第1章
波莉姨妈
“汤姆！”
没人应答。
“汤姆！”波莉姨妈看了一圈房间，“那小子是怎么回事？他肯定就藏在这里的什么地方。”她把眼镜拉到鼻子上。
汤姆 • 索亚跟他的姨妈波莉、表妹玛丽和同母异父的弟弟锡德尼一同生活。汤姆总在寻找冒险机会，总是惹上麻烦，今天也毫不例外。
波莉姨妈扫视了一圈客厅，用家具都能听见的音量说道：“要是我能抓住你，我非……”
她身后传来轻微声响。她立刻及时转身，抓住一个冲出厨房壁橱的小男孩：“你在那里面又干吗了？”
“没干什么呀。”汤姆答道。
“汤姆，看看你的手！看看你的嘴！你全身都是些什么啊？”
汤姆舔了下嘴唇：“姨妈，我不知道。”
“好吧，我知道。”波莉姨妈说，“是果酱！我难道没跟你讲过起码四十遍吗？假如你再动果酱，我就剥了你的皮！”她叹了口气：“把鞭子递给我。”
很快，鞭子已经扬到了空中。
“天哪！波莉姨妈，看你身后！”
波莉姨妈转了个身。趁她转身时，汤姆逃出门外，翻过篱笆。
有那么一会儿，波莉姨妈吃惊地站在原地。然后她突然大笑起来：“我哪天才能长记性！这孩子总能让我前一分钟气死，后一分钟又笑死。”
波莉姨妈很了解汤姆，也习惯了他的小把戏。汤姆是她已经过世的姐姐的儿子。波莉姨妈并不忍心鞭打他。
“他今天下午肯定要逃课，”波莉姨妈咕哝着，“这逼我明天得罚他干活了。让他在周六干活可是难上加难，但我得对这个孩子尽到我的责任啊。”
汤姆的确逃了课，而且玩得非常开心。
吃晚饭时，波莉姨妈询问汤姆这一天过得怎样。她指望着能戳穿他的谎话：“今天学校很暖和是吧，汤姆？”
“是的，女士。”汤姆答道。
“你想去游泳了吗？”
汤姆心中划过一丝恐慌。波莉姨妈是在怀疑他逃课了吗？
“没想，女士。”他答道。
波莉姨妈摸了摸汤姆的衬衫。衬衫是干的。汤姆很清楚她接下来要摸什么。
“我们几个把水喷在头上降温。我的头发还没干透呢，瞧！”
波莉姨妈后悔自己没在汤姆主动提起之前想到摸他的湿头发。
她又想到个法子：“你不需要解开衬衫领子才能让头发不湿，是吧？解开你的外套。”
汤姆觉得自己已经猜透了姨妈的心思，他解开了外套。里面也全是干的。
“好吧，这次就算了，”波莉姨妈说，“我还以为你肯定逃课去游泳了。”
但不想锡德尼说：“我记得你是用白线给他缝的领子。现在却是黑的。”
“我的确是用白线缝的！”波莉姨妈说。
但汤姆可没等波莉姨妈说完。他一边逃出门一边喊道：“锡德，我迟早找你算账！”
当夜，汤姆回到家。当他从窗子爬进屋里时，波莉姨妈正等着他呢。当她看见他的衣服又脏又乱时，他就知道自己要被罚了。
又一天黎明来临，随之而来的还有汤姆面临的惩罚。整个世界明亮欢欣，生机盎然。洋槐树正开着花儿，空气中满是芬芳。
汤姆在人行道上走着，拎着桶石灰水，拿着把刷子。他面前的栅栏有三十码长，九英尺高。他原本振奋的精神立刻受到了打击。
这时，家里年轻的奴隶吉姆正一蹦一跳地出门，拿着桶去打水。汤姆原本一直认为去镇上的井打水是件无聊的差事，但现在他可不这么想。在井边，孩子们排队等候打水，他们在那儿休息，交换东西，甚至还会打架。尽管井离家只有一百五十码远，吉姆总要在那儿花上起码一个小时才肯回来。
“喂，吉姆，”汤姆说，“我去帮你打水，你替我刷一会儿石灰水吧。”
吉姆摇摇头：“不行，汤姆少爷。小姐告诉我必须自己去打水。她还说过，即使你问我，我也不能帮你刷石灰水。”
“没关系的，吉姆。就一分钟，我去去就来。波莉姨妈永远都不会知道。”
吉姆踌蹰着。
“我会给你看我受伤的脚趾。”汤姆说。
吉姆放下桶，弯下腰看汤姆绑了绷带的脚趾。然而一秒钟后，波莉姨妈就手拎着一只拖鞋出现了。汤姆立刻乖乖开始粉刷，而吉姆则在街上飞奔而去。
汤姆感觉很糟糕。他知道，过一会儿所有男孩都会过来，嘲笑他还得干活。这想法像火苗一样灼得他心里难受。就在这绝望之时，汤姆突然想出了一个绝妙的主意！
他开始拼命地刷他应该刷的栅栏。几分钟后，本• 罗杰斯露面了，他一边嚼苹果一边假装自己是一条蒸汽船。
“丁零……”蒸汽船的铃声响了。
汤姆没有分心，继续粉刷。然后汤姆退后一步，欣赏起他的作品来。
本说：“被罚干活了，是吧？我要去游泳了，汤姆。
你是不是希望不用干活一起去呀？”
“干活？”汤姆问道，一脸莫名其妙。
“你不就在干活吗？”本问道。
汤姆耸耸肩。“是或不是，这就难说了，但它真的很适合我汤姆 • 索亚。”他继续沿着栅栏挥动刷子，“哪个男孩能有机会每天刷栅栏的？”
本注视着汤姆的每一个动作：“嘿，汤姆，为什么不让我来刷一点呢？”
汤姆考虑了一会儿：“不行。波莉姨妈对这栅栏在意得很。它必须完美。我认为一千个男孩里只有一个—也可能是两个—能刷好。”
“真的吗？”本问道，“啊，汤姆，你必须让我试试啊。如果换了是我，我肯定让你刷的。”
汤姆摇摇头：“波莉姨妈死活不让吉姆或者锡德来刷。一旦出了什么差错的话……”
“哦，不会的，我会小心的。让我试试！”本乞求道，“我给你苹果核作为交换。”
汤姆还是不松口。
“我把整个苹果都给你。”本说。
汤姆终于放下刷子，眼里闪过一丝狡黠。当汤姆坐下嚼着苹果时，他已经准备好戏弄更多的孩子了。
每隔一会儿，就有一个男孩走过来，嘲笑汤姆要干的活儿。但到后他们全都在忙着替他粉刷！
天要黑时，汤姆已经用粉刷的机会交换到了一个风筝、一只死老鼠、几只蝌蚪，还有一截粉笔。他还得到了一个狗项圈（却没有狗）、一只独眼的猫咪、一个刀把、四片橘子皮、一个锡兵、十二颗鹅卵石、一个线轴和一把钥匙。
汤姆收集了一堆的宝贝，而栅栏已经被从头到尾刷了三遍！要不是他的石灰水用完了，他能让整个村子里的男孩都破产。
CHAPTER 1
Aunt Polly
“Tom!”
No answer.
“Tom!” Aunt Polly looked around the room. “What’s gotten into that boy? He must be here somewhere.” She pulled her spectacles down on her nose.
Tom Sawyer lived with his aunt Polly, his cousin Mary, and his half brother Sidney. Tom was always looking for adventure and getting into trouble, and today was no different.
Aunt Polly looked around the parlor and said loud enough for the furniture to hear, “If I get a hold of you, I’ll . . .”
There was a slight noise behind her. She turned just in time to grab a boy darting out of the kitchen closet. “What have you been doing in there?”
“Nothing,” said Tom.
“Look at your hands, Tom! And look at your mouth. What do you have all over you?”
Tom licked his lips. “I don’t know, Aunt.”
“Well, I know,” said Aunt Polly. “It’s jam! Haven’t I told you at least forty times that if you didn’t leave the jam alone, I’d skin you?” She sighed. “Hand me that switch.”
Soon, the switch hovered in the air.
“My! Look behind you, Aunt Polly!”
Aunt Polly whirled around. When she did, Tom fled out the door and over the fence.
For a moment, Aunt Polly stood there surprised. Then, she broke into a laugh. “When will I ever learn? That boy can get my dander up one minute and make me laugh the next.”
Aunt Polly knew Tom well and was used to his tricks. Tom was her dead sister’s son. Aunt Polly didn’t have the heart to lash him.
“He’ll play hooky this afternoon,” Aunt Polly mumbled. “I’m going to be obliged to make him work tomorrow as punishment. It’s mighty hard to make him work on Saturdays, but I’ve got to do my duty by him.”
Tom did play hooky, and he had a very good time.
At dinner, Aunt Polly asked Tom about his day.
She was hoping to catch him in a lie. “It was warm in school today, wasn’t it, Tom?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Tom answered.
“Did you want to go swimming?”
A bit of a scare shot through Tom. Did Aunt Polly suspect he had played hooky?
“No, ma’am,” he answered.
Aunt Polly felt Tom’s shirt. It was dry. Tom knew exactly what she’d be reaching for next.
“Some of us pumped water on our heads. Mine’s still damp. See?”
Aunt Polly wished she had thought to feel his damp hair before he offered it up to her.
Then she had an idea. “You didn’t have to undo your shirt collar to keep it dry, did you? Unbutton your jacket.”
Feeling like he had outfoxed his aunt, Tom unbuttoned his jacket. All was dry.
“Well, I’ll be,” said Aunt Polly. “I thought for sure you had been swimming.”
But Sidney said, “I thought you sewed his collar with white thread. It’s black.”
“I did sew it with white!” said Aunt Polly.
But Tom didn’t wait for Aunt Polly to finish. As he went out the door, he shouted, “Siddy, I’ll get you for that!”
That night, Tom got home. When he climbed in the window, Aunt Polly was waiting. When she saw the state of his clothes, he knew he’d be punished.
The next morning came, and so did his punishment. The world was bright and cheery and brimming with life. The locust trees were in bloom and the fragrance filled the air.
Tom appeared on the sidewalk with a bucket of whitewash and a brush. Before him was thirty yards of board fence that was nine feet high. His cheery spirit deflated.
Jim, the young slave, came skipping out of the gate with a pail for water. Tom had always thought bringing water from the town pump was a chore. But, now he didn’t think so. Kids were always waiting their turns, resting, trading things, and fighting by the pump. Although the pump was only a 150 yards off, it always took Jim at least an hour to get back.
“Say, Jim,” said Tom, “I’ll fetch the water if you’ll whitewash some.”
Jim shook his head. “Can’t, Master Tom. Misses told me I got to get the water myself. She said not to whitewash if you asked me.”
“Never mind that, Jim. I’ll only be gone a minute. Aunt Polly will never know.”
Jim wavered.
“I’ll show you my sore toe,” said Tom.
Jim put down his pail and bent over Tom’s bandaged toe. But a second later, Aunt Polly appeared waving a slipper in her hand. Tom quickly started whitewashing as Jim went flying down the street.
Tom felt miserable. He knew all the boys would soon come along and make fun of him for having to work. The thought burned him like fire. Just when he felt hopeless, Tom got a magnificent idea!
He started painting the boards for all he was worth. A few minutes later, Ben Rogers came along pretending he was a steamboat while chewing on an apple.
“Ting-a-ling,” chimed the steamboat.
Tom paid no attention and went on whitewashing. Then Tom stepped back to admire his work.
Ben said, “Got to work, huh? I’m going swimming, Tom. Don’t you wish you could come instead of work?”
“Work?” Tom asked, confused.
“Ain’t that work?” asked Ben.
Tom shrugged. “Maybe it is, maybe it ain’t, but it suits Tom Sawyer.” He continued moving the brush along the boards. “Does a boy get a chance to whitewash a fence every day?”
Ben watched every move Tom made. “Hey Tom, why don’t you let me whitewash a bit?”
Tom considered for a moment. “Nah. Aunt Polly’s very particular about this fence. It has to be perfect. I reckon there’s only one boy—maybe two—in a thousand that could do it the right way.”
“Really?” asked Ben. “Oh, Tom, you just have to let me. I’d let you if it were me.”
Tom shook his head. “Aunt Polly wouldn’t let Jim or Sid do it. If anything happened to it . . .”
“Oh, shucks, I’ll be careful. Let me try,” begged Ben. “I’ll give you the core of my apple.”
Tom protested.
“I’ll give you all of my apple,” said Ben.
Tom gave up his brush with a twinkle in his eye. As he sat and munched on the apple, Tom prepared to trick more kids.
Every once in a while, a boy would come along and laugh at the work to be done. But they’d always end up whitewashing!
By the day’s end, Tom had traded the chance of whitewashing for a kite, a dead rat, tadpoles, and a piece of chalk. He also got a dog collar—with no dog—a kitten with one eye, the handle of a knife, four pieces of orange peel, a tin soldier, twelve marbles, a spool, and a key.
Tom had a nice stash of treasures and the fence had three coats of whitewash on it! If he hadn’t run out of whitewash, he would have bankrupted every boy in the village.