In the city of London, on an autumn day in the 16th century, a boy was born to a poor family named Canty, who did not want him. On the same day, another English child was born to a rich family named Tudor. All England wanted Edward Tudor, Prince of Wales. There was no talk about the other baby, Tom Canty, except among his family of paupers.
The Canty family lived in Offal Court in a small, rickety2 house packed full of poor families. Beatings were as common as hunger in Tom's life. Yet he was not unhappy. A good old priest, whom the king had turned out of his house, taught the children right ways secretly. Father Andrew also taught Tom a little Latin, and how to read and write.
Tom read the priest's old books and, as he grew, he dreamed of a princely life. One day he wandered far from home toward the king's palace. Poor ragged Tom approached, moving slowly past the guards as a handsome boy dressed in satin3 and silk appeared through the bars.
A soldier hurled4 Tom back into the gaping crowd. “Mind your manners, beggar!”
The crowd jeered, but the prince sprang to the gate. “Let him in!”
You should have heard the crowd shout, “Long live the Prince of Wales!”
He led Tom inside the palace and asked many questions about his life. “In summer,” Tom said, “we boys swim in the river and dive and tumble. We wallow in the mud, sir—”
“Oh, if I could revel in the mud once, I'd give up the crown!”
“And if I could wear your clothes, sir—just once—”
So said, it was done. The Prince of Wales and the Prince of Paupers put on each other's clothes and stood side by side before a great mirror. “You have the same hair, eyes, voice, height, even the same face as I,” Edward said. He glanced at Tom's bruised5 hand. “Do not go until I come back.”
He snatched up something from a table, put it away, and flew out the door across the palace grounds. “Open the gate!” Edward demanded. The soldier shoved him into the road. “I am the Prince of Wales! You shall hang for laying your hand on me!”
“Be off, rubbish!”the soldier said angrily.
The crowd closed around the little prince and hustled him down the road. “Way for his Highness!” Then followed such a thing as England never saw before—the heir to the throne set upon by dogs.
His body bruised and his hands bleeding, Edward drifted deep into a maze6 of alleys. Out of the darkness came a huge ruffian7. “If I do not break all the bones in your body, I am not John Canty,” he said, collaring the boy.
The prince twisted loose. “Take me to the king, my father.”
The man stared down stupefied. “Gone stark mad,” he gasped, and collared the prince again.
Meanwhile, Tom Canty was still admiring himself in the mirror. But as the door opened and “The Lady Jane Grey” was announced, Tom fell to his knees and held up his hands, pleading for mercy. “I am only Tom Canty of Offal Court,” he stammered.
“Oh, my lord, on your knees? To me, your cousin!” She fled away in fright, and Tom sank in despair. “There is no hope,” he murmured.
News of the prince's madness sped through the palace. The king summoned the boy to his side. “Do not break my heart; say you know your ailing8 father.”
“You are my lord the king. Your majesty, I was born a pauper. It is only by accident that I am here.”
The king was silent awhile. Then he asked Tom a question in Latin, and Tom answered lamely9.
“His mind is diseased, but not entirely. My son is mad, but he is my son—and mad or sane10, he shall reign!” the king declared.
All the while, the rightful prince had been dragged into Offal Court with a noisy mob at his heels11. One man pleaded for the captive. But John Canty crashed his club hard on the meddler's12 head, and the dim form fell to the ground.
In Canty's house with the door closed against outsiders, Edward found the rest of Tom's family. Twin girls and a woman cowered against the wall.
“Show me what your begging got this time,” John Canty said.
Canty's broad palm sent the boy staggering into the arms of Tom's mother. Something about his manner was lacking in Tom Canty, mad or sane. What if this boy were not her son after all? Oh, but he must be!
Several raps came at the door just then, and a voice said, “Canty, do you know who it was you killed? The priest, Father Andrew!”
Scarcely five minutes later, the household was out in the street running for their lives. Tom's father held the prince by the wrist and hurried him through the darkness toward London Bridge. “Mind your tongue13, I tell you!” he said.
在16世纪的一个秋天，伦敦市姓康蒂的一户贫穷人家，生了一个男婴。这户人家自己都不想要这个孩子。同一天，在英国高贵的都铎王室也出生了一个男孩，全英格兰都在欢庆着爱德华·都铎——这位威尔士王子的诞生。但没人提到另外那个孩子——汤姆·康蒂，除了他的乞丐家人们。
康蒂家住在垃圾巷一幢摇摇欲坠的房子里，房里住满了贫穷人家。挨打和饿肚子成了汤姆的家常便饭。然而汤姆还是很快乐。因为一位被国王赶出王宫的好心的老牧师，偷偷教穷孩子们正确的做人之道。安德鲁牧师还教了汤姆一些拉丁文，以及如何读书识字。
汤姆熟读牧师的藏书，随着他慢慢长大，汤姆梦想着能过上一种王子般的生活。一天，他在离家很远的地方闲逛，不知不觉朝王宫走去。衣衫褴褛的汤姆走近王宫，慢慢地经过守卫身旁，这时，一位身着绸缎衣服的英俊少年出现在铁栏杆后面。
一个卫兵猛地把汤姆推回到目瞪口呆的人群中，“小乞丐，规矩点儿！”
人群发出嘲笑声，但是王子奔来，“让他进来！”
“威尔士王子万岁！”人群的欢呼声震耳欲聋，你真该听听的。
王子让汤姆进了王宫，问了很多有关他生活的问题。“夏天，”汤姆说，“我们男孩子在河里游泳、潜水、打水仗。我们在泥里打滚，殿下……”
“唉，如果我能在泥里打一次滚，就算放弃王位我也愿意。”
“如果让我穿上你的衣服，殿下，哪怕一次也好……”
这样说了，就这样做了。威尔士王子和贫穷的乞丐交换了衣服，俩人肩并肩地站在大镜子前。“你的头发、眼睛、声音、身高，甚至面孔都和我一样。”爱德华说。他看了一眼汤姆伤痕累累的手说：“我回来之前，待在这儿别走。”
他从桌上拿了样东西，收好，接着飞奔到王宫的大门口。“把门打开！”爱德华命令道。士兵把他推搡到大街上。“我是威尔士王子！你胆敢推我，你会被吊死的！”
“叫花子，滚开！”士兵怒气冲冲地吼道。
人群簇拥着小王子，把他挤到大街上，叫道：“给‘殿下’让路。”紧接着，出现了英国从未见过的一幕：王位继承人居然被狗追赶。
爱德华浑身擦伤，手还在流血，他拐进了迂回曲折的巷子里。黑暗中走来了一个面目凶狠的人。他拎起男孩的领口，大叫：“如果我不敲断你身上每根骨头，我就不叫约翰·康蒂。”
王子扭动着挣脱了他，说：“把我带到国王那里去，他是我父亲！”
那人吃惊地望着他。“完全疯了，”他气吁吁地说，又抓住了王子的领口。
与此同时，汤姆·康蒂还在镜子前欣赏着自己的打扮。突然门打开了，有人通报：“珍·葛莉公主到。”汤姆一下子双膝跪地，抱紧拳头，结结巴巴地哀求道：“我只是住在垃圾巷的汤姆·康蒂。”
“啊？殿下，您怎么跪在地上？对我，您的表妹！”公主惊恐地跑开了，汤姆觉得自己就要完了。“没希望了。”他喃喃自语。
王子发了疯的消息迅速传遍了整个王宫。国王把男孩叫到他身边。“不要让我伤心，告诉我你还认识你衰老的父亲。”
“您是尊敬的国王陛下，陛下，我只是一名乞丐的儿子。因为意外我才来到这儿的。”
好大一会儿，国王闷声不响，然后他用拉丁语问了汤姆一个问题，汤姆磕磕巴巴地回答了出来。
“他神智有些失常，但不是不可救药。不过就算我的儿子疯了，他终究还是我的儿子。无论他神智是否正常，他都将继承我的王位！”国王宣布。
真正的王子此刻正一路被拖往垃圾巷，后面跟着一群看热闹的人。一个人冲出来替男孩求饶，但是约翰·康蒂往这个好管闲事的人头上重重敲了一棍，那个模糊的身影就倒在地上。
康蒂家房门紧闭，好事者都被挡在房外，爱德华见到了汤姆的其余家人。双胞胎女孩和一个妇人正缩在墙角。
“让我看看这次你讨到了什么？” 约翰·康蒂问。
康蒂一大巴掌挥过去，男孩踉跄着倒向汤姆母亲的怀抱。不管疯还是不疯，他的举止跟汤姆·康蒂可太不一样了。要是这男孩真的不是他儿子呢？哦，不过毫无疑问他是的！
就在这时，有人轻拍了几下房门，“康蒂，你知道你杀了谁吗？安德鲁牧师！”
还不到5分钟，全家老小已经在大街上逃命了。在前往伦敦桥的途中，黑暗中汤姆的父亲抓住王子的手，一边催着他跑，一边说：“我可告诉你，不要胡说八道！”
1. 马克·吐温（1835－1910），美国著名小说家，幽默作家，是美国批判现实主义文学的奠基人。
2. rickety adj. 摇摇欲坠的
3. satin n. 绸缎
4. hurl v. 猛推
5. bruised adj. 伤痕累累的
bruise n. 擦伤
6. maze [meiz] n. 曲径；迷宫
7. ruffian n. 流氓，暴徒
8. ailing adj. 有病痛的
9. lamely [leimli] adv. 不完整地
10. sane [sein] adj. 健全的
11. at one's heels 紧随其后
12. meddler n. 爱管闲事的人
13. mind sb's tongue 不要胡说八道