ThatⒶemendation was all fixed. So then we went away,Ⓐhistorical collation and went to the rubbage pileⒶhistorical collation in the back yard where they keep the old boots, and rags, and pieces of bottles, and wore-out tin thingsⒶalteration in the MS, and all such truck, and scratched around and found an old tin washpanⒶhistorical collation and stopped up the holes as well as we could, to bake the pie in, and took it down cellar and stole it full of flour, and started forⒶemendation breakfast,Ⓐhistorical collation and found a couple of shingle nailsⒶhistorical collation that Tom said would be handy for a prisoner to scrabbleⒶalteration in the MS his name and sorrows on the dungeon walls with, and dropped one of them inⒶalteration in the MS auntⒶhistorical collation Sally’s apron pocket which was hanging on a chair, and t’other we stuck in the band of uncleⒶhistorical collation Silas’s hat, which was on the bureau, because we heard the children say their pa and ma was going to the runaway nigger’s house this morning, and then went to breakfast, and Tom dropped the pewter spoon inⒶemendation uncleⒶhistorical collation Silas’s coat pocket, and auntⒶhistorical collation Sally wasn’t come yet, so we had to wait a little while.
And when she come she was hot, and red, and cross, and couldn’t hardly wait for the blessing,Ⓐhistorical collation and then she went to sluicing out coffee with one hand and cracking the handiest child’s head with her thimble with the other, and says:
“I’ve hunted high, and I’ve hunted low, and it does beat all, what has become of your other shirt.”
My heart fell down amongst my lungs and livers and things, and a hard piece of corn-crustⒶalteration in the MS started down my throat after it and got met on the road with a cough and wasⒶalteration in the MS shot across the table and took [begin page 314] one of the children in the eye and curled him up like a fishing-wormⒶalteration in the MS Ⓐemendation, and let a cry out of him the size of a war-whoop, and Tom he turned kinder blue around the gills, and it all amounted to a considerable state of things for about a quarter ofⒶalteration in the MS a minute or as much as that, and I would a sold out for half price if there was a bidder. But after that,Ⓐhistorical collation we was all right again—it was the suddenⒶalteration in the MS surprise of it that knocked us so kind of cold. Uncle Silas heⒶemendation says:
“It’s most uncommon curious, I can’t understand it. I know perfectly well I took it offⒶalteration in the MS , because—Ⓐhistorical collation”
“Because you hain’t got but one on. JustⒶemendation listen at the man! I know you took it off, and know it by a better way than your wool-getheringⒶemendation memory, too, because it was on the clo’es lineⒶemendation yesterday—I see it there myself. But it’s gone—that’s the long and the short of it, and you’ll just have to change to a red flann’lⒶemendation one till I can get time to make a new one. And it’ll be the thirdⒶalteration in the MS I’ve made in two years; it just keeps a body on the jump to keep you in shirts; and whatever you do manage to do with ’m all, is more’n I can make out. A body’d think you would learn to take some sort of care of ’em, at your time of life.”
“I know it, Sally, and I do try,Ⓐhistorical collation all I can. But it oughtn’t to be altogether my fault, because you know I don’t see them norⒶalteration in the MS have nothing to do with them except when they’re on me; and I don’t believe I’ve ever lost one of them off of me.”
“Well, it ain’t your fault if you haven’t, Silas—you’d a done it if you could, I reckon. And the shirt ain’t all that’s gone, nuther. Ther’s a spoon gone; and that ain’t all. There was ten, and now ther’s only nine.Ⓐalteration in the MS The calf got the shirt,Ⓐhistorical collation I reckon, but the calf never took the spoon, that’s certain.”
“Why, what else is gone, Sally?”
“Ther’s six candles gone—that’s what. The rats could a got the candles, and I reckon they did; I wonder they don’t walk off with the whole place, the way you’re always going to stop their holes and don’t do it; and if they warn’t fools they’d sleep in your hair, Silas— you’d Ⓐhistorical collation never find it out; but you can’t lay the spoon on the rats, and that I know.”
“Well, Sally, I’m in fault, and I acknowledge it; I’ve been remiss; but I won’t let to-morrowⒶalteration in the MS go by without stopping up them holes.”
“OⒶhistorical collation, I wouldn’t hurry, next year’ll do. Matilda Angelina AramintaⒶemendation Phelps!Ⓔexplanatory note”
[begin page 315] Whack comes the thimble, and the child snatchesⒶemendation her claws out of the sugar bowlⒶhistorical collation without fooling around any. Just then, the nigger woman steps onto the passage, and says:
“Missus, dey’s a sheet gone.”
“A sheet gone! Well, for the land’s sake!”
“I’ll stop up them holes to-day,” says uncleⒶhistorical collation Silas, looking sorrowful.
“OⒶhistorical collation, do shet up! —SposeⒶhistorical collation the rats took the sheet? Ⓐalteration in the MS Where’s it gone, Lize?”Ⓐalteration in the MS
“ClahⒶalteration in the MS to goodness I hain’t no notion, Miss Sally. She wuz on de clo’s lineⒶhistorical collation yistiddy, but she done gone; she ain’ dah no mo’,Ⓐhistorical collation now.”
“I reckon the world is coming to an end. I never see the beat of it, in all my born days. A shirt, and a sheet, and a spoon, and six can—Ⓐhistorical collation”Ⓐalteration in the MS
“Missus,” comes a young yaller wench, “dey’s a brass cannelstick miss’n.”
“Cler outⒶalteration in the MS from here, you hussy, erⒶemendation I’ll take a skillet to ye!”
Well, she was just a biling. I begun to lay for a chance; I reckoned I would sneak out and go for the woods till the weather moderated. She kept a-ragingⒶhistorical collation right along, running her insurrectionⒶalteration in the MS all by herself, and everybody else mighty meek and quiet; and at last uncleⒶhistorical collation Silas, looking kind of foolish, fishes up that spoon out of his pocket. She stopped, with her mouth open and her hands up; andⒶalteration in the MS as for me, I wished I was in JeruslemⒶalteration in the MS or somewheres. But not long; because she says:
“It’s just Ⓐemendation as I expected. So you had it in your pocket all the time; and like as not you’ve got the other things there, too. How’d it get there?”
“I reely don’t know, Sally,” he says,Ⓐalteration in the MS kind of apologizing, “or you [begin page 316] know I would tell. I was a-studyingⒶemendation over my text in Acts seventeenⒶhistorical collation Ⓔexplanatory note, before breakfast, and I reckon I put it in there, not noticing, meaning to put my TestamentⒶalteration in the MS in, and itⒶalteration in the MS must be so, because my Testament ain’tⒶemendation in, but I’llⒶalteration in the MS go and see,Ⓐalteration in the MS and if the Testament isⒶalteration in the MS where I had it, I’ll know I didn’t put it in, and that will show that I laid the Testament down and took up the spoon, and—Ⓐhistorical collation”
“OⒶhistorical collation, for the land’s sake! Give a body a rest! Go ’long,Ⓐhistorical collation now, the whole kit and bilingⒶalteration in the MS Ⓐemendation of ye; and don’t come nigh me again till I’ve got back my peace of mind.”
I’dⒶalteration in the MS Ⓐhistorical collation a heardⒶalteration in the MS her, if she’d a said it to herself, let alone speaking it out; and I’d a got up and obeyed her, if I’d a been dead. As we was passing through the setting roomⒶhistorical collation, the old man he tookⒶemendation up his hat, and the shingle nailⒶhistorical collation fell out on the floor, and he just merelyⒶalteration in the MS picked it up and laid it on the mantel shelfⒶhistorical collation, and never said nothing, and went out. Tom see him do it, and remembered about the spoon,Ⓐalteration in the MS and says:
“Well, it ain’t no use to send things byⒶalteration in the MS him no more, he ain’t reliable.” Then he says: “But he done us a good turn with the spoon, anyway, without knowing it, and so we’ll go and do him one without him knowing it—stop up his rat holesⒶhistorical collation.”
There was a noble good lot of them, down cellar, and it took us a whole hour, but we done the job tight and good, and ship-shape. Then we heard steps on the stairs, and blowed out our light, and hid; and hereⒶemendation comes the old man, with a candle in one hand and a bundle of stuff in t’other, looking as absent-minded as year before last. He went a mooning around, first to one rat holeⒶhistorical collation and then another, till he’d been to them all. Then he stood about five minutes, picking tallow-drip off of his candle and thinking. Then he turns off slow and dreamy towards the stairs, saying:
“Well, for the life of me I can’t remember when I done it. I could show her, now,Ⓐhistorical collation that I warn’t to blame on account of the rats. But never mind—let it go. I reckon it wouldn’t do no good.”
And so he went on a-mumblingⒶemendation up stairs, and then we left. He was a mighty nice old man. And always is.
TomⒶalteration in the MS was a good deal bothered about what to do for a spoon, but he said we’d got to have it; so he took a thinkⒶalteration in the MS. When he had ciphered it out, he told me how we was to do; then we went and waited around the spoon-basket till we see auntⒶhistorical collation Sally coming, and then [begin page 317] Tom went to counting the spoons and laying them out to one side, and I slid one of them up my sleeve, and Tom says:
“Why, auntⒶhistorical collation Sally, there ain’t but nine spoons, yet.”
She says:
“Go ’long to your play, and don’t bother me. I know better, I counted ’m myself.”
“Well, I’ve counted them twice, auntyⒶhistorical collation, and I can’t make but nine.”
SheⒶalteration in the MS looked out of all patience, but of course she come to count—anybody would.
“I declare to gracious ther’ ain’t but nine!” she says. “Why, what in the world—plague take the things, I’ll count ’m again.”
So I slipped back the one I had, and when she got done counting, she says:
“Hang the troublesome rubbage,Ⓐalteration in the MS ther’s ten, now!” and she looked huffy and botheredⒶemendation both. But Tom says:
“Why, auntyⒶhistorical collation, I don’t think there’s ten.”
“You numscullⒶhistorical collation, didn’t you see me count ’m?”
[begin page 318] “I know, but—Ⓐhistorical collation”
“Well, I’llⒶalteration in the MS count ’m again.”
So I smouched one, and they come out nine,Ⓐalteration in the MS Ⓐhistorical collation same as the other time. Well, she was in a tearing way—just a trembling all over, she was so mad. But she counted,Ⓐhistorical collation and counted, till she got that addled she’d start to count-in the basket Ⓐalteration in the MS for a spoon, sometimes:Ⓐhistorical collation and so, three times theyⒶalteration in the MS come out right, and three times they come out wrong. Then she grabbed up the basket and slammed it across the house and knocked the cat galley-west; and she saidⒶalteration in the MS “cle’rⒶemendation out and let her have some peace, and if we come bothering around her again betwixt that and dinner, she’d skin us.”Ⓐhistorical collation Ⓐalteration in the MS So we had the odd spoon; and dropped it in her apron pocket whilst she was a-givingⒶhistorical collation us our sailing-orders, andⒶalteration in the MS Jim got it,Ⓐhistorical collation all right, along with her shingle-nail, before noon.Ⓐalteration in the MS We was very well satisfied with this business, and Tom allowed it was worth twice the trouble it took, because he said now she couldn’t ever count them spoons twice alike again to save her life; and wouldn’t believe she’d counted them right, if she did; and said thatⒶalteration in the MS after she’d aboutⒶalteration in the MS counted her head off, for the next three days, he judged she’d give it up and offer to kill anybody that wanted her to ever count them any more.
So we put the sheet back on the line, that night, and stole one out of her closet; and kept on puttingⒶalteration in the MS it back and stealing it again, for a couple of days, till she didn’t know how many sheets she had, any more, and saidⒶalteration in the MS she didn’t care, and warn’t agoing to bullyrag the rest of her soulⒶalteration in the MS out about it, and wouldn’t count them again not to save her life, sheⒶalteration in the MS druther die first.
So we was all right,Ⓐhistorical collation now, as to the shirt and the sheet and the spoon and the candles, by the help of the calf and the rats and the mixed-up counting; and as to the candlestick, it warn’tⒶalteration in the MS no consequence, it would blow over by and byⒶhistorical collation.
ButⒶalteration in the MS that pie was a job; we had no end of trouble with that pie. We fixedⒶalteration in the MS it upⒶalteration in the MS away down in the woods, and cooked it there; and we got it done,Ⓐhistorical collation at last, and very satisfactory, too; but not all in one day; and we had to use up three washpansⒶhistorical collation full of flour, before we got through, and we got burnt pretty much all over, in places, and eyes put out with the smoke; because, you see, we didn’t want nothing but a crust, and we couldn’t prop it up,Ⓐhistorical collation right, and she would always cave in. But of course we thought of the right way at last; which was,Ⓐhistorical collation to [begin page 319] cook the ladder, too, in the pie. So then we laid in with Jim, the second night, and tore up the sheet all inⒶemendation little strings, and twisted them together, and long before daylight we had a lovely rope, that you could a hung a person with. We let on it took nine months to make itⒶemendation.Ⓐalteration in the MS
And in the forenoon we took it down to the woods, but it wouldn’t go in the pie. Being made of a whole sheet, that way, there was rope enough for fortyⒶalteration in the MS pies, if we’d a wantedⒶalteration in the MS them, and plentyⒶalteration in the MS left over for soup, or sausage, or anything you choose. We could a had a whole dinner.
But we didn’t need it. All we needed was just enough for the pie,Ⓐalteration in the MS and so we throwed the rest away. We didn’tⒶalteration in the MS cook none of the pies in the washpan, afraid the solder would melt; but uncleⒶhistorical collation Silas heⒶemendation had a nobleⒶalteration in the MS brass warming panⒶhistorical collation which he thought considerable of, because it belonged to one of his ancestersⒶalteration in the MS Ⓐemendation Ⓐtextual note with a long wooden handle that come over from England with William the Conqueror in the MayflowerⒶhistorical collation or one of them early ships andⒶalteration in the MS was hid away up garret with a lot of other old pots and things that was valuable, not on account of being any account,Ⓐhistorical collation because they warn’tⒶalteration in the MS, but on account of them being relicts, you know, and we snaked herⒶalteration in the MS out, private, and took herⒶalteration in the MS down there, but she failed on the first pies, because we didn’t know how, but she come up smiling on the last one.Ⓐalteration in the MS We took and lined her with dough, and set her in the coals,Ⓐalteration in the MS and loaded her up withⒶalteration in the MS rag-ropeⒶalteration in the MS Ⓐhistorical collation, and put on a dough roof, and shut down the lid, and put hot embers on top,Ⓐalteration in the MS and stood off fiveⒶalteration in the MS foot, with the long handle, cool and comfortable, and in fifteen minutes sheⒶalteration in the MS turned out a pie that was a satisfaction to look at. But the person that et it would want to fetch a couple of kags of toothpicksⒶalteration in the MS along, for if that rope [begin page 320] ladderⒶhistorical collation wouldn’t cramp him down to business, I don’t know nothing what I’m talking about, and lay him in enough stomach-ache to last him till next time, too.
Nat didn’t look, when we put the witch-pie in Jim’s pan; and we put the three tin plates in the bottom of the pan under the vittles; and so Jim got everything all right, and as soon as he was by himself he busted into the pie and hid the rope ladderⒶhistorical collation inside of his straw tick, and scratched some marks on a tin plate and throwed it out of the window-hole.