The Prince and the Pauper: Chapter 23 Summary & Analysis

Hendon whispers to Edward to let him do the talking. Hendon is amused because Edward calls him “Sir Miles,” which reminds Hendon that he’s a “spectre-knight.” Hendon knows it means nothing but he still thinks it’s better than if Edward thought so little of him as to consider him an earl in some parts of the real world. A constable walks up to lead Hendon, Edward, and the woman to the court. Edward is reluctant, but Hendon reminds him that the law he’s allegedly broken is his own law, and it will be a comfort to Edward one day to know that he submitted to the law at a time when everyone thought he was an average citizen. Edward admits that Hendon is right and he follows the constable.

In the courthouse, the woman swears that Edward stole the package, and since nobody is there who can say differently, the judge finds Edward guilty. They unroll the package and reveal a dressed pig, which alarms the judge and Hendon (Edward is too ignorant to be concerned). The woman says she bought the pig for three shillings and eightpence. The judge orders everyone but those concerned out and says that Edward looks innocent and he may have been driven by hunger. The judge tells the woman that if anyone steals something worth more than 13 pence and a half-penny then they must hang. The woman is alarmed and she says she doesn’t want Edward to hang. The judge says they can adjust the price of the pig, so she says the pig only cost eightpence and she is thankful that Edward’s death won’t be on her conscience.

The constable follows the woman out of the courtroom and Hendon decides to follow. Hendon hides in the hallway and listens to the constable tell the woman he wants to buy the pig for eightpence. The woman indignantly says she’ll never sell it for such a low price because it cost three shillings and eightpence. The constable says that since she took an oath and swore the pig only cost eightpence, she can be charged with a crime. The woman tearfully allows the constable to buy the pig for eight pence and then she leaves emptyhanded. Hendon goes back into the courtroom and the constable follows shortly thereafter. The judge gives Edward a lecture and then orders him to spend time in a common jail and then be publicly flogged. Hendon leads Edward—who’d rather die than go to jail—out and tells Edward to just trust him.