[00:01.970]Chapter5 The plan to free Jim
[00:07.630]When I heard that，I nearly fell through the floor，but it was a big piece of luck．
[00:18.530]It was easy for me to be Tom Sawyer because Tom was my best friend．
[00:25.860]He and his brother Sid lived with their Aunt Polly up in St Petersburg，
[00:32.450]And I knew all about them．
[00:36.030]Now I learnt that Aunt Polly had a sister，who was Mrs Phelps．
[00:42.080]She and her husband were Tom's Aunt Sally and Uncle Silas．
[00:47.420]And Tom was coming down south by boat to stay with them for a bit．
[00:52.660]We all sat there talking and I could answer all their questions about the Sawyer family．
[01:01.520]I was feeling really happy about this when suddenly I heard a boat on the river．
[01:11.000]'Tom could be on that boat，'I thought，
[01:16.150]'and he's going to walk in here and call out my name before I can stop him．
[01:22.780]I've got to go and meet him．'
[01:26.390]So I told the Phelpses that
[01:30.190]I would go into town to get my bags， which were at the boat station．
[01:35.960]I hurried up the road and before I was halfway to town，
[01:41.060]There was Tom Sawyer coming along．
[01:45.790]When he saw me， his mouth fell open and he looked a bit white in the face．
[01:54.270]'Aren't you dead？'he said．'Everybody said that you were murdered！'
[02:01.650]'I'm not dead yet，'I said，'but listen…'
[02:07.060]I told him about my adventures，and Tom loved all that．
[02:13.420]Then I told him about the Phelpses and that they thought I was Tom Sawyer．
[02:20.060]'What shall we do？'I asked him．
[02:23.570]Tom thought for a bit，and then he said，'I know．
[02:31.280]You take my bags and say they're yours． I'll come to the house in about half an hour．'
[02:39.250]'All right，'I said，'but there's another thing．
[02:44.700]You know old Miss Watson's slave Jim， who ran away？
[02:49.440]Well，he's a prisoner here，and I'm going to help him escape．'
[02:55.700]'Jim？'Tom said．'But he's—'Then he stopped and thought．
[03:04.920]'Right．I'll help，too，I'll make a really good plan．'He looked very excited．
[03:15.290]So I went back to the house with the bags，and Tom came along half an hour later．
[03:23.480]He knocked on the door and when his Aunt Sally opened it，
[03:28.420]He said he was Sid， Tom's brother．
[03:32.380]He wanted his visit to be a surprise for his dear old Aunt Sally，he said．
[03:39.720]Well，Aunt Sally was very pleased to see Tom and Sid．
[03:47.920]She thought it was wonderful．She and Uncle Silas were really nice people．
[03:54.730]When we were alone later，Tom and I talked about Jim's escape．
[04:01.780]I said I had a plan，and Tom listened to it．
[04:06.610]'It's a good plan，'he said when I finished．'But it's too easy！
[04:15.140]It's got to be a real escape，like a real adventure in a story-book．
[04:21.850]So we want something difficult and dangerous．Now，listen to this…'
[04:29.570]So he told me his plan．
[04:33.260]I knew it would be a good one because Tom's plans are always crazy and exciting．
[04:41.060]And we sure had a lot of fun with that plan！
[04:46.990]We knew that Jim was locked up in a hut outside the house．
[04:51.790]Every night we got out through our bedroom window
[04:56.240]And dug a hole right under the wall of the hut．
[05:00.180]It took us a week，and it was hard work．
[05:04.930]We talked to Jim secretly and told him about the plan，and he was really pleased．
[05:12.510]We also wrote secret letters to everybody．
[05:17.150]Tom said that people always do this in books．
[05:22.300]We wrote that there was a gang of slave-thieves coming up from the south．
[05:28.310]They wanted to steal Jim and get the three hundred dollars from his owner．
[05:34.140]Well，the Phelpses and their friends got very excited，
[05:40.190]And on the night of the escape I went into the sitting-room，
[05:45.120]And there was a crowd of men in there—all with guns！
[05:52.330]I ran and told Tom， and he said that this was really good．
[05:59.610]'It's a real adventure now， all right，'he said， very excited．
[06:06.640]'Perhaps they'll come after us，and shoot，and we'll all get killed！'
[06:14.850]Well，there wasn't time to think about it because it all happened so quickly．
[06:22.020]We got Jim out through the hole under the wall，and began to run down to the river．
[06:28.550]But the men heard us and came after us．
[06:32.610]They began to shoot，and so we ran as fast as we could to the canoe．
[06:38.820]We got in it and went over to Spanish Island．My raft was there，
[06:45.400]And our plan was to escape on that and go on down river．
[06:50.740]'Now，Jim，'I cried，'you're a free man！'We were all very happy，
[07:01.540]But Tom was the happiest of all，because he had a bullet in his leg．
[07:08.710]When Jim and I heard that，we weren't so happy．
[07:13.690]Tom wanted the adventure to go on，
[07:17.250]But Jim and I said that a doctor must look at Tom's leg．
[07:21.570]Tom was getting angry about this，but Jim said：
[07:26.610]'You listen to me，Tom Sawyer．You say I'm a free man now，and perhaps I am．
[07:35.270]But old Jim is not going to run away and leave one of his friends with a bullet in his leg！
[07:44.350]So I'm staying right here until a doctor comes．'
[07:49.000]I knew Jim would say that． He was a good， true friend，
[07:55.980]And you can't say that about many people．
[07:59.800]Well，that was the end of the adventure，really．
[08:05.730]I went and found a doctor in the town．
[08:09.270]He was a kind old man，and he said he would go over to the island．
[08:15.080]But Tom's leg got very bad，and the next day
[08:19.550]The doctor and some other men carried Tom home to the Phelpses' house．
[08:24.670]They brought Jim too， and they locked him up in the hut again．
[08:30.060]But the doctor said，'Be kind to him，
[08:35.270]Because he didn't run away and he stayed to help me with the boy．'
[08:41.450]They took Tom up to bed because his leg was really bad，
[08:48.710]And Aunt Sally sat with him while he slept．
[08:52.030]I didn't want to answer any questions so I kept out of everybody's way．
[08:58.710]When Tom woke up the next day，he felt better．
[09:03.800]I was in the room and he said to me，'Jim's all right，isn't he？'
[09:10.020]I didn't know what to say because Aunt Sally was listening，
[09:16.280]And before I could stop him，Tom went on：
[09:20.070]'We did it，Aunt Sally．Me and Tom here．We helped Jim escape．'
[09:26.730]He told her all about the digging and everything，
[09:31.720]And Aunt Sally's mouth was opening and closing like a fish．
[09:37.570]Then she got really angry with Tom．
[09:41.630]'That slave is locked up again and he's going to stay there．And if I catch you again—'
[09:49.840]Tom suddenly sat up in bed．'You can't do that！'he cried．
[09:58.880]'Jim was old Miss Watson's slave， but she died two months ago．
[10:04.400]Before she died，she wrote that she wanted Jim to be free，and not a slave any more．
[10:12.020]Jim's a free man，not a slave！
[10:16.500]Well，that was a surprise to me and Aunt Sally！She thought Tom was crazy．
[10:25.520]'But Sid，why did you help him to escape，if he was free already？'she said．
[10:33.780]'I wanted the adventure，of course！'said Tom．
[10:39.310]'We made a really exciting plan and… Oh my！…AUNT POLLY！'
[10:49.860]We turned round，and there was Tom's Aunt Polly in the doorway！
[10:57.530]That was the second big surprise．
[11:01.460]Aunt Sally was really pleased to see her sister，
[11:05.630]And jumped up to put her arms round her．
[11:08.890]I got under the bed as fast as I could．
[11:13.820]There was trouble coming for me and Tom， that was for sure．
[11:18.580]Then Aunt Polly said to Tom，
[11:22.590]'You always were a terrible boy，Tom Sawyer，and I want to know—'
[11:28.390]'But Polly dear，'said Aunt Sally，'this isn't Tom．It's Sid．
[11:35.810]Tom was here a minute ago．Where is he？'
[11:42.070]'Where's Huck Finn，you mean，' replied Aunt Polly．
[11:47.830]'Come out from under that bed， Huck Finn．'
[11:51.390]So Tom and I had to explain everything．
[11:57.260]Aunt Polly said that Aunt Sally wrote and told her that Tom and Sid were there．
[12:02.800]She knew that it wasn't true， so she decided to come and find out what was happening．
[12:09.810]But she said that it was true about Miss Watson and that Jim was a free man now．
[12:17.100]We got Jim out of the hut and Aunt Sally and Uncle Silas were really nice to him．
[12:26.320]Later，Tom， Jim and I had a long talk by ourselves．
[12:32.490]Tom talked and talked，and then he said，
[12:37.220]'Let's all three of us run away one night，
[12:41.200]And go and have adventures in the wild country down south．'
[12:46.410]It sounded like a good plan to me．'The only thing is，'I said，
[12:54.300]'I haven't got any money to buy the right clothes and things．
[12:58.990]All my money back in St Petersburg will be in Pop's pockets by now．'
[13:05.560]'No，'said Tom．'Your money's all there．Your Pop never came back．'
[13:13.760]'No，and he won't come back，Huck，'Jim said．
[13:19.160]'You remember that dead man on the river，
[13:22.820]When I said“Don't look at his face”？Well，that was your Pop．
[13:29.580]You can get your money when you want．'
[13:32.920]Tom's leg is almost better now， and I haven't got any more to write about．
[13:40.910]I'm really pleased about that because it was very difficult to write a book
[13:46.160]And I won't do it again．But I think I'm going to have to run away before the others，
[13:53.440]Because Aunt Sally wants me to live with her．
[13:56.790]I'll have to sleep in a bed and wear clean clothes and learn to be good，
[14:05.090]And I can't do that again．I've done it once already．
[14:12.380]The End
[14:14.390]Yours Truly
[14:16.380]Huck Finn