“ Well , you get all the enjoyment you can out of it now , for mind I tell you if I catch you meddling with him again⁠—”

“Meddling with who ?” Tom says, dropping his smile and looking surprised.

“With who ? Why, the runaway nigger, of course. Who’d you reckon?”

Tom looks at me very grave, and says:

“Tom, didn’t you just tell me he was all right? Hasn’t he got away?”