Chapter 3
Tom tells Aunt Polly the whitewashing is done, and asks to go play. Once Aunt Polly sees that the work is done (although she doesn't know how it got done), she is so happy she gives him an apple and lets him out to play. As he leaves he sees Sid, who is still unpunished for telling on him the day before. Tom grabs clods of dirt and throws several at Sid, then jumps the fence and runs away to meet other boys in the village square, where they all engage in military-style conflict.
Tom is General of one Army and his best friend Joe Harper is another. They sit together on a hill and direct their two armies for the afternoon. Tom's army eventually turns out the winner.
Topic Tracking: Imagination 1
As Tom walks home he walks by Jeff Thatcher's house and sees a girl he's never seen before. She's very pretty and Tom is immediately smitten. He forgets all about his last crush, Amy Lawrence, and begins to show off and do tumbles for the new girl, hoping she will notice him. Eventually, she goes inside, and Tom goes home, a little sad.
At supper, Sid accidentally breaks the sugar bowl while Aunt Polly is in the kitchen. Thinking Tom did it, she smacks him, and then feels bad. Tom leaves when his cousin Mary happily returns home from a trip to the country. He wanders a while, thinks of the new girl, and goes to her house. He lays on the ground outside her house thinking of her and wishing she would give him some sympathy, until a maid pours water out the window onto him. Tom hops the fence and goes home without saying his prayers.
Topic Tracking: Religion 1
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