Pap told me.

But anyway it all come of looking at the moon that way, like a fool.
Well, the days went along, and the river went down between its banks again; and about the first thing we done was to bait one of the big hooks with a skinned rabbit and set it and catch a catfish that was as big as a man, being six foot two inches long, and weighed over two hundred pounds.
We couldn't handle him, of course; he would a flung us into Illinois.

We just set there and watched him rip and tear around till he drownded.

We found a brass button in his stomach and a round ball, and lots of rubbage.

We split the ball open with the hatchet, and there was a spool in it.