The Adventures of Tom Sawyer / Приключения Тома Сойера

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.