Tom Sawyer – Part Twenty-six

Before you read the text, read the following comprehension questions.

Tom Sawyer – Part Twenty-seven

Before you read the text, read the following comprehension questions.
 

Now read the text and answer the questions.
 

Tom moved around quickly through lanes until he was well out of the way of returning students, and then started to run slowly. He crossed a small stream two or three times, because of a superstition he believed that crossing over water helped to confuse those who followed you. Half an hour later he disappeared behind the Douglas mansion on the top of Cardiff Hill, and the schoolhouse was hardly visible away in the valley behind him. He entered a dense wood, found his way, without a path, to the centre of it, and sat down under a large oak tree. Nothing was moving. The dead noonday heat had even stopped the songs of the birds. Nature was sleeping and there was no sound except the occasional noise of a woodpecker that came from far away. The sounds of this bird seemed to make Tom feel even lonelier. His soul was sad and melancholy. His feelings were similar to his surroundings. He sat for a long time with his elbows on his knees and his chin in his hands, meditating. It seemed to him that life was, at best, full of trouble and he started to envy Jimmy Hodges, who recently died. He thought how peaceful it must be to lie down and dream forever and ever, with the wind whispering through the trees and softly moving the grass and the flowers over the grave. There’s nothing to worry about and be sad about, ever any more. If he only had a clean Sunday-school record he could be willing to go, and be done with it all. As far as the girl was concerned, what had he done? - nothing. He had had the best intentions in the world, and been treated like a dog. She would be sorry one day, maybe when it was too late. Ah, if he could only die temporarily! But the elastic heart of youth cannot be compressed into one shape for a long time. Tom soon began to think about the problems of this life again. What if he turned his back, now, and disappeared mysteriously? What if he went away, very far away, into unknown countries on the other side of the seas, and never came back again! How would she feel then! The idea of being a clown came back to him now, only to fill him with disgust. Jokes and laughter and a clown’s clothes were an offense, when they mixed with thoughts of romance. No, he would be a soldier, and return after long years of fighting in a famous war. No, a better idea would be to join the Indians, and hunt buffaloes and go on the warpath in the mountain ranges and the Open spaces of the Far West, and in the future come back as a great Indian chief, full of feathers and with a painted face. He would walk proudly into Sunday-school on a sleepy summer morning, shouting a war cry and cause all his friends to turn green with envy. But no, there was something even better than this. He would be a pirate! That was it! Now his future lay clear before him. His name would fill the world, and make people shake with fear! He would go sailing the seas in his long, low, black ship, the Spirit of the Storm, with his pirate flag flying at the front! And at the height of his fame, he would suddenly appear at the village and walk into church, tanned brown from the weather, in his black pirate clothes, his impressive boots, his belt with pistols, his sword by his side, his feathered hat, his black flag with the skull and crossbones on it, and hear everyone whisper, "It's Tom Sawyer the Pirate! –the Black Avenger of the Spanish Main!" ... to be continued! * The text has been adapted from the Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain   Download the original book for free   *Consulta un PDF con la información y resumen de 100 libros en inglés que puedes descargar en 1 único archivo.