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“What!- what’d you see, Tom!” “Huck, I most stepped onto Injun Joe’s hand!”
“No!” “Yes! He was laying 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, and
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 with whisky! 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: “Looky-here, 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
meow-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’s hayloft. He
let’s me, and so does his pap’s nigger man, Uncle Jake. I tote water for Uncle
Jake whenever he wants me to, and anytime 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. Sometimes 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, Huck, 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 meow.”