The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Aunt Polly was shouting at her naughty(travieso) nephew, Tom, who was always hiding  from her. Suddenly, she heard noises coming from the pantry(bodega, despensa), and furious, she made her way there.

“I got you, Tom!” she yelled(gritó), having caught him with a jar(tarro) of jam(mermelada). But just as she was going to punish him, Tom managed to sneak off(escabullirse) and Polly thought to herself: “Tomorrow I’ll make him work as punishment.”

That afternoon, Tom didn’t go to school, but stayed playing at the river. When he got back, he made out that he had been helping Jim, Aunt Polly’s young slave, to cut wood so as to get on his aunt’s good side and keep from(evitar) being punished.

When Tom came home his younger brother Sid was already sitting at the dinner table, Polly knew that Tom had been playing hooky and he had gone to the river to take a dip and she was waiting for him.

Tom, aunt Polly said to him, show me your shirt. It’s dried, Tom replied.

Polly had sewn up Tom’s shirt neck so he couldn’t take it off

Sid, then observed: "But auntie hadn’t you sewn that neck with white thread why is it black?

Tom! cried his aunt exasperated when she realized  it was true

Tom ran to the door cursing(maldiciendo) his brother

 On Saturday at dawn, Polly saw Tom head off to carry out(llevar a cabo) his punishment: painting the fence that surrounded the house, although his first slow strokes gave away(delataban) his reluctance(reticencia, desgana).

Ben Rodgers, a child passing by, made fun of him: “Ha ha! Are they making you work on a Saturday?!”

“What? You call this work?” answered Tom, who went on (pasó) to convince Ben that there was nothing better in the world than painting a fence.

Tom managed to twist thing so that Ben ended up asking Tom to allow him to paint… even offering him an apple if he would let him. This way Tom was able to shirk(evitar) his chore(trabajo) for a good while.

Tom’s cunning(astucia) resulted in a whole line of children offering to paint the fence: Bill Fisher gave him his kite(cometa), and Johnny Miller gave him his dead rat. After that, Tom called his aunt and asked for permission to go to the river.

“You’re done already?” Aunt Polly asked skeptically. When she saw that the work really was done she thought to herself: “Miracles do exist!”

That same afternoon, on his way back from the river, after throwing dirt(suciedad) clods(terrones)  at Sid, Tom spotted a blue-eyed, blonde girl with plaits(trenzas) in a garden and he was immediately smitten. Captivated (cautivado), Tom performed pirouettes to attract the girl’s attention, but she was totally indifferent to his efforts and she didn’t say one word to him. With resignation, Tom was about to up and leave when she threw him a flower, which he picked up as if it were treasure.

Tom arrived home in a good mood. A short while later, Sid dropped a sugar bowl, which shattered(destrozado) all over the floor. Tom couldn’t help from cackling(partirse de rise), and his aunt went to grab(coger) him and give him a beating.

“It wasn’t me!” Tom protested, and took refuge under the stairs, grumbling (refunfuñando) and thinking about how unfair everything was, as Aunt Polly had blamed him for something he hadn’t done.

Aunt Polly’s anger was short-lived, as she felt bad about it all, but Tom went out for a walk to calm down and blow off some stream.

That night, he fell asleep thinking about the girl and how he was going to win her trust.

On Sunday morning, Tom showed up at church dressed in his Sunday best and proceeded to trade(canjear) the things he had received for letting his friends paint the fence for colored tickets.

At school for every lesson well learned they gave out a blue ticket. For every ten blue ones, a red one; for ten red ones, a yellow one; and for ten yellow ones, a Bible. A Bible was a symbol of being good student which then meant you could brag(alardear) about it.

Amidst the hustle(ajetreo) and bustle(bullicio) as people gathered together, the town’s newcomers(recién llegados) arrived: Judge Thatcher, his wife, and his daughter Becky, The girl that had stolen Tom’s heart. Tom glanced (miró) furtively at her whilst going up and down on his tippy toes (puntillas)  to get her attention.

The pastor, there to bestow the Bible on the best student, asked the group who among them had ten yellow tickets. Over the moon, Tom raised his hand and rose to the podium, standing next to the judge and the other dignitaries there, basking in the limelight (disfrutando su protagonismo).

When they handed  him the prize, Becky subtly(sutilmente) shot him a look. Everything was going very well, until the judge asked Tom to answer a question: “My boy, can you mame Jesus’s disciples?”

Tom turned red and fell silent. Seeing that he was tongue-tied, the judge decided to go easier on him. “Well, just tell me the names of the first two.” Upon the judge’s insistence, Tom blurted(espetó) out: “David and Goliath.”

The laughter lasted for several minutes, and the teasing for several days.

On Monday morning, Tom was on his way to school accompanied by the tramp-like (vagabundo) Huckleberry Finn, with his tattered (andrajosa) shirt and old hat. When they parted, they agreed to meet that very night for an adventure.

Their chat held Tom up, making him late for school. The teacher punished him by sitting him with the girls, next to… Becky Thatcher!

Tom couldn’t believe it! He gave Becky candies and drawings until she agreed to a date after class, but didn’t end well. When everything was going well between the two lovebirds, all hugs and kisses, Tom put his foot in it (metió la pata) when he roared with laughter, trying to play the clown (payaso, gracioso) . Becky thought that he was mocking her, so she scowled at him and stormed off, crying and hurt.

While Tom walked through a grove (bosquecillo) imagining his prowess(proeza) as a soldier, a buffalo hunter, or a pirate, his friend Joe Harper appeared. In a flash Tom grabbed(agarró) his bow and arrow, which he had hidden inside a hollow(hueco) tree trunk, and ran off with his friend to play at Robin Hood and the Sheriff of Nottingham.

Tom thus forgot about his relationship problems, went home for dinner, and waited for Huck to give him the secret “meow” signal, for when he was to sneak out (escabullirse) of the window and head off for an adventure in the cemetery.

“The fire of hell!” Huck cried out (gritó), when he saw the light of a lantern.

Tom and Huck hid behind a tombstone(lápida) and saw the town drunk, Muff Potter, approaching along with Injun Joe and Dr. Robinson, who proceeded to dig(cavar) up a grave and pull out a body.

When they were done, they got into a fight in which the doctor hit Potter, knocking him senseless. Joe then drove a knife into the doctor’s chest, and Dr. Robinson fell dead on top of Potter. Soon after, upon awakening, Potter believed that he had killed Dr. Robinson.

Though Tom and Huck had seen what had happened from their hiding place, they were frightened(asustados) and agreed to a pact of silence.

The next day at school Tom kept quiet, but by midday news of the murder had begun to spread, and classes were cancelled.

He and Huck went to the cemetery where they had found the body. When they arrived a throng of people were pointing at Muff Potter, who was crouching down(agachándose, en cuclillas, agazapado) amidst the crowd next to the Indian, as the people shouted at him: “It was him!”

Without thinking twice, the sheriff arrested Pottter, though between sobs Muff denied any wrong-doing(mala acción) until he fainted (se desmayó). When he came to, he asked the Indian to tell the truth, while Tom and Huck looked on in silence. But Joe lied and said that Muff had killed Robinson, so the sheriff locked him up(lo encerró).

Tom had nightmares and was tormented because he had not spoken out and told the truth. He then proposed to Joe Harper that they run away somewhere far from civilization. Huck also loved the idea when he heard about it.

They decided to meet that night by the coast, to flee(huir) in an old raft(balsa) towards a nearby island of sand downriver.

At midnight Tom showed up and shouted: “I’m Tom Sawyer, the Black Avenger of the Caribbean. Who are you?”

“Red Hands Huck Finn, and Joe Harper, the Terror of the Seas,” his friends answered.

“And what’s the password?” Tom shouted. To which they all replied: “Blood!”

Whilst exploring the island, the three climbed a hill, from which they spotted the crew(tripulación) of a boat throwing explosives into the river to search for bodies, which was the old method of bringing someone who had drowned up(ahogado) to the surface.

Because the boys had disappeared everyone believed that their bodies were at the bottom of the river. Yet they continued on their adventure anyway, until a storm struck the island, forcing them to head back.

Their return to town coincided with the funeral which had been organized in the church to honor them. So, when the three of them opened the door and walked in nobody knew whether to punish them or hug them. Their feat made them true heroes at school, where Tom was able to win Becky over once again.

After a long silence, when the trial(juicio, prueba) against Potter began, Tom, still fearful(temeroso), broke his pact with Huck and showed up to testify.

As Injun Joe glowered(fulminó con la mirada) at him with hatred(odio), Tom explained how on the night of the crime he had been in the cemetery, and then he gave the name of the killer. On hearing all this, Joe agilely leapt (saltó) up and escaped out of a courtroom window.

Although Huck and Tom were angry with each other at first, they soon made amends and came up with a plan for a new adventure: the search for treasure hidden in an abandoned house.

In the middle of the night they were digging(excavando) there when they heard voices and hid. Two bandits appeared who seemed, from what they were saying, to be moving a chest(cofre) full of gold coins to a safer hideout(escondite). Tom and Huck spent weeks looking for the hiding place, but to no avail.

Days later the town’s children made an excursion to a cave. Tom and Becky, being the lovebirds they were, broke off (desprendiendose) from the group, went down an underground tunnel, and got lost.

While they were looking for a way out Tom came across Indian Joe and his accomplice with a chest full of gold coins.

When they got back to town everyone was elated(exaltado) to see the children, as they thought they had got lost in the cave, which Judge Thatcher then ordered to be sealed.

But Tom, who knew the secret about the cave, told Huck and they returned together to investigate. There they found Joe’s lifeless body and the chest full of gold coins.

Tom and Huck decided to take the coins to begin a new life of fame glory and adventure.