Join Host Bree Carlile as she reads the eighth chapter of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

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Today we'll be continuing Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain.

Chapter Eight The sun was up so high when I waked that I judged it was after 08:00.

I laid there in the grass in the cool shade, thinking about things and feeling rested and rather comfortable and satisfied.

I could see the sun out at one or two holes but mostly it was big trees all about and gloomy in there amongst them.

There was freckled places on the ground where the light sifted down through the leaves and the freckled places swapped about a little showing.

There was a little breeze up there.

A couple of squirrels sat on a limb and jabbered at me.

Very friendly.

I was powerful, lazy and comfortable.

Didn't want to get up and cook breakfast.

Well, I was dozing off again when I thinks I hears a deep sound of boom away up the river.

I rouses up and rests on my elbow and listens.

Pretty soon I hears it again.

I hopped up and went and looked out a hole in the leaves and I see a bunch of smoke laying on the water a long ways up about abreast the ferry.

And there was the ferry boat full of people floating along down.

I knowed what was the matter now.

Boom.

I see the white smoke squirt out of the ferryboat's side.

You see they was firing cannon over the water trying to make my carcass come to the top.

I was pretty hungry, but it weren't going to do for me to start a fire because they might see the smoke.

So I sat there and watched the cannon smoke and listened to the boom.

The river was a mile wide there and it always looks pretty on a summer morning.

So I was having a good enough time seeing them hunt for my remainders if only I had a bite to eat.

Well, then I happened to think how they always put quick, silver and loaves of bread and float them off because they always go right to the drowned carcass and stop there.

So says I.

I'll keep a lookout, and if any of them's floating around after me, I'll give them a show.

I changed to the Illinois edge of the island to see what luck I could have, and I weren't disappointed.

A big double loaf come along and I most got it with a long stick.

But my foot slipped and she floated out further.

Of course, I was where the current set in the closest to the shore.

I knowed enough for that.

But by and by, along comes another one, and this time I won.

I took out the plug and shook out the little dab of quicksilver and set my teeth in.

It was baker's bread.

What the quality?

Eat none of your low down cornpone.

I got a good place amongst the leaves and sat there on a log munching the bread and watching the ferry boat and very well satisfied.

And then something struck me.

I says, now, I reckon the Widow or the parson or somebody prayed that this bread would find me and here it's gone and done it.

So there ain't no doubt that there's something in that thing that is, there's something in it when a body like the widow or the parson prays.

But it don't work for me, and I reckon it don't work for only just the right kind.

I lit a pipe and had a good lawn smoke and went on watching.

The ferry boat was floating with the current and I allowed I'd have a chance to see who was aboard when she come along because she would come in close where the bread did.

When she'd got pretty well along down towards me, I put out my pipe and went to where I fished out the bread and laid down behind a log on the bank in a little open place where the log forked I could peep through.

By and by she come along and she drifted in so close that they could have run a plank and walked ashore.

Most everybody was on the boat.

PAP and Judge Thatcher and Bessie Thatcher and Joe Harper and Tom Sawyer and his old Aunt Polly and Sid and Marion.

Play more.

Everybody was talking about the murder, but the captain broke in and says, look sharp, now the current sets the closest here and maybe he's washed ashore and got tangled amongst the brush at the water's edge.

I hope so.

Anyway, I didn't hope so.

They all crowded up and leaned over the rails nearly in my face and kept still watching with all their might.

I could see them first rate, but they couldn't see me.

Then the captain sung out, Stand away.

And the cannon let off.

Such a blast right before me that it made me deep with the noise and pretty near blind with the smoke.

And I judged I was gone.

If they'd have had some bullets in, I reckon they'd have got a corpse they was after.

Well, I see I weren't hurt.

Thanks to goodness.

The boat floated on and went out of sight around the shoulder of the island.

I could hear the booming now and then further and further off and by and by.

After an hour I didn't hear it no more.

The island was three mile long.

I judged they had got to the foot and was giving it up, but they didn't yet.

A while they turned around to the foot of the island and started up the channel on the Missouri side under steam and booming once in a while as they went.

I crossed over to that side and watched them.

When they got abreast the head of the island, they quit shooting and dropped over to the Missouri shore and went home to the town.

I knowed I was all right now.

Nobody else would come a hunting after me.

I got my traps out of the canoe and made me a nice camp in the thick woods.

I made a kind of tent out of my blankets to put my things under so the rain couldn't get at them.

I catched a catfish and haggled him open with my saw.

And toward sundown I started my campfire and had supper.

Then I set out a line to catch some fish for breakfast.

When it was dark, I sat by my campfire smoking and feeling pretty well satisfied.

But by and by it got sort of lonesome.

And so I went and sat on the bank and listened to the currents washing along and counted the stars and drift logs and rafts that come down and then went to bed.

There ain't no better way to put in time when you're lonesome.

You can't stay so so you soon get over it.

And so for three days and nights no difference, just the same thing.

But the next day I went exploring around down through the island.

I was boss of it.

It all belonged to me, so to say, and I wanted to know all about it.

But mainly I wanted to put in the time.

I found plenty.

Strawberries, ripened prime and green summer grapes and green raspberries.

And the green blackberries was just beginning to show.

They would all come handy by and by, I judged.

Well, I went fooling along in the deep woods till I judged I weren't far from the foot of the island.

I had my gun along, but I hadn't shot nothing.

It was for protection.

Thought I would kill some game nigh home.

About this time I mighty near stepped on a good sized snake and it went sliding off through the grass and flowers and I after it trying to get a shot at it.

I clipped along and all of a sudden I bounded right onto the ashes of a campfire that was still smoking.

My heart jumped up amongst my lungs.

I never waited for to look further, but uncocked my gun and went sneaking back on my tiptoes as fast as ever I could.

Every now and then I stopped a second amongst the thick leaves and listened.

But my breath comes so hard I couldn't hear nothing else.

I slunk along another piece further, then listened again, and so on and so on.

If I see a stump, I took it for a man.

If I trod on a stick and broke it, it made me feel like a person had cut one of my breaths in two.

And I only got half and the short half too.

When I got to camp, I weren't feeling very brash.

There weren't much sand in my craw.

But I says this ain't no time to be fooling around.

So I got all my traps into my canoe again so as to have them out of sight.

And I put out the fire and scattered the ashes around to look like an old last year's camp and then clum a tree.

I reckon I was up in the tree 2 hours, but I didn't see nothing, I didn't hear nothing.

I only thought I heard and seen as much as a thousand things.

Well, I couldn't stay up there forever, so at last I got down.

But I kept in the thick woods and on the lookout all the time.

All I could get to eat was berries and what was left over from breakfast.

By the time it was night, I was pretty hungry.

So when it was good and dark, I slid out from shore before moonrise and paddled over to the Illinois bank about a quarter of a mile.

I went out in the woods and cooked a supper.

And I had about made up my mind I would stay there all night when I heard a plunkety plunk plunkety plunk and says to myself horses coming.

And next I hear people's voices.

I got everything into the canoe as quick as I could and then went creeping through the woods to see what I could find out.

I hadn't got far when I hear a man say we better camp here if we can find a good place.

The horses is about beat out, let's look around.

I didn't wait, but shoved out and paddled away easy.

I tied up in the old place and reckoned I would sleep in the canoe.

I didn't sleep much.

I couldn't somehow for thinking.

And every time I waked up I thought somebody had me by the neck.

Though the sleep didn't do me no good.

By and by I says to myself, I can't live this way.

I'm going to find out who it is that's here on the island with me.

I'll find it out or bust.

Well, I felt better right off, so I took my paddle and slid out from shore.

Just a step or two and then let the canoe drop along down amongst the shadows.

The moon was shining and outside of the shadows it made it most as light as day.

I poked along well onto an hour.

Everything still is rocks and sound asleep.

Well, by this time I was most down to the foot of the island.

A little ripply, cool breeze begun to blow and that was as good as saying the night was about done.

I gave her a turn with the paddle and brong her nose to shore.

Then I got my gun and slipped out and into the edge of the woods.

I sat down there on a log and looked out through the leaves.

I see the moon go off watch and the darkness begin to blanket the river.

But in a little while I see a pale streak over the treetops and know the day was coming.

So I took my gun and slipped off towards where I'd run across that campfire, stopping every minute or two to listen.

But I hadn't.

No luck.

Somehow I couldn't seem to find the place.

But by and by, sure enough, I catched a glimpse of fire away through the trees.

I went for it, cautious and slow.

By and by I was close enough to have a look.

And there laid a man on the ground.

It most give me the fants.

He had a blanket around his head and his head was nearly in the fire.

I sat there behind a clump of bushes and about six foot of him and kept my eyes on him steady.

It was getting gray daylight now.

Pretty soon he gapped and stretched himself and hove off the blanket.

And it was Miss Watson's.

Jim.

But I was glad to see him.

I says, Hello, Jim, and skipped out.

He bounced up and stared at me wild.

Then he drops down on his knees and puts his hands together and says, don't hurt me, don't.

I ain't ever done no harm to a ghost.

I always liked dead people and done all I could for him.

You go UN.

Get into river again where you belongs and don't know nothing.

Old Jim.

It as awful you friends.

Well, I weren't long making him understand I weren't dead.

I was ever so glad to see Jim.

I weren't lonesome now.

I told him I weren't afraid of him telling the people where I was.

I talked along, but he only sat there and looked at me, never saying nothing.

Then I says, it's good daylight.

Let's get breakfast.

Make up your campfire.

Good.

What do you, sir?

Making up to campfire to cook strawberries in sick truck.

But you got a gun, ain't you?

Then we can get something better than strawberries.

Strawberries and such truck, I says.

Is that what you live on?

I couldn't give nothing else, he says.

Why, how long you been on the island, Jim?

I come here tonight after you've killed.

What, all that time?

Yes, indeed.

And you ain't had nothing but that kind of rubbish to eat?

No, sir.

Nothing else.

Well, you must be most starved, ain't you?

I reckon I could eat a haas.

I think I could.

How long you been on the island?

Since the night I got killed.

No.

Why?

What has you lived on?

But you got a gun.

Oh, yes, you got a gun.

That's good.

Now you kill something and I'll make up to fire.

So we went over to where the canoe was.

And while he built a fire in a grassy open place amongst the trees I fetched meal and bacon and coffee and coffee pot and frying pan and sugar and tin cups.

And the man was set back considerable because he reckoned it was all done with witchcraft.

I catched a good big catfish, too.

And Jim cleaned him with his knife and fried him.

When breakfast was ready, we lulled on the grass and eat it smoking hot.

Jim laid it in with all its might for he was most about starved.

Then we had got pretty well stuffed.

We laid off and lazied by and by.

Jim says, but looky here, Hawk.

Who was it that is killed in that shanty if it weren't you?

Then I told him the whole thing, and he said it was smart.

He said Tom Sawyer couldn't get up no better plan than what I had.

Then I says, how do you come to be here, Jim?

And how'd you get here?

He looked pretty uneasy and didn't say nothing for a minute.

Then he says, maybe I better not tell.

Why, Jim?

Well, days reasons.

But you wouldn't tell on me if I was to tell you, would you, Huck?

Blamed if I would, Jim.

Well, I believe you huck.

I run off, Jim.

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 I will.

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

But that don't make no difference.

I ain't going to tell and I ain't to going back there anyways, so no less know all about it.

Well, you see it as this way.

Old Mrs.

That's Miss Watson, she pecks on me all the time and treats me pooty rough.

But she always says she wouldn't sell me down to Orleans.

But I noticed there was a trader round the place considerable lately and I begin to get uneasy.

Well, one night I creeps to Deputy late and the dew weren't quite s***.

And I hear old Mrs tell the Witter she was going to sell me down to Orleans but she didn't want to.

But she could get $800 for me and it is such a big stack of money she couldn't resist the Witter.

She tried to get her to say she wouldn't do it, but I never waited to hear.

To rest.

I let out mighty quick, I tell you.

I tuck out and shin down the hill inspect to steal a skiff long to show summers above the town, but there was people astiring yet.

So I hid into old tumble down Cooper shop on the bank and wait for everybody to go away while I was denied long day.

Was someone round all the time long.

About six in the morning skiffs began to go by and about eight or nine every skift that went long was talking about how your PAP came over to the town and said you was killed.

These last gifts was full of ladies and gentlemen going over to see the place.

Sometimes they'd pull up at the shore and take a rest before they start across.

So by the talk I got to know all about the killing.

I as powerful sorry you was killed, Huck, but I ain't no more.

Now.

I laid down under Shavings all day.

I was hungry, but I weren't afeared because I knowed old Mrs and De Witter was going to start the camp meeting right after breakfast and be gone all day.

And they knows I go off with the cattle about daylight, so they wouldn't expect to see me round a place and so they wouldn't miss me tell arter and dark in the evening.

The other servants wouldn't miss me case they'd shin out and take a holiday soon as old folks is out and away.

Well, when it comes to dark I tuck out up the river and went about two mile or more to what they weren't no houses.

I made up my mind about what I was going to do, you see, if I kept on trying to get away afoot the dogs attract me.

If I stole a skiff to cross over.

They'd miss that skiff, you see, and they'd know about what I land on the other side and what to pick up my track.

So I says a wrath is what I Zader.

It don't make no track.

I see a lighter coming round a pine to buy and by.

So I weighed in and shove a log ahead of me and swam more than halfway across the river and got in amongst the driftwood and kept my head down low and kender swim across the current till Duraf come along.

Then I swam to the stern of it and tuck a holt.

It clouded up and is pooty dark for a little while.

So I clumb up and laid down on the planks.

The men is all way yonder in the middle where the lantern was.

The river was horizon and there was a good current.

So I reckoned that by four in the morning I'd be 25 miles down the river and then I'd slip in just before daylight and swim a show and take the woods on the Illinois side.

But I didn't have no luck.

When we as most down to the head or the island.

A man began to come aft with the lantern.

I see it weren't no use for the wait so I slid overboard and struck out for the island.

Well, I had a notion I could land most anywhere but I couldn't bank two bluff.

I as most to the foot of the island before I found a good place.

I went into the woods and judged I wouldn't fool with the rafts no more long as day move lantern round.

So I had my pipe and a plug or dog leg and some matches in my cap.

And they weren't wet, so I was all right.

And you ain't had no meat nor bread to eat all this time?

Why didn't you get mud turtles?

How you going to get them?

You can't slip up and grab them.

And how's a body going to hit them?

With a rock?

How could a body do it into night?

And I weren't going to show myself on the bank in the daytime.

Well, that's so you've had to keep in the woods all the time of course.

Did you hear him shooting the cannon?

Oh yes, I know they was out of you.

I see him go by here.

Watched him through the bushes.

Some young birds come along flying a yard or two at a time in lighting.

Jim said it was a sign it was going to rain.

He said it was a sign when young chickens flew that way and so he reckoned it was the same way when young birds done it.

I was going to catch some of them, but Jim wouldn't let me.

He said it was death.

He said his father laid mighty sick once and some of them catched a bird.

And his old granny said his father would die and he did.

And Jim said you mustn't count the things you're going to cook for dinner because that would bring bad luck.

The same if you shook the tablecloth after sundown.

And he said if a man owned a beehive and that man died, the bees must be told about it before sun up next morning or else the bees would all weaken down and quit work and die.

Jim said bees wouldn't sting idiots, but I didn't believe that because I'd tried them lots of times myself and they wouldn't sting me.

I'd heard about some of these things before, but not all of them.

Jim knowed all kinds of signs.

He said he knowed most everything I said.

It looked to me like all the signs was about bad luck.

And so I asked him if there weren't any good luck signs.

He says mighty few and there ain't no use to a body.

What you want to know when good lucks are coming for?

Want to keep it off.

And he said if you've got hairy arms and a hairy breast it's a sign that you are going to be rich when day some use and a sign like that because it's so far ahead.

You see, maybe you've got to be pole a long time fast.

And first you might get discouraged and kill yourself if you didn't know by the sign that you going to be rich by and by.

Have you got hairy arms and a hairy breast?

Jim, what's the use to ask that question?

Don't you see I has?

Well, are you rich?

No, but I've been rich once and going to be rich again.

Once I had $14, but I tucked the speculating and got busted out.

What did you speculate in, Jim?

Well, first I tackled stock.

What kind of stock?

Well, livestock, cattle, you know.

I put $10 in a cow, but I ain't going to risk no more money in stock.

The cow up and died on my hands.

So you lost the $10?

No, I didn't lose at all.

I only lost about nine of it.

I sold the hide and tell her for a dollar and $0.10.

You had $5.10 left.

Did you speculate any more?

Yes.

You know that one legged man belongs to old Mr.

Bradish?

Well, he sought up a bank and say anybody that put in a dollar would get $4 more at the end of the year.

Well, all the servants went in, but they didn't have much.

I was the only one that had much.

So I stuck out for more than $4 and said if and I didn't get it, I'd start a bank myself.

Well, of course that servant want to keep me out of the business because he says they weren't business enough for two banks.

So he say I could put in my $5 and he pay me 35 at the end of the year.

So I'd done it.

Then I reckoned I'd invest the $35 right off and keep things moving.

There was a servant, Bob, that had catched a wood flat and his mercer didn't know it and I bought it off in him and told him to take the $35 when debt every year come.

But somebody stole the wood flat that night and next day he one laid servant said the banks busted, so they didn't none of us get no money.

What did you do with the $0.10, Jim?

Well, I was going to spend it, but I had a dream and the dream told me to give it to a man named Balam.

Balam's A** they call him for short, but he's one of them chuckleheads, you know.

But he's lucky, they say.

And I see I weren't lucky.

The dreams say, let Balam invest at, he'd make a raise for me.

Well, Balam, he tucked him money and when he was in church he heard a preacher say that whoever give to the poor lend to the Lord, and bound to get his money back a hundred times.

So Balam he tuck and give to poor and laid low to see what was going to come of it.

Well, what did come of it, Jim?

Nothing.

Never come of it.

I couldn't manage to collect the money, no way.

In Balin.

He couldn't.

And I go and lend no money.

Doubt I see security bound to get your money back a hundred times.

The preacher says if I could get to $0.10 back, I'd call it square and be glad or to chance it's.

All right.

Anyway, Jim, long as you're going to be rich again sometime or other.

Yes.

And I's rich now.

Come to look at it, I owns myself and I was with $800.

I wished I had the money.

I won't want no more.

Thank you for joining Bite at a Time books today while we read a bite of one of your favorite classics.

Again, my name is Brie Carlyle and.

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