The Prince and the Pauper, Chapter 19 summary
Chapter 19 of 33 · 8 min to read the chapter
In Chapter 19, the King finds kindness with two girls and their mother, who feeds him but mistakes him for a troubled former servant. His awkward efforts at household work expose his lack of practical skill, and the arrival of John Canty and Hugo drives him away through the back.
What happens
- The King wakes beside a rat in a barn, then meets Prissy and Margery, who believe his royal claim.
- The girls bring him home for breakfast, while their mother questions him and concludes that he once worked in a palace kitchen.
- Left watching the cooking, he becomes distracted and burns the food, but the woman forgives him.
- Both the King and his hostess regard sharing the family table as a generous lowering of their own rank.
- After breakfast, the woman gives him household chores, ending with an order to drown kittens after the midday meal.
- Seeing John Canty and Hugo approach, he escapes behind the house and leaves the kittens in an outbuilding.
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In this chapter
What to notice
The narrator comments on the shared meal. Both participants feel generous because each mistakenly believes the other occupies a lower social position.
Quick check
Why does the widow decide the boy has worked in a royal kitchen?
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