in consideration of the crumbs

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frindle2

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Hello. Would you please tell me what the underlined part means?
They are from <Hop Frog> by Edgar Allan Poe. I'm confused. Thank you.

The jesters should be able to tell jokes even when they saw the crumbs that fell from the royal table.
or
The jesters should be able to tell jokes in return for the crumbs that fell from the royal table.
or
The jesters should be able to tell jokes at any moment even to get the crumbs that fell from the royal table.

-------------------
At the date of my narrative, professing jesters had not altogether gone out of fashion at court.
Several of the great continental 'powers' still retain their 'fools,' who wore motley, with caps and bells,
and who were expected to be always ready with sharp witticisms, at a moment's notice,
in consideration of the crumbs that fell from the royal table.
 
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The jesters are always expected to be silly and humorous at a moment's notice. 'At a moment's notice' means instantly when given a signal.

The jesters are expected to be silly in consideration of the crumbs that fell from the royal table. I think that this means that the jesters have to be silly and humorous because they care about the crumbs that fell from the royal table. The royal table is for royalties so the food on that table are first place. The jesters might feel hungry or long to be like royalties eating as much as they want. When they see crumbs fall, they see good food wasted as the crumbs touch the floor.

So the jesters actually have to be ready and prepared to be silly and humorous instantly when given a signal because they long to serve the royalties well and hope that they may be favored since jesters are used for entertainments in courts so they need a lot of energy to entertain the royalties and give downright silly remarks.

***Not a teacher***
 

teechar

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The jesters are always expected to be silly and humorous at a moment's notice. 'At a moment's notice' means instantly when given a signal.

The jesters are expected to be silly in consideration of the crumbs that fell from the royal table. I think that this means that the jesters have to be silly and humorous because they care about the crumbs that fell from the royal table. The royal table is for royalties so the food on that table are first place. The jesters might feel hungry or long to be like royalties eating as much as they want. When they see crumbs fall, they see good food wasted as the crumbs touch the floor.

So the jesters actually have to be ready and prepared to be silly and humorous instantly when given a signal because they long to serve the royalties well and hope that they may be favored since jesters are used for entertainments in courts so they need a lot of energy to entertain the royalties and give downright silly remarks.

***Not a teacher***

Do you mean "royalty" or "royalties"?

Also, what's the meaning of "... so the food on that table are first place"?
 
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