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"But mind, you said you wouldn't tell -- you know you said you wouldn't tell,

Huck."

"Well, I did. I said I wouldn't, and I'll stick to it. Honest injun I will.

People would call me a low down Ablitionist and despise me for keeping mum

but that don't make no difference. I ain't agoing to tell, and I ain't agoing back

there anyways. So now, le's know all about it."

"Well, you see, it 'uz dis way. Ole Missus -- dat's Miss Watson -- she pecks

on me all de time, en treats me pooty rough, but she awluz said she wouldn'

sell me down to Orleans. But I noticed dey wuz a nigger trader roun' de place

considable, lately, en I begin to git oneasy. Well, one night I creeps to de

do', pooty late, en de do' warn't quite shet, en I hear ole missus tell de

widder she gwyne to sell me down to Orleans, but she didn' want to, but she

could git eight hund'd dollars for me, en it 'uz sich a big stack o' money she

couldn' resis'. De widder she try to git her to say she wouldn' do it, but I

never waited to hear de res'. I lit out mighty quick, I tell you.

"I tuck out en shin down de hill en 'spec to steal a skift 'long de sho'

som'ers 'bove de town, but dey wuz people a-stirrin' yit, so I hid in de ole

tumble-down cooper shop on de bank to wait for everybody to go 'way. Well,

I wuz dah all night. Dey wuz somebody roun' all de time. 'Long 'bout six

in de mawnin', skifts begin to go by, en 'bout eight er nine every skift dat

went 'long wuz talkin' 'bout how yo' pap come over to de town en say you's

killed. Dese las' skifts wuz full o' ladies en genlmen agoin' over for to see

de place. Sometimes dey'd pull up at de sho' en take a res' b'fo' dey started

acrost, so by de talk I got to know all 'bout de killin'. I 'uz powerful sorry

you's killed, Huck, but I ain't no mo', now.

"I laid dah under de shavins all day. I 'uz hungry, but I warn't afeared;

bekase I knowed ole missus en de widder wuz goin' to start to de camp-meetn'

right arter breakfas' en be gone all day, en dey knows I goes off wid de cattle

'bout daylight, so dey wouldn' 'spec to see me roun' de place, en so dey

wouldn' miss me tell arter dark in de evenin'. De yuther servants wouldn'

miss me, kase dey'd shin out en take holiday, soon as de ole folks 'uz out'n

de way.

"Well, when it come dark I tuck out up de river road, en went 'bout

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