The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn eBook

I set down again, a-shaking all over, and got out my pipe for a smoke; for the house was all as still as death now, and so the widow wouldn’t know.  Well, after a long time I heard the clock away off in the town go boom—­boom—­boom—­twelve licks; and all still again—­stiller than ever.  Pretty soon I heard a twig snap down in the dark amongst the trees —­something was a stirring.  I set still and listened.  Directly I could just barely hear a “me-yow! me-yow!” down there.  That was good!  Says I, “me-yow! me-yow!” as soft as I could, and then I put out the light and scrambled out of the window on to the shed.  Then I slipped down to the ground and crawled in among the trees, and, sure enough, there was Tom Sawyer waiting for me.

CHAPTER II.

We went tiptoeing along a path amongst the trees back towards the end of the widow’s garden, stooping down so as the branches wouldn’t scrape our heads.  When we was passing by the kitchen I fell over a root and made a noise.  We scrouched down and laid still.  Miss Watson’s big nigger, named Jim, was setting in the kitchen door; we could see him pretty clear, because there was a light behind him.  He got up and stretched his neck out about a minute, listening.  Then he says: 

“Who dah?”

He listened some more; then he come tiptoeing down and stood right between us; we could a touched him, nearly.  Well, likely it was minutes and minutes that there warn’t a sound, and we all there so close together.  There was a place on my ankle that got to itching, but I dasn’t scratch it; and then my ear begun to itch; and next my back, right between my shoulders.  Seemed like I’d die if I couldn’t scratch.  Well, I’ve noticed that thing plenty times since.  If you are with the quality, or at a funeral, or trying to go to sleep when you ain’t sleepy—­if you are anywheres where it won’t do for you to scratch, why you will itch all over in upwards of a thousand places.  Pretty soon Jim says: 

“Say, who is you?  Whar is you?  Dog my cats ef I didn’ hear sumf’n.  Well, I know what I’s gwyne to do:  I’s gwyne to set down here and listen tell I hears it agin.”

So he set down on the ground betwixt me and Tom.  He leaned his back up against a tree, and stretched his legs out till one of them most touched one of mine.  My nose begun to itch.  It itched till the tears come into my eyes.  But I dasn’t scratch.  Then it begun to itch on the inside.  Next I got to itching underneath.  I didn’t know how I was going to set still.  This miserableness went on as much as six or seven minutes; but it seemed a sight longer than that.  I was itching in eleven different places now.  I reckoned I couldn’t stand it more’n a minute longer, but I set my teeth hard and got ready to try.  Just then Jim begun to breathe heavy; next he begun to snore—­and then I was pretty soon comfortable again.