Discovery of the Treasure

The Discovery of the Treasure is the decisive action that fulfills the boys' long-held fantasy of finding hidden wealth and transforms their social standing. After the death of Injun Joe, Tom Sawyer leads Huckleberry Finn back into McDougal's Cave, guided by a cross marked in candle-smoke on a rock—the very sign Injun Joe had used to mark the hiding place. The discovery not only makes them rich but also provides the material foundation for their future adventures and for Huck's reluctant entry into respectable society.

The Cross and the Cave

Tom had seen Injun Joe's candle appear from behind a rock during his own ordeal in the cave, and he later realized that the cross marked there was the key to the treasure. When he and Huck returned, they entered through a hidden hole in a clump of sumach bushes, a secret exit Tom had used to escape the cave. They followed a tunnel to the spring where Tom and Becky Thatcher had nearly perished, then proceeded to the "jumping-off place," a steep clay hill. There, Tom held his candle aloft and showed Huck the cross on the big rock, saying, "Now where's your Number Two? 'Under the cross,' hey?" Huck, initially terrified that Injun Joe's ghost might haunt the money, was reassured by Tom's argument that a ghost would not come near a cross.

The Excavation and the Box

Tom descended first, cutting rude steps in the clay hill, and Huck followed. They found a small cavern with four avenues, and in one recess near the base of the rock they discovered a pallet of blankets, an old suspender, bacon rind, and gnawed fowl bones—but no money-box. After searching in vain, Tom noticed that footprints and candle-grease appeared only on one side of the rock, leading him to suspect the treasure was buried beneath it. Using his "real Barlow" knife, he dug into the clay and struck wood within four inches. They uncovered boards that concealed a natural chasm leading under the rock. Tom stooped and passed through the narrow, winding way, with Huck at his heels. Turning a short curve, Tom exclaimed, "My goodness, Huck, lookyhere!" There, in a snug little cavern, sat the treasure-box, along with an empty powder-keg, two guns in leather cases, old moccasins, a leather belt, and other rubbish.

The Wealth and Its Aftermath

The box weighed about fifty pounds and contained over twelve thousand dollars in gold coins. The boys filled the small bags they had brought and carried the money up to the cross rock. They left the guns and other items in the cave, planning to use them for their future robber gang. They hid the money in the loft of the Widow Douglas's woodshed, then later revealed it at a party at her house, pouring the mass of yellow coin onto the table. The spectacle took the breath away from the assembled company, which included Judge Thatcher, Aunt Polly, and the Welshman. The money was counted and invested—Huck's by the Widow Douglas at six percent, Tom's by Judge Thatcher at Aunt Polly's request—giving each boy a prodigious income of a dollar for every weekday and half the Sundays. The discovery made Tom and Huck the most celebrated figures in St. Petersburg, with their past history raked up and their every word treasured. It also led to Huck's adoption by the Widow Douglas and his subsequent, though temporary, flight from the constraints of civilized life.