Chapter 23 summary:

The entire day is spent preparing the stage for the awaited performance and, as expected, the place is
bursting with spectators. The Duke gives a short preamble in praise of the play. Followed by his opening
address, the King appears crawling on all fours, naked with his body painted all over. He makes a couple
of boorish actions that makes people roll with laughter Shortly afterwards, the Duke announces that the
play has ended. People are astounded when they realize that they have been hoodwinked, they create a
big racket. The hullabaloo continues until one gentleman stands up and says that the only way to avoid
becoming the laughing stock of town is to entice others to watch the play so that everybody is in the
same boat. Everyone agrees to this and, the next day word spreads around about how wonderful the
show was. After two successful shows, they anticipate trouble on the third night. Huck and Jim are
made to hide the raft two miles away from town so that they can leave at the slightest hint of trouble.
They discern the spectators taking in rotten eggs and dead cats. Foreseeing threat, they sprint towards
the raft. Once safe, the King and the Duke celebrate their victory over supper. They have made four
hundred and sixty five dollars! Observing their demeanor, Jim expresses surprise over the way they
conduct themselves, for, their deportment hardly seems royal and dignified. Huck gives him a lecture on
the Kings of History and how they used to behave. He validates the behavior of the Duke and King by
saying that they are much better than all the other kings and that one should "make allowances"
because "that's the way they are raised". The next morning, at dawn, Huck finds Jim lamenting the loss
of his family. Jim especially feels remorse for having beaten his four-year old daughter because she
hadn't obeyed his orders. She had become deaf and dumb after a bout of scarlet fever - a fact that was
not known to Jim. Jim had asked her to close the door and the girl had, ostensibly, disobeyed him.
Actually, owing to the fact that she was deaf, she hadn't heard her father's instructions. Realizing how
much Jim misses his family, Huck is surprised on learning the fact that a "nigger" is as full of emotions as
probably a "white" man would be.

Chapter 24:

The next day, the King and Duke plan their next strategy to dupe people. They decide to go to the next
town and see what they can get their hands on. Jim protests against being tied up in ropes everyday, as it
gets very fatiguing. He hopes that they won't take very long. The Duke agrees with him and soon designs
a remedy to the problem. He dresses him up in King Lear's costume - a long calico gown and a white wig.
He paints him all over his face, hands, neck and ears with solid blue color. The words, "Sick Arab - but
harmless when not out of his mind" are enough to frighten prying onlookers from coming closer.The
"rapscallions" are tempted to try out their luck, once again, with the "Nonesuch plays" but, soon
enough, good sense prevails upon the They realize that, since the town is too close to the previous one,
they should not take the risk and experiment with the same ploy here again. The King and Huck dress up
in the store clothes that they had bought and go about town, exploring it. The former is disguised as a
Parson while the latter poses as his servant boy, Adolphus. They bump into a young man who is waiting
for a steamboat to take him to Orleans. The King offers in a ride in the canoe. During their voyage, the
young man tells them about Peter Wilks, a well-off tanner of the town, who had died the previous day.
He tells them that the townspeople are waiting for his younger brothers William and Harvey to come
from England and take charge of their property. The young man also tells them that one of the brothers
is deaf and dumb. The King hauls out extensive information on the Wilks' family - the brother who had
died earlier, his three daughters, friends of old Peter Wilks, about where the property is hidden, etc.

Chapter 25:

The two frauds are given a warm welcome and they demonstrate their emotions most theatrically.
Once they are through with all the weeping and histrionic display, the king gives a speech in which he
thanks the townsfolk for their "dear sympathy and "holy tears" that has made their long journey
worthwhile. 'To Huck, it is a "sickening" speech since he can see through all the farce. The King, then,
invites the "Main principal friends" of the family to supper. He adds credibility to his masquerade by
naming them- "Rev. Mr. Hobson, and Deacon Lot Hovey, ..., and their wives and widow Bartley. People
believe them as he shows them that he knows each and every one by name due to the fact that his
brother, the dead Peter Wilks, had written to him about them. Following this, Joanne, one of the nieces,
brings Peter Wilks' "Will". It tells them where he has kept the cash amounting to six thousand dollars.
The swindlers find it four hundred and fifteen dollars short. They make up the "deffisit" by adding their
own money into the pool. The King says that he would like everyone to be present during the "funeral
orgies" because his deceased brother liked and respected every single man in town. On hearing him
speak in this manner, especially with the use of the word "orgies", the well-to-do and literate Dr.
Robinson smells rat. Due to the former's malapropisms, he suspects the "brothers" to be imposters.
When he raises his voice against them, he is driven away by the townsfolk who have iron faith in the
undisputed legitimacy of the brothers. Nevertheless, the doctor is confident about and trusts his own
judgment. He warns everyone of dire consequences, unless they wake up to reality.

Chapter 26:

The imposters are made comfortable in the house. Mary Jane, the eldest sister, gives her own room for
one of the "uncles". She doesn't mind sharing her sisters room and sleeping on a cot. After an uneventful
supper, when the others are busy winding up the leftovers, the hare-lipped sister, Joanna, bombards
Huck with a deluge of questions about his life in England and if he had ever seen the King of England. His
convoluted answers evoke her suspicion and she makes him swear on what Huck surreptitiously
observes is a Dictionary. Now that Huck knows he is not made to swear by the Holy Bible, he does not
feel guilty about making false claims. Mary Jane and Susan happen to overhear the fuss and admonish
their sister for being impolite towards a guest. They feel that it is wrong and indecorous for a host to
speak in this vein. Mary Jane and Susan empathize with Huck because he is away from his own land and
his people. Though Joanna says that her sister is always ready to help anybody before he gets hurt, she
apologizes to Huck in the sweetest possible way. Huck is touched by their sentiments and chides himself
for letting the two swindlers deceive the "poor sweet lambs"; He resolves to salvage the situation for
them. He contemplates on what his plan of action should be. At first, he decides to go to the doctor and
expose the villains to him. Then, fearing that the doctor might reveal his identity to the frauds, he
decides against it. His next thought is to go directly to Mary Jane and tell her. Deducing that her face
would let the entire secret out, he decides against this as well. He is prudent enough to anticipate that,
since the king and duke have the money, at the slightest inkling of a revelation of their secret, they might
flee with the money. Finally, he decides to steal the money and give it to the rightful owners.
Chapter 27:

That night, Huck creeps into the King's room. He steals the booty from the King's room and hears him
snoring. Peeping through a crack in the wall of the dining room, he is happy to see all the people
guarding the coffin, fast asleep. Suddenly he hears a sound coming from somewhere and quickly he runs
to the parlor and decides to hide the bag in the coffin. From his hiding place, he notices that it is Mary
Jane. She comes near the coffin, kneels down and starts crying. He plans that once they are a couple of
hundred down the river; he would write to Mary Jane, telling her all about the money and where it is
hidden. The funeral begins with Reverend Hobson's delivery of the funeral sermon. Huck doesn't dare
look under the lid of the coffin though he is extremely curious to be sure that the money is where he had
kept it the previous night. Suddenly a dreadful thought strikes him. He realizes that somebody may have
stolen the money back from the coffin. In this Case, if he writes to Mary Jane about the money and she
doesn't find it there, she would doubt Huck's integrity. He might be hunted up and jailed for this.