“You got to go mighty keerful now, I tell you!  En here’s what you got to do.  He didn’t git killed, en if you gives him de least reason, he’ll bust de will ag’in, en dat’s de las’ time, now you hear me!  So—­you’s got to show him what you kin do in de nex’ few days.  You got to be pison good, en let him see it; you got to do everything dat’ll make him b’lieve in you, en you got to sweeten aroun’ ole Aunt Pratt, too—­she’s pow’ful strong with de Jedge, en de bes’ frien’ you got.  Nex’, you’ll go ’long away to Sent Louis, en dat’ll keep him in yo’ favor.  Den you go en make a bargain wid dem people.  You tell ’em he ain’t gwine to live long—­en dat’s de fac’, too—­en tell ’em you’ll pay ’em intrust, en big intrust, too—­ten per—­what you call it?”

“Ten percent a month?”

“Dat’s it.  Den you take and sell yo’ truck aroun’, a little at a time, en pay de intrust.  How long will it las’?”

“I think there’s enough to pay the interest five or six months.”  “Den you’s all right.  If he don’t die in six months, dat don’t make no diff’rence—­Providence’ll provide.  You’s gwine to be safe—­if you behaves.”  She bent an austere eye on him and added, “En you IS gwine to behave—­does you know dat?”

He laughed and said he was going to try, anyway.  She did not unbend.  She said gravely: 

“Tryin’ ain’t de thing.  You’s gwine to do it.  You ain’t gwine to steal a pin—­’ca’se it ain’t safe no mo’; en you ain’t gwine into no bad comp’ny—­not even once, you understand; en you ain’t gwine to drink a drop—­nary a single drop; en you ain’t gwine to gamble one single gamble—­not one!  Dis ain’t what you’s gwine to try to do, it’s what you’s gwine to DO.  En I’ll tell you how I knows it.  Dis is how.  I’s gwine to foller along to Sent Louis my own self; en you’s gwine to come to me every day o’ your life, en I’ll look you over; en if you fails in one single one o’ dem things—­jist one—­I take my oath I’ll come straight down to dis town en tell de Jedge you’s a nigger en a slave—­en prove it!” She paused to let her words sink home.  Then she added, “Chambers, does you b’lieve me when I says dat?”

Tom was sober enough now.  There was no levity in his voice when he answered: 

“Yes, Mother, I know, now, that I am reformed—­and permanently.  Permanently—­and beyond the reach of any human temptation.”

“Den g’long home en begin!”

CHAPTER 15 —­ The Robber Robbed

     Nothing so needs reforming as other people’s habits. —­
     Pudd’nhead Wilson’s Calendar

Behold, the fool saith, “Put not all thine eggs in the one basket” —­which is but a manner of saying, “Scatter your money and your attention”; but the wise man saith, “Put all your eggs in the one basket and—­WATCH THAT BASKET!" —­ Pudd’nhead Wilson’s Calendar

What a time of it Dawson’s Landing was having!