English
ABOUTnoonthenextdaytheboysarrivedatthedeadtree;theyhadcomefortheirtools.Tomwasimpatienttogotothehauntedhouse;Huckwasmeasurablyso,also—butsuddenlysaid:
"Lookyhere,Tom,doyouknowwhatdayitis?"
Tommentallyranoverthedaysoftheweek,andthenquicklyliftedhiseyeswithastartledlookinthem—
"My!Ineveroncethoughtofit,Huck!"
"Well,Ididn'tneither,butallatonceitpoppedontomethatitwasFriday."
"Blameit,abodycan'tbetoocareful,Huck.Wemight'a'gotintoanawfulscrape,tacklingsuchathingonaFriday."
"MIGHT!BettersayweWOULD!There'ssomeluckydays,maybe,butFridayain't."
"Anyfoolknowsthat.Idon'treckonYOUwasthefirstthatfounditout,Huck."
"Well,IneversaidIwas,didI?AndFridayain'tall,neither.Ihadarottenbaddreamlastnight—dreamptaboutrats."
"No!Suresignoftrouble.Didtheyfight?"
"No."
"Well,that'sgood,Huck.Whentheydon'tfightit'sonlyasignthatthere'stroublearound,youknow.
Allwegottodoistolookmightysharpandkeepoutofit.
We'lldropthisthingforto–day,andplay.DoyouknowRobinHood,Huck?"
"No.Who'sRobinHood?"
"Why,hewasoneofthegreatestmenthatwaseverinEngland—andthebest.Hewasarobber."
"Cracky,IwishtIwas.Whodidherob?"
"Onlysheriffsandbishopsandrichpeopleandkings,andsuchlike.Butheneverbotheredthepoor.Heloved'em.Healwaysdividedupwith'emperfectlysquare."
"Well,hemust'a'beenabrick."
"Ibetyouhewas,Huck.Oh,hewasthenoblestmanthateverwas.
Theyain'tanysuchmennow,Icantellyou.
HecouldlickanymaninEngland,withonehandtiedbehindhim;andhecouldtakehisyewbowandplugaten–centpieceeverytime,amileandahalf."
"What'saYEWbow?"
"Idon'tknow.It'ssomekindofabow,ofcourse.Andifhehitthatdimeonlyontheedgehewouldsetdownandcry—andcurse.Butwe'llplayRobinHood—it'snobbyfun.I'lllearnyou."
"I'magreed."
SotheyplayedRobinHoodalltheafternoon,nowandthencastingayearningeyedownuponthehauntedhouseandpassingaremarkaboutthemorrow'sprospectsandpossibilitiesthere.
AsthesunbegantosinkintothewesttheytooktheirwayhomewardathwartthelongshadowsofthetreesandsoonwereburiedfromsightintheforestsofCardiffHill.
OnSaturday,shortlyafternoon,theboyswereatthedeadtreeagain.
Theyhadasmokeandachatintheshade,andthendugalittleintheirlasthole,notwithgreathope,butmerelybecauseTomsaidthereweresomanycaseswherepeoplehadgivenupatreasureaftergettingdownwithinsixinchesofit,andthensomebodyelsehadcomealongandturneditupwithasinglethrustofashovel.
Thethingfailedthistime,however,sotheboysshoulderedtheirtoolsandwentawayfeelingthattheyhadnottrifledwithfortune,buthadfulfilledalltherequirementsthatbelongtothebusinessoftreasure–hunting.
Whentheyreachedthehauntedhousetherewassomethingsoweirdandgrislyaboutthedeadsilencethatreignedthereunderthebakingsun,andsomethingsodepressingaboutthelonelinessanddesolationoftheplace,thattheywereafraid,foramoment,toventurein.
Thentheycrepttothedoorandtookatremblingpeep.
Theysawaweed–grown,floorlessroom,unplastered,anancientfireplace,vacantwindows,aruinousstaircase;andhere,there,andeverywherehungraggedandabandonedcobwebs.
Theypresentlyentered,softly,withquickenedpulses,talkinginwhispers,earsalerttocatchtheslightestsound,andmusclestenseandreadyforinstantretreat.
Inalittlewhilefamiliaritymodifiedtheirfearsandtheygavetheplaceacriticalandinterestedexamination,ratheradmiringtheirownboldness,andwonderingatit,too.Nexttheywantedtolookup–stairs.
Thiswassomethinglikecuttingoffretreat,buttheygottodaringeachother,andofcoursetherecouldbebutoneresult—theythrewtheirtoolsintoacornerandmadetheascent.Uptherewerethesamesignsofdecay.
Inonecornertheyfoundaclosetthatpromisedmystery,butthepromisewasafraud—therewasnothinginit.
Theircouragewasupnowandwellinhand.
Theywereabouttogodownandbeginworkwhen—
"Sh!"saidTom.
"Whatisit?"whisperedHuck,blanchingwithfright.
"Sh!...There!...Hearit?"
"Yes!...Oh,my!Let'srun!"
"Keepstill!Don'tyoubudge!They'recomingrighttowardthedoor."
Theboysstretchedthemselvesuponthefloorwiththeireyestoknot–holesintheplanking,andlaywaiting,inamiseryoffear.
"They'vestopped....No—coming....Heretheyare.Don'twhisperanotherword,Huck.Mygoodness,IwishIwasoutofthis!"
Twomenentered.Eachboysaidtohimself:"There'stheolddeafanddumbSpaniardthat'sbeenabouttownonceortwicelately—neversawt'othermanbefore."
"T'other"wasaragged,unkemptcreature,withnothingverypleasantinhisface.
TheSpaniardwaswrappedinaserape;hehadbushywhitewhiskers;longwhitehairflowedfromunderhissombrero,andheworegreengoggles.
Whentheycamein,"t'other"wastalkinginalowvoice;theysatdownontheground,facingthedoor,withtheirbackstothewall,andthespeakercontinuedhisremarks.
Hismannerbecamelessguardedandhiswordsmoredistinctasheproceeded:
"No,"saidhe,"I'vethoughtitallover,andIdon'tlikeit.It'sdangerous."
"Dangerous!"gruntedthe"deafanddumb"Spaniard—tothevastsurpriseoftheboys."Milksop!"
Thisvoicemadetheboysgaspandquake.ItwasInjunJoe's!Therewassilenceforsometime.ThenJoesaid:
"What'sanymoredangerousthanthatjobupyonder—butnothing'scomeofit."
"That'sdifferent.Awayuptheriverso,andnotanotherhouseabout.'Twon'teverbeknownthatwetried,anyway,longaswedidn'tsucceed."
"Well,what'smoredangerousthancominghereinthedaytime!—anybodywouldsuspicionusthatsawus."
"Iknowthat.Buttherewarn'tanyotherplaceashandyafterthatfoolofajob.Iwanttoquitthisshanty.
Iwantedtoyesterday,onlyitwarn'tanyusetryingtostiroutofhere,withthoseinfernalboysplayingoverthereonthehillrightinfullview."
"Thoseinfernalboys"quakedagainundertheinspirationofthisremark,andthoughthowluckyitwasthattheyhadremembereditwasFridayandconcludedtowaitaday.
Theywishedintheirheartstheyhadwaitedayear.
Thetwomengotoutsomefoodandmadealuncheon.Afteralongandthoughtfulsilence,InjunJoesaid:
"Lookhere,lad—yougobackuptheriverwhereyoubelong.Waittheretillyouhearfromme.
I'lltakethechancesondroppingintothistownjustoncemore,foralook.
We'lldothat'dangerous'jobafterI'vespiedaroundalittleandthinkthingslookwellforit.ThenforTexas!We'lllegittogether!"
Thiswassatisfactory.Bothmenpresentlyfelltoyawning,andInjunJoesaid:
"I'mdeadforsleep!It'syourturntowatch."
Hecurleddownintheweedsandsoonbegantosnore.
Hiscomradestirredhimonceortwiceandhebecamequiet.
Presentlythewatcherbegantonod;hisheaddroopedlowerandlower,bothmenbegantosnorenow.
Theboysdrewalong,gratefulbreath.Tomwhispered:
"Now'sourchance—come!"
Hucksaid:
"Ican't—I'ddieiftheywastowake."
Tomurged—Huckheldback.AtlastTomroseslowlyandsoftly,andstartedalone.
Butthefirststephemadewrungsuchahideouscreakfromthecrazyfloorthathesankdownalmostdeadwithfright.Henevermadeasecondattempt.
Theboyslaytherecountingthedraggingmomentstillitseemedtothemthattimemustbedoneandeternitygrowinggray;andthentheyweregratefultonotethatatlastthesunwassetting.
Nowonesnoreceased.InjunJoesatup,staredaround—smiledgrimlyuponhiscomrade,whoseheadwasdroopinguponhisknees—stirredhimupwithhisfootandsaid:
"Here!YOU'REawatchman,ain'tyou!Allright,though—nothing'shappened."
"My!haveIbeenasleep?"
"Oh,partly,partly.Nearlytimeforustobemoving,pard.What'llwedowithwhatlittleswagwe'vegotleft?"
"Idon'tknow—leaveithereaswe'vealwaysdone,Ireckon.Nousetotakeitawaytillwestartsouth.Sixhundredandfiftyinsilver'ssomethingtocarry."
"Well—allright—itwon'tmattertocomehereoncemore."
"No—butI'dsaycomeinthenightasweusedtodo—it'sbetter."
"Yes:butlookhere;itmaybeagoodwhilebeforeIgettherightchanceatthatjob;accidentsmighthappen;'tain'tinsuchaverygoodplace;we'lljustregularlyburyit—andburyitdeep."
"Goodidea,"saidthecomrade,whowalkedacrosstheroom,kneltdown,raisedoneoftherearwardhearth–stonesandtookoutabagthatjingledpleasantly.
HesubtractedfromittwentyorthirtydollarsforhimselfandasmuchforInjunJoe,andpassedthebagtothelatter,whowasonhiskneesinthecorner,now,diggingwithhisbowie–knife.
Theboysforgotalltheirfears,alltheirmiseriesinaninstant.
Withgloatingeyestheywatchedeverymovement.Luck!
—thesplendorofitwasbeyondallimagination!
Sixhundreddollarswasmoneyenoughtomakehalfadozenboysrich!
Herewastreasure–huntingunderthehappiestauspices—therewouldnotbeanybothersomeuncertaintyastowheretodig.
Theynudgedeachothereverymoment—eloquentnudgesandeasilyunderstood,fortheysimplymeant—"Oh,butain'tyougladNOWwe'rehere!"
Joe'sknifestruckuponsomething.
"Hello!"saidhe.
"Whatisit?"saidhiscomrade.
"Half–rottenplank—no,it'sabox,Ibelieve.Here—bearahandandwe'llseewhatit'sherefor.Nevermind,I'vebrokeahole."
Hereachedhishandinanddrewitout—
"Man,it'smoney!"
Thetwomenexaminedthehandfulofcoins.Theyweregold.Theboysabovewereasexcitedasthemselves,andasdelighted.
Joe'scomradesaid:
"We'llmakequickworkofthis.There'sanoldrustypickoveramongsttheweedsinthecornertheothersideofthefireplace—Isawitaminuteago."
Heranandbroughttheboys'pickandshovel.
InjunJoetookthepick,lookeditovercritically,shookhishead,mutteredsomethingtohimself,andthenbegantouseit.Theboxwassoonunearthed.
Itwasnotverylarge;itwasironboundandhadbeenverystrongbeforetheslowyearshadinjuredit.
Themencontemplatedthetreasureawhileinblissfulsilence.
"Pard,there'sthousandsofdollarshere,"saidInjunJoe.
"'TwasalwayssaidthatMurrel'sgangusedtobearoundhereonesummer,"thestrangerobserved.
"Iknowit,"saidInjunJoe;"andthislookslikeit,Ishouldsay."
"Nowyouwon'tneedtodothatjob."
Thehalf–breedfrowned.Saidhe:
"Youdon'tknowme.Leastyoudon'tknowallaboutthatthing.
'Tain'trobberyaltogether—it'sREVENGE!"andawickedlightflamedinhiseyes."I'llneedyourhelpinit.Whenit'sfinished—thenTexas.
GohometoyourNanceandyourkids,andstandbytillyouhearfromme."
"Well—ifyousayso;what'llwedowiththis—buryitagain?"
"Yes.[Ravishingdelightoverhead.]NO!bythegreatSachem,no![Profounddistressoverhead.]I'dnearlyforgot.Thatpickhadfreshearthonit!
[Theboysweresickwithterrorinamoment.]
Whatbusinesshasapickandashovelhere?Whatbusinesswithfreshearthonthem?
Whobroughtthemhere—andwherearetheygone?Haveyouheardanybody?—seenanybody?What!
buryitagainandleavethemtocomeandseethegrounddisturbed?Notexactly—notexactly.We'lltakeittomyden."
"Why,ofcourse!Mighthavethoughtofthatbefore.YoumeanNumberOne?"
"No—NumberTwo—underthecross.Theotherplaceisbad—toocommon."
"Allright.It'snearlydarkenoughtostart."
InjunJoegotupandwentaboutfromwindowtowindowcautiouslypeepingout.Presentlyhesaid:
"Whocouldhavebroughtthosetoolshere?Doyoureckontheycanbeup–stairs?"
Theboys'breathforsookthem.InjunJoeputhishandonhisknife,haltedamoment,undecided,andthenturnedtowardthestairway.
Theboysthoughtofthecloset,buttheirstrengthwasgone.
Thestepscamecreakingupthestairs—theintolerabledistressofthesituationwokethestrickenresolutionofthelads—theywereabouttospringforthecloset,whentherewasacrashofrottentimbersandInjunJoelandedonthegroundamidthedebrisoftheruinedstairway.
Hegatheredhimselfupcursing,andhiscomradesaid:
"Nowwhat'stheuseofallthat?Ifit'sanybody,andthey'reupthere,letthemSTAYthere—whocares?
Iftheywanttojumpdown,now,andgetintotrouble,whoobjects?
Itwillbedarkinfifteenminutes—andthenletthemfollowusiftheywantto.I'mwilling.
Inmyopinion,whoeverhovethosethingsinherecaughtasightofusandtookusforghostsordevilsorsomething.I'llbetthey'rerunningyet."
Joegrumbledawhile;thenheagreedwithhisfriendthatwhatdaylightwasleftoughttobeeconomizedingettingthingsreadyforleaving.
Shortlyafterwardtheyslippedoutofthehouseinthedeepeningtwilight,andmovedtowardtheriverwiththeirpreciousbox.
TomandHuckroseup,weakbutvastlyrelieved,andstaredafterthemthroughthechinksbetweenthelogsofthehouse.Follow?Notthey.
Theywerecontenttoreachgroundagainwithoutbrokennecks,andtakethetownwardtrackoverthehill.Theydidnottalkmuch.
Theyweretoomuchabsorbedinhatingthemselves—hatingtheillluckthatmadethemtakethespadeandthepickthere.
Butforthat,InjunJoeneverwouldhavesuspected.
Hewouldhavehiddenthesilverwiththegoldtowaittheretillhis"revenge"wassatisfied,andthenhewouldhavehadthemisfortunetofindthatmoneyturnupmissing.
Bitter,bitterluckthatthetoolswereeverbroughtthere!
TheyresolvedtokeepalookoutforthatSpaniardwhenheshouldcometotownspyingoutforchancestodohisrevengefuljob,andfollowhimto"NumberTwo,"whereverthatmightbe.ThenaghastlythoughtoccurredtoTom.
"Revenge?WhatifhemeansUS,Huck!"
"Oh,don't!"saidHuck,nearlyfainting.
Theytalkeditallover,andastheyenteredtowntheyagreedtobelievethathemightpossiblymeansomebodyelse—atleastthathemightatleastmeannobodybutTom,sinceonlyTomhadtestified.
Very,verysmallcomfortitwastoTomtobealoneindanger!Companywouldbeapalpableimprovement,hethought.
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