Why did Bill try to release Johnny before they had the ransom?
Answers
e Ransom of Red Chief Questions and Answers
by O. Henry
MENU
In The Ransom of Red Chief, what drove Bill to try to send the boy home before the ransom was paid?
print Print document PDF list Cite
Expert Answers info
JASON LULOS eNotes educator | CERTIFIED EDUCATOR
Red Chief is annoying Bill to no end and he is physically injuring him again and again. Red Chief gives them a fight when they initiate the kidnapping. This leaves Bill with wounds already. Sam remarks, "That boy had Bill terrorized from the start." After the first night, Sam awakens to find Red Chief actually threatening to take Bill's scalp with a knife. Bill, a grown man, feels at the mercy of this young child. After this, Sam adds, "Bill's spirit was broken." Red Chief also put a hot potato down Bill's back and hit him in the head with a rock from a sling. Bill is actually terrified of what Red Chief might do to him next. He pleads with Sam not to leave him alone with the kid. Bill doesn't even want to sleep because he is afraid of what Red Chief might do to him in his sleep. So, when Sam goes into town to drop off the ransom note, Bill decides he has had enough and tries to send the boy home. Unfortunately for Bill, Red Chief returns.