The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Chapter 15

Chapter 14
When we woke up at last, we went through all the things that the rascals had stolen from the ship. There were boots, blankets, clothes, and various other things, and there were a lot of books, and a telescope. And three boxes of cigars.Neither of us has ever been so rich in our lives.Cigars are first class.We spent the whole afternoon resting in the woods, talking and reading, and having a good time.I told Jim all about what happened on the wreck and on the ferry, and I said it was an adventure, but he said he didn't want to take any more.He said that when I got to the top cabin, he climbed back and tried to get on the raft, but found that the raft was gone. He said that he almost died of fright at that time, and he reckoned that he was finished now, because if he If he couldn't be saved, he would have to be drowned, and if he did, whoever saved him would send him back to where he came from for a bounty, and then Miss Watson would sell him south, and that was the way it would be.Hey, he's got it right, he's pretty much always right.For a negro he was one of the marvelously wise men.

I read Jim a lot of stories about kings, dukes, earls, and so on, how richly dressed they were, how smart they were, and how they called each other not sir, but sire, lord, lord, and some That's pretty much what it's called.Jim was so fascinated that his eyes popped out.He said:
"I didn't know there were so many of these people. I never heard of it. I only heard of an old king named Solomon, unless you count all the kings in the playing cards. How much money does the king make?"

"Earn money?" I said, "As long as they want, they can earn 1000 yuan a month, as much as they want. Everything is theirs."

"What fun that would be! What do they do every day, Huck?"

"Nothing! Why don't you even understand this. They just sit in the palace every day."

"No way, is that really the case?"

"Of course it is. They just sit in the palace every day. It's different when they are fighting. They also go to war. When they are not fighting, they just rest around, or they go to falconry. There is nothing but falconry." Nothing else—shh! Do you hear the sound?"

We sneaked out to have a look, and it turned out to be the sound of the paddle wheel of a small steamboat, which was still far below. At this time, it was turning the corner, and we were relieved, and went back to our sleeping place.

"Yes," I said, "when they're not fighting, they're bored and have trouble with Congress. He cuts off the heads of anyone who goes against his will. But they spend most of their time in the harem. "

"Where are you hanging out?"

"Harem."

"What is a harem?"

"That's where his wives live. Don't you even know about a harem? King Solomon had a harem, and he had like a million wives."

"Oh, yes, that's right, I—I forgot about it. The harem is a big house, I think it's right. Probably the children's room is noisy all day long. I think the group of wives are also noisy all day long. It's going to be a fight to the death. In this way, it will be lively inside. But everyone says that Solomon is a very smart person, and no one can compare with him from ancient times to the present. I don't believe this, because any smart person will always Living in such a noisy place? No, absolutely not. Then he might as well build a boiler factory and close it when he wants to rest."

"Oh, but he's a very clever man anyway, that's what the widow told me, from her own mouth."

"I don't care what the widow says, he's not a smart man anyway. He does some pretty damned things, it's amazing. You know how he cut a kid in half?"

"Yes, the widow told me the whole story from beginning to end."

"That's right! Isn't that the kind of wickedness you can't find anywhere else in the world? Think about it. That tree stump, for example—would be a woman, and here you are—would be another woman." , I'm Solomon; here's a dollar bill, let's be a kid. You both say it's yours. What should I do? Shall I ask around the neighborhood and see this Whoever owns the ticket will give it to the person. It is complete. I am afraid that anyone with a little brain will do this? No—I will not do this. I will tear this ticket in half and give you half. Half to the woman. That's what Solomon did to that child. I want to ask you, what's the use of that half-note? You can't buy anything with it. What's the use of the half-child? Even if there are tens of millions Wan, it’s also useless.”

"Damn you, Jim, you don't get a single point of the story—you're a damn thousand miles away." "Who, me? Fuck you, don't tell me about you I can see whether there is any reason. There is no reason at all in this matter. These two wives are not fighting for half a child, they are fighting for a complete child. Whoever thinks that half a child can be given Man, lest you quarrel over a child, he's a fool, too stupid to come in when it rains. Don't tell me about Solomon, Huck, I've seen him through. "

"But let me tell you, you haven't understood the truth of this."

"Go to hell with your reasoning! I know what I need to know. You know, the real truth has to be found in the depths-the truth is deep. The truth lies in how Solomon was brought up. Fight For example, there is a person who has only one or two children. Will this person throw away the children casually? No, he will never. He cannot afford to throw away this child. He knows how to love children. Tens of thousands of children, running around the house, he didn't care to cut a child in half, it was like cutting a cat. Anyway, he had plenty of children, so it didn't matter to Solomon how many or how many, damn it! "

I've never seen a Negro like Jim.Once he had an idea in his mind, he couldn't let it go.He hated Solomon more than any black person I ever met.So I talked about the other kings, leaving Solomon aside.I mentioned Louis XVI and said that his head was beheaded in France many years ago. I also mentioned that his son, the French crown prince, was supposed to inherit the throne, but he was arrested and imprisoned. Legend has it that he later died in prison.

"Poor little fellow."

"But there are also people who say that he escaped from prison, ran away, and came to the United States."

"That's all right! But he must be lonely—there's no king here, is there, Huck?"

"No."

"Then he can't do anything. Has he found any work?"

"Oh, I don't know that. Some of the men who escaped with him became policemen, and some taught French."

"Well, Huck, don't the French say the same thing as we do?"

"No, Jim; you don't understand a word they say--not a word."

"Oh, yes, that's terrible! How did that happen?"

"I don't know, either. It's true anyway. Their words are like birdsong. I learned a little from a book. How would you feel if someone came up to you and said 'Bareu Fuhangse'?"

"Not a thing. I'm gonna knock his brains out, that is, if he ain't white. I don't let niggers call me that."

"Bah, that wasn't calling you. It was just asking if you could speak French."

"Hey, why didn't he just say it?"

"Well, that's what he said. That's what the French say."

"Hey, it's so fucking weird. I don't want to hear that kind of talk. It doesn't make sense."

"Look, Jim, do cats say the same things we do?"

"No, of course it's different."

"What about the cow?"

"No, of course it's not the same."

"Do cats talk like cows? Do cows talk like cats?"

"No, it's different."

"They each speak differently, and there's nothing wrong with that, it's natural, isn't it?"

"Of course."

"Cats and cows don't talk the way we do, and there's nothing wrong with that, it's natural, isn't it?
"Oh, absolutely."

"Then what's wrong, what's unnatural about the French speaking differently from us? Say it."

"Is a cat a man, Huck?"

"No."

"Well, it doesn't make sense for cats to speak human language. Is a cow a human? Is a cow a cat?"

"No, it's neither a man nor a cat."

"Then it doesn't have to talk about people and cats. Are French people people?"

"Yes."

"That's right! Then why doesn't he speak human words? You speak!"

I don't think it's any use talking to him--you don't try to teach a black person reason.So I will say no more.

(End of this chapter)