Chapter the last

The first time I catched Tom private I asked him what was his idea, time of the evasion? – what it was he’d planned to do if the evasion worked all right and he managed to set a nigger free that was already free before? And he said, what he had planned in his head from the start, if we got Jim out all safe, was for us to run him down the river on the raft, and have adventures plumb to the mouth of the river, and then tell him about his being free, and take him back up home on a steamboat, in style, and pay him for his lost time, and write word ahead and get out all the niggers around, and have them waltz him into town with a torchlight procession and a brass-band, and then he would be a hero, and so would we. But I reckoned it was about as well the way it was.

We had Jim out of the chains in no time, and when Aunt Polly and Uncle Silas and Aunt Sally found out how good he helped the doctor nurse Tom, they made a heap of fuss over him, and fixed him up prime, and give him all he wanted to eat, and a good time, and nothing to do. And we had him up to the sick-room, and had a high talk; and Tom give Jim forty dollars for being prisoner for us so patient, and doing it up so good, and Jim was pleased most to death, and busted out, and says:

“DAH, now, Huck, what I tell you? – what I tell you up dah on Jackson islan’? I TOLE you I got a hairy breas’, en what’s de sign un it; en I TOLE you I ben rich wunst, en gwineter to be rich AGIN; en it’s come true; en heah she is! DAH, now! doan’ talk to ME – signs is SIGNS, mine I tell you; en I knowed jis’ ’s well ’at I ’uz gwineter be rich agin as I’s a-stannin’ heah dis minute!”

And then Tom he talked along and talked along, and says, le’s all three slide out of here one of these nights and get an outfit, and go for howling adventures amongst the Injuns, over in the

Territory, for a couple of weeks or two; and I says, all right, that suits me, but I ain’t got no money for to buy the outfit, and I reckon I couldn’t get none from home, because it’s likely pap’s been back before now, and got it all away from Judge Thatcher and drunk it up.

“No, he hain’t,” Tom says; “it’s all there yet – six thousand dollars and more; and your pap hain’t ever been back since. Hadn’t when I come away, anyhow.”

Jim says, kind of solemn:

“He ain’t a-comin’ back no mo’, Huck.”

I says:

“Why, Jim?”

“Nemmine why, Huck – but he ain’t comin’ back no mo.”

But I kept at him; so at last he says:

“Doan’ you ’member de house dat was float’n down de river, en dey wuz a man in dah, kivered up, en I went in en unkivered him and didn’ let you come in? Well, den, you kin git yo’ money when you wants it, kase dat wuz him.”

Tom’s most well now, and got his bullet around his neck on a watch-guard for a watch, and is always seeing what time it is, and so there ain’t nothing more to write about, and I am rotten glad of it, because if I’d a knowed what a trouble it was to make a book I wouldn’t a tackled it, and ain’t a-going to no more. But I reckon I got to light out for the Territory ahead of the rest, because Aunt Sally she’s going to adopt me and sivilize me, and I can’t stand it. I been there before.

Vocabulary

A

a ben = have been

a body = anybody

acrost = across

afeared = afraid

agin = again

agwyne = going

ain’t = is not = does not = aren’t

alwuz = always

amaz’n = amasing

ambush n засада

A-rab = Arab

Arkansaw = Arkansas

arter = after

asho’ = ashore

ast = ask

awready = already

B

b’fo’ = before

b’long = belong

becuz = because

behine = behind

ben = been

bes = best

betwixt = between

blister v покрываться волдырями, стирать кожу

bofe = both

borry = borrow

’bout = about

breff = breath

brer = brother

budge v шевелиться, сдвинуться с места

bully adj задиристый

bymeby = by the by

C

C’lumbus = Columbus

ca’m = calm

cannelstich = candlestick

cantelope n сорт маленькой дыни

catfish n сом

chanst = chance

charm n колдовство, заклинание

cheer = chair

chile = child

cler = clear

clew = clue

clumb = climb

coax v успокаивать, утешать

col. = colonel

collar v тащить; захватить; сворачивать в рулет

complexion n цвет лица

consekens = consequence

considable = considerable

consumption n (мед.) чахотка, туберкулез

contrite adj кающийся

corn-pone n кукурузная лепешка

corpse n труп, мертвое тело

’crease = increase

creepy adj вызывающий мурашки; ползучий

cretur = creature

crick = creek

crockery n глиняная посуда

cry-baby n плакса, нытик

currant n смородина

cuss v ругать(ся)

D

dah = there

dah’s = there is

de ’spute = dispute

de = the

deacon n дьякон

dec’d = deceased

decanter n графин

deck-hand n (мор.) матрос

desperado n (исп.) сорвиголова

dey’s = there are = they are

deyselves = themselves

diffunt = different

dismal adj мрачный

dissenter v раскалывать

diszemember = don’t remember

doan’ = do not = does not

’dout = without

doxolojer = doxology восхваление Господа

doze v дремать

drag v тащить, волочить

drownded = drowned

druther = ’d rather

duke n герцог

E

’em = them

en = and

et = eat, ate