Hello everyone,

I'm not a Twain scholar, but Huck Finn is one of my
favorite novels, and I'm teaching it this term at the
College in Montreal where I work.  One aspect of the
book has mystified me, and I'm hoping someone on this
list might be able to shed some light.  Since Illinois
was a free State, why didn't Jim just get off the raft
on that side of the River and keep on going?  Why did
he have to plan to float all the way to Cairo and then
head up the Ohio to find some kind of relative safety?
 What am I missing here?

Best,

Steve Lehman