WhenⒶemendation they got aboard, the king went for me, and shook me by the collar, and says:
“Tryin’ to give us the slip, was ye, you pup! Tired of our company—hey?”
I says:
“No, your majesty, we warn’tⒶemendation—please don’t, your majesty!”
“QuickⒶalteration in the MS, then, and tell us what was your idea, or I’ll shake the insides out o’ you!”
“Honest, I’ll tell you every thingⒶhistorical collation, just as it happened, your majesty. The man that had aholt of me was very good to me, and kept saying he had a boy about as big as me,Ⓐhistorical collation that died last year, and he was sorry to see a boy in suchⒶalteration in the MS a dangerousⒶemendation fix; and when they was all took by surprise by finding the gold, and made a rush for the coffin, he letsⒶalteration in the MS go of me and whispers, ‘Heel it, now, or they’ll hang ye, sure!’ and I lit out. It didn’t seem no good for me to stay—I couldn’t do nothing, and I didn’t want to be hung if I could get away. So I never stopped running till I found the canoeⒶtextual note Ⓐemendation; and when I got here I told Jim to hurry, or they’d catch me and hang me,Ⓐhistorical collation yet, and said I was afeard you and the duke wasn’t alive, now, and I was awful sorry, and so was Jim, and was awful glad when we see you coming, you may ask Jim if I didn’t.”
Jim said it was so; and the king told him to shut up, and said, “OⒶhistorical collation, yes, it’s mighty likely!” and shook me up again, and said he reckoned he’d drowndⒶemendation me. But the duke says:
[begin page 262] “Leggo the boy,Ⓐalteration in the MS you old idiot! Would you a done any different? Did you inquire aroundⒶemendation for him, when you got loose? I don’t remember it.”
So the king let go of me, and begun to cuss that town,Ⓐhistorical collation and everybody in it. But the duke says:
“You better a blame sight give yourself a good cussing, for you’re the one that’s entitled to itⒶalteration in the MS most. You hain’t done a thing, from the start, that had any sense in it, except coming out so cool and cheeky with that imaginary blue-arrow mark. That was bright—it was right down bully; and it was the thing that saved us. For if it hadn’t been for that, they’d a jailed us till themⒶalteration in the MS Englishmen’s baggage come,Ⓐhistorical collation and then—the penitentiary, you bet! But that trick took ’em to the graveyard, and the gold done us a still bigger kindness; for if the excited fools hadn’t let go all holts and made that rushⒶalteration in the MS to get a look, we’d a slept in our cravats to-night—cravats warranted to wear,Ⓐalteration in the MS too—longer thanⒶemendation we’d need ’em.”
They was still a minute—thinking—then the king says, kind of absent-mindedⒶhistorical collation like:
“Mf! And we reckoned the niggers stole it!”
That made me squirm!Ⓐalteration in the MS
“YesⒶemendation,” says the duke, kinderⒶemendation slow, and deliberate, and sarcastic.Ⓐhistorical collation “We did.Ⓐemendation”
After about a half a minute, the king drawls out:
“Leastways—I did.”
The duke says, the same way:
“On the contrary—I did.”
The king kind of ruffles up, and says:
“Looky here, Bilgewater, what’r you referrin’Ⓐalteration in the MS to?”
The dukeⒶalteration in the MS says, pretty brisk:
“When it comes to that, maybe you’ll let me ask, what was you referring to?”
“Shucks!” says the king, very sarcastic; “but I don’t know—maybe you was asleep, and didn’t know what you was about.”
The duke bristles right up, now, and says:
“OⒶhistorical collation, let up on this cussed nonsense—do you take me for a blame’ fool? Don’t you reckon I know who hidⒶalteration in the MS that money in that coffin?”Ⓐalteration in the MS
“ Yes Ⓐhistorical collation sir! I know you do know—because you done it yourself!”
“It’s a lie!”—and the duke went for him. The king sings out:
[begin page 263] “Take y’rⒶemendation hands off!—leggo my throat!—I take it all back!”
The duke says:
“Well, you just own up, first,Ⓐalteration in the MS that you did hide that money there, intending to give me the slip one of these days, and come back and dig it up, and have it all to yourself.”
“Wait jestⒶalteration in the MS a minute, duke—answer me this one question,Ⓐalteration in the MS honest and fair:Ⓐhistorical collation if you didn’t put the money there, say it, and I’ll b’lieveⒶemendation you, and take back everything IⒶemendation said.”
“You old scoundrel, I didn’t, andⒶalteration in the MS you know I didn’t. There, now!”
“WellⒶhistorical collation then, I b’lieveⒶemendation you. But answer me only jest thisⒶalteration in the MS one more—now don’t git mad:Ⓐhistorical collation didn’t you haveⒶalteration in the MS it in your mind to hook the money and hide it?Ⓐalteration in the MS”Ⓐemendation
The duke never said nothing for a little bit; then he says:
“Well—I don’t care if I did,Ⓐalteration in the MS I didn’t do it, anyway. But you not only had it in mindⒶemendation to do it, but you done it.”
“I wishtⒶemendation I may never die if I done it, duke, and that’s honest. I won’t say I warn’t goin’ to do it, becauseⒶemendation I was; but you—I mean somebodyⒶalteration in the MS—got in ahead o’Ⓐemendation me.”
“It’s a lie! You done it, and you got to say you done it, or—Ⓐhistorical collation”
The king begun to gurgle, and thenⒶalteration in the MS he gasps out:
“ ’Nough!—I own up!”
I was very glad to hear him say that, it made me feel much more easier than what I was feeling before.Ⓐemendation So the duke took his hands off, and says:
[begin page 264] “If you ever deny it again, I’ll drown you. It’s well for you to set there and blubber like a babyⒶalteration in the MS—it’s fitten for you, after the way you’ve acted. I never see such an old ostrichⒶalteration in the MS for wanting to gobble everything—and I a trusting you all the time, like you was my own father. You ought to beenⒶalteration in the MS ashamed of yourself to stand by and hear it saddled onto a lotⒶemendation of poor niggers and you never say a word for ’em. It makes me feel ridiculousⒶemendation to think I was soft enough to believe that rubbage. Cuss you, I can see, now, why you was so anxious to make up the deffesitⒶalteration in the MS Ⓐemendation—you wanted to get what money I’d got out of the NonesuchⒶemendation and one thing or another, and scoop it all! Ⓐemendation”
The king says, timid, and still a snuffling:
“Why, duke, it was you that said make up the deffersit, it warn’t me.”
“Dry up!Ⓐemendation I don’t want to hear no more out ofⒶemendation you!” says the duke. “And now you see what you got by it. They’ve got all their own money back, and all of ourn but a shekel or two, besides. G’longⒶalteration in the MS to bed—and don’t you deffersit me no more deffersits, long’sⒶemendation you live!”
So the king sneaked into the wigwam, and took to hisⒶemendation bottle for comfort; and before long the duke tackled his bottle; and so in about a half an hour they was as thick as thieves again, and the tighterⒶemendation they got theⒶhistorical collation lovinger they got; and went off a-snoringⒶhistorical collation in each other’s arms. They both got powerful mellowⒶemendation, but I noticed the king didn’t get mellowⒶemendation enough to forget to remember to not deny about hiding the money-bag,Ⓐhistorical collation again.Ⓐalteration in the MS That made me feel easy and satisfied. Of course when they got to snoring, we had a long gabble, and I told Jim everything.Ⓐemendation Ⓐalteration in the MS