- All pumped up from his discovery, Pudd'nhead works diligently through the night on getting his case together to present to the court the next day.
- Thump (that was a gavel sounding). Court is back in session the next morning.
- Pudd'nhead announces that he has new testimony which he will soon present. But first he launches into his theory that the motivation for the murder was robbery, not revenge.
- Then Pudd'nhead tells the court that, not to worry, he'll provide the evidence for his theory.
- Before he can do that, though, he needs to give everyone a little lesson in fingerprints (probably a good idea considering this audience isn't exactly full of CSI viewers).
- Fingerprinting 101: Pudd'nhead explains a few basic concepts like the fact that 1) every person has a unique set of fingerprints that don't change throughout their lives, and 2) no two sets of prints are the same. (Believe it or not, sophisticated modern readers, there was a time when this wasn't common knowledge.)
- Then Pudd'nhead shows the court the fingerprint on the knife and says that he's going to produce the man whose fingerprint matches that one "before the clock strikes noon!" Ooooohhh—drama!
- Everyone freaks out so much that the sheriff calls Order In The Court! This is way more exciting than Judge Judy.
- Audience participation time. Pudd'nhead asks some of the people in court to put their fingerprints on a window in the courtroom as he turns his back. Then, using his fingerprint collection to guide him, he correctly identifies which person made each of the fingerprint marks on the window.
- Thunderous applause ensues!
- Now pay close attention, everyone. The fingerprint on the knife does not match either of the twins' fingerprints, Pudd'nhead explains. He declares them innocent.
- But wait, it gets better. Pudd'nhead announces that he'll now show who the guilty party is (huh, Tom seems to be sweating pretty profusely for some reason).
- Not only does our Pudd'nhead ultimately show that Tom's fingerprint matches the one on the knife, making him the murderer, he reveals the secret that Tom and Chambers were switched when they were kids.
- So Tom is actually "a negro and a slave," Puddnhead triumphantly declares to the court.
- Thump (no, not the gavel; that's the sound of Tom fainting).
- Cuckoo: the clock strikes twelve, just as Pudd'nhead promised. Tom is handcuffed and taken out of court.