oom. But Old Bender stuck to his story, that Nancy had
started out to visit one of the Watkinses near Montgomery's woods, and
probably got cold, or fainted or somethin'. Anyway, they let Old Bender
go, and after that he came into town walkin' first, then his wife, then
their boy, and Nancy gone.

They didn't find any money or anything. But George Montgomery was threw
clean off when Mitch said we're diggin' for Nancy's treasure. For Mitch
went on and said: "What was she doin' here in the woods? Goin' to see
the Watkinses? That's pretty thin. She was here to get her money, that's
what it was. And she fainted and froze to death. It's as plain as day.
My pa thinks so, and that ain't all, the States Attorney thinks so too,
doesn't he, Skeeters?" Of course I had to say yes, though I'd never
heard my pa say any such thing. George left us and went about his
buckets, and we went on diggin'. We saw George walk away and climb the
rail fence and disappear. Then Mitch flung down his spade and sat on the
log where we had "Tom Sawyer" hid and began to talk.

"Skeeters," he said, "just look how everything tallies. Tom's town was
St. Petersburg, and ours here is Petersburg. His town was on a river. So
is this town. We ain't got no Injun Joe, but how about Doc Lyon? Ain't
he just as mysterious and dangerous as Injun Joe? Then if these woods
don't look just like the woods Tom and Huck dug in, I'll eat my hat.
Look here!" Mitch pulled the book out and showed me, and sure enough
they were alike. "Then look at Old Taylor, the school teacher--ain't he
the livin' image of Tom's teacher? And our schoolhouses look alike. And
we ain't got any Aunt Polly, but look at your grandmother--she's the
livin' image of Aunt Polly and just like her. Things can't be just
alike, if they was, they wouldn't be two things, but only one. And I can
go through this town and pick out every character. I've thought it over.
The Welshman--that's George Montgomery's father. Nigger Jim--how about
Nigger Dick? He's older and drinks, but you must expect some
differences. And Mary--my sister Anne is just the same. Muff Potter--how
about Joe Pink?--allus in trouble and in jail and looks like Muff. And
the Sunday School's just the same, superintendent and all. And the
circus comes to town just as it did in Tom's town. And the County
Judge--no difference."

"Yes, but," I said, "your girl ain't the daughter of the County Judge
like Becky Thatcher was. And her name is Zueline