Chapters 13–14
Summary :
Feeling forsaken and friendless and like a "boy el [whom] nobody loved," Tom decides to turn to a life of crime. He meets Joe Harper, "his soul's sworn comrade," and they begin to lay their plans and decide to include Huck Finn as a member of their gang of pirates. Huck, having no qualms about which life of crime is the best, readily agrees, and the three plan to meet that night.
When they meet at the appointed place, each boy identifies himself by his assumed pirate name; then they "borrow" (or capture) a small log raft to take them to Jackson's Island where they make camp. The following afternoon, the boys hear an unusual sound--a "deep, sullen boom came floating down out of the distance"--and see a ferry crowded with townspeople. Tom realizes that "somebody's drowned." After spending a few moments wondering who, the boys realize that the townspeople think they have drowned. All three are excited and overjoyed at the thought that they are the center of attention and will be the envy of all of their companions. When Joe vaguely hints that maybe they should go home because of the grief their families must be feeling, Huck and Tom ridicule him. When Huck and Joe go to sleep, however, Tom writes two notes; he leaves one note in Joe's hat; he keeps the other note and wends his way to the sandbar.
Direct Download! Don't need premium account for resumable download!
Chapters 15–16
Summary :
Tom sneaks back to his house in St. Petersburg and overhears Aunt Polly making plans for his funeral. Aunt Polly commiserates with Mrs. Harper (Joe's mother), both agreeing that the boys were "mischievous el giddy el and harum-scarum" but they never meant any real harm. Both women regret that the last things the boys heard from them were reprimands. Although tempted to dash out and reveal himself (the theatrical nature of such a revelation appeals to him), Tom restrains himself. Instead of leaving the note as he planned, Tom leaves with the note still in his pocket and returns to the island where he, Joe, and Huck continue their adventures. Eventually, Joe Harper becomes homesick and, despite Tom's ridicule, he starts home. Huck, who has no home, also desires to return to his customary haunts. After all else fails, Tom reveals to them his secret plans, and the other boys decide to remain.
That night, the boys are awakened by an approaching, driving storm. They take shelter under the inland tent until the tent blows away. Then they huddle together under an oak tree. After the fierceness of the storm abates, they return to their camp and find it destroyed. They realize that could have been killed had they remained in their camp.
Direct Download! Don't need premium account for resumable download!
Chapters 17–18
Summary :
It is a tranquil Saturday afternoon in St. Petersburg, but there is no gaiety as the adults prepare for the boys' funerals. Becky Thatcher finds herself moping about the schoolyard, feeling very melancholy. She has nothing to remember Tom by, and she wishes she had the brass knob that she returned to him. On Sunday, the toll of the church bell calls the mourners to the funeral services. The eulogies begin, noting the rare promise of the lost lads, their sweet generous natures, their noble and beautiful actions, and their promise.
Suddenly, "there was a rustle in the gallery" and with the creaking of the door, the entire congregation rises and stares at the three boys alive and walking down the aisle, first Tom and then Joe followed by Huck in his "drooping rags." Aunt Polly smothers Tom with affection; she even embraces Huck Finn. The minister leads the congregation with hymns of praise. For the rest of the day, Tom receives more "cuffs and kisses" than he has received in a year.
At school, Tom has become a great hero, and the young children follow him about in a sort of adoration. Tom and Joe are both envied and admired by their peers and they become conceited and swaggering. Tom decides that fame and "glory" is quite enough for him and he doesn't need Becky's attention any more. When she arrives, he ignores her and pours special attention on Amy Lawrence. As Tom did earlier, Becky now tries to get Tom's attention by showing off, by inviting other children to her picnic. As Tom continues to ignore her, Becky decides to make Tom jealous and she seeks out the company of Alfred Temple.
Now, in spite of glory, Tom finds himself tormented, especially because he finds Amy's chattering and nonsense intolerable. At noon, Tom goes home because he does not want to see Becky enjoying Alfred's company. Becky soon becomes tired of Alfred, especially since Tom is not around to suffer, and she sends him on his way. For his part, Alfred realizes that he has been used, and, for revenge, he pours ink over Tom's book at the passage for the day's lesson. Becky glances into the schoolroom in time to witness Alfred's treachery, but she decides to let Tom be punished because of the way he treated her earlier.
Direct Download! Don't need premium account for resumable download!
Chapters 19–20
Summary :
That noon, Aunt Polly immediately accosts Tom for lying to her. She has visited with Mrs. Harper (whose son Joe had told her everything) and found out that Tom had actually been over that night and overheard everything that he pretended was in a wonderful dream. In addition to Tom's lying to her is the humiliation she suffered from being made a fool of: "It makes me feel so bad to think you could let me go to Serena Harper and make such a fool of myself and never say a word."
Tom admits that his actions were mean, but he didn't intend to be mean; instead, he came over, he tells her, to let her know that she should not be uneasy about him. Aunt Polly believes it is another lie, but Tom is earnest that he came only "to keep you from grieving." Aunt Polly wants to believe him but is still cautious. Tom explains that when he heard them planning the funeral, he thought of the fun it would be to suddenly walk in and surprise everyone. This is the reason he didn't leave the note on the bark. Aunt Polly is surprised about the note, and after she sends him back to school, she goes to the closet to check his clothes. After vacillating back and forth about whether she should check for the note, she eventually does. Finding it, Aunt Polly's confidence in Tom's basic goodness is restored.
The scene with Aunt Polly encourages Tom to make up with Becky, and when he approaches her, she strangely rejects him and stomps away. He is confused by the incomprehensible actions of girls. Becky, meanwhile, has seen Alfred pour the ink over Tom's spelling book but decides not to tell so that Tom will receive a whipping.
While Becky is wandering about the classroom, she sees that Mr. Dobbins' top desk drawer is open. In it is a book on anatomy, which he reads when the class is busy with projects. All the students are completely entranced about the nature of the book, and Becky has the perfect opportunity to find out what the book contains. She looks about and, seeing that no one is around, removes the book with its handsome engraved and colored frontispiece and finds "a human figure, stark naked." At this moment a shadow falls across her book: It is Tom Sawyer. In her rush to conceal the book, she tears one of the pages. Now she is horrified because this offense will warrant a whipping in front of the entire class. She blames Tom and hurries from the room. Tom thinks a little licking isn't that important and decides to "let her sweat it out."
When school begins again, the ink spots on Tom's spelling book are revealed. Tom is accused and whipped, even though he stoutly proclaims his innocence. Ironically, Becky is not as happy as she thought she would be, and has to repress an impulse to inform on Alfred. She justifies her silence by assuming that Tom is going to reveal her guilt about the anatomy book.
Later in the afternoon when all are busy, Mr. Dobbins removes his book and discovers the torn page. When he asks the class who tore the book, no one volunteers, so he begins to question each student. When he reaches Becky Thatcher, she turns her head away, and when Mr. Dobbins orders her to look him in the face, Tom springs to his feet and says, "I done it."
Mr. Dobbins administers the most merciless flogging that he can. Tom, however, is consoled by the look of adoration in Becky's eyes. After the beating, he is forced to remain two hours after school, but he doesn't mind because he knows that Becky will be waiting for him. And, indeed, she is. She tells him of Alfred's treachery and her abetting it, but only her words, "Tom, how COULD you be so noble," have any lasting meaning for him.
Direct Download! Don't need premium account for resumable download!
Chapter 21
Summary :
With the end of school and vacation approaching, the schoolmaster, Mr. Dobbins, is determined that his students will make a good showing in the school's final examination. Thus he is very liberal in the use of the rod and other punishments. He is very faithful in whipping the younger students vigorously, frequently, and effectively. The smaller boys rack their brains for some suitable revenge against Mr. Dobbins' excessive floggings. They conceive of a wonderful plan, and they swear the sign-painter's boy into their plot because the schoolmaster boards at his father's house.
The night set aside for a display of learning arrives, and the school hall is lavishly decorated. Everyone in the town is present. The little folk recite their pieces with great difficulty, pleased only to get it over. The highlight of the night is the reading of original compositions by some of the older girls. Each theme is extremely melancholy, filled with cliches and trite pronouncements. The winner is "A Vision," a dreadfully gushy, melancholy piece with no originality.
Now is the time for revenge. The schoolmaster, who has been nipping from his bottle of private reserve liquor, is a little unsteady on his feet, and as he tries to draw a map of the United States, the audience begins to twitter. From above him in the attic, a cat is being slowly lowered through a trapdoor directly above his head. As soon as the cat can reach it, the cat snags the schoolmaster's toupee, revealing his bald head, which had been gilded gold by the sign painter's son and which shone like a star.
Direct Download! Don't need premium account for resumable download!
Chapter 22
Summary :
Tom admires the uniforms of the Cadets of Temperance and joins them so that he can strut at the funeral of Judge Frazer, who is dying. When the Judge has a turn for the better, Tom resigns from the Cadets of Temperance, but then the Judge has a relapse and dies. The funeral is a fine thing, but Tom is free from it. He attempts a diary, but nothing comes of it. He attends a minstrel show, and he and Joe play minstrel for two days. A senator comes, but he is not impressive. A circus comes and leaves the next day, so the boys play circus for a while and then abandon it. A phrenologist and a mesmerizer come, and still the boys are bored and dreary.
Then Tom has the measles for two weeks. He is better for a short time and then has a relapse that lasts three weeks. Between the two bouts with measles, all his friends get religion--even "Huck quoted some scripture!"--but by the end of the second bout, all is normal again.
Direct Download! Don't need premium account for resumable download!
Chapters 23–24
Summary :
At last, the day of Muff Potter's trial arrives. It is the sole absorbing story of the entire town. Every report about the trial makes Tom shudder, and he finds Huck Finn in order to reassure himself that Huck has told no one. Huck tells Tom that he will tell only when he decides that he wants Injun Joe to drown him, for he knows that they will not be alive for two days if they reveal what they know. The boys then swear again not to reveal the truth because the consequences of their telling would be tantamount to their own deaths.
Tom and Huck discuss the rumors going about town and how it is obvious that Muff Potter will be convicted and executed. Then they remember certain little favors that Muff had performed for them and agree that Muff is basically a harmless drunk who has never done anyone any mischief; he is certainly not the hardened villain that he is depicted to be by the village.
The boys do as they have often done before: They take various items, such as tobacco, to Muff's jail cell, and they try to comfort him. Muff tells the boys how kind they are and remembers all of the good things about them. Tom and Huck leave feeling guilty and miserable.
At the first day of the trial, the prosecutor presents evidence and witnesses that point to Muff as being the murderer, and the defense attorney does not cross-examine. Even the townspeople are dissatisfied that the defense attorney is simply "throwing away his client's life without an effort." Tom and Huck have avoided going into the courtroom. That night, Tom is out very late.
The next day, after the closing remarks of the prosecutor, the defense attorney changes his plea; surprisingly, he calls Tom Sawyer to the witness stand and asks where Tom was hiding on the night of the murder. Tom can hardly answer but finally reveals that he was hiding only a few feet away from the murder scene. Then, in his own words--and by now Tom is speaking freely--he describes the entire scene. When Tom reaches the climax of the story, Injun Joe jumps through the courthouse window and escapes. Upon Tom's revelation, the fickle town, which had openly condemned Muff Potter, now takes him "to its bosom."
Once more, Tom is the "glittering hero" and the envy of every boy in the village. While Tom's days are ones of exultation and praise, his nights are horrors. His dreams are nightmares, and he will not leave home after dark. While Huck's name was never mentioned in court, Huck is still afraid that word of his involvement will get out, because his "confidence in the human race was well-nigh obliterated." Rewards are offered for Injun Joe, and a fancy St. Louis detective arrives and leaves, but Injun Joe is not found. After some time, Tom's fears abate somewhat.
Direct Download! Don't need premium account for resumable download!
