“We left John Canty dragging the rightful prince into Offal Court, with a noisy and delighted mob at his heels.” Twain aims for our compassion as the true prince struggles to get free, all the while raging against the cruel treatment by Tom Canty’s father. The old man is ready to use his cudgel against the child when someone in the crowd stays Canty’s hand. Canty is not to be stopped, however, and he delivers a severe blow to the bystander’s head. The wounded man sinks to the ground, and the mob passes on. Finally they all arrive at Canty’s den, and the prince sees Tom’s mother and sisters—“animals habituated to harsh usage”; Tom’s grandmother looks like “a withered hag with streaming grey hair and malignant eyes.”
Prodded by Canty, the prince proclaims himself to be Edward, Prince of Wales. Tom’s mother rushes to him, convinced that he is mad, and the prince tells her again that he is not her son: his father is King of England, whereupon she can do nothing but wail brokenheartedly. Tom’s sister pleads with her father to be gentle with the boy, saying that rest will heal his madness. Canty, however, asks what the boy has managed to beg that day, and when the prince dismisses such “sordid matters,” Canty and Tom’s grandmother thoroughly beat him and send him to bed.
In the darkness, Tom’s mother ponders what she has heard and the differences between her son and this mad boy: is he really her son? At last, she devises a test: Tom Canty habitually covers his eyes with his hands, palms outward, when confronted with sudden bright lights or noises. Thus she thrusts her candle into the prince’s face and thumps loudly on the floor; the boy is startled, but he makes no gesture with his hands. She soothes the prince back to sleep, but she is left more confused than ever.
Just after the prince awakens, drowsily calling for his groom, the family hears several sharp raps on the door. They are informed that it was Father Andrew whom Canty struck in the crowd and, furthermore, that Father Andrew is now dying. Canty gathers the family together and hurries them out of the house and toward Southwark. The Canty family, however, is separated when they are caught up in the midst of revelers celebrating the Prince of Wale’s procession into London. Canty, meanwhile, keeps his “son” in his grip until he is persuaded by a waterman to take a ceremonial drink with him. This requires Canty to use both hands, and Edward dives into the sea of legs and disappears.
Trying to get as far from John Canty as possible, Edward realizes that the young boy he exchanged clothes with has taken his place in the castle. He concludes that Tom Canty “had deliberately taken advantage of stupendous opportunity and become a usurper.” He therefore determines that he will make his way to the Guildhall and announce himself. He also decides that the usurper will be hanged, drawn, and quartered.
Meanwhile, the royal barge makes its way down the Thames River. There is music in the air, bonfires light the sky, artillery booms forth, and the crowd cheers loudly. For Tom, the pageantry is astonishing and wonderful, but to his two companions, the Princess Elizabeth and the Lady Jane Grey, it is commonplace.
Finally the barge docks, and Tom and his entourage walk to the Guildhall. There, too, the spectacle is grand and colorful, and Tom is seated at the highest table, while the guests, all richly dressed, are seated at lower tables, depending on their royal degree. After prayer and grace is given, Tom and the Princess Elizabeth drink from a large golden loving cup, which is then passed down the table, and the banquet begins.
Tom watches the dancing while the real prince stands at the gates of the Guildhall, proclaiming himself to be the Prince of Wales and demanding that he be admitted. The crowd taunts him and mocks him, and he defies all those who revile him. A man who identifies himself as Miles Hendon, and whose clothes have seen better days, takes up the prince’s cause. And it is well that he does, for had he not done so, the crowd would have beaten the poor prince. Hendon’s sword gives the two breathing room for awhile, but matters continue to look grim until a king’s messenger and his troops scatter the mob. Hendon then grabs the prince and takes him away from the danger.
In the Guildhall, a messenger proclaims that the king is dead; this news shocks the crowd into momentary silence. In the next moment, however, they stretch their arms toward Tom and shout, “Long live the king!” Tom is confused, but he suddenly realizes something momentous; turning to the Lord Hertford, he asks if his word is now law—if it is true that whatever he commands must be carried out. Assured that this is so, Tom proclaims, “Then shall the king’s law be a law of mercy, from this day, and never more be a law of blood! . . . To the Tower and say the king decrees the Duke of Norfolk shall not die!”
