Mark Twain (1835-1910)
A boy was born on an autumm afternoon to a poverty-stricken Canty family. With the state of London's sixteenth-century economy staring them in the face, the family did not want the child.
On the same day another English lad was born into the rich and royal Tudor family. These parents savored their baby - infact all of England had longed, hoped and prayed for this son. Now that he had arrived the, British subjects were overjoyed; young Edward Tudor, Prince of Wales was revered by all - in stark contrast to Tom Cantry's birth, of which no one took note excepting his family, who was only troubled by his arrival.
Tom Cantry grew up in Offal Court. He lived a wrentched life, and indeed, knew no other. Every morning Tom was sent off to beg. If he came home emty-handed, his father and his grandmother would soundly beat him. So, often, when the afternoon rolled around and the boy reckoned that he had begged enough to avoid a beating, he would race to Father Andrew's monestary for the remainder of the day. Over the months, good Father taught Tom how to read, gave him some intruction in Latin, and recited wondrous tales of royalty. And because of his education, intelligence and grace, Tom seemed far wiser than others his age. Peoplke would frequently come seeking his advice, despite his low station.
But it was the beggar boy's greatest wish to witness a real prince all decked out in his royal attire; and one January morning Tom obtained his wish. He journeyed to Charing Village, the site of the King's majestic palace, and, to his amazment, inside the fence he beheld a young boy his age - a true prince. As he drew closer and closer to observe the little gentleman, suddenly he was rudely snatched up by a soldier. The prince, Edward Tudor, saw this action and came to Tom's rescue, and afterward he invited the young pauper into the palace. So, the Prince of Poverty passed the palace gates to join hands with the Prince of Limitless Plenty.
Safely within the castle, the prince gave Tom some food. Soon they were comfortably chatting back and forth about their different families and opposite lifestyles. On a whim, Tom and Edward changed into each others clothes. And when they stared into the mirror, a miricle seemed to have happened: they appeared to be twins - the same hair and eyes, face and countenance, voice and manner. Then, while still in the changed garments, Edward noticed Tom's bruised hand and went out to reprimand the guard who had caused it. The soldier laughed at the waif's pretense to royal wrath, instantly tossed him out thegate. Tom Canty was now the new Prince of Wales and Edward became the prince of paupers.
Edward's life as a beggar was not as he had been accustomed. First, he was abused and ridiculed by a crowd as he professed to be England's rightful prince. Then, Tom's drunken father found him, and took him home to Offal Court, where Edward was beaten. That night, however, the father received word that he was wanted for murder. As he hurriedly rushed to escape, dragging the boy behind him, Edward managed to twist free from his grasp, and he disappeared into the crowded street.
Once a distance from the Canty house, Edward put himself in a precarious postion by again trying to convince others that he was a prince. Of course, the commoners and merchants again mocked the young boy. But just at this moment a gentleman, Miles Hendon, stood up to defend Edward. While he did not believe Edward's wild claim to be Prince of Wales, Hendon decided to be the boy's champion, take him on his journey back to his village, and minister to him until he came to his senses. It had been seven years since Miles Hendon had been home, and he was anxious to see his father, his older brother, Arthur, and Edith, his true love.
As Miles and Edward traveled together, they received word that King Henry VIII had died. Thus, Edward was now indeed King of all England - and most likely the only living soul who mourned the death of Henry.
Throughout his trek homeward, Miles treated Edward as though he were a real king. He helped him dress, waited on him, fed him, and took care of all his needs. In return, Edward dubbed Miles a knight.
When the twosome finally arrived at Hendon Hall, Miles was shocked to find that his older brother and his father had died; even worse, his conniving younger brother Hugh has a ssumed control of his business and estate and taken Edith for himself in marriage. No servants claimed to recognize Miles; even charming Edith failed to acknowledge him. In fact, Hugh had Miles and Edward thrown into prison, falsely accusing them of being beggars and vagabonds.
His stay in prison convinced Edward of inhumanity of British justice. For example, after being comforted by two kind women prisoners, these were taken out and burned at the stake for being Baptists. He also came to know a half-witted spinster who, having stolen a yard or two of cloth from a weaver, was to be hanged for it. But the beggar-king was particularly distressed by the tale of a young imprisoned apprentice, who, having found an escaped hawk, took it home. The court convicted him of stealing the bird and sentenced him to death. Edward was taught a great lesson: "King's should go to school to try their own laws at times, and so learn mercy."
Miles finally was brought to trail and given a sentence of two hours in the stocks. Edward was furious with the humiliation of his friend. Then, after his release, Miles and Edward hurried toward London; a new king was to be crowned.
While the true king wanderwed about the land "poorly clad, poorly fed, cuffed and derided, herded with thieves and murderers in a jail, and called idiot and imposter by all, "the mock-King, Tom Canty, enjoyed his adventures. At first he felt as though he was imprisoned. Even the process of getting dressed took fourteen people! Eating was as difficult an understanding. Moreover, he had to worry about all manner of dull work: petitions were read, proclamations heard, and patents and all manner of wordy, repetitious and wearisome papers had to be attended to. It was all very drab. But then Tom ment Edward's former sevant boy, a bright lad who told Tom all about the ways of the castle, its various degrees of rank and file, and how to deal with the palace intrigue. Heproved to be a veritable gold mine for Tom. The unseasoned yet clever boy used the information he gained to become comfortable as a prince, and to reassure his "caretakers" that he hadn't gone mad.
Slowly, Tom grew to enjoy the privileges of a riler. Early on, he often thought about the lost prince and sincerely longed for his return. But as time wore on, and Edward didn't appear, Tom thought less and less about him. When Tom's mind did call up the possible fate of the genuine prince, he felt even greater guilt and shame; and he did his best to drive Edward from his mind. He eventually succceeded so well at this that, after the death of King Henry, Tom actually looked forward to abtaining England's throne.
Now, all of England had come to Westminster Abbey to witness the coronation of King Edward. As the archbisop of Canterbury lifted the crown to place it on Tom's head, a cry was heard: "I am the King!"Tom was delighted to see Edward and stepped down to allow the ragged youth to take his place on the throne. But the crowd was unconvinced; the real Edward must prove his claim to the crown: for weeks the Great Seal had been missing, and the true Prince of Wales would know where it was. After much fretting, Edward remembered where he had last placed it. This was evidence to all; Edward Tudor was immediately coronated King Edward VI.
Edward lived for only a few years, but during those years he reigned most mercifully. Miles was made Earl of Kent, while Miles' brother was stripped of his land and cast into prison. Tom Cantry was commissioned as the King's Ward, and as Chief Governor over Christ's hospital, a shelter that fed the minds, hearts, and stomachs of orphans and children of indigent people. Frequently reminiscing about his experience as a peasant, King Edward demonstrated great compassion during a harsh period of English history. Because he understood his people, and ruled them in love, they in turn loved him, and exceedingly mourned his passing.
In 1835, when Halley's comet streaked across the skies, Mark Twain was born in an obscure farm town. Sevebty five years later, when the comet reappeared, Twain died, a famous author. He is a well-loved American writer and the inventor of the mythical epitome of American boyhood< Tom Sawyer.
While his more famous Adventures of Hucleberry Finn was yet unfinished, Twain wrote The Prince and the Pauper. Here we have two people living one another's lives for a brief, instructive time. The reader wants to believe it could happen because he would secretly like to see the beggar boy rise in life, while the privileged princeling is brought down to have his nose rubbed in reality.
In this tale, Twain shares with us his outrage at the social injustice that exists in the 1500s, 1800s - and that even now in one form or another. By presenting a case of mistaken identity, Twain clearly and simply potrays these injustices. Such a situation seems immpossible, but like Twain sais, "It may have happened, it may not have happened; but it could have happened."