Читать книгу "Приключения Тома Сойера: адаптированный текст + задания. Уровень B1"

Словарные слова

grit – скрежетать

inch – дюйм

no use – нет смысла

jingle – звенеть

figure out – вычислить, выяснить

victim – жертва

revenge – месть

in favor of – в пользу

track out – выследить

Упражнения

1. Напиши, о ком идет речь.

1) ____________ wanted to get married.

2) ____________ always fought.

3) ____________ was thought to be deaf and dumb.

4) ____________ found gold.

5) ____________ said room number two was haunted.

6) ____________ didn’t want to do “the job”.

2. Выбери правильный вариант ответа:

1) What did Tom want to buy if he found treasure?

a) a dog

b) a cat

c) a house

2) Why did Tom and Huck refuse to go to the haunted house on Friday?

a) Tom had to go to school on Friday.

b) Huck was afraid.

c) They thought that Friday was an unlucky day.

3) What did Tom and Huck bring to the haunted house?

a) money

b) tools

c) a yellow paper

4) Why did Injun Joe take the treasure away?

a) He wanted to buy something.

b) He needed money for his “job”.

c) He learned that someone had visited the house not long ago.

5) Why were the boys interested in room number two?

a) They wanted to hide there.

b) They thought the treasure was there.

c) They were just curious.

3. Найди определения следующих слов:

1. treasure

2. haunted

3. diamond

a) a valuable object

b) visited by ghosts

c) a precious stone

4. Что обозначают слова:

1) spade

2) lonesome

3) ancient

4) dumb

5) deaf

5. Найди в тексте слова и выражения, обозначающие следующее:

1) Во сне

2) Тайное место

3) Изучили

4) Оказалось

5) Испуганно

6) Так много случаев

6. Переведи фразы:

1) The thing failed this time

2) In a little while

3) About noon

4) the most probable places

5) to take part

7. Выбери правильный вариант в соответствии с текстом главы (true или false).

1) Tom felt frightened.

2) Tom didn’t want to look for a treasure.

3) Boys ran away immediately.

8. Кто сказал данные фразы?

1) ‘No way! They’re coming right toward the door.’

2) ‘Man, it’s money!’

3) ‘It’s dangerous.’

4) ‘We’ll try the haunted house if you say so.’

5) ‘If it was mine I wouldn’t hide it; I’d spend it and have a good time.’

6) ‘I’m going to buy a new drum, a red tie and a dog, and get married.’

7) ‘Why, Tom, it’ll take all summer.’

8) ‘Sometimes – not always.’

9) ‘I hope we’ll never see Injun Joe again!’

9. Обсуди:

1) What happened in the room?

2) The wishes of the boys in case they found a treasure.

10. Найди в тексте синонимы к следующим словам:

1) a new place

2) start their work

3) just at night

4) understood

Charter 6

* * *

The first thing Tom heard on Friday morning was some good news – Judge Thatcher’s family had come back to town the night before. Tom and Becky met and enjoyed themselves playing with their schoolmates. The kids were told that her picnic was planned for the next day. The invitations were sent out, and the boys and girls of the village started preparing for this event.

Tom was happy and almost forgot about Injun Joe and the treasure.

Tom was so excited that he stayed awake late. He hoped to hear Huck’s ‘meow,’ and find the treasure – and to surprise Becky and their friends next day. But no signal came that night.

Morning came, and by ten or eleven a gay company were gathered at Judge Thatcher’s house, and everything was ready for a start. Few adults usually took part in the picnics.

This time there only were a few young ladies of eighteen and a few young gentlemen of twenty-three to look after the children. An old steam ferryboat was rented.

The last thing Mrs. Thatcher said to Becky, was:

‘Don’t return late. Perhaps you’d better stay all night with some of the girls that live near the ferry-landing.’

‘Then I’ll stay with Susy Harper, mamma.’ Becky promised.

But later Tom and Becky decided that instead of going to Susy she – and Tom – would visit Widow Douglas who would be glad to see them and would give them her famous ice-cream.

Three miles below town the ferryboat stopped. The crowd entered the forest filling it with shoutings and laughter. They played and had lunch and later a quiet chat under the trees.

Then somebody shouted:

‘Who’s ready for the cave?’

Everybody was. The children entered the cave. It looked romantic and mysterious in the light of their candles. There was a labyrinth of corridors. Nobody ‘knew’ the whole cave. Most of the boys knew a portion of it, Tom Sawyer among them.

When groups of children came out of the cave they were astonished to find that they had been taking no note of time and that it was almost night. The bell on the boat had been calling for half an hour. Finally, the ferryboat with the whole crowd of picnickers returned.

By then, Huck had started his watch. Around eleven o’clock, after much fruitless waiting, he heard a noise. He jumped to attention and saw the door in the alley close softly. Soon, two figures walked right by him, carrying a box.

It must be that box! So they were going to remove the treasure. Why should he call Tom now? The men would go away with the box and never be found again. So Huck followed them. He was walking behind the men, cat-like, with bare feet, just far enough from them to be invisible.

They approached grounds outside of the Widow Douglas’s house.

Very well, he thought, let them bury their treasure there; it won’t be hard to find.

At this point, Huck could hear Injun Joe’s companion swearing. There was someone at the Widow’s house – the lights were on – and they could not carry out their plan.

‘Yes. Well, there IS company there, I guess. Better give it up.’

‘Give it up. I’m leaving this country forever! Maybe I’ll never have another chance. Her husband when he was the village Judge had me HORSEWHIPPED! – horsewhipped in front of the jail, like a nigger! – and all the town was looking on! Then he died. So I’ll revenge on 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. We’ll just maim her. So, the two men decided to wait until the lights were off and enter the house.

Huck realized, then, that maybe that revenge was the “job” they had been talking about.

Huck decided that it was probably the time to leave. He ran down the hill toward the nearest house, where the “Welshman,” an older guy with two grown-up sons, lived.

Huck banged on the door and asked to be let in. Huck wasn’t usually welcome anywhere, but this time the Welshman could see that he really needed help.

‘Please don’t ever tell I told you,’ were Huck’s first words when he got in.

‘But the widow’s been a good friend to me sometimes, and I want to tell you.’

Three minutes later the old man and his sons with guns were near the widow’s house. Huck did not follow them. He hid behind a great rock listening. All of a sudden there was an explosion of firearms and a cry.

Huck ran away as fast as his legs could carry him.

* * *

The next morning, Huck came back to the Welshman’s house and knocked on his door.

This time the Welshman was happy to see him.

‘Please let me in! It’s only Huck Finn!’

‘It’s a name that can open this door night or day, boy! You are welcome!’

Huck was even invited in for breakfast.

Huck was surprised – he had not been used to such attitude.

Huck came because he wanted to find out what had happened the night before.

The Welshman was proud and happy to tell him the news:

He and his boys were within fifteen feet of the criminals when the Welshman sneezed; a gunfight broke out. Injun Joe and his companion fired a couple parting shots as they ran into the woods.

The search, the Welshman told Huck, was still going on.

‘I wish we had some sort of description of those criminals that would help. Describe them – describe them, my boy!’ – he asked Tom.

‘One’s the old deaf and dumb Spaniard that’s been around here, and the other’s an ugly…’

‘That’s enough, we know the men! And the Welshman ordered his sons to inform the sheriff.’

As they were leaving the room Huck sprang up and exclaimed:

‘Oh, please don’t tell ANYbody that I reported them!’

The Welshman asked Huck how exactly he had met the criminals. Naturally, Huck did not want to explain why he had been watching the bar. So he invented some story. He said he had not slept the night before. He was walking by the bar and saw two men smoking cigars. He recognized them as the Spaniard and some other “ragged looking devil”.

‘How could you see the rags by the light of the cigars?’ Huck was at a loss what to say.

He continued:

‘I just started following them. I realized that they were going to the widow’s house. Then the Spaniard said that he was going to maim the widow.’

‘What! The DEAF AND DUMB said all that!’

The Welshman could see that Huck was telling lies.

‘My boy, don’t be afraid of me. I wouldn’t hurt a hair of your head for all the world. So this Spaniard is not deaf and dumb. You know something about that Spaniard that you want to keep dark. Now tell me what it is, I’ll help you, I promise.’

Huck looked into the old man’s honest eyes, then whispered in his ear: ‘It isn’t a Spaniard – it’s Injun Joe!’ The Welshman almost jumped out of his chair, shocked that he didn’t recognize the Spaniard as Injun Joe.

Later on during breakfast, the Welshman told Huck that he and the boys had found a package the men had dropped.

Huck’s heart sank. Maybe ‘their treasure’ had already been found? Luckily, it was only some burglar tools. Huck was very anxious about the treasure, but he was also happy that he had shared all that Injun Joe story with somebody. He was sure that, once Injun Joe was found and the whole thing was forgotten, he and Tom could just enter Room No. 2 and take the treasure.

As soon as breakfast was finished there was a knock at the door. Huck jumped for a hiding-place. The Welshman let in several ladies and gentlemen, among them the Widow Douglas, and noticed that groups of citizens were climbing up the hill to look. So the news had spread. The Welshman had to tell the story of the night to the visitors. The widow thanked him heartily.

‘You shouldn’t thank me, madam. There’s another person who really saved you, but he doesn’t allow me to tell his name. We wouldn’t have been there but for him.’

It goes without saying, everyone was curios to know who it was but the Welshman refused to open his secret.

* * *

Soon it was time for church, and everybody gathered for the service. Becky’s mother and Mrs. Harper, started talking and soon Mrs. Thatcher realized that her daughter was not staying with the Harpers. Aunt Polly also learned that Tom had not been with Joe Harper or anywhere.

The people who were just leaving the church stopped. Children and young teachers were questioned. They all said they had not noticed whether Tom and Becky were on board the ferryboat on the way back; it was dark. One young man finally said that Tom and Becky could still be in the cave!

The news was passed from lip to lip, from group to group, from street to street, and within five minutes the bells were ringing and the whole town was up! The villagers went to look for Tom and Becky.

The pursuit had continued all through the night – without any success.

In one place, far from the part usually visited by tourists, the names ‘BECKY & TOM’ had been found on the rocky wall drawn with candle-smoke, and in another place – a bit of Becky’s ribbon.

* * *

In the meantime Huck who was staying in the Welshman’s house fell ill. The doctors were all at the cave, so the Widow Douglas came and took care of the patient. She said she would do her best for him.

* * *

Now to return to Tom and Becky and see what they had been doing for the past three days. We already know about the “TOM AND BECKY” graffiti they left, and we know that they were lost and all that, but here’s how it happened:

At first Tom and Becky played hide-and-seek with other children. Then holding their candles and reading names, dates, post-office addresses, which had been written (in candle-smoke by other tourists), they smoked their own names and moved on along a corridor leading down deeper into the cave.

They entered a big cave with stalactites and stalagmites.

Out of nowhere, they were nearly attacked by hundreds of bats; disturbed by the lights. Tom knew that bats were dangerous. He took Becky’s hand and the children hurried into the first corridor they saw. Although they were safe there the kids kept running from the creatures.

Soon they found themselves in a cave with an underground lake, so big that they couldn’t see from one end to another in the darkness.

Tom decided it was best for them to take some rest.

Becky said:

‘Why, it seems so long since I heard any of the others.’

‘Becky, we are 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 got frightened.

‘I wonder how long we’ve been down here, Tom? We should return.’

‘Yes, I think, it’s time to go back.’

They decided to try and find another way out of the cave – they were afraid of the bats.

‘Can you find the way, Tom?’ Becky asked. ‘I hope we won’t get lost. It would be so awful!’ and the girl shuddered thinking of this possibility.

So, Tom and Becky started running around in circles and Tom tried to cry hoping that somebody could hear them. This only scared Becky more.

‘Oh, Tom, you didn’t make any marks!’ – the girl was angry with her companion.

‘Becky, I was such a fool! Such a fool! Now I can’t find the way.’

‘Tom, Tom, we’re lost! we’re lost!’ Becky was sobbing. ‘We never can get out of this awful place! Oh, why DID we leave the others!’

And she fell to the ground, crying.

Tom did his best to comfort her, and they went to look for a way out again. Tom took Becky’s candle and blew it out. Becky knew that Tom had a whole candle and three or four pieces in his pockets.

The children were very tired. They sat down, Becky even managed to fall asleep.

‘Oh, how COULD I sleep at such a moment!’ said the girl waking up. She was angry with herself.

‘I’m glad you’ve slept, Becky; now that you are stronger we’ll find the way out.’

‘We can try, Tom. But Tom, I am so hungry!’

Tom took something out of his pocket.

‘Do you remember this?’ he asked.

Becky almost smiled.

‘It’s our “wedding-cake”, Tom.’ (during the picnic Tom and Becky imagined that they “got married”).

Tom had to tell Becky some bad news: they had only one candle left.

Becky said:

‘Tom! They’ll miss us and hunt for us!’

‘Yes, they will! Certainly they will!’

‘Maybe they’re hunting for us now, Tom.’

At that moment they realized the terrible truth: both of them had lied to their families that they would stay with the Harpers. So no one would know that they were gone until at least Sunday.

Suffering and darkness followed – the last candle burned out. Then, all of a sudden, they heard something in the distance. The two kids ran toward the noise. Tom tried to shout again and get the searchers’ attention, but nobody answered.

Tom chose a new way of action. He asked Becky to sit down, gave her a piece of a string to hold and went on search with the other end in his hand.

Soon he saw that a human hand, holding a candle, appeared from behind a rock! Tom shouted in joy, and at once that hand was followed by the rest of the body. It was Injun Joe’s! Tom was paralyzed; he could not move.

Fortunately his shout was enough to scare the ‘Spaniard’ who ran away and disappeared very fast.

Thanks to the string Tom managed to come back to Becky; he didn’t tell her what he’d just seen, however.

Tom wanted to explore another passage. But Becky was very weak. She said she would wait, now, where she was, and die – it would not be long. She told Tom to go with the string and explore if he wanted to but she asked him to come back every little while and speak to her.

* * *

Tuesday afternoon came. In the village of St. Petersburg everyone was sad and tired.

The lost children had not been found. The majority of the searchers had given up the quest.

Mrs. Thatcher was very ill. She started calling her child now and again.

Aunt Polly was terribly depressed, and her gray hair had grown almost white.

Then in the middle of the night the village people were woken up by the bells ringing gaily: the kids had been found. Everyone ran out to meet them on their way back home.

Immediately the streets were full of half-dressed people, who shouted, ‘They’re found! they’re found!’

Nobody went to bed again; it was the greatest night the little town had ever seen.

Tom got to be the center of attention again, and told everyone the history of the wonderful adventure; how he noticed a point that looked like daylight; he dropped the string and ran toward it, pushed his head and shoulders through a small hole, and saw the broad Mississippi rolling by!

He described how he told Becky about it; and how she almost died for joy; how he pushed his way out at the hole and then helped her out.

They went out of the cave five miles from the place where they had entered.

Then they saw a passing boat and asked the men on it to take them to their village; but the men didn’t believe their story at first, ‘because,’ said they, ‘you are five miles down the river below the cave’, However later they agreed to help them.

All the searchers, including Judge Thatcher, were called back and given the good news, and Tom and Becky were told to have rest for a few days.

Both the kids were bedridden during Wednesday and Thursday. They seemed to grow more and more tired, all the time.

Tom felt a bit better on Thursday, went for a walk on Friday, and on Saturday he was as healthy as he had ever been.

At home Tom learned about the events at Widow Douglas’s house, he also heard that the ‘ragged man’s’ body had eventually been found in the river; he had been drowned while trying to escape, perhaps.

Tom learned of Huck’s illness and went to see his friend. Widow Douglas let him in but warned to keep quiet about his adventure and not to mention anything that could make Huck worry.

When Tom was visiting Becky, the Judge and some friends started talking with him. Someone asked him if he wouldn’t like to go to the cave again. Tom said he thought it was a good idea.

The Judge said:

‘Well, there are others just like you, Tom, I’m sure. But we have taken care of that. Nobody will get lost in that cave any more.’

‘Why?’

‘Because the entrance was blocked with big door two weeks ago, and locked – and I’ve got the keys.’

Tom turned white as a sheet.

‘What’s the matter, boy? Here, run, somebody! Bring 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!’

* * *

Everyone hurried back to the cave. The door was unlocked and Injun Joe was found. He lay on the ground, dead, with his face close to the crack of the door, as if he had looked to the latest moment at the light of the free world outside. He’d been struggling to get out. He tried to open the door with his knife; he ate candles and bats, and even collected water from a stalagmite with a cup made out of stone. All his effort failed however. Tom was even a bit sorry for him – he, after all, had had a similar experience.

Injun Joe was buried near the cave.

The morning after the funeral Tom took Huck to a quiet 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 there was one thing he wanted to discuss with his friend. Huck said:

‘I know what it is. You got into No. 2 and did not find anything but whiskey’.

But Tom was not interested in the bar and the room with whisky. The boys had so many other things to discuss. First Huck told him how he helped to save Widow Douglas.

When he finished his story Tom said: ‘Huck, that money had never been in No. 2!’

‘What!’ Huck exclaimed ‘Tom, have you got on the track of that money again?’

‘Huck, it’s in the cave! Will you go in there with me and help to get it out?’

Huck was happy.

‘I bet I will! I will if we can go and not get lost.’

‘Huck, we can do that without the least trouble.’

‘Great! What makes you think the money’s there?’

‘Huck, you just wait till we get in there. If we don’t find it I’ll agree to give you my drum and everything I’ve got in the world.’

‘So when are we going?’

‘Right now, if you say it. Huck, there’s a short way to the whole. Nobody knows about it but me, Huck, I’ll take you right to it in a boat.’

‘Let us start at once, Tom.’

‘All right. We want some bread and meat, and our pipes, and a little bag or two, and two or three strings, and matches and some tools to dig with.’

Once they were in the cave Tom went to the farther end of the tunnel, fixed their strings there and they moved on. The boys talked in whispers, because the place seemed frightful. They went on, entered and followed another corridor.

Tom whispered:

‘Now I’ll show you something, Huck.’ ‘Look as far around the corner as you can. Do you see that? There – on the big rock – done with candle-smoke.’

‘Tom, it’s a CROSS!’

‘NOW what did Injun Joe say about Number Two? ‘UNDER THE CROSS?’ And it is the place where I saw Injun Joe, Huck!’

Huck said with a shaky voice: ‘Tom, let’s get out of here!’

‘What! and leave the treasure?’

‘Yes – leave it. Injun Joe’s ghost is round about there.’

Tom thought that Huck was right. Then he had an idea:

‘Look here, Huck, what fools we are! Injun Joe’s ghost won’t appear near a cross!’

‘Tom, I didn’t think of that. We are lucky. Let’s go and hunt for that box.’

Tom went first, Huck followed. They searched everywhere, but there was no money-box.

‘He said UNDER the cross. I bet the money IS under the rock. I’m going to dig in the clay.’

Tom had not dug four inches before he struck wood.

‘Hey, Huck! – you hear that?’

Huck began to dig now.

And, believe it or not, they found the treasure-box.

‘Got it at last!’ said Huck, taking a handful of coins. ‘We’re rich, Tom!’

The treasure was heavy so 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:

‘Come along with me, boys, you are keeping everybody waiting. Let me help you with your things. What are you carrying in your bags?’

‘Old metal,’ said Tom.

‘Well, – hurry along, hurry along!’

So Tom and Huck entered Mrs. Douglas’ drawing-room followed by Mr. Jones, the Welshman.

All important people of the village were there. The Thatchers were there, the Harpers, the Rogerses, Aunt Polly, Sid, Mary, the priest, the village newspaper editor, and a great many more, and all dressed in their best. The widow welcomed the boys who were covered in clay and dirt. Aunt Polly was ashamed of her nephew’s looks.

‘Come with me, boys,’ said the widow.

She took them to a bathroom and said:

‘Now wash and dress yourselves. Here are two new suits of clothes – shirts, socks, everything. They’re Huck’s – Mr. Jones had bought one and I the other. But they’ll fit both of you. Get into them. We’ll wait – come down when you are ready.’

Then she left.

* * *

Huck said: ‘Tom, we can run away. The window isn’t high from the ground.’

‘Why do you want to run away?’

‘Well, I can’t be among that kind of a crowd. I’m not going down there, Tom.’

‘Don’t worry, Huck I’ll take care of you.’ Sid appeared.

He said that Aunt Polly had been waiting for Tom all the afternoon. He explained that they were invited to one of the widow’s parties. This time it was for the Welshman and his sons who had saved her.

‘And I can tell you something’, Sid went on. ‘It is not a secret any more, the widow also knows…’

Realizing that Sid had let everyone know about Huck’s participation in saving the widow Tom hit his brother as usual and sent him running.

When everyone was downstairs, the Welshman told Huck’s story and thanked him for his help.

The widow said that she was going to give Huck a home under her roof and education and later she could help him start in business.

Tom said: ‘Huck doesn’t need it. Huck’s rich.’

An uneasy silence followed. Nobody believed Tom.

‘Oh, you needn’t smile – I can show you. You just wait a minute.’

Tom ran out of doors. The company looked at each other with interest.

Huck did not say a word.

Tom entered, struggling with the weight of his sacks, poured the mass of yellow coins upon the table and said:

‘There – what did I tell you? Half of it is Huck’s and half of it is mine!’

All the guests and the widow asked for an explanation. And Tom told the whole story. Although it was long, everyone was listening with interest.

When he had finished, Mr. Jones said:

‘My story is nothing compared to yours!’ The money was counted. It was a little over twelve thousand dollars. It was more than any one present in the room had ever seen before.

* * *

Tom and Huck’s fortune impressed the poor little village of St. Petersburg. Such a sum, all in cash, seemed incredible. It was talked about everywhere. Every ‘haunted’ house in St. Petersburg and the neighboring villages was searched through for hidden treasure – and not by boys, but by men. The boys were welcome wherever they came. The village paper published their biographies.

The Widow Douglas and Judge Thatcher put the boys’ money in the bank. Each boy had a dollar for every week-day in the year. In those old simple days a dollar and a quarter a week was enough to pay for a boy’s room, food and education – and clothes and everything he needed.

Judge Thatcher treated Tom with respect. He said to his daughter that he hoped to see Tom a great lawyer or a great soldier some day. He was going to help him enter the National Military Academy and then the best law school in the country, to prepare him for either career or both.

Huck Finn entered the local society and he was suffering. The widow’s servants kept him clean, he slept on snow-white sheets. He had to eat with a knife and fork; he had to use a napkin, a cup, and a plate; he had to learn his book, he had to go to church; he had to talk politely. He felt trapped.

After three weeks of this life he went missing. For forty-eight hours the widow hunted for him everywhere. The villagers even searched the river for his body. Early the third morning Tom Sawyer went to the old slaughter-house, and found his friend. Huck had slept there; he had just had some stolen bits of food for breakfast, and was lying in comfort, with his pipe. He was dirty, dressed in his old ragged clothes. Tom asked him to go back to the Widow Douglas.

Huck said:

‘Don’t talk about it, Tom. I’ve tried it, and I failed. The widow is good to me and friendly; but I can’t stand this way of life. She makes me get up just at the same time every morning; she makes me wash, she doesn’t let me sleep in the woodshed. I have to wear these clothes, Tom. I have to wear shoes all Sunday. The widow eats by a bell; she goes to bed by a bell; she gets up by a bell. My body can’t stand it.’

‘Well, everybody does that way, Huck.’

‘Tom, it doesn’t make any difference. I’m not everybody. I have to ask to go fishing; I have to ask to go swimming. I have to talk politely. The widow doesn’t allow me to smoke. I just HAD to escape, Tom – I just had to. And besides, that school’s going to open, and I’ll have to go to it – well, I wouldn’t stand that, Tom. Tom, you are my best friend. Go and ask the widow to let me go.’

‘Oh, Huck, you know I can’t do that. And besides if you’ll try this thing a little longer you’ll come to like it.’

‘Like it! Yes – the same I’d like a hot stove if I sat on it long enough. No, Tom, I won’t be rich, and I don’t want to live in any houses. I like the woods, and the river, and I’ll stay with them, too.

‘We’ve got a cave, and we can become robbers…!’

Tom noticed that Huck was interested.

‘Look here, Huck, you can be rich and still become a robber.’

‘No! Are you serious, Tom?’

‘I am. But Huck, we can’t let you into the gang if you are not respectable, you know.’

‘Can’t let me in, Tom? Didn’t you take me as a pirate?’

‘Yes, but that’s different. A robber is more respectable than a pirate. In most countries they’re awful high up in the society.’

‘Now, Tom, you wouldn’t fail me, would you?’

‘Huck, I wouldn’t want to, and I DON’T want to – but what would people say? Why, they’d say, Tom Sawyer’s Gang! There are low people in it! You wouldn’t like that, and I wouldn’t.’

Finally Huck said:

‘Well, I’ll go back to the widow for a month and see if I can stand it, if you take me to your gang, Tom.’

‘All right, Huck! Come along, and I’ll ask the widow to give you a little more freedom, Huck.’

‘And when are you going to start the gang and turn robbers?’

‘Oh, tonight, maybe. We’ll get the boys together and start our gang formally.’

‘What’s that?’

‘We’ll swear to stay together, and never tell the gang’s secrets.’

‘That’s great, Tom.’

‘Well, I bet it is. And all that must be done at midnight, in the most awful place you can find – a haunted house would be best, but they have all been destroyed by treasure hunters.’

‘Well, midnight’s good, anyway, Tom.’ ‘And I’ll swear to protect the widow, Tom.

If I become a real robber, and everybody talks about me, I’m sure she’ll be proud of me, her adopted son.’