The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Notes | Objects/Places

Fence: Aunt Polly forces Tom to whitewash this large fence, a chore that should take him several hours, although he finds an easy way to do it. Tom often climbs over this fence when coming in and out of his house.

Tickets: Prizes for memorizing Bible passages at church. Ten blues are worth a red; the reds, a yellow; ten yellows gets a Bible. Tom finds a way to get a Bible without memorizing all 2000 verses as required.

Percussion-cap box: A box that holds a small explosive charge. Tom uses it to carry bugs around, and releases a pinch-bug from it during church, leading to a big disruption.

Dead cats: These are very magical, according to the local superstition. Huck tries to cure warts with one; they are also used in rituals to discover information about Dr. Robinson's murder.

Brass knob: Tom's favorite possession, a knob from a fireplace. He tries to give it to Becky as an offer of love, but she rejects the gift. When Tom runs away to be a pirate, she regrets giving the knob up.

Secret spots: Tom and the other boys have several of these, where they hide their toys and other possessions. Tom hides his bow and other things in the woods by the Widow Douglas' house, where he and Joe play Robin Hood.

Potter's knife: Muff Potter's knife, which Injun Joe uses to murder Dr. Robinson. When it is found by the body, the townsfolk assume Potter did it.

Patent Medicines: Fake medicines sold in magazines. Aunt Polly believes in them strongly and tries them on Tom to cure his depression. Tom feeds one to Aunt Polly's cat.

Jackson's Island: An island downriver from St. Petersburg, where Tom, Huck and Joe stay when they run away to be pirates.

Spelling book: Tom's book, which Alfred Temple destroys with ink out of revenge.

The Schoolmaster's book: An anatomy book that the schoolmaster studies often in hopes that it will help him become a doctor. Becky accidentally rips a page in it, but Tom takes the blame for the damage.

Treasure: The money Tom and Huck search for and discover in the possession of Injun Joe.

Number Two: The location of Injun Joe's treasure, which Tom and Huck believe is a room in a local tavern, but is actually in McDougal's Cave.

McDougal's cave: A huge maze-like cave near St. Petersburg, where Tom and Becky get lost and which Tom later declares to be his robber's den.

Kite string: What Tom uses to guide himself through unknown parts of the cave, by tying it to a rock and walking until he runs out of string. He can then follow the string back to his original spot.