joe Harper  a bosom friend  General of the other  These 
two great commanders did not condescend to fight in person  that being 
better suited to the still smaller fry  but sat together on an eminence 
and conducted the field operations by orders delivered through 
aides de camp  Tom s army won a great victory  after a long and 
hard fought battle  Then the dead were counted  prisoners exchanged  
the terms of the next disagreement agreed upon  and the day for the 
necessary battle appointed  after which the armies fell into line and 
marched away  and Tom turned homeward alone  
 
As he was passing by the house where Jeff Thatcher lived  he saw a new 
girl in the garden  a lovely little blue eyed creature with yellow hair 
plaited into two long tails  white summer frock and embroidered 
pantalettes  The fresh crowned hero fell without firing a shot  A 
certain Amy Lawrence vanished out of his heart and left not even a 
memory of herself behind  He had thought he loved her to distraction  
he had regarded his passion as adoration  and behold it was only a poor 
little evanescent partiality  He had been months winning her  she had 
confessed hardly a week ago  he had been the happiest and the proudest 
boy in the world only seven short days  and here in one instant of time 
she had gone out of his heart like a casual stranger whose visit is 
done  
 
He worshipped this new angel with furtive eye  till he saw that she 
had discovered him  then he pretended he did not know she was present  
and began to  show off  in all sorts of absurd boyish ways  in order to 
win her admiration  He kept up this grotesque foolishness for some 
time  but by and by  while he was in the midst of some dangerous 
gymnastic performances  he glanced aside and saw that the little girl 
was wending her way toward the house  Tom came up to the fence and 
leaned on it  grieving  and hoping she would tarry yet awhile longer  
She halted a moment on the steps and then moved toward the door  Tom 
heaved a great sigh as she put her foot on the threshold  But his face 
lit up  right away  for she tossed a pansy over the fence a moment 
before she disappeared  
 
The boy ran around and stopped within a foot or two of the flower  and 
then shaded his eyes with his hand and began to look down street as if 
he had discovered something of interest going on in that direction  
Presently he picked up a straw and began trying to balance it on his 
nose  with his head tilted far back  and as he moved from side to side  
in his efforts  he edged nearer and nearer toward the pansy  finally 
his bare foot rested upon it  his pliant toes closed upon it  and he 
hopped away with the treasure and disappeared round the corner  But 
only for a minute  only while he could button the flower inside his 
jacket  next his heart  or next his stomach  possibly  for he was not 
much posted in anatomy  and not hypercritical  anyway  
 
He returned  now  and hung about the fence till nightfall   showing 
off   as before  but the girl never exhibited herself again  though Tom 
comforted himself a little with the hope that she had been near some 
window  meantime  and been aware of his attentions  Finally he strode 
home reluctantly  with his poor head full of visions  
 
All through supper his spirits were so high that his aunt wondered 
 what had got into the child   He took a good scolding about clodding 
Sid  and did not seem to mind it in the least  He tried to steal sugar 
under his aunt s very nose  and got his knuckles rapped for it  He said  
 
 Aunt  you don t whack Sid when he takes it   
 
 Well  Sid don t torment a body the way you do  You d be always into 
that sugar if I warn t watching you   
 
Presently she stepped into the kitchen  and Sid  happy in his 
immunity  reached for the sugar bowl  a sort of glorying over Tom which 
was wellnigh unbearable  But Sid s fingers slipped and the bowl dropped 
and broke  Tom was in ecstasies  In such ecstasies that he even 
controlled his tongue and was silent  He said to himself that he would 
not speak a word  even when his aunt came in  but would sit perfectly 
still till she asked who did the mischief  and then he would tell  and 
there would be nothing so good in the world as to see that pet model 
 catch it   He was so brimful of exultation that he could hardly hold 
himself when the old lady came back and stood above the wreck 
discharging lightnings of wrath from over her spectacles  He said to 
himself   Now it s coming   And the next instant he was sprawling on 
the floor  The potent palm was uplifted to strike again when Tom cried 
out  
 
 Hold on  now  what  er you belting ME for   Sid broke it   
 
Aunt Polly paused  perplexed  and Tom looked for healing pity  But 
when she got her tongue again  she only said  
 
 Umf  Well  you didn t get a lick amiss  I reckon  You been into some 
other audacious mischief when I wasn t around  like enough   
 
Then her conscience reproached her  and she yearned to say something 
kind and loving  but she judged that this would be construed into a 
confession that she had been in the wrong  and discipline forbade that  
So she kept silence  and went about her affairs with a troubled heart  
Tom sulked in a corner and exalted his woes  He knew that in her heart 
his aunt was on her knees to him  and he was morosely gratified by the 
consciousness of it  He would hang out no signals  he would take notice 
of none  He knew that a yearning glance fell upon him  now and then  
through a film of tears  but he refused recognition of it  He pictured 
himself lying sick unto death and his aunt bending over him beseeching 
one little forgiving word  but he would turn his face to the wall  and 
die with that word unsaid  Ah  how would she feel then  And he pictured 
himself brought home from the river  dead  with his curls all wet  and 
his sore heart at rest  How she would throw herself upon him  and how 
her tears would fall like rain  and her lips pray God to give her back 
her boy and she would never  never abuse him any more  But he would lie 
there cold and white and make no sign  a poor little sufferer  whose 
griefs were at an end  He so worked upon his feelings with the pathos 
of these dreams  that he had to keep swallowing  he was so like to 
choke  and his eyes swam in a blur of water  which overflowed when he 
winked  and ran down and trickled from the end of his nose  And such a 
luxury to him was this petting of his sorrows  that he could not bear 
to have any worldly cheeriness or any grating delight intrude upon it  
it was too sacred for such contact  and so  presently  when his cousin 
Mary danced in  all alive with the joy of seeing home again after an 
age long visit of one week to the country  he got up and moved in 
clouds and darkness out at one door as she brought song and sunshine in 
at the other  
 
He wandered far from the accustomed haunts of boys  and sought 
desolate places that were in harmony with his spirit  A log raft in the 
river invited him  and he seated himself on its outer edge and 
contemplated the dreary vastness of the stream  wishing  the while  
that he could only be drowned  all at once and unconsciously  without 
undergoing the uncomfortable routine devised by nature  Then he thought 
of his flower  He got it out  rumpled and wilted  and it mightily 
increased his dismal felicity  He wondered if she would pity him if she 
knew  Would she cry  and wish that she had a right to put her arms 
around his neck and comfort him  Or would she turn coldly away like all 
the hollow world  This picture brought such an agony of pleasurable 
suffering that he worked it over and over again in his mind and set it 
up in new and varied lights  till he wore it threadbare  At last he 
rose up sighing and departed in the darkness  
 
About half past nine or ten o clock he came along the deserted street 
to where the Adored Unknown lived  he paused a moment  no sound fell 
upon his listening ear  a candle was casting a dull glow upon the 
curtain of a second story window  Was the sacred presence there  He 
climbed the fence  threaded his stealthy way through the plants  till 
he stood under that window  he looked up at it long  and with emotion  
then he laid him down on the ground under it  disposing himself upon 
his back  with his hands clasped upon his breast and holding his poor 
wilted flower  And thus he would die  out in the cold world  with no 
shelter over his homeless head  no friendly hand to wipe the 
death damps from his brow  no loving face to bend pityingly over him 
when the great agony came  And thus SHE would see him when she looked 
out upon the glad morning  and oh  would she drop one little tear upon 
his poor  lifeless form  would she heave one little sigh to see a bright 
young life so rudely blighted  so untimely cut down  
 
The window went up  a maid servant s discordant voice profaned the 
holy calm  and a deluge of water drenched the prone martyr s remains  
 
The strangling hero sprang up with a relieving snort  There was a whiz 
as of a missile in the air  mingled with the murmur of a curse  a sound 
as of shivering glass followed  and a small  vague form went over the 
fence and shot away in the gloom  
 
Not long after  as Tom  all undressed for bed  was surveying his 
drenched garments by the light of a tallow dip  Sid woke up  but if he 
had any dim idea of making any  references to allusions   he thought 
better of it and held his peace  for there was danger in Tom s eye  
 
Tom turned in without the added vexation of prayers  and Sid made 
mental note of the omission  
 
 
 
CHAPTER IV 
 
THE sun rose upon a tranquil world  and beamed down upon the peaceful 
village like a benediction  Breakfast over  Aunt Polly had family 
worship  it began with a prayer built from the ground up of solid 
courses of Scriptural quotations  welded together with a thin mortar of 
originality  and from the summit of this she delivered a grim chapter 
of the Mosaic Law  as from Sinai  
 
Then Tom girded up his loins  so to speak  and went to work to  get 
his verses   Sid had learned his lesson days before  Tom bent all his 
energies to the memorizing of five verses  and he chose part of the 
Sermon on the Mount  because he could find no verses that were shorter  
At the end of half an hour Tom had a vague general idea of his lesson  
but no more  for his mind was traversing the whole field of human 
thought  and his hands were busy with distracting recreations  Mary 
took his book to hear him recite  and he tried to find his way through 
the fog  
 
 Blessed are the  a  a    
 
 Poor    
 
 Yes  poor  blessed are the poor  a  a    
 
 In spirit    
 
 In spirit  blessed are the poor in spirit  for they  they    
 
 THEIRS    
 
 For THEIRS  Blessed are the poor in spirit  for theirs is the kingdom 
of heaven  Blessed are they that mourn  for they  they    
 
 Sh    
 
 For they  a    
 
 S  H  A    
 
 For they S  H  Oh  I don t know what it is   
 
 SHALL   
 
 Oh  SHALL  for they shall  for they shall  a  a  shall mourn  a  a   
blessed are they that shall  they that  a  they that shall mourn  for 
they shall  a  shall WHAT  Why don t you tell me  Mary   what do you 
want to be so mean for   
 
 Oh  Tom  you poor thick headed thing  I m not teasing you  I wouldn t 
do that  You must go and learn it again  Don t you be discouraged  Tom  
you ll manage it  and if you do  I ll give you something ever so nice  
There  now  that s a good boy   
 
 All right  What is it  Mary  tell me what it is   
 
 Never you mind  Tom  You know if I say it s nice  it is nice   
 
 You bet you that s so  Mary  All right  I ll tackle it again   
 
And he did  tackle it again   and under the double pressure of 
curiosity and prospective gain he did it with such spirit that he 
accomplished a shining success  Mary gave him a brand new  Barlow  
knife worth twelve and a half cents  and the convulsion of delight that 
swept his system shook him to his foundations  True  the knife would 
not cut anything  but it was a  sure enough  Barlow  and there was 
inconceivable grandeur in that  though where the Western boys ever got 
the idea that such a weapon could possibly be counterfeited to its 
injury is an imposing mystery and will always remain so  perhaps  Tom 
contrived to scarify the cupboard with it  and was arranging to begin 
on the bureau  when he was called off to dress for Sunday school  
 
Mary gave him a tin basin of water and a piece of soap  and he went 
outside the door and set the basin on a little bench there  then he 
dipped the soap in the water and laid it down  turned up his sleeves  
poured out the water on the ground  gently  and then entered the 
kitchen and began to wipe his face diligently on the towel behind the 
door  But Mary removed the towel and said  
 
 Now ain t you ashamed  Tom  You mustn t be so bad  Water won t hurt 
you   
 
Tom was a trifle disconcerted  The basin was refilled  and this time 
he stood over it a little while  gathering resolution  took in a big 
breath and began  When he entered the kitchen presently  with both eyes 
shut and groping for the towel with his hands  an honorable testimony 
of suds and water was dripping from his face  But when he emerged from 
the towel  he was not yet satisfactory  for the clean territory stopped 
short at his chin and his jaws  like a mask  below and beyond this line 
there was a dark expanse of unirrigated soil that spread downward in 
front and backward around his neck  Mary took him in hand  and when she 
was done with him he was a man and a brother  without distinction of 
color  and his saturated hair was neatly brushed  and its short curls 
wrought into a dainty and symmetrical general effect   He privately 
smoothed out the curls  with labor and difficulty  and plastered his 
hair close down to his head  for he held curls to be effeminate  and 
his own filled his life with bitterness   Then Mary got out a suit of 
his clothing that had been used only on Sundays during two years  they 
were simply called his  other clothes   and so by that we know the 
size of his wardrobe  The girl  put him to rights  after he had dressed 
himself  she buttoned his neat roundabout up to his chin  turned his 
vast shirt collar down over his shoulders  brushed him off and crowned 
him with his speckled straw hat  He now looked exceedingly improved and 
uncomfortable  He was fully as uncomfortable as he looked  for there 
was a restraint about whole clothes and cleanliness that galled him  He 
hoped that Mary would forget his shoes  but the hope was blighted  she 
coated them thoroughly with tallow  as was the custom  and brought them 
out  He lost his temper and said he was always being made to do 
everything he didn t want to do  But Mary said  persuasively  
 
 Please  Tom  that s a good boy   
 
So he got into the shoes snarling  Mary was soon ready  and the three 
children set out for Sunday school  a place that Tom hated with his 
whole heart  but Sid and Mary were fond of it  
 
Sabbath school hours were from nine to half past ten  and then church 
service  Two of the children always remained for the sermon 
voluntarily  and the other always remained too  for stronger reasons  
The church s high backed  uncushioned pews would seat about three 
hundred persons  the edifice was but a small  plain affair  with a sort 
of pine board tree box on top of it for a steeple  At the door Tom 
dropped back a step and accosted a Sunday dressed comrade  
 
 Say  Billy  got a yaller ticket   
 
 Yes   
 
 What ll you take for her   
 
 What ll you give   
 
 Piece of lickrish and a fish hook   
 
 Less see  em   
 
Tom exhibited  They were satisfactory  and the property changed hands  
Then Tom traded a couple of white alleys for three red tickets  and 
some small trifle or other for a couple of blue ones  He waylaid other 
boys as they came  and went on buying tickets of various colors ten or 
fifteen minutes longer  He entered the church  now  with a swarm of 
clean and noisy boys and girls  proceeded to his seat and started a 
quarrel with the first boy that came handy  The teacher  a grave  
elderly man  interfered  then turned his back a moment and Tom pulled a 
boy s hair in the next bench  and was absorbed in his book when the boy 
turned around  stuck a pin in another boy  presently  in order to hear 
him say  Ouch   and got a new reprimand from his teacher  Tom s whole 
class were of a pattern  restless  noisy  and troublesome  When they 
came to recite their lessons  not one of them knew his verses 
perfectly  but had to be prompted all along  However  they worried 
through  and each got his reward  in small blue tickets  each with a 
passage of Scripture on it  each blue ticket was pay for two verses of 
the recitation  Ten blue tickets equalled a red one  and could be 
exchanged for it  ten red tickets equalled a yellow one  for ten yellow 
tickets the superintendent gave a very plainly bound Bible  worth forty 
cents in those easy times  to the pupil  How many of my readers would 
have the industry and application to memorize two thousand verses  even 
for a Dore Bible  And yet Mary had acquired two Bibles in this way  it 
was the patient work of two years  and a boy of German parentage had 
won four or five  He once recited three thousand verses without 
stopping  but the strain upon his mental faculties was too great  and 
he was little better than an idiot from that day forth  a grievous 
misfortune for the school  for on great occasions  before company  the 
superintendent  as Tom expressed it  had always made this boy come out 
and  spread himself   Only the older pupils managed to keep their 
tickets and stick to their tedious work long enough to get a Bible  and 
so the delivery of one of these prizes was a rare and noteworthy 
circumstance  the successful pupil was so great and conspicuous for 
that day that on the spot every scholar s heart was fired with a fresh 
ambition that often lasted a couple of weeks  It is possible that Tom s 
mental stomach had never really hungered for one of those prizes  but 
unquestionably his entire being had for many a day longed for the glory 
and the eclat that came with it  
 
In due course the superintendent stood up in front of the pulpit  with 
a closed hymn book in his hand and his forefinger inserted between its 
leaves  and commanded attention  When a Sunday school superintendent 
makes his customary little speech  a hymn book in the hand is as 
necessary as is the inevitable sheet of music in the hand of a singer 
who stands forward on the platform and sings a solo at a concert 
  though why  is a mystery  for neither the hymn book nor the sheet of 
music is ever referred to by the sufferer  This superintendent was a 
slim creature of thirty five  with a sandy goatee and short sandy hair  
he wore a stiff standing collar whose upper edge almost reached his 
ears and whose sharp points curved forward abreast the corners of his 
mouth  a fence that compelled a straight lookout ahead  and a turning 
of the whole body when a side view was required  his chin was propped 
on a spreading cravat which was as broad and as long as a bank note  
and had fringed ends  his boot toes were turned sharply up  in the 
fashion of the day  like sleigh runners  an effect patiently and 
laboriously produced by the young men by sitting with their toes 
pressed against a wall for hours together  Mr  Walters was very earnest 
of mien  and very sincere and honest at heart  and he held sacred 
things and places in such reverence  and so separated them from worldly 
matters  that unconsciously to himself his Sunday school voice had 
acquired a peculiar intonation which was wholly absent on week days  He 
began after this fashion  
 
 Now  children  I want you all to sit up just as straight and pretty 
as you can and give me all your attention for a minute or two  There 
  that is it  That is the way good little boys and girls should do  I see 
one little girl who is looking out of the window  I am afraid she 
thinks I am out there somewhere  perhaps up in one of the trees making 
a speech to the little birds   Applausive titter   I want to tell you 
how good it makes me feel to see so many bright  clean little faces 
assembled in a place like this  learning to do right and be good   And 
so forth and so on  It is not necessary to set down the rest of the 
oration  It was of a pattern which does not vary  and so it is familiar 
to us all  
 
The latter third of the speech was marred by the resumption of fights 
and other recreations among certain of the bad boys  and by fidgetings 
and whisperings that extended far and wide  washing even to the bases 
of isolated and incorruptible rocks like Sid and Mary  But now every 
sound ceased suddenly  with the subsidence of Mr  Walters  voice  and 
the conclusion of the speech was received with a burst of silent 
gratitude  
 
A good part of the whispering had been occasioned by an event which 
was more or less rare  the entrance of visitors  lawyer Thatcher  
accompanied by a very feeble and aged man  a fine  portly  middle aged 
gentleman with iron gray hair  and a dignified lady who was doubtless 
the latter s wife  The lady was leading a child  Tom had been restless 
and full of chafings and repinings  conscience smitten  too  he could 
not meet Amy Lawrence s eye  he could not brook her loving gaze  But 
when he saw this small new comer his soul was all ablaze with bliss in 
a moment  The next moment he was  showing off  with all his might 
  cuffing boys  pulling hair  making faces  in a word  using every art 
that seemed likely to fascinate a girl and win her applause  His 
exaltation had but one alloy  the memory of his humiliation in this 
angel s garden  and that record in sand was fast washing out  under 
the waves of happiness that were sweeping over it now  
 
The visitors were given the highest seat of honor  and as soon as Mr  
Walters  speech was finished  he introduced them to the school  The 
middle aged man turned out to be a prodigious personage  no less a one 
than the county judge  altogether the most august creation these 
children had ever looked upon  and they wondered what kind of material 
he was made of  and they half wanted to hear him roar  and were half 
afraid he might  too  He was from Constantinople  twelve miles away  so 
he had travelled  and seen the world  these very eyes had looked upon 
the county court house  which was said to have a tin roof  The awe 
which these reflections inspired was attested by the impressive silence 
and the ranks of staring eyes  This was the great Judge Thatcher  
brother of their own lawyer  Jeff Thatcher immediately went forward  to 
be familiar with the great man and be envied by the school  It would 
have been music to his soul to hear the whisperings  
 
 Look at him  Jim  He s a going up there  Say  look  he s a going to 
shake hands with him  he IS shaking hands with him  By jings  don t you 
wish you was Jeff   
 
Mr  Walters fell to  showing off   with all sorts of official 
bustlings and activities  giving orders  delivering judgments  
discharging directions here  there  everywhere that he could find a 
target  The librarian  showed off   running hither and thither with his 
arms full of books and making a deal of the splutter and fuss that 
insect authority delights in  The young lady teachers  showed off  
  bending sweetly over pupils that were lately being boxed  lifting 
pretty warning fingers at bad little boys and patting good ones 
lovingly  The young gentlemen teachers  showed off  with small 
scoldings and other little displays of authority and fine attention to 
discipline  and most of the teachers  of both sexes  found business up 
at the library  by the pulpit  and it was business that frequently had 
to be done over again two or three times  with much seeming vexation   
The little girls  showed off  in various ways  and the little boys 
 showed off  with such diligence that the air was thick with paper wads 
and the murmur of scufflings  And above it all the great man sat and 
beamed a majestic judicial smile upon all the house  and warmed himself 
in the sun of his own grandeur  for he was  showing off   too  
 
There was only one thing wanting to make Mr  Walters  ecstasy 
complete  and that was a chance to deliver a Bible prize and exhibit a 
prodigy  Several pupils had a few yellow tickets  but none had enough 
  he had been around among the star pupils inquiring  He would have given 
worlds  now  to have that German lad back again with a sound mind  
 
And now at this moment  when hope was dead  Tom Sawyer came forward 
with nine yellow tickets  nine red tickets  and ten blue ones  and 
demanded a Bible  This was a thunderbolt out of a clear sky  Walters 
was not expecting an application from this source for the next ten 
years  But there was no getting around it  here were the certified 
checks  and they were good for their face  Tom was therefore elevated 
to a place with the Judge and the other elect  and the great news was 
announced from headquarters  It was the most stunning surprise of the 
decade  and so profound was the sensation that it lifted the new hero 
up to the judicial one s altitude  and the school had two marvels to 
gaze upon in place of one  The boys were all eaten up with envy  but 
those that suffered the bitterest pangs were those who perceived too 
late that they themselves had contributed to this hated splendor by 
trading tickets to Tom for the wealth he had amassed in selling 
whitewashing privileges  These despised themselves  as being the dupes 
of a wily fraud  a guileful snake in the grass  
 
The prize was delivered to Tom with as much effusion as the 
superintendent could pump up under the circumstances  but it lacked 
somewhat of the true gush  for the poor fellow s instinct taught him 
that there was a mystery here that could not well bear the light  
perhaps  it was simply preposterous that this boy had warehoused two 
thousand sheaves of Scriptural wisdom on his premises  a dozen would 
strain his capacity  without a doubt  
 
Amy Lawrence was proud and glad  and she tried to make Tom see it in 
her face  but he wouldn t look  She wondered  then she was just a grain 
troubled  next a dim suspicion came and went  came again  she watched  
a furtive glance told her worlds  and then her heart broke  and she was 
jealous  and angry  and the tears came and she hated everybody  Tom 
most of all  she thought   
 
Tom was introduced to the Judge  but his tongue was tied  his breath 
would hardly come  his heart quaked  partly because of the awful 
greatness of the man  but mainly because he was her parent  He would 
have liked to fall down and worship him  if it were in the dark  The 
Judge put his hand on Tom s head and called him a fine little man  and 
asked him what his name was  The boy stammered  gasped  and got it out  
 
 Tom   
 
 Oh  no  not Tom  it is    
 
 Thomas   
 
 Ah  that s it  I thought there was more to it  maybe  That s very 
well  But you ve another one I daresay  and you ll tell it to me  won t 
you   
 
 Tell the gentleman your other name  Thomas   said Walters   and say 
sir  You mustn t forget your manners   
 
 Thomas Sawyer  sir   
 
 That s it  That s a good boy  Fine boy  Fine  manly little fellow  
Two thousand verses is a great many  very  very great many  And you 
never can be sorry for the trouble you took to learn them  for 
knowledge is worth more than anything there is in the world  it s what 
makes great men and good men  you ll be a great man and a good man 
yourself  some day  Thomas  and then you ll look back and say  It s all 
owing to the precious Sunday school privileges of my boyhood  it s all 
owing to my dear teachers that taught me to learn  it s all owing to 
the good superintendent  who encouraged me  and watched over me  and 
gave me a beautiful Bible  a splendid elegant Bible  to keep and have 
it all for my own  always  it s all owing to right bringing up  That is 
what you will say  Thomas  and you wouldn t take any money for those 
two thousand verses  no indeed you wouldn t  And now you wouldn t mind 
telling me and this lady some of the things you ve learned  no  I know 
you wouldn t  for we are proud of little boys that learn  Now  no 
doubt you know the names of all the twelve disciples  Won t you tell us 
the names of the first two that were appointed   
 
Tom was tugging at a button hole and looking sheepish  He blushed  
now  and his eyes fell  Mr  Walters  heart sank within him  He said to 
himself  it is not possible that the boy can answer the simplest 
question  why DID the Judge ask him  Yet he felt obliged to speak up 
and say  
 
 Answer the gentleman  Thomas  don t be afraid   
 
Tom still hung fire  
 
 Now I know you ll tell me   said the lady   The names of the first 
two disciples were    
 
 DAVID AND GOLIAH   
 
Let us draw the curtain of charity over the rest of the scene  
 
 
 
CHAPTER V 
 
ABOUT half past ten the cracked bell of the small church began to 
ring  and presently the people began to gather for the morning sermon  
The Sunday school children distributed themselves about the house and 
occupied pews with their parents  so as to be under supervision  Aunt 
Polly came  and Tom and Sid and Mary sat with her  Tom being placed 
next the aisle  in order that he might be as far away from the open 
window and the seductive outside summer scenes as possible  The crowd 
filed up the aisles  the aged and needy postmaster  who had seen better 
days  the mayor and his wife  for they had a mayor there  among other 
unnecessaries  the justice of the peace  the widow Douglass  fair  
smart  and forty  a generous  good hearted soul and well to do  her 
hill mansion the only palace in the town  and the most hospitable and 
much the most lavish in the matter of festivities that St  Petersburg 
could boast  the bent and venerable Major and Mrs  Ward  lawyer 
Riverson  the new notable from a distance  next the belle of the 
village  followed by a troop of lawn clad and ribbon decked young 
heart breakers  then all the young clerks in town in a body  for they 
had stood in the vestibule sucking their cane heads  a circling wall of 
oiled and simpering admirers  till the last girl had run their gantlet  
and last of all came the Model Boy  Willie Mufferson  taking as heedful 
care of his mother as if she were cut glass  He always brought his 
mother to church  and was the pride of all the matrons  The boys all 
hated him  he was so good  And besides  he had been  thrown up to them  
so much  His white handkerchief was hanging out of his pocket behind  as 
usual on Sundays  accidentally  Tom had no handkerchief  and he looked 
upon boys who had as snobs  
 
The congregation being fully assembled  now  the bell rang once more  
to warn laggards and stragglers  and then a solemn hush fell upon the 
church which was only broken by the tittering and whispering of the 
choir in the gallery  The choir always tittered and whispered all 
through service  There was once a church choir that was not ill bred  
but I have forgotten where it was  now  It was a great many years ago  
and I can scarcely remember anything about it  but I think it was in 
some foreign country  
 
The minister gave out the hymn  and read it through with a relish  in 
a peculiar style which was much admired in that part of the country  
His voice began on a medium key and climbed steadily up till it reached 
a certain point  where it bore with strong emphasis upon the topmost 
word and then plunged down as if from a spring board  
 
  Shall I be car ri ed toe the skies  on flow ry BEDS of ease  
 
  Whilst others fight to win the prize  and sail thro  BLOODY seas  
 
He was regarded as a wonderful reader  At church  sociables  he was 
always called upon to read poetry  and when he was through  the ladies 
would lift up their hands and let them fall helplessly in their laps  
and  wall  their eyes  and shake their heads  as much as to say   Words 
cannot express it  it is too beautiful  TOO beautiful for this mortal 
earth   
 
After the hymn had been sung  the Rev  Mr  Sprague turned himself into 
a bulletin board  and read off  notices  of meetings and societies and 
things till it seemed that the list would stretch out to the crack of 
doom  a queer custom which is still kept up in America  even in cities  
away here in this age of abundant newspapers  Often  the less there is 
to justify a traditional custom  the harder it is to get rid of it  
 
And now the minister prayed  A good  generous prayer it was  and went 
into details  it pleaded for the church  and the little children of the 
church  for the other churches of the village  for the village itself  
for the county  for the State  for the State officers  for the United 
States  for the churches of the United States  for Congress  for the 
President  for the officers of the Government  for poor sailors  tossed 
by stormy seas  for the oppressed millions groaning under the heel of 
European monarchies and Oriental despotisms  for such as have the light 
and the good tidings  and yet have not eyes to see nor ears to hear 
withal  for the heathen in the far islands of the sea  and closed with 
a supplication that the words he was about to speak might find grace 
and favor  and be as seed sown in fertile ground  yielding in time a 
grateful harvest of good  Amen  
 
There was a rustling of dresses  and the standing congregation sat 
down  The boy whose history this book relates did not enjoy the prayer  
he only endured it  if he even did that much  He was restive all 
through it  he kept tally of the details of the prayer  unconsciously 
  for he was not listening  but he knew the ground of old  and the 
clergyman s regular route over it  and when a little trifle of new 
matter was interlarded  his ear detected it and his whole nature 
resented it  he considered additions unfair  and scoundrelly  In the 
midst of the prayer a fly had lit on the back of the pew in front of 
him and tortured his spirit by calmly rubbing its hands together  
embracing its head with its arms  and polishing it so vigorously that 
it seemed to almost part company with the body  and the slender thread 
of a neck was exposed to view  scraping its wings with its hind legs 
and smoothing them to its body as if they had been coat tails  going 
through its whole toilet as tranquilly as if it knew it was perfectly 
safe  As indeed it was  for as sorely as Tom s hands itched to grab for 
it they did not dare  he believed his soul would be instantly destroyed 
if he did such a thing while the prayer was going on  But with the 
closing sentence his hand began to curve and steal forward  and the 
instant the  Amen  was out the fly was a prisoner of war  His aunt 
detected the act and made him let it go  
 
The minister gave out his text and droned along monotonously through 
an argument that was so prosy that many a head by and by began to nod 
  and yet it was an argument that dealt in limitless fire and brimstone 
and thinned the predestined elect down to a company so small as to be 
hardly worth the saving  Tom counted the pages of the sermon  after 
church he always knew how many pages there had been  but he seldom knew 
anything else about the discourse  However  this time he was really 
interested for a little while  The minister made a grand and moving 
picture of the assembling together of the world s hosts at the 
millennium when the lion and the lamb should lie down together and a 
little child should lead them  But the pathos  the lesson  the moral of 
the great spectacle were lost upon the boy  he only thought of the 
conspicuousness of the principal character before the on looking 
nations  his face lit with the thought  and he said to himself that he 
wished he could be that child  if it was a tame lion  
 
Now he lapsed into suffering again  as the dry argument was resumed  
Presently he bethought him of a treasure he had and got it out  It was 
a large black beetle with formidable jaws  a  pinchbug   he called it  
It was in a percussion cap box  The first thing the beetle did was to 
take him by the finger  A natural fillip followed  the beetle went 
floundering into the aisle and lit on its back  and the hurt finger 
went into the boy s mouth  The beetle lay there working its helpless 
legs  unable to turn over  Tom eyed it  and longed for it  but it was 
safe out of his reach  Other people uninterested in the sermon found 
relief in the beetle  and they eyed it too  Presently a vagrant poodle 
dog came idling along  sad at heart  lazy with the summer softness and 
the quiet  weary of captivity  sighing for change  He spied the beetle  
the drooping tail lifted and wagged  He surveyed the prize  walked 
around it  smelt at it from a safe distance  walked around it again  
grew bolder  and took a closer smell  then lifted his lip and made a 
gingerly snatch at it  just missing it  made another  and another  
began to enjoy the diversion  subsided to his stomach with the beetle 
between his paws  and continued his experiments  grew weary at last  
and then indifferent and absent minded  His head nodded  and little by 
little his chin descended and touched the enemy  who seized it  There 
was a sharp yelp  a flirt of the poodle s head  and the beetle fell a 
couple of yards away  and lit on its back once more  The neighboring 
spectators shook with a gentle inward joy  several faces went behind 
fans and handkerchiefs  and Tom was entirely happy  The dog looked 
foolish  and probably felt so  but there was resentment in his heart  
too  and a craving for revenge  So he went to the beetle and began a 
wary attack on it again  jumping at it from every point of a circle  
lighting with his fore paws within an inch of the creature  making even 
closer snatches at it with his teeth  and jerking his head till his 
ears flapped again  But he grew tired once more  after a while  tried 
to amuse himself with a fly but found no relief  followed an ant 
around  with his nose close to the floor  and quickly wearied of that  
yawned  sighed  forgot the beetle entirely  and sat down on it  Then 
there was a wild yelp of agony and the poodle went sailing up the 
aisle  the yelps continued  and so did the dog  he crossed the house in 
front of the altar  he flew down the other aisle  he crossed before the 
doors  he clamored up the home stretch  his anguish grew with his 
progress  till presently he was but a woolly comet moving in its orbit 
with the gleam and the speed of light  At last the frantic sufferer 
sheered from its course  and sprang into its master s lap  he flung it 
out of the window  and the voice of distress quickly thinned away and 
died in the distance  
 
By this time the whole church was red faced and suffocating with 
suppressed laughter  and the sermon had come to a dead standstill  The 
discourse was resumed presently  but it went lame and halting  all 
possibility of impressiveness being at an end  for even the gravest 
sentiments were constantly being received with a smothered burst of 
unholy mirth  under cover of some remote pew back  as if the poor 
parson had said a rarely facetious thing  It was a genuine relief to 
the whole congregation when the ordeal was over and the benediction 
pronounced  
 
Tom Sawyer went home quite cheerful  thinking to himself that there 
was some satisfaction about divine service when there was a bit of 
variety in it  He had but one marring thought  he was willing that the 
dog should play with his pinchbug  but he did not think it was upright 
in him to carry it off  
 
 
 
CHAPTER VI 
 
MONDAY morning found Tom Sawyer miserable  Monday morning always found 
him so  because it began another week s slow suffering in school  He 
generally began that day with wishing he had had no intervening 
holiday  it made the going into captivity and fetters again so much 
more odious  
 
Tom lay thinking  Presently it occurred to him that he wished he was 
sick  then he could stay home from school  Here was a vague 
possibility  He canvassed his system  No ailment was found  and he 
investigated again  This time he thought he could detect colicky 
symptoms  and he began to encourage them with considerable hope  But 
they soon grew feeble  and presently died wholly away  He reflected 
further  Suddenly he discovered something  One of his upper front teeth 
was loose  This was lucky  he was about to begin to groan  as a 
 starter   as he called it  when it occurred to him that if he came 
into court with that argument  his aunt would pull it out  and that 
would hurt  So he thought he would hold the tooth in reserve for the 
present  and seek further  Nothing offered for some little time  and 
then he remembered hearing the doctor tell about a certain thing that 
laid up a patient for two or three weeks and threatened to make him 
lose a finger  So the boy eagerly drew his sore toe from under the 
sheet and held it up for inspection  But now he did not know the 
necessary symptoms  However  it seemed well worth while to chance it  
so he fell to groaning with considerable spirit  
 
But Sid slept on unconscious  
 
Tom groaned louder  and fancied that he began to feel pain in the toe  
 
No result from Sid  
 
Tom was panting with his exertions by this time  He took a rest and 
then swelled himself up and fetched a succession of admirable groans  
 
Sid snored on  
 
Tom was aggravated  He said   Sid  Sid   and shook him  This course 
worked well  and Tom began to groan again  Sid yawned  stretched  then 
brought himself up on his elbow with a snort  and began to stare at 
Tom  Tom went on groaning  Sid said  
 
 Tom  Say  Tom    No response    Here  Tom  TOM  What is the matter  
Tom   And he shook him and looked in his face anxiously  
 
Tom moaned out  
 
 Oh  don t  Sid  Don t joggle me   
 
 Why  what s the matter  Tom  I must call auntie   
 
 No  never mind  It ll be over by and by  maybe  Don t call anybody   
 
 But I must  DON T groan so  Tom  it s awful  How long you been this 
way   
 
 Hours  Ouch  Oh  don t stir so  Sid  you ll kill me   
 
 Tom  why didn t you wake me sooner  Oh  Tom  DON T  It makes my 
flesh crawl to hear you  Tom  what is the matter   
 
 I forgive you everything  Sid   Groan   Everything you ve ever done 
to me  When I m gone    
 
 Oh  Tom  you ain t dying  are you  Don t  Tom  oh  don t  Maybe    
 
 I forgive everybody  Sid   Groan   Tell  em so  Sid  And Sid  you 
give my window sash and my cat with one eye to that new girl that s 
come to town  and tell her    
 
But Sid had snatched his clothes and gone  Tom was suffering in 
reality  now  so handsomely was his imagination working  and so his 
groans had gathered quite a genuine tone  
 
Sid flew down stairs and said  
 
 Oh  Aunt Polly  come  Tom s dying   
 
 Dying   
 
 Yes m  Don t wait  come quick   
 
 Rubbage  I don t believe it   
 
But she fled up stairs  nevertheless  with Sid and Mary at her heels  
And her face grew white  too  and her lip trembled  When she reached 
the bedside she gasped out  
 
 You  Tom  Tom  what s the matter with you   
 
 Oh  auntie  I m    
 
 What s the matter with you  what is the matter with you  child   
 
 Oh  auntie  my sore toe s mortified   
 
The old lady sank down into a chair and laughed a little  then cried a 
little  then did both together  This restored her and she said  
 
 Tom  what a turn you did give me  Now you shut up that nonsense and 
climb out of this   
 
The groans ceased and the pain vanished from the toe  The boy felt a 
little foolish  and he said  
 
 Aunt Polly  it SEEMED mortified  and it hurt so I never minded my 
tooth at all   
 
 Your tooth  indeed  What s the matter with your tooth   
 
 One of them s loose  and it aches perfectly awful   
 
 There  there  now  don t begin that groaning again  Open your mouth  
Well  your tooth IS loose  but you re not going to die about that  
Mary  get me a silk thread  and a chunk of fire out of the kitchen   
 
Tom said  
 
 Oh  please  auntie  don t pull it out  It don t hurt any more  I wish 
I may never stir if it does  Please don t  auntie  I don t want to stay 
home from school   
 
 Oh  you don t  don t you  So all this row was because you thought 
you d get to stay home from school and go a fishing  Tom  Tom  I love 
you so  and you seem to try every way you can to break my old heart 
with your outrageousness   By this time the dental instruments were 
ready  The old lady made one end of the silk thread fast to Tom s tooth 
with a loop and tied the other to the bedpost  Then she seized the 
chunk of fire and suddenly thrust it almost into the boy s face  The 
tooth hung dangling by the bedpost  now  
 
But all trials bring their compensations  As Tom wended to school 
after breakfast  he was the envy of every boy he met because the gap in 
his upper row of teeth enabled him to expectorate in a new and 
admirable way  He gathered quite a following of lads interested in the 
exhibition  and one that had cut his finger and had been a centre of 
fascination and homage up to this time  now found himself suddenly 
without an adherent  and shorn of his glory  His heart was heavy  and 
he said with a disdain which he did not feel that it wasn t anything to 
spit like Tom Sawyer  but another boy said   Sour grapes   and he 
wandered away a dismantled hero  
 
Shortly Tom came upon the juvenile pariah of the village  Huckleberry 
Finn  son of the town drunkard  Huckleberry was cordially hated and 
dreaded by all the mothers of the town  because he was idle and lawless 
and vulgar and bad  and because all their children admired him so  and 
delighted in his forbidden society  and wished they dared to be like 
him  Tom was like the rest of the respectable boys  in that he envied 
Huckleberry his gaudy outcast condition  and was under strict orders 
not to play with him  So he played with him every time he got a chance  
Huckleberry was always dressed in the cast off clothes of full grown 
men  and they were in perennial bloom and fluttering with rags  His hat 
was a vast ruin with a wide crescent lopped out of its brim  his coat  
when he wore one  hung nearly to his heels and had the rearward buttons 
far down the back  but one suspender supported his trousers  the seat 
of the trousers bagged low and contained nothing  the fringed legs 
dragged in the dirt when not rolled up  
 
Huckleberry came and went  at his own free will  He slept on doorsteps 
in fine weather and in empty hogsheads in wet  he did not have to go to 
school or to church  or call any being master or obey anybody  he could 
go fishing or swimming when and where he chose  and stay as long as it 
suited him  nobody forbade him to fight  he could sit up as late as he 
pleased  he was always the first boy that went barefoot in the spring 
and the last to resume leather in the fall  he never had to wash  nor 
put on clean clothes  he could swear wonderfully  In a word  everything 
that goes to make life precious that boy had  So thought every 
harassed  hampered  respectable boy in St  Petersburg  
 
Tom hailed the romantic outcast  
 
 Hello  Huckleberry   
 
 Hello yourself  and see how you like it   
 
 What s that you got   
 
 Dead cat   
 
 Lemme see him  Huck  My  he s pretty stiff  Where d you get him   
 
 Bought him off n a boy   
 
 What did you give   
 
 I give a blue ticket and a bladder that I got at the slaughter house   
 
 Where d you get the blue ticket   
 
 Bought it off n Ben Rogers two weeks ago for a hoop stick   
 
 Say  what is dead cats good for  Huck   
 
 Good for  Cure warts with   
 
 No  Is that so  I know something that s better   
 
 I bet you don t  What is it   
 
 Why  spunk water   
 
 Spunk water  I wouldn t give a dern for spunk water   
 
 You wouldn t  wouldn t you  D you ever try it   
 
 No  I hain t  But Bob Tanner did   
 
 Who told you so   
 
 Why  he told Jeff Thatcher  and Jeff told Johnny Baker  and Johnny 
told Jim Hollis  and Jim told Ben Rogers  and Ben told a nigger  and 
the nigger told me  There now   
 
 Well  what of it  They ll all lie  Leastways all but the nigger  I 
don t know HIM  But I never see a nigger that WOULDN T lie  Shucks  Now 
you tell me how Bob Tanner done it  Huck   
 
 Why  he took and dipped his hand in a rotten stump where the 
rain water was   
 
 In the daytime   
 
 Certainly   
 
 With his face to the stump   
 
 Yes  Least I reckon so   
 
 Did he say anything   
 
 I don t reckon he did  I don t know   
 
 Aha  Talk about trying to cure warts with spunk water such a blame 
fool way as that  Why  that ain t a going to do any good  You got to go 
all by yourself  to the middle of the woods  where you know there s a 
spunk water stump  and just as it s midnight you back up against the 
stump and jam your hand in and say  
 
   Barley corn  barley corn  injun meal shorts  
   Spunk water  spunk water  swaller these warts   
 
and then walk away quick  eleven steps  with your eyes shut  and then 
turn around three times and walk home without speaking to anybody  
Because if you speak the charm s busted   
 
 Well  that sounds like a good way  but that ain t the way Bob Tanner 
done   
 
 No  sir  you can bet he didn t  becuz he s the wartiest boy in this 
town  and he wouldn t have a wart on him if he d knowed how to work 
spunk water  I ve took off thousands of warts off of my hands that way  
Huck  I play with frogs so much that I ve always got considerable many 
warts  Sometimes I take  em off with a bean   
 
 Yes  bean s good  I ve done that   
 
 Have you  What s your way   
 
 You take and split the bean  and cut the wart so as to get some 
blood  and then you put the blood on one piece of the bean and take and 
dig a hole and bury it  bout midnight at the crossroads in the dark of 
the moon  and then you burn up the rest of the bean  You see that piece 
that s got the blood on it will keep drawing and drawing  trying to 
fetch the other piece to it  and so that helps the blood to draw the 
wart  and pretty soon off she comes   
 
 Yes  that s it  Huck  that s it  though when you re burying it if you 
say  Down bean  off wart  come no more to bother me   it s better  
That s the way Joe Harper does  and he s been nearly to Coonville and 
most everywheres  But say  how do you cure  em with dead cats   
 
 Why  you take your cat and go and get in the graveyard  long about 
midnight when somebody that was wicked has been buried  and when it s 
midnight a devil will come  or maybe two or three  but you can t see 
 em  you can only hear something like the wind  or maybe hear  em talk  
and when they re taking that feller away  you heave your cat after  em 
and say   Devil follow corpse  cat follow devil  warts follow cat  I m 
done with ye   That ll fetch ANY wart   
 
 Sounds right  D you ever try it  Huck   
 
 No  but old Mother Hopkins told me   
 
 Well  I reckon it s so  then  Becuz they say she s a witch   
 
 Say  Why  Tom  I KNOW she is  She witched pap  Pap says so his own 
self  He come along one day  and he see she was a witching him  so he 
took up a rock  and if she hadn t dodged  he d a got her  Well  that 
very night he rolled off n a shed wher  he was a layin drunk  and broke 
his arm   
 
 Why  that s awful  How did he know she was a witching him   
 
 Lord  pap can tell  easy  Pap says when they keep looking at you 
right stiddy  they re a witching you  Specially if they mumble  Becuz 
when they mumble they re saying the Lord s Prayer backards   
 
 Say  Hucky  when you going to try the cat   
 
 To night  I reckon they ll come after old Hoss Williams to night   
 
 But they buried him Saturday  Didn t they get him Saturday night   
 
 Why  how you talk  How could their charms work till midnight   and 
THEN it s Sunday  Devils don t slosh around much of a Sunday  I don t 
reckon   
 
 I never thought of that  That s so  Lemme go with you   
 
 Of course  if you ain t afeard   
 
 Afeard   Tain t likely  Will you meow   
 
 Yes  and you meow back  if you get a chance  Last time  you kep  me 
a meowing around till old Hays went to throwing rocks at me and says 
 Dern that cat   and so I hove a brick through his window  but don t 
you tell   
 
 I won t  I couldn t meow that night  becuz auntie was watching me  
but I ll meow this time  Say  what s that   
 
 Nothing but a tick   
 
 Where d you get him   
 
 Out in the woods   
 
 What ll you take for him   
 
 I don t know  I don t want to sell him   
 
 All right  It s a mighty small tick  anyway   
 
 Oh  anybody can run a tick down that don t belong to them  I m 
satisfied with it  It s a good enough tick for me   
 
 Sho  there s ticks a plenty  I could have a thousand of  em if I 
wanted to   
 
 Well  why don t you  Becuz you know mighty well you can t  This is a 
pretty early tick  I reckon  It s the first one I ve seen this year   
 
 Say  Huck  I ll give you my tooth for him   
 
 Less see it   
 
Tom got out a bit of paper and carefully unrolled it  Huckleberry 
viewed it wistfully  The temptation was very strong  At last he said  
 
 Is it genuwyne   
 
Tom lifted his lip and showed the vacancy  
 
 Well  all right   said Huckleberry   it s a trade   
 
Tom enclosed the tick in the percussion cap box that had lately been 
the pinchbug s prison  and the boys separated  each feeling wealthier 
than before  
 
When Tom reached the little isolated frame schoolhouse  he strode in 
briskly  with the manner of one who had come with all honest speed  
He hung his hat on a peg and flung himself into his seat with 
business like alacrity  The master  throned on high in his great 
splint bottom arm chair  was dozing  lulled by the drowsy hum of study  
The interruption roused him  
 
 Thomas Sawyer   
 
Tom knew that when his name was pronounced in full  it meant trouble  
 
 Sir   
 
 Come up here  Now  sir  why are you late again  as usual   
 
Tom was about to take refuge in a lie  when he saw two long tails of 
yellow hair hanging down a back that he recognized by the electric 
sympathy of love  and by that form was THE ONLY VACANT PLACE on the 
girls  side of the schoolhouse  He instantly said  
 
 I STOPPED TO TALK WITH HUCKLEBERRY FINN   
 
The master s pulse stood still  and he stared helplessly  The buzz of 
study ceased  The pupils wondered if this foolhardy boy had lost his 
mind  The master said  
 
 You  you did what   
 
 Stopped to talk with Huckleberry Finn   
 
There was no mistaking the words  
 
 Thomas Sawyer  this is the most astounding confession I have ever 
listened to  No mere ferule will answer for this offence  Take off your 
jacket   
 
The master s arm performed until it was tired and the stock of 
switches notably diminished  Then the order followed  
 
 Now  sir  go and sit with the girls  And let this be a warning to you   
 
The titter that rippled around the room appeared to abash the boy  but 
in reality that result was caused rather more by his worshipful awe of 
his unknown idol and the dread pleasure that lay in his high good 
fortune  He sat down upon the end of the pine bench and the girl 
hitched herself away from him with a toss of her head  Nudges and winks 
and whispers traversed the room  but Tom sat still  with his arms upon 
the long  low desk before him  and seemed to study his book  
 
By and by attention ceased from him  and the accustomed school murmur 
rose upon the dull air once more  Presently the boy began to steal 
furtive glances at the girl  She observed it   made a mouth  at him and 
gave him the back of her head for the space of a minute  When she 
cautiously faced around again  a peach lay before her  She thrust it 
away  Tom gently put it back  She thrust it away again  but with less 
animosity  Tom patiently returned it to its place  Then she let it 
remain  Tom scrawled on his slate   Please take it  I got more   The 
girl glanced at the words  but made no sign  Now the boy began to draw 
something on the slate  hiding his work with his left hand  For a time 
the girl refused to notice  but her human curiosity presently began to 
manifest itself by hardly perceptible signs  The boy worked on  
apparently unconscious  The girl made a sort of noncommittal attempt to 
see  but the boy did not betray that he was aware of it  At last she 
gave in and hesitatingly whispered  
 
 Let me see it   
 
Tom partly uncovered a dismal caricature of a house with two gable 
ends to it and a corkscrew of smoke issuing from the chimney  Then the 
girl s interest began to fasten itself upon the work and she forgot 
everything else  When it was finished  she gazed a moment  then 
whispered  
 
 It s nice  make a man   
 
The artist erected a man in the front yard  that resembled a derrick  
He could have stepped over the house  but the girl was not 
hypercritical  she was satisfied with the monster  and whispered  
 
 It s a beautiful man  now make me coming along   
 
Tom drew an hour glass with a full moon and straw limbs to it and 
armed the spreading fingers with a portentous fan  The girl said  
 
 It s ever so nice  I wish I could draw   
 
 It s easy   whispered Tom   I ll learn you   
 
 Oh  will you  When   
 
 At noon  Do you go home to dinner   
 
 I ll stay if you will   
 
 Good  that s a whack  What s your name   
 
 Becky Thatcher  What s yours  Oh  I know  It s Thomas Sawyer   
 
 That s the name they lick me by  I m Tom when I m good  You call me 
Tom  will you   
 
 Yes   
 
Now Tom began to scrawl something on the slate  hiding the words from 
the girl  But she was not backward this time  She begged to see  Tom 
said  
 
 Oh  it ain t anything   
 
 Yes it is   
 
 No it ain t  You don t want to see   
 
 Yes I do  indeed I do  Please let me   
 
 You ll tell   
 
 No I won t  deed and deed and double deed won t   
 
 You won t tell anybody at all  Ever  as long as you live   
 
 No  I won t ever tell ANYbody  Now let me   
 
 Oh  YOU don t want to see   
 
 Now that you treat me so  I WILL see   And she put her small hand 
upon his and a little scuffle ensued  Tom pretending to resist in 
earnest but letting his hand slip by degrees till these words were 
revealed   I LOVE YOU   
 
 Oh  you bad thing   And she hit his hand a smart rap  but reddened 
and looked pleased  nevertheless  
 
Just at this juncture the boy felt a slow  fateful grip closing on his 
ear  and a steady lifting impulse  In that wise he was borne across the 
house and deposited in his own seat  under a peppering fire of giggles 
from the whole school  Then the master stood over him during a few 
awful moments  and finally moved away to his throne without saying a 
word  But although Tom s ear tingled  his heart was jubilant  
 
As the school quieted down Tom made an honest effort to study  but the 
turmoil within him was too great  In turn he took his place in the 
reading class and made a botch of it  then in the geography class and 
turned lakes into mountains  mountains into rivers  and rivers into 
continents  till chaos was come again  then in the spelling class  and 
got  turned down   by a succession of mere baby words  till he brought 
up at the foot and yielded up the pewter medal which he had worn with 
ostentation for months  
 
 
 
CHAPTER VII 
 
THE harder Tom tried to fasten his mind on his book  the more his 
ideas wandered  So at last  with a sigh and a yawn  he gave it up  It 
seemed to him that the noon recess would never come  The air was 
utterly dead  There was not a breath stirring  It was the sleepiest of 
sleepy days  The drowsing murmur of the five and twenty studying 
scholars soothed the soul like the spell that is in the murmur of bees  
Away off in the flaming sunshine  Cardiff Hill lifted its soft green 
sides through a shimmering veil of heat  tinted with the purple of 
distance  a few birds floated on lazy wing high in the air  no other 
living thing was visible but some cows  and they were asleep  Tom s 
heart ached to be free  or else to have something of interest to do to 
pass the dreary time  His hand wandered into his pocket and his face 
lit up with a glow of gratitude that was prayer  though he did not know 
it  Then furtively the percussion cap box came out  He released the 
tick and put him on the long flat desk  The creature probably glowed 
with a gratitude that amounted to prayer  too  at this moment  but it 
was premature  for when he started thankfully to travel off  Tom turned 
him aside with a pin and made him take a new direction  
 
Tom s bosom friend sat next him  suffering just as Tom had been  and 
now he was deeply and gratefully interested in this entertainment in an 
instant  This bosom friend was Joe Harper  The two boys were sworn 
friends all the week  and embattled enemies on Saturdays  Joe took a 
pin out of his lapel and began to assist in exercising the prisoner  
The sport grew in interest momently  Soon Tom said that they were 
interfering with each other  and neither getting the fullest benefit of 
the tick  So he put Joe s slate on the desk and drew a line down the 
middle of it from top to bottom  
 
 Now   said he   as long as he is on your side you can stir him up and 
I ll let him alone  but if you let him get away and get on my side  
you re to leave him alone as long as I can keep him from crossing over   
 
 All right  go ahead  start him up   
 
The tick escaped from Tom  presently  and crossed the equator  Joe 
harassed him awhile  and then he got away and crossed back again  This 
change of base occurred often  While one boy was worrying the tick with 
absorbing interest  the other would look on with interest as strong  
the two heads bowed together over the slate  and the two souls dead to 
all things else  At last luck seemed to settle and abide with Joe  The 
tick tried this  that  and the other course  and got as excited and as 
anxious as the boys themselves  but time and again just as he would 
have victory in his very grasp  so to speak  and Tom s fingers would be 
twitching to begin  Joe s pin would deftly head him off  and keep 
possession  At last Tom could stand it no longer  The temptation was 
too strong  So he reached out and lent a hand with his pin  Joe was 
angry in a moment  Said he  
 
 Tom  you let him alone   
 
 I only just want to stir him up a little  Joe   
 
 No  sir  it ain t fair  you just let him alone   
 
 Blame it  I ain t going to stir him much   
 
 Let him alone  I tell you   
 
 I won t   
 
 You shall  he s on my side of the line   
 
 Look here  Joe Harper  whose is that tick   
 
 I don t care whose tick he is  he s on my side of the line  and you 
sha n t touch him   
 
 Well  I ll just bet I will  though  He s my tick and I ll do what I 
blame please with him  or die   
 
A tremendous whack came down on Tom s shoulders  and its duplicate on 
Joe s  and for the space of two minutes the dust continued to fly from 
the two jackets and the whole school to enjoy it  The boys had been too 
absorbed to notice the hush that had stolen upon the school awhile 
before when the master came tiptoeing down the room and stood over 
them  He had contemplated a good part of the performance before he 
contributed his bit of variety to it  
 
When school broke up at noon  Tom flew to Becky Thatcher  and 
whispered in her ear  
 
 Put on your bonnet and let on you re going home  and when you get to 
the corner  give the rest of  em the slip  and turn down through the 
lane and come back  I ll go the other way and come it over  em the same 
way   
 
So the one went off with one group of scholars  and the other with 
another  In a little while the two met at the bottom of the lane  and 
when they reached the school they had it all to themselves  Then they 
sat together  with a slate before them  and Tom gave Becky the pencil 
and held her hand in his  guiding it  and so created another surprising 
house  When the interest in art began to wane  the two fell to talking  
Tom was swimming in bliss  He said  
 
 Do you love rats   
 
 No  I hate them   
 
 Well  I do  too  LIVE ones  But I mean dead ones  to swing round your 
head with a string   
 
 No  I don t care for rats much  anyway  What I like is chewing gum   
 
 Oh  I should say so  I wish I had some now   
 
 Do you  I ve got some  I ll let you chew it awhile  but you must give 
it back to me   
 
That was agreeable  so they chewed it turn about  and dangled their 
legs against the bench in excess of contentment  
 
 Was you ever at a circus   said Tom  
 
 Yes  and my pa s going to take me again some time  if I m good   
 
 I been to the circus three or four times  lots of times  Church ain t 
shucks to a circus  There s things going on at a circus all the time  
I m going to be a clown in a circus when I grow up   
 
 Oh  are you  That will be nice  They re so lovely  all spotted up   
 
 Yes  that s so  And they get slathers of money  most a dollar a day  
Ben Rogers says  Say  Becky  was you ever engaged   
 
 What s that   
 
 Why  engaged to be married   
 
 No   
 
 Would you like to   
 
 I reckon so  I don t know  What is it like   
 
 Like  Why it ain t like anything  You only just tell a boy you won t 
ever have anybody but him  ever ever ever  and then you kiss and that s 
all  Anybody can do it   
 
 Kiss  What do you kiss for   
 
 Why  that  you know  is to  well  they always do that   
 
 Everybody   
 
 Why  yes  everybody that s in love with each other  Do you remember 
what I wrote on the slate   
 
 Ye  yes   
 
 What was it   
 
 I sha n t tell you   
 
 Shall I tell YOU   
 
 Ye  yes  but some other time   
 
 No  now   
 
 No  not now  to morrow   
 
 Oh  no  NOW  Please  Becky  I ll whisper it  I ll whisper it ever so 
easy   
 
Becky hesitating  Tom took silence for consent  and passed his arm 
about her waist and whispered the tale ever so softly  with his mouth 
close to her ear  And then he added  
 
 Now you whisper it to me  just the same   
 
She resisted  for a while  and then said  
 
 You turn your face away so you can t see  and then I will  But you 
mustn t ever tell anybody  WILL you  Tom  Now you won t  WILL you   
 
 No  indeed  indeed I won t  Now  Becky   
 
He turned his face away  She bent timidly around till her breath 
stirred his curls and whispered   I  love  you   
 
Then she sprang away and ran around and around the desks and benches  
with Tom after her  and took refuge in a corner at last  with her 
little white apron to her face  Tom clasped her about her neck and 
pleaded  
 
 Now  Becky  it s all done  all over but the kiss  Don t you be afraid 
of that  it ain t anything at all  Please  Becky   And he tugged at her 
apron and the hands  
 
By and by she gave up  and let her hands drop  her face  all glowing 
with the struggle  came up and submitted  Tom kissed the red lips and 
said  
 
 Now it s all done  Becky  And always after this  you know  you ain t 
ever to love anybody but me  and you ain t ever to marry anybody but 
me  ever never and forever  Will you   
 
 No  I ll never love anybody but you  Tom  and I ll never marry 
anybody but you  and you ain t to ever marry anybody but me  either   
 
 Certainly  Of course  That s PART of it  And always coming to school 
or when we re going home  you re to walk with me  when there ain t 
anybody looking  and you choose me and I choose you at parties  because 
that s the way you do when you re engaged   
 
 It s so nice  I never heard of it before   
 
 Oh  it s ever so gay  Why  me and Amy Lawrence    
 
The big eyes told Tom his blunder and he stopped  confused  
 
 Oh  Tom  Then I ain t the first you ve ever been engaged to   
 
The child began to cry  Tom said  
 
 Oh  don t cry  Becky  I don t care for her any more   
 
 Yes  you do  Tom  you know you do   
 
Tom tried to put his arm about her neck  but she pushed him away and 
turned her face to the wall  and went on crying  Tom tried again  with 
soothing words in his mouth  and was repulsed again  Then his pride was 
up  and he strode away and went outside  He stood about  restless and 
uneasy  for a while  glancing at the door  every now and then  hoping 
she would repent and come to find him  But she did not  Then he began 
to feel badly and fear that he was in the wrong  It was a hard struggle 
with him to make new advances  now  but he nerved himself to it and 
entered  She was still standing back there in the corner  sobbing  with 
her face to the wall  Tom s heart smote him  He went to her and stood a 
moment  not knowing exactly how to proceed  Then he said hesitatingly  
 
 Becky  I  I don t care for anybody but you   
 
No reply  but sobs  
 
 Becky   pleadingly   Becky  won t you say something   
 
More sobs  
 
Tom got out his chiefest jewel  a brass knob from the top of an 
andiron  and passed it around her so that she could see it  and said  
 
 Please  Becky  won t you take it   
 
She struck it to the floor  Then Tom marched out of the house and over 
the hills and far away  to return to school no more that day  Presently 
Becky began to suspect  She ran to the door  he was not in sight  she 
flew around to the play yard  he was not there  Then she called  
 
 Tom  Come back  Tom   
 
She listened intently  but there was no answer  She had no companions 
but silence and loneliness  So she sat down to cry again and upbraid 
herself  and by this time the scholars began to gather again  and she 
had to hide her griefs and still her broken heart and take up the cross 
of a long  dreary  aching afternoon  with none among the strangers 
about her to exchange sorrows with  
 
 
 
CHAPTER VIII 
 
TOM dodged hither and thither through lanes until he was well out of 
the track of returning scholars  and then fell into a moody jog  He 
crossed a small  branch  two or three times  because of a prevailing 
juvenile superstition that to cross water baffled pursuit  Half an hour 
later he was disappearing behind the Douglas mansion on the summit of 
Cardiff Hill  and the schoolhouse was hardly distinguishable away off 
in the valley behind him  He entered a dense wood  picked his pathless 
way to the centre of it  and sat down on a mossy spot under a spreading 
oak  There was not even a zephyr stirring  the dead noonday heat had 
even stilled the songs of the birds  nature lay in a trance that was 
broken by no sound but the occasional far off hammering of a 
woodpecker  and this seemed to render the pervading silence and sense 
of loneliness the more profound  The boy s soul was steeped in 
melancholy  his feelings were in happy accord with his surroundings  He 
sat long with his elbows on his knees and his chin in his hands  
meditating  It seemed to him that life was but a trouble  at best  and 
he more than half envied Jimmy Hodges  so lately released  it must be 
very peaceful  he thought  to lie and slumber and dream forever and 
ever  with the wind whispering through the trees and caressing the 
grass and the flowers over the grave  and nothing to bother and grieve 
about  ever any more  If he only had a clean Sunday school record he 
could be willing to go  and be done with it all  Now as to this girl  
What had he done  Nothing  He had meant the best in the world  and been 
treated like a dog  like a very dog  She would be sorry some day  maybe 
when it was too late  Ah  if he could only die TEMPORARILY  
 
But the elastic heart of youth cannot be compressed into one 
constrained shape long at a time  Tom presently began to drift 
insensibly back into the concerns of this life again  What if he turned 
his back  now  and disappeared mysteriously  What if he went away  ever 
so far away  into unknown countries beyond the seas  and never came 
back any more  How would she feel then  The idea of being a clown 
recurred to him now  only to fill him with disgust  For frivolity and 
jokes and spotted tights were an offense  when they intruded themselves 
upon a spirit that was exalted into the vague august realm of the 
romantic  No  he would be a soldier  and return after long years  all 
war worn and illustrious  No  better still  he would join the Indians  
and hunt buffaloes and go on the warpath in the mountain ranges and the 
trackless great plains of the Far West  and away in the future come 
back a great chief  bristling with feathers  hideous with paint  and 
prance into Sunday school  some drowsy summer morning  with a 
bloodcurdling war whoop  and sear the eyeballs of all his companions 
with unappeasable envy  But no  there was something gaudier even than 
this  He would be a pirate  That was it  NOW his future lay plain 
before him  and glowing with unimaginable splendor  How his name would 
fill the world  and make people shudder  How gloriously he would go 
plowing the dancing seas  in his long  low  black hulled racer  the 
Spirit of the Storm  with his grisly flag flying at the fore  And at 
the zenith of his fame  how he would suddenly appear at the old village 
and stalk into church  brown and weather beaten  in his black velvet 
doublet and trunks  his great jack boots  his crimson sash  his belt 
bristling with horse pistols  his crime rusted cutlass at his side  his 
slouch hat with waving plumes  his black flag unfurled  with the skull 
and crossbones on it  and hear with swelling ecstasy the whisperings  
 It s Tom Sawyer the Pirate   the Black Avenger of the Spanish Main   
 
Yes  it was settled  his career was determined  He would run away from 
home and enter upon it  He would start the very next morning  Therefore 
he must now begin to get ready  He would collect his resources 
together  He went to a rotten log near at hand and began to dig under 
one end of it with his Barlow knife  He soon struck wood that sounded 
hollow  He put his hand there and uttered this incantation impressively  
 
 What hasn t come here  come  What s here  stay here   
 
Then he scraped away the dirt  and exposed a pine shingle  He took it 
up and disclosed a shapely little treasure house whose bottom and sides 
were of shingles  In it lay a marble  Tom s astonishment was boundless  
He scratched his head with a perplexed air  and said  
 
 Well  that beats anything   
 
Then he tossed the marble away pettishly  and stood cogitating  The 
truth was  that a superstition of his had failed  here  which he and 
all his comrades had always looked upon as infallible  If you buried a 
marble with certain necessary incantations  and left it alone a 
fortnight  and then opened the place with the incantation he had just 
used  you would find that all the marbles you had ever lost had 
gathered themselves together there  meantime  no matter how widely they 
had been separated  But now  this thing had actually and unquestionably 
failed  Tom s whole structure of faith was shaken to its foundations  
He had many a time heard of this thing succeeding but never of its 
failing before  It did not occur to him that he had tried it several 
times before  himself  but could never find the hiding places 
afterward  He puzzled over the matter some time  and finally decided 
that some witch had interfered and broken the charm  He thought he 
would satisfy himself on that point  so he searched around till he 
found a small sandy spot with a little funnel shaped depression in it  
He laid himself down and put his mouth close to this depression and 
called   
 
 Doodle bug  doodle bug  tell me what I want to know  Doodle bug  
doodle bug  tell me what I want to know   
 
The sand began to work  and presently a small black bug appeared for a 
second and then darted under again in a fright  
 
 He dasn t tell  So it WAS a witch that done it  I just knowed it   
 
He well knew the futility of trying to contend against witches  so he 
gave up discouraged  But it occurred to him that he might as well have 
the marble he had just thrown away  and therefore he went and made a 
patient search for it  But he could not find it  Now he went back to 
his treasure house and carefully placed himself just as he had been 
standing when he tossed the marble away  then he took another marble 
from his pocket and tossed it in the same way  saying  
 
 Brother  go find your brother   
 
He watched where it stopped  and went there and looked  But it must 
have fallen short or gone too far  so he tried twice more  The last 
repetition was successful  The two marbles lay within a foot of each 
other  
 
Just here the blast of a toy tin trumpet came faintly down the green 
aisles of the forest  Tom flung off his jacket and trousers  turned a 
suspender into a belt  raked away some brush behind the rotten log  
disclosing a rude bow and arrow  a lath sword and a tin trumpet  and in 
a moment had seized these things and bounded away  barelegged  with 
fluttering shirt  He presently halted under a great elm  blew an 
answering blast  and then began to tiptoe and look warily out  this way 
and that  He said cautiously  to an imaginary company  
 
 Hold  my merry men  Keep hid till I blow   
 
Now appeared Joe Harper  as airily clad and elaborately armed as Tom  
Tom called  
 
 Hold  Who comes here into Sherwood Forest without my pass   
 
 Guy of Guisborne wants no man s pass  Who art thou that  that    
 
 Dares to hold such language   said Tom  prompting  for they talked 
 by the book   from memory  
 
 Who art thou that dares to hold such language   
 
 I  indeed  I am Robin Hood  as thy caitiff carcase soon shall know   
 
 Then art thou indeed that famous outlaw  Right gladly will I dispute 
with thee the passes of the merry wood  Have at thee   
 
They took their lath swords  dumped their other traps on the ground  
struck a fencing attitude  foot to foot  and began a grave  careful 
combat   two up and two down   Presently Tom said  
 
 Now  if you ve got the hang  go it lively   
 
So they  went it lively   panting and perspiring with the work  By and 
by Tom shouted  
 
 Fall  fall  Why don t you fall   
 
 I sha n t  Why don t you fall yourself  You re getting the worst of 
it   
 
 Why  that ain t anything  I can t fall  that ain t the way it is in 
the book  The book says   Then with one back handed stroke he slew poor 
Guy of Guisborne   You re to turn around and let me hit you in the 
back   
 
There was no getting around the authorities  so Joe turned  received 
the whack and fell  
 
 Now   said Joe  getting up   you got to let me kill YOU  That s fair   
 
 Why  I can t do that  it ain t in the book   
 
 Well  it s blamed mean  that s all   
 
 Well  say  Joe  you can be Friar Tuck or Much the miller s son  and 
lam me with a quarter staff  or I ll be the Sheriff of Nottingham and 
you be Robin Hood a little while and kill me   
 
This was satisfactory  and so these adventures were carried out  Then 
Tom became Robin Hood again  and was allowed by the treacherous nun to 
bleed his strength away through his neglected wound  And at last Joe  
representing a whole tribe of weeping outlaws  dragged him sadly forth  
gave his bow into his feeble hands  and Tom said   Where this arrow 
falls  there bury poor Robin Hood under the greenwood tree   Then he 
shot the arrow and fell back and would have died  but he lit on a 
nettle and sprang up too gaily for a corpse  
 
The boys dressed themselves  hid their accoutrements  and went off 
grieving that there were no outlaws any more  and wondering what modern 
civilization could claim to have done to compensate for their loss  
They said they would rather be outlaws a year in Sherwood Forest than 
President of the United States forever  
 
 
 
CHAPTER IX 
 
AT half past nine  that night  Tom and Sid were sent to bed  as usual  
They said their prayers  and Sid was soon asleep  Tom lay awake and 
waited  in restless impatience  When it seemed to him that it must be 
nearly daylight  he heard the clock strike ten  This was despair  He 
would have tossed and fidgeted  as his nerves demanded  but he was 
afraid he might wake Sid  So he lay still  and stared up into the dark  
Everything was dismally still  By and by  out of the stillness  little  
scarcely perceptible noises began to emphasize themselves  The ticking 
of the clock began to bring itself into notice  Old beams began to 
crack mysteriously  The stairs creaked faintly  Evidently spirits were 
abroad  A measured  muffled snore issued from Aunt Polly s chamber  And 
now the tiresome chirping of a cricket that no human ingenuity could 
locate  began  Next the ghastly ticking of a deathwatch in the wall at 
the bed s head made Tom shudder  it meant that somebody s days were 
numbered  Then the howl of a far off dog rose on the night air  and was 
answered by a fainter howl from a remoter distance  Tom was in an 
agony  At last he was satisfied that time had ceased and eternity 
begun  he began to doze  in spite of himself  the clock chimed eleven  
but he did not hear it  And then there came  mingling with his 
half formed dreams  a most melancholy caterwauling  The raising of a 
neighboring window disturbed him  A cry of  Scat  you devil   and the 
crash of an empty bottle against the back of his aunt s woodshed 
brought him wide awake  and a single minute later he was dressed and 
out of the window and creeping along the roof of the  ell  on all 
fours  He  meow d  with caution once or twice  as he went  then jumped 
to the roof of the woodshed and thence to the ground  Huckleberry Finn 
was there  with his dead cat  The boys moved off and disappeared in the 
gloom  At the end of half an hour they were wading through the tall 
grass of the graveyard  
 
It was a graveyard of the old fashioned Western kind  It was on a 
hill  about a mile and a half from the village  It had a crazy board 
fence around it  which leaned inward in places  and outward the rest of 
the time  but stood upright nowhere  Grass and weeds grew rank over the 
whole cemetery  All the old graves were sunken in  there was not a 
tombstone on the place  round topped  worm eaten boards staggered over 
the graves  leaning for support and finding none   Sacred to the memory 
of  So and So had been painted on them once  but it could no longer 
have been read  on the most of them  now  even if there had been light  
 
A faint wind moaned through the trees  and Tom feared it might be the 
spirits of the dead  complaining at being disturbed  The boys talked 
little  and only under their breath  for the time and the place and the 
pervading solemnity and silence oppressed their spirits  They found the 
sharp new heap they were seeking  and ensconced themselves within the 
protection of three great elms that grew in a bunch within a few feet 
of the grave  
 
Then they waited in silence for what seemed a long time  The hooting 
of a distant owl was all the sound that troubled the dead stillness  
Tom s reflections grew oppressive  He must force some talk  So he said 
in a whisper  
 
 Hucky  do you believe the dead people like it for us to be here   
 
Huckleberry whispered  
 
 I wisht I knowed  It s awful solemn like  AIN T it   
 
 I bet it is   
 
There was a considerable pause  while the boys canvassed this matter 
inwardly  Then Tom whispered  
 
 Say  Hucky  do you reckon Hoss Williams hears us talking   
 
 O  course he does  Least his sperrit does   
 
Tom  after a pause  
 
 I wish I d said Mister Williams  But I never meant any harm  
Everybody calls him Hoss   
 
 A body can t be too partic lar how they talk  bout these yer dead 
people  Tom   
 
This was a damper  and conversation died again  
 
Presently Tom seized his comrade s arm and said  
 
 Sh   
 
 What is it  Tom   And the two clung together with beating hearts  
 
 Sh  There  tis again  Didn t you hear it   
 
 I    
 
 There  Now you hear it   
 
 Lord  Tom  they re coming  They re coming  sure  What ll we do   
 
 I dono  Think they ll see us   
 
 Oh  Tom  they can see in the dark  same as cats  I wisht I hadn t 
come   
 
 Oh  don t be afeard  I don t believe they ll bother us  We ain t 
doing any harm  If we keep perfectly still  maybe they won t notice us 
at all   
 
 I ll try to  Tom  but  Lord  I m all of a shiver   
 
 Listen   
 
The boys bent their heads together and scarcely breathed  A muffled 
sound of voices floated up from the far end of the graveyard  
 
 Look  See there   whispered Tom   What is it   
 
 It s devil fire  Oh  Tom  this is awful   
 
Some vague figures approached through the gloom  swinging an 
old fashioned tin lantern that freckled the ground with innumerable 
little spangles of light  Presently Huckleberry whispered with a 
shudder  
 
 It s the devils sure enough  Three of  em  Lordy  Tom  we re goners  
Can you pray   
 
 I ll try  but don t you be afeard  They ain t going to hurt us   Now 
I lay me down to sleep  I     
 
 Sh   
 
 What is it  Huck   
 
 They re HUMANS  One of  em is  anyway  One of  em s old Muff Potter s 
voice   
 
 No   tain t so  is it   
 
 I bet I know it  Don t you stir nor budge  He ain t sharp enough to 
notice us  Drunk  the same as usual  likely  blamed old rip   
 
 All right  I ll keep still  Now they re stuck  Can t find it  Here 
they come again  Now they re hot  Cold again  Hot again  Red hot  
They re p inted right  this time  Say  Huck  I know another o  them 
voices  it s Injun Joe   
 
 That s so  that murderin  half breed  I d druther they was devils a 
dern sight  What kin they be up to   
 
The whisper died wholly out  now  for the three men had reached the 
grave and stood within a few feet of the boys  hiding place  
 
 Here it is   said the third voice  and the owner of it held the 
lantern up and revealed the face of young Doctor Robinson  
 
Potter and Injun Joe were carrying a handbarrow with a rope and a 
couple of shovels on it  They cast down their load and began to open 
the grave  The doctor put the lantern at the head of the grave and came 
and sat down with his back against one of the elm trees  He was so 
close the boys could have touched him  
 
 Hurry  men   he said  in a low voice   the moon might come out at any 
moment   
 
They growled a response and went on digging  For some time there was 
no noise but the grating sound of the spades discharging their freight 
of mould and gravel  It was very monotonous  Finally a spade struck 
upon the coffin with a dull woody accent  and within another minute or 
two the men had hoisted it out on the ground  They pried off the lid 
with their shovels  got out the body and dumped it rudely on the 
ground  The moon drifted from behind the clouds and exposed the pallid 
face  The barrow was got ready and the corpse placed on it  covered 
with a blanket  and bound to its place with the rope  Potter took out a 
large spring knife and cut off the dangling end of the rope and then 
said  
 
 Now the cussed thing s ready  Sawbones  and you ll just out with 
another five  or here she stays   
 
 That s the talk   said Injun Joe  
 
 Look here  what does this mean   said the doctor   You required your 
pay in advance  and I ve paid you   
 
 Yes  and you done more than that   said Injun Joe  approaching the 
doctor  who was now standing   Five years ago you drove me away from 
your father s kitchen one night  when I come to ask for something to 
eat  and you said I warn t there for any good  and when I swore I d get 
even with you if it took a hundred years  your father had me jailed for 
a vagrant  Did you think I d forget  The Injun blood ain t in me for 
nothing  And now I ve GOT you  and you got to SETTLE  you know   
 
He was threatening the doctor  with his fist in his face  by this 
time  The doctor struck out suddenly and stretched the ruffian on the 
ground  Potter dropped his knife  and exclaimed  
 
 Here  now  don t you hit my pard   and the next moment he had 
grappled with the doctor and the two were struggling with might and 
main  trampling the grass and tearing the ground with their heels  
Injun Joe sprang to his feet  his eyes flaming with passion  snatched 
up Potter s knife  and went creeping  catlike and stooping  round and 
round about the combatants  seeking an opportunity  All at once the 
doctor flung himself free  seized the heavy headboard of Williams  
grave and felled Potter to the earth with it  and in the same instant 
the half breed saw his chance and drove the knife to the hilt in the 
young man s breast  He reeled and fell partly upon Potter  flooding him 
with his blood  and in the same moment the clouds blotted out the 
dreadful spectacle and the two frightened boys went speeding away in 
the dark  
 
Presently  when the moon emerged again  Injun Joe was standing over 
the two forms  contemplating them  The doctor murmured inarticulately  
gave a long gasp or two and was still  The half breed muttered  
 
 THAT score is settled  damn you   
 
Then he robbed the body  After which he put the fatal knife in 
Potter s open right hand  and sat down on the dismantled coffin  Three 
  four  five minutes passed  and then Potter began to stir and moan  His 
hand closed upon the knife  he raised it  glanced at it  and let it 
fall  with a shudder  Then he sat up  pushing the body from him  and 
gazed at it  and then around him  confusedly  His eyes met Joe s  
 
 Lord  how is this  Joe   he said  
 
 It s a dirty business   said Joe  without moving  
 
 What did you do it for   
 
 I  I never done it   
 
 Look here  That kind of talk won t wash   
 
Potter trembled and grew white  
 
 I thought I d got sober  I d no business to drink to night  But it s 
in my head yet  worse n when we started here  I m all in a muddle  
can t recollect anything of it  hardly  Tell me  Joe  HONEST  now  old 
feller  did I do it  Joe  I never meant to   pon my soul and honor  I 
never meant to  Joe  Tell me how it was  Joe  Oh  it s awful  and him 
so young and promising   
 
 Why  you two was scuffling  and he fetched you one with the headboard 
and you fell flat  and then up you come  all reeling and staggering 
like  and snatched the knife and jammed it into him  just as he fetched 
you another awful clip  and here you ve laid  as dead as a wedge til 
now   
 
 Oh  I didn t know what I was a doing  I wish I may die this minute if 
I did  It was all on account of the whiskey and the excitement  I 
reckon  I never used a weepon in my life before  Joe  I ve fought  but 
never with weepons  They ll all say that  Joe  don t tell  Say you 
won t tell  Joe  that s a good feller  I always liked you  Joe  and 
stood up for you  too  Don t you remember  You WON T tell  WILL you  
Joe   And the poor creature dropped on his knees before the stolid 
murderer  and clasped his appealing hands  
 
 No  you ve always been fair and square with me  Muff Potter  and I 
won t go back on you  There  now  that s as fair as a man can say   
 
 Oh  Joe  you re an angel  I ll bless you for this the longest day I 
live   And Potter began to cry  
 
 Come  now  that s enough of that  This ain t any time for blubbering  
You be off yonder way and I ll go this  Move  now  and don t leave any 
tracks behind you   
 
Potter started on a trot that quickly increased to a run  The 
half breed stood looking after him  He muttered  
 
 If he s as much stunned with the lick and fuddled with the rum as he 
had the look of being  he won t think of the knife till he s gone so 
far he ll be afraid to come back after it to such a place by himself 
  chicken heart   
 
Two or three minutes later the murdered man  the blanketed corpse  the 
lidless coffin  and the open grave were under no inspection but the 
moon s  The stillness was complete again  too  
 
 
 
CHAPTER X 
 
THE two boys flew on and on  toward the village  speechless with 
horror  They glanced backward over their shoulders from time to time  
apprehensively  as if they feared they might be followed  Every stump 
that started up in their path seemed a man and an enemy  and made them 
catch their breath  and as they sped by some outlying cottages that lay 
near the village  the barking of the aroused watch dogs seemed to give 
wings to their feet  
 
 If we can only get to the old tannery before we break down   
whispered Tom  in short catches between breaths   I can t stand it much 
longer   
 
Huckleberry s hard pantings were his only reply  and the boys fixed 
their eyes on the goal of their hopes and bent to their work to win it  
They gained steadily on it  and at last  breast to breast  they burst 
through the open door and fell grateful and exhausted in the sheltering 
shadows beyond  By and by their pulses slowed down  and Tom whispered  
 
 Huckleberry  what do you reckon ll come of this   
 
 If Doctor Robinson dies  I reckon hanging ll come of it   
 
 Do you though   
 
 Why  I KNOW it  Tom   
 
Tom thought a while  then he said  
 
 Who ll tell  We   
 
 What are you talking about  S pose something happened and Injun Joe 
DIDN T hang  Why  he d kill us some time or other  just as dead sure as 
we re a laying here   
 
 That s just what I was thinking to myself  Huck   
 
 If anybody tells  let Muff Potter do it  if he s fool enough  He s 
generally drunk enough   
 
Tom said nothing  went on thinking  Presently he whispered  
 
 Huck  Muff Potter don t know it  How can he tell   
 
 What s the reason he don t know it   
 
 Because he d just got that whack when Injun Joe done it  D you reckon 
he could see anything  D you reckon he knowed anything   
 
 By hokey  that s so  Tom   
 
 And besides  look a here  maybe that whack done for HIM   
 
 No   taint likely  Tom  He had liquor in him  I could see that  and 
besides  he always has  Well  when pap s full  you might take and belt 
him over the head with a church and you couldn t phase him  He says so  
his own self  So it s the same with Muff Potter  of course  But if a 
man was dead sober  I reckon maybe that whack might fetch him  I dono   
 
After another reflective silence  Tom said  
 
 Hucky  you sure you can keep mum   
 
 Tom  we GOT to keep mum  You know that  That Injun devil wouldn t 
make any more of drownding us than a couple of cats  if we was to 
squeak  bout this and they didn t hang him  Now  look a here  Tom  less 
take and swear to one another  that s what we got to do  swear to keep 
mum   
 
 I m agreed  It s the best thing  Would you just hold hands and swear 
that we    
 
 Oh no  that wouldn t do for this  That s good enough for little 
rubbishy common things  specially with gals  cuz THEY go back on you 
anyway  and blab if they get in a huff  but there orter be writing 
 bout a big thing like this  And blood   
 
Tom s whole being applauded this idea  It was deep  and dark  and 
awful  the hour  the circumstances  the surroundings  were in keeping 
with it  He picked up a clean pine shingle that lay in the moonlight  
took a little fragment of  red keel  out of his pocket  got the moon on 
his work  and painfully scrawled these lines  emphasizing each slow 
down stroke by clamping his tongue between his teeth  and letting up 
the pressure on the up strokes   See next page   
 
    Huck Finn and 
    Tom Sawyer swears 
    they will keep mum 
    about This and They 
    wish They may Drop 
    down dead in Their 
    Tracks if They ever 
    Tell and Rot   
 
Huckleberry was filled with admiration of Tom s facility in writing  
and the sublimity of his language  He at once took a pin from his lapel 
and was going to prick his flesh  but Tom said  
 
 Hold on  Don t do that  A pin s brass  It might have verdigrease on 
it   
 
 What s verdigrease   
 
 It s p ison  That s what it is  You just swaller some of it once 
  you ll see   
 
So Tom unwound the thread from one of his needles  and each boy 
pricked the ball of his thumb and squeezed out a drop of blood  In 
time  after many squeezes  Tom managed to sign his initials  using the 
ball of his little finger for a pen  Then he showed Huckleberry how to 
make an H and an F  and the oath was complete  They buried the shingle 
close to the wall  with some dismal ceremonies and incantations  and 
the fetters that bound their tongues were considered to be locked and 
the key thrown away  
 
A figure crept stealthily through a break in the other end of the 
ruined building  now  but they did not notice it  
 
 Tom   whispered Huckleberry   does this keep us from EVER telling 
  ALWAYS   
 
 Of course it does  It don t make any difference WHAT happens  we got 
to keep mum  We d drop down dead  don t YOU know that   
 
 Yes  I reckon that s so   
 
They continued to whisper for some little time  Presently a dog set up 
a long  lugubrious howl just outside  within ten feet of them  The boys 
clasped each other suddenly  in an agony of fright  
 
 Which of us does he mean   gasped Huckleberry  
 
 I dono  peep through the crack  Quick   
 
 No  YOU  Tom   
 
 I can t  I can t DO it  Huck   
 
 Please  Tom  There  tis again   
 
 Oh  lordy  I m thankful   whispered Tom   I know his voice  It s Bull 
Harbison     
 
   If Mr  Harbison owned a slave named Bull  Tom would have spoken of 
him as  Harbison s Bull   but a son or a dog of that name was  Bull 
Harbison    
 
 Oh  that s good  I tell you  Tom  I was most scared to death  I d a 
bet anything it was a STRAY dog   
 
The dog howled again  The boys  hearts sank once more  
 
 Oh  my  that ain t no Bull Harbison   whispered Huckleberry   DO  Tom   
 
Tom  quaking with fear  yielded  and put his eye to the crack  His 
whisper was hardly audible when he said  
 
 Oh  Huck  IT S A STRAY DOG   
 
 Quick  Tom  quick  Who does he mean   
 
 Huck  he must mean us both  we re right together   
 
 Oh  Tom  I reckon we re goners  I reckon there ain t no mistake  bout 
where I LL go to  I been so wicked   
 
 Dad fetch it  This comes of playing hookey and doing everything a 
feller s told NOT to do  I might a been good  like Sid  if I d a tried 
  but no  I wouldn t  of course  But if ever I get off this time  I lay 
I ll just WALLER in Sunday schools   And Tom began to snuffle a little  
 
 YOU bad   and Huckleberry began to snuffle too   Consound it  Tom 
Sawyer  you re just old pie   longside o  what I am  Oh  LORDY  lordy  
lordy  I wisht I only had half your chance   
 
Tom choked off and whispered  
 
 Look  Hucky  look  He s got his BACK to us   
 
Hucky looked  with joy in his heart  
 
 Well  he has  by jingoes  Did he before   
 
 Yes  he did  But I  like a fool  never thought  Oh  this is bully  
you know  NOW who can he mean   
 
The howling stopped  Tom pricked up his ears  
 
 Sh  What s that   he whispered  
 
 Sounds like  like hogs grunting  No  it s somebody snoring  Tom   
 
 That IS it  Where  bouts is it  Huck   
 
 I bleeve it s down at  tother end  Sounds so  anyway  Pap used to 
sleep there  sometimes   long with the hogs  but laws bless you  he 
just lifts things when HE snores  Besides  I reckon he ain t ever 
coming back to this town any more   
 
The spirit of adventure rose in the boys  souls once more  
 
 Hucky  do you das t to go if I lead   
 
 I don t like to  much  Tom  s pose it s Injun Joe   
 
Tom quailed  But presently the temptation rose up strong again and the 
boys agreed to try  with the understanding that they would take to 
their heels if the snoring stopped  So they went tiptoeing stealthily 
down  the one behind the other  When they had got to within five steps 
of the snorer  Tom stepped on a stick  and it broke with a sharp snap  
The man moaned  writhed a little  and his face came into the moonlight  
It was Muff Potter  The boys  hearts had stood still  and their hopes 
too  when the man moved  but their fears passed away now  They tiptoed 
out  through the broken weather boarding  and stopped at a little 
distance to exchange a parting word  That long  lugubrious howl rose on 
the night air again  They turned and saw the strange dog standing 
within a few feet of where Potter was lying  and FACING Potter  with 
his nose pointing heavenward  
 
 Oh  geeminy  it s HIM   exclaimed both boys  in a breath  
 
 Say  Tom  they say a stray dog come howling around Johnny Miller s 
house   bout midnight  as much as two weeks ago  and a whippoorwill 
come in and lit on the banisters and sung  the very same evening  and 
there ain t anybody dead there yet   
 
 Well  I know that  And suppose there ain t  Didn t Gracie Miller fall 
in the kitchen fire and burn herself terrible the very next Saturday   
 
 Yes  but she ain t DEAD  And what s more  she s getting better  too   
 
 All right  you wait and see  She s a goner  just as dead sure as Muff 
Potter s a goner  That s what the niggers say  and they know all about 
these kind of things  Huck   
 
Then they separated  cogitating  When Tom crept in at his bedroom 
window the night was almost spent  He undressed with excessive caution  
and fell asleep congratulating himself that nobody knew of his 
escapade  He was not aware that the gently snoring Sid was awake  and 
had been so for an hour  
 
When Tom awoke  Sid was dressed and gone  There was a late look in the 
light  a late sense in the atmosphere  He was startled  Why had he not 
been called  persecuted till he was up  as usual  The thought filled 
him with bodings  Within five minutes he was dressed and down stairs  
feeling sore and drowsy  The family were still at table  but they had 
finished breakfast  There was no voice of rebuke  but there were 
averted eyes  there was a silence and an air of solemnity that struck a 
chill to the culprit s heart  He sat down and tried to seem gay  but it 
was up hill work  it roused no smile  no response  and he lapsed into 
silence and let his heart sink down to the depths  
 
After breakfast his aunt took him aside  and Tom almost brightened in 
the hope that he was going to be flogged  but it was not so  His aunt 
wept over him and asked him how he could go and break her old heart so  
and finally told him to go on  and ruin himself and bring her gray 
hairs with sorrow to the grave  for it was no use for her to try any 
more  This was worse than a thousand whippings  and Tom s heart was 
sorer now than his body  He cried  he pleaded for forgiveness  promised 
to reform over and over again  and then received his dismissal  feeling 
that he had won but an imperfect forgiveness and established but a 
feeble confidence  
 
He left the presence too miserable to even feel revengeful toward Sid  
and so the latter s prompt retreat through the back gate was 
unnecessary  He moped to school gloomy and sad  and took his flogging  
along with Joe Harper  for playing hookey the day before  with the air 
of one whose heart was busy with heavier woes and wholly dead to 
trifles  Then he betook himself to his seat  rested his elbows on his 
desk and his jaws in his hands  and stared at the wall with the stony 
stare of suffering that has reached the limit and can no further go  
His elbow was pressing against some hard substance  After a long time 
he slowly and sadly changed his position  and took up this object with 
a sigh  It was in a paper  He unrolled it  A long  lingering  colossal 
sigh followed  and his heart broke  It was his brass andiron knob  
 
This final feather broke the camel s back  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XI 
 
CLOSE upon the hour of noon the whole village was suddenly electrified 
with the ghastly news  No need of the as yet undreamed of telegraph  
the tale flew from man to man  from group to group  from house to 
house  with little less than telegraphic speed  Of course the 
schoolmaster gave holiday for that afternoon  the town would have 
thought strangely of him if he had not  
 
A gory knife had been found close to the murdered man  and it had been 
recognized by somebody as belonging to Muff Potter  so the story ran  
And it was said that a belated citizen had come upon Potter washing 
himself in the  branch  about one or two o clock in the morning  and 
that Potter had at once sneaked off  suspicious circumstances  
especially the washing which was not a habit with Potter  It was also 
said that the town had been ransacked for this  murderer   the public 
are not slow in the matter of sifting evidence and arriving at a 
verdict   but that he could not be found  Horsemen had departed down 
all the roads in every direction  and the Sheriff  was confident  that 
he would be captured before night  
 
All the town was drifting toward the graveyard  Tom s heartbreak 
vanished and he joined the procession  not because he would not a 
thousand times rather go anywhere else  but because an awful  
unaccountable fascination drew him on  Arrived at the dreadful place  
he wormed his small body through the crowd and saw the dismal 
spectacle  It seemed to him an age since he was there before  Somebody 
pinched his arm  He turned  and his eyes met Huckleberry s  Then both 
looked elsewhere at once  and wondered if anybody had noticed anything 
in their mutual glance  But everybody was talking  and intent upon the 
grisly spectacle before them  
 
 Poor fellow    Poor young fellow    This ought to be a lesson to 
grave robbers    Muff Potter ll hang for this if they catch him   This 
was the drift of remark  and the minister said   It was a judgment  His 
hand is here   
 
Now Tom shivered from head to heel  for his eye fell upon the stolid 
face of Injun Joe  At this moment the crowd began to sway and struggle  
and voices shouted   It s him  it s him  he s coming himself   
 
 Who  Who   from twenty voices  
 
 Muff Potter   
 
 Hallo  he s stopped   Look out  he s turning  Don t let him get away   
 
People in the branches of the trees over Tom s head said he wasn t 
trying to get away  he only looked doubtful and perplexed  
 
 Infernal impudence   said a bystander   wanted to come and take a 
quiet look at his work  I reckon  didn t expect any company   
 
The crowd fell apart  now  and the Sheriff came through  
ostentatiously leading Potter by the arm  The poor fellow s face was 
haggard  and his eyes showed the fear that was upon him  When he stood 
before the murdered man  he shook as with a palsy  and he put his face 
in his hands and burst into tears  
 
 I didn t do it  friends   he sobbed    pon my word and honor I never 
done it   
 
 Who s accused you   shouted a voice  
 
This shot seemed to carry home  Potter lifted his face and looked 
around him with a pathetic hopelessness in his eyes  He saw Injun Joe  
and exclaimed  
 
 Oh  Injun Joe  you promised me you d never    
 
 Is that your knife   and it was thrust before him by the Sheriff  
 
Potter would have fallen if they had not caught him and eased him to 
the ground  Then he said  
 
 Something told me  t if I didn t come back and get    He shuddered  
then waved his nerveless hand with a vanquished gesture and said   Tell 
 em  Joe  tell  em  it ain t any use any more   
 
Then Huckleberry and Tom stood dumb and staring  and heard the 
stony hearted liar reel off his serene statement  they expecting every 
moment that the clear sky would deliver God s lightnings upon his head  
and wondering to see how long the stroke was delayed  And when he had 
finished and still stood alive and whole  their wavering impulse to 
break their oath and save the poor betrayed prisoner s life faded and 
vanished away  for plainly this miscreant had sold himself to Satan and 
it would be fatal to meddle with the property of such a power as that  
 
 Why didn t you leave  What did you want to come here for   somebody 
said  
 
 I couldn t help it  I couldn t help it   Potter moaned   I wanted to 
run away  but I couldn t seem to come anywhere but here   And he fell 
to sobbing again  
 
Injun Joe repeated his statement  just as calmly  a few minutes 
afterward on the inquest  under oath  and the boys  seeing that the 
lightnings were still withheld  were confirmed in their belief that Joe 
had sold himself to the devil  He was now become  to them  the most 
balefully interesting object they had ever looked upon  and they could 
not take their fascinated eyes from his face  
 
They inwardly resolved to watch him nights  when opportunity should 
offer  in the hope of getting a glimpse of his dread master  
 
Injun Joe helped to raise the body of the murdered man and put it in a 
wagon for removal  and it was whispered through the shuddering crowd 
that the wound bled a little  The boys thought that this happy 
circumstance would turn suspicion in the right direction  but they were 
disappointed  for more than one villager remarked  
 
 It was within three feet of Muff Potter when it done it   
 
Tom s fearful secret and gnawing conscience disturbed his sleep for as 
much as a week after this  and at breakfast one morning Sid said  
 
 Tom  you pitch around and talk in your sleep so much that you keep me 
awake half the time   
 
Tom blanched and dropped his eyes  
 
 It s a bad sign   said Aunt Polly  gravely   What you got on your 
mind  Tom   
 
 Nothing  Nothing  t I know of   But the boy s hand shook so that he 
spilled his coffee  
 
 And you do talk such stuff   Sid said   Last night you said   It s 
blood  it s blood  that s what it is   You said that over and over  And 
you said   Don t torment me so  I ll tell   Tell WHAT  What is it 
you ll tell   
 
Everything was swimming before Tom  There is no telling what might 
have happened  now  but luckily the concern passed out of Aunt Polly s 
face and she came to Tom s relief without knowing it  She said  
 
 Sho  It s that dreadful murder  I dream about it most every night 
myself  Sometimes I dream it s me that done it   
 
Mary said she had been affected much the same way  Sid seemed 
satisfied  Tom got out of the presence as quick as he plausibly could  
and after that he complained of toothache for a week  and tied up his 
jaws every night  He never knew that Sid lay nightly watching  and 
frequently slipped the bandage free and then leaned on his elbow 
listening a good while at a time  and afterward slipped the bandage 
back to its place again  Tom s distress of mind wore off gradually and 
the toothache grew irksome and was discarded  If Sid really managed to 
make anything out of Tom s disjointed mutterings  he kept it to himself  
 
It seemed to Tom that his schoolmates never would get done holding 
inquests on dead cats  and thus keeping his trouble present to his 
mind  Sid noticed that Tom never was coroner at one of these inquiries  
though it had been his habit to take the lead in all new enterprises  
he noticed  too  that Tom never acted as a witness  and that was 
strange  and Sid did not overlook the fact that Tom even showed a 
marked aversion to these inquests  and always avoided them when he 
could  Sid marvelled  but said nothing  However  even inquests went out 
of vogue at last  and ceased to torture Tom s conscience  
 
Every day or two  during this time of sorrow  Tom watched his 
opportunity and went to the little grated jail window and smuggled such 
small comforts through to the  murderer  as he could get hold of  The 
jail was a trifling little brick den that stood in a marsh at the edge 
of the village  and no guards were afforded for it  indeed  it was 
seldom occupied  These offerings greatly helped to ease Tom s 
conscience  
 
The villagers had a strong desire to tar and feather Injun Joe and 
ride him on a rail  for body snatching  but so formidable was his 
character that nobody could be found who was willing to take the lead 
in the matter  so it was dropped  He had been careful to begin both of 
his inquest statements with the fight  without confessing the 
grave robbery that preceded it  therefore it was deemed wisest not 
to try the case in the courts at present  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XII 
 
ONE of the reasons why Tom s mind had drifted away from its secret 
troubles was  that it had found a new and weighty matter to interest 
itself about  Becky Thatcher had stopped coming to school  Tom had 
struggled with his pride a few days  and tried to  whistle her down the 
wind   but failed  He began to find himself hanging around her father s 
house  nights  and feeling very miserable  She was ill  What if she 
should die  There was distraction in the thought  He no longer took an 
interest in war  nor even in piracy  The charm of life was gone  there 
was nothing but dreariness left  He put his hoop away  and his bat  
there was no joy in them any more  His aunt was concerned  She began to 
try all manner of remedies on him  She was one of those people who are 
infatuated with patent medicines and all new fangled methods of 
producing health or mending it  She was an inveterate experimenter in 
these things  When something fresh in this line came out she was in a 
fever  right away  to try it  not on herself  for she was never ailing  
but on anybody else that came handy  She was a subscriber for all the 
 Health  periodicals and phrenological frauds  and the solemn ignorance 
they were inflated with was breath to her nostrils  All the  rot  they 
contained about ventilation  and how to go to bed  and how to get up  
and what to eat  and what to drink  and how much exercise to take  and 
what frame of mind to keep one s self in  and what sort of clothing to 
wear  was all gospel to her  and she never observed that her 
health journals of the current month customarily upset everything they 
had recommended the month before  She was as simple hearted and honest 
as the day was long  and so she was an easy victim  She gathered 
together her quack periodicals and her quack medicines  and thus armed 
with death  went about on her pale horse  metaphorically speaking  with 
 hell following after   But she never suspected that she was not an 
angel of healing and the balm of Gilead in disguise  to the suffering 
neighbors  
 
The water treatment was new  now  and Tom s low condition was a 
windfall to her  She had him out at daylight every morning  stood him 
up in the woodshed and drowned him with a deluge of cold water  then 
she scrubbed him down with a towel like a file  and so brought him to  
then she rolled him up in a wet sheet and put him away under blankets 
till she sweated his soul clean and  the yellow stains of it came 
through his pores   as Tom said  
 
Yet notwithstanding all this  the boy grew more and more melancholy 
and pale and dejected  She added hot baths  sitz baths  shower baths  
and plunges  The boy remained as dismal as a hearse  She began to 
assist the water with a slim oatmeal diet and blister plasters  She 
calculated his capacity as she would a jug s  and filled him up every 
day with quack cure alls  
 
Tom had become indifferent to persecution by this time  This phase 
filled the old lady s heart with consternation  This indifference must 
be broken up at any cost  Now she heard of Pain killer for the first 
time  She ordered a lot at once  She tasted it and was filled with 
gratitude  It was simply fire in a liquid form  She dropped the water 
treatment and everything else  and pinned her faith to Pain killer  She 
gave Tom a teaspoonful and watched with the deepest anxiety for the 
result  Her troubles were instantly at rest  her soul at peace again  
for the  indifference  was broken up  The boy could not have shown a 
wilder  heartier interest  if she had built a fire under him  
 
Tom felt that it was time to wake up  this sort of life might be 
romantic enough  in his blighted condition  but it was getting to have 
too little sentiment and too much distracting variety about it  So he 
thought over various plans for relief  and finally hit pon that of 
professing to be fond of Pain killer  He asked for it so often that he 
became a nuisance  and his aunt ended by telling him to help himself 
and quit bothering her  If it had been Sid  she would have had no 
misgivings to alloy her delight  but since it was Tom  she watched the 
bottle clandestinely  She found that the medicine did really diminish  
but it did not occur to her that the boy was mending the health of a 
crack in the sitting room floor with it  
 
One day Tom was in the act of dosing the crack when his aunt s yellow 
cat came along  purring  eying the teaspoon avariciously  and begging 
for a taste  Tom said  
 
 Don t ask for it unless you want it  Peter   
 
But Peter signified that he did want it  
 
 You better make sure   
 
Peter was sure  
 
 Now you ve asked for it  and I ll give it to you  because there ain t 
anything mean about me  but if you find you don t like it  you mustn t 
blame anybody but your own self   
 
Peter was agreeable  So Tom pried his mouth open and poured down the 
Pain killer  Peter sprang a couple of yards in the air  and then 
delivered a war whoop and set off round and round the room  banging 
against furniture  upsetting flower pots  and making general havoc  
Next he rose on his hind feet and pranced around  in a frenzy of 
enjoyment  with his head over his shoulder and his voice proclaiming 
his unappeasable happiness  Then he went tearing around the house again 
spreading chaos and destruction in his path  Aunt Polly entered in time 
to see him throw a few double summersets  deliver a final mighty 
hurrah  and sail through the open window  carrying the rest of the 
flower pots with him  The old lady stood petrified with astonishment  
peering over her glasses  Tom lay on the floor expiring with laughter  
 
 Tom  what on earth ails that cat   
 
 I don t know  aunt   gasped the boy  
 
 Why  I never see anything like it  What did make him act so   
 
 Deed I don t know  Aunt Polly  cats always act so when they re having 
a good time   
 
 They do  do they   There was something in the tone that made Tom 
apprehensive  
 
 Yes m  That is  I believe they do   
 
 You DO   
 
 Yes m   
 
The old lady was bending down  Tom watching  with interest emphasized 
by anxiety  Too late he divined her  drift   The handle of the telltale 
teaspoon was visible under the bed valance  Aunt Polly took it  held it 
up  Tom winced  and dropped his eyes  Aunt Polly raised him by the 
usual handle  his ear  and cracked his head soundly with her thimble  
 
 Now  sir  what did you want to treat that poor dumb beast so  for   
 
 I done it out of pity for him  because he hadn t any aunt   
 
 Hadn t any aunt   you numskull  What has that got to do with it   
 
 Heaps  Because if he d had one she d a burnt him out herself  She d a 
roasted his bowels out of him  thout any more feeling than if he was a 
human   
 
Aunt Polly felt a sudden pang of remorse  This was putting the thing 
in a new light  what was cruelty to a cat MIGHT be cruelty to a boy  
too  She began to soften  she felt sorry  Her eyes watered a little  
and she put her hand on Tom s head and said gently  
 
 I was meaning for the best  Tom  And  Tom  it DID do you good   
 
Tom looked up in her face with just a perceptible twinkle peeping 
through his gravity  
 
 I know you was meaning for the best  aunty  and so was I with Peter  
It done HIM good  too  I never see him get around so since    
 
 Oh  go  long with you  Tom  before you aggravate me again  And you 
try and see if you can t be a good boy  for once  and you needn t take 
any more medicine   
 
Tom reached school ahead of time  It was noticed that this strange 
thing had been occurring every day latterly  And now  as usual of late  
he hung about the gate of the schoolyard instead of playing with his 
comrades  He was sick  he said  and he looked it  He tried to seem to 
be looking everywhere but whither he really was looking  down the road  
Presently Jeff Thatcher hove in sight  and Tom s face lighted  he gazed 
a moment  and then turned sorrowfully away  When Jeff arrived  Tom 
accosted him  and  led up  warily to opportunities for remark about 
Becky  but the giddy lad never could see the bait  Tom watched and 
watched  hoping whenever a frisking frock came in sight  and hating the 
owner of it as soon as he saw she was not the right one  At last frocks 
ceased to appear  and he dropped hopelessly into the dumps  he entered 
the empty schoolhouse and sat down to suffer  Then one more frock 
passed in at the gate  and Tom s heart gave a great bound  The next 
instant he was out  and  going on  like an Indian  yelling  laughing  
chasing boys  jumping over the fence at risk of life and limb  throwing 
handsprings  standing on his head  doing all the heroic things he could 
conceive of  and keeping a furtive eye out  all the while  to see if 
Becky Thatcher was noticing  But she seemed to be unconscious of it 
all  she never looked  Could it be possible that she was not aware that 
he was there  He carried his exploits to her immediate vicinity  came 
war whooping around  snatched a boy s cap  hurled it to the roof of the 
schoolhouse  broke through a group of boys  tumbling them in every 
direction  and fell sprawling  himself  under Becky s nose  almost 
upsetting her  and she turned  with her nose in the air  and he heard 
her say   Mf  some people think they re mighty smart  always showing 
off   
 
Tom s cheeks burned  He gathered himself up and sneaked off  crushed 
and crestfallen  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XIII 
 
TOM S mind was made up now  He was gloomy and desperate  He was a 
forsaken  friendless boy  he said  nobody loved him  when they found 
out what they had driven him to  perhaps they would be sorry  he had 
tried to do right and get along  but they would not let him  since 
nothing would do them but to be rid of him  let it be so  and let them 
blame HIM for the consequences  why shouldn t they  What right had the 
friendless to complain  Yes  they had forced him to it at last  he 
would lead a life of crime  There was no choice  
 
By this time he was far down Meadow Lane  and the bell for school to 
 take up  tinkled faintly upon his ear  He sobbed  now  to think he 
should never  never hear that old familiar sound any more  it was very 
hard  but it was forced on him  since he was driven out into the cold 
world  he must submit  but he forgave them  Then the sobs came thick 
and fast  
 
Just at this point he met his soul s sworn comrade  Joe Harper 
  hard eyed  and with evidently a great and dismal purpose in his heart  
Plainly here were  two souls with but a single thought   Tom  wiping 
his eyes with his sleeve  began to blubber out something about a 
resolution to escape from hard usage and lack of sympathy at home by 
roaming abroad into the great world never to return  and ended by 
hoping that Joe would not forget him  
 
But it transpired that this was a request which Joe had just been 
going to make of Tom  and had come to hunt him up for that purpose  His 
mother had whipped him for drinking some cream which he had never 
tasted and knew nothing about  it was plain that she was tired of him 
and wished him to go  if she felt that way  there was nothing for him 
to do but succumb  he hoped she would be happy  and never regret having 
driven her poor boy out into the unfeeling world to suffer and die  
 
As the two boys walked sorrowing along  they made a new compact to 
stand by each other and be brothers and never separate till death 
relieved them of their troubles  Then they began to lay their plans  
Joe was for being a hermit  and living on crusts in a remote cave  and 
dying  some time  of cold and want and grief  but after listening to 
Tom  he conceded that there were some conspicuous advantages about a 
life of crime  and so he consented to be a pirate  
 
Three miles below St  Petersburg  at a point where the Mississippi 
River was a trifle over a mile wide  there was a long  narrow  wooded 
island  with a shallow bar at the head of it  and this offered well as 
a rendezvous  It was not inhabited  it lay far over toward the further 
shore  abreast a dense and almost wholly unpeopled forest  So Jackson s 
Island was chosen  Who were to be the subjects of their piracies was a 
matter that did not occur to them  Then they hunted up Huckleberry 
Finn  and he joined them promptly  for all careers were one to him  he 
was indifferent  They presently separated to meet at a lonely spot on 
the river bank two miles above the village at the favorite hour  which 
was midnight  There was a small log raft there which they meant to 
capture  Each would bring hooks and lines  and such provision as he 
could steal in the most dark and mysterious way  as became outlaws  And 
before the afternoon was done  they had all managed to enjoy the sweet 
glory of spreading the fact that pretty soon the town would  hear 
something   All who got this vague hint were cautioned to  be mum and 
wait   
 
About midnight Tom arrived with a boiled ham and a few trifles  
and stopped in a dense undergrowth on a small bluff overlooking the 
meeting place  It was starlight  and very still  The mighty river lay 
like an ocean at rest  Tom listened a moment  but no sound disturbed the 
quiet  Then he gave a low  distinct whistle  It was answered from under 
the bluff  Tom whistled twice more  these signals were answered in the 
same way  Then a guarded voice said  
 
 Who goes there   
 
 Tom Sawyer  the Black Avenger of the Spanish Main  Name your names   
 
 Huck Finn the Red Handed  and Joe Harper the Terror of the Seas   Tom 
had furnished these titles  from his favorite literature  
 
  Tis well  Give the countersign   
 
Two hoarse whispers delivered the same awful word simultaneously to 
the brooding night  
 
 BLOOD   
 
Then Tom tumbled his ham over the bluff and let himself down after it  
tearing both skin and clothes to some extent in the effort  There was 
an easy  comfortable path along the shore under the bluff  but it 
lacked the advantages of difficulty and danger so valued by a pirate  
 
The Terror of the Seas had brought a side of bacon  and had about worn 
himself out with getting it there  Finn the Red Handed had stolen a 
skillet and a quantity of half cured leaf tobacco  and had also brought 
a few corn cobs to make pipes with  But none of the pirates smoked or 
 chewed  but himself  The Black Avenger of the Spanish Main said it 
would never do to start without some fire  That was a wise thought  
matches were hardly known there in that day  They saw a fire 
smouldering upon a great raft a hundred yards above  and they went 
stealthily thither and helped themselves to a chunk  They made an 
imposing adventure of it  saying   Hist   every now and then  and 
suddenly halting with finger on lip  moving with hands on imaginary 
dagger hilts  and giving orders in dismal whispers that if  the foe  
stirred  to  let him have it to the hilt   because  dead men tell no 
tales   They knew well enough that the raftsmen were all down at the 
village laying in stores or having a spree  but still that was no 
excuse for their conducting this thing in an unpiratical way  
 
They shoved off  presently  Tom in command  Huck at the after oar and 
Joe at the forward  Tom stood amidships  gloomy browed  and with folded 
arms  and gave his orders in a low  stern whisper  
 
 Luff  and bring her to the wind   
 
 Aye aye  sir   
 
 Steady  steady y y y   
 
 Steady it is  sir   
 
 Let her go off a point   
 
 Point it is  sir   
 
As the boys steadily and monotonously drove the raft toward mid stream 
it was no doubt understood that these orders were given only for 
 style   and were not intended to mean anything in particular  
 
 What sail s she carrying   
 
 Courses  tops ls  and flying jib  sir   
 
 Send the r yals up  Lay out aloft  there  half a dozen of ye 
  foretopmaststuns l  Lively  now   
 
 Aye aye  sir   
 
 Shake out that maintogalans l  Sheets and braces  NOW my hearties   
 
 Aye aye  sir   
 
 Hellum a lee  hard a port  Stand by to meet her when she comes  Port  
port  NOW  men  With a will  Stead y y y   
 
 Steady it is  sir   
 
The raft drew beyond the middle of the river  the boys pointed her 
head right  and then lay on their oars  The river was not high  so 
there was not more than a two or three mile current  Hardly a word was 
said during the next three quarters of an hour  Now the raft was 
passing before the distant town  Two or three glimmering lights showed 
where it lay  peacefully sleeping  beyond the vague vast sweep of 
star gemmed water  unconscious of the tremendous event that was happening  
The Black Avenger stood still with folded arms   looking his last  upon 
the scene of his former joys and his later sufferings  and wishing 
 she  could see him now  abroad on the wild sea  facing peril and death 
with dauntless heart  going to his doom with a grim smile on his lips  
It was but a small strain on his imagination to remove Jackson s Island 
beyond eyeshot of the village  and so he  looked his last  with a 
broken and satisfied heart  The other pirates were looking their last  
too  and they all looked so long that they came near letting the 
current drift them out of the range of the island  But they discovered 
the danger in time  and made shift to avert it  About two o clock in 
the morning the raft grounded on the bar two hundred yards above the 
head of the island  and they waded back and forth until they had landed 
their freight  Part of the little raft s belongings consisted of an old 
sail  and this they spread over a nook in the bushes for a tent to 
shelter their provisions  but they themselves would sleep in the open 
air in good weather  as became outlaws  
 
They built a fire against the side of a great log twenty or thirty 
steps within the sombre depths of the forest  and then cooked some 
bacon in the frying pan for supper  and used up half of the corn  pone  
stock they had brought  It seemed glorious sport to be feasting in that 
wild  free way in the virgin forest of an unexplored and uninhabited 
island  far from the haunts of men  and they said they never would 
return to civilization  The climbing fire lit up their faces and threw 
its ruddy glare upon the pillared tree trunks of their forest temple  
and upon the varnished foliage and festooning vines  
 
When the last crisp slice of bacon was gone  and the last allowance of 
corn pone devoured  the boys stretched themselves out on the grass  
filled with contentment  They could have found a cooler place  but they 
would not deny themselves such a romantic feature as the roasting 
camp fire  
 
 AIN T it gay   said Joe  
 
 It s NUTS   said Tom   What would the boys say if they could see us   
 
 Say  Well  they d just die to be here  hey  Hucky   
 
 I reckon so   said Huckleberry   anyways  I m suited  I don t want 
nothing better n this  I don t ever get enough to eat  gen ally  and 
here they can t come and pick at a feller and bullyrag him so   
 
 It s just the life for me   said Tom   You don t have to get up  
mornings  and you don t have to go to school  and wash  and all that 
blame foolishness  You see a pirate don t have to do ANYTHING  Joe  
when he s ashore  but a hermit HE has to be praying considerable  and 
then he don t have any fun  anyway  all by himself that way   
 
 Oh yes  that s so   said Joe   but I hadn t thought much about it  
you know  I d a good deal rather be a pirate  now that I ve tried it   
 
 You see   said Tom   people don t go much on hermits  nowadays  like 
they used to in old times  but a pirate s always respected  And a 
hermit s got to sleep on the hardest place he can find  and put 
sackcloth and ashes on his head  and stand out in the rain  and    
 
 What does he put sackcloth and ashes on his head for   inquired Huck  
 
 I dono  But they ve GOT to do it  Hermits always do  You d have to do 
that if you was a hermit   
 
 Dern d if I would   said Huck  
 
 Well  what would you do   
 
 I dono  But I wouldn t do that   
 
 Why  Huck  you d HAVE to  How d you get around it   
 
 Why  I just wouldn t stand it  I d run away   
 
 Run away  Well  you WOULD be a nice old slouch of a hermit  You d be 
a disgrace   
 
The Red Handed made no response  being better employed  He had 
finished gouging out a cob  and now he fitted a weed stem to it  loaded 
it with tobacco  and was pressing a coal to the charge and blowing a 
cloud of fragrant smoke  he was in the full bloom of luxurious 
contentment  The other pirates envied him this majestic vice  and 
secretly resolved to acquire it shortly  Presently Huck said  
 
 What does pirates have to do   
 
Tom said  
 
 Oh  they have just a bully time  take ships and burn them  and get 
the money and bury it in awful places in their island where there s 
ghosts and things to watch it  and kill everybody in the ships  make 
 em walk a plank   
 
 And they carry the women to the island   said Joe   they don t kill 
the women   
 
 No   assented Tom   they don t kill the women  they re too noble  And 
the women s always beautiful  too  
 
 And don t they wear the bulliest clothes  Oh no  All gold and silver 
and di monds   said Joe  with enthusiasm  
 
 Who   said Huck  
 
 Why  the pirates   
 
Huck scanned his own clothing forlornly  
 
 I reckon I ain t dressed fitten for a pirate   said he  with a 
regretful pathos in his voice   but I ain t got none but these   
 
But the other boys told him the fine clothes would come fast enough  
after they should have begun their adventures  They made him understand 
that his poor rags would do to begin with  though it was customary for 
wealthy pirates to start with a proper wardrobe  
 
Gradually their talk died out and drowsiness began to steal upon the 
eyelids of the little waifs  The pipe dropped from the fingers of the 
Red Handed  and he slept the sleep of the conscience free and the 
weary  The Terror of the Seas and the Black Avenger of the Spanish Main 
had more difficulty in getting to sleep  They said their prayers 
inwardly  and lying down  since there was nobody there with authority 
to make them kneel and recite aloud  in truth  they had a mind not to 
say them at all  but they were afraid to proceed to such lengths as 
that  lest they might call down a sudden and special thunderbolt from 
heaven  Then at once they reached and hovered upon the imminent verge 
of sleep  but an intruder came  now  that would not  down   It was 
conscience  They began to feel a vague fear that they had been doing 
wrong to run away  and next they thought of the stolen meat  and then 
the real torture came  They tried to argue it away by reminding 
conscience that they had purloined sweetmeats and apples scores of 
times  but conscience was not to be appeased by such thin 
plausibilities  it seemed to them  in the end  that there was no 
getting around the stubborn fact that taking sweetmeats was only 
 hooking   while taking bacon and hams and such valuables was plain 
simple stealing  and there was a command against that in the Bible  So 
they inwardly resolved that so long as they remained in the business  
their piracies should not again be sullied with the crime of stealing  
Then conscience granted a truce  and these curiously inconsistent 
pirates fell peacefully to sleep  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XIV 
 
WHEN Tom awoke in the morning  he wondered where he was  He sat up and 
rubbed his eyes and looked around  Then he comprehended  It was the 
cool gray dawn  and there was a delicious sense of repose and peace in 
the deep pervading calm and silence of the woods  Not a leaf stirred  
not a sound obtruded upon great Nature s meditation  Beaded dewdrops 
stood upon the leaves and grasses  A white layer of ashes covered the 
fire  and a thin blue breath of smoke rose straight into the air  Joe 
and Huck still slept  
 
Now  far away in the woods a bird called  another answered  presently 
the hammering of a woodpecker was heard  Gradually the cool dim gray of 
the morning whitened  and as gradually sounds multiplied and life 
manifested itself  The marvel of Nature shaking off sleep and going to 
work unfolded itself to the musing boy  A little green worm came 
crawling over a dewy leaf  lifting two thirds of his body into the air 
from time to time and  sniffing around   then proceeding again  for he 
was measuring  Tom said  and when the worm approached him  of its own 
accord  he sat as still as a stone  with his hopes rising and falling  
by turns  as the creature still came toward him or seemed inclined to 
go elsewhere  and when at last it considered a painful moment with its 
curved body in the air and then came decisively down upon Tom s leg and 
began a journey over him  his whole heart was glad  for that meant that 
he was going to have a new suit of clothes  without the shadow of a 
doubt a gaudy piratical uniform  Now a procession of ants appeared  
from nowhere in particular  and went about their labors  one struggled 
manfully by with a dead spider five times as big as itself in its arms  
and lugged it straight up a tree trunk  A brown spotted lady bug 
climbed the dizzy height of a grass blade  and Tom bent down close to 
it and said   Lady bug  lady bug  fly away home  your house is on fire  
your children s alone   and she took wing and went off to see about it 
  which did not surprise the boy  for he knew of old that this insect was 
credulous about conflagrations  and he had practised upon its 
simplicity more than once  A tumblebug came next  heaving sturdily at 
its ball  and Tom touched the creature  to see it shut its legs against 
its body and pretend to be dead  The birds were fairly rioting by this 
time  A catbird  the Northern mocker  lit in a tree over Tom s head  
and trilled out her imitations of her neighbors in a rapture of 
enjoyment  then a shrill jay swept down  a flash of blue flame  and 
stopped on a twig almost within the boy s reach  cocked his head to one 
side and eyed the strangers with a consuming curiosity  a gray squirrel 
and a big fellow of the  fox  kind came skurrying along  sitting up at 
intervals to inspect and chatter at the boys  for the wild things had 
probably never seen a human being before and scarcely knew whether to 
be afraid or not  All Nature was wide awake and stirring  now  long 
lances of sunlight pierced down through the dense foliage far and near  
and a few butterflies came fluttering upon the scene  
 
Tom stirred up the other pirates and they all clattered away with a 
shout  and in a minute or two were stripped and chasing after and 
tumbling over each other in the shallow limpid water of the white 
sandbar  They felt no longing for the little village sleeping in the 
distance beyond the majestic waste of water  A vagrant current or a 
slight rise in the river had carried off their raft  but this only 
gratified them  since its going was something like burning the bridge 
between them and civilization  
 
They came back to camp wonderfully refreshed  glad hearted  and 
ravenous  and they soon had the camp fire blazing up again  Huck found 
a spring of clear cold water close by  and the boys made cups of broad 
oak or hickory leaves  and felt that water  sweetened with such a 
wildwood charm as that  would be a good enough substitute for coffee  
While Joe was slicing bacon for breakfast  Tom and Huck asked him to 
hold on a minute  they stepped to a promising nook in the river bank 
and threw in their lines  almost immediately they had reward  Joe had 
not had time to get impatient before they were back again with some 
handsome bass  a couple of sun perch and a small catfish  provisions 
enough for quite a family  They fried the fish with the bacon  and were 
astonished  for no fish had ever seemed so delicious before  They did 
not know that the quicker a fresh water fish is on the fire after he is 
caught the better he is  and they reflected little upon what a sauce 
open air sleeping  open air exercise  bathing  and a large ingredient 
of hunger make  too  
 
They lay around in the shade  after breakfast  while Huck had a smoke  
and then went off through the woods on an exploring expedition  They 
tramped gayly along  over decaying logs  through tangled underbrush  
among solemn monarchs of the forest  hung from their crowns to the 
ground with a drooping regalia of grape vines  Now and then they came 
upon snug nooks carpeted with grass and jeweled with flowers  
 
They found plenty of things to be delighted with  but nothing to be 
astonished at  They discovered that the island was about three miles 
long and a quarter of a mile wide  and that the shore it lay closest to 
was only separated from it by a narrow channel hardly two hundred yards 
wide  They took a swim about every hour  so it was close upon the 
middle of the afternoon when they got back to camp  They were too 
hungry to stop to fish  but they fared sumptuously upon cold ham  and 
then threw themselves down in the shade to talk  But the talk soon 
began to drag  and then died  The stillness  the solemnity that brooded 
in the woods  and the sense of loneliness  began to tell upon the 
spirits of the boys  They fell to thinking  A sort of undefined longing 
crept upon them  This took dim shape  presently  it was budding 
homesickness  Even Finn the Red Handed was dreaming of his doorsteps 
and empty hogsheads  But they were all ashamed of their weakness  and 
none was brave enough to speak his thought  
 
For some time  now  the boys had been dully conscious of a peculiar 
sound in the distance  just as one sometimes is of the ticking of a 
clock which he takes no distinct note of  But now this mysterious sound 
became more pronounced  and forced a recognition  The boys started  
glanced at each other  and then each assumed a listening attitude  
There was a long silence  profound and unbroken  then a deep  sullen 
boom came floating down out of the distance  
 
 What is it   exclaimed Joe  under his breath  
 
 I wonder   said Tom in a whisper  
 
  Tain t thunder   said Huckleberry  in an awed tone   becuz thunder    
 
 Hark   said Tom   Listen  don t talk   
 
They waited a time that seemed an age  and then the same muffled boom 
troubled the solemn hush  
 
 Let s go and see   
 
They sprang to their feet and hurried to the shore toward the town  
They parted the bushes on the bank and peered out over the water  The 
little steam ferryboat was about a mile below the village  drifting 
with the current  Her broad deck seemed crowded with people  There were 
a great many skiffs rowing about or floating with the stream in the 
neighborhood of the ferryboat  but the boys could not determine what 
the men in them were doing  Presently a great jet of white smoke burst 
from the ferryboat s side  and as it expanded and rose in a lazy cloud  
that same dull throb of sound was borne to the listeners again  
 
 I know now   exclaimed Tom   somebody s drownded   
 
 That s it   said Huck   they done that last summer  when Bill Turner 
got drownded  they shoot a cannon over the water  and that makes him 
come up to the top  Yes  and they take loaves of bread and put 
quicksilver in  em and set  em afloat  and wherever there s anybody 
that s drownded  they ll float right there and stop   
 
 Yes  I ve heard about that   said Joe   I wonder what makes the bread 
do that   
 
 Oh  it ain t the bread  so much   said Tom   I reckon it s mostly 
what they SAY over it before they start it out   
 
 But they don t say anything over it   said Huck   I ve seen  em and 
they don t   
 
 Well  that s funny   said Tom   But maybe they say it to themselves  
Of COURSE they do  Anybody might know that   
 
The other boys agreed that there was reason in what Tom said  because 
an ignorant lump of bread  uninstructed by an incantation  could not be 
expected to act very intelligently when set upon an errand of such 
gravity  
 
 By jings  I wish I was over there  now   said Joe  
 
 I do too  said Huck  I d give heaps to know who it is   
 
The boys still listened and watched  Presently a revealing thought 
flashed through Tom s mind  and he exclaimed  
 
 Boys  I know who s drownded  it s us   
 
They felt like heroes in an instant  Here was a gorgeous triumph  they 
were missed  they were mourned  hearts were breaking on their account  
tears were being shed  accusing memories of unkindness to these poor 
lost lads were rising up  and unavailing regrets and remorse were being 
indulged  and best of all  the departed were the talk of the whole 
town  and the envy of all the boys  as far as this dazzling notoriety 
was concerned  This was fine  It was worth while to be a pirate  after 
all  
 
As twilight drew on  the ferryboat went back to her accustomed 
business and the skiffs disappeared  The pirates returned to camp  They 
were jubilant with vanity over their new grandeur and the illustrious 
trouble they were making  They caught fish  cooked supper and ate it  
and then fell to guessing at what the village was thinking and saying 
about them  and the pictures they drew of the public distress on their 
account were gratifying to look upon  from their point of view  But 
when the shadows of night closed them in  they gradually ceased to 
talk  and sat gazing into the fire  with their minds evidently 
wandering elsewhere  The excitement was gone  now  and Tom and Joe 
could not keep back thoughts of certain persons at home who were not 
enjoying this fine frolic as much as they were  Misgivings came  they 
grew troubled and unhappy  a sigh or two escaped  unawares  By and by 
Joe timidly ventured upon a roundabout  feeler  as to how the others 
might look upon a return to civilization  not right now  but   
 
Tom withered him with derision  Huck  being uncommitted as yet  joined 
in with Tom  and the waverer quickly  explained   and was glad to get 
out of the scrape with as little taint of chicken hearted homesickness 
clinging to his garments as he could  Mutiny was effectually laid to 
rest for the moment  
 
As the night deepened  Huck began to nod  and presently to snore  Joe 
followed next  Tom lay upon his elbow motionless  for some time  
watching the two intently  At last he got up cautiously  on his knees  
and went searching among the grass and the flickering reflections flung 
by the camp fire  He picked up and inspected several large 
semi cylinders of the thin white bark of a sycamore  and finally chose 
two which seemed to suit him  Then he knelt by the fire and painfully 
wrote something upon each of these with his  red keel   one he rolled up 
and put in his jacket pocket  and the other he put in Joe s hat and 
removed it to a little distance from the owner  And he also put into the 
hat certain schoolboy treasures of almost inestimable value  among them 
a lump of chalk  an India rubber ball  three fishhooks  and one of that 
kind of marbles known as a  sure  nough crystal   Then he tiptoed his 
way cautiously among the trees till he felt that he was out of hearing  
and straightway broke into a keen run in the direction of the sandbar  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XV 
 
A FEW minutes later Tom was in the shoal water of the bar  wading 
toward the Illinois shore  Before the depth reached his middle he was 
half way over  the current would permit no more wading  now  so he 
struck out confidently to swim the remaining hundred yards  He swam 
quartering upstream  but still was swept downward rather faster than he 
had expected  However  he reached the shore finally  and drifted along 
till he found a low place and drew himself out  He put his hand on his 
jacket pocket  found his piece of bark safe  and then struck through 
the woods  following the shore  with streaming garments  Shortly before 
ten o clock he came out into an open place opposite the village  and 
saw the ferryboat lying in the shadow of the trees and the high bank  
Everything was quiet under the blinking stars  He crept down the bank  
watching with all his eyes  slipped into the water  swam three or four 
strokes and climbed into the skiff that did  yawl  duty at the boat s 
stern  He laid himself down under the thwarts and waited  panting  
 
Presently the cracked bell tapped and a voice gave the order to  cast 
off   A minute or two later the skiff s head was standing high up  
against the boat s swell  and the voyage was begun  Tom felt happy in 
his success  for he knew it was the boat s last trip for the night  At 
the end of a long twelve or fifteen minutes the wheels stopped  and Tom 
slipped overboard and swam ashore in the dusk  landing fifty yards 
downstream  out of danger of possible stragglers  
 
He flew along unfrequented alleys  and shortly found himself at his 
aunt s back fence  He climbed over  approached the  ell   and looked in 
at the sitting room window  for a light was burning there  There sat 
Aunt Polly  Sid  Mary  and Joe Harper s mother  grouped together  
talking  They were by the bed  and the bed was between them and the 
door  Tom went to the door and began to softly lift the latch  then he 
pressed gently and the door yielded a crack  he continued pushing 
cautiously  and quaking every time it creaked  till he judged he might 
squeeze through on his knees  so he put his head through and began  
warily  
 
 What makes the candle blow so   said Aunt Polly  Tom hurried up  
 Why  that door s open  I believe  Why  of course it is  No end of 
strange things now  Go  long and shut it  Sid   
 
Tom disappeared under the bed just in time  He lay and  breathed  
himself for a time  and then crept to where he could almost touch his 
aunt s foot  
 
 But as I was saying   said Aunt Polly   he warn t BAD  so to say 
  only mischEEvous  Only just giddy  and harum scarum  you know  He 
warn t any more responsible than a colt  HE never meant any harm  and 
he was the best hearted boy that ever was   and she began to cry  
 
 It was just so with my Joe  always full of his devilment  and up to 
every kind of mischief  but he was just as unselfish and kind as he 
could be  and laws bless me  to think I went and whipped him for taking 
that cream  never once recollecting that I throwed it out myself 
because it was sour  and I never to see him again in this world  never  
never  never  poor abused boy   And Mrs  Harper sobbed as if her heart 
would break  
 
 I hope Tom s better off where he is   said Sid   but if he d been 
better in some ways    
 
 SID   Tom felt the glare of the old lady s eye  though he could not 
see it   Not a word against my Tom  now that he s gone  God ll take 
care of HIM  never you trouble YOURself  sir  Oh  Mrs  Harper  I don t 
know how to give him up  I don t know how to give him up  He was such a 
comfort to me  although he tormented my old heart out of me   most   
 
 The Lord giveth and the Lord hath taken away  Blessed be the name of 
the Lord  But it s so hard  Oh  it s so hard  Only last Saturday my 
Joe busted a firecracker right under my nose and I knocked him 
sprawling  Little did I know then  how soon  Oh  if it was to do over 
again I d hug him and bless him for it   
 
 Yes  yes  yes  I know just how you feel  Mrs  Harper  I know just 
exactly how you feel  No longer ago than yesterday noon  my Tom took 
and filled the cat full of Pain killer  and I did think the cretur 
would tear the house down  And God forgive me  I cracked Tom s head 
with my thimble  poor boy  poor dead boy  But he s out of all his 
troubles now  And the last words I ever heard him say was to reproach    
 
But this memory was too much for the old lady  and she broke entirely 
down  Tom was snuffling  now  himself  and more in pity of himself than 
anybody else  He could hear Mary crying  and putting in a kindly word 
for him from time to time  He began to have a nobler opinion of himself 
than ever before  Still  he was sufficiently touched by his aunt s 
grief to long to rush out from under the bed and overwhelm her with 
joy  and the theatrical gorgeousness of the thing appealed strongly to 
his nature  too  but he resisted and lay still  
 
He went on listening  and gathered by odds and ends that it was 
conjectured at first that the boys had got drowned while taking a swim  
then the small raft had been missed  next  certain boys said the 
missing lads had promised that the village should  hear something  
soon  the wise heads had  put this and that together  and decided that 
the lads had gone off on that raft and would turn up at the next town 
below  presently  but toward noon the raft had been found  lodged 
against the Missouri shore some five or six miles below the village 
  and then hope perished  they must be drowned  else hunger would have 
driven them home by nightfall if not sooner  It was believed that the 
search for the bodies had been a fruitless effort merely because the 
drowning must have occurred in mid channel  since the boys  being good 
swimmers  would otherwise have escaped to shore  This was Wednesday 
night  If the bodies continued missing until Sunday  all hope would be 
given over  and the funerals would be preached on that morning  Tom 
shuddered  
 
Mrs  Harper gave a sobbing good night and turned to go  Then with a 
mutual impulse the two bereaved women flung themselves into each 
other s arms and had a good  consoling cry  and then parted  Aunt Polly 
was tender far beyond her wont  in her good night to Sid and Mary  Sid 
snuffled a bit and Mary went off crying with all her heart  
 
Aunt Polly knelt down and prayed for Tom so touchingly  so 
appealingly  and with such measureless love in her words and her old 
trembling voice  that he was weltering in tears again  long before she 
was through  
 
He had to keep still long after she went to bed  for she kept making 
broken hearted ejaculations from time to time  tossing unrestfully  and 
turning over  But at last she was still  only moaning a little in her 
sleep  Now the boy stole out  rose gradually by the bedside  shaded the 
candle light with his hand  and stood regarding her  His heart was full 
of pity for her  He took out his sycamore scroll and placed it by the 
candle  But something occurred to him  and he lingered considering  His 
face lighted with a happy solution of his thought  he put the bark 
hastily in his pocket  Then he bent over and kissed the faded lips  and 
straightway made his stealthy exit  latching the door behind him  
 
He threaded his way back to the ferry landing  found nobody at large 
there  and walked boldly on board the boat  for he knew she was 
tenantless except that there was a watchman  who always turned in and 
slept like a graven image  He untied the skiff at the stern  slipped 
into it  and was soon rowing cautiously upstream  When he had pulled a 
mile above the village  he started quartering across and bent himself 
stoutly to his work  He hit the landing on the other side neatly  for 
this was a familiar bit of work to him  He was moved to capture the 
skiff  arguing that it might be considered a ship and therefore 
legitimate prey for a pirate  but he knew a thorough search would be 
made for it and that might end in revelations  So he stepped ashore and 
entered the woods  
 
He sat down and took a long rest  torturing himself meanwhile to keep 
awake  and then started warily down the home stretch  The night was far 
spent  It was broad daylight before he found himself fairly abreast the 
island bar  He rested again until the sun was well up and gilding the 
great river with its splendor  and then he plunged into the stream  A 
little later he paused  dripping  upon the threshold of the camp  and 
heard Joe say  
 
 No  Tom s true blue  Huck  and he ll come back  He won t desert  He 
knows that would be a disgrace to a pirate  and Tom s too proud for 
that sort of thing  He s up to something or other  Now I wonder what   
 
 Well  the things is ours  anyway  ain t they   
 
 Pretty near  but not yet  Huck  The writing says they are if he ain t 
back here to breakfast   
 
 Which he is   exclaimed Tom  with fine dramatic effect  stepping 
grandly into camp  
 
A sumptuous breakfast of bacon and fish was shortly provided  and as 
the boys set to work upon it  Tom recounted  and adorned  his 
adventures  They were a vain and boastful company of heroes when the 
tale was done  Then Tom hid himself away in a shady nook to sleep till 
noon  and the other pirates got ready to fish and explore  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XVI 
 
AFTER dinner all the gang turned out to hunt for turtle eggs on the 
bar  They went about poking sticks into the sand  and when they found a 
soft place they went down on their knees and dug with their hands  
Sometimes they would take fifty or sixty eggs out of one hole  They 
were perfectly round white things a trifle smaller than an English 
walnut  They had a famous fried egg feast that night  and another on 
Friday morning  
 
After breakfast they went whooping and prancing out on the bar  and 
chased each other round and round  shedding clothes as they went  until 
they were naked  and then continued the frolic far away up the shoal 
water of the bar  against the stiff current  which latter tripped their 
legs from under them from time to time and greatly increased the fun  
And now and then they stooped in a group and splashed water in each 
other s faces with their palms  gradually approaching each other  with 
averted faces to avoid the strangling sprays  and finally gripping and 
struggling till the best man ducked his neighbor  and then they all 
went under in a tangle of white legs and arms and came up blowing  
sputtering  laughing  and gasping for breath at one and the same time  
 
When they were well exhausted  they would run out and sprawl on the 
dry  hot sand  and lie there and cover themselves up with it  and by 
and by break for the water again and go through the original 
performance once more  Finally it occurred to them that their naked 
skin represented flesh colored  tights  very fairly  so they drew a 
ring in the sand and had a circus  with three clowns in it  for none 
would yield this proudest post to his neighbor  
 
Next they got their marbles and played  knucks  and  ring taw  and 
 keeps  till that amusement grew stale  Then Joe and Huck had another 
swim  but Tom would not venture  because he found that in kicking off 
his trousers he had kicked his string of rattlesnake rattles off his 
ankle  and he wondered how he had escaped cramp so long without the 
protection of this mysterious charm  He did not venture again until he 
had found it  and by that time the other boys were tired and ready to 
rest  They gradually wandered apart  dropped into the  dumps   and fell 
to gazing longingly across the wide river to where the village lay 
drowsing in the sun  Tom found himself writing  BECKY  in the sand with 
his big toe  he scratched it out  and was angry with himself for his 
weakness  But he wrote it again  nevertheless  he could not help it  He 
erased it once more and then took himself out of temptation by driving 
the other boys together and joining them  
 
But Joe s spirits had gone down almost beyond resurrection  He was so 
homesick that he could hardly endure the misery of it  The tears lay 
very near the surface  Huck was melancholy  too  Tom was downhearted  
but tried hard not to show it  He had a secret which he was not ready 
to tell  yet  but if this mutinous depression was not broken up soon  
he would have to bring it out  He said  with a great show of 
cheerfulness  
 
 I bet there s been pirates on this island before  boys  We ll explore 
it again  They ve hid treasures here somewhere  How d you feel to light 
on a rotten chest full of gold and silver  hey   
 
But it roused only faint enthusiasm  which faded out  with no reply  
Tom tried one or two other seductions  but they failed  too  It was 
discouraging work  Joe sat poking up the sand with a stick and looking 
very gloomy  Finally he said  
 
 Oh  boys  let s give it up  I want to go home  It s so lonesome   
 
 Oh no  Joe  you ll feel better by and by   said Tom   Just think of 
the fishing that s here   
 
 I don t care for fishing  I want to go home   
 
 But  Joe  there ain t such another swimming place anywhere   
 
 Swimming s no good  I don t seem to care for it  somehow  when there 
ain t anybody to say I sha n t go in  I mean to go home   
 
 Oh  shucks  Baby  You want to see your mother  I reckon   
 
 Yes  I DO want to see my mother  and you would  too  if you had one  
I ain t any more baby than you are   And Joe snuffled a little  
 
 Well  we ll let the cry baby go home to his mother  won t we  Huck  
Poor thing  does it want to see its mother  And so it shall  You like 
it here  don t you  Huck  We ll stay  won t we   
 
Huck said   Y e s   without any heart in it  
 
 I ll never speak to you again as long as I live   said Joe  rising  
 There now   And he moved moodily away and began to dress himself  
 
 Who cares   said Tom   Nobody wants you to  Go  long home and get 
laughed at  Oh  you re a nice pirate  Huck and me ain t cry babies  
We ll stay  won t we  Huck  Let him go if he wants to  I reckon we can 
get along without him  per aps   
 
But Tom was uneasy  nevertheless  and was alarmed to see Joe go 
sullenly on with his dressing  And then it was discomforting to see 
Huck eying Joe s preparations so wistfully  and keeping up such an 
ominous silence  Presently  without a parting word  Joe began to wade 
off toward the Illinois shore  Tom s heart began to sink  He glanced at 
Huck  Huck could not bear the look  and dropped his eyes  Then he said  
 
 I want to go  too  Tom  It was getting so lonesome anyway  and now 
it ll be worse  Let s us go  too  Tom   
 
 I won t  You can all go  if you want to  I mean to stay   
 
 Tom  I better go   
 
 Well  go  long  who s hendering you   
 
Huck began to pick up his scattered clothes  He said  
 
 Tom  I wisht you d come  too  Now you think it over  We ll wait for 
you when we get to shore   
 
 Well  you ll wait a blame long time  that s all   
 
Huck started sorrowfully away  and Tom stood looking after him  with a 
strong desire tugging at his heart to yield his pride and go along too  
He hoped the boys would stop  but they still waded slowly on  It 
suddenly dawned on Tom that it was become very lonely and still  He 
made one final struggle with his pride  and then darted after his 
comrades  yelling  
 
 Wait  Wait  I want to tell you something   
 
They presently stopped and turned around  When he got to where they 
were  he began unfolding his secret  and they listened moodily till at 
last they saw the  point  he was driving at  and then they set up a 
war whoop of applause and said it was  splendid   and said if he had 
told them at first  they wouldn t have started away  He made a plausible 
excuse  but his real reason had been the fear that not even the secret 
would keep them with him any very great length of time  and so he had 
meant to hold it in reserve as a last seduction  
 
The lads came gayly back and went at their sports again with a will  
chattering all the time about Tom s stupendous plan and admiring the 
genius of it  After a dainty egg and fish dinner  Tom said he wanted to 
learn to smoke  now  Joe caught at the idea and said he would like to 
try  too  So Huck made pipes and filled them  These novices had never 
smoked anything before but cigars made of grape vine  and they  bit  
the tongue  and were not considered manly anyway  
 
Now they stretched themselves out on their elbows and began to puff  
charily  and with slender confidence  The smoke had an unpleasant 
taste  and they gagged a little  but Tom said  
 
 Why  it s just as easy  If I d a knowed this was all  I d a learnt 
long ago   
 
 So would I   said Joe   It s just nothing   
 
 Why  many a time I ve looked at people smoking  and thought well I 
wish I could do that  but I never thought I could   said Tom  
 
 That s just the way with me  hain t it  Huck  You ve heard me talk 
just that way  haven t you  Huck  I ll leave it to Huck if I haven t   
 
 Yes  heaps of times   said Huck  
 
 Well  I have too   said Tom   oh  hundreds of times  Once down by the 
slaughter house  Don t you remember  Huck  Bob Tanner was there  and 
Johnny Miller  and Jeff Thatcher  when I said it  Don t you remember  
Huck   bout me saying that   
 
 Yes  that s so   said Huck   That was the day after I lost a white 
alley  No   twas the day before   
 
 There  I told you so   said Tom   Huck recollects it   
 
 I bleeve I could smoke this pipe all day   said Joe   I don t feel 
sick   
 
 Neither do I   said Tom   I could smoke it all day  But I bet you 
Jeff Thatcher couldn t   
 
 Jeff Thatcher  Why  he d keel over just with two draws  Just let him 
try it once  HE D see   
 
 I bet he would  And Johnny Miller  I wish could see Johnny Miller 
tackle it once   
 
 Oh  don t I   said Joe   Why  I bet you Johnny Miller couldn t any 
more do this than nothing  Just one little snifter would fetch HIM   
 
  Deed it would  Joe  Say  I wish the boys could see us now   
 
 So do I   
 
 Say  boys  don t say anything about it  and some time when they re 
around  I ll come up to you and say   Joe  got a pipe  I want a smoke   
And you ll say  kind of careless like  as if it warn t anything  you ll 
say   Yes  I got my OLD pipe  and another one  but my tobacker ain t 
very good   And I ll say   Oh  that s all right  if it s STRONG 
enough   And then you ll out with the pipes  and we ll light up just as 
ca m  and then just see  em look   
 
 By jings  that ll be gay  Tom  I wish it was NOW   
 
 So do I  And when we tell  em we learned when we was off pirating  
won t they wish they d been along   
 
 Oh  I reckon not  I ll just BET they will   
 
So the talk ran on  But presently it began to flag a trifle  and grow 
disjointed  The silences widened  the expectoration marvellously 
increased  Every pore inside the boys  cheeks became a spouting 
fountain  they could scarcely bail out the cellars under their tongues 
fast enough to prevent an inundation  little overflowings down their 
throats occurred in spite of all they could do  and sudden retchings 
followed every time  Both boys were looking very pale and miserable  
now  Joe s pipe dropped from his nerveless fingers  Tom s followed  
Both fountains were going furiously and both pumps bailing with might 
and main  Joe said feebly  
 
 I ve lost my knife  I reckon I better go and find it   
 
Tom said  with quivering lips and halting utterance  
 
 I ll help you  You go over that way and I ll hunt around by the 
spring  No  you needn t come  Huck  we can find it   
 
So Huck sat down again  and waited an hour  Then he found it lonesome  
and went to find his comrades  They were wide apart in the woods  both 
very pale  both fast asleep  But something informed him that if they 
had had any trouble they had got rid of it  
 
They were not talkative at supper that night  They had a humble look  
and when Huck prepared his pipe after the meal and was going to prepare 
theirs  they said no  they were not feeling very well  something they 
ate at dinner had disagreed with them  
 
About midnight Joe awoke  and called the boys  There was a brooding 
oppressiveness in the air that seemed to bode something  The boys 
huddled themselves together and sought the friendly companionship of 
the fire  though the dull dead heat of the breathless atmosphere was 
stifling  They sat still  intent and waiting  The solemn hush 
continued  Beyond the light of the fire everything was swallowed up in 
the blackness of darkness  Presently there came a quivering glow that 
vaguely revealed the foliage for a moment and then vanished  By and by 
another came  a little stronger  Then another  Then a faint moan came 
sighing through the branches of the forest and the boys felt a fleeting 
breath upon their cheeks  and shuddered with the fancy that the Spirit 
of the Night had gone by  There was a pause  Now a weird flash turned 
night into day and showed every little grass blade  separate and 
distinct  that grew about their feet  And it showed three white  
startled faces  too  A deep peal of thunder went rolling and tumbling 
down the heavens and lost itself in sullen rumblings in the distance  A 
sweep of chilly air passed by  rustling all the leaves and snowing the 
flaky ashes broadcast about the fire  Another fierce glare lit up the 
forest and an instant crash followed that seemed to rend the tree tops 
right over the boys  heads  They clung together in terror  in the thick 
gloom that followed  A few big rain drops fell pattering upon the 
leaves  
 
 Quick  boys  go for the tent   exclaimed Tom  
 
They sprang away  stumbling over roots and among vines in the dark  no 
two plunging in the same direction  A furious blast roared through the 
trees  making everything sing as it went  One blinding flash after 
another came  and peal on peal of deafening thunder  And now a 
drenching rain poured down and the rising hurricane drove it in sheets 
along the ground  The boys cried out to each other  but the roaring 
wind and the booming thunder blasts drowned their voices utterly  
However  one by one they straggled in at last and took shelter under 
the tent  cold  scared  and streaming with water  but to have company 
in misery seemed something to be grateful for  They could not talk  the 
old sail flapped so furiously  even if the other noises would have 
allowed them  The tempest rose higher and higher  and presently the 
sail tore loose from its fastenings and went winging away on the blast  
The boys seized each others  hands and fled  with many tumblings and 
bruises  to the shelter of a great oak that stood upon the river bank  
Now the battle was at its highest  Under the ceaseless conflagration of 
lightning that flamed in the skies  everything below stood out in 
clean cut and shadowless distinctness  the bending trees  the billowy 
river  white with foam  the driving spray of spume flakes  the dim 
outlines of the high bluffs on the other side  glimpsed through the 
drifting cloud rack and the slanting veil of rain  Every little while 
some giant tree yielded the fight and fell crashing through the younger 
growth  and the unflagging thunder peals came now in ear splitting 
explosive bursts  keen and sharp  and unspeakably appalling  The storm 
culminated in one matchless effort that seemed likely to tear the island 
to pieces  burn it up  drown it to the tree tops  blow it away  and 
deafen every creature in it  all at one and the same moment  It was a 
wild night for homeless young heads to be out in  
 
But at last the battle was done  and the forces retired with weaker 
and weaker threatenings and grumblings  and peace resumed her sway  The 
boys went back to camp  a good deal awed  but they found there was 
still something to be thankful for  because the great sycamore  the 
shelter of their beds  was a ruin  now  blasted by the lightnings  and 
they were not under it when the catastrophe happened  
 
Everything in camp was drenched  the camp fire as well  for they were 
but heedless lads  like their generation  and had made no provision 
against rain  Here was matter for dismay  for they were soaked through 
and chilled  They were eloquent in their distress  but they presently 
discovered that the fire had eaten so far up under the great log it had 
been built against  where it curved upward and separated itself from 
the ground   that a handbreadth or so of it had escaped wetting  so 
they patiently wrought until  with shreds and bark gathered from the 
under sides of sheltered logs  they coaxed the fire to burn again  Then 
they piled on great dead boughs till they had a roaring furnace  and 
were glad hearted once more  They dried their boiled ham and had a 
feast  and after that they sat by the fire and expanded and glorified 
their midnight adventure until morning  for there was not a dry spot to 
sleep on  anywhere around  
 
As the sun began to steal in upon the boys  drowsiness came over them  
and they went out on the sandbar and lay down to sleep  They got 
scorched out by and by  and drearily set about getting breakfast  After 
the meal they felt rusty  and stiff jointed  and a little homesick once 
more  Tom saw the signs  and fell to cheering up the pirates as well as 
he could  But they cared nothing for marbles  or circus  or swimming  
or anything  He reminded them of the imposing secret  and raised a ray 
of cheer  While it lasted  he got them interested in a new device  This 
was to knock off being pirates  for a while  and be Indians for a 
change  They were attracted by this idea  so it was not long before 
they were stripped  and striped from head to heel with black mud  like 
so many zebras  all of them chiefs  of course  and then they went 
tearing through the woods to attack an English settlement  
 
By and by they separated into three hostile tribes  and darted upon 
each other from ambush with dreadful war whoops  and killed and scalped 
each other by thousands  It was a gory day  Consequently it was an 
extremely satisfactory one  
 
They assembled in camp toward supper time  hungry and happy  but now a 
difficulty arose  hostile Indians could not break the bread of 
hospitality together without first making peace  and this was a simple 
impossibility without smoking a pipe of peace  There was no other 
process that ever they had heard of  Two of the savages almost wished 
they had remained pirates  However  there was no other way  so with 
such show of cheerfulness as they could muster they called for the pipe 
and took their whiff as it passed  in due form  
 
And behold  they were glad they had gone into savagery  for they had 
gained something  they found that they could now smoke a little without 
having to go and hunt for a lost knife  they did not get sick enough to 
be seriously uncomfortable  They were not likely to fool away this high 
promise for lack of effort  No  they practised cautiously  after 
supper  with right fair success  and so they spent a jubilant evening  
They were prouder and happier in their new acquirement than they would 
have been in the scalping and skinning of the Six Nations  We will 
leave them to smoke and chatter and brag  since we have no further use 
for them at present  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XVII 
 
BUT there was no hilarity in the little town that same tranquil 
Saturday afternoon  The Harpers  and Aunt Polly s family  were being 
put into mourning  with great grief and many tears  An unusual quiet 
possessed the village  although it was ordinarily quiet enough  in all 
conscience  The villagers conducted their concerns with an absent air  
and talked little  but they sighed often  The Saturday holiday seemed a 
burden to the children  They had no heart in their sports  and 
gradually gave them up  
 
In the afternoon Becky Thatcher found herself moping about the 
deserted schoolhouse yard  and feeling very melancholy  But she found 
nothing there to comfort her  She soliloquized  
 
 Oh  if I only had a brass andiron knob again  But I haven t got 
anything now to remember him by   And she choked back a little sob  
 
Presently she stopped  and said to herself  
 
 It was right here  Oh  if it was to do over again  I wouldn t say 
that  I wouldn t say it for the whole world  But he s gone now  I ll 
never  never  never see him any more   
 
This thought broke her down  and she wandered away  with tears rolling 
down her cheeks  Then quite a group of boys and girls  playmates of 
Tom s and Joe s  came by  and stood looking over the paling fence and 
talking in reverent tones of how Tom did so and so the last time they 
saw him  and how Joe said this and that small trifle  pregnant with 
awful prophecy  as they could easily see now    and each speaker 
pointed out the exact spot where the lost lads stood at the time  and 
then added something like  and I was a standing just so  just as I am 
now  and as if you was him  I was as close as that  and he smiled  just 
this way  and then something seemed to go all over me  like  awful  you 
know  and I never thought what it meant  of course  but I can see now   
 
Then there was a dispute about who saw the dead boys last in life  and 
many claimed that dismal distinction  and offered evidences  more or 
less tampered with by the witness  and when it was ultimately decided 
who DID see the departed last  and exchanged the last words with them  
the lucky parties took upon themselves a sort of sacred importance  and 
were gaped at and envied by all the rest  One poor chap  who had no 
other grandeur to offer  said with tolerably manifest pride in the 
remembrance  
 
 Well  Tom Sawyer he licked me once   
 
But that bid for glory was a failure  Most of the boys could say that  
and so that cheapened the distinction too much  The group loitered 
away  still recalling memories of the lost heroes  in awed voices  
 
When the Sunday school hour was finished  the next morning  the bell 
began to toll  instead of ringing in the usual way  It was a very still 
Sabbath  and the mournful sound seemed in keeping with the musing hush 
that lay upon nature  The villagers began to gather  loitering a moment 
in the vestibule to converse in whispers about the sad event  But there 
was no whispering in the house  only the funereal rustling of dresses 
as the women gathered to their seats disturbed the silence there  None 
could remember when the little church had been so full before  There 
was finally a waiting pause  an expectant dumbness  and then Aunt Polly 
entered  followed by Sid and Mary  and they by the Harper family  all 
in deep black  and the whole congregation  the old minister as well  
rose reverently and stood until the mourners were seated in the front 
pew  There was another communing silence  broken at intervals by 
muffled sobs  and then the minister spread his hands abroad and prayed  
A moving hymn was sung  and the text followed   I am the Resurrection 
and the Life   
 
As the service proceeded  the clergyman drew such pictures of the 
graces  the winning ways  and the rare promise of the lost lads that 
every soul there  thinking he recognized these pictures  felt a pang in 
remembering that he had persistently blinded himself to them always 
before  and had as persistently seen only faults and flaws in the poor 
boys  The minister related many a touching incident in the lives of the 
departed  too  which illustrated their sweet  generous natures  and the 
people could easily see  now  how noble and beautiful those episodes 
were  and remembered with grief that at the time they occurred they had 
seemed rank rascalities  well deserving of the cowhide  The 
congregation became more and more moved  as the pathetic tale went on  
till at last the whole company broke down and joined the weeping 
mourners in a chorus of anguished sobs  the preacher himself giving way 
to his feelings  and crying in the pulpit  
 
There was a rustle in the gallery  which nobody noticed  a moment 
later the church door creaked  the minister raised his streaming eyes 
above his handkerchief  and stood transfixed  First one and then 
another pair of eyes followed the minister s  and then almost with one 
impulse the congregation rose and stared while the three dead boys came 
marching up the aisle  Tom in the lead  Joe next  and Huck  a ruin of 
drooping rags  sneaking sheepishly in the rear  They had been hid in 
the unused gallery listening to their own funeral sermon  
 
Aunt Polly  Mary  and the Harpers threw themselves upon their restored 
ones  smothered them with kisses and poured out thanksgivings  while 
poor Huck stood abashed and uncomfortable  not knowing exactly what to 
do or where to hide from so many unwelcoming eyes  He wavered  and 
started to slink away  but Tom seized him and said  
 
 Aunt Polly  it ain t fair  Somebody s got to be glad to see Huck   
 
 And so they shall  I m glad to see him  poor motherless thing   And 
the loving attentions Aunt Polly lavished upon him were the one thing 
capable of making him more uncomfortable than he was before  
 
Suddenly the minister shouted at the top of his voice   Praise God 
from whom all blessings flow  SING   and put your hearts in it   
 
And they did  Old Hundred swelled up with a triumphant burst  and 
while it shook the rafters Tom Sawyer the Pirate looked around upon the 
envying juveniles about him and confessed in his heart that this was 
the proudest moment of his life  
 
As the  sold  congregation trooped out they said they would almost be 
willing to be made ridiculous again to hear Old Hundred sung like that 
once more  
 
Tom got more cuffs and kisses that day  according to Aunt Polly s 
varying moods  than he had earned before in a year  and he hardly knew 
which expressed the most gratefulness to God and affection for himself  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XVIII 
 
THAT was Tom s great secret  the scheme to return home with his 
brother pirates and attend their own funerals  They had paddled over to 
the Missouri shore on a log  at dusk on Saturday  landing five or six 
miles below the village  they had slept in the woods at the edge of the 
town till nearly daylight  and had then crept through back lanes and 
alleys and finished their sleep in the gallery of the church among a 
chaos of invalided benches  
 
At breakfast  Monday morning  Aunt Polly and Mary were very loving to 
Tom  and very attentive to his wants  There was an unusual amount of 
talk  In the course of it Aunt Polly said  
 
 Well  I don t say it wasn t a fine joke  Tom  to keep everybody 
suffering  most a week so you boys had a good time  but it is a pity 
you could be so hard hearted as to let me suffer so  If you could come 
over on a log to go to your funeral  you could have come over and give 
me a hint some way that you warn t dead  but only run off   
 
 Yes  you could have done that  Tom   said Mary   and I believe you 
would if you had thought of it   
 
 Would you  Tom   said Aunt Polly  her face lighting wistfully   Say  
now  would you  if you d thought of it   
 
 I  well  I don t know   Twould  a  spoiled everything   
 
 Tom  I hoped you loved me that much   said Aunt Polly  with a grieved 
tone that discomforted the boy   It would have been something if you d 
cared enough to THINK of it  even if you didn t DO it   
 
 Now  auntie  that ain t any harm   pleaded Mary   it s only Tom s 
giddy way  he is always in such a rush that he never thinks of 
anything   
 
 More s the pity  Sid would have thought  And Sid would have come and 
DONE it  too  Tom  you ll look back  some day  when it s too late  and 
wish you d cared a little more for me when it would have cost you so 
little   
 
 Now  auntie  you know I do care for you   said Tom  
 
 I d know it better if you acted more like it   
 
 I wish now I d thought   said Tom  with a repentant tone   but I 
dreamt about you  anyway  That s something  ain t it   
 
 It ain t much  a cat does that much  but it s better than nothing  
What did you dream   
 
 Why  Wednesday night I dreamt that you was sitting over there by the 
bed  and Sid was sitting by the woodbox  and Mary next to him   
 
 Well  so we did  So we always do  I m glad your dreams could take 
even that much trouble about us   
 
 And I dreamt that Joe Harper s mother was here   
 
 Why  she was here  Did you dream any more   
 
 Oh  lots  But it s so dim  now   
 
 Well  try to recollect  can t you   
 
 Somehow it seems to me that the wind  the wind blowed the  the    
 
 Try harder  Tom  The wind did blow something  Come   
 
Tom pressed his fingers on his forehead an anxious minute  and then 
said  
 
 I ve got it now  I ve got it now  It blowed the candle   
 
 Mercy on us  Go on  Tom  go on   
 
 And it seems to me that you said   Why  I believe that that door     
 
 Go ON  Tom   
 
 Just let me study a moment  just a moment  Oh  yes  you said you 
believed the door was open   
 
 As I m sitting here  I did  Didn t I  Mary  Go on   
 
 And then  and then  well I won t be certain  but it seems like as if 
you made Sid go and  and    
 
 Well  Well  What did I make him do  Tom  What did I make him do   
 
 You made him  you  Oh  you made him shut it   
 
 Well  for the land s sake  I never heard the beat of that in all my 
days  Don t tell ME there ain t anything in dreams  any more  Sereny 
Harper shall know of this before I m an hour older  I d like to see her 
get around THIS with her rubbage  bout superstition  Go on  Tom   
 
 Oh  it s all getting just as bright as day  now  Next you said I 
warn t BAD  only mischeevous and harum scarum  and not any more 
responsible than  than  I think it was a colt  or something   
 
 And so it was  Well  goodness gracious  Go on  Tom   
 
 And then you began to cry   
 
 So I did  So I did  Not the first time  neither  And then    
 
 Then Mrs  Harper she began to cry  and said Joe was just the same  
and she wished she hadn t whipped him for taking cream when she d 
throwed it out her own self    
 
 Tom  The sperrit was upon you  You was a prophesying  that s what you 
was doing  Land alive  go on  Tom   
 
 Then Sid he said  he said    
 
 I don t think I said anything   said Sid  
 
 Yes you did  Sid   said Mary  
 
 Shut your heads and let Tom go on  What did he say  Tom   
 
 He said  I THINK he said he hoped I was better off where I was gone 
to  but if I d been better sometimes    
 
 THERE  d you hear that  It was his very words   
 
 And you shut him up sharp   
 
 I lay I did  There must  a  been an angel there  There WAS an angel 
there  somewheres   
 
 And Mrs  Harper told about Joe scaring her with a firecracker  and 
you told about Peter and the Painkiller    
 
 Just as true as I live   
 
 And then there was a whole lot of talk  bout dragging the river for 
us  and  bout having the funeral Sunday  and then you and old Miss 
Harper hugged and cried  and she went   
 
 It happened just so  It happened just so  as sure as I m a sitting in 
these very tracks  Tom  you couldn t told it more like if you d  a  
seen it  And then what  Go on  Tom   
 
 Then I thought you prayed for me  and I could see you and hear every 
word you said  And you went to bed  and I was so sorry that I took and 
wrote on a piece of sycamore bark   We ain t dead  we are only off 
being pirates   and put it on the table by the candle  and then you 
looked so good  laying there asleep  that I thought I went and leaned 
over and kissed you on the lips   
 
 Did you  Tom  DID you  I just forgive you everything for that   And 
she seized the boy in a crushing embrace that made him feel like the 
guiltiest of villains  
 
 It was very kind  even though it was only a  dream   Sid soliloquized 
just audibly  
 
 Shut up  Sid  A body does just the same in a dream as he d do if he 
was awake  Here s a big Milum apple I ve been saving for you  Tom  if 
you was ever found again  now go  long to school  I m thankful to the 
good God and Father of us all I ve got you back  that s long suffering 
and merciful to them that believe on Him and keep His word  though 
goodness knows I m unworthy of it  but if only the worthy ones got His 
blessings and had His hand to help them over the rough places  there s 
few enough would smile here or ever enter into His rest when the long 
night comes  Go  long Sid  Mary  Tom  take yourselves off  you ve 
hendered me long enough   
 
The children left for school  and the old lady to call on Mrs  Harper 
and vanquish her realism with Tom s marvellous dream  Sid had better 
judgment than to utter the thought that was in his mind as he left the 
house  It was this   Pretty thin  as long a dream as that  without any 
mistakes in it   
 
What a hero Tom was become  now  He did not go skipping and prancing  
but moved with a dignified swagger as became a pirate who felt that the 
public eye was on him  And indeed it was  he tried not to seem to see 
the looks or hear the remarks as he passed along  but they were food 
and drink to him  Smaller boys than himself flocked at his heels  as 
proud to be seen with him  and tolerated by him  as if he had been the 
drummer at the head of a procession or the elephant leading a menagerie 
into town  Boys of his own size pretended not to know he had been away 
at all  but they were consuming with envy  nevertheless  They would 
have given anything to have that swarthy suntanned skin of his  and his 
glittering notoriety  and Tom would not have parted with either for a 
circus  
 
At school the children made so much of him and of Joe  and delivered 
such eloquent admiration from their eyes  that the two heroes were not 
long in becoming insufferably  stuck up   They began to tell their 
adventures to hungry listeners  but they only began  it was not a thing 
likely to have an end  with imaginations like theirs to furnish 
material  And finally  when they got out their pipes and went serenely 
puffing around  the very summit of glory was reached  
 
Tom decided that he could be independent of Becky Thatcher now  Glory 
was sufficient  He would live for glory  Now that he was distinguished  
maybe she would be wanting to  make up   Well  let her  she should see 
that he could be as indifferent as some other people  Presently she 
arrived  Tom pretended not to see her  He moved away and joined a group 
of boys and girls and began to talk  Soon he observed that she was 
tripping gayly back and forth with flushed face and dancing eyes  
pretending to be busy chasing schoolmates  and screaming with laughter 
when she made a capture  but he noticed that she always made her 
captures in his vicinity  and that she seemed to cast a conscious eye 
in his direction at such times  too  It gratified all the vicious 
vanity that was in him  and so  instead of winning him  it only  set 
him up  the more and made him the more diligent to avoid betraying that 
he knew she was about  Presently she gave over skylarking  and moved 
irresolutely about  sighing once or twice and glancing furtively and 
wistfully toward Tom  Then she observed that now Tom was talking more 
particularly to Amy Lawrence than to any one else  She felt a sharp 
pang and grew disturbed and uneasy at once  She tried to go away  but 
her feet were treacherous  and carried her to the group instead  She 
said to a girl almost at Tom s elbow  with sham vivacity  
 
 Why  Mary Austin  you bad girl  why didn t you come to Sunday school   
 
 I did come  didn t you see me   
 
 Why  no  Did you  Where did you sit   
 
 I was in Miss Peters  class  where I always go  I saw YOU   
 
 Did you  Why  it s funny I didn t see you  I wanted to tell you about 
the picnic   
 
 Oh  that s jolly  Who s going to give it   
 
 My ma s going to let me have one   
 
 Oh  goody  I hope she ll let ME come   
 
 Well  she will  The picnic s for me  She ll let anybody come that I 
want  and I want you   
 
 That s ever so nice  When is it going to be   
 
 By and by  Maybe about vacation   
 
 Oh  won t it be fun  You going to have all the girls and boys   
 
 Yes  every one that s friends to me  or wants to be   and she glanced 
ever so furtively at Tom  but he talked right along to Amy Lawrence 
about the terrible storm on the island  and how the lightning tore the 
great sycamore tree  all to flinders  while he was  standing within 
three feet of it   
 
 Oh  may I come   said Grace Miller  
 
 Yes   
 
 And me   said Sally Rogers  
 
 Yes   
 
 And me  too   said Susy Harper   And Joe   
 
 Yes   
 
And so on  with clapping of joyful hands till all the group had begged 
for invitations but Tom and Amy  Then Tom turned coolly away  still 
talking  and took Amy with him  Becky s lips trembled and the tears 
came to her eyes  she hid these signs with a forced gayety and went on 
chattering  but the life had gone out of the picnic  now  and out of 
everything else  she got away as soon as she could and hid herself and 
had what her sex call  a good cry   Then she sat moody  with wounded 
pride  till the bell rang  She roused up  now  with a vindictive cast 
in her eye  and gave her plaited tails a shake and said she knew what 
SHE D do  
 
At recess Tom continued his flirtation with Amy with jubilant 
self satisfaction  And he kept drifting about to find Becky and lacerate 
her with the performance  At last he spied her  but there was a sudden 
falling of his mercury  She was sitting cosily on a little bench behind 
the schoolhouse looking at a picture book with Alfred Temple  and so 
absorbed were they  and their heads so close together over the book  
that they did not seem to be conscious of anything in the world besides  
Jealousy ran red hot through Tom s veins  He began to hate himself for 
throwing away the chance Becky had offered for a reconciliation  He 
called himself a fool  and all the hard names he could think of  He 
wanted to cry with vexation  Amy chatted happily along  as they walked  
for her heart was singing  but Tom s tongue had lost its function  He 
did not hear what Amy was saying  and whenever she paused expectantly he 
could only stammer an awkward assent  which was as often misplaced as 
otherwise  He kept drifting to the rear of the schoolhouse  again and 
again  to sear his eyeballs with the hateful spectacle there  He could 
not help it  And it maddened him to see  as he thought he saw  that 
Becky Thatcher never once suspected that he was even in the land of the 
living  But she did see  nevertheless  and she knew she was winning her 
fight  too  and was glad to see him suffer as she had suffered  
 
Amy s happy prattle became intolerable  Tom hinted at things he had to 
attend to  things that must be done  and time was fleeting  But in 
vain  the girl chirped on  Tom thought   Oh  hang her  ain t I ever 
going to get rid of her   At last he must be attending to those 
things  and she said artlessly that she would be  around  when school 
let out  And he hastened away  hating her for it  
 
 Any other boy   Tom thought  grating his teeth   Any boy in the whole 
town but that Saint Louis smarty that thinks he dresses so fine and is 
aristocracy  Oh  all right  I licked you the first day you ever saw 
this town  mister  and I ll lick you again  You just wait till I catch 
you out  I ll just take and    
 
And he went through the motions of thrashing an imaginary boy 
  pummelling the air  and kicking and gouging   Oh  you do  do you  You 
holler  nough  do you  Now  then  let that learn you   And so the 
imaginary flogging was finished to his satisfaction  
 
Tom fled home at noon  His conscience could not endure any more of 
Amy s grateful happiness  and his jealousy could bear no more of the 
other distress  Becky resumed her picture inspections with Alfred  but 
as the minutes dragged along and no Tom came to suffer  her triumph 
began to cloud and she lost interest  gravity and absent mindedness 
followed  and then melancholy  two or three times she pricked up her 
ear at a footstep  but it was a false hope  no Tom came  At last she 
grew entirely miserable and wished she hadn t carried it so far  When 
poor Alfred  seeing that he was losing her  he did not know how  kept 
exclaiming   Oh  here s a jolly one  look at this   she lost patience 
at last  and said   Oh  don t bother me  I don t care for them   and 
burst into tears  and got up and walked away  
 
Alfred dropped alongside and was going to try to comfort her  but she 
said  
 
 Go away and leave me alone  can t you  I hate you   
 
So the boy halted  wondering what he could have done  for she had said 
she would look at pictures all through the nooning  and she walked on  
crying  Then Alfred went musing into the deserted schoolhouse  He was 
humiliated and angry  He easily guessed his way to the truth  the girl 
had simply made a convenience of him to vent her spite upon Tom Sawyer  
He was far from hating Tom the less when this thought occurred to him  
He wished there was some way to get that boy into trouble without much 
risk to himself  Tom s spelling book fell under his eye  Here was his 
opportunity  He gratefully opened to the lesson for the afternoon and 
poured ink upon the page  
 
Becky  glancing in at a window behind him at the moment  saw the act  
and moved on  without discovering herself  She started homeward  now  
intending to find Tom and tell him  Tom would be thankful and their 
troubles would be healed  Before she was half way home  however  she 
had changed her mind  The thought of Tom s treatment of her when she 
was talking about her picnic came scorching back and filled her with 
shame  She resolved to let him get whipped on the damaged 
spelling book s account  and to hate him forever  into the bargain  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XIX 
 
TOM arrived at home in a dreary mood  and the first thing his aunt 
said to him showed him that he had brought his sorrows to an 
unpromising market  
 
 Tom  I ve a notion to skin you alive   
 
 Auntie  what have I done   
 
 Well  you ve done enough  Here I go over to Sereny Harper  like an 
old softy  expecting I m going to make her believe all that rubbage 
about that dream  when lo and behold you she d found out from Joe that 
you was over here and heard all the talk we had that night  Tom  I 
don t know what is to become of a boy that will act like that  It makes 
me feel so bad to think you could let me go to Sereny Harper and make 
such a fool of myself and never say a word   
 
This was a new aspect of the thing  His smartness of the morning had 
seemed to Tom a good joke before  and very ingenious  It merely looked 
mean and shabby now  He hung his head and could not think of anything 
to say for a moment  Then he said  
 
 Auntie  I wish I hadn t done it  but I didn t think   
 
 Oh  child  you never think  You never think of anything but your own 
selfishness  You could think to come all the way over here from 
Jackson s Island in the night to laugh at our troubles  and you could 
think to fool me with a lie about a dream  but you couldn t ever think 
to pity us and save us from sorrow   
 
 Auntie  I know now it was mean  but I didn t mean to be mean  I 
didn t  honest  And besides  I didn t come over here to laugh at you 
that night   
 
 What did you come for  then   
 
 It was to tell you not to be uneasy about us  because we hadn t got 
drownded   
 
 Tom  Tom  I would be the thankfullest soul in this world if I could 
believe you ever had as good a thought as that  but you know you never 
did  and I know it  Tom   
 
 Indeed and  deed I did  auntie  I wish I may never stir if I didn t   
 
 Oh  Tom  don t lie  don t do it  It only makes things a hundred times 
worse   
 
 It ain t a lie  auntie  it s the truth  I wanted to keep you from 
grieving  that was all that made me come   
 
 I d give the whole world to believe that  it would cover up a power 
of sins  Tom  I d  most be glad you d run off and acted so bad  But it 
ain t reasonable  because  why didn t you tell me  child   
 
 Why  you see  when you got to talking about the funeral  I just got 
all full of the idea of our coming and hiding in the church  and I 
couldn t somehow bear to spoil it  So I just put the bark back in my 
pocket and kept mum   
 
 What bark   
 
 The bark I had wrote on to tell you we d gone pirating  I wish  now  
you d waked up when I kissed you  I do  honest   
 
The hard lines in his aunt s face relaxed and a sudden tenderness 
dawned in her eyes  
 
 DID you kiss me  Tom   
 
 Why  yes  I did   
 
 Are you sure you did  Tom   
 
 Why  yes  I did  auntie  certain sure   
 
 What did you kiss me for  Tom   
 
 Because I loved you so  and you laid there moaning and I was so sorry   
 
The words sounded like truth  The old lady could not hide a tremor in 
her voice when she said  
 
 Kiss me again  Tom   and be off with you to school  now  and don t 
bother me any more   
 
The moment he was gone  she ran to a closet and got out the ruin of a 
jacket which Tom had gone pirating in  Then she stopped  with it in her 
hand  and said to herself  
 
 No  I don t dare  Poor boy  I reckon he s lied about it  but it s a 
blessed  blessed lie  there s such a comfort come from it  I hope the 
Lord  I KNOW the Lord will forgive him  because it was such 
goodheartedness in him to tell it  But I don t want to find out it s a 
lie  I won t look   
 
She put the jacket away  and stood by musing a minute  Twice she put 
out her hand to take the garment again  and twice she refrained  Once 
more she ventured  and this time she fortified herself with the 
thought   It s a good lie  it s a good lie  I won t let it grieve me   
So she sought the jacket pocket  A moment later she was reading Tom s 
piece of bark through flowing tears and saying   I could forgive the 
boy  now  if he d committed a million sins   
 
 
 
CHAPTER XX 
 
THERE was something about Aunt Polly s manner  when she kissed Tom  
that swept away his low spirits and made him lighthearted and happy 
again  He started to school and had the luck of coming upon Becky 
Thatcher at the head of Meadow Lane  His mood always determined his 
manner  Without a moment s hesitation he ran to her and said  
 
 I acted mighty mean to day  Becky  and I m so sorry  I won t ever  
ever do that way again  as long as ever I live  please make up  won t 
you   
 
The girl stopped and looked him scornfully in the face  
 
 I ll thank you to keep yourself TO yourself  Mr  Thomas Sawyer  I ll 
never speak to you again   
 
She tossed her head and passed on  Tom was so stunned that he had not 
even presence of mind enough to say  Who cares  Miss Smarty   until the 
right time to say it had gone by  So he said nothing  But he was in a 
fine rage  nevertheless  He moped into the schoolyard wishing she were 
a boy  and imagining how he would trounce her if she were  He presently 
encountered her and delivered a stinging remark as he passed  She 
hurled one in return  and the angry breach was complete  It seemed to 
Becky  in her hot resentment  that she could hardly wait for school to 
 take in   she was so impatient to see Tom flogged for the injured 
spelling book  If she had had any lingering notion of exposing Alfred 
Temple  Tom s offensive fling had driven it entirely away  
 
Poor girl  she did not know how fast she was nearing trouble herself  
The master  Mr  Dobbins  had reached middle age with an unsatisfied 
ambition  The darling of his desires was  to be a doctor  but poverty 
had decreed that he should be nothing higher than a village 
schoolmaster  Every day he took a mysterious book out of his desk and 
absorbed himself in it at times when no classes were reciting  He kept 
that book under lock and key  There was not an urchin in school but was 
perishing to have a glimpse of it  but the chance never came  Every boy 
and girl had a theory about the nature of that book  but no two 
theories were alike  and there was no way of getting at the facts in 
the case  Now  as Becky was passing by the desk  which stood near the 
door  she noticed that the key was in the lock  It was a precious 
moment  She glanced around  found herself alone  and the next instant 
she had the book in her hands  The title page  Professor Somebody s 
ANATOMY  carried no information to her mind  so she began to turn the 
leaves  She came at once upon a handsomely engraved and colored 
frontispiece  a human figure  stark naked  At that moment a shadow fell 
on the page and Tom Sawyer stepped in at the door and caught a glimpse 
of the picture  Becky snatched at the book to close it  and had the 
hard luck to tear the pictured page half down the middle  She thrust 
the volume into the desk  turned the key  and burst out crying with 
shame and vexation  
 
 Tom Sawyer  you are just as mean as you can be  to sneak up on a 
person and look at what they re looking at   
 
 How could I know you was looking at anything   
 
 You ought to be ashamed of yourself  Tom Sawyer  you know you re 
going to tell on me  and oh  what shall I do  what shall I do  I ll be 
whipped  and I never was whipped in school   
 
Then she stamped her little foot and said  
 
 BE so mean if you want to  I know something that s going to happen  
You just wait and you ll see  Hateful  hateful  hateful    and she 
flung out of the house with a new explosion of crying  
 
Tom stood still  rather flustered by this onslaught  Presently he said 
to himself  
 
 What a curious kind of a fool a girl is  Never been licked in school  
Shucks  What s a licking  That s just like a girl  they re so 
thin skinned and chicken hearted  Well  of course I ain t going to tell 
old Dobbins on this little fool  because there s other ways of getting 
even on her  that ain t so mean  but what of it  Old Dobbins will ask 
who it was tore his book  Nobody ll answer  Then he ll do just the way 
he always does  ask first one and then t other  and when he comes to the 
right girl he ll know it  without any telling  Girls  faces always tell 
on them  They ain t got any backbone  She ll get licked  Well  it s a 
kind of a tight place for Becky Thatcher  because there ain t any way 
out of it   Tom conned the thing a moment longer  and then added   All 
right  though  she d like to see me in just such a fix  let her sweat it 
out   
 
Tom joined the mob of skylarking scholars outside  In a few moments 
the master arrived and school  took in   Tom did not feel a strong 
interest in his studies  Every time he stole a glance at the girls  
side of the room Becky s face troubled him  Considering all things  he 
did not want to pity her  and yet it was all he could do to help it  He 
could get up no exultation that was really worthy the name  Presently 
the spelling book discovery was made  and Tom s mind was entirely full 
of his own matters for a while after that  Becky roused up from her 
lethargy of distress and showed good interest in the proceedings  She 
did not expect that Tom could get out of his trouble by denying that he 
spilt the ink on the book himself  and she was right  The denial only 
seemed to make the thing worse for Tom  Becky supposed she would be 
glad of that  and she tried to believe she was glad of it  but she 
found she was not certain  When the worst came to the worst  she had an 
impulse to get up and tell on Alfred Temple  but she made an effort and 
forced herself to keep still  because  said she to herself   he ll tell 
about me tearing the picture sure  I wouldn t say a word  not to save 
his life   
 
Tom took his whipping and went back to his seat not at all 
broken hearted  for he thought it was possible that he had unknowingly 
upset the ink on the spelling book himself  in some skylarking bout  he 
had denied it for form s sake and because it was custom  and had stuck 
to the denial from principle  
 
A whole hour drifted by  the master sat nodding in his throne  the air 
was drowsy with the hum of study  By and by  Mr  Dobbins straightened 
himself up  yawned  then unlocked his desk  and reached for his book  
but seemed undecided whether to take it out or leave it  Most of the 
pupils glanced up languidly  but there were two among them that watched 
his movements with intent eyes  Mr  Dobbins fingered his book absently 
for a while  then took it out and settled himself in his chair to read  
Tom shot a glance at Becky  He had seen a hunted and helpless rabbit 
look as she did  with a gun levelled at its head  Instantly he forgot 
his quarrel with her  Quick  something must be done  done in a flash  
too  But the very imminence of the emergency paralyzed his invention  
Good   he had an inspiration  He would run and snatch the book  spring 
through the door and fly  But his resolution shook for one little 
instant  and the chance was lost  the master opened the volume  If Tom 
only had the wasted opportunity back again  Too late  There was no help 
for Becky now  he said  The next moment the master faced the school  
Every eye sank under his gaze  There was that in it which smote even 
the innocent with fear  There was silence while one might count ten 
  the master was gathering his wrath  Then he spoke   Who tore this book   
 
There was not a sound  One could have heard a pin drop  The stillness 
continued  the master searched face after face for signs of guilt  
 
 Benjamin Rogers  did you tear this book   
 
A denial  Another pause  
 
 Joseph Harper  did you   
 
Another denial  Tom s uneasiness grew more and more intense under the 
slow torture of these proceedings  The master scanned the ranks of 
boys  considered a while  then turned to the girls  
 
 Amy Lawrence   
 
A shake of the head  
 
 Gracie Miller   
 
The same sign  
 
 Susan Harper  did you do this   
 
Another negative  The next girl was Becky Thatcher  Tom was trembling 
from head to foot with excitement and a sense of the hopelessness of 
the situation  
 
 Rebecca Thatcher   Tom glanced at her face  it was white with terror  
   did you tear  no  look me in the face   her hands rose in appeal  
   did you tear this book   
 
A thought shot like lightning through Tom s brain  He sprang to his 
feet and shouted   I done it   
 
The school stared in perplexity at this incredible folly  Tom stood a 
moment  to gather his dismembered faculties  and when he stepped 
forward to go to his punishment the surprise  the gratitude  the 
adoration that shone upon him out of poor Becky s eyes seemed pay 
enough for a hundred floggings  Inspired by the splendor of his own 
act  he took without an outcry the most merciless flaying that even Mr  
Dobbins had ever administered  and also received with indifference the 
added cruelty of a command to remain two hours after school should be 
dismissed  for he knew who would wait for him outside till his 
captivity was done  and not count the tedious time as loss  either  
 
Tom went to bed that night planning vengeance against Alfred Temple  
for with shame and repentance Becky had told him all  not forgetting 
her own treachery  but even the longing for vengeance had to give way  
soon  to pleasanter musings  and he fell asleep at last with Becky s 
latest words lingering dreamily in his ear   
 
 Tom  how COULD you be so noble   
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXI 
 
VACATION was approaching  The schoolmaster  always severe  grew 
severer and more exacting than ever  for he wanted the school to make a 
good showing on  Examination  day  His rod and his ferule were seldom 
idle now  at least among the smaller pupils  Only the biggest boys  and 
young ladies of eighteen and twenty  escaped lashing  Mr  Dobbins  
lashings were very vigorous ones  too  for although he carried  under 
his wig  a perfectly bald and shiny head  he had only reached middle 
age  and there was no sign of feebleness in his muscle  As the great 
day approached  all the tyranny that was in him came to the surface  he 
seemed to take a vindictive pleasure in punishing the least 
shortcomings  The consequence was  that the smaller boys spent their 
days in terror and suffering and their nights in plotting revenge  They 
threw away no opportunity to do the master a mischief  But he kept 
ahead all the time  The retribution that followed every vengeful 
success was so sweeping and majestic that the boys always retired from 
the field badly worsted  At last they conspired together and hit upon a 
plan that promised a dazzling victory  They swore in the sign painter s 
boy  told him the scheme  and asked his help  He had his own reasons 
for being delighted  for the master boarded in his father s family and 
had given the boy ample cause to hate him  The master s wife would go 
on a visit to the country in a few days  and there would be nothing to 
interfere with the plan  the master always prepared himself for great 
occasions by getting pretty well fuddled  and the sign painter s boy 
said that when the dominie had reached the proper condition on 
Examination Evening he would  manage the thing  while he napped in his 
chair  then he would have him awakened at the right time and hurried 
away to school  
 
In the fulness of time the interesting occasion arrived  At eight in 
the evening the schoolhouse was brilliantly lighted  and adorned with 
wreaths and festoons of foliage and flowers  The master sat throned in 
his great chair upon a raised platform  with his blackboard behind him  
He was looking tolerably mellow  Three rows of benches on each side and 
six rows in front of him were occupied by the dignitaries of the town 
and by the parents of the pupils  To his left  back of the rows of 
citizens  was a spacious temporary platform upon which were seated the 
scholars who were to take part in the exercises of the evening  rows of 
small boys  washed and dressed to an intolerable state of discomfort  
rows of gawky big boys  snowbanks of girls and young ladies clad in 
lawn and muslin and conspicuously conscious of their bare arms  their 
grandmothers  ancient trinkets  their bits of pink and blue ribbon and 
the flowers in their hair  All the rest of the house was filled with 
non participating scholars  
 
The exercises began  A very little boy stood up and sheepishly 
recited   You d scarce expect one of my age to speak in public on the 
stage   etc   accompanying himself with the painfully exact and 
spasmodic gestures which a machine might have used  supposing the 
machine to be a trifle out of order  But he got through safely  though 
cruelly scared  and got a fine round of applause when he made his 
manufactured bow and retired  
 
A little shamefaced girl lisped   Mary had a little lamb   etc   
performed a compassion inspiring curtsy  got her meed of applause  and 
sat down flushed and happy  
 
Tom Sawyer stepped forward with conceited confidence and soared into 
the unquenchable and indestructible  Give me liberty or give me death  
speech  with fine fury and frantic gesticulation  and broke down in the 
middle of it  A ghastly stage fright seized him  his legs quaked under 
him and he was like to choke  True  he had the manifest sympathy of the 
house but he had the house s silence  too  which was even worse than 
its sympathy  The master frowned  and this completed the disaster  Tom 
struggled awhile and then retired  utterly defeated  There was a weak 
attempt at applause  but it died early  
 
 The Boy Stood on the Burning Deck  followed  also  The Assyrian Came 
Down   and other declamatory gems  Then there were reading exercises  
and a spelling fight  The meagre Latin class recited with honor  The 
prime feature of the evening was in order  now  original  compositions  
by the young ladies  Each in her turn stepped forward to the edge of 
the platform  cleared her throat  held up her manuscript  tied with 
dainty ribbon   and proceeded to read  with labored attention to 
 expression  and punctuation  The themes were the same that had been 
illuminated upon similar occasions by their mothers before them  their 
grandmothers  and doubtless all their ancestors in the female line 
clear back to the Crusades   Friendship  was one   Memories of Other 
Days    Religion in History    Dream Land    The Advantages of 
Culture    Forms of Political Government Compared and Contrasted   
 Melancholy    Filial Love    Heart Longings   etc   etc  
 
A prevalent feature in these compositions was a nursed and petted 
melancholy  another was a wasteful and opulent gush of  fine language   
another was a tendency to lug in by the ears particularly prized words 
and phrases until they were worn entirely out  and a peculiarity that 
conspicuously marked and marred them was the inveterate and intolerable 
sermon that wagged its crippled tail at the end of each and every one 
of them  No matter what the subject might be  a brain racking effort 
was made to squirm it into some aspect or other that the moral and 
religious mind could contemplate with edification  The glaring 
insincerity of these sermons was not sufficient to compass the 
banishment of the fashion from the schools  and it is not sufficient 
to day  it never will be sufficient while the world stands  perhaps  
There is no school in all our land where the young ladies do not feel 
obliged to close their compositions with a sermon  and you will find 
that the sermon of the most frivolous and the least religious girl in 
the school is always the longest and the most relentlessly pious  But 
enough of this  Homely truth is unpalatable  
 
Let us return to the  Examination   The first composition that was 
read was one entitled  Is this  then  Life   Perhaps the reader can 
endure an extract from it  
 
   In the common walks of life  with what delightful 
   emotions does the youthful mind look forward to some 
   anticipated scene of festivity  Imagination is busy 
   sketching rose tinted pictures of joy  In fancy  the 
   voluptuous votary of fashion sees herself amid the 
   festive throng   the observed of all observers   Her 
   graceful form  arrayed in snowy robes  is whirling 
   through the mazes of the joyous dance  her eye is 
   brightest  her step is lightest in the gay assembly  
 
   In such delicious fancies time quickly glides by  
   and the welcome hour arrives for her entrance into 
   the Elysian world  of which she has had such bright 
   dreams  How fairy like does everything appear to 
   her enchanted vision  Each new scene is more charming 
   than the last  But after a while she finds that 
   beneath this goodly exterior  all is vanity  the 
   flattery which once charmed her soul  now grates 
   harshly upon her ear  the ball room has lost its 
   charms  and with wasted health and imbittered heart  
   she turns away with the conviction that earthly 
   pleasures cannot satisfy the longings of the soul   
 
And so forth and so on  There was a buzz of gratification from time to 
time during the reading  accompanied by whispered ejaculations of  How 
sweet    How eloquent    So true   etc   and after the thing had closed 
with a peculiarly afflicting sermon the applause was enthusiastic  
 
Then arose a slim  melancholy girl  whose face had the  interesting  
paleness that comes of pills and indigestion  and read a  poem   Two 
stanzas of it will do  
 
    A MISSOURI MAIDEN S FAREWELL TO ALABAMA 
 
    Alabama  good bye  I love thee well  
      But yet for a while do I leave thee now  
    Sad  yes  sad thoughts of thee my heart doth swell  
      And burning recollections throng my brow  
    For I have wandered through thy flowery woods  
      Have roamed and read near Tallapoosa s stream  
    Have listened to Tallassee s warring floods  
      And wooed on Coosa s side Aurora s beam  
 
    Yet shame I not to bear an o er full heart  
      Nor blush to turn behind my tearful eyes  
     Tis from no stranger land I now must part  
       Tis to no strangers left I yield these sighs  
    Welcome and home were mine within this State  
      Whose vales I leave  whose spires fade fast from me 
    And cold must be mine eyes  and heart  and tete  
      When  dear Alabama  they turn cold on thee   
 
There were very few there who knew what  tete  meant  but the poem was 
very satisfactory  nevertheless  
 
Next appeared a dark complexioned  black eyed  black haired young 
lady  who paused an impressive moment  assumed a tragic expression  and 
began to read in a measured  solemn tone  
 
   A VISION 
 
    Dark and tempestuous was night  Around the 
   throne on high not a single star quivered  but 
   the deep intonations of the heavy thunder 
   constantly vibrated upon the ear  whilst the 
   terrific lightning revelled in angry mood 
   through the cloudy chambers of heaven  seeming 
   to scorn the power exerted over its terror by 
   the illustrious Franklin  Even the boisterous 
   winds unanimously came forth from their mystic 
   homes  and blustered about as if to enhance by 
   their aid the wildness of the scene  
 
    At such a time  so dark  so dreary  for human 
   sympathy my very spirit sighed  but instead thereof  
 
     My dearest friend  my counsellor  my comforter 
   and guide  My joy in grief  my second bliss 
   in joy   came to my side  She moved like one of 
   those bright beings pictured in the sunny walks 
   of fancy s Eden by the romantic and young  a 
   queen of beauty unadorned save by her own 
   transcendent loveliness  So soft was her step  it 
   failed to make even a sound  and but for the 
   magical thrill imparted by her genial touch  as 
   other unobtrusive beauties  she would have glided 
   away un perceived  unsought  A strange sadness 
   rested upon her features  like icy tears upon 
   the robe of December  as she pointed to the 
   contending elements without  and bade me contemplate 
   the two beings presented   
 
This nightmare occupied some ten pages of manuscript and wound up with 
a sermon so destructive of all hope to non Presbyterians that it took 
the first prize  This composition was considered to be the very finest 
effort of the evening  The mayor of the village  in delivering the 
prize to the author of it  made a warm speech in which he said that it 
was by far the most  eloquent  thing he had ever listened to  and that 
Daniel Webster himself might well be proud of it  
 
It may be remarked  in passing  that the number of compositions in 
which the word  beauteous  was over fondled  and human experience 
referred to as  life s page   was up to the usual average  
 
Now the master  mellow almost to the verge of geniality  put his chair 
aside  turned his back to the audience  and began to draw a map of 
America on the blackboard  to exercise the geography class upon  But he 
made a sad business of it with his unsteady hand  and a smothered 
titter rippled over the house  He knew what the matter was  and set 
himself to right it  He sponged out lines and remade them  but he only 
distorted them more than ever  and the tittering was more pronounced  
He threw his entire attention upon his work  now  as if determined not 
to be put down by the mirth  He felt that all eyes were fastened upon 
him  he imagined he was succeeding  and yet the tittering continued  it 
even manifestly increased  And well it might  There was a garret above  
pierced with a scuttle over his head  and down through this scuttle 
came a cat  suspended around the haunches by a string  she had a rag 
tied about her head and jaws to keep her from mewing  as she slowly 
descended she curved upward and clawed at the string  she swung 
downward and clawed at the intangible air  The tittering rose higher 
and higher  the cat was within six inches of the absorbed teacher s 
head  down  down  a little lower  and she grabbed his wig with her 
desperate claws  clung to it  and was snatched up into the garret in an 
instant with her trophy still in her possession  And how the light did 
blaze abroad from the master s bald pate  for the sign painter s boy 
had GILDED it  
 
That broke up the meeting  The boys were avenged  Vacation had come  
 
   NOTE   The pretended  compositions  quoted in 
   this chapter are taken without alteration from a 
   volume entitled  Prose and Poetry  by a Western 
   Lady   but they are exactly and precisely after 
   the schoolgirl pattern  and hence are much 
   happier than any mere imitations could be  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXII 
 
TOM joined the new order of Cadets of Temperance  being attracted by 
the showy character of their  regalia   He promised to abstain from 
smoking  chewing  and profanity as long as he remained a member  Now he 
found out a new thing  namely  that to promise not to do a thing is the 
surest way in the world to make a body want to go and do that very 
thing  Tom soon found himself tormented with a desire to drink and 
swear  the desire grew to be so intense that nothing but the hope of a 
chance to display himself in his red sash kept him from withdrawing 
from the order  Fourth of July was coming  but he soon gave that up 
  gave it up before he had worn his shackles over forty eight hours  and 
fixed his hopes upon old Judge Frazer  justice of the peace  who was 
apparently on his deathbed and would have a big public funeral  since 
he was so high an official  During three days Tom was deeply concerned 
about the Judge s condition and hungry for news of it  Sometimes his 
hopes ran high  so high that he would venture to get out his regalia 
and practise before the looking glass  But the Judge had a most 
discouraging way of fluctuating  At last he was pronounced upon the 
mend  and then convalescent  Tom was disgusted  and felt a sense of 
injury  too  He handed in his resignation at once  and that night the 
Judge suffered a relapse and died  Tom resolved that he would never 
trust a man like that again  
 
The funeral was a fine thing  The Cadets paraded in a style calculated 
to kill the late member with envy  Tom was a free boy again  however 
  there was something in that  He could drink and swear  now  but found 
to his surprise that he did not want to  The simple fact that he could  
took the desire away  and the charm of it  
 
Tom presently wondered to find that his coveted vacation was beginning 
to hang a little heavily on his hands  
 
He attempted a diary  but nothing happened during three days  and so 
he abandoned it  
 
The first of all the negro minstrel shows came to town  and made a 
sensation  Tom and Joe Harper got up a band of performers and were 
happy for two days  
 
Even the Glorious Fourth was in some sense a failure  for it rained 
hard  there was no procession in consequence  and the greatest man in 
the world  as Tom supposed   Mr  Benton  an actual United States 
Senator  proved an overwhelming disappointment  for he was not 
twenty five feet high  nor even anywhere in the neighborhood of it  
 
A circus came  The boys played circus for three days afterward in 
tents made of rag carpeting  admission  three pins for boys  two for 
girls  and then circusing was abandoned  
 
A phrenologist and a mesmerizer came  and went again and left the 
village duller and drearier than ever  
 
There were some boys and girls  parties  but they were so few and so 
delightful that they only made the aching voids between ache the harder  
 
Becky Thatcher was gone to her Constantinople home to stay with her 
parents during vacation  so there was no bright side to life anywhere  
 
The dreadful secret of the murder was a chronic misery  It was a very 
cancer for permanency and pain  
 
Then came the measles  
 
During two long weeks Tom lay a prisoner  dead to the world and its 
happenings  He was very ill  he was interested in nothing  When he got 
upon his feet at last and moved feebly down town  a melancholy change 
had come over everything and every creature  There had been a 
 revival   and everybody had  got religion   not only the adults  but 
even the boys and girls  Tom went about  hoping against hope for the 
sight of one blessed sinful face  but disappointment crossed him 
everywhere  He found Joe Harper studying a Testament  and turned sadly 
away from the depressing spectacle  He sought Ben Rogers  and found him 
visiting the poor with a basket of tracts  He hunted up Jim Hollis  who 
called his attention to the precious blessing of his late measles as a 
warning  Every boy he encountered added another ton to his depression  
and when  in desperation  he flew for refuge at last to the bosom of 
Huckleberry Finn and was received with a Scriptural quotation  his 
heart broke and he crept home and to bed realizing that he alone of all 
the town was lost  forever and forever  
 
And that night there came on a terrific storm  with driving rain  
awful claps of thunder and blinding sheets of lightning  He covered his 
head with the bedclothes and waited in a horror of suspense for his 
doom  for he had not the shadow of a doubt that all this hubbub was 
about him  He believed he had taxed the forbearance of the powers above 
to the extremity of endurance and that this was the result  It might 
have seemed to him a waste of pomp and ammunition to kill a bug with a 
battery of artillery  but there seemed nothing incongruous about the 
getting up such an expensive thunderstorm as this to knock the turf 
from under an insect like himself  
 
By and by the tempest spent itself and died without accomplishing its 
object  The boy s first impulse was to be grateful  and reform  His 
second was to wait  for there might not be any more storms  
 
The next day the doctors were back  Tom had relapsed  The three weeks 
he spent on his back this time seemed an entire age  When he got abroad 
at last he was hardly grateful that he had been spared  remembering how 
lonely was his estate  how companionless and forlorn he was  He drifted 
listlessly down the street and found Jim Hollis acting as judge in a 
juvenile court that was trying a cat for murder  in the presence of her 
victim  a bird  He found Joe Harper and Huck Finn up an alley eating a 
stolen melon  Poor lads  they  like Tom  had suffered a relapse  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXIII 
 
AT last the sleepy atmosphere was stirred  and vigorously  the murder 
trial came on in the court  It became the absorbing topic of village 
talk immediately  Tom could not get away from it  Every reference to 
the murder sent a shudder to his heart  for his troubled conscience and 
fears almost persuaded him that these remarks were put forth in his 
hearing as  feelers   he did not see how he could be suspected of 
knowing anything about the murder  but still he could not be 
comfortable in the midst of this gossip  It kept him in a cold shiver 
all the time  He took Huck to a lonely place to have a talk with him  
It would be some relief to unseal his tongue for a little while  to 
divide his burden of distress with another sufferer  Moreover  he 
wanted to assure himself that Huck had remained discreet  
 
 Huck  have you ever told anybody about  that   
 
  Bout what   
 
 You know what   
 
 Oh   course I haven t   
 
 Never a word   
 
 Never a solitary word  so help me  What makes you ask   
 
 Well  I was afeard   
 
 Why  Tom Sawyer  we wouldn t be alive two days if that got found out  
YOU know that   
 
Tom felt more comfortable  After a pause  
 
 Huck  they couldn t anybody get you to tell  could they   
 
 Get me to tell  Why  if I wanted that half breed devil to drownd me 
they could get me to tell  They ain t no different way   
 
 Well  that s all right  then  I reckon we re safe as long as we keep 
mum  But let s swear again  anyway  It s more surer   
 
 I m agreed   
 
So they swore again with dread solemnities  
 
 What is the talk around  Huck  I ve heard a power of it   
 
 Talk  Well  it s just Muff Potter  Muff Potter  Muff Potter all the 
time  It keeps me in a sweat  constant  so s I want to hide som ers   
 
 That s just the same way they go on round me  I reckon he s a goner  
Don t you feel sorry for him  sometimes   
 
 Most always  most always  He ain t no account  but then he hain t 
ever done anything to hurt anybody  Just fishes a little  to get money 
to get drunk on  and loafs around considerable  but lord  we all do 
that  leastways most of us  preachers and such like  But he s kind of 
good  he give me half a fish  once  when there warn t enough for two  
and lots of times he s kind of stood by me when I was out of luck   
 
 Well  he s mended kites for me  Huck  and knitted hooks on to my 
line  I wish we could get him out of there   
 
 My  we couldn t get him out  Tom  And besides   twouldn t do any 
good  they d ketch him again   
 
 Yes  so they would  But I hate to hear  em abuse him so like the 
dickens when he never done  that   
 
 I do too  Tom  Lord  I hear  em say he s the bloodiest looking 
villain in this country  and they wonder he wasn t ever hung before   
 
 Yes  they talk like that  all the time  I ve heard  em say that if he 
was to get free they d lynch him   
 
 And they d do it  too   
 
The boys had a long talk  but it brought them little comfort  As the 
twilight drew on  they found themselves hanging about the neighborhood 
of the little isolated jail  perhaps with an undefined hope that 
something would happen that might clear away their difficulties  But 
nothing happened  there seemed to be no angels or fairies interested in 
this luckless captive  
 
The boys did as they had often done before  went to the cell grating 
and gave Potter some tobacco and matches  He was on the ground floor 
and there were no guards  
 
His gratitude for their gifts had always smote their consciences 
before  it cut deeper than ever  this time  They felt cowardly and 
treacherous to the last degree when Potter said  
 
 You ve been mighty good to me  boys  better n anybody else in this 
town  And I don t forget it  I don t  Often I says to myself  says I  
 I used to mend all the boys  kites and things  and show  em where the 
good fishin  places was  and befriend  em what I could  and now they ve 
all forgot old Muff when he s in trouble  but Tom don t  and Huck 
don t  THEY don t forget him  says I   and I don t forget them   Well  
boys  I done an awful thing  drunk and crazy at the time  that s the 
only way I account for it  and now I got to swing for it  and it s 
right  Right  and BEST  too  I reckon  hope so  anyway  Well  we won t 
talk about that  I don t want to make YOU feel bad  you ve befriended 
me  But what I want to say  is  don t YOU ever get drunk  then you won t 
ever get here  Stand a litter furder west  so  that s it  it s a prime 
comfort to see faces that s friendly when a body s in such a muck of 
trouble  and there don t none come here but yourn  Good friendly 
faces  good friendly faces  Git up on one another s backs and let me 
touch  em  That s it  Shake hands  yourn ll come through the bars  but 
mine s too big  Little hands  and weak  but they ve helped Muff Potter 
a power  and they d help him more if they could   
 
Tom went home miserable  and his dreams that night were full of 
horrors  The next day and the day after  he hung about the court room  
drawn by an almost irresistible impulse to go in  but forcing himself 
to stay out  Huck was having the same experience  They studiously 
avoided each other  Each wandered away  from time to time  but the same 
dismal fascination always brought them back presently  Tom kept his 
ears open when idlers sauntered out of the court room  but invariably 
heard distressing news  the toils were closing more and more 
relentlessly around poor Potter  At the end of the second day the 
village talk was to the effect that Injun Joe s evidence stood firm and 
unshaken  and that there was not the slightest question as to what the 
jury s verdict would be  
 
Tom was out late  that night  and came to bed through the window  He 
was in a tremendous state of excitement  It was hours before he got to 
sleep  All the village flocked to the court house the next morning  for 
this was to be the great day  Both sexes were about equally represented 
in the packed audience  After a long wait the jury filed in and took 
their places  shortly afterward  Potter  pale and haggard  timid and 
hopeless  was brought in  with chains upon him  and seated where all 
the curious eyes could stare at him  no less conspicuous was Injun Joe  
stolid as ever  There was another pause  and then the judge arrived and 
the sheriff proclaimed the opening of the court  The usual whisperings 
among the lawyers and gathering together of papers followed  These 
details and accompanying delays worked up an atmosphere of preparation 
that was as impressive as it was fascinating  
 
Now a witness was called who testified that he found Muff Potter 
washing in the brook  at an early hour of the morning that the murder 
was discovered  and that he immediately sneaked away  After some 
further questioning  counsel for the prosecution said  
 
 Take the witness   
 
The prisoner raised his eyes for a moment  but dropped them again when 
his own counsel said  
 
 I have no questions to ask him   
 
The next witness proved the finding of the knife near the corpse  
Counsel for the prosecution said  
 
 Take the witness   
 
 I have no questions to ask him   Potter s lawyer replied  
 
A third witness swore he had often seen the knife in Potter s 
possession  
 
 Take the witness   
 
Counsel for Potter declined to question him  The faces of the audience 
began to betray annoyance  Did this attorney mean to throw away his 
client s life without an effort  
 
Several witnesses deposed concerning Potter s guilty behavior when 
brought to the scene of the murder  They were allowed to leave the 
stand without being cross questioned  
 
Every detail of the damaging circumstances that occurred in the 
graveyard upon that morning which all present remembered so well was 
brought out by credible witnesses  but none of them were cross examined 
by Potter s lawyer  The perplexity and dissatisfaction of the house 
expressed itself in murmurs and provoked a reproof from the bench  
Counsel for the prosecution now said  
 
 By the oaths of citizens whose simple word is above suspicion  we 
have fastened this awful crime  beyond all possibility of question  
upon the unhappy prisoner at the bar  We rest our case here   
 
A groan escaped from poor Potter  and he put his face in his hands and 
rocked his body softly to and fro  while a painful silence reigned in 
the court room  Many men were moved  and many women s compassion 
testified itself in tears  Counsel for the defence rose and said  
 
 Your honor  in our remarks at the opening of this trial  we 
foreshadowed our purpose to prove that our client did this fearful deed 
while under the influence of a blind and irresponsible delirium 
produced by drink  We have changed our mind  We shall not offer that 
plea    Then to the clerk    Call Thomas Sawyer   
 
A puzzled amazement awoke in every face in the house  not even 
excepting Potter s  Every eye fastened itself with wondering interest 
upon Tom as he rose and took his place upon the stand  The boy looked 
wild enough  for he was badly scared  The oath was administered  
 
 Thomas Sawyer  where were you on the seventeenth of June  about the 
hour of midnight   
 
Tom glanced at Injun Joe s iron face and his tongue failed him  The 
audience listened breathless  but the words refused to come  After a 
few moments  however  the boy got a little of his strength back  and 
managed to put enough of it into his voice to make part of the house 
hear  
 
 In the graveyard   
 
 A little bit louder  please  Don t be afraid  You were    
 
 In the graveyard   
 
A contemptuous smile flitted across Injun Joe s face  
 
 Were you anywhere near Horse Williams  grave   
 
 Yes  sir   
 
 Speak up  just a trifle louder  How near were you   
 
 Near as I am to you   
 
 Were you hidden  or not   
 
 I was hid   
 
 Where   
 
 Behind the elms that s on the edge of the grave   
 
Injun Joe gave a barely perceptible start  
 
 Any one with you   
 
 Yes  sir  I went there with    
 
 Wait  wait a moment  Never mind mentioning your companion s name  We 
will produce him at the proper time  Did you carry anything there with 
you   
 
Tom hesitated and looked confused  
 
 Speak out  my boy  don t be diffident  The truth is always 
respectable  What did you take there   
 
 Only a  a  dead cat   
 
There was a ripple of mirth  which the court checked  
 
 We will produce the skeleton of that cat  Now  my boy  tell us 
everything that occurred  tell it in your own way  don t skip anything  
and don t be afraid   
 
Tom began  hesitatingly at first  but as he warmed to his subject his 
words flowed more and more easily  in a little while every sound ceased 
but his own voice  every eye fixed itself upon him  with parted lips 
and bated breath the audience hung upon his words  taking no note of 
time  rapt in the ghastly fascinations of the tale  The strain upon 
pent emotion reached its climax when the boy said  
 
   and as the doctor fetched the board around and Muff Potter fell  
Injun Joe jumped with the knife and    
 
Crash  Quick as lightning the half breed sprang for a window  tore his 
way through all opposers  and was gone  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXIV 
 
TOM was a glittering hero once more  the pet of the old  the envy of 
the young  His name even went into immortal print  for the village 
paper magnified him  There were some that believed he would be 
President  yet  if he escaped hanging  
 
As usual  the fickle  unreasoning world took Muff Potter to its bosom 
and fondled him as lavishly as it had abused him before  But that sort 
of conduct is to the world s credit  therefore it is not well to find 
fault with it  
 
Tom s days were days of splendor and exultation to him  but his nights 
were seasons of horror  Injun Joe infested all his dreams  and always 
with doom in his eye  Hardly any temptation could persuade the boy to 
stir abroad after nightfall  Poor Huck was in the same state of 
wretchedness and terror  for Tom had told the whole story to the lawyer 
the night before the great day of the trial  and Huck was sore afraid 
that his share in the business might leak out  yet  notwithstanding 
Injun Joe s flight had saved him the suffering of testifying in court  
The poor fellow had got the attorney to promise secrecy  but what of 
that  Since Tom s harassed conscience had managed to drive him to the 
lawyer s house by night and wring a dread tale from lips that had been 
sealed with the dismalest and most formidable of oaths  Huck s 
confidence in the human race was well nigh obliterated  
 
Daily Muff Potter s gratitude made Tom glad he had spoken  but nightly 
he wished he had sealed up his tongue  
 
Half the time Tom was afraid Injun Joe would never be captured  the 
other half he was afraid he would be  He felt sure he never could draw 
a safe breath again until that man was dead and he had seen the corpse  
 
Rewards had been offered  the country had been scoured  but no Injun 
Joe was found  One of those omniscient and awe inspiring marvels  a 
detective  came up from St  Louis  moused around  shook his head  
looked wise  and made that sort of astounding success which members of 
that craft usually achieve  That is to say  he  found a clew   But you 
can t hang a  clew  for murder  and so after that detective had got 
through and gone home  Tom felt just as insecure as he was before  
 
The slow days drifted on  and each left behind it a slightly lightened 
weight of apprehension  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXV 
 
THERE comes a time in every rightly constructed boy s life when he has 
a raging desire to go somewhere and dig for hidden treasure  This 
desire suddenly came upon Tom one day  He sallied out to find Joe 
Harper  but failed of success  Next he sought Ben Rogers  he had gone 
fishing  Presently he stumbled upon Huck Finn the Red Handed  Huck 
would answer  Tom took him to a private place and opened the matter to 
him confidentially  Huck was willing  Huck was always willing to take a 
hand in any enterprise that offered entertainment and required no 
capital  for he had a troublesome superabundance of that sort of time 
which is not money   Where ll we dig   said Huck  
 
 Oh  most anywhere   
 
 Why  is it hid all around   
 
 No  indeed it ain t  It s hid in mighty particular places  Huck 
  sometimes on islands  sometimes in rotten chests under the end of a 
limb of an old dead tree  just where the shadow falls at midnight  but 
mostly under the floor in ha nted houses   
 
 Who hides it   
 
 Why  robbers  of course  who d you reckon  Sunday school 
sup rintendents   
 
 I don t know  If  twas mine I wouldn t hide it  I d spend it and have 
a good time   
 
 So would I  But robbers don t do that way  They always hide it and 
leave it there   
 
 Don t they come after it any more   
 
 No  they think they will  but they generally forget the marks  or 
else they die  Anyway  it lays there a long time and gets rusty  and by 
and by somebody finds an old yellow paper that tells how to find the 
marks  a paper that s got to be ciphered over about a week because it s 
mostly signs and hy roglyphics   
 
 HyroQwhich   
 
 Hy roglyphics  pictures and things  you know  that don t seem to mean 
anything   
 
 Have you got one of them papers  Tom   
 
 No   
 
 Well then  how you going to find the marks   
 
 I don t want any marks  They always bury it under a ha nted house or 
on an island  or under a dead tree that s got one limb sticking out  
Well  we ve tried Jackson s Island a little  and we can try it again 
some time  and there s the old ha nted house up the Still House branch  
and there s lots of dead limb trees  dead loads of  em   
 
 Is it under all of them   
 
 How you talk  No   
 
 Then how you going to know which one to go for   
 
 Go for all of  em   
 
 Why  Tom  it ll take all summer   
 
 Well  what of that  Suppose you find a brass pot with a hundred 
dollars in it  all rusty and gray  or rotten chest full of di monds  
How s that   
 
Huck s eyes glowed  
 
 That s bully  Plenty bully enough for me  Just you gimme the hundred 
dollars and I don t want no di monds   
 
 All right  But I bet you I ain t going to throw off on di monds  Some 
of  em s worth twenty dollars apiece  there ain t any  hardly  but s 
worth six bits or a dollar   
 
 No  Is that so   
 
 Cert nly  anybody ll tell you so  Hain t you ever seen one  Huck   
 
 Not as I remember   
 
 Oh  kings have slathers of them   
 
 Well  I don  know no kings  Tom   
 
 I reckon you don t  But if you was to go to Europe you d see a raft 
of  em hopping around   
 
 Do they hop   
 
 Hop   your granny  No   
 
 Well  what did you say they did  for   
 
 Shucks  I only meant you d SEE  em  not hopping  of course  what do 
they want to hop for   but I mean you d just see  em  scattered around  
you know  in a kind of a general way  Like that old humpbacked Richard   
 
 Richard  What s his other name   
 
 He didn t have any other name  Kings don t have any but a given name   
 
 No   
 
 But they don t   
 
 Well  if they like it  Tom  all right  but I don t want to be a king 
and have only just a given name  like a nigger  But say  where you 
going to dig first   
 
 Well  I don t know  S pose we tackle that old dead limb tree on the 
hill t other side of Still House branch   
 
 I m agreed   
 
So they got a crippled pick and a shovel  and set out on their 
three mile tramp  They arrived hot and panting  and threw themselves 
down in the shade of a neighboring elm to rest and have a smoke  
 
 I like this   said Tom  
 
 So do I   
 
 Say  Huck  if we find a treasure here  what you going to do with your 
share   
 
 Well  I ll have pie and a glass of soda every day  and I ll go to 
every circus that comes along  I bet I ll have a gay time   
 
 Well  ain t you going to save any of it   
 
 Save it  What for   
 
 Why  so as to have something to live on  by and by   
 
 Oh  that ain t any use  Pap would come back to thish yer town some 
day and get his claws on it if I didn t hurry up  and I tell you he d 
clean it out pretty quick  What you going to do with yourn  Tom   
 
 I m going to buy a new drum  and a sure  nough sword  and a red 
necktie and a bull pup  and get married   
 
 Married   
 
 That s it   
 
 Tom  you  why  you ain t in your right mind   
 
 Wait  you ll see   
 
 Well  that s the foolishest thing you could do  Look at pap and my 
mother  Fight  Why  they used to fight all the time  I remember  mighty 
well   
 
 That ain t anything  The girl I m going to marry won t fight   
 
 Tom  I reckon they re all alike  They ll all comb a body  Now you 
better think  bout this awhile  I tell you you better  What s the name 
of the gal   
 
 It ain t a gal at all  it s a girl   
 
 It s all the same  I reckon  some says gal  some says girl  both s 
right  like enough  Anyway  what s her name  Tom   
 
 I ll tell you some time  not now   
 
 All right  that ll do  Only if you get married I ll be more lonesomer 
than ever   
 
 No you won t  You ll come and live with me  Now stir out of this and 
we ll go to digging   
 
They worked and sweated for half an hour  No result  They toiled 
another half hour  Still no result  Huck said  
 
 Do they always bury it as deep as this   
 
 Sometimes  not always  Not generally  I reckon we haven t got the 
right place   
 
So they chose a new spot and began again  The labor dragged a little  
but still they made progress  They pegged away in silence for some 
time  Finally Huck leaned on his shovel  swabbed the beaded drops from 
his brow with his sleeve  and said  
 
 Where you going to dig next  after we get this one   
 
 I reckon maybe we ll tackle the old tree that s over yonder on 
Cardiff Hill back of the widow s   
 
 I reckon that ll be a good one  But won t the widow take it away from 
us  Tom  It s on her land   
 
 SHE take it away  Maybe she d like to try it once  Whoever finds one 
of these hid treasures  it belongs to him  It don t make any difference 
whose land it s on   
 
That was satisfactory  The work went on  By and by Huck said  
 
 Blame it  we must be in the wrong place again  What do you think   
 
 It is mighty curious  Huck  I don t understand it  Sometimes witches 
interfere  I reckon maybe that s what s the trouble now   
 
 Shucks  Witches ain t got no power in the daytime   
 
 Well  that s so  I didn t think of that  Oh  I know what the matter 
is  What a blamed lot of fools we are  You got to find out where the 
shadow of the limb falls at midnight  and that s where you dig   
 
 Then consound it  we ve fooled away all this work for nothing  Now 
hang it all  we got to come back in the night  It s an awful long way  
Can you get out   
 
 I bet I will  We ve got to do it to night  too  because if somebody 
sees these holes they ll know in a minute what s here and they ll go 
for it   
 
 Well  I ll come around and maow to night   
 
 All right  Let s hide the tools in the bushes   
 
The boys were there that night  about the appointed time  They sat in 
the shadow waiting  It was a lonely place  and an hour made solemn by 
old traditions  Spirits whispered in the rustling leaves  ghosts lurked 
in the murky nooks  the deep baying of a hound floated up out of the 
distance  an owl answered with his sepulchral note  The boys were 
subdued by these solemnities  and talked little  By and by they judged 
that twelve had come  they marked where the shadow fell  and began to 
dig  Their hopes commenced to rise  Their interest grew stronger  and 
their industry kept pace with it  The hole deepened and still deepened  
but every time their hearts jumped to hear the pick strike upon 
something  they only suffered a new disappointment  It was only a stone 
or a chunk  At last Tom said  
 
 It ain t any use  Huck  we re wrong again   
 
 Well  but we CAN T be wrong  We spotted the shadder to a dot   
 
 I know it  but then there s another thing   
 
 What s that    
 
 Why  we only guessed at the time  Like enough it was too late or too 
early   
 
Huck dropped his shovel  
 
 That s it   said he   That s the very trouble  We got to give this 
one up  We can t ever tell the right time  and besides this kind of 
thing s too awful  here this time of night with witches and ghosts 
a fluttering around so  I feel as if something s behind me all the time  
and I m afeard to turn around  becuz maybe there s others in front 
a waiting for a chance  I been creeping all over  ever since I got here   
 
 Well  I ve been pretty much so  too  Huck  They most always put in a 
dead man when they bury a treasure under a tree  to look out for it   
 
 Lordy   
 
 Yes  they do  I ve always heard that   
 
 Tom  I don t like to fool around much where there s dead people  A 
body s bound to get into trouble with  em  sure   
 
 I don t like to stir  em up  either  S pose this one here was to 
stick his skull out and say something   
 
 Don t Tom  It s awful   
 
 Well  it just is  Huck  I don t feel comfortable a bit   
 
 Say  Tom  let s give this place up  and try somewheres else   
 
 All right  I reckon we better   
 
 What ll it be   
 
Tom considered awhile  and then said  
 
 The ha nted house  That s it   
 
 Blame it  I don t like ha nted houses  Tom  Why  they re a dern sight 
worse n dead people  Dead people might talk  maybe  but they don t come 
sliding around in a shroud  when you ain t noticing  and peep over your 
shoulder all of a sudden and grit their teeth  the way a ghost does  I 
couldn t stand such a thing as that  Tom  nobody could   
 
 Yes  but  Huck  ghosts don t travel around only at night  They won t 
hender us from digging there in the daytime   
 
 Well  that s so  But you know mighty well people don t go about that 
ha nted house in the day nor the night   
 
 Well  that s mostly because they don t like to go where a man s been 
murdered  anyway  but nothing s ever been seen around that house except 
in the night  just some blue lights slipping by the windows  no regular 
ghosts   
 
 Well  where you see one of them blue lights flickering around  Tom  
you can bet there s a ghost mighty close behind it  It stands to 
reason  Becuz you know that they don t anybody but ghosts use  em   
 
 Yes  that s so  But anyway they don t come around in the daytime  so 
what s the use of our being afeard   
 
 Well  all right  We ll tackle the ha nted house if you say so  but I 
reckon it s taking chances   
 
They had started down the hill by this time  There in the middle of 
the moonlit valley below them stood the  ha nted  house  utterly 
isolated  its fences gone long ago  rank weeds smothering the very 
doorsteps  the chimney crumbled to ruin  the window sashes vacant  a 
corner of the roof caved in  The boys gazed awhile  half expecting to 
see a blue light flit past a window  then talking in a low tone  as 
befitted the time and the circumstances  they struck far off to the 
right  to give the haunted house a wide berth  and took their way 
homeward through the woods that adorned the rearward side of Cardiff 
Hill  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXVI 
 
ABOUT noon the next day the boys arrived at the dead tree  they had 
come for their tools  Tom was impatient to go to the haunted house  
Huck was measurably so  also  but suddenly said  
 
 Lookyhere  Tom  do you know what day it is   
 
Tom mentally ran over the days of the week  and then quickly lifted 
his eyes with a startled look in them   
 
 My  I never once thought of it  Huck   
 
 Well  I didn t neither  but all at once it popped onto me that it was 
Friday   
 
 Blame it  a body can t be too careful  Huck  We might  a  got into an 
awful scrape  tackling such a thing on a Friday   
 
 MIGHT  Better say we WOULD  There s some lucky days  maybe  but 
Friday ain t   
 
 Any fool knows that  I don t reckon YOU was the first that found it 
out  Huck   
 
 Well  I never said I was  did I  And Friday ain t all  neither  I had 
a rotten bad dream last night  dreampt about rats   
 
 No  Sure sign of trouble  Did they fight   
 
 No   
 
 Well  that s good  Huck  When they don t fight it s only a sign that 
there s trouble around  you know  All we got to do is to look mighty 
sharp and keep out of it  We ll drop this thing for to day  and play  
Do you know Robin Hood  Huck   
 
 No  Who s Robin Hood   
 
 Why  he was one of the greatest men that was ever in England  and the 
best  He was a robber   
 
 Cracky  I wisht I was  Who did he rob   
 
 Only sheriffs and bishops and rich people and kings  and such like  
But he never bothered the poor  He loved  em  He always divided up with 
 em perfectly square   
 
 Well  he must  a  been a brick   
 
 I bet you he was  Huck  Oh  he was the noblest man that ever was  
They ain t any such men now  I can tell you  He could lick any man in 
England  with one hand tied behind him  and he could take his yew bow 
and plug a ten cent piece every time  a mile and a half   
 
 What s a YEW bow   
 
 I don t know  It s some kind of a bow  of course  And if he hit that 
dime only on the edge he would set down and cry  and curse  But we ll 
play Robin Hood  it s nobby fun  I ll learn you   
 
 I m agreed   
 
So they played Robin Hood all the afternoon  now and then casting a 
yearning eye down upon the haunted house and passing a remark about the 
morrow s prospects and possibilities there  As the sun began to sink 
into the west they took their way homeward athwart the long shadows of 
the trees and soon were buried from sight in the forests of Cardiff 
Hill  
 
On Saturday  shortly after noon  the boys were at the dead tree again  
They had a smoke and a chat in the shade  and then dug a little in 
their last hole  not with great hope  but merely because Tom said there 
were so many cases where people had given up a treasure after getting 
down within six inches of it  and then somebody else had come along and 
turned it up with a single thrust of a shovel  The thing failed this 
time  however  so the boys shouldered their tools and went away feeling 
that they had not trifled with fortune  but had fulfilled all the 
requirements that belong to the business of treasure hunting  
 
When they reached the haunted house there was something so weird and 
grisly about the dead silence that reigned there under the baking sun  
and something so depressing about the loneliness and desolation of the 
place  that they were afraid  for a moment  to venture in  Then they 
crept to the door and took a trembling peep  They saw a weed grown  
floorless room  unplastered  an ancient fireplace  vacant windows  a 
ruinous staircase  and here  there  and everywhere hung ragged and 
abandoned cobwebs  They presently entered  softly  with quickened 
pulses  talking in whispers  ears alert to catch the slightest sound  
and muscles tense and ready for instant retreat  
 
In a little while familiarity modified their fears and they gave the 
place a critical and interested examination  rather admiring their own 
boldness  and wondering at it  too  Next they wanted to look up stairs  
This was something like cutting off retreat  but they got to daring 
each other  and of course there could be but one result  they threw 
their tools into a corner and made the ascent  Up there were the same 
signs of decay  In one corner they found a closet that promised 
mystery  but the promise was a fraud  there was nothing in it  Their 
courage was up now and well in hand  They were about to go down and 
begin work when   
 
 Sh   said Tom  
 
 What is it   whispered Huck  blanching with fright  
 
 Sh     There     Hear it   
 
 Yes     Oh  my  Let s run   
 
 Keep still  Don t you budge  They re coming right toward the door   
 
The boys stretched themselves upon the floor with their eyes to 
knot holes in the planking  and lay waiting  in a misery of fear  
 
 They ve stopped     No  coming     Here they are  Don t whisper 
another word  Huck  My goodness  I wish I was out of this   
 
Two men entered  Each boy said to himself   There s the old deaf and 
dumb Spaniard that s been about town once or twice lately  never saw 
t other man before   
 
 T other  was a ragged  unkempt creature  with nothing very pleasant 
in his face  The Spaniard was wrapped in a serape  he had bushy white 
whiskers  long white hair flowed from under his sombrero  and he wore 
green goggles  When they came in   t other  was talking in a low voice  
they sat down on the ground  facing the door  with their backs to the 
wall  and the speaker continued his remarks  His manner became less 
guarded and his words more distinct as he proceeded  
 
 No   said he   I ve thought it all over  and I don t like it  It s 
dangerous   
 
 Dangerous   grunted the  deaf and dumb  Spaniard  to the vast 
surprise of the boys   Milksop   
 
This voice made the boys gasp and quake  It was Injun Joe s  There was 
silence for some time  Then Joe said  
 
 What s any more dangerous than that job up yonder  but nothing s come 
of it   
 
 That s different  Away up the river so  and not another house about  
 Twon t ever be known that we tried  anyway  long as we didn t succeed   
 
 Well  what s more dangerous than coming here in the daytime   anybody 
would suspicion us that saw us   
 
 I know that  But there warn t any other place as handy after that 
fool of a job  I want to quit this shanty  I wanted to yesterday  only 
it warn t any use trying to stir out of here  with those infernal boys 
playing over there on the hill right in full view   
 
 Those infernal boys  quaked again under the inspiration of this 
remark  and thought how lucky it was that they had remembered it was 
Friday and concluded to wait a day  They wished in their hearts they 
had waited a year  
 
The two men got out some food and made a luncheon  After a long and 
thoughtful silence  Injun Joe said  
 
 Look here  lad  you go back up the river where you belong  Wait there 
till you hear from me  I ll take the chances on dropping into this town 
just once more  for a look  We ll do that  dangerous  job after I ve 
spied around a little and think things look well for it  Then for 
Texas  We ll leg it together   
 
This was satisfactory  Both men presently fell to yawning  and Injun 
Joe said  
 
 I m dead for sleep  It s your turn to watch   
 
He curled down in the weeds and soon began to snore  His comrade 
stirred him once or twice and he became quiet  Presently the watcher 
began to nod  his head drooped lower and lower  both men began to snore 
now  
 
The boys drew a long  grateful breath  Tom whispered  
 
 Now s our chance  come   
 
Huck said  
 
 I can t  I d die if they was to wake   
 
Tom urged  Huck held back  At last Tom rose slowly and softly  and 
started alone  But the first step he made wrung such a hideous creak 
from the crazy floor that he sank down almost dead with fright  He 
never made a second attempt  The boys lay there counting the dragging 
moments till it seemed to them that time must be done and eternity 
growing gray  and then they were grateful to note that at last the sun 
was setting  
 
Now one snore ceased  Injun Joe sat up  stared around  smiled grimly 
upon his comrade  whose head was drooping upon his knees  stirred him 
up with his foot and said  
 
 Here  YOU RE a watchman  ain t you  All right  though  nothing s 
happened   
 
 My  have I been asleep   
 
 Oh  partly  partly  Nearly time for us to be moving  pard  What ll we 
do with what little swag we ve got left   
 
 I don t know  leave it here as we ve always done  I reckon  No use to 
take it away till we start south  Six hundred and fifty in silver s 
something to carry   
 
 Well  all right  it won t matter to come here once more   
 
 No  but I d say come in the night as we used to do  it s better   
 
 Yes  but look here  it may be a good while before I get the right 
chance at that job  accidents might happen   tain t in such a very good 
place  we ll just regularly bury it  and bury it deep   
 
 Good idea   said the comrade  who walked across the room  knelt down  
raised one of the rearward hearth stones and took out a bag that 
jingled pleasantly  He subtracted from it twenty or thirty dollars for 
himself and as much for Injun Joe  and passed the bag to the latter  
who was on his knees in the corner  now  digging with his bowie knife  
 
The boys forgot all their fears  all their miseries in an instant  
With gloating eyes they watched every movement  Luck   the splendor of 
it was beyond all imagination  Six hundred dollars was money enough to 
make half a dozen boys rich  Here was treasure hunting under the 
happiest auspices  there would not be any bothersome uncertainty as to 
where to dig  They nudged each other every moment  eloquent nudges and 
easily understood  for they simply meant   Oh  but ain t you glad NOW 
we re here   
 
Joe s knife struck upon something  
 
 Hello   said he  
 
 What is it   said his comrade  
 
 Half rotten plank  no  it s a box  I believe  Here  bear a hand and 
we ll see what it s here for  Never mind  I ve broke a hole   
 
He reached his hand in and drew it out   
 
 Man  it s money   
 
The two men examined the handful of coins  They were gold  The boys 
above were as excited as themselves  and as delighted  
 
Joe s comrade said  
 
 We ll make quick work of this  There s an old rusty pick over amongst 
the weeds in the corner the other side of the fireplace  I saw it a 
minute ago   
 
He ran and brought the boys  pick and shovel  Injun Joe took the pick  
looked it over critically  shook his head  muttered something to 
himself  and then began to use it  The box was soon unearthed  It was 
not very large  it was iron bound and had been very strong before the 
slow years had injured it  The men contemplated the treasure awhile in 
blissful silence  
 
 Pard  there s thousands of dollars here   said Injun Joe  
 
  Twas always said that Murrel s gang used to be around here one 
summer   the stranger observed  
 
 I know it   said Injun Joe   and this looks like it  I should say   
 
 Now you won t need to do that job   
 
The half breed frowned  Said he  
 
 You don t know me  Least you don t know all about that thing   Tain t 
robbery altogether  it s REVENGE   and a wicked light flamed in his 
eyes   I ll need your help in it  When it s finished  then Texas  Go 
home to your Nance and your kids  and stand by till you hear from me   
 
 Well  if you say so  what ll we do with this  bury it again   
 
 Yes   Ravishing delight overhead   NO  by the great Sachem  no  
 Profound distress overhead   I d nearly forgot  That pick had fresh 
earth on it   The boys were sick with terror in a moment   What 
business has a pick and a shovel here  What business with fresh earth 
on them  Who brought them here  and where are they gone  Have you heard 
anybody   seen anybody  What  bury it again and leave them to come and 
see the ground disturbed  Not exactly  not exactly  We ll take it to my 
den   
 
 Why  of course  Might have thought of that before  You mean Number 
One   
 
 No  Number Two  under the cross  The other place is bad  too common   
 
 All right  It s nearly dark enough to start   
 
Injun Joe got up and went about from window to window cautiously 
peeping out  Presently he said  
 
 Who could have brought those tools here  Do you reckon they can be 
up stairs   
 
The boys  breath forsook them  Injun Joe put his hand on his knife  
halted a moment  undecided  and then turned toward the stairway  The 
boys thought of the closet  but their strength was gone  The steps came 
creaking up the stairs  the intolerable distress of the situation woke 
the stricken resolution of the lads  they were about to spring for the 
closet  when there was a crash of rotten timbers and Injun Joe landed 
on the ground amid the debris of the ruined stairway  He gathered 
himself up cursing  and his comrade said  
 
 Now what s the use of all that  If it s anybody  and they re up 
there  let them STAY there  who cares  If they want to jump down  now  
and get into trouble  who objects  It will be dark in fifteen minutes 
  and then let them follow us if they want to  I m willing  In my 
opinion  whoever hove those things in here caught a sight of us and 
took us for ghosts or devils or something  I ll bet they re running 
yet   
 
Joe grumbled awhile  then he agreed with his friend that what daylight 
was left ought to be economized in getting things ready for leaving  
Shortly afterward they slipped out of the house in the deepening 
twilight  and moved toward the river with their precious box  
 
Tom and Huck rose up  weak but vastly relieved  and stared after them 
through the chinks between the logs of the house  Follow  Not they  
They were content to reach ground again without broken necks  and take 
the townward track over the hill  They did not talk much  They were too 
much absorbed in hating themselves  hating the ill luck that made them 
take the spade and the pick there  But for that  Injun Joe never would 
have suspected  He would have hidden the silver with the gold to wait 
there till his  revenge  was satisfied  and then he would have had the 
misfortune to find that money turn up missing  Bitter  bitter luck that 
the tools were ever brought there  
 
They resolved to keep a lookout for that Spaniard when he should come 
to town spying out for chances to do his revengeful job  and follow him 
to  Number Two   wherever that might be  Then a ghastly thought 
occurred to Tom  
 
 Revenge  What if he means US  Huck   
 
 Oh  don t   said Huck  nearly fainting  
 
They talked it all over  and as they entered town they agreed to 
believe that he might possibly mean somebody else  at least that he 
might at least mean nobody but Tom  since only Tom had testified  
 
Very  very small comfort it was to Tom to be alone in danger  Company 
would be a palpable improvement  he thought  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXVII 
 
THE adventure of the day mightily tormented Tom s dreams that night  
Four times he had his hands on that rich treasure and four times it 
wasted to nothingness in his fingers as sleep forsook him and 
wakefulness brought back the hard reality of his misfortune  As he lay 
in the early morning recalling the incidents of his great adventure  he 
noticed that they seemed curiously subdued and far away  somewhat as if 
they had happened in another world  or in a time long gone by  Then it 
occurred to him that the great adventure itself must be a dream  There 
was one very strong argument in favor of this idea  namely  that the 
quantity of coin he had seen was too vast to be real  He had never seen 
as much as fifty dollars in one mass before  and he was like all boys 
of his age and station in life  in that he imagined that all references 
to  hundreds  and  thousands  were mere fanciful forms of speech  and 
that no such sums really existed in the world  He never had supposed 
for a moment that so large a sum as a hundred dollars was to be found 
in actual money in any one s possession  If his notions of hidden 
treasure had been analyzed  they would have been found to consist of a 
handful of real dimes and a bushel of vague  splendid  ungraspable 
dollars  
 
But the incidents of his adventure grew sensibly sharper and clearer 
under the attrition of thinking them over  and so he presently found 
himself leaning to the impression that the thing might not have been a 
dream  after all  This uncertainty must be swept away  He would snatch 
a hurried breakfast and go and find Huck  Huck was sitting on the 
gunwale of a flatboat  listlessly dangling his feet in the water and 
looking very melancholy  Tom concluded to let Huck lead up to the 
subject  If he did not do it  then the adventure would be proved to 
have been only a dream  
 
 Hello  Huck   
 
 Hello  yourself   
 
Silence  for a minute  
 
 Tom  if we d  a  left the blame tools at the dead tree  we d  a  got 
the money  Oh  ain t it awful   
 
  Tain t a dream  then   tain t a dream  Somehow I most wish it was  
Dog d if I don t  Huck   
 
 What ain t a dream   
 
 Oh  that thing yesterday  I been half thinking it was   
 
 Dream  If them stairs hadn t broke down you d  a  seen how much dream 
it was  I ve had dreams enough all night  with that patch eyed Spanish 
devil going for me all through  em  rot him   
 
 No  not rot him  FIND him  Track the money   
 
 Tom  we ll never find him  A feller don t have only one chance for 
such a pile  and that one s lost  I d feel mighty shaky if I was to see 
him  anyway   
 
 Well  so d I  but I d like to see him  anyway  and track him out  to 
his Number Two   
 
 Number Two  yes  that s it  I been thinking  bout that  But I can t 
make nothing out of it  What do you reckon it is   
 
 I dono  It s too deep  Say  Huck  maybe it s the number of a house   
 
 Goody     No  Tom  that ain t it  If it is  it ain t in this 
one horse town  They ain t no numbers here   
 
 Well  that s so  Lemme think a minute  Here  it s the number of a 
room  in a tavern  you know   
 
 Oh  that s the trick  They ain t only two taverns  We can find out 
quick   
 
 You stay here  Huck  till I come   
 
Tom was off at once  He did not care to have Huck s company in public 
places  He was gone half an hour  He found that in the best tavern  No  
  had long been occupied by a young lawyer  and was still so occupied  
In the less ostentatious house  No    was a mystery  The 
tavern keeper s young son said it was kept locked all the time  and he 
never saw anybody go into it or come out of it except at night  he did 
not know any particular reason for this state of things  had had some 
little curiosity  but it was rather feeble  had made the most of the 
mystery by entertaining himself with the idea that that room was 
 ha nted   had noticed that there was a light in there the night before  
 
 That s what I ve found out  Huck  I reckon that s the very No    
we re after   
 
 I reckon it is  Tom  Now what you going to do   
 
 Lemme think   
 
Tom thought a long time  Then he said  
 
 I ll tell you  The back door of that No    is the door that comes out 
into that little close alley between the tavern and the old rattle trap 
of a brick store  Now you get hold of all the door keys you can find  
and I ll nip all of auntie s  and the first dark night we ll go there 
and try  em  And mind you  keep a lookout for Injun Joe  because he 
said he was going to drop into town and spy around once more for a 
chance to get his revenge  If you see him  you just follow him  and if 
he don t go to that No     that ain t the place   
 
 Lordy  I don t want to foller him by myself   
 
 Why  it ll be night  sure  He mightn t ever see you  and if he did  
maybe he d never think anything   
 
 Well  if it s pretty dark I reckon I ll track him  I dono  I dono  
I ll try   
 
 You bet I ll follow him  if it s dark  Huck  Why  he might  a  found 
out he couldn t get his revenge  and be going right after that money   
 
 It s so  Tom  it s so  I ll foller him  I will  by jingoes   
 
 Now you re TALKING  Don t you ever weaken  Huck  and I won t   
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXVIII 
 
THAT night Tom and Huck were ready for their adventure  They hung 
about the neighborhood of the tavern until after nine  one watching the 
alley at a distance and the other the tavern door  Nobody entered the 
alley or left it  nobody resembling the Spaniard entered or left the 
tavern door  The night promised to be a fair one  so Tom went home with 
the understanding that if a considerable degree of darkness came on  
Huck was to come and  maow   whereupon he would slip out and try the 
keys  But the night remained clear  and Huck closed his watch and 
retired to bed in an empty sugar hogshead about twelve  
 
Tuesday the boys had the same ill luck  Also Wednesday  But Thursday 
night promised better  Tom slipped out in good season with his aunt s 
old tin lantern  and a large towel to blindfold it with  He hid the 
lantern in Huck s sugar hogshead and the watch began  An hour before 
midnight the tavern closed up and its lights  the only ones 
thereabouts  were put out  No Spaniard had been seen  Nobody had 
entered or left the alley  Everything was auspicious  The blackness of 
darkness reigned  the perfect stillness was interrupted only by 
occasional mutterings of distant thunder  
 
Tom got his lantern  lit it in the hogshead  wrapped it closely in the 
towel  and the two adventurers crept in the gloom toward the tavern  
Huck stood sentry and Tom felt his way into the alley  Then there was a 
season of waiting anxiety that weighed upon Huck s spirits like a 
mountain  He began to wish he could see a flash from the lantern  it 
would frighten him  but it would at least tell him that Tom was alive 
yet  It seemed hours since Tom had disappeared  Surely he must have 
fainted  maybe he was dead  maybe his heart had burst under terror and 
excitement  In his uneasiness Huck found himself drawing closer and 
closer to the alley  fearing all sorts of dreadful things  and 
momentarily expecting some catastrophe to happen that would take away 
his breath  There was not much to take away  for he seemed only able to 
inhale it by thimblefuls  and his heart would soon wear itself out  the 
way it was beating  Suddenly there was a flash of light and Tom came 
tearing by him   Run   said he   run  for your life   
 
He needn t have repeated it  once was enough  Huck was making thirty 
or forty miles an hour before the repetition was uttered  The boys 
never stopped till they reached the shed of a deserted slaughter house 
at the lower end of the village  Just as they got within its shelter 
the storm burst and the rain poured down  As soon as Tom got his breath 
he said  
 
 Huck  it was awful  I tried two of the keys  just as soft as I could  
but they seemed to make such a power of racket that I couldn t hardly 
get my breath I was so scared  They wouldn t turn in the lock  either  
Well  without noticing what I was doing  I took hold of the knob  and 
open comes the door  It warn t locked  I hopped in  and shook off the 
towel  and  GREAT CAESAR S GHOST   
 
 What   what d you see  Tom   
 
 Huck  I most stepped onto Injun Joe s hand   
 
 No   
 
 Yes  He was lying there  sound asleep on the floor  with his old 
patch on his eye and his arms spread out   
 
 Lordy  what did you do  Did he wake up   
 
 No  never budged  Drunk  I reckon  I just grabbed that towel and 
started   
 
 I d never  a  thought of the towel  I bet   
 
 Well  I would  My aunt would make me mighty sick if I lost it   
 
 Say  Tom  did you see that box   
 
 Huck  I didn t wait to look around  I didn t see the box  I didn t 
see the cross  I didn t see anything but a bottle and a tin cup on the 
floor by Injun Joe  yes  I saw two barrels and lots more bottles in the 
room  Don t you see  now  what s the matter with that ha nted room   
 
 How   
 
 Why  it s ha nted with whiskey  Maybe ALL the Temperance Taverns have 
got a ha nted room  hey  Huck   
 
 Well  I reckon maybe that s so  Who d  a  thought such a thing  But 
say  Tom  now s a mighty good time to get that box  if Injun Joe s 
drunk   
 
 It is  that  You try it   
 
Huck shuddered  
 
 Well  no  I reckon not   
 
 And I reckon not  Huck  Only one bottle alongside of Injun Joe ain t 
enough  If there d been three  he d be drunk enough and I d do it   
 
There was a long pause for reflection  and then Tom said  
 
 Lookyhere  Huck  less not try that thing any more till we know Injun 
Joe s not in there  It s too scary  Now  if we watch every night  we ll 
be dead sure to see him go out  some time or other  and then we ll 
snatch that box quicker n lightning   
 
 Well  I m agreed  I ll watch the whole night long  and I ll do it 
every night  too  if you ll do the other part of the job   
 
 All right  I will  All you got to do is to trot up Hooper Street a 
block and maow  and if I m asleep  you throw some gravel at the window 
and that ll fetch me   
 
 Agreed  and good as wheat   
 
 Now  Huck  the storm s over  and I ll go home  It ll begin to be 
daylight in a couple of hours  You go back and watch that long  will 
you   
 
 I said I would  Tom  and I will  I ll ha nt that tavern every night 
for a year  I ll sleep all day and I ll stand watch all night   
 
 That s all right  Now  where you going to sleep   
 
 In Ben Rogers  hayloft  He lets me  and so does his pap s nigger man  
Uncle Jake  I tote water for Uncle Jake whenever he wants me to  and 
any time I ask him he gives me a little something to eat if he can 
spare it  That s a mighty good nigger  Tom  He likes me  becuz I don t 
ever act as if I was above him  Sometime I ve set right down and eat 
WITH him  But you needn t tell that  A body s got to do things when 
he s awful hungry he wouldn t want to do as a steady thing   
 
 Well  if I don t want you in the daytime  I ll let you sleep  I won t 
come bothering around  Any time you see something s up  in the night  
just skip right around and maow   
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXIX 
 
THE first thing Tom heard on Friday morning was a glad piece of news 
  Judge Thatcher s family had come back to town the night before  Both 
Injun Joe and the treasure sunk into secondary importance for a moment  
and Becky took the chief place in the boy s interest  He saw her and 
they had an exhausting good time playing  hi spy  and  gully keeper  
with a crowd of their school mates  The day was completed and crowned 
in a peculiarly satisfactory way  Becky teased her mother to appoint 
the next day for the long promised and long delayed picnic  and she 
consented  The child s delight was boundless  and Tom s not more 
moderate  The invitations were sent out before sunset  and straightway 
the young folks of the village were thrown into a fever of preparation 
and pleasurable anticipation  Tom s excitement enabled him to keep 
awake until a pretty late hour  and he had good hopes of hearing Huck s 
 maow   and of having his treasure to astonish Becky and the picnickers 
with  next day  but he was disappointed  No signal came that night  
 
Morning came  eventually  and by ten or eleven o clock a giddy and 
rollicking company were gathered at Judge Thatcher s  and everything 
was ready for a start  It was not the custom for elderly people to mar 
the picnics with their presence  The children were considered safe 
enough under the wings of a few young ladies of eighteen and a few 
young gentlemen of twenty three or thereabouts  The old steam ferryboat 
was chartered for the occasion  presently the gay throng filed up the 
main street laden with provision baskets  Sid was sick and had to miss 
the fun  Mary remained at home to entertain him  The last thing Mrs  
Thatcher said to Becky  was  
 
 You ll not get back till late  Perhaps you d better stay all night 
with some of the girls that live near the ferry landing  child   
 
 Then I ll stay with Susy Harper  mamma   
 
 Very well  And mind and behave yourself and don t be any trouble   
 
Presently  as they tripped along  Tom said to Becky  
 
 Say  I ll tell you what we ll do   Stead of going to Joe Harper s 
we ll climb right up the hill and stop at the Widow Douglas   She ll 
have ice cream  She has it most every day  dead loads of it  And she ll 
be awful glad to have us   
 
 Oh  that will be fun   
 
Then Becky reflected a moment and said  
 
 But what will mamma say   
 
 How ll she ever know   
 
The girl turned the idea over in her mind  and said reluctantly  
 
 I reckon it s wrong  but    
 
 But shucks  Your mother won t know  and so what s the harm  All she 
wants is that you ll be safe  and I bet you she d  a  said go there if 
she d  a  thought of it  I know she would   
 
The Widow Douglas  splendid hospitality was a tempting bait  It and 
Tom s persuasions presently carried the day  So it was decided to say 
nothing anybody about the night s programme  Presently it occurred to 
Tom that maybe Huck might come this very night and give the signal  The 
thought took a deal of the spirit out of his anticipations  Still he 
could not bear to give up the fun at Widow Douglas   And why should he 
give it up  he reasoned  the signal did not come the night before  so 
why should it be any more likely to come to night  The sure fun of the 
evening outweighed the uncertain treasure  and  boy like  he determined 
to yield to the stronger inclination and not allow himself to think of 
the box of money another time that day  
 
Three miles below town the ferryboat stopped at the mouth of a woody 
hollow and tied up  The crowd swarmed ashore and soon the forest 
distances and craggy heights echoed far and near with shoutings and 
laughter  All the different ways of getting hot and tired were gone 
through with  and by and by the rovers straggled back to camp fortified 
with responsible appetites  and then the destruction of the good things 
began  After the feast there was a refreshing season of rest and chat 
in the shade of spreading oaks  By and by somebody shouted  
 
 Who s ready for the cave   
 
Everybody was  Bundles of candles were procured  and straightway there 
was a general scamper up the hill  The mouth of the cave was up the 
hillside  an opening shaped like a letter A  Its massive oaken door 
stood unbarred  Within was a small chamber  chilly as an ice house  and 
walled by Nature with solid limestone that was dewy with a cold sweat  
It was romantic and mysterious to stand here in the deep gloom and look 
out upon the green valley shining in the sun  But the impressiveness of 
the situation quickly wore off  and the romping began again  The moment 
a candle was lighted there was a general rush upon the owner of it  a 
struggle and a gallant defence followed  but the candle was soon 
knocked down or blown out  and then there was a glad clamor of laughter 
and a new chase  But all things have an end  By and by the procession 
went filing down the steep descent of the main avenue  the flickering 
rank of lights dimly revealing the lofty walls of rock almost to their 
point of junction sixty feet overhead  This main avenue was not more 
than eight or ten feet wide  Every few steps other lofty and still 
narrower crevices branched from it on either hand  for McDougal s cave 
was but a vast labyrinth of crooked aisles that ran into each other and 
out again and led nowhere  It was said that one might wander days and 
nights together through its intricate tangle of rifts and chasms  and 
never find the end of the cave  and that he might go down  and down  
and still down  into the earth  and it was just the same  labyrinth 
under labyrinth  and no end to any of them  No man  knew  the cave  
That was an impossible thing  Most of the young men knew a portion of 
it  and it was not customary to venture much beyond this known portion  
Tom Sawyer knew as much of the cave as any one  
 
The procession moved along the main avenue some three quarters of a 
mile  and then groups and couples began to slip aside into branch 
avenues  fly along the dismal corridors  and take each other by 
surprise at points where the corridors joined again  Parties were able 
to elude each other for the space of half an hour without going beyond 
the  known  ground  
 
By and by  one group after another came straggling back to the mouth 
of the cave  panting  hilarious  smeared from head to foot with tallow 
drippings  daubed with clay  and entirely delighted with the success of 
the day  Then they were astonished to find that they had been taking no 
note of time and that night was about at hand  The clanging bell had 
been calling for half an hour  However  this sort of close to the day s 
adventures was romantic and therefore satisfactory  When the ferryboat 
with her wild freight pushed into the stream  nobody cared sixpence for 
the wasted time but the captain of the craft  
 
Huck was already upon his watch when the ferryboat s lights went 
glinting past the wharf  He heard no noise on board  for the young 
people were as subdued and still as people usually are who are nearly 
tired to death  He wondered what boat it was  and why she did not stop 
at the wharf  and then he dropped her out of his mind and put his 
attention upon his business  The night was growing cloudy and dark  Ten 
o clock came  and the noise of vehicles ceased  scattered lights began 
to wink out  all straggling foot passengers disappeared  the village 
betook itself to its slumbers and left the small watcher alone with the 
silence and the ghosts  Eleven o clock came  and the tavern lights were 
put out  darkness everywhere  now  Huck waited what seemed a weary long 
time  but nothing happened  His faith was weakening  Was there any use  
Was there really any use  Why not give it up and turn in  
 
A noise fell upon his ear  He was all attention in an instant  The 
alley door closed softly  He sprang to the corner of the brick store  
The next moment two men brushed by him  and one seemed to have 
something under his arm  It must be that box  So they were going to 
remove the treasure  Why call Tom now  It would be absurd  the men 
would get away with the box and never be found again  No  he would 
stick to their wake and follow them  he would trust to the darkness for 
security from discovery  So communing with himself  Huck stepped out 
and glided along behind the men  cat like  with bare feet  allowing 
them to keep just far enough ahead not to be invisible  
 
They moved up the river street three blocks  then turned to the left 
up a cross street  They went straight ahead  then  until they came to 
the path that led up Cardiff Hill  this they took  They passed by the 
old Welshman s house  half way up the hill  without hesitating  and 
still climbed upward  Good  thought Huck  they will bury it in the old 
quarry  But they never stopped at the quarry  They passed on  up the 
summit  They plunged into the narrow path between the tall sumach 
bushes  and were at once hidden in the gloom  Huck closed up and 
shortened his distance  now  for they would never be able to see him  
He trotted along awhile  then slackened his pace  fearing he was 
gaining too fast  moved on a piece  then stopped altogether  listened  
no sound  none  save that he seemed to hear the beating of his own 
heart  The hooting of an owl came over the hill  ominous sound  But no 
footsteps  Heavens  was everything lost  He was about to spring with 
winged feet  when a man cleared his throat not four feet from him  
Huck s heart shot into his throat  but he swallowed it again  and then 
he stood there shaking as if a dozen agues had taken charge of him at 
once  and so weak that he thought he must surely fall to the ground  He 
knew where he was  He knew he was within five steps of the stile 
leading into Widow Douglas  grounds  Very well  he thought  let them 
bury it there  it won t be hard to find  
 
Now there was a voice  a very low voice  Injun Joe s  
 
 Damn her  maybe she s got company  there s lights  late as it is   
 
 I can t see any   
 
This was that stranger s voice  the stranger of the haunted house  A 
deadly chill went to Huck s heart  this  then  was the  revenge  job  
His thought was  to fly  Then he remembered that the Widow Douglas had 
been kind to him more than once  and maybe these men were going to 
murder her  He wished he dared venture to warn her  but he knew he 
didn t dare  they might come and catch him  He thought all this and 
more in the moment that elapsed between the stranger s remark and Injun 
Joe s next  which was   
 
 Because the bush is in your way  Now  this way  now you see  don t 
you   
 
 Yes  Well  there IS company there  I reckon  Better give it up   
 
 Give it up  and I just leaving this country forever  Give it up and 
maybe never have another chance  I tell you again  as I ve told you 
before  I don t care for her swag  you may have it  But her husband was 
rough on me  many times he was rough on me  and mainly he was the 
justice of the peace that jugged me for a vagrant  And that ain t all  
It ain t a millionth part of it  He had me HORSEWHIPPED   horsewhipped 
in front of the jail  like a nigger   with all the town looking on  
HORSEWHIPPED   do you understand  He took advantage of me and died  But 
I ll take it out of HER   
 
 Oh  don t kill her  Don t do that   
 
 Kill  Who said anything about killing  I would kill HIM if he was 
here  but not her  When you want to get revenge on a woman you don t 
kill her  bosh  you go for her looks  You slit her nostrils  you notch 
her ears like a sow   
 
 By God  that s    
 
 Keep your opinion to yourself  It will be safest for you  I ll tie 
her to the bed  If she bleeds to death  is that my fault  I ll not cry  
if she does  My friend  you ll help me in this thing  for MY sake 
  that s why you re here  I mightn t be able alone  If you flinch  I ll 
kill you  Do you understand that  And if I have to kill you  I ll kill 
her  and then I reckon nobody ll ever know much about who done this 
business   
 
 Well  if it s got to be done  let s get at it  The quicker the 
better  I m all in a shiver   
 
 Do it NOW  And company there  Look here  I ll get suspicious of you  
first thing you know  No  we ll wait till the lights are out  there s 
no hurry   
 
Huck felt that a silence was going to ensue  a thing still more awful 
than any amount of murderous talk  so he held his breath and stepped 
gingerly back  planted his foot carefully and firmly  after balancing  
one legged  in a precarious way and almost toppling over  first on one 
side and then on the other  He took another step back  with the same 
elaboration and the same risks  then another and another  and  a twig 
snapped under his foot  His breath stopped and he listened  There was 
no sound  the stillness was perfect  His gratitude was measureless  Now 
he turned in his tracks  between the walls of sumach bushes  turned 
himself as carefully as if he were a ship  and then stepped quickly but 
cautiously along  When he emerged at the quarry he felt secure  and so 
he picked up his nimble heels and flew  Down  down he sped  till he 
reached the Welshman s  He banged at the door  and presently the heads 
of the old man and his two stalwart sons were thrust from windows  
 
 What s the row there  Who s banging  What do you want   
 
 Let me in  quick  I ll tell everything   
 
 Why  who are you   
 
 Huckleberry Finn  quick  let me in   
 
 Huckleberry Finn  indeed  It ain t a name to open many doors  I 
judge  But let him in  lads  and let s see what s the trouble   
 
 Please don t ever tell I told you   were Huck s first words when he 
got in   Please don t  I d be killed  sure  but the widow s been good 
friends to me sometimes  and I want to tell  I WILL tell if you ll 
promise you won t ever say it was me   
 
 By George  he HAS got something to tell  or he wouldn t act so   
exclaimed the old man   out with it and nobody here ll ever tell  lad   
 
Three minutes later the old man and his sons  well armed  were up the 
hill  and just entering the sumach path on tiptoe  their weapons in 
their hands  Huck accompanied them no further  He hid behind a great 
bowlder and fell to listening  There was a lagging  anxious silence  
and then all of a sudden there was an explosion of firearms and a cry  
 
Huck waited for no particulars  He sprang away and sped down the hill 
as fast as his legs could carry him  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXX 
 
AS the earliest suspicion of dawn appeared on Sunday morning  Huck 
came groping up the hill and rapped gently at the old Welshman s door  
The inmates were asleep  but it was a sleep that was set on a 
hair trigger  on account of the exciting episode of the night  A call 
came from a window  
 
 Who s there   
 
Huck s scared voice answered in a low tone  
 
 Please let me in  It s only Huck Finn   
 
 It s a name that can open this door night or day  lad   and welcome   
 
These were strange words to the vagabond boy s ears  and the 
pleasantest he had ever heard  He could not recollect that the closing 
word had ever been applied in his case before  The door was quickly 
unlocked  and he entered  Huck was given a seat and the old man and his 
brace of tall sons speedily dressed themselves  
 
 Now  my boy  I hope you re good and hungry  because breakfast will be 
ready as soon as the sun s up  and we ll have a piping hot one  too 
  make yourself easy about that  I and the boys hoped you d turn up and 
stop here last night   
 
 I was awful scared   said Huck   and I run  I took out when the 
pistols went off  and I didn t stop for three mile  I ve come now becuz 
I wanted to know about it  you know  and I come before daylight becuz I 
didn t want to run across them devils  even if they was dead   
 
 Well  poor chap  you do look as if you d had a hard night of it  but 
there s a bed here for you when you ve had your breakfast  No  they 
ain t dead  lad  we are sorry enough for that  You see we knew right 
where to put our hands on them  by your description  so we crept along 
on tiptoe till we got within fifteen feet of them  dark as a cellar 
that sumach path was  and just then I found I was going to sneeze  It 
was the meanest kind of luck  I tried to keep it back  but no use 
   twas bound to come  and it did come  I was in the lead with my pistol 
raised  and when the sneeze started those scoundrels a rustling to get 
out of the path  I sung out   Fire boys   and blazed away at the place 
where the rustling was  So did the boys  But they were off in a jiffy  
those villains  and we after them  down through the woods  I judge we 
never touched them  They fired a shot apiece as they started  but their 
bullets whizzed by and didn t do us any harm  As soon as we lost the 
sound of their feet we quit chasing  and went down and stirred up the 
constables  They got a posse together  and went off to guard the river 
bank  and as soon as it is light the sheriff and a gang are going to 
beat up the woods  My boys will be with them presently  I wish we had 
some sort of description of those rascals   twould help a good deal  
But you couldn t see what they were like  in the dark  lad  I suppose   
 
 Oh yes  I saw them down town and follered them   
 
 Splendid  Describe them  describe them  my boy   
 
 One s the old deaf and dumb Spaniard that s ben around here once or 
twice  and t other s a mean looking  ragged    
 
 That s enough  lad  we know the men  Happened on them in the woods 
back of the widow s one day  and they slunk away  Off with you  boys  
and tell the sheriff  get your breakfast to morrow morning   
 
The Welshman s sons departed at once  As they were leaving the room 
Huck sprang up and exclaimed  
 
 Oh  please don t tell ANYbody it was me that blowed on them  Oh  
please   
 
 All right if you say it  Huck  but you ought to have the credit of 
what you did   
 
 Oh no  no  Please don t tell   
 
When the young men were gone  the old Welshman said  
 
 They won t tell  and I won t  But why don t you want it known   
 
Huck would not explain  further than to say that he already knew too 
much about one of those men and would not have the man know that he 
knew anything against him for the whole world  he would be killed for 
knowing it  sure  
 
The old man promised secrecy once more  and said  
 
 How did you come to follow these fellows  lad  Were they looking 
suspicious   
 
Huck was silent while he framed a duly cautious reply  Then he said  
 
 Well  you see  I m a kind of a hard lot   least everybody says so  
and I don t see nothing agin it  and sometimes I can t sleep much  on 
account of thinking about it and sort of trying to strike out a new way 
of doing  That was the way of it last night  I couldn t sleep  and so I 
come along up street  bout midnight  a turning it all over  and when I 
got to that old shackly brick store by the Temperance Tavern  I backed 
up agin the wall to have another think  Well  just then along comes 
these two chaps slipping along close by me  with something under their 
arm  and I reckoned they d stole it  One was a smoking  and t other one 
wanted a light  so they stopped right before me and the cigars lit up 
their faces and I see that the big one was the deaf and dumb Spaniard  
by his white whiskers and the patch on his eye  and t other one was a 
rusty  ragged looking devil   
 
 Could you see the rags by the light of the cigars   
 
This staggered Huck for a moment  Then he said  
 
 Well  I don t know  but somehow it seems as if I did   
 
 Then they went on  and you    
 
 Follered  em  yes  That was it  I wanted to see what was up  they 
sneaked along so  I dogged  em to the widder s stile  and stood in the 
dark and heard the ragged one beg for the widder  and the Spaniard 
swear he d spile her looks just as I told you and your two    
 
 What  The DEAF AND DUMB man said all that   
 
Huck had made another terrible mistake  He was trying his best to keep 
the old man from getting the faintest hint of who the Spaniard might 
be  and yet his tongue seemed determined to get him into trouble in 
spite of all he could do  He made several efforts to creep out of his 
scrape  but the old man s eye was upon him and he made blunder after 
blunder  Presently the Welshman said  
 
 My boy  don t be afraid of me  I wouldn t hurt a hair of your head 
for all the world  No  I d protect you  I d protect you  This Spaniard 
is not deaf and dumb  you ve let that slip without intending it  you 
can t cover that up now  You know something about that Spaniard that 
you want to keep dark  Now trust me  tell me what it is  and trust me 
  I won t betray you   
 
Huck looked into the old man s honest eyes a moment  then bent over 
and whispered in his ear  
 
  Tain t a Spaniard  it s Injun Joe   
 
The Welshman almost jumped out of his chair  In a moment he said  
 
 It s all plain enough  now  When you talked about notching ears and 
slitting noses I judged that that was your own embellishment  because 
white men don t take that sort of revenge  But an Injun  That s a 
different matter altogether   
 
During breakfast the talk went on  and in the course of it the old man 
said that the last thing which he and his sons had done  before going 
to bed  was to get a lantern and examine the stile and its vicinity for 
marks of blood  They found none  but captured a bulky bundle of   
 
 Of WHAT   
 
If the words had been lightning they could not have leaped with a more 
stunning suddenness from Huck s blanched lips  His eyes were staring 
wide  now  and his breath suspended  waiting for the answer  The 
Welshman started  stared in return  three seconds  five seconds  ten 
  then replied  
 
 Of burglar s tools  Why  what s the MATTER with you   
 
Huck sank back  panting gently  but deeply  unutterably grateful  The 
Welshman eyed him gravely  curiously  and presently said  
 
 Yes  burglar s tools  That appears to relieve you a good deal  But 
what did give you that turn  What were YOU expecting we d found   
 
Huck was in a close place  the inquiring eye was upon him  he would 
have given anything for material for a plausible answer  nothing 
suggested itself  the inquiring eye was boring deeper and deeper  a 
senseless reply offered  there was no time to weigh it  so at a venture 
he uttered it  feebly  
 
 Sunday school books  maybe   
 
Poor Huck was too distressed to smile  but the old man laughed loud 
and joyously  shook up the details of his anatomy from head to foot  
and ended by saying that such a laugh was money in a man s pocket  
because it cut down the doctor s bill like everything  Then he added  
 
 Poor old chap  you re white and jaded  you ain t well a bit  no 
wonder you re a little flighty and off your balance  But you ll come 
out of it  Rest and sleep will fetch you out all right  I hope   
 
Huck was irritated to think he had been such a goose and betrayed such 
a suspicious excitement  for he had dropped the idea that the parcel 
brought from the tavern was the treasure  as soon as he had heard the 
talk at the widow s stile  He had only thought it was not the treasure  
however  he had not known that it wasn t  and so the suggestion of a 
captured bundle was too much for his self possession  But on the whole 
he felt glad the little episode had happened  for now he knew beyond 
all question that that bundle was not THE bundle  and so his mind was 
at rest and exceedingly comfortable  In fact  everything seemed to be 
drifting just in the right direction  now  the treasure must be still 
in No     the men would be captured and jailed that day  and he and Tom 
could seize the gold that night without any trouble or any fear of 
interruption  
 
Just as breakfast was completed there was a knock at the door  Huck 
jumped for a hiding place  for he had no mind to be connected even 
remotely with the late event  The Welshman admitted several ladies and 
gentlemen  among them the Widow Douglas  and noticed that groups of 
citizens were climbing up the hill  to stare at the stile  So the news 
had spread  The Welshman had to tell the story of the night to the 
visitors  The widow s gratitude for her preservation was outspoken  
 
 Don t say a word about it  madam  There s another that you re more 
beholden to than you are to me and my boys  maybe  but he don t allow 
me to tell his name  We wouldn t have been there but for him   
 
Of course this excited a curiosity so vast that it almost belittled 
the main matter  but the Welshman allowed it to eat into the vitals of 
his visitors  and through them be transmitted to the whole town  for he 
refused to part with his secret  When all else had been learned  the 
widow said  
 
 I went to sleep reading in bed and slept straight through all that 
noise  Why didn t you come and wake me   
 
 We judged it warn t worth while  Those fellows warn t likely to come 
again  they hadn t any tools left to work with  and what was the use of 
waking you up and scaring you to death  My three negro men stood guard 
at your house all the rest of the night  They ve just come back   
 
More visitors came  and the story had to be told and retold for a 
couple of hours more  
 
There was no Sabbath school during day school vacation  but everybody 
was early at church  The stirring event was well canvassed  News came 
that not a sign of the two villains had been yet discovered  When the 
sermon was finished  Judge Thatcher s wife dropped alongside of Mrs  
Harper as she moved down the aisle with the crowd and said  
 
 Is my Becky going to sleep all day  I just expected she would be 
tired to death   
 
 Your Becky   
 
 Yes   with a startled look   didn t she stay with you last night   
 
 Why  no   
 
Mrs  Thatcher turned pale  and sank into a pew  just as Aunt Polly  
talking briskly with a friend  passed by  Aunt Polly said  
 
 Good morning  Mrs  Thatcher  Good morning  Mrs  Harper  I ve got a 
boy that s turned up missing  I reckon my Tom stayed at your house last 
night  one of you  And now he s afraid to come to church  I ve got to 
settle with him   
 
Mrs  Thatcher shook her head feebly and turned paler than ever  
 
 He didn t stay with us   said Mrs  Harper  beginning to look uneasy  
A marked anxiety came into Aunt Polly s face  
 
 Joe Harper  have you seen my Tom this morning   
 
 No m   
 
 When did you see him last   
 
Joe tried to remember  but was not sure he could say  The people had 
stopped moving out of church  Whispers passed along  and a boding 
uneasiness took possession of every countenance  Children were 
anxiously questioned  and young teachers  They all said they had not 
noticed whether Tom and Becky were on board the ferryboat on the 
homeward trip  it was dark  no one thought of inquiring if any one was 
missing  One young man finally blurted out his fear that they were 
still in the cave  Mrs  Thatcher swooned away  Aunt Polly fell to 
crying and wringing her hands  
 
The alarm swept from lip to lip  from group to group  from street to 
street  and within five minutes the bells were wildly clanging and the 
whole town was up  The Cardiff Hill episode sank into instant 
insignificance  the burglars were forgotten  horses were saddled  
skiffs were manned  the ferryboat ordered out  and before the horror 
was half an hour old  two hundred men were pouring down highroad and 
river toward the cave  
 
All the long afternoon the village seemed empty and dead  Many women 
visited Aunt Polly and Mrs  Thatcher and tried to comfort them  They 
cried with them  too  and that was still better than words  All the 
tedious night the town waited for news  but when the morning dawned at 
last  all the word that came was   Send more candles  and send food   
Mrs  Thatcher was almost crazed  and Aunt Polly  also  Judge Thatcher 
sent messages of hope and encouragement from the cave  but they 
conveyed no real cheer  
 
The old Welshman came home toward daylight  spattered with 
candle grease  smeared with clay  and almost worn out  He found Huck 
still in the bed that had been provided for him  and delirious with 
fever  The physicians were all at the cave  so the Widow Douglas came 
and took charge of the patient  She said she would do her best by him  
because  whether he was good  bad  or indifferent  he was the Lord s  
and nothing that was the Lord s was a thing to be neglected  The 
Welshman said Huck had good spots in him  and the widow said  
 
 You can depend on it  That s the Lord s mark  He don t leave it off  
He never does  Puts it somewhere on every creature that comes from his 
hands   
 
Early in the forenoon parties of jaded men began to straggle into the 
village  but the strongest of the citizens continued searching  All the 
news that could be gained was that remotenesses of the cavern were 
being ransacked that had never been visited before  that every corner 
and crevice was going to be thoroughly searched  that wherever one 
wandered through the maze of passages  lights were to be seen flitting 
hither and thither in the distance  and shoutings and pistol shots sent 
their hollow reverberations to the ear down the sombre aisles  In one 
place  far from the section usually traversed by tourists  the names 
 BECKY   TOM  had been found traced upon the rocky wall with 
candle smoke  and near at hand a grease soiled bit of ribbon  Mrs  
Thatcher recognized the ribbon and cried over it  She said it was the 
last relic she should ever have of her child  and that no other memorial 
of her could ever be so precious  because this one parted latest from 
the living body before the awful death came  Some said that now and 
then  in the cave  a far away speck of light would glimmer  and then a 
glorious shout would burst forth and a score of men go trooping down the 
echoing aisle  and then a sickening disappointment always followed  the 
children were not there  it was only a searcher s light  
 
Three dreadful days and nights dragged their tedious hours along  and 
the village sank into a hopeless stupor  No one had heart for anything  
The accidental discovery  just made  that the proprietor of the 
Temperance Tavern kept liquor on his premises  scarcely fluttered the 
public pulse  tremendous as the fact was  In a lucid interval  Huck 
feebly led up to the subject of taverns  and finally asked  dimly 
dreading the worst  if anything had been discovered at the Temperance 
Tavern since he had been ill  
 
 Yes   said the widow  
 
Huck started up in bed  wild eyed  
 
 What  What was it   
 
 Liquor   and the place has been shut up  Lie down  child  what a turn 
you did give me   
 
 Only tell me just one thing  only just one  please  Was it Tom Sawyer 
that found it   
 
The widow burst into tears   Hush  hush  child  hush  I ve told you 
before  you must NOT talk  You are very  very sick   
 
Then nothing but liquor had been found  there would have been a great 
powwow if it had been the gold  So the treasure was gone forever  gone 
forever  But what could she be crying about  Curious that she should 
cry  
 
These thoughts worked their dim way through Huck s mind  and under the 
weariness they gave him he fell asleep  The widow said to herself  
 
 There  he s asleep  poor wreck  Tom Sawyer find it  Pity but somebody 
could find Tom Sawyer  Ah  there ain t many left  now  that s got hope 
enough  or strength enough  either  to go on searching   
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXXI 
 
NOW to return to Tom and Becky s share in the picnic  They tripped 
along the murky aisles with the rest of the company  visiting the 
familiar wonders of the cave  wonders dubbed with rather 
over descriptive names  such as  The Drawing Room    The Cathedral   
 Aladdin s Palace   and so on  Presently the hide and seek frolicking 
began  and Tom and Becky engaged in it with zeal until the exertion 
began to grow a trifle wearisome  then they wandered down a sinuous 
avenue holding their candles aloft and reading the tangled web work of 
names  dates  post office addresses  and mottoes with which the rocky 
walls had been frescoed  in candle smoke   Still drifting along and 
talking  they scarcely noticed that they were now in a part of the cave 
whose walls were not frescoed  They smoked their own names under an 
overhanging shelf and moved on  Presently they came to a place where a 
little stream of water  trickling over a ledge and carrying a limestone 
sediment with it  had  in the slow dragging ages  formed a laced and 
ruffled Niagara in gleaming and imperishable stone  Tom squeezed his 
small body behind it in order to illuminate it for Becky s 
gratification  He found that it curtained a sort of steep natural 
stairway which was enclosed between narrow walls  and at once the 
ambition to be a discoverer seized him  Becky responded to his call  
and they made a smoke mark for future guidance  and started upon their 
quest  They wound this way and that  far down into the secret depths of 
the cave  made another mark  and branched off in search of novelties to 
tell the upper world about  In one place they found a spacious cavern  
from whose ceiling depended a multitude of shining stalactites of the 
length and circumference of a man s leg  they walked all about it  
wondering and admiring  and presently left it by one of the numerous 
passages that opened into it  This shortly brought them to a bewitching 
spring  whose basin was incrusted with a frostwork of glittering 
crystals  it was in the midst of a cavern whose walls were supported by 
many fantastic pillars which had been formed by the joining of great 
stalactites and stalagmites together  the result of the ceaseless 
water drip of centuries  Under the roof vast knots of bats had packed 
themselves together  thousands in a bunch  the lights disturbed the 
creatures and they came flocking down by hundreds  squeaking and 
darting furiously at the candles  Tom knew their ways and the danger of 
this sort of conduct  He seized Becky s hand and hurried her into the 
first corridor that offered  and none too soon  for a bat struck 
Becky s light out with its wing while she was passing out of the 
cavern  The bats chased the children a good distance  but the fugitives 
plunged into every new passage that offered  and at last got rid of the 
perilous things  Tom found a subterranean lake  shortly  which 
stretched its dim length away until its shape was lost in the shadows  
He wanted to explore its borders  but concluded that it would be best 
to sit down and rest awhile  first  Now  for the first time  the deep 
stillness of the place laid a clammy hand upon the spirits of the 
children  Becky said  
 
 Why  I didn t notice  but it seems ever so long since I heard any of 
the others   
 
 Come to think  Becky  we are away down below them  and I don t know 
how far away north  or south  or east  or whichever it is  We couldn t 
hear them here   
 
Becky grew apprehensive  
 
 I wonder how long we ve been down here  Tom  We better start back   
 
 Yes  I reckon we better  P raps we better   
 
 Can you find the way  Tom  It s all a mixed up crookedness to me   
 
 I reckon I could find it  but then the bats  If they put our candles 
out it will be an awful fix  Let s try some other way  so as not to go 
through there   
 
 Well  But I hope we won t get lost  It would be so awful   and the 
girl shuddered at the thought of the dreadful possibilities  
 
They started through a corridor  and traversed it in silence a long 
way  glancing at each new opening  to see if there was anything 
familiar about the look of it  but they were all strange  Every time 
Tom made an examination  Becky would watch his face for an encouraging 
sign  and he would say cheerily  
 
 Oh  it s all right  This ain t the one  but we ll come to it right 
away   
 
But he felt less and less hopeful with each failure  and presently 
began to turn off into diverging avenues at sheer random  in desperate 
hope of finding the one that was wanted  He still said it was  all 
right   but there was such a leaden dread at his heart that the words 
had lost their ring and sounded just as if he had said   All is lost   
Becky clung to his side in an anguish of fear  and tried hard to keep 
back the tears  but they would come  At last she said  
 
 Oh  Tom  never mind the bats  let s go back that way  We seem to get 
worse and worse off all the time   
 
 Listen   said he  
 
Profound silence  silence so deep that even their breathings were 
conspicuous in the hush  Tom shouted  The call went echoing down the 
empty aisles and died out in the distance in a faint sound that 
resembled a ripple of mocking laughter  
 
 Oh  don t do it again  Tom  it is too horrid   said Becky  
 
 It is horrid  but I better  Becky  they might hear us  you know   and 
he shouted again  
 
The  might  was even a chillier horror than the ghostly laughter  it 
so confessed a perishing hope  The children stood still and listened  
but there was no result  Tom turned upon the back track at once  and 
hurried his steps  It was but a little while before a certain 
indecision in his manner revealed another fearful fact to Becky  he 
could not find his way back  
 
 Oh  Tom  you didn t make any marks   
 
 Becky  I was such a fool  Such a fool  I never thought we might want 
to come back  No  I can t find the way  It s all mixed up   
 
 Tom  Tom  we re lost  we re lost  We never can get out of this awful 
place  Oh  why DID we ever leave the others   
 
She sank to the ground and burst into such a frenzy of crying that Tom 
was appalled with the idea that she might die  or lose her reason  He 
sat down by her and put his arms around her  she buried her face in his 
bosom  she clung to him  she poured out her terrors  her unavailing 
regrets  and the far echoes turned them all to jeering laughter  Tom 
begged her to pluck up hope again  and she said she could not  He fell 
to blaming and abusing himself for getting her into this miserable 
situation  this had a better effect  She said she would try to hope 
again  she would get up and follow wherever he might lead if only he 
would not talk like that any more  For he was no more to blame than 
she  she said  
 
So they moved on again  aimlessly  simply at random  all they could do 
was to move  keep moving  For a little while  hope made a show of 
reviving  not with any reason to back it  but only because it is its 
nature to revive when the spring has not been taken out of it by age 
and familiarity with failure  
 
By and by Tom took Becky s candle and blew it out  This economy meant 
so much  Words were not needed  Becky understood  and her hope died 
again  She knew that Tom had a whole candle and three or four pieces in 
his pockets  yet he must economize  
 
By and by  fatigue began to assert its claims  the children tried to 
pay attention  for it was dreadful to think of sitting down when time 
was grown to be so precious  moving  in some direction  in any 
direction  was at least progress and might bear fruit  but to sit down 
was to invite death and shorten its pursuit  
 
At last Becky s frail limbs refused to carry her farther  She sat 
down  Tom rested with her  and they talked of home  and the friends 
there  and the comfortable beds and  above all  the light  Becky cried  
and Tom tried to think of some way of comforting her  but all his 
encouragements were grown threadbare with use  and sounded like 
sarcasms  Fatigue bore so heavily upon Becky that she drowsed off to 
sleep  Tom was grateful  He sat looking into her drawn face and saw it 
grow smooth and natural under the influence of pleasant dreams  and 
by and by a smile dawned and rested there  The peaceful face reflected 
somewhat of peace and healing into his own spirit  and his thoughts 
wandered away to bygone times and dreamy memories  While he was deep in 
his musings  Becky woke up with a breezy little laugh  but it was 
stricken dead upon her lips  and a groan followed it  
 
 Oh  how COULD I sleep  I wish I never  never had waked  No  No  I 
don t  Tom  Don t look so  I won t say it again   
 
 I m glad you ve slept  Becky  you ll feel rested  now  and we ll find 
the way out   
 
 We can try  Tom  but I ve seen such a beautiful country in my dream  
I reckon we are going there   
 
 Maybe not  maybe not  Cheer up  Becky  and let s go on trying   
 
They rose up and wandered along  hand in hand and hopeless  They tried 
to estimate how long they had been in the cave  but all they knew was 
that it seemed days and weeks  and yet it was plain that this could not 
be  for their candles were not gone yet  A long time after this  they 
could not tell how long  Tom said they must go softly and listen for 
dripping water  they must find a spring  They found one presently  and 
Tom said it was time to rest again  Both were cruelly tired  yet Becky 
said she thought she could go a little farther  She was surprised to 
hear Tom dissent  She could not understand it  They sat down  and Tom 
fastened his candle to the wall in front of them with some clay  
Thought was soon busy  nothing was said for some time  Then Becky broke 
the silence  
 
 Tom  I am so hungry   
 
Tom took something out of his pocket  
 
 Do you remember this   said he  
 
Becky almost smiled  
 
 It s our wedding cake  Tom   
 
 Yes  I wish it was as big as a barrel  for it s all we ve got   
 
 I saved it from the picnic for us to dream on  Tom  the way grown up 
people do with wedding cake  but it ll be our    
 
She dropped the sentence where it was  Tom divided the cake and Becky 
ate with good appetite  while Tom nibbled at his moiety  There was 
abundance of cold water to finish the feast with  By and by Becky 
suggested that they move on again  Tom was silent a moment  Then he 
said  
 
 Becky  can you bear it if I tell you something   
 
Becky s face paled  but she thought she could  
 
 Well  then  Becky  we must stay here  where there s water to drink  
That little piece is our last candle   
 
Becky gave loose to tears and wailings  Tom did what he could to 
comfort her  but with little effect  At length Becky said  
 
 Tom   
 
 Well  Becky   
 
 They ll miss us and hunt for us   
 
 Yes  they will  Certainly they will   
 
 Maybe they re hunting for us now  Tom   
 
 Why  I reckon maybe they are  I hope they are   
 
 When would they miss us  Tom   
 
 When they get back to the boat  I reckon   
 
 Tom  it might be dark then  would they notice we hadn t come   
 
 I don t know  But anyway  your mother would miss you as soon as they 
got home   
 
A frightened look in Becky s face brought Tom to his senses and he saw 
that he had made a blunder  Becky was not to have gone home that night  
The children became silent and thoughtful  In a moment a new burst of 
grief from Becky showed Tom that the thing in his mind had struck hers 
also  that the Sabbath morning might be half spent before Mrs  Thatcher 
discovered that Becky was not at Mrs  Harper s  
 
The children fastened their eyes upon their bit of candle and watched 
it melt slowly and pitilessly away  saw the half inch of wick stand 
alone at last  saw the feeble flame rise and fall  climb the thin 
column of smoke  linger at its top a moment  and then  the horror of 
utter darkness reigned  
 
How long afterward it was that Becky came to a slow consciousness that 
she was crying in Tom s arms  neither could tell  All that they knew 
was  that after what seemed a mighty stretch of time  both awoke out of 
a dead stupor of sleep and resumed their miseries once more  Tom said 
it might be Sunday  now  maybe Monday  He tried to get Becky to talk  
but her sorrows were too oppressive  all her hopes were gone  Tom said 
that they must have been missed long ago  and no doubt the search was 
going on  He would shout and maybe some one would come  He tried it  
but in the darkness the distant echoes sounded so hideously that he 
tried it no more  
 
The hours wasted away  and hunger came to torment the captives again  
A portion of Tom s half of the cake was left  they divided and ate it  
But they seemed hungrier than before  The poor morsel of food only 
whetted desire  
 
By and by Tom said  
 
 SH  Did you hear that   
 
Both held their breath and listened  There was a sound like the 
faintest  far off shout  Instantly Tom answered it  and leading Becky 
by the hand  started groping down the corridor in its direction  
Presently he listened again  again the sound was heard  and apparently 
a little nearer  
 
 It s them   said Tom   they re coming  Come along  Becky  we re all 
right now   
 
The joy of the prisoners was almost overwhelming  Their speed was 
slow  however  because pitfalls were somewhat common  and had to be 
guarded against  They shortly came to one and had to stop  It might be 
three feet deep  it might be a hundred  there was no passing it at any 
rate  Tom got down on his breast and reached as far down as he could  
No bottom  They must stay there and wait until the searchers came  They 
listened  evidently the distant shoutings were growing more distant  a 
moment or two more and they had gone altogether  The heart sinking 
misery of it  Tom whooped until he was hoarse  but it was of no use  He 
talked hopefully to Becky  but an age of anxious waiting passed and no 
sounds came again  
 
The children groped their way back to the spring  The weary time 
dragged on  they slept again  and awoke famished and woe stricken  Tom 
believed it must be Tuesday by this time  
 
Now an idea struck him  There were some side passages near at hand  It 
would be better to explore some of these than bear the weight of the 
heavy time in idleness  He took a kite line from his pocket  tied it to 
a projection  and he and Becky started  Tom in the lead  unwinding the 
line as he groped along  At the end of twenty steps the corridor ended 
in a  jumping off place   Tom got down on his knees and felt below  and 
then as far around the corner as he could reach with his hands 
conveniently  he made an effort to stretch yet a little farther to the 
right  and at that moment  not twenty yards away  a human hand  holding 
a candle  appeared from behind a rock  Tom lifted up a glorious shout  
and instantly that hand was followed by the body it belonged to  Injun 
Joe s  Tom was paralyzed  he could not move  He was vastly gratified 
the next moment  to see the  Spaniard  take to his heels and get 
himself out of sight  Tom wondered that Joe had not recognized his 
voice and come over and killed him for testifying in court  But the 
echoes must have disguised the voice  Without doubt  that was it  he 
reasoned  Tom s fright weakened every muscle in his body  He said to 
himself that if he had strength enough to get back to the spring he 
would stay there  and nothing should tempt him to run the risk of 
meeting Injun Joe again  He was careful to keep from Becky what it was 
he had seen  He told her he had only shouted  for luck   
 
But hunger and wretchedness rise superior to fears in the long run  
Another tedious wait at the spring and another long sleep brought 
changes  The children awoke tortured with a raging hunger  Tom believed 
that it must be Wednesday or Thursday or even Friday or Saturday  now  
and that the search had been given over  He proposed to explore another 
passage  He felt willing to risk Injun Joe and all other terrors  But 
Becky was very weak  She had sunk into a dreary apathy and would not be 
roused  She said she would wait  now  where she was  and die  it would 
not be long  She told Tom to go with the kite line and explore if he 
chose  but she implored him to come back every little while and speak 
to her  and she made him promise that when the awful time came  he 
would stay by her and hold her hand until all was over  
 
Tom kissed her  with a choking sensation in his throat  and made a 
show of being confident of finding the searchers or an escape from the 
cave  then he took the kite line in his hand and went groping down one 
of the passages on his hands and knees  distressed with hunger and sick 
with bodings of coming doom  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXXII 
 
TUESDAY afternoon came  and waned to the twilight  The village of St  
Petersburg still mourned  The lost children had not been found  Public 
prayers had been offered up for them  and many and many a private 
prayer that had the petitioner s whole heart in it  but still no good 
news came from the cave  The majority of the searchers had given up the 
quest and gone back to their daily avocations  saying that it was plain 
the children could never be found  Mrs  Thatcher was very ill  and a 
great part of the time delirious  People said it was heartbreaking to 
hear her call her child  and raise her head and listen a whole minute 
at a time  then lay it wearily down again with a moan  Aunt Polly had 
drooped into a settled melancholy  and her gray hair had grown almost 
white  The village went to its rest on Tuesday night  sad and forlorn  
 
Away in the middle of the night a wild peal burst from the village 
bells  and in a moment the streets were swarming with frantic half clad 
people  who shouted   Turn out  turn out  they re found  they re 
found   Tin pans and horns were added to the din  the population massed 
itself and moved toward the river  met the children coming in an open 
carriage drawn by shouting citizens  thronged around it  joined its 
homeward march  and swept magnificently up the main street roaring 
huzzah after huzzah  
 
The village was illuminated  nobody went to bed again  it was the 
greatest night the little town had ever seen  During the first half hour 
a procession of villagers filed through Judge Thatcher s house  seized 
the saved ones and kissed them  squeezed Mrs  Thatcher s hand  tried to 
speak but couldn t  and drifted out raining tears all over the place  
 
Aunt Polly s happiness was complete  and Mrs  Thatcher s nearly so  It 
would be complete  however  as soon as the messenger dispatched with 
the great news to the cave should get the word to her husband  Tom lay 
upon a sofa with an eager auditory about him and told the history of 
the wonderful adventure  putting in many striking additions to adorn it 
withal  and closed with a description of how he left Becky and went on 
an exploring expedition  how he followed two avenues as far as his 
kite line would reach  how he followed a third to the fullest stretch of 
the kite line  and was about to turn back when he glimpsed a far off 
speck that looked like daylight  dropped the line and groped toward it  
pushed his head and shoulders through a small hole  and saw the broad 
Mississippi rolling by  And if it had only happened to be night he would 
not have seen that speck of daylight and would not have explored that 
passage any more  He told how he went back for Becky and broke the good 
news and she told him not to fret her with such stuff  for she was 
tired  and knew she was going to die  and wanted to  He described how he 
labored with her and convinced her  and how she almost died for joy when 
she had groped to where she actually saw the blue speck of daylight  how 
he pushed his way out at the hole and then helped her out  how they sat 
there and cried for gladness  how some men came along in a skiff and Tom 
hailed them and told them their situation and their famished condition  
how the men didn t believe the wild tale at first   because   said they  
 you are five miles down the river below the valley the cave is in  
  then took them aboard  rowed to a house  gave them supper  made them 
rest till two or three hours after dark and then brought them home  
 
Before day dawn  Judge Thatcher and the handful of searchers with him 
were tracked out  in the cave  by the twine clews they had strung 
behind them  and informed of the great news  
 
Three days and nights of toil and hunger in the cave were not to be 
shaken off at once  as Tom and Becky soon discovered  They were 
bedridden all of Wednesday and Thursday  and seemed to grow more and 
more tired and worn  all the time  Tom got about  a little  on 
Thursday  was down town Friday  and nearly as whole as ever Saturday  
but Becky did not leave her room until Sunday  and then she looked as 
if she had passed through a wasting illness  
 
Tom learned of Huck s sickness and went to see him on Friday  but 
could not be admitted to the bedroom  neither could he on Saturday or 
Sunday  He was admitted daily after that  but was warned to keep still 
about his adventure and introduce no exciting topic  The Widow Douglas 
stayed by to see that he obeyed  At home Tom learned of the Cardiff 
Hill event  also that the  ragged man s  body had eventually been found 
in the river near the ferry landing  he had been drowned while trying 
to escape  perhaps  
 
About a fortnight after Tom s rescue from the cave  he started off to 
visit Huck  who had grown plenty strong enough  now  to hear exciting 
talk  and Tom had some that would interest him  he thought  Judge 
Thatcher s house was on Tom s way  and he stopped to see Becky  The 
Judge and some friends set Tom to talking  and some one asked him 
ironically if he wouldn t like to go to the cave again  Tom said he 
thought he wouldn t mind it  The Judge said  
 
 Well  there are others just like you  Tom  I ve not the least doubt  
But we have taken care of that  Nobody will get lost in that cave any 
more   
 
 Why   
 
 Because I had its big door sheathed with boiler iron two weeks ago  
and triple locked  and I ve got the keys   
 
Tom turned as white as a sheet  
 
 What s the matter  boy  Here  run  somebody  Fetch a glass of water   
 
The water was brought and thrown into Tom s face  
 
 Ah  now you re all right  What was the matter with you  Tom   
 
 Oh  Judge  Injun Joe s in the cave   
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXXIII 
 
WITHIN a few minutes the news had spread  and a dozen skiff loads of 
men were on their way to McDougal s cave  and the ferryboat  well 
filled with passengers  soon followed  Tom Sawyer was in the skiff that 
bore Judge Thatcher  
 
When the cave door was unlocked  a sorrowful sight presented itself in 
the dim twilight of the place  Injun Joe lay stretched upon the ground  
dead  with his face close to the crack of the door  as if his longing 
eyes had been fixed  to the latest moment  upon the light and the cheer 
of the free world outside  Tom was touched  for he knew by his own 
experience how this wretch had suffered  His pity was moved  but 
nevertheless he felt an abounding sense of relief and security  now  
which revealed to him in a degree which he had not fully appreciated 
before how vast a weight of dread had been lying upon him since the day 
he lifted his voice against this bloody minded outcast  
 
Injun Joe s bowie knife lay close by  its blade broken in two  The 
great foundation beam of the door had been chipped and hacked through  
with tedious labor  useless labor  too  it was  for the native rock 
formed a sill outside it  and upon that stubborn material the knife had 
wrought no effect  the only damage done was to the knife itself  But if 
there had been no stony obstruction there the labor would have been 
useless still  for if the beam had been wholly cut away Injun Joe could 
not have squeezed his body under the door  and he knew it  So he had 
only hacked that place in order to be doing something  in order to pass 
the weary time  in order to employ his tortured faculties  Ordinarily 
one could find half a dozen bits of candle stuck around in the crevices 
of this vestibule  left there by tourists  but there were none now  The 
prisoner had searched them out and eaten them  He had also contrived to 
catch a few bats  and these  also  he had eaten  leaving only their 
claws  The poor unfortunate had starved to death  In one place  near at 
hand  a stalagmite had been slowly growing up from the ground for ages  
builded by the water drip from a stalactite overhead  The captive had 
broken off the stalagmite  and upon the stump had placed a stone  
wherein he had scooped a shallow hollow to catch the precious drop 
that fell once in every three minutes with the dreary regularity of a 
clock tick  a dessertspoonful once in four and twenty hours  That drop 
was falling when the Pyramids were new  when Troy fell  when the 
foundations of Rome were laid when Christ was crucified  when the 
Conqueror created the British empire  when Columbus sailed  when the 
massacre at Lexington was  news   It is falling now  it will still be 
falling when all these things shall have sunk down the afternoon of 
history  and the twilight of tradition  and been swallowed up in the 
thick night of oblivion  Has everything a purpose and a mission  Did 
this drop fall patiently during five thousand years to be ready for 
this flitting human insect s need  and has it another important object 
to accomplish ten thousand years to come  No matter  It is many and 
many a year since the hapless half breed scooped out the stone to catch 
the priceless drops  but to this day the tourist stares longest at that 
pathetic stone and that slow dropping water when he comes to see the 
wonders of McDougal s cave  Injun Joe s cup stands first in the list of 
the cavern s marvels  even  Aladdin s Palace  cannot rival it  
 
Injun Joe was buried near the mouth of the cave  and people flocked 
there in boats and wagons from the towns and from all the farms and 
hamlets for seven miles around  they brought their children  and all 
sorts of provisions  and confessed that they had had almost as 
satisfactory a time at the funeral as they could have had at the 
hanging  
 
This funeral stopped the further growth of one thing  the petition to 
the governor for Injun Joe s pardon  The petition had been largely 
signed  many tearful and eloquent meetings had been held  and a 
committee of sappy women been appointed to go in deep mourning and wail 
around the governor  and implore him to be a merciful ass and trample 
his duty under foot  Injun Joe was believed to have killed five 
citizens of the village  but what of that  If he had been Satan himself 
there would have been plenty of weaklings ready to scribble their names 
to a pardon petition  and drip a tear on it from their permanently 
impaired and leaky water works  
 
The morning after the funeral Tom took Huck to a private place to have 
an important talk  Huck had learned all about Tom s adventure from the 
Welshman and the Widow Douglas  by this time  but Tom said he reckoned 
there was one thing they had not told him  that thing was what he 
wanted to talk about now  Huck s face saddened  He said  
 
 I know what it is  You got into No    and never found anything but 
whiskey  Nobody told me it was you  but I just knowed it must  a  ben 
you  soon as I heard  bout that whiskey business  and I knowed you 
hadn t got the money becuz you d  a  got at me some way or other and 
told me even if you was mum to everybody else  Tom  something s always 
told me we d never get holt of that swag   
 
 Why  Huck  I never told on that tavern keeper  YOU know his tavern 
was all right the Saturday I went to the picnic  Don t you remember you 
was to watch there that night   
 
 Oh yes  Why  it seems  bout a year ago  It was that very night that I 
follered Injun Joe to the widder s   
 
 YOU followed him   
 
 Yes  but you keep mum  I reckon Injun Joe s left friends behind him  
and I don t want  em souring on me and doing me mean tricks  If it 
hadn t ben for me he d be down in Texas now  all right   
 
Then Huck told his entire adventure in confidence to Tom  who had only 
heard of the Welshman s part of it before  
 
 Well   said Huck  presently  coming back to the main question  
 whoever nipped the whiskey in No     nipped the money  too  I reckon 
  anyways it s a goner for us  Tom   
 
 Huck  that money wasn t ever in No      
 
 What   Huck searched his comrade s face keenly   Tom  have you got on 
the track of that money again   
 
 Huck  it s in the cave   
 
Huck s eyes blazed  
 
 Say it again  Tom   
 
 The money s in the cave   
 
 Tom  honest injun  now  is it fun  or earnest   
 
 Earnest  Huck  just as earnest as ever I was in my life  Will you go 
in there with me and help get it out   
 
 I bet I will  I will if it s where we can blaze our way to it and not 
get lost   
 
 Huck  we can do that without the least little bit of trouble in the 
world   
 
 Good as wheat  What makes you think the money s    
 
 Huck  you just wait till we get in there  If we don t find it I ll 
agree to give you my drum and every thing I ve got in the world  I 
will  by jings   
 
 All right  it s a whiz  When do you say   
 
 Right now  if you say it  Are you strong enough   
 
 Is it far in the cave  I ben on my pins a little  three or four days  
now  but I can t walk more n a mile  Tom  least I don t think I could   
 
 It s about five mile into there the way anybody but me would go  
Huck  but there s a mighty short cut that they don t anybody but me 
know about  Huck  I ll take you right to it in a skiff  I ll float the 
skiff down there  and I ll pull it back again all by myself  You 
needn t ever turn your hand over   
 
 Less start right off  Tom   
 
 All right  We want some bread and meat  and our pipes  and a little 
bag or two  and two or three kite strings  and some of these 
new fangled things they call lucifer matches  I tell you  many s 
the time I wished I had some when I was in there before   
 
A trifle after noon the boys borrowed a small skiff from a citizen who 
was absent  and got under way at once  When they were several miles 
below  Cave Hollow   Tom said  
 
 Now you see this bluff here looks all alike all the way down from the 
cave hollow  no houses  no wood yards  bushes all alike  But do you see 
that white place up yonder where there s been a landslide  Well  that s 
one of my marks  We ll get ashore  now   
 
They landed  
 
 Now  Huck  where we re a standing you could touch that hole I got out 
of with a fishing pole  See if you can find it   
 
Huck searched all the place about  and found nothing  Tom proudly 
marched into a thick clump of sumach bushes and said  
 
 Here you are  Look at it  Huck  it s the snuggest hole in this 
country  You just keep mum about it  All along I ve been wanting to be 
a robber  but I knew I d got to have a thing like this  and where to 
run across it was the bother  We ve got it now  and we ll keep it 
quiet  only we ll let Joe Harper and Ben Rogers in  because of course 
there s got to be a Gang  or else there wouldn t be any style about it  
Tom Sawyer s Gang  it sounds splendid  don t it  Huck   
 
 Well  it just does  Tom  And who ll we rob   
 
 Oh  most anybody  Waylay people  that s mostly the way   
 
 And kill them   
 
 No  not always  Hive them in the cave till they raise a ransom   
 
 What s a ransom   
 
 Money  You make them raise all they can  off n their friends  and 
after you ve kept them a year  if it ain t raised then you kill them  
That s the general way  Only you don t kill the women  You shut up the 
women  but you don t kill them  They re always beautiful and rich  and 
awfully scared  You take their watches and things  but you always take 
your hat off and talk polite  They ain t anybody as polite as robbers 
  you ll see that in any book  Well  the women get to loving you  and 
after they ve been in the cave a week or two weeks they stop crying and 
after that you couldn t get them to leave  If you drove them out they d 
turn right around and come back  It s so in all the books   
 
 Why  it s real bully  Tom  I believe it s better n to be a pirate   
 
 Yes  it s better in some ways  because it s close to home and 
circuses and all that   
 
By this time everything was ready and the boys entered the hole  Tom 
in the lead  They toiled their way to the farther end of the tunnel  
then made their spliced kite strings fast and moved on  A few steps 
brought them to the spring  and Tom felt a shudder quiver all through 
him  He showed Huck the fragment of candle wick perched on a lump of 
clay against the wall  and described how he and Becky had watched the 
flame struggle and expire  
 
The boys began to quiet down to whispers  now  for the stillness and 
gloom of the place oppressed their spirits  They went on  and presently 
entered and followed Tom s other corridor until they reached the 
 jumping off place   The candles revealed the fact that it was not 
really a precipice  but only a steep clay hill twenty or thirty feet 
high  Tom whispered  
 
 Now I ll show you something  Huck   
 
He held his candle aloft and said  
 
 Look as far around the corner as you can  Do you see that  There  on 
the big rock over yonder  done with candle smoke   
 
 Tom  it s a CROSS   
 
 NOW where s your Number Two   UNDER THE CROSS   hey  Right yonder s 
where I saw Injun Joe poke up his candle  Huck   
 
Huck stared at the mystic sign awhile  and then said with a shaky voice  
 
 Tom  less git out of here   
 
 What  and leave the treasure   
 
 Yes  leave it  Injun Joe s ghost is round about there  certain   
 
 No it ain t  Huck  no it ain t  It would ha nt the place where he 
died  away out at the mouth of the cave  five mile from here   
 
 No  Tom  it wouldn t  It would hang round the money  I know the ways 
of ghosts  and so do you   
 
Tom began to fear that Huck was right  Misgivings gathered in his 
mind  But presently an idea occurred to him   
 
 Lookyhere  Huck  what fools we re making of ourselves  Injun Joe s 
ghost ain t a going to come around where there s a cross   
 
The point was well taken  It had its effect  
 
 Tom  I didn t think of that  But that s so  It s luck for us  that 
cross is  I reckon we ll climb down there and have a hunt for that box   
 
Tom went first  cutting rude steps in the clay hill as he descended  
Huck followed  Four avenues opened out of the small cavern which the 
great rock stood in  The boys examined three of them with no result  
They found a small recess in the one nearest the base of the rock  with 
a pallet of blankets spread down in it  also an old suspender  some 
bacon rind  and the well gnawed bones of two or three fowls  But there 
was no money box  The lads searched and researched this place  but in 
vain  Tom said  
 
 He said UNDER the cross  Well  this comes nearest to being under the 
cross  It can t be under the rock itself  because that sets solid on 
the ground   
 
They searched everywhere once more  and then sat down discouraged  
Huck could suggest nothing  By and by Tom said  
 
 Lookyhere  Huck  there s footprints and some candle grease on the 
clay about one side of this rock  but not on the other sides  Now  
what s that for  I bet you the money IS under the rock  I m going to 
dig in the clay   
 
 That ain t no bad notion  Tom   said Huck with animation  
 
Tom s  real Barlow  was out at once  and he had not dug four inches 
before he struck wood  
 
 Hey  Huck   you hear that   
 
Huck began to dig and scratch now  Some boards were soon uncovered and 
removed  They had concealed a natural chasm which led under the rock  
Tom got into this and held his candle as far under the rock as he 
could  but said he could not see to the end of the rift  He proposed to 
explore  He stooped and passed under  the narrow way descended 
gradually  He followed its winding course  first to the right  then to 
the left  Huck at his heels  Tom turned a short curve  by and by  and 
exclaimed  
 
 My goodness  Huck  lookyhere   
 
It was the treasure box  sure enough  occupying a snug little cavern  
along with an empty powder keg  a couple of guns in leather cases  two 
or three pairs of old moccasins  a leather belt  and some other rubbish 
well soaked with the water drip  
 
 Got it at last   said Huck  ploughing among the tarnished coins with 
his hand   My  but we re rich  Tom   
 
 Huck  I always reckoned we d get it  It s just too good to believe  
but we HAVE got it  sure  Say  let s not fool around here  Let s snake 
it out  Lemme see if I can lift the box   
 
It weighed about fifty pounds  Tom could lift it  after an awkward 
fashion  but could not carry it conveniently  
 
 I thought so   he said   THEY carried it like it was heavy  that day 
at the ha nted house  I noticed that  I reckon I was right to think of 
fetching the little bags along   
 
The money was soon in the bags and the boys took it up to the cross 
rock  
 
 Now less fetch the guns and things   said Huck  
 
 No  Huck  leave them there  They re just the tricks to have when we 
go to robbing  We ll keep them there all the time  and we ll hold our 
orgies there  too  It s an awful snug place for orgies   
 
 What orgies   
 
 I dono  But robbers always have orgies  and of course we ve got to 
have them  too  Come along  Huck  we ve been in here a long time  It s 
getting late  I reckon  I m hungry  too  We ll eat and smoke when we 
get to the skiff   
 
They presently emerged into the clump of sumach bushes  looked warily 
out  found the coast clear  and were soon lunching and smoking in the 
skiff  As the sun dipped toward the horizon they pushed out and got 
under way  Tom skimmed up the shore through the long twilight  chatting 
cheerily with Huck  and landed shortly after dark  
 
 Now  Huck   said Tom   we ll hide the money in the loft of the 
widow s woodshed  and I ll come up in the morning and we ll count it 
and divide  and then we ll hunt up a place out in the woods for it 
where it will be safe  Just you lay quiet here and watch the stuff till 
I run and hook Benny Taylor s little wagon  I won t be gone a minute   
 
He disappeared  and presently returned with the wagon  put the two 
small sacks into it  threw some old rags on top of them  and started 
off  dragging his cargo behind him  When the boys reached the 
Welshman s house  they stopped to rest  Just as they were about to move 
on  the Welshman stepped out and said  
 
 Hallo  who s that   
 
 Huck and Tom Sawyer   
 
 Good  Come along with me  boys  you are keeping everybody waiting  
Here  hurry up  trot ahead  I ll haul the wagon for you  Why  it s not 
as light as it might be  Got bricks in it   or old metal   
 
 Old metal   said Tom  
 
 I judged so  the boys in this town will take more trouble and fool 
away more time hunting up six bits  worth of old iron to sell to the 
foundry than they would to make twice the money at regular work  But 
that s human nature  hurry along  hurry along   
 
The boys wanted to know what the hurry was about  
 
 Never mind  you ll see  when we get to the Widow Douglas    
 
Huck said with some apprehension  for he was long used to being 
falsely accused  
 
 Mr  Jones  we haven t been doing nothing   
 
The Welshman laughed  
 
 Well  I don t know  Huck  my boy  I don t know about that  Ain t you 
and the widow good friends   
 
 Yes  Well  she s ben good friends to me  anyway   
 
 All right  then  What do you want to be afraid for   
 
This question was not entirely answered in Huck s slow mind before he 
found himself pushed  along with Tom  into Mrs  Douglas  drawing room  
Mr  Jones left the wagon near the door and followed  
 
The place was grandly lighted  and everybody that was of any 
consequence in the village was there  The Thatchers were there  the 
Harpers  the Rogerses  Aunt Polly  Sid  Mary  the minister  the editor  
and a great many more  and all dressed in their best  The widow 
received the boys as heartily as any one could well receive two such 
looking beings  They were covered with clay and candle grease  Aunt 
Polly blushed crimson with humiliation  and frowned and shook her head 
at Tom  Nobody suffered half as much as the two boys did  however  Mr  
Jones said  
 
 Tom wasn t at home  yet  so I gave him up  but I stumbled on him and 
Huck right at my door  and so I just brought them along in a hurry   
 
 And you did just right   said the widow   Come with me  boys   
 
She took them to a bedchamber and said  
 
 Now wash and dress yourselves  Here are two new suits of clothes 
  shirts  socks  everything complete  They re Huck s  no  no thanks  
Huck  Mr  Jones bought one and I the other  But they ll fit both of you  
Get into them  We ll wait  come down when you are slicked up enough   
 
Then she left  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXXIV 
 
HUCK said   Tom  we can slope  if we can find a rope  The window ain t 
high from the ground   
 
 Shucks  what do you want to slope for   
 
 Well  I ain t used to that kind of a crowd  I can t stand it  I ain t 
going down there  Tom   
 
 Oh  bother  It ain t anything  I don t mind it a bit  I ll take care 
of you   
 
Sid appeared  
 
 Tom   said he   auntie has been waiting for you all the afternoon  
Mary got your Sunday clothes ready  and everybody s been fretting about 
you  Say  ain t this grease and clay  on your clothes   
 
 Now  Mr  Siddy  you jist  tend to your own business  What s all this 
blow out about  anyway   
 
 It s one of the widow s parties that she s always having  This time 
it s for the Welshman and his sons  on account of that scrape they 
helped her out of the other night  And say  I can tell you something  
if you want to know   
 
 Well  what   
 
 Why  old Mr  Jones is going to try to spring something on the people 
here to night  but I overheard him tell auntie to day about it  as a 
secret  but I reckon it s not much of a secret now  Everybody knows 
  the widow  too  for all she tries to let on she don t  Mr  Jones was 
bound Huck should be here  couldn t get along with his grand secret 
without Huck  you know   
 
 Secret about what  Sid   
 
 About Huck tracking the robbers to the widow s  I reckon Mr  Jones 
was going to make a grand time over his surprise  but I bet you it will 
drop pretty flat   
 
Sid chuckled in a very contented and satisfied way  
 
 Sid  was it you that told   
 
 Oh  never mind who it was  SOMEBODY told  that s enough   
 
 Sid  there s only one person in this town mean enough to do that  and 
that s you  If you had been in Huck s place you d  a  sneaked down the 
hill and never told anybody on the robbers  You can t do any but mean 
things  and you can t bear to see anybody praised for doing good ones  
There  no thanks  as the widow says   and Tom cuffed Sid s ears and 
helped him to the door with several kicks   Now go and tell auntie if 
you dare  and to morrow you ll catch it   
 
Some minutes later the widow s guests were at the supper table  and a 
dozen children were propped up at little side tables in the same room  
after the fashion of that country and that day  At the proper time Mr  
Jones made his little speech  in which he thanked the widow for the 
honor she was doing himself and his sons  but said that there was 
another person whose modesty   
 
And so forth and so on  He sprung his secret about Huck s share in the 
adventure in the finest dramatic manner he was master of  but the 
surprise it occasioned was largely counterfeit and not as clamorous and 
effusive as it might have been under happier circumstances  However  
the widow made a pretty fair show of astonishment  and heaped so many 
compliments and so much gratitude upon Huck that he almost forgot the 
nearly intolerable discomfort of his new clothes in the entirely 
intolerable discomfort of being set up as a target for everybody s gaze 
and everybody s laudations  
 
The widow said she meant to give Huck a home under her roof and have 
him educated  and that when she could spare the money she would start 
him in business in a modest way  Tom s chance was come  He said  
 
 Huck don t need it  Huck s rich   
 
Nothing but a heavy strain upon the good manners of the company kept 
back the due and proper complimentary laugh at this pleasant joke  But 
the silence was a little awkward  Tom broke it  
 
 Huck s got money  Maybe you don t believe it  but he s got lots of 
it  Oh  you needn t smile  I reckon I can show you  You just wait a 
minute   
 
Tom ran out of doors  The company looked at each other with a 
perplexed interest  and inquiringly at Huck  who was tongue tied  
 
 Sid  what ails Tom   said Aunt Polly   He  well  there ain t ever any 
making of that boy out  I never    
 
Tom entered  struggling with the weight of his sacks  and Aunt Polly 
did not finish her sentence  Tom poured the mass of yellow coin upon 
the table and said  
 
 There  what did I tell you  Half of it s Huck s and half of it s mine   
 
The spectacle took the general breath away  All gazed  nobody spoke 
for a moment  Then there was a unanimous call for an explanation  Tom 
said he could furnish it  and he did  The tale was long  but brimful of 
interest  There was scarcely an interruption from any one to break the 
charm of its flow  When he had finished  Mr  Jones said  
 
 I thought I had fixed up a little surprise for this occasion  but it 
don t amount to anything now  This one makes it sing mighty small  I m 
willing to allow   
 
The money was counted  The sum amounted to a little over twelve 
thousand dollars  It was more than any one present had ever seen at one 
time before  though several persons were there who were worth 
considerably more than that in property  
 
 
 
CHAPTER XXXV 
 
THE reader may rest satisfied that Tom s and Huck s windfall made a 
mighty stir in the poor little village of St  Petersburg  So vast a 
sum  all in actual cash  seemed next to incredible  It was talked 
about  gloated over  glorified  until the reason of many of the 
citizens tottered under the strain of the unhealthy excitement  Every 
 haunted  house in St  Petersburg and the neighboring villages was 
dissected  plank by plank  and its foundations dug up and ransacked for 
hidden treasure  and not by boys  but men  pretty grave  unromantic 
men  too  some of them  Wherever Tom and Huck appeared they were 
courted  admired  stared at  The boys were not able to remember that 
their remarks had possessed weight before  but now their sayings were 
treasured and repeated  everything they did seemed somehow to be 
regarded as remarkable  they had evidently lost the power of doing and 
saying commonplace things  moreover  their past history was raked up 
and discovered to bear marks of conspicuous originality  The village 
paper published biographical sketches of the boys  
 
The Widow Douglas put Huck s money out at six per cent   and Judge 
Thatcher did the same with Tom s at Aunt Polly s request  Each lad had 
an income  now  that was simply prodigious  a dollar for every week day 
in the year and half of the Sundays  It was just what the minister got 
  no  it was what he was promised  he generally couldn t collect it  A 
dollar and a quarter a week would board  lodge  and school a boy in 
those old simple days  and clothe him and wash him  too  for that 
matter  
 
Judge Thatcher had conceived a great opinion of Tom  He said that no 
commonplace boy would ever have got his daughter out of the cave  When 
Becky told her father  in strict confidence  how Tom had taken her 
whipping at school  the Judge was visibly moved  and when she pleaded 
grace for the mighty lie which Tom had told in order to shift that 
whipping from her shoulders to his own  the Judge said with a fine 
outburst that it was a noble  a generous  a magnanimous lie  a lie that 
was worthy to hold up its head and march down through history breast to 
breast with George Washington s lauded Truth about the hatchet  Becky 
thought her father had never looked so tall and so superb as when he 
walked the floor and stamped his foot and said that  She went straight 
off and told Tom about it  
 
Judge Thatcher hoped to see Tom a great lawyer or a great soldier some 
day  He said he meant to look to it that Tom should be admitted to the 
National Military Academy and afterward trained in the best law school 
in the country  in order that he might be ready for either career or 
both  
 
Huck Finn s wealth and the fact that he was now under the Widow 
Douglas  protection introduced him into society  no  dragged him into 
it  hurled him into it  and his sufferings were almost more than he 
could bear  The widow s servants kept him clean and neat  combed and 
brushed  and they bedded him nightly in unsympathetic sheets that had 
not one little spot or stain which he could press to his heart and know 
for a friend  He had to eat with a knife and fork  he had to use 
napkin  cup  and plate  he had to learn his book  he had to go to 
church  he had to talk so properly that speech was become insipid in 
his mouth  whithersoever he turned  the bars and shackles of 
civilization shut him in and bound him hand and foot  
 
He bravely bore his miseries three weeks  and then one day turned up 
missing  For forty eight hours the widow hunted for him everywhere in 
great distress  The public were profoundly concerned  they searched 
high and low  they dragged the river for his body  Early the third 
morning Tom Sawyer wisely went poking among some old empty hogsheads 
down behind the abandoned slaughter house  and in one of them he found 
the refugee  Huck had slept there  he had just breakfasted upon some 
stolen odds and ends of food  and was lying off  now  in comfort  with 
his pipe  He was unkempt  uncombed  and clad in the same old ruin of 
rags that had made him picturesque in the days when he was free and 
happy  Tom routed him out  told him the trouble he had been causing  
and urged him to go home  Huck s face lost its tranquil content  and 
took a melancholy cast  He said  
 
 Don t talk about it  Tom  I ve tried it  and it don t work  it don t 
work  Tom  It ain t for me  I ain t used to it  The widder s good to 
me  and friendly  but I can t stand them ways  She makes me get up just 
at the same time every morning  she makes me wash  they comb me all to 
thunder  she won t let me sleep in the woodshed  I got to wear them 
blamed clothes that just smothers me  Tom  they don t seem to any air 
git through  em  somehow  and they re so rotten nice that I can t set 
down  nor lay down  nor roll around anywher s  I hain t slid on a 
cellar door for  well  it  pears to be years  I got to go to church and 
sweat and sweat  I hate them ornery sermons  I can t ketch a fly in 
there  I can t chaw  I got to wear shoes all Sunday  The widder eats by 
a bell  she goes to bed by a bell  she gits up by a bell  everything s 
so awful reg lar a body can t stand it   
 
 Well  everybody does that way  Huck   
 
 Tom  it don t make no difference  I ain t everybody  and I can t 
STAND it  It s awful to be tied up so  And grub comes too easy  I don t 
take no interest in vittles  that way  I got to ask to go a fishing  I 
got to ask to go in a swimming  dern d if I hain t got to ask to do 
everything  Well  I d got to talk so nice it wasn t no comfort  I d got 
to go up in the attic and rip out awhile  every day  to git a taste in 
my mouth  or I d a died  Tom  The widder wouldn t let me smoke  she 
wouldn t let me yell  she wouldn t let me gape  nor stretch  nor 
scratch  before folks     Then with a spasm of special irritation and 
injury    And dad fetch it  she prayed all the time  I never see such a 
woman  I HAD to shove  Tom  I just had to  And besides  that school s 
going to open  and I d a had to go to it  well  I wouldn t stand THAT  
Tom  Looky here  Tom  being rich ain t what it s cracked up to be  It s 
just worry and worry  and sweat and sweat  and a wishing you was dead 
all the time  Now these clothes suits me  and this bar l suits me  and 
I ain t ever going to shake  em any more  Tom  I wouldn t ever got into 
all this trouble if it hadn t  a  ben for that money  now you just take 
my sheer of it along with your n  and gimme a ten center sometimes  not 
many times  becuz I don t give a dern for a thing  thout it s tollable 
hard to git  and you go and beg off for me with the widder   
 
 Oh  Huck  you know I can t do that   Tain t fair  and besides if 
you ll try this thing just a while longer you ll come to like it   
 
 Like it  Yes  the way I d like a hot stove if I was to set on it long 
enough  No  Tom  I won t be rich  and I won t live in them cussed 
smothery houses  I like the woods  and the river  and hogsheads  and 
I ll stick to  em  too  Blame it all  just as we d got guns  and a 
cave  and all just fixed to rob  here this dern foolishness has got to 
come up and spile it all   
 
Tom saw his opportunity   
 
 Lookyhere  Huck  being rich ain t going to keep me back from turning 
robber   
 
 No  Oh  good licks  are you in real dead wood earnest  Tom   
 
 Just as dead earnest as I m sitting here  But Huck  we can t let you 
into the gang if you ain t respectable  you know   
 
Huck s joy was quenched  
 
 Can t let me in  Tom  Didn t you let me go for a pirate   
 
 Yes  but that s different  A robber is more high toned than what a 
pirate is  as a general thing  In most countries they re awful high up 
in the nobility  dukes and such   
 
 Now  Tom  hain t you always ben friendly to me  You wouldn t shet me 
out  would you  Tom  You wouldn t do that  now  WOULD you  Tom   
 
 Huck  I wouldn t want to  and I DON T want to  but what would people 
say  Why  they d say   Mph  Tom Sawyer s Gang  pretty low characters in 
it   They d mean you  Huck  You wouldn t like that  and I wouldn t   
 
Huck was silent for some time  engaged in a mental struggle  Finally 
he said  
 
 Well  I ll go back to the widder for a month and tackle it and see if 
I can come to stand it  if you ll let me b long to the gang  Tom   
 
 All right  Huck  it s a whiz  Come along  old chap  and I ll ask the 
widow to let up on you a little  Huck   
 
 Will you  Tom  now will you  That s good  If she ll let up on some of 
the roughest things  I ll smoke private and cuss private  and crowd 
through or bust  When you going to start the gang and turn robbers   
 
 Oh  right off  We ll get the boys together and have the initiation 
to night  maybe   
 
 Have the which   
 
 Have the initiation   
 
 What s that   
 
 It s to swear to stand by one another  and never tell the gang s 
secrets  even if you re chopped all to flinders  and kill anybody and 
all his family that hurts one of the gang   
 
 That s gay  that s mighty gay  Tom  I tell you   
 
 Well  I bet it is  And all that swearing s got to be done at 
midnight  in the lonesomest  awfulest place you can find  a ha nted 
house is the best  but they re all ripped up now   
 
 Well  midnight s good  anyway  Tom   
 
 Yes  so it is  And you ve got to swear on a coffin  and sign it with 
blood   
 
 Now  that s something LIKE  Why  it s a million times bullier than 
pirating  I ll stick to the widder till I rot  Tom  and if I git to be 
a reg lar ripper of a robber  and everybody talking  bout it  I reckon 
she ll be proud she snaked me in out of the wet   
 
 
 
CONCLUSION 
 
SO endeth this chronicle  It being strictly a history of a BOY  it 
must stop here  the story could not go much further without becoming 
the history of a MAN  When one writes a novel about grown people  he 
knows exactly where to stop  that is  with a marriage  but when he 
writes of juveniles  he must stop where he best can  
 
Most of the characters that perform in this book still live  and are 
prosperous and happy  Some day it may seem worth while to take up the 
story of the younger ones again and see what sort of men and women they 
turned out to be  therefore it will be wisest not to reveal any of that 
part of their lives at present  
 
 
 
 
 
End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer  Complete 
by Mark Twain  Samuel Clemens  
 
    END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TOM SAWYER     
 
      This file should be named    txt or    zip       
This and all associated files of various formats will be found in  
        http   www gutenberg net       
 
Produced by David Widger  The previous edition was update by Jose 
Menendez  
 
 
Updated editions will replace the previous one  the old editions 
will be renamed  
 
Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no 
one owns a United States copyright in these works  so the Foundation 
 and you   can copy and distribute it in the United States without 
permission and without paying copyright royalties   Special rules  
set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license  apply to 
copying and distributing Project Gutenberg tm electronic works to 
protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG tm concept and trademark   Project 
Gutenberg is a registered trademark  and may not be used if you 
charge for the eBooks  unless you receive specific permission   If you 
do not charge anything for copies of this eBook  complying with the 
rules is very easy   You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose 
such as creation of derivative works  reports  performances and 
research   They may be modified and printed and given away  you may do 
practically ANYTHING with public domain eBooks   Redistribution is 
subject to the trademark license  especially commercial 
redistribution  
 
 
 
    START  FULL LICENSE     
 
THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE 
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK 
 
To protect the Project Gutenberg tm mission of promoting the free 
distribution of electronic works  by using or distributing this work 
 or any other work associated in any way with the phrase  Project 
Gutenberg    you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project 
Gutenberg tm License  available with this file or online at 
http   gutenberg net license   
 
 
Section     General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg tm 
electronic works 
 
  A   By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg tm 
electronic work  you indicate that you have read  understand  agree to 
and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property 
 trademark copyright  agreement   If you do not agree to abide by all 
the terms of this agreement  you must cease using and return or destroy 
all copies of Project Gutenberg tm electronic works in your possession  
If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project 
Gutenberg tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the 
terms of this agreement  you may obtain a refund from the person or 
entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph   E    
 
  B    Project Gutenberg  is a registered trademark   It may only be 
used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who 
agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement   There are a few 
things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg tm electronic works 
even without complying with the full terms of this agreement   See 
paragraph   C below   There are a lot of things you can do with Project 
Gutenberg tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement 
and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg tm electronic 
works   See paragraph   E below  
 
  C   The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation   the Foundation  
or PGLAF   owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project 
Gutenberg tm electronic works   Nearly all the individual works in the 
collection are in the public domain in the United States   If an 
individual work is in the public domain in the United States and you are 
located in the United States  we do not claim a right to prevent you from 
copying  distributing  performing  displaying or creating derivative 
works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg 
are removed   Of course  we hope that you will support the Project 
Gutenberg tm mission of promoting free access to electronic works by 
freely sharing Project Gutenberg tm works in compliance with the terms of 
this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg tm name associated with 
the work   You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by 
keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project 
Gutenberg tm License when you share it without charge with others  
 
  D   The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern 
what you can do with this work   Copyright laws in most countries are in 
a constant state of change   If you are outside the United States  check 
the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement 
before downloading  copying  displaying  performing  distributing or 
creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project 
Gutenberg tm work   The Foundation makes no representations concerning 
the copyright status of any work in any country outside the United 
States  
 
  E   Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg  
 
  E     The following sentence  with active links to  or other immediate 
access to  the full Project Gutenberg tm License must appear prominently 
whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg tm work  any work on which the 
phrase  Project Gutenberg  appears  or with which the phrase  Project 
Gutenberg  is associated  is accessed  displayed  performed  viewed  
copied or distributed  
 
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with 
almost no restrictions whatsoever   You may copy it  give it away or 
re use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included 
with this eBook or online at www gutenberg net 
 
  E     If an individual Project Gutenberg tm electronic work is derived 
from the public domain  does not contain a notice indicating that it is 
posted with permission of the copyright holder   the work can be copied 
and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees 
or charges   If you are redistributing or providing access to a work 
with the phrase  Project Gutenberg  associated with or appearing on the 
work  you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs   E   
through   E   or obtain permission for the use of the work and the 
Project Gutenberg tm trademark as set forth in paragraphs   E   or 
  E    
 
  E     If an individual Project Gutenberg tm electronic work is posted 
with the permission of the copyright holder  your use and distribution 
must comply with both paragraphs   E   through   E   and any additional 
terms imposed by the copyright holder   Additional terms will be linked 
to the Project Gutenberg tm License for all works posted with the 
permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work  
 
  E     Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg tm 
License terms from this work  or any files containing a part of this 
work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg tm  
 
  E     Do not copy  display  perform  distribute or redistribute this 
electronic work  or any part of this electronic work  without 
prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph   E   with 
active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project 
Gutenberg tm License  
 
  E     You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary  
compressed  marked up  nonproprietary or proprietary form  including any 
word processing or hypertext form   However  if you provide access to or 
distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg tm work in a format other than 
 Plain Vanilla ASCII  or other format used in the official version 
posted on the official Project Gutenberg tm web site  www gutenberg net   
you must  at no additional cost  fee or expense to the user  provide a 
copy  a means of exporting a copy  or a means of obtaining a copy upon 
request  of the work in its original  Plain Vanilla ASCII  or other 
form   Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg tm 
License as specified in paragraph   E    
 
  E     Do not charge a fee for access to  viewing  displaying  
performing  copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg tm works 
unless you comply with paragraph   E   or   E    
 
  E     You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing 
access to or distributing Project Gutenberg tm electronic works provided 
that 
 
  You pay a royalty fee of     of the gross profits you derive from 
     the use of Project Gutenberg tm works calculated using the method 
     you already use to calculate your applicable taxes   The fee is 
     owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg tm trademark  but he 
     has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the 
     Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation   Royalty payments 
     must be paid within    days following each date on which you 
     prepare  or are legally required to prepare  your periodic tax 
     returns   Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and 
     sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the 
     address specified in Section     Information about donations to 
     the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation   
 
  You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies 
     you in writing  or by e mail  within    days of receipt that s he 
     does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg tm 
     License   You must require such a user to return or 
     destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium 
     and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of 
     Project Gutenberg tm works  
 
  You provide  in accordance with paragraph   F    a full refund of any 
     money paid for a work or a replacement copy  if a defect in the 
     electronic work is discovered and reported to you within    days 
     of receipt of the work  
 
  You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free 
     distribution of Project Gutenberg tm works  
 
  E     If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg tm 
electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set 
forth in this agreement  you must obtain permission in writing from 
both the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and Michael 
Hart  the owner of the Project Gutenberg tm trademark   Contact the 
Foundation as set forth in Section   below  
 
  F  
 
  F     Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable 
effort to identify  do copyright research on  transcribe and proofread 
public domain works in creating the Project Gutenberg tm 
collection   Despite these efforts  Project Gutenberg tm electronic 
works  and the medium on which they may be stored  may contain 
 Defects   such as  but not limited to  incomplete  inaccurate or 
corrupt data  transcription errors  a copyright or other intellectual 
property infringement  a defective or damaged disk or other medium  a 
computer virus  or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by 
your equipment  
 
  F     LIMITED WARRANTY  DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES   Except for the  Right 
of Replacement or Refund  described in paragraph   F    the Project 
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation  the owner of the Project 
Gutenberg tm trademark  and any other party distributing a Project 
Gutenberg tm electronic work under this agreement  disclaim all 
liability to you for damages  costs and expenses  including legal 
fees   YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE  STRICT 
LIABILITY  BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE 
PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH F    YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION  THE 
TRADEMARK OWNER  AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE 
LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL  DIRECT  INDIRECT  CONSEQUENTIAL  PUNITIVE OR 
INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH 
DAMAGE  
 
  F     LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND   If you discover a 
defect in this electronic work within    days of receiving it  you can 
receive a refund of the money  if any  you paid for it by sending a 
written explanation to the person you received the work from   If you 
received the work on a physical medium  you must return the medium with 
your written explanation   The person or entity that provided you with 
the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a 
refund   If you received the work electronically  the person or entity 
providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to 
receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund   If the second copy 
is also defective  you may demand a refund in writing without further 
opportunities to fix the problem  
 
  F     Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth 
in paragraph   F    this work is provided to you  AS IS  WITH NO OTHER 
WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND  EXPRESS OR IMPLIED  INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO 
WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTIBILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE  
 
  F     Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied 
warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages  
If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the 
law of the state applicable to this agreement  the agreement shall be 
interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by 
the applicable state law   The invalidity or unenforceability of any 
provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions  
 
  F     INDEMNITY   You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation  the 
trademark owner  any agent or employee of the Foundation  anyone 
providing copies of Project Gutenberg tm electronic works in accordance 
with this agreement  and any volunteers associated with the production  
promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg tm electronic works  
harmless from all liability  costs and expenses  including legal fees  
that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do 
or cause to occur   a  distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg tm 
work   b  alteration  modification  or additions or deletions to any 
Project Gutenberg tm work  and  c  any Defect you cause  
 
 
Section      Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg tm 
 
Project Gutenberg tm is synonymous with the free distribution of 
electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers 
including obsolete  old  middle aged and new computers   It exists 
because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from 
people in all walks of life  
 
Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the 
assistance they need  is critical to reaching Project Gutenberg tm s 
goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg tm collection will 
remain freely available for generations to come   In       the Project 
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure 
and permanent future for Project Gutenberg tm and future generations  
To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation 
and how your efforts and donations can help  see Sections   and   
and the Foundation web page at http   www pglaf org  
 
 
Section     Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive 
Foundation 
 
The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non profit 
    c     educational corporation organized under the laws of the 
state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal 
Revenue Service   The Foundation s EIN or federal tax identification 
number is              Its     c     letter is posted at 
http   pglaf org fundraising   Contributions to the Project Gutenberg 
Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent 
permitted by U S  federal laws and your state s laws  
 
The Foundation s principal office is located at      Melan Dr  S  
Fairbanks  AK          but its volunteers and employees are scattered 
throughout numerous locations   Its business office is located at 
    North      West  Salt Lake City  UT                        email 
business pglaf org   Email contact links and up to date contact 
information can be found at the Foundation s web site and official 
page at http   pglaf org 
 
For additional contact information  
     Dr  Gregory B  Newby 
     Chief Executive and Director 
     gbnewby pglaf org 
 
 
Section     Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg 
Literary Archive Foundation 
 
Project Gutenberg tm depends upon and cannot survive without wide 
spread public support and donations to carry out its mission of 
increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be 
freely distributed in machine readable form accessible by the widest 
array of equipment including outdated equipment   Many small donations 
    to         are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt 
status with the IRS  
 
The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating 
charities and charitable donations in all    states of the United 
States   Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a 
considerable effort  much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up 
with these requirements   We do not solicit donations in locations 
where we have not received written confirmation of compliance   To 
SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any 
particular state visit http   pglaf org 
 
While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we 
have not met the solicitation requirements  we know of no prohibition 
against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who 
approach us with offers to donate  
 
International donations are gratefully accepted  but we cannot make 
any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from 
outside the United States   U S  laws alone swamp our small staff  
 
Please check the Project Gutenberg Web pages for current donation 
methods and addresses   Donations are accepted in a number of other 
ways including including checks  online payments and credit card 
donations   To donate  please visit  http   pglaf org donate 
 
 
Section     General Information About Project Gutenberg tm electronic 
works  
 
Professor Michael S  Hart is the originator of the Project Gutenberg tm 
concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared 
with anyone   For thirty years  he produced and distributed Project 
Gutenberg tm eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support  
 
 
Project Gutenberg tm eBooks are often created from several printed 
editions  all of which are confirmed as Public Domain in the U S  
unless a copyright notice is included   Thus  we do not necessarily 
keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition  
 
 
Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility  
 
     http   www gutenberg net 
 
This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg tm  
including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary 
Archive Foundation  how to help produce our new eBooks  and how to 
subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks  
