How we cite our quotes: (Paragraph)
Quote #4
I got the knife away from the kid and made him lie down again. But, from that moment, Bill's spirit was broken. He lay down on his side of the bed, but he never closed and eye again in sleep as long as that boy was with us. (26)
Johnny has Bill trapped in a world of suffering and terror. The tides have turned and it's becoming clear in a serious way who has the upper hand in this case. Johnny is steadily transforming himself into a monster to these pathetic criminals.
Quote #5
"You're a liar!" says Bill. "You're afraid. You was to be burned at sunrise, and you was afraid he'd do it. And he would, too, if he could find a match. Ain't it awful, Sam? Do you think anybody will pay our money to get a little imp like that back home?"
"Sure," said I. "A rowdy kid like that is 'just the kind that parents dote on." (29-30)
Sam and Bill are up a stream without a paddle. Bill is the one spending the bulk of the time with Johnny, and he is closer to the reality of the situation. Sam still thinks that this is a good old-fashioned kidnapping, pure and simple.
Quote #6
I expected to see the sturdy peasants of the village armed with scythes and pitchforks beating the countryside for the dastardly kidnapers. But what I saw was a peaceful landscape dotted with one man plowing with a mule. Nobody was dragging the creek; no couriers dashed hither and yon, bringing tidings of no news to the distracted parents. There was a sylvan attitude of sleepiness pervading that section of the external outward surface of Alabama that lay exposed to view. (31)
Even the countryside is unaffected by Sam and Bill's dastardly plan. Nobody is really bothered by Johnny's disappearance. Sam is firmly and doggedly committed to his denial, and assumes that no one is aware of Johnny's kidnapping yet. His ransom note will certainly set things right.