THEY asked us considerable many questions; wanted to know what we covered up the raft that way for, and laid by in the daytime instead of running -- was Jim a runaway¹ nigger? Says I:

"Goodness sakes! would a runaway nigger run SOUTH?"

No, they allowed he wouldn't. I had to account for things some way, so I says:

"My folks was living in Pike County, in Missouri, where I was born, and they all died off but me and pa and my brother Ike. Pa, he 'lowed he'd break up and go down and live with Uncle Ben, who's got a little one-horse place on the river, forty-four mile below Orleans. Pa was pretty poor, and had some debts; so when he'd squared up there warn't nothing left but sixteen dollars and our nigger, Jim. That warn't enough to take us fourteen hundred mile, deck passage nor no other way. Well, when the river rose pa had a streak² of luck one day; he ketched this piece of a raft; so we reckoned we'd go down to Orleans on it. Pa's luck didn't hold out; a steamboat run over the forrard corner of the raft one night, and we all went overboard and dove under the wheel; Jim and me come up all right, but pa was drunk, and Ike was only four years old, so they never come up no more. Well, for the next day or two we had considerable trouble, because people was always coming out in skiffs and trying to take Jim away from me, saying they believed he was a runaway nigger. We don't run daytimes no more now; nights they don't bother us."

The duke says:

"Leave me alone to cipher³ out a way so we can run in the daytime if we want to. I'll think the thing over -- I'll invent a plan that'll fix it. We'll let it alone for to-day, because of course we don't want to go by that town yonder in daylight -- it mightn't be healthy."

Towards night it begun to darken up and look like rain; the heat lightning was squirting around low down in the sky, and the leaves was beginning to shiver -- it was going to be pretty ugly, it was easy to see that. So the duke and the king went to overhauling⁴ our wigwam, to see what the beds was like. My bed was a straw tick裝etter than Jim's, which was a cornshuck tick; there's always cobs around about in a shuck tick, and they poke⁵ into you and hurt; and when you roll over the dry shucks sound like you was rolling over in a pile of dead leaves; it makes such a rustling⁶ that you wake up. Well, the duke allowed he would take my bed; but the king allowed he wouldn't. He says:

"I should a reckoned the difference in rank would a sejested to you that a corn-shuck bed warn't just fitten for me to sleep on. Your Grace 'll take the shuck bed yourself."

Jim and me was in a sweat again for a minute, being afraid there was going to be some more trouble amongst them; so we was pretty glad when the duke says:

"'Tis my fate to be always ground into the mire⁷ under the iron heel of oppression. Misfortune has broken my once haughty⁸ spirit; I yield, I submit; 'tis my fate. I am alone in the world -- let me suffer; can bear it."

We got away as soon as it was good and dark. The king told us to stand well out towards the middle of the river, and not show a light till we got a long ways below the town. We come in sight of the little bunch of lights by and by -- that was the town, you know -- and slid by, about a half a mile out, all right. When we was three-quarters of a mile below we hoisted¹⁰ up our signal lantern; and about ten o'clock it come on to rain and blow and thunder and lighten like everything; so the king told us to both stay on watch till the weather got better; then him and the duke crawled into the wigwam and turned in for the night. It was my watch below till twelve, but I wouldn't a turned in anyway if I'd had a bed, because a body don't see such a storm as that every day in the week, not by a long sight. My souls, how the wind did scream along! And every second or two there'd come a glare that lit up the white-caps for a half a mile around, and you'd see the islands looking dusty through the rain, and the trees thrashing around in the wind; then comes a H-WHACK! -- bum¹¹! bum! bumble-umble-um-bum-bum-bum-bum -- and the thunder would go rumbling¹² and grumbling¹³ away, and quit -- and then RIP comes another flash and another sockdolager. The waves most washed me off the raft sometimes, but I hadn't any clothes on, and didn't mind. We didn't have no trouble about snags; the lightning was glaring and flittering around so constant that we could see them plenty soon enough to throw her head this way or that and miss them.

I had the middle watch, you know, but I was pretty sleepy by that time, so Jim he said he would stand the first half of it for me; he was always mighty¹⁴ good that way, Jim was. I crawled into the wigwam, but the king and the duke had their legs sprawled¹⁵ around so there warn't no show for me; so I laid outside -- I didn't mind the rain, because it was warm, and the waves warn't running so high now. About two they come up again, though, and Jim was going to call me; but he changed his mind, because he reckoned they warn't high enough yet to do any harm; but he was mistaken about that, for pretty soon all of a sudden along comes a regular ripper and washed me overboard. It most killed Jim a-laughing. He was the easiest nigger to laugh that ever was, anyway.

I took the watch, and Jim he laid down and snored away; and by and by the storm let up for good and all; and the first cabin-light that showed I rousted him out, and we slid the raft into hiding quarters for the day.

The king got out an old ratty deck of cards after breakfast, and him and the duke played seven-up a while, five cents a game. Then they got tired of it, and allowed they would "lay out a campaign," as they called it. The duke went down into his carpetbag, and fetched up a lot of little printed bills and read them out loud. One bill said, "The celebrated¹⁷ Dr. Armand de Montalban, of Paris," would "lecture on the Science of Phrenology" at such and such a place, on the blank day of blank, at ten cents admission, and "furnish charts of character at twenty-five cents apiece." The duke said that was HIM. In another bill he was the "world-renowned Shakespearian tragedian, Garrick the Younger, of Drury Lane, London." In other bills he had a lot of other names and done other wonderful things, like finding water and gold with a "divining-rod," "dissipating witch spells," and so on. By and by he says:

"But the histrionic muse¹⁸ is the darling. Have you ever trod the boards, Royalty¹⁹?"

"No," says the king.

"You shall, then, before you're three days older, Fallen Grandeur," says the duke. "The first good town we come to we'll hire a hall and do the sword fight in Richard III. and the balcony scene in Romeo and Juliet. How does that strike you?"

"I'm in, up to the hub, for anything that will pay, Bilgewater; but, you see, I don't know nothing about play-actin', and hain't ever seen much of it. I was too small when pap used to have 'em at the palace. Do you reckon you can learn me?"

"Easy!"

"All right. I'm jist a-freezn' for something fresh, anyway. Le's commence right away."

So the duke he told him all about who Romeo was and who Juliet was, and said he was used to being Romeo, so the king could be Juliet.

"But if Juliet's such a young gal²⁰, duke, my peeled head and my white whiskers is goin' to look oncommon odd on her, maybe."

"No, don't you worry; these country jakes won't ever think of that. Besides, you know, you'll be in costume, and that makes all the difference in the world; Juliet's in a balcony, enjoying the moonlight before she goes to bed, and she's got on her nightgown and her ruffled²¹ nightcap. Here are the costumes for the parts."

He got out two or three curtain-calico suits, which he said was meedyevil armor for Richard III. and t'other chap, and a long white cotton nightshirt and a ruffled nightcap to match. The king was satisfied; so the duke got out his book and read the parts over in the most splendid spread-eagle way, prancing²² around and acting²³ at the same time, to show how it had got to be done; then he give the book to the king and told him to get his part by heart.

There was a little one-horse town about three mile down the bend, and after dinner the duke said he had ciphered out his idea about how to run in daylight without it being dangersome for Jim; so he allowed he would go down to the town and fix that thing. The king allowed he would go, too, and see if he couldn't strike something. We was out of coffee, so Jim said I better go along with them in the canoe and get some.

When we got there there warn't nobody stirring; streets empty, and perfectly²⁴ dead and still, like Sunday. We found a sick nigger sunning himself in a back yard, and he said everybody that warn't too young or too sick or too old was gone to campmeeting, about two mile back in the woods. The king got the directions, and allowed he'd go and work that camp-meeting for all it was worth, and I might go, too.

The duke said what he was after was a printing-office. We found it; a little bit of a concern, up over a carpenter shop -- carpenters and printers all gone to the meeting, and no doors locked. It was a dirty, littered-up place, and had ink marks, and handbills with pictures of horses and runaway niggers on them, all over the walls. The duke shed his coat and said he was all right now. So me and the king lit out for the camp-meeting.

We got there in about a half an hour fairly dripping, for it was a most awful hot day. There was as much as a thousand people there from twenty mile around. The woods was full of teams and wagons²⁶, hitched²⁷ everywheres, feeding out of the wagon²⁵-troughs and stomping²⁸ to keep off the flies. There was sheds made out of poles and roofed over with branches, where they had lemonade and gingerbread to sell, and piles of watermelons and green corn and such-like truck.

The preaching was going on under the same kinds of sheds, only they was bigger and held crowds of people. The benches was made out of outside slabs²⁹ of logs, with holes bored in the round side to drive sticks into for legs. They didn't have no backs. The preachers had high platforms to stand on at one end of the sheds. The women had on sun-bonnets; and some had linsey-woolsey frocks, some gingham ones, and a few of the young ones had on calico. Some of the young men was barefooted, and some of the children didn't have on any clothes but just a towlinen shirt. Some of the old women was knitting, and some of the young folks was courting on the sly.

The first shed we come to the preacher was lining³⁰ out a hymn³¹. He lined out two lines, everybody sung it, and it was kind of grand to hear it, there was so many of them and they done it in such a rousing way; then he lined out two more for them to sing -- and so on. The people woke up more and more, and sung louder and louder; and towards the end some begun to groan³², and some begun to shout. Then the preacher begun to preach, and begun in earnest, too; and went weaving first to one side of the platform and then the other, and then a-leaning down over the front of it, with his arms and his body going all the time, and shouting his words out with all his might; and every now and then he would hold up his Bible and spread it open, and kind of pass it around this way and that, shouting, "It's the brazen³³ serpent in the wilderness³⁴! Look upon it and live!" And people would shout out, "Glory! -- A-a-MEN!" And so he went on, and the people groaning³⁵ and crying and saying amen:

"Oh, come to the mourners' bench! come, black with sin! (AMEN!) come, sick and sore! (AMEN!) come, lame³⁶ and halt and blind! (AMEN!) come, pore and needy³⁷, sunk in shame! (A-A-MEN!) come, all that's worn and soiled and suffering! -- come with a broken spirit! come with a contrite³⁸ heart! come in your rags and sin and dirt! the waters that cleanse³⁹ is free, the door of heaven stands open -- oh, enter in and be at rest!" (A-A-MEN! GLORY, GLORY HALLELUJAH!)

And so on. You couldn't make out what the preacher said any more, on account of the shouting and crying. Folks got up everywheres in the crowd, and worked their way just by main strength to the mourners' bench, with the tears running down their faces; and when all the mourners had got up there to the front benches in a crowd, they sung and shouted and flung themselves down on the straw, just crazy and wild.

Well, the first I knowed the king got a-going, and you could hear him over everybody; and next he went a-charging up on to the platform, and the preacher he begged him to speak to the people, and he done it. He told them he was a pirate -- been a pirate for thirty years out in the Indian Ocean -- and his crew was thinned out considerable last spring in a fight, and he was home now to take out some fresh men, and thanks to goodness he'd been robbed last night and put ashore⁴⁰ off of a steamboat without a cent, and he was glad of it; it was the blessedest thing that ever happened to him, because he was a changed man now, and happy for the first time in his life; and, poor as he was, he was going to start right off and work his way back to the Indian Ocean, and put in the rest of his life trying to turn the pirates into the true path; for he could do it better than anybody else, being acquainted with all pirate crews in that ocean; and though it would take him a long time to get there without money, he would get there anyway, and every time he convinced a pirate he would say to him, "Don't you thank me, don't you give me no credit; it all belongs to them dear people in Pokeville campmeeting, natural brothers and benefactors⁴¹ of the race, and that dear preacher there, the truest friend a pirate ever had!"

And then he busted⁴² into tears, and so did everybody. Then somebody sings out, "Take up a collection for him, take up a collection!" Well, a half a dozen made a jump to do it, but somebody sings out, "Let HIM pass the hat around!" Then everybody said it, the preacher too.

So the king went all through the crowd with his hat swabbing his eyes, and blessing⁴³ the people and praising them and thanking them for being so good to the poor pirates away off there; and every little while the prettiest kind of girls, with the tears running down their cheeks, would up and ask him would he let them kiss him for to remember him by; and he always done it; and some of them he hugged and kissed as many as five or six times -- and he was invited to stay a week; and everybody wanted him to live in their houses, and said they'd think it was an honor; but he said as this was the last day of the camp-meeting he couldn't do no good, and besides he was in a sweat to get to the Indian Ocean right off and go to work on the pirates.

When we got back to the raft and he come to count up he found he had collected eighty-seven dollars and seventy-five cents. And then he had fetched away a three-gallon jug⁴⁴ of whisky, too, that he found under a wagon when he was starting home through the woods. The king said, take it all around, it laid over any day he'd ever put in in the missionarying line. He said it warn't no use talking, heathens don't amount to shucks alongside of pirates to work a camp-meeting with.

The duke was thinking HE'D been doing pretty well till the king come to show up, but after that he didn't think so so much. He had set up and printed off two little jobs for farmers in that printing-office -- horse bills -- and took the money, four dollars. And he had got in ten dollars' worth of advertisements for the paper, which he said he would put in for four dollars if they would pay in advance -- so they done it. The price of the paper was two dollars a year, but he took in three subscriptions⁴⁵ for half a dollar apiece on condition of them paying him in advance; they were going to pay in cordwood and onions as usual, but he said he had just bought the concern and knocked down the price as low as he could afford it, and was going to run it for cash. He set up a little piece of poetry, which he made, himself, out of his own head -- three verses -- kind of sweet and saddish -- the name of it was, "Yes, crush, cold world, this breaking heart" -- and he left that all set up and ready to print in the paper, and didn't charge nothing for it. Well, he took in nine dollars and a half, and said he'd done a pretty square day's work for it.

Then he showed us another little job he'd printed and hadn't charged for, because it was for us. It had a picture of a runaway nigger with a bundle on a stick over his shoulder, and "$200 reward" under it. The reading was all about Jim, and just described him to a dot. It said he run away from St. Jacques' plantation⁴⁶, forty mile below New Orleans, last winter, and likely went north, and whoever would catch him and send him back he could have the reward and expenses.

"Now," says the duke, "after to-night we can run in the daytime if we want to. Whenever we see anybody coming we can tie Jim hand and foot with a rope, and lay him in the wigwam and show this handbill and say we captured him up the river, and were too poor to travel on a steamboat, so we got this little raft on credit from our friends and are going down to get the reward. Handcuffs and chains would look still better on Jim, but it wouldn't go well with the story of us being so poor. Too much like jewelry⁴⁷. Ropes are the correct thing -- we must preserve the unities⁴⁸, as we say on the boards."

We all said the duke was pretty smart, and there couldn't be no trouble about running daytimes. We judged we could make miles enough that night to get out of the reach of the powwow we reckoned the duke's work in the printing office was going to make in that little town; then we could boom right along if we wanted to.

We laid low and kept still, and never shoved out till nearly ten o'clock; then we slid by, pretty wide away from the town, and didn't hoist⁹ our lantern till we was clear out of sight of it.

When Jim called me to take the watch at four in the morning, he says:

"Huck, does you reck'n we gwyne to run acrost any mo' kings on dis trip?"

"No," I says, "I reckon not."

"Well," says he, "dat's all right, den¹⁶. I doan' mine one er two kings, but dat's enough. Dis one's powerful drunk, en de duke ain' much better."

I found Jim had been trying to get him to talk French, so he could hear what it was like; but he said he had been in this country so long, and had so much trouble, he'd forgot it.

他们给我们提出了很多问题。他们想要知道，为什么我们要把木筏子这样遮盖起来；为
什么要白天躺下，不把木筏开出去——杰姆是一个逃亡的黑奴么？我说：
    “老天爷啊，难道一个逃亡的黑奴竟会朝南方走的么？”
    不会的。他们也认为不会的。我得把事情原委说出个道道来，就说：
    “我家人是密苏里州派克郡的。我就出生在那里。后来他们一个个死了，只留下了我和
我爸爸和我的兄弟伊克。我爸爸认为应该离开那个地方，到下边去和我叔叔朋思一起过。我
叔叔在离奥尔良四十四英里的河边上有一块巴掌大的地。我爸爸穷得很，还欠下债。因此还
清债以后，就所余无几了，只有十六块光洋和黑奴杰姆。靠这点儿钱，要走一千四百英里
地，不论是买轮船的统舱票，或是别的什么办法，都是办不到的。嗯，在大河涨水的时间
里，爸爸交上了好运，有一天捞到了这个木筏子。我们就认为，不妨坐这个木筏子前往奥尔
良去。爸爸的运气没有能好到底。有一晚，一只轮船撞到了木筏前边的一只角，我们都落了
水，泅到了轮子下面。杰姆和我游了上来，平安无事。可爸爸是喝醉了酒的，伊克是才只四
岁的孩子，他们就再也没有上来。后来一两天里，我们遇到过不少麻烦，因为总有人坐了小
船追过来，想要从我手里夺走杰姆，说他们确信他是个逃亡的黑奴。从此，我们白天就不
开。在夜晚，没有人给我们找麻烦。”
    公爵说：
    “让我独个儿想出个主意来，好叫我们高兴的时候，白天也能行驶。让我仔细考虑一番
吧——我会设计出一个办法来，把事情弄得稳稳当当的。今天我们暂时不去管它，因为我们
当然不想在大白天走过下边那个镇子——那不太稳妥。”
    黄昏时分，天黑起来了，象要下雨的样子，天气闷热，闪电在天边很低的地方闪来闪
去。树叶也颤抖了起来——这场雨将会来势凶猛，这已经是看得清清楚楚的了。所以公爵和
国王便去检查一下我们的窝棚，看看床铺是什么一个样子。我那张床，铺的是一床草褥子—
—比杰姆那条絮着玉米皮的褥子，多少要好一点。他那一条，掺杂着许多玉米棒子，躺在上
面，刺得生痛；一翻身，玉米皮响起来，人象在干燥的树叶子上打滚，那声响准把你吵醒。
公爵表示要睡我那张床，可是国王不同意。他说：
    “依我看，爵位高低会提示你，一张塞了玉米棒的床，不适宜于我睡。还是由阁下去睡
那张塞玉米棒的床吧。”
    杰姆和我一时间再一次急得汗直冒，生怕他们中间又生出更多的纠葛来。等到公爵说出
了下面的话，我们真是太高兴了——
    “老是给压迫的铁蹄在泥地里踩，这可是我的宿命。我当年高傲的劲头，已经给不幸的
命运打得粉碎啦。我屈服，我顺从，这是我的宿命嘛。我在这世界上孤零零只一个人——让
我受苦受难吧，我受得了这种种的一切。”
    等到天大黑，我们马上开动。国王嘱咐我们要尽量朝大河的中央走，在驶过了那个镇子
后再经过很长一段路以前不要点灯。我们逐渐逼近一小簇灯光——那就是那个镇子了，知道
吧——我们又偷偷走了半英里地，可一切太平。等到开出下游四分之三英里，我们就挂起了
信号灯来。十点钟光景，又是大雨倾盆，又是雷电交加，闹得不可开交，所以国王交代我们
两人都要留心看守好，一直要等到天气好转。随后，国王和公爵爬进窝棚宿夜。下边是该我
的班，要值到十二点钟。不过，即使我有一张床，反正我也不会去睡的，因为这样的暴风
雨，并不是一周之内天天能见到的。不，简直就很少见到。天啊，风正在一路上尖声叫唤
啊！每隔一两秒钟，电光一闪，半英里路之内，一下子照得明晃晃的。你会见到，在大雨
中，一处处小岛全都灰蒙蒙的，大树被大风吹得前仰后合。然后喀嚓一声，呼隆隆、呼隆
隆、呼隆隆——雷声在滚动，一直滚向远处，才逐步消失——紧接着，唰的一下，来了个大
闪，跟着是一个惊天动地的大霹雳。急浪有时差点儿要把我从木筏子上冲到水里去。不过我
身上没有穿什么衣服，我也不在乎。对水上露出的树干、木桩，我们不难对付。既然电光老
在四下里闪来闪去，我们就能对水面上的情况看得清清楚楚，我们会不费事地拨动筏子的头
头，避开它们。
    你知道，我该值半夜里的班。不过，我到那时实在困得不行，所以杰姆就说，开头一半
的时间，由他替我代值吧。他就是这样体贴人。杰姆一向这样。我爬进了窝棚，不过国王和
公爵在铺上摊开了手脚，就没有我容身之地了。我就睡到了外边去。雨，我不在乎，因为这
是暖暖和和的。眼下，浪头也不会那么高了。到两点钟，风浪又大了起来，杰姆本想叫醒
我，后来一想，便改变了主意。因为依他看来，浪不致于掀得太高，造成祸害。可这下子他
看错了。没有多久，突然之间，猛然冲过来一个地地道道的急浪，一下子把我打到了水里
去。杰姆开怀大笑，差点儿就笑死了。他是黑奴中间最容易哈哈大笑的一个呢。
    我接过了班。杰姆躺了下来，一会儿就打起呼噜来了。暴风雨慢慢过去了，天转晴了。
一见到岸上木屋里有灯光，我就把他叫醒，把木筏子藏进隐蔽的地方，藏它个一整天。
    国王在早饭后拿出一付又旧又脏的纸牌。他和公爵玩了一会儿“七分”①，第一场五分
钱的输赢。玩腻了以后，他们就说要——用他们的话说——“制定作战计划。”公爵从他的
旅行包里掏出许多印着字的小传单，并且高声念着上面的字。   

　　①一种有王牌的纸牌游戏，谁先赢到七分者胜。

    一张小传单上写道：“巴黎大名鼎鼎的蒙塔尔班·阿芒博士，定于某日某地作‘骨相?
演讲’，门票每人一角。”“备有骨相图表，每张二角五分。”公爵说，那就是他自己。在
另一张传单上，他就是“伦敦特勒雷巷剧院扮演莎士比亚的世界著名悲剧演员小迦里克
①。”在其它一些小传单上，他又有了别的一些名字，能有种种非凡的能耐，象用“万灵宝
杖”，可以划地出泉，掘土生金；还有“驱赶邪魔外道”，如此等等，不一而足。后来他说：
“演戏的行当是我最最心爱的了。皇上，你登过台没有？”
“没有，”国王说。
“那么，不出三天，下台的皇上②，你将要登台演出。”公爵这么说。“到了下面第一
个镇子，我们要租下一个会场，演出《理查三世》中斗剑一场和《罗密欧——朱丽叶》中阳
台情话一场。你看怎么样？”    

　　①大卫·迦里克（１７１７—１７７９）是英国演莎剧名演员，伦敦特勒雷巷剧院
经理。但并没有“小迦里克’之说。诺顿版注：可比较第二十一章中关于捏造出来的“小迦
里克”之说。
②诺顿版注：“毕奇华特’（“舱内污水’）和“下台的皇上’这类名词的创造，可见
马克·吐温使人物个性化并进行幽默讽刺的工夫，也表现了边疆老百姓善于起绰号以逗笑的
本领。

    “毕奇华特，我是倒霉透顶了，只要能进钱，我都赞成。不过嘛，演戏，我实在一窍不
通，看得也不多。我爸爸把戏班子抬进宫的时候，我年纪还太小。你看，你能教会我么？”
“那容易！”
“那好，我正急着要干些什么新鲜的事儿呢。马上就干起来。”
公爵就对他讲了罗密欧是怎样一个人，朱丽叶又是怎样一个人。他说，他通常演罗密
欧，所以国王可以演朱丽叶。
“公爵，既然朱丽叶是那么年轻的一位姑娘，拿我的秃秃的脑袋，白白的胡子，演她，
也许显得有些异怪吧。”
“不，不用担心——那些乡巴老不会想到这一些①。再说，你得穿上行头啊，那就不大
一样了。朱丽叶是在阳台上，在睡觉以前，赏赏月。她穿着睡衣，戴着打皱摺的睡帽。这里
就是角色穿的行头。”    

　　①诺顿版注：“国王”扮演朱丽叶的角色可能会引起观众的意见，倒不是由于性别
关系，而是由于年龄太大。据专家研究，在当时，如同在十七世纪的英国一样，女子没有登
台演出的，女角都由成年男子或男孩扮演。

    他拿出了两三件窗帘花布做的戏装。据他说，这是理查第三和另一个角色穿的钟（中）
古时代的战袍。还配上一件白布做的长睡衣和一顶打皱摺的睡帽。国王感到满意了。公爵就
拿来他的戏本，念角色的台词，念时双手一伸一伸，极尽装腔作势的能事。一边跳来跳去，
作示范的动作，表演了该怎么个演法。随后他把那本书交给了国王，要他把他那个角色的台
词背熟。
离河湾下游三英里路，有一处巴掌大的小镇。吃过饭后，公爵说，他已经琢磨出了一个
主意，能叫木筏子在白天行驶，又不致叫杰姆遭到危险。他说他要到那个镇子去亲自安排一
切。国王表示他也要去，看能不能碰上什么好运气。我们的咖啡吃完了，所以杰姆和我最好
能和他们坐了划子一起去，买点咖啡回来。
我们一到那里，不见有人来往，街上空空荡荡，简直有点儿死气沉沉，一片寂静，仿佛
是星期天似的。我们找到了一个有病的黑奴，他正在一处后院里晒太阳。据他说，只要不是
年纪太小或者病太重，或者年纪太老，全都去了露营布道会了。那是在林子里，离这儿两英
里路。国王打听清楚了怎么个走法，说他要前去，把那个布道会好好利用一下①。还说我也
可以去。    

　　①诺顿版注：当时边疆地区，常有骗子假借宗教的名义在布道会上行骗捞钱的。

    公爵说他正在找的是一家印刷店。后来我们找到了，?
匠和印刷工人都去参加布道会去了，门倒是没有上锁。地方很脏，又零乱。床上到处是油墨
和一些传单，上面有马和逃亡黑奴的图画。公爵把上衣一脱，说现今一切有办法了。所以我
和国王就去找布道会去了。
我们在半个钟头左右到了那里，身上一身汗，因为天气挺热。四下里二十英里方圆，聚
着一千人之多。林子里到处拴满了骡马、车辆。这些牲口一边把脑袋伸进车槽里吃料，一边
踢着脚驱赶苍蝇。那里的棚子是用竿子搭的架，树枝盖的顶，出售柠檬水和姜饼以及青皮的
嫩玉米一类东西。
就是在这样的棚子里，有人正在布道。只是棚子大一些，能容一群群的人。凳子是用劈
开的原木外层做的，在圆的一面凿几个窟窿，安上几根棍子，当做凳腿。这些凳子并无靠背
的。布道的人站在棚棚一头的高台之上。妇女们戴着遮阳帽。有些妇女穿着毛葛上衣，有几
个穿着柳条布上衣。还有些年轻姑娘穿着印花布褂子。有些青年男子光着脚丫子，有些小孩
除了一件粗帆布衬衣之外，几乎什么都没有穿。有些老年妇女在做针线。有些年轻人在偷偷
地谈情说爱。
在我们走进去的第一个棚子里，布道的人正在一行一行地念赞美诗。他念两行，人家就
跟着唱起来，听起来颇有点庄严的味道。因为人又多，唱得又很带劲。随后再念两行，大家
又跟着唱——就这样先念后唱。会众越来越兴奋，唱得越来越宏亮，到后来，有些人呻唤起
来，有些人使劲吼叫起来。接下来，布道的人开始传道，讲得十分认真，先在讲台这一头摇
摇晃晃，然后到另一头摇摇晃晃，再后来往台前向下弯着腰，胳膊和身子一直都在摇摇摆
摆。他布的道是使出了全身力量喊叫出来的。每隔了一会儿，他就把《圣经》高高举起，摊
了开来，仿佛是向左右两边递着看的，一边高喊着，“这就是旷野里的铜蛇！看看它，就可
以得着活命①。”会众就会高喊，“荣耀啊，——阿门！”他就这样布下去，会众跟着呻唤
着、哭喊着，还说着“阿门”。
“哦，到这悔罪的板凳上来吧②！过来吧，罪过大的人们！（阿门！）过来吧，害病的
人和伤心的人！（阿门！）过来吧，病腿的人，跛脚的人，瞎眼的人！（阿门！）过来吧，
穷苦无告的人，陷于耻辱的人！（阿门！）过来吧，所有衰弱的、堕落的、受罪的人！——
带着一颗破碎的心过来吧！带着一颗悔恨的心过来吧！带着你们褴褛的衣裳，带着罪孽和肮
脏过来吧！洗涤罪孽的圣水是自由供给的，天国之门是永远开着的——哦，进来吧，安息
吧！（阿门！光荣啊！光荣啊！哈里路耶！）”    

　　①《旧约·民数记》以色列人随摩西出埃及，一路死了许多人，他们埋怨上帝和摩
西，自认有罪。摩西为他们祷告，并制造一条铜蛇，凡被蛇咬的，一望铜蛇，就必定得活。
②诺顿版注：放在前排，专供悔罪的人就座。

    布道会就是如此这般地进行着。由于一片吼叫、哭喊声，布道的人在说些什么，你就无
法听清。一堆堆人群里，人们站起身来，全凭力气，挤着出来，挤到了那一排悔罪的板凳这
边来，脸上流着泪水。等到一群悔罪的人全都到了这排悔罪的板凳那里，他们就唱了起来，
吼了起来，并且扑倒在面前的稻草上，简直就疯狂了。
啊，我一眼就看到国王正在跑过去。你听得到他那压倒一切人的声音。接着，他一抬腿
就走上了讲台，牧师请他对大家讲话，他也就讲了。他对大家说，他是一个海盗——已有三
十年历史的海盗，远在印度洋之上。在春天一次战斗中，他部下的人损失惨重。如今他已回
了国，想招募一批新人。昨晚上，他不幸遭到了抢劫，被赶下了轮船，落得身无分文。他对
这个遭遇倒是很高兴，认为该谢天谢地，看作是平生一大好事。因为，如今嘛，他已经是变
了一个人，平生第一回真正感到了什么叫做幸福。尽管他如今确实很穷，但是他主意已定，
要立即设法返回印度洋，以此余生，尽力劝导那些海盗走上正道。干这样的一件事，他能比
任何人做得更好，因为他和纵横印度洋上的海盗全都非常熟悉。尽管他远途前往，要花很多
时间，加上自己又身无分文，他反正要到达那里的。他要不放过每一个机会，对被他劝说悔
改过来的每一个海盗说，“你们不必感谢我，你们不用把功劳记在我的名下，一切功劳归于
朴克维尔露营布道会的亲人们，人类中天生的兄弟和恩人们——还应归功于那里亲爱的传教
师，一个海盗们最最真诚的朋友！”
说着说着，他哇哇地哭了，大家也一个个哭了。这时有人高声叫喊：“给他凑一笔钱，
凑一笔钱！”刚说过，就有五六个人争着干开了，不过有一个人喊道：“让他托一顶帽子转
一圈凑这笔钱吧！”接着一个个都这么说，传教师也这么说。
所以国王就托着他的帽子在人群前走了一圈，一边抹眼睛，一边为大伙儿祝福，并且感
谢大家对远在海上的海盗如此仁义。每隔一会儿，就会有最美丽的姑娘泪流满面，走上前
来，问他能不能让她亲亲他，作为对他的一个永久的纪念。
他呢，有求必应。有些漂亮姑娘，他又搂又亲了五六回之多。——人家又邀请他多留一
个星期，大家一个个都愿邀请他到他们家住，还说，他们认为这是一个光荣。不过他说，既
然今天已是露营布道会的最后一天，他留下来没有什么用了。
再说，他恨不得马上到印度洋去，好感化那些海盗。
我们回到木筏上以后，他数了一数钱，发现他募得了八十七元七角五分。外加他捡来了
一只三加仑威士忌的酒罐，那是他在穿过林子回家的路上在一辆大车下面捡的。国王说，要
算总帐的话，今天要算是他传教生涯中收获最大的一天了。他说，空讲没有什么用，对不信
教的蛮子，跟对海盗一样，搞野营布道会那一套没有什么用。
公爵呢，本来自以为他干得挺不错。等到国王讲了他怎样露了一手以后，他这才不那么
想了。他在那家印刷店接了活，为农民干了两件小小的活，——印了出售马匹的招贴。还收
了钱：四块钱。他还代收了报纸广告费十元。他还宣传说，如果预付，四元即可，人家也就
按此办法付了钱。报费原是两块钱一年，他收了三个订户，按照他的规定，凡是预付，只收
五角钱一年。订户原本想按老规矩，用木柴、洋葱头折现付款。可是他说，他刚盘下这家
店，把价钱定得低而又低，无法再低了，所以贷款一律付现。他还写了一首小诗，是他自己
发了诗兴写的——一共三首——是那种既甜美又带点儿悲凉的——有一首诗的题目是：
“啊，冷酷的世界，碾碎这颗伤透了的心吧”。他临走前，把这首诗排好了铅字，随时可以
印出，登在报上，分文不取。他得了九块半大洋，还说，为了这点儿钱，他干了整整一天。
随后他给我们看了他印的另一件小小的活计，也不要钱，因为这是为我们印的。那是一
幅画，画的是一个逃亡的黑奴，肩膀上杠一根木棍，上面挑着一只包裹。黑奴像下面写着
“悬赏大洋两百元”。这都是写的杰姆，写得一丝一毫也不差。上面写道，此人从圣·雅克
农庄潜逃，农庄在新奥尔良下游四十英里地，潜逃时间是去年冬天。说很可能是往北逃，凡
能捉拿住并送回者，当付重酬云云。
“如今啊”，公爵说道，“在今晚上以后，只要我们高兴，就不妨在白天行驶了。见到
有人来，我们就用一根绳子，把杰姆从头到脚捆绑好，放在窝棚里，把这张招贴给人家看
看，说我们是在上游把他给抓住的，说我们太穷，坐不起轮船，所以凭我们的朋友作保，买
下了这个木筏子，正开往下游去领那个赏金。给杰姆戴上个脚镣手铐，也许更象个样子，不
过和我们很穷这个说法不很相称。那就象戴上珠宝一类很不相称了。用绳子，那是恰到好处
——正如我们在戏台上说的，‘三一律①’非得遵守不可啊。”    

　　①“三一律”，法国古典卞义诗学规定，戏剧剧情必须时间在一天内，地点不变，
刷情一致，称“三一律”。

    我们全都说公爵干得很漂亮，白天行驶从此不再会有什么麻烦了。公爵在那个小镇上印
刷店里干的那一套，一定会引起一场大闹，不过我们断定，我们当晚会走出去离镇好几英里
路远，那场吵闹就跟我们无关了——只要我们高兴，我们完全可以一帆风顺向前开了。
我们躲起来，静悄悄的，等到晚上近十点钟才开动，然后轻手轻脚地离镇远远地溜了过
去。
早晨四点钟杰姆叫我值班时，他说：
“哈克，你看我们往后还会遇到什么国王么？”
“不”，我说，“我看不会了吧。”
“那，”他说，“那好。一两个国王我还不在乎，不过不能再多了。这一位喝得蓝
（滥）醉，公爵呢，也霍（好）不了多少。”
我看到杰姆总想叫国王讲法语，好让他听听法国话究竟是什么个样子。不过国王说，他
在这个国家已经很久很久了，而且又这么多灾多难，所以他已经把法国话给忘了。