Part 14 (2/2)

we havent done nothing rong but if they find out who the Terible 3 is we will have to go to stait prizon. sumbuddy set fire to Ikes house sure. they wasent eny stove in the barn. if it had started in the house it mite have cougt from the chimny.

November 6, 186--- things is getting wirse evry day. i have lost the record of the Terible 3. Pewt sed he give it to me all rite but when i went to my desk it was gone. i know it was there 2 days ago.

i hunted evrywhere for it. i asted mother and aunt Sarah and all of them if enyone had been in my desk and they all sed no. mother asted me what i had lost and i told her i had lost a story i had rote and she sed well you can remember it cant you and i sed yes but i dont want to wright it again. i have hunted evrywhere and so has Beany and Pewt. if enyone has found it our goos is cooked and we go to stait prizen. i have looked forward moar than oncet to going to the reform school or to jale but i never gnew what it was to xpect to go to stait prizon for sumthing you never have did. i cant eet and cant sleap. it is wirse than being ded. a grate deel wirse.

November 7, 186---the insurance men come and xamined the fire and took measurements. they desided it wasent Ikes falt or Bills falt and so they pade them. father sed Ike and Bill maid moar money than they had for six months. but he sed that the insurance companies was going to find out who done it and it looked to him that the Terible 3 would be looking throug bars before long. i cant hardly breeth when i think of it. i saw Beany and Pewt today and they are so scart that they cant eet or sleap just like me. of coa.r.s.e we have got to laff and holler at fellers and play football but we only laff to concele a braking hart. i wood give a milion dollers to know what has become of them records. if i had birnt them we wood have had sum chanct. and if we had the sence to put sum other fellers naims in it peraps we mite escaip but i dont see enny hope.

November 8, 186---brite and fair. i wish i felt as good as the wether. it seams as if evrybody was looking at me and saying he done it. he is 1 of the Terible 3. evrytime i see a strainge man i think he is a detecktive and evrytime i see old Swane or old Mizzery or old Filander or old Brown i wunder if they is going to grab me and put the handcufs on my rists and drag me to the lockup. mother says she is going to see docter Perry about me but i laff and say i am all rite. peraps she wood tirn from me with lothing like Dolly Bidwell done in East Linn when she plaid it in the town hall last winter, if she gnew. jest think less than a year ago i was going to shows and having a good time and now i am wateing to be sent to stait prizen. i have often wundered how fellers felt whitch have to go to stait prizen but now i know.

November 9, 186---sunday again. it mite as well be sunday as eny other day. perhaps they woodent arest a feller on sunday. Beany had the docter today.

i asted Lucy Watson what was the matter with him and she sed Docter Perry sed he was in a low nervus stait. she sed Docter Perry sed if Beany had eny mind he shood say sumthing was praying on it. the minister preeched on the wicked whitch fleas when no man persuith. that wood be all rite but detecktives is pursuing us. i wish he hadent sed enything about it. i wish i cood be let alone in chirch.

November 10, 186---Pewt had the docter today.

he had docter Swet. docter Swet thinks Pewt is thretened with brane feever. father says that cant be. he sed he shood as soon xpect me to have brane feever as Pewt. i think peraps we will all feal better when it is over. what i am afrade of is that Pewt and Beany may go crasy and say i done it all. what if they shood. i wood give a milion dollers if i gnew where them records have went to.

November 11, 186---Beany aint eny better. i went over today to see him and see what cood be did and he sed he dident want to see enybudy. i went up to see Pewt and asted old man Purinton how he was and he sed he was getting no better verry fast. i wunder if he has heard enything.

November 12, 186---Pewt aint enny better. Beany aint et ennything but broth for 2 days. i still eet to keep up my strenth. i am wurried about them.

if they get two week peraps they will comfes and say i done it. i hoap they is man enuf to keep their othes. i am going to keep mine.

i forgot to say wether it was brite or fair or rainy or enything fer a weak. i dont remember and i dont cair a dam. there i have sed it.

November 13, 186---father keeps looking at me quear. i wunder if he suspecks ennything. if i had only told him he was a onery member peraps i cood tell him about things without braking my othe. i bet he wood help us. we have got to have sum help. it wont do to let Pewt and Beany dy and leeve me to go to stait prizon alone. if 1 of has got to go to stait prizon the hoal 3 of us has got to go. Beany and Pewt aint going to sneek out of it by dying. that woodent be fair.

November 14, 186---i have gave up haop and dont cair now. i am only wateing till a poliseman grabs me. i got licked in school. it dident even hirt me. it maid me think of sumthing elce but stait prizon for a few minits. old Francis says i am getting nummer evry day. he says if i dont waik up he will have to waik me.

what is the use enyway. last Sunday the minister sed evrybudy cood get the gratest c.u.mfort from the bible whatever his truble was. he sed open the bible and reed the first virse you see and it will comfort you. so today i saw Celes bible open where she had left it. she is reeding Isiar. i dident know eny part of the bible was rote by Isiar. Isiar Hanes was probably naimed after him, well i thougt i wood do as the minster sed. so i shet up the bible and then opened it and the ferst virse i saw was this.

by these 3 was the third part of men killed, by the fire and by the smoak

it was in chapter 9 virse 18 of Revellasions. you cood have gnocked me down with a fether. i shet up the book and set down. then i got out the d.i.c.ksionery and looked up Revellasions and it sed

revellasions---the ack of disclosing to others that whitch was ungnew to them.

so what is the use. i wish i was ded.

November 15, 186---the gratest thing has happened.

i feel as if i cood fli to the moon. jest think i am in my room wateing for father to come and lick me and i aint wurrid a bit. i have et haff a mince pye and i never taisted enything so good in my life befoar. i feel so good that i wood like to holler. jest think i aint got to go to stait prizon nor Beany nor Pewt. this morning Pewt and Beany were faleing verry fast and the last i heard of them they was setting up in their s.h.i.+rt tales eeting meet and potatoes and pye and evrything.

well tonite father went out and mother asted him where he was going and he sed low so i woodent hear him up to Brads. i heard him and i thougt sumthing was up. so after he had went out i folowed on and saw him go into the paint shop.

Pewts father and Beanys father and General Mastin were there. so i crep up where there was a broaken winder and lissened. father set down and took out of his poket, what do you think, the records of the Terible 3. i was so sirprized that i neerly hollered but dident. then father sed well gentlemen i have the infirnalist record of yuthfull depravity i ever read in my life. and then he read it and evry time he stoped to breeth old General Mastin wood slap his gnee and holler G.o.d did you ever hear the like of that, the little devils. and father wood holler and laff and Pewts father and Beanys father wood two. then father wood read sum moar and then he sed i wish i had been a member and i almost sed you was an onery member but i gnew enuf not to.

bimeby he finished and sed there General did you ever hear enything like that in your life and General sed he never did. then father sed he suspecked us from the ferst and peraps he was as mutch to blaim as we was becaus he stirred up old Ike and J. Albert but when the fire come he was wurrid as the devil althoug he felt sure we hadent done it he was afrade sum dam fool wood try to lay it onto us. and the very day of the fire he found the records where i had droped them. he told Pewts father and Beanys father and they thougt it woodent hirt us to wurry and they told the 2 docters and the docters sed they was all rite and it woodent hirt them.

then father sed it was only fair that he and Pewts father and Beanys father shood pay for eny damige we had did. and Pewts father sed as long as i got it up father had augt to pay. and father sed why do you say that and Pewts father sed becaus he always does get the other boys into truble and father kind of smiled and handed the records to him and sed whose writing is that.

and Pewts father looked at it and sed hum haw and that was all he cood say. Father dident know that i rote them becaus i cood spel so mutch better than Pewt and Pewt coppid them.

then General Mastin sed Ike and Bill has maid money by the fire and these little devils dident have enything to do with that and that it cougt from hot ashes enyway. now i am counsil for the boys and i aint obliged to tell a thing about them or who they are. a lawyer aint obliged to. i will put a peace in the paper saying enyone whitch has sustaned eny damige from the so called Terible 3 can by proving there damige under othe to me will be pade. and you may be sure that they aint a man living that will be willing to sine the kind of a staitment i will draw up for him, and General laffed and they all did two.

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