said we would be heroes if we could come out and tell
all we knowed; but after all, it was still more heroic to
keep mum, there warn’t two boys in a million could do
it. That was Tom Sawyer’s idea about it, and
reckoned there warn’t anybody could better it.
CHAPTER IX.
FINDING OF JUBITER DUNLAP
IN the next two or three days Dummy he got to be
powerful popular. He went associating around with
the neighbors, and they made much of him, and was
proud to have such a rattling curiosity among them.
They had him to breakfast, they had him to dinner,
they had him to supper; they kept him loaded up
with hog and hominy, and warn’t ever tired staring at
him and wondering over him, and wishing they knowed
more about him, he was so uncommon and romantic.
His signs warn’t no good; people couldn’t under-
stand them and he prob’ly couldn’t himself, but he
done a sight of goo-gooing, and so everybody was sat-
isfied, and admired to hear him go it. He toted a
piece of slate around, and a pencil; and people wrote
questions on it and he wrote answers; but there warn’t
anybody could read his writing but Brace Dunlap.
Brace said he couldn’t read it very good, but he could
manage to dig out the meaning most of the time. He
said Dummy said he belonged away off somers and
used to be well off, but got busted by swindlers which
he had trusted, and was poor now, and hadn’t any way
to make a living.
Everybody praised Brace Dunlap for being so good
to that stranger. He let him have a little log-cabin all
to himself, and had his niggers take care of it, and fetch
him all the vittles he wanted.
Dummy was at our house some, because old Uncle
Silas was so afflicted himself, these days, that anybody
else that was afflicted was a comfort to him. Me and
Tom didn’t let on that we had knowed him before, and
he didn’t let on that he had knowed us before. The
family talked their troubles out before him the same as
if he wasn’t there, but we reckoned it wasn’t any harm
for him to hear what they said. Generly he didn’t
seem to notice, but sometimes he did.
Well, two or three days went along, and everybody
got to getting uneasy about Jubiter Dunlap. Every-
body was asking everybody if they had any idea what
had become of him. No, they hadn’t, they said: and
they shook their heads and said there was something
powerful strange about it. Another and another day
went by; then there was a report got around that praps
he was murdered. You bet it made a big stir! Every-
body’s tongue was clacking away after that. Saturday
two or three gangs turned out and hunted the woods to
see if they could run across his remainders. Me and
Tom helped, and it was noble good times and exciting.
Tom he was so brimful of it he couldn’t eat nor rest.
He said if we could find that corpse we would be
celebrated, and more talked about than if we got
drownded.
The others got tired and give it up; but not Tom
Sawyer — that warn’t his style. Saturday night he
didn’t sleep any, hardly, trying to think up a plan;
and towards daylight in the morning he struck it. He
snaked me out of bed and was all excited, and says:
“Quick, Huck, snatch on your clothes — I’ve got
it! Bloodhound!”
In two minutes we was tearing up the river road in
the dark towards the village. Old Jeff Hooker had a
bloodhound, and Tom was going to borrow him. I
says:
“The trail’s too old, Tom — and besides, it’s rained,
you know.”
“It don’t make any difference, Huck. If the body’s
hid in the woods anywhere around the hound will find
it. If he’s been murdered and buried, they wouldn’t
bury him deep, it ain’t likely, and if the dog goes over
the spot he’ll scent him, sure. Huck, we’re going to
be celebrated, sure as you’re born!”