Page 318 - SpringBoard_ELA_Grade8_Flipbook

aCTIVITy 4.8
continued
for he was personating the Big Missouri, and considered himself to be drawing nine feet
of water. He was boat and captain and engine-bells combined, so he had to imagine
himself standing on his own hurricane-deck giving the orders and executing them: my Notes
16 “Stop her, sir! Ting-a-ling-ling!” The headway ran almost out, and he drew up slowly toward the sidewalk.
17 “Shipuptoback!Ting-a-ling-ling!”Hisarmsstraightenedandstiffeneddownhissides. 18 “Setherbackonthestabboard!Ting-a-ling-ling!Chow!ch-chow-wow!Chow!”His
right hand, mean-time, describing stately circles—for it was representing a forty-foot wheel.
19 “Let her go back on the labboard! Ting-a-ling-ling! Chow-ch-chow-chow!” The left hand began to describe circles.
20 “Stop the stabboard! Ting-a-ling-ling! Stop the labboard! Come ahead on the stabboard! Stop her! Let your outside turn over slow! Ting-a-ling-ling! Chow-ow-ow! Get out that head-line! LIVELY now! Come—out with your spring-line—what’re you about there! Take a turn round that stump with the bight of it! Stand by that stage, now—let her go! Done with the engines, sir! Ting-a-ling-ling! SH’T! S’H’T! SH’T!” (trying the gauge-cocks).
21 Tom went on whitewashing—paid no attention to the steamboat. Ben stared a moment and then said: “Hi-YI! YOU’RE up a stump, ain’t you!”
Chunk 5
22 Noanswer.Tomsurveyedhislasttouchwiththeeyeofanartist,thenhegavehis
brush another gentle sweep and surveyed the result, as before. Ben ranged up alongside of him. Tom’s mouth watered for the apple, but he stuck to his work. Ben said:
23 “Hello, old chap, you got to work, hey?”
24 Tomwheeledsuddenlyandsaid:
25 “Why, it’s you, Ben! I warn’t noticing.”
26 “Say—I’m going in a-swimming, I am. Don’t you wish you could? But of course
you’d druther WORK—wouldn’t you? Course you would!”
27 Tom contemplated the boy a bit, and said:
28 “What do you call work?”
29 “Why, ain’t THAT work?”
30 Tom resumed his whitewashing, and answered carelessly:
31 “Well, maybe it is, and maybe it ain’t. All I know, is, it suits Tom Sawyer.”
32 “Oh come, now, you don’t mean to let on that you LIKE it?”
33 The brush continued to move.
34 “Like it? Well, I don’t see why I oughtn’t to like it. Does a boy get a chance to
whitewash a fence every day?”
35 That put the thing in a new light. Ben stopped nibbling his apple. Tom swept his brush daintily back and forth—stepped back to note the effect—added a touch here and there—criticized the effect again—Ben watching every move and getting more and more interested, more and more absorbed. Presently he said:
36 “Say, Tom, let ME whitewash a little.”
37 Tom considered, was about to consent; but he altered his mind:
Unit 4 • The Challenge of Comedy 291
© 2017 College Board. All rights reserved.