http://www.literature.

org/authors/carrolllewis/alices-adventures-in-wonderland/ Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

by Lewis Carroll

CHAP !" # DOWN THE RABBIT-HOLE ALICE was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her sister on the bank and of having nothing to do: once or twice she had peeped into the book her sister was reading, but it had no pictures or conversations in it, "and what is the use of a book," thought Alice, "without pictures or conversations? !o she was considering, in her own "ind #as well as she could, for the hot day "ade her feel very sleepy and stupid$, whether the pleasure of "aking a daisy%chain would be worth the trouble of getting up and picking the daisies, when suddenly a &hite 'abbit with pink eyes ran close by her(

)here was nothing so very re"arkable in that* nor did Alice think it so very "uch out of the way to hear the 'abbit say to itself "+h dear, +h dear, I shall be too late," #when she thought it over afterwards it occurred to her that she ought to have wondered at this, but at the ti"e it all see"ed -uite natural$* but, when the 'abbit actually took a watch out of its waistcoat% pocket, and looked at it, and then hurried on, Alice started to her feet, for it flashed across her "ind that she had never before seen a rabbit with either a waistcoat%pocket, or a watch to take out of it, and burning with curiosity, she ran across the field after it, and was .ust in ti"e to see it pop down a large rabbit%hole under the hedge( In another "o"ent down went Alice after it, never once considering how in the world she was to get out again( )he rabbit%hole went straight on like a tunnel for so"e way, and then dipped suddenly down, so suddenly that Alice had not a "o"ent to think about stopping herself before she found herself falling down what see"ed to be a very deep well( Either the well was very deep, or she fell very slowly, for she had plenty of ti"e as she went down to look about her, and to wonder what was going to happen ne/t( 0irst, she tried to look down and "ake out what she was co"ing to, but it was too dark to see anything: then she looked at the sides of the well, and noticed that they were filled with cupboards and book% shelves: here and there she saw "aps and pictures hung upon pegs( !he took down a.ar fro" one of the shelves as she passed: it was labeled "+'A12E 3A'3ALA4E" but to her great disappoint"ent it was e"pty: she did not like to drop the .ar, for fear of killing so"ebody underneath, so "anaged to put it into one of the cupboards as she fell past it( "&ell," thought Alice to herself "After such a fall as this, I shall think nothing of tu"bling down%stairs, 5ow brave they ll all think "e at ho"e, &hy, I wouldn t say anything about it, even if I fell off the top of the house," #which was very likely true($ 4own, down, down( &ould the fall never co"e to an end? "I wonder how "any "iles I ve fallen by this ti"e?" she said aloud( "I "ust be getting so"ewhere near the centre of the earth( Let "e see: that would be four thousand "iles down, I think%" #for, you see, Alice had learnt several things of this sort in her lessons in the school%roo", and though this was not a very good opportunity for showing off her knowledge, as there was no one to listen to her, still it was good practice to say it over$ "%% yes that s about the right distance %% but then I wonder what Latitude or Longitude I ve got to?" #Alice had not the slightest idea what Latitude was, or Longitude either, but she thought they were nice grand words to say($ 6resently she began again( "I wonder if I shall fall fight through the earth, 5ow funny it ll see" to co"e out a"ong the people that walk with their heads downwards, )he antipathies, I think%" #she was rather glad there was no one listening, this ti"e, as it didn t sound at all the right word$ "%but I shall have to ask the" what the na"e of the country is, you know( 6lease, 3a a", is this 1ew 7ealand? +r Australia?" #and she tried to curtsey as she spoke% fancy, curtseying as you re falling through the air, 4o you think you could "anage it?$ "And what an ignorant little girl she ll think "e for asking, 1o, it ll never do to ask: perhaps I shall see it written up so"ewhere(" 4own, down, down( )here was nothing else to do, so Alice soon began talking again( "4inah ll "iss "e very "uch to%night, I should think," #4inah was the cat($ "I hope they ll re"e"ber her saucer of "ilk at tea%ti"e( 4inah, "y dear, I wish you were down here with

"e, )here are no "ice in the air, I " afraid, but you "ight catch a bat, and that s very like a "ouse, you know( 8ut do cats eat bats, I wonder?" And here Alice began to get rather sleepy, and went on saying to herself, in a drea"y son of way, "4o cats eat bats? 4o cats eat bats?" and so"eti"es "4o bats eat cats?" for, you see, as she couldn t answer either -uestion, it didn t "uch "atter which way she put it( !he felt that she was do9ing off, and had .ust begun to drea" that she was walking hand in hand with 4inah, and was saying to her, very earnestly, "1ow, 4inah, tell "e the truth: did you ever eat a bat?" when suddenly, thu"p, thu"p, down she ca"e upon a heap of sticks and dry leaves, and the fall was over( Alice was not a bit hurt, and she .u"ped up on to her feet in a "o"ent: she looked up, but it was all dark overhead: before her was another long passage, and the &hite 'abbit was still in sight, hurrying down it( )here was not a "o"ent to be lost: away went Alice like the wind, and was .ust in ti"e to hear it say, as it turned a co"er, "+h "y ears and whiskers, how late it s getting," !he was close behind it when she turned the co"er, but the 'abbit was no longer to be seen: she found herself in a long, low hall, which was lit up by a row of la"ps hanging fro" the roof( )here were doors all round the hall, but they were all locked* and when Alice had been all the way down one side and up the other, trying every door, she walked sadly down the "iddle, wondering how she was ever to get out again( !uddenly she ca"e upon a little three%legged table, all "ade of solid glass: there was nothing on it but a tiny golden key, and Alice s first idea was that this "ight belong to one of the doors of the hall* but, alas, either the locks were too large, or the key was too s"all, but at any rate it would not open any of the"( 5owever, on the second ti"e round, she ca"e upon a low curtain she had not noticed before, and behind it was a little door about fifteen inches high: she tried the little golden key in the lock, and to her great delight it fitted, Alice opened the door and found that it led into a s"all passage, not "uch larger than a rat%hole: she knelt down and looked along the passage into the loveliest garden you ever saw( 5ow she longed to get out of that dark hall, and wander about a"ong those beds of bright flowers and those cool fountains, but she could not even get her head through the doorway* "and even if "y head would go through," thought poor Alice, "it would be of very little use without "y shoulders( +h, how I wish I could shut up like a telescope, I think I could, if I only knew how to begin(" 0or, you see, so "any out%of%the% way things had happened lately, that Alice had begun to think that very few things indeed were really i"possible(

)here see"ed to be no use in waiting by the little door, so she went back to the table, half hoping she "ight find another key on it, or at any rate a book of rules for shutting people up like telescopes: this ti"e she found a little bottle on it, #"which certainly was not here before," said Alice$, and tied round the neck of the bottle was a paper label, with the words "4'I1: 3E" beautifully printed on it in large letters(It was all very well to say "4rink "e," but the wise little Alice was not going to do that in a hurry( "1o, I ll look first," she said, "and see whether it s "arked poison or not"* for she had read several nice little stories about children who had got burnt, and eaten up by wild beasts, and other unpleasant things, all because they would not re"e"ber the si"ple rules their friends had taught the": such as, that a red%hot poker will burn you if you hold it too long* and that, if you cut your finger very deeply with a knife, it usually bleeds* and she had never forgotten that, if you drink "uch fro" a bottle "arked "poison," it is al"ost certain to disagree with you, sooner or later(5owever, this bottle was not "arked "poison," so Alice ventured to taste it, and, finding it very nice #it had, in fact, a sort of "i/ed flavour of cherry%tart, custard, pine%apple, roast turkey, toffy, and hot buttered toast$, she very soon finished it off( "&hat a curious feeling," said Alice( "I "ust be shutting up like a telescope," And so it was indeed: she was now only ten inches high, and her face brightened up at the thought that she was now the right si9e for going through the little door into that lovely garden( 0irst, however, she waited for a few "inutes to see if she was going to shrink any further: she felt a little nervous about this* "for it "ight end, you know," said Alice to herself* "in "y going out altogether, like a candle( I wonder what I should be like then?" And she tried to fancy what the fla"e of a candle looks like after the candle is blown out, for she could not re"e"ber ever having seen such a thing( After a while, finding that nothing "ore happened, she decided on going into the garden at once* but, alas for poor Alice, when she got to the door, she found she had forgotten the little golden key, and when she went back to the table for it, she found she could not possibly reach it: she could see it -uite plainly through the glass, and she tried her best to cli"b up one of the legs of the table, but it was too slippery* and when she had tired herself out with trying, the poor little thing sat down and cried( "Co"e, there s no use in crying like that," said Alice to herself rather sharply( "I advise you to leave off this "inute," !he generally gave herself very good advice #though she very seldo" followed it$, and so"eti"es she scolded herself so severely as to bring tears into her eyes* and once she re"e"bered trying to bo/ her own ears for having cheated herself in a ga"e of cro-uet she was playing against herself, for this curious child was very fond of pretending to be two people( "8ut it s no use now," thought poor Alice, "to pretend to be two people, &hy, there s hardly enough of "e left to "ake one respectable person," !oon her eye fell on a little glass bo/ that was lying under the table: she opened it, and found in it a very s"all cake, on which the words "EA) 3E" were beautifully "arked in currants(

"&ell, I ll eat it," said Alice, "and if it "akes "e grow larger, I can reach the key* and if it "akes "e grow s"aller, I can creep under the door: so either way I ll get into the garden, and I don t care which happens," !he ate a little bit, and said an/iously to herself "&hich way? &hich way?", holding her hand on the top of her head to feel which way it was growing* and she was -uite surprised to find that she re"ained the sa"e si9e( )o be sure, this is what generally happens when one eats cake* but Alice had got so "uch into the way of e/pecting nothing but out%of%the%way things to happen, that it see"ed -uite dull and stupid for life to go on in the co""on way( !o she set to work, and very soon finished off the cake(

CHAPTER II THE POOL OF TEARS

;Curiouser and curiouser, cried Alice #she was so "uch surprised, that for the "o"ent she -uite forgot how to speak good English$* ;now I " opening out like the largest telescope that ever was, 2ood%bye, feet, #for when she looked down at her feet, they see"ed to be al"ost out of sight, they were getting so far off$( ;+h, "y poor little feet, I wonder who will put on your shoes and stockings for you now, dears? I " sure I shan t be able, I shall be a great deal too far off to trouble "yself about you: you "ust "anage the best way you can* % but I "ust be kind to the", thought Alice, ;or perhaps they won t walk the way I want to go, Let "e see: I ll give the" a new pair of boots every Christ"as( And she went on planning to herself how she would "anage it( ;)hey "ust go by the carrier, she thought*; and how funny it ll see", sending presents to one s own feet, And how odd the directions will look, Alice's Right Foot, Esq. Hearthrug, Near the Fender, (with Alice's love). +h dear, what nonsense I " talking, <ust then her head struck against the roof of the hall: in fact she was now "ore than nine feet high, and she at once took up the little golden key and hurried off to the garden door( 6oor Alice, It was as "uch as she could do, lying down on one side, to look through into the garden with one eye* but to get through was "ore hopeless than ever: she sat down and began to cry again(;=ou ought to be asha"ed of yourself, said Alice, ;a great girl like you, #she "ight well say this$, ;to go on crying in this way, !top this "o"ent, I tell you, 8ut she went on all the sa"e, shedding gallons of tears, until there was a large pool all round her, about four inches deep and reaching half down the hall( After a ti"e she heard a little pattering of feet in the distance, and she hastily dried her eyes to see what was co"ing( It was the &hite 'abbit returning, splendidly dressed, with a pair of white kid gloves in one hand and a large fan in the other: he ca"e trotting along in a great hurry, "uttering to hi"self as he ca"e, ;+h, the 4uchess, the 4uchess, +h, won t she be savage if I ve kept her waiting, Alice felt so desperate that she was ready to ask help of any one* so, when the 'abbit ca"e near her, she began, in a low, ti"id voice, ;If you please, sir%% )he 'abbit started violently, dropped the white kid gloves and the fan, and skurried away into the darkness as hard as he could go( Alice took up the fan and gloves, and, as the hall was very hot, she kept fanning herself all the ti"e she went on talking: ;4ear, dear, 5ow -ueer everything is to%day, And yesterday things went on .ust as usual( I wonder if I ve been changed in the night? Let "e think: was I the sa"e when I got up this "orning? I al"ost think I can re"e"ber feeling a little different( 8ut if I " not the sa"e, the ne/t -uestion is, &ho in the world a" I? Ah, THAT'S the great pu99le, And she began thinking over all the children she knew that were of the sa"e age as herself, to see if she could have been changed for any of the"( ;I " sure I " not Ada, she said, ;for her hair goes in such long ringlets, and "ine doesn t go in ringlets at all* and I " sure I can t be 3abel, for I know all sorts of things, and she, oh, she knows such a very little, 8esides, SHE'S she, and I " I, and%%oh dear, how pu99ling it all is,

I ll try if I know all the things I used to know( Let "e see: four ti"es five is twelve, and four ti"es si/ is thirteen, and four ti"es seven is%%oh dear, I shall never get to twenty at that rate, 5owever, the 3ultiplication )able doesn t signify: let s try 2eography( London is the capital of 6aris, and 6aris is the capital of 'o"e, and 'o"e%%no, THAT'S all wrong, I " certain, I "ust have been changed for 3abel, I ll try and say "How doth the little%% " and she crossed her hands on her lap as if she were saying lessons, and began to repeat it, but her voice sounded hoarse and strange, and the words did not co"e the sa"e as they used to do:%% `How doth the little crocodile Improve his shining tail, And pour the waters of the Nile On every golden scale! `How cheerfully he seems to grin, How neatly spread his claws, And welcome little fishes in With gently smiling jaws!' ;I " sure those are not the right words, said poor Alice, and her eyes filled with tears again as she went on, ;I "ust be 3abel after all, and I shall have to go and live in that poky little house, and have ne/t to no toys to play with, and oh, ever so "any lessons to learn, 1o, I ve "ade up "y "ind about it* if I " 3abel, I ll stay down here, It ll be no use their putting their heads down and saying "Co"e up again, dear," I shall only look up and say "&ho a" I then? )ell "e that first, and then, if I like being that person, I ll co"e up: if not, I ll stay down here till I " so"ebody else"%%but, oh dear, cried Alice, with a sudden burst of tears, ;I do wish they !"#$ put their heads down, I a" so %ER& tired of being all alone here, As she said this she looked down at her hands, and was surprised to see that she had put on one of the 'abbit s little white kid gloves while she was talking( ;5ow 'AN I have done that? she thought( ;I "ust be growing s"all again( !he got up and went to the table to "easure herself by it, and found that, as nearly as she could guess, she was now about two feet high, and was going on shrinking rapidly: she soon found out that the cause of this was the fan she was holding, and she dropped it hastily, .ust in ti"e to avoid shrinking away altogether( ;)hat AS a narrow escape, said Alice, a good deal frightened at the sudden change, but very glad to find herself still in e/istence* ;and now for the garden, and she ran with all speed back to the little door: but, alas, the little door was shut again, and the little golden key was lying on the glass table as before, ;and things are worse than ever, thought the poor child, ;for I never was so s"all as this before, never, And I declare it s too bad, that it is, As she said these words her foot slipped, and in another "o"ent, splash, she was up to her chin in salt water( 5e first idea was that she had so"ehow fallen into the sea, ;and in that case I can go back by railway, she said to herself( #Alice had been to the seaside once in her life, and had co"e to the general conclusion, that wherever you go to on the English coast you find a nu"ber of bathing "achines in the sea, so"e children digging in the sand with wooden

spades, then a row of lodging houses, and behind the" a railway station($ 5owever, she soon "ade out that she was in the pool of tears which she had wept when she was nine feet high( ;I wish I hadn t cried so "uch, said Alice, as she swa" about, trying to find her way out( ;I shall be punished for it now, I suppose, by being drowned in "y own tears, )hat will be a -ueer thing, to be sure, 5owever, everything is -ueer to%day( <ust then she heard so"ething splashing about in the pool a little way off, and she swa" nearer to "ake out what it was: at first she thought it "ust be a walrus or hippopota"us, but then she re"e"bered how s"all she was now, and she soon "ade out that it was only a "ouse that had slipped in like herself( ;&ould it be of any use, now, thought Alice, ;to speak to this "ouse? Everything is so out%of% the%way down here, that I should think very likely it can talk: at any rate, there s no har" in trying( !o she began: ;+ 3ouse, do you know the way out of this pool? I a" very tired of swi""ing about here, + 3ouse, #Alice thought this "ust be the right way of speaking to a "ouse: she had never done such a thing before, but she re"e"bered having seen in her brother s Latin 2ra""ar, ;A "ouse%%of a "ouse%%to a "ouse%%a "ouse%%+ "ouse, )he 3ouse looked at her rather in-uisitively, and see"ed to her to wink with one of its little eyes, but it said nothing( ;6erhaps it doesn t understand English, thought Alice* ;I daresay it s a 0rench "ouse, co"e over with &illia" the Con-ueror( #0or, with all her knowledge of history, Alice had no very clear notion how long ago anything had happened($ !o she began again: ;+u est "a chatte? which was the first sentence in her 0rench lesson%book( )he 3ouse gave a sudden leap out of the water, and see"ed to -uiver all over with fright( ;+h, I beg your pardon, cried Alice hastily, afraid that she had hurt the poor ani"al s feelings( ;I -uite forgot you didn t like cats( ;1ot like cats, cried the 3ouse, in a shrill, passionate voice( ;&ould (ou like cats if you were "e? ;&ell, perhaps not, said Alice in a soothing tone: ;don t be angry about it( And yet I wish I could show you our cat 4inah: I think you d take a fancy to cats if you could only see her( !he is such a dear -uiet thing, Alice went on, half to herself, as she swa" la9ily about in the pool, ;and she sits purring so nicely by the fire, licking her paws and washing her face%%and she is such a nice soft thing to nurse%%and she s such a capital one for catching "ice%%oh, I beg your pardon, cried Alice again, for this ti"e the 3ouse was bristling all over, and she felt certain it "ust be really offended( ;&e won t talk about her any "ore if you d rather not(

;&e indeed, cried the 3ouse, who was tre"bling down to the end of his tail( ;As if I would talk on such a sub.ect, +ur fa"ily always hated cats: nasty, low, vulgar things, 4on t let "e hear the na"e again, ;I won t indeed, said Alice, in a great hurry to change the sub.ect of conversation( ;Are you%% are you fond%%of%%of dogs? )he 3ouse did not answer, so Alice went on eagerly: ;)here is such a nice little dog near our house I should like to show you, A little bright%eyed terrier, you know, with oh, such long curly brown hair, And it ll fetch things when you throw the", and it ll sit up and beg for its dinner, and all sorts of thins%%I can t re"e"ber half of the"%%and it belongs to a far"er, you know, and he says it s so useful, it s worth a hundred pounds, 5e says it kills all the rats and%%oh dear, cried Alice in a sorrowful tone, ;I " afraid I ve offended it again, 0or the 3ouse was swi""ing away fro" her as hard as it could go, and "aking -uite a co""otion in the pool as it went( !o she called softly after it, ;3ouse dear, 4o co"e back again, and we won t talk about cats or dogs either, if you don t like the", &hen the 3ouse heard this, it turned round and swa" slowly back to her: its face was -uite pale #with passion, Alice thought$, and it said in a low tre"bling voice, ;Let us get to the shore, and then I ll tell you "y history, and you ll understand why it is I hate cats and dogs( It was high ti"e to go, for the pool was getting -uite crowded with the birds and ani"als that had fallen into it: there were a 4uck and a 4odo, a Lory and an Eaglet, and several other curious creatures( Alice led the way, and the whole party swa" to the shore(

CHAPTER III A CAUCUS-RACE AND A LONG TALE )hey were indeed a -ueer%looking party that asse"bled on the bank%%the birds with draggled feathers, the ani"als with their fur clinging close to the", and all dripping wet, cross, and unco"fortable( )he first -uestion of course was, how to get dry again: they had a consultation about this, and after a few "inutes it see"ed -uite natural to Alice to find herself talking fa"iliarly with the", as if she had known the" all her life( Indeed, she had -uite a long argu"ent with the

Lory, who at last turned sulky, and would only say, ;I a" older than you, and "ust know better * and this Alice would not allow without knowing how old it was, and, as the Lory positively refused to tell its age, there was no "ore to be said( At last the 3ouse, who see"ed to be a person of authority a"ong the", called out, ;!it down, all of you, and listen to "e, )'ll soon "ake you dry enough, )hey all sat down at once, in a large ring, with the 3ouse in the "iddle( Alice kept her eyes an/iously fi/ed on it, for she felt sure she would catch a bad cold if she did not get dry very soon( ;Ahe", said the 3ouse with an i"portant air, ;are you all ready? )his is the driest thing I know( !ilence all round, if you please, "&illia" the Con-ueror, whose cause was favoured by the pope, was soon sub"itted to by the English, who wanted leaders, and had been of late "uch accusto"ed to usurpation and con-uest( Edwin and 3orcar, the earls of 3ercia and 1orthu"bria% %" ;>gh, said the Lory, with a shiver( ;I beg your pardon, said the 3ouse, frowning, but very politely: ;4id you speak? ;1ot I, said the Lory hastily( ;I thought you did, said the 3ouse( ;%%I proceed( "Edwin and 3orcar, the earls of 3ercia and 1orthu"bria, declared for hi": and even !tigand, the patriotic archbishop of Canterbury, found it advisable%%" ;0ound what* said the 4uck( ;0ound it, the 3ouse replied rather crossly: ;of course you know what +it+ "eans( ;I know what +it+ "eans well enough, when I find a thing, said the 4uck: ;it s generally a frog or a wor"( )he -uestion is, what did the archbishop find? )he 3ouse did not notice this -uestion, but hurriedly went on, ;"%%found it advisable to go with Edgar Atheling to "eet &illia" and offer hi" the crown( &illia" s conduct at first was "oderate( 8ut the insolence of his 1or"ans%%" 5ow are you getting on now, "y dear? it continued, turning to Alice as it spoke( ;As wet as ever, said Alice in a "elancholy tone: ;it doesn t see" to dry "e at all( ;In that case, said the 4odo sole"nly, rising to its feet, ;I "ove that the "eeting ad.ourn, for the i""ediate adoption of "ore energetic re"edies%% ;!peak English, said the Eaglet( ;I don t know the "eaning of half those long words, and, what s "ore, I don t believe you do either, And the Eaglet bent down its head to hide a s"ile: so"e of the other birds tittered audibly( ;&hat I was going to say, said the 4odo in an offended tone, ;was, that the best thing to get us dry would be a Caucus%race(

;&hat is a Caucus%race? said Alice* not that she wanted "uch to know, but the 4odo had paused as if it thought that so,e-od( ought to speak, and no one else see"ed inclined to say anything( ;&hy, said the 4odo, ;the best way to e/plain it is to do it( #And, as you "ight like to try the thing yourself, so"e winter day, I will tell you how the 4odo "anaged it($ 0irst it "arked out a race%course, in a sort of circle, #;the e/act shape doesn t "atter, it said,$ and then all the party were placed along the course, here and there( )here was no ;+ne, two, three, and away, but they began running when they liked, and left off when they liked, so that it was not easy to know when the race was over( 5owever, when they had been running half an hour or so, and were -uite dry again, the 4odo suddenly called out ;)he race is over, and they all crowded round it, panting, and asking, ;8ut who has won? )his -uestion the 4odo could not answer without a great deal of thought, and it sat for a long ti"e with one finger pressed upon its forehead #the position in which you usually see !hakespeare, in the pictures of hi"$, while the rest waited in silence( At last the 4odo said, ;ever(-od( has won, and all "ust have pri9es( ;8ut who is to give the pri9es? -uite a chorus of voices asked( ;&hy, she, of course, said the 4odo, pointing to Alice with one finger* and the whole party at once crowded round her, calling out in a confused way, ;6ri9es, 6ri9es, Alice had no idea what to do, and in despair she put her hand in her pocket, and pulled out a bo/ of co"fits, #luckily the salt water had not got into it$, and handed the" round as pri9es( )here was e/actly one a%piece all round( ;8ut she "ust have a pri9e herself, you know, said the 3ouse( ;+f course, the 4odo replied very gravely( ;&hat else have you got in your pocket? he went on, turning to Alice( ;+nly a thi"ble, said Alice sadly( ;5and it over here, said the 4odo( )hen they all crowded round her once "ore, while the 4odo sole"nly presented the thi"ble, saying ;&e beg your acceptance of this elegant thi"ble * and, when it had finished this short speech, they all cheered( Alice thought the whole thing very absurd, but they all looked so grave that she did not dare to laugh* and, as she could not think of anything to say, she si"ply bowed, and took the thi"ble, looking as sole"n as she could(

)he ne/t thing was to eat the co"fits: this caused so"e noise and confusion, as the large birds co"plained that they could not taste theirs, and the s"all ones choked and had to be patted on the back( 5owever, it was over at last, and they sat down again in a ring, and begged the 3ouse to tell the" so"ething "ore( ;=ou pro"ised to tell "e your history, you know, said Alice, ;and why it is you hate%%C and 4, she added in a whisper, half afraid that it would be offended again(

;3ine is a long and a sad tale, said the 3ouse, turning to Alice, and sighing( ;It is a long tail, certainly, said Alice, looking down with wonder at the 3ouse s tail ;but why do you call it sad? And she kept on pu99ling about it while the 3ouse was speaking, so that her idea of the tale was so"ething like this:%%
`Fury said to a mouse, That he met in the house, " et us !oth go to law" I will prosecute #O$% &&'ome, I(ll ta)e no denial* +e must have a trial" For really this morning I(ve nothing to do%" ,aid the mouse to the cur, ",uch a trial, dear ,ir, +ith no -ury or -udge, would !e wasting

our !reath%" "I(ll !e -udge, I(ll !e -ury," ,aid cunning old Fury" "I(ll try the whole cause, and condemn you to death%"

;=ou are not attending, said the 3ouse to Alice severely( ;&hat are you thinking of? ;I beg your pardon, said Alice very hu"bly: ;you had got to the fifth bend, I think? ;I had not, cried the 3ouse, sharply and very angrily( ;A knot, said Alice, always ready to "ake herself useful, and looking an/iously about her( ;+h, do let "e help to undo it, ;I shall do nothing of the sort, said the 3ouse, getting up and walking away( ;=ou insult "e by talking such nonsense, ;I didn t "ean it, pleaded poor Alice( ;8ut you re so easily offended, you know, )he 3ouse only growled in reply( ;6lease co"e back and finish your story, Alice called after it* and the others all .oined in chorus, ;=es, please do, but the 3ouse only shook its head i"patiently, and walked a little -uicker( ;&hat a pity it wouldn t stay, sighed the Lory, as soon as it was -uite out of sight* and an old Crab took the opportunity of saying to her daughter ;Ah, "y dear, Let this be a lesson to you never to lose (our te"per, ;5old your tongue, 3a, said the young Crab, a little snappishly( ;=ou re enough to try the patience of an oyster, ;I wish I had our 4inah here, I know I do, said Alice aloud, addressing nobody in particular( ;!he d soon fetch it back, ;And who is 4inah, if I "ight venture to ask the -uestion? said the Lory( Alice replied eagerly, for she was always ready to talk about her pet: ;4inah s our cat( And she s such a capital one for catching "ice you can t think, And oh, I wish you could see her after the birds, &hy, she ll eat a little bird as soon as look at it,

)his speech caused a re"arkable sensation a"ong the party( !o"e of the birds hurried off at once: one the old 3agpie began wrapping itself up very carefully, re"arking, ;I really "ust be getting ho"e* the night%air doesn t suit "y throat, and a Canary called out in a tre"bling voice to its children, ;Co"e away, "y dears, It s high ti"e you were all in bed, +n various prete/ts they all "oved off, and Alice was soon left alone( ;I wish I hadn t "entioned 4inah, she said to herself in a "elancholy tone( ;1obody see"s to like her, down here, and I " sure she s the best cat in the world, +h, "y dear 4inah, I wonder if I shall ever see you any "ore, And here poor Alice began to cry again, for she felt very lonely and low%spirited( In a little while, however, she again heard a little pattering of footsteps in the distance, and she looked up eagerly, half hoping that the 3ouse had changed his "ind, and was co"ing back to finish his story(

CHAPTER IV THE RABBIT SENDS IN A LITTLE BILL It was the &hite 'abbit, trotting slowly back again, and looking an/iously about as it went, as if it had lost so"ething* and she heard it "uttering to itself ;)he 4uchess, )he 4uchess, +h "y dear paws, +h "y fur and whiskers, !he ll get "e e/ecuted, as sure as ferrets are ferrets, &here can I have dropped the", I wonder? Alice guessed in a "o"ent that it was looking for the fan and the pair of white kid gloves, and she very good%naturedly began hunting about for the", but they were nowhere to be seen%%everything see"ed to have changed since her swi" in the pool, and the great hall, with the glass table and the little door, had vanished co"pletely( ?ery soon the 'abbit noticed Alice, as she went hunting about, and called out to her in an angry tone, ;&hy, 3ary Ann, what are you doing out here? 'un ho"e this "o"ent, and fetch "e a pair of gloves and a fan, @uick, now, And Alice was so "uch frightened that she ran off at once in the direction it pointed to, without trying to e/plain the "istake it had "ade( ;5e took "e for his house"aid, she said to herself as she ran( ;5ow surprised he ll be when he finds out who I a", 8ut I d better take hi" his fan and gloves%%that is, if I can find the"( As she said this, she ca"e upon a neat little house, on the door of which was a bright brass plate with the na"e $&( 'A88I) engraved upon it( !he went in without knocking, and hurried upstairs, in great fear lest she should "eet the real 3ary Ann, and be turned out of the house before she had found the fan and gloves( ;5ow -ueer it see"s, Alice said to herself, ;to be going "essages for a rabbit, I suppose 4inah ll be sending "e on "essages ne/t, And she began fancying the sort of thing that would happen: ;"3iss Alice, Co"e here directly, and get ready for your walk," "Co"ing in a "inute, nurse, 8ut I ve got to see that the "ouse doesn t get out(" +nly I don t think, Alice went on, ;that they d let 4inah stop in the house if it began ordering people about like that,

8y this ti"e she had found her way into a tidy little roo" with a table in the window, and on it #as she had hoped$ a fan and two or three pairs of tiny white kid gloves: she took up the fan and a pair of the gloves, and was .ust going to leave the roo", when her eye fell upon a little bottle that stood near the looking% glass( )here was no label this ti"e with the words $4'I1: 3E% but nevertheless she uncorked it and put it to her lips( ;I know so,ething interesting is sure to happen, she said to herself, ;whenever I eat or drink anything* so I ll .ust see what this bottle does( I do hope it ll "ake "e grow large again, for really I " -uite tired of being such a tiny little thing, It did so indeed, and "uch sooner than she had e/pected: before she had drunk half the bottle, she found her head pressing against the ceiling, and had to stoop to save her neck fro" being broken( !he hastily put down the bottle, saying to herself ;)hat s -uite enough%%I hope I shan t grow any "ore%%As it is, I can t get out at the door%%I do wish I hadn t drunk -uite so "uch, Alas, it was too late to wish that, !he went on growing, and growing, and very soon had to kneel down on the floor: in another "inute there was not even roo" for this, and she tried the effect of lying down with one elbow against the door, and the other ar" curled round her head( !till she went on growing, and, as a last resource, she put one ar" out of the window, and one foot up the chi"ney, and said to herself ;1ow I can do no "ore, whatever happens( &hat will eco"e of "e? Luckily for Alice, the little "agic bottle had now had its full effect, and she grew no larger: still it was very unco"fortable, and, as there see"ed to be no sort of chance of her ever getting out of the roo" again, no wonder she felt unhappy( ;It was "uch pleasanter at ho"e, thought poor Alice, ;when one wasn t always growing larger and s"aller, and being ordered about by "ice and rabbits( I al"ost wish I hadn t gone down that rabbit%hole%%and yet%%and yet%%it s rather curious, you know, this sort of life, I do wonder what 'AN have happened to "e, &hen I used to read fairy%tales, I fancied that kind of thing never happened, and now here I a" in the "iddle of one, )here ought to be a book written about "e, that there ought, And when I grow up, I ll write one%%but I " grown up now, she added in a sorrowful tone* ;at least there s no roo" to grow up any "ore here( ;8ut then, thought Alice, ;shall I never get any older than I a" now? )hat ll be a co"fort, one way%%never to be an old wo"an% %but then%%always to have lessons to learn, +h, I shouldn t like that, ;+h, you foolish Alice, she answered herself( ;5ow can you learn lessons in here? &hy, there s hardly roo" for (ou, and no roo" at all for any lesson%books,

And so she went on, taking first one side and then the other, and "aking -uite a conversation of it altogether* but after a few "inutes she heard a voice outside, and stopped to listen( ;3ary Ann, 3ary Ann, said the voice( ;0etch "e "y gloves this "o"ent, )hen ca"e a little pattering of feet on the stairs( Alice knew it was the 'abbit co"ing to look for her, and she tre"bled till she shook the house, -uite forgetting that she was now about a thousand ti"es as large as the 'abbit, and had no reason to be afraid of it( 6resently the 'abbit ca"e up to the door, and tried to open it* but, as the door opened inwards, and Alice s elbow was pressed hard against it, that atte"pt proved a failure( Alice heard it say to itself ;)hen I ll go round and get in at the window( ;That you won t thought Alice, and, after waiting till she fancied she heard the 'abbit .ust under the window, she suddenly spread out her hand, and "ade a snatch in the air( !he did not get hold of anything, but she heard a little shriek and a fall, and a crash of broken glass, fro" which she concluded that it was .ust possible it had fallen into a cucu"ber%fra"e, or so"ething of the sort( 1e/t ca"e an angry voice%%the 'abbit s%%;6at, 6at, &here are you? And then a voice she had never heard before, ;!ure then I " here, 4igging for apples, yer honour, ;4igging for apples, indeed, said the 'abbit angrily( ;5ere, Co"e and help "e out of this, #!ounds of "ore broken glass($ ;1ow tell "e, 6at, what s that in the window? ;!ure, it s an ar", yer honour, #5e pronounced it $arru"( $ ;An ar", you goose, &ho ever saw one that si9e? &hy, it fills the whole window, ;!ure, it does, yer honour: but it s an ar" for all that( ;&ell, it s got no business there, at any rate: go and take it away, )here was a long silence after this, and Alice could only hear whispers now and then* such as, ;!ure, I don t like it, yer honour, at all, at all, ;4o as I tell you, you coward, and at last she spread out her hand again, and "ade another snatch in the air( )his ti"e there were two little shrieks, and "ore sounds of broken glass( ;&hat a nu"ber of cucu"ber%fra"es there "ust be, thought Alice( ;I wonder what they ll do ne/t, As for pulling "e out of the window, I only wish they could, I " sure I don t want to stay in here any longer,

!he waited for so"e ti"e without hearing anything "ore: at last ca"e a ru"bling of little cartwheels, and the sound of a good "any voice all talking together: she "ade out the words: ;&here s the other ladder?%%&hy, I hadn t to bring but one* 8ill s got the other%% 8ill, fetch it here, lad,%%5ere, put e" up at this corner%%1o, tie e" together first%%they don t reach half high enough yet%%+h, they ll do well enough* don t be particular% %5ere, 8ill, catch hold of this rope%%&ill the roof bear?%%3ind that loose slate%%+h, it s co"ing down, 5eads below, #a loud crash$%%;1ow, who did that?%%It was 8ill, I fancy%%&ho s to go down the chi"ney?%%1ay, I shan t, &ou do it,%%)hat I won t, then,%%8ill s to go down%%5ere, 8ill, the "aster says you re to go down the chi"ney, ;+h, !o 8ill s got to co"e down the chi"ney, has he? said Alice to herself( ;!hy, they see" to put everything upon 8ill, I wouldn t be in 8ill s place for a good deal: this fireplace is narrow, to be sure* but I thin. I can kick a little, !he drew her foot as far down the chi"ney as she could, and waited till she heard a little ani"al #she couldn t guess of what sort it was$ scratching and scra"bling about in the chi"ney close above her: then, saying to herself ;)his is 8ill, she gave one sharp kick, and waited to see what would happen ne/t( )he first thing she heard was a general chorus of ;)here goes 8ill, then the 'abbit s voice along%%;Catch hi", you by the hedge, then silence, and then another confusion of voices%%;5old up his head%%8randy now%%4on t choke hi"%%5ow was it, old fellow? &hat happened to you? )ell us all about it, Last ca"e a little feeble, s-ueaking voice, #;)hat s 8ill, thought Alice,$ ;&ell, I hardly know%%1o "ore, thank ye* I " better now%%but I " a deal too flustered to tell you%%all I know is, so"ething co"es at "e like a <ack%in%the%bo/, and up I goes like a sky%rocket, ;!o you did, old fellow, said the others( ;&e "ust burn the house down, said the 'abbit s voice* and Alice called out as loud as she could, ;If you do( I ll set 4inah at you, )here was a dead silence instantly, and Alice thought to herself, ;I wonder what they will do ne/t, If they had any sense, they d take the roof off( After a "inute or two, they began "oving about again, and Alice heard the 'abbit say, ;A barrowful will do, to begin with( ;A barrowful of what? thought Alice* but she had not long to doubt, for the ne/t "o"ent a shower of little pebbles ca"e rattling in at the window, and so"e of the" hit her in the face( ;I ll put a stop to this, she said to herself, and shouted out, ;=ou d better not do that again, which produced another dead silence( Alice noticed with so"e surprise that the pebbles were all turning into little cakes as they lay on the floor, and a bright idea ca"e into her head( ;If I eat one of these cakes, she thought,

;it s sure to "ake so,e change in "y si9e* and as it can t possibly "ake "e larger, it "ust "ake "e s"aller, I suppose( !o she swallowed one of the cakes, and was delighted to find that she began shrinking directly( As soon as she was s"all enough to get through the door, she ran out of the house, and found -uite a crowd of little ani"als and birds waiting outside( )he poor little Li9ard, 8ill, was in the "iddle, being held up by two guinea%pigs, who were giving it so"ething out of a bottle( )hey all "ade a rush at Alice the "o"ent she appeared* but she ran off as hard as she could, and soon found herself safe in a thick wood( ;)he first thing I ve got to do, said Alice to herself, as she wandered about in the wood, ;is to grow to "y right si9e again* and the second thing is to find "y way into that lovely garden( I think that will be the best plan( It sounded an e/cellent plan, no doubt, and very neatly and si"ply arranged* the only difficulty was, that she had not the s"allest idea how to set about it* and while she was peering about an/iously a"ong the trees, a little sharp bark .ust over her head "ade her look up in a great hurry( An enor"ous puppy was looking down at her with large round eyes, and feebly stretching out one paw, trying to touch her( ;6oor little thing, said Alice, in a coa/ing tone, and she tried hard to whistle to it* but she was terribly frightened all the ti"e at the thought that it "ight be hungry, in which case it would be very likely to eat her up in spite of all her coa/ing( 5ardly knowing what she did, she picked up a little bit of stick, and held it out to the puppy* whereupon the puppy .u"ped into the air off all its feet at once, with a yelp of delight, and rushed at the stick, and "ade believe to worry it* then Alice dodged behind a great thistle, to keep herself fro" being run over* and the "o"ent she appeared on the other side, the puppy "ade another rush at the stick, and tu"bled head over heels in its hurry to get hold of it* then Alice, thinking it was very like having a ga"e of play with a cart%horse, and e/pecting every "o"ent to be tra"pled under its feet, ran round the thistle again* then the puppy began a series of short charges at the stick, running a very little way forwards each ti"e and a long way back, and barking hoarsely all the while, till at last it sat down a good way off, panting, with its tongue hanging out of its "outh, and its great eyes half shut( )his see"ed to Alice a good opportunity for "aking her escape* so she set off at once, and ran till she was -uite tired and out of breath, and till the puppy s bark sounded -uite faint in the distance(

;And yet what a dear little puppy it was, said Alice, as she leant against a buttercup to rest herself, and fanned herself with one of the leaves: ;I should have liked teaching it tricks very "uch, if%%if I d only been the right si9e to do it, +h dear, I d nearly forgotten that I ve got to grow up again, Let "e see%%how is it to be "anaged? I suppose I ought to eat or drink so"ething or other* but the great -uestion is, what? )he great -uestion certainly was, what? Alice looked all round her at the flowers and the blades of grass, but she did not see anything that looked like the right thing to eat or drink under the circu"stances( )here was a large "ushroo" growing near her, about the sa"e height as herself* and when she had looked under it, and on both sides of it, and behind it, it occurred to her that she "ight as well look and see what was on the top of it( !he stretched herself up on tiptoe, and peeped over the edge of the "ushroo", and her eyes i""ediately "et those of a large caterpillar, that was sitting on the top with its ar"s folded, -uietly s"oking a long hookah, and taking not the s"allest notice of her or of anything else( CHAPTER V ADVICE FROM A CATERPILLAR

)he Caterpillar and Alice looked at each other for so"e ti"e in silence: at last the Caterpillar took the hookah out of its "outh, and addressed her in a languid, sleepy voice( ;&ho are (ou? said the Caterpillar( )his was not an encouraging opening for a conversation( Alice replied, rather shyly, ;I%%I hardly know, sir, .ust at present%% at least I know who I &A! when I got up this "orning, but I think I "ust have been changed several ti"es since then( ;&hat do you "ean by that? said the Caterpillar sternly( ;E/plain yourself, ;I can t e/plain ,(sel/, I " afraid, sir said Alice, ;because I " not "yself, you see( ;I don t see, said the Caterpillar( ;I " afraid I can t put it "ore clearly, Alice replied very politely, ;for I can t understand it "yself to begin with* and being so "any different si9es in a day is very confusing( ;It isn t, said the Caterpillar(

;&ell, perhaps you haven t found it so yet, said Alice* ;but when you have to turn into a chrysalis%%you will so"e day, you know%%and then after that into a butterfly, I should think you ll feel it a little -ueer, won t you? ;1ot a bit, said the Caterpillar( ;&ell, perhaps your feelings "ay be different, said Alice* ;all I know is, it would feel very -ueer to ,e( ;=ou, said the Caterpillar conte"ptuously( ;&ho are (ou? &hich brought the" back again to the beginning of the conversation( Alice felt a little irritated at the Caterpillar s "aking such ver( short re"arks, and she drew herself up and said, very gravely, ;I think, you out to tell "e who (ou are, first( ;&hy? said the Caterpillar( 5ere was another pu99ling -uestion* and as Alice could not think of any good reason, and as the Caterpillar see"ed to be in a ver( unpleasant state of "ind, she turned away( ;Co"e back, the Caterpillar called after her( ;I ve so"ething i"portant to say, )his sounded pro"ising, certainly: Alice turned and ca"e back again( ;:eep your te"per, said the Caterpillar( ;Is that all? said Alice, swallowing down her anger as well as she could( ;1o, said the Caterpillar( Alice thought she "ight as well wait, as she had nothing else to do, and perhaps after all it "ight tell her so"ething worth hearing( 0or so"e "inutes it puffed away without speaking, but at last it unfolded its ar"s, took the hookah out of its "outh again, and said, ;!o you think you re changed, do you? ;I " afraid I a", sir, said Alice* ;I can t re"e"ber things as I used%%and I don t keep the sa"e si9e for ten "inutes together, ;Can t re"e"ber what things? said the Caterpillar( ;&ell, I ve tried to say "How doth the little -us( -ee," but it all ca"e different, Alice replied in a very "elancholy voice( ;'epeat, "&ou are old, Father illia,," said the Caterpillar(

Alice folded her hands, and began:%%

`You are old, Father William,' the young man said, `And your hair has become ery white! And yet you incessantly stand on your head"" #o you thin$, at your age, it is right%' `&n my youth,' Father William replied to his son, `& feared it might injure the brain! 'ut, now that &'m perfectly sure & ha e none, Why, & do it again and again(' `You are old,' said the youth, `as & mentioned before, And ha e grown most uncommonly fat! Yet you turned a bac$"somersault in at the door"" )ray, what is the reason of that%'

`&n my youth,' said the sage, as he shoo$ his grey loc$s, `& $ept all my limbs ery supple 'y the use of this ointment""one shilling the bo*"" Allow me to sell you a couple%' `You are old,' said the youth, `and your jaws are too wea$ For anything tougher than suet! Yet you finished the goose, with the bones and the bea$"" )ray how did you manage to do it%' `&n my youth,' said his father, `& too$ to the law, And argued each case with my wife! And the muscular strength, which it ga e to my jaw, Has lasted the rest of my life('

`You are old,' said the youth, `one would +hat your eye was as steady as Yet you balanced an eel on the end of What made you so awfully cle

hardly suppose e er! your nose"" er%'

`& ha e answered three ,uestions, and that is enough,' -aid his father! `don't gi e yourself airs! #o you thin$ & can listen all day to such stuff% 'e off, or &'ll $ic$ you down stairs!'

;)hat is not said right, said the Caterpillar( ;1ot quite right, I " afraid, said Alice, ti"idly* so"e of the words have got altered( ;It is wrong fro" beginning to end, said the Caterpillar decidedly, and there was silence for so"e "inutes( )he Caterpillar was the first to speak( ;&hat si9e do you want to be? it asked( ;+h, I " not particular as to si9e, Alice hastily replied* ;only one doesn t like changing so often, you know( ;I don't know, said the Caterpillar( Alice said nothing: she had never been so "uch contradicted in her life before, and she felt that she was losing her te"per( ;Are you content now? said the Caterpillar( ;&ell, I should like to be a little larger, sir, if you wouldn t "ind, said Alice: ;three inches is such a wretched height to be( ;It is a very good height indeed, said the Caterpillar angrily, rearing itself upright as it spoke #it was e/actly three inches high$(

;8ut I " not used to it, pleaded poor Alice in a piteous tone( And she thought of herself, ;I wish the creatures wouldn t be so easily offended, ;=ou ll get used to it in ti"e, said the Caterpillar* and it put the hookah into its "outh and began s"oking again( )his ti"e Alice waited patiently until it chose to speak again( In a "inute or two the Caterpillar took the hookah out of its "outh and yawned once or twice, and shook itself( )hen it got down off the "ushroo", and crawled away in the grass, "erely re"arking as it went, ;+ne side will "ake you grow taller, and the other side will "ake you grow shorter( ;+ne side of what? )he other side of what? thought Alice to herself( ;+f the "ushroo", said the Caterpillar, .ust as if she had asked it aloud* and in another "o"ent it was out of sight( Alice re"ained looking thoughtfully at the "ushroo" for a "inute, trying to "ake out which were the two sides of it* and as it was perfectly round, she found this a very difficult -uestion( 5owever, at last she stretched her ar"s round it as far as they would go, and broke off a bit of the edge with each hand( ;And now which is which? she said to herself, and nibbled a little of the right%hand bit to try the effect: the ne/t "o"ent she felt a violent blow underneath her chin: it had struck her foot, !he was a good deal frightened by this very sudden change, but she felt that there was no ti"e to be lost, as she was shrinking rapidly* so she set to work at once to eat so"e of the other bit( 5er chin was pressed so closely against her foot, that there was hardly roo" to open her "outh* but she did it at last, and "anaged to swallow a "orsel of the lefthand bit(

. . .

. . .

. . .

. . .

. . .

. . .

;Co"e, "y head s free at last, said Alice in a tone of delight, which changed into alar" in another "o"ent, when she found that her shoulders were nowhere to be found: all she could see, when she looked down, was an i""ense length of neck, which see"ed to rise like a stalk out of a sea of green leaves that lay far below her( ;&hat can all that green stuff be? said Alice( ;And where have "y shoulders got to? And oh, "y poor hands, how is it I can t see you? !he was "oving the" about as she spoke, but no result see"ed to follow, e/cept a little shaking a"ong the distant green leaves( As there see"ed to be no chance of getting her hands up to her head, she tried to get her head down to the", and was delighted to find that her neck would bend about easily in any direction, like a serpent( !he had .ust succeeded in curving it down into a graceful 9ig9ag, and was going to dive in a"ong the leaves, which she found to be nothing but the tops of the trees

under which she had been wandering, when a sharp hiss "ade her draw back in a hurry: a large pigeon had flown into her face, and was beating her violently with its wings( ;!erpent, screa"ed the 6igeon( ;I " not a serpent, said Alice indignantly( ;Let "e alone, ;!erpent, I say again, repeated the 6igeon, but in a "ore subdued tone, and added with a kind of sob, ;I ve tried every way, and nothing see"s to suit the", ;I haven t the least idea what you re talking about, said Alice( ;I ve tried the roots of trees, and I ve tried banks, and I ve tried hedges, the 6igeon went on, without attending to her* ;but those serpents, )here s no pleasing the", Alice was "ore and "ore pu99led, but she thought there was no use in saying anything "ore till the 6igeon had finished( ;As if it wasn t trouble enough hatching the eggs, said the 6igeon* ;but I "ust be on the look% out for serpents night and day, &hy, I haven t had a wink of sleep these three weeks, ;I " very sorry you ve been annoyed, said Alice, who was beginning to see its "eaning( ;And .ust as I d taken the highest tree in the wood, continued the 6igeon, raising its voice to a shriek, ;and .ust as I was thinking I should be free of the" at last, they "ust needs co"e wriggling down fro" the sky, >gh, !erpent, ;8ut I " not a serpent, I tell you, said Alice( ;I " a%%I " a%% ;&ell, hat are you? said the 6igeon( ;I can see you re trying to invent so"ething,

;I%%I " a little girl, said Alice, rather doubtfully, as she re"e"bered the nu"ber of changes she had gone through that day( ;A likely story indeed, said the 6igeon in a tone of the deepest conte"pt( ;I ve seen a good "any little girls in "y ti"e, but never one with such a neck as that, 1o, no, =ou re a serpent* and there s no use denying it( I suppose you ll be telling "e ne/t that you never tasted an egg, ;I have tasted eggs, certainly, said Alice, who was a very truthful child* ;but little girls eat eggs -uite as "uch as serpents do, you know( ;I don t believe it, said the 6igeon* ;but if they do, why then they re a kind of serpent, that s all I can say( )his was such a new idea to Alice, that she was -uite silent for a "inute or two, which gave the 6igeon the opportunity of adding, ;=ou re looking for eggs, I know )5A) well enough* and what does it "atter to "e whether you re a little girl or a serpent? ;It "atters a good deal to ,e, said Alice hastily* ;but I " not looking for eggs, as it happens* and if I was, I shouldn t want (ours: I don t like the" raw(

;&ell, be off, then, said the 6igeon in a sulky tone, as it settled down again into its nest( Alice crouched down a"ong the trees as well as she could, for her neck kept getting entangled a"ong the branches, and every now and then she had to stop and untwist it( After a while she re"e"bered that she still held the pieces of "ushroo" in her hands, and she set to work very carefully, nibbling first at one and then at the other, and growing so"eti"es taller and so"eti"es shorter, until she had succeeded in bringing herself down to her usual height( It was so long since she had been anything near the right si9e, that it felt -uite strange at first* but she got used to it in a few "inutes, and began talking to herself, as usual( ;Co"e, there s half "y plan done now, 5ow pu99ling all these changes are, I " never sure what I " going to be, fro" one "inute to another, 5owever, I ve got back to "y right si9e: the ne/t thing is, to get into that beautiful garden%%how is that to be done, I wonder? As she said this, she ca"e suddenly upon an open place, with a little house in it about four feet high( ;&hoever lives there, thought Alice, ;it ll never do to co"e upon the" this si9e: why, I should frighten the" out of their wits, !o she began nibbling at the righthand bit again, and did not venture to go near the house till she had brought herself down to nine inches high(

CHAPTER VI PIG AND PEPPER 0or a "inute or two she stood looking at the house, and wondering what to do ne/t, when suddenly a foot"an in livery ca"e running out of the wood%%#she considered hi" to be a foot"an because he was in livery: otherwise, .udging by his face only, she would have called hi" a fish$%%and rapped loudly at the door with his knuckles( It was opened by another foot"an in livery, with a round face, and large eyes like a frog* and both foot"en, Alice noticed, had powdered hair that curled all over their heads( !he felt very curious to know what it was all about, and crept a little way out of the wood to listen( )he 0ish%0oot"an began by producing fro" under his ar" a great letter, nearly as large as hi"self, and this he handed over to the other, saying, in a sole"n tone, ;0or the 4uchess( An invitation fro" the @ueen to play cro-uet( )he 0rog%0oot"an repeated, in the sa"e sole"n tone, only changing the order of the words a little, ;0ro" the @ueen( An invitation for the 4uchess to play cro-uet( )hen they both bowed low, and their curls got entangled together(

Alice laughed so "uch at this, that she had to run back into the wood for fear of their hearing her* and when she ne/t peeped out the 0ish%0oot"an was gone, and the other was sitting on the ground near the door, staring stupidly up into the sky( Alice went ti"idly up to the door, and knocked( ;)here s no sort of use in knocking, said the 0oot"an, ;and that for two reasons( 0irst, because I " on the sa"e side of the door as you are* secondly, because they re "aking such a noise inside, no one could possibly hear you( And certainly there was a "ost e/traordinary noise going on within%%a constant howling and snee9ing, and every now and then a great crash, as if a dish or kettle had been broken to pieces( ;6lease, then, said Alice, ;how a" I to get in? ;)here "ight be so"e sense in your knocking, the 0oot"an went on without attending to her, ;if we had the door between us( 0or instance, if you were inside, you "ight knock, and I could let you out, you know( 5e was looking up into the sky all the ti"e he was speaking, and this Alice thought decidedly uncivil( ;8ut perhaps he can t help it, she said to herself* ;his eyes are so ver(nearly at the top of his head( 8ut at any rate he "ight answer -uestions(%%5ow a" I to get in? she repeated, aloud( ;I shall sit here, the 0oot"an re"arked, ;till to"orrow%% At this "o"ent the door of the house opened, and a large plate ca"e ski""ing out, straight at the 0oot"an s head: it .ust gra9ed his nose, and broke to pieces against one of the trees behind hi"( ;%%or ne/t day, "aybe, the 0oot"an continued in the sa"e tone, e/actly as if nothing had happened( ;5ow a" I to get in? asked Alice again, in a louder tone( ;Are you to get in at all? said the 0oot"an( ;)hat s the first -uestion, you know( It was, no doubt: only Alice did not like to be told so( ;It s really dreadful, she "uttered to herself, ;the way all the creatures argue( It s enough to drive one cra9y, )he 0oot"an see"ed to think this a good opportunity for repeating his re"ark, with variations( ;I shall sit here, he said, ;on and off, for days and days( ;8ut what a" I to do? said Alice( ;Anything you like said the 0oot"an, and began whistling( ;+h, there s no use in talking to hi", said Alice desperately: ;he s perfectly idiotic, And she opened the door and went in(

)he door led right into a large kitchen, which was full of s"oke fro" one end to the other: the 4uchess was sitting on a three% legged stool in the "iddle, nursing a baby* the cook was leaning over the fire, stirring a large cauldron which see"ed to be full of soup( ;)here s certainly too "uch pepper in that soup, Alice said to herself, as well as she could for snee9ing( )here was certainly too "uch of it in the air( Even the 4uchess snee9ed occasionally* and as for the baby, it was snee9ing and howling alternately without a "o"ent s pause( )he only things in the kitchen that did not snee9e, were the cook, and a large cat which was sitting on the hearth and grinning fro" ear to ear( ;6lease would you tell "e, said Alice, a little ti"idly, for she was not -uite sure whether it was good "anners for her to speak first, ;why your cat grins like that? ;It s a Cheshire cat, said the 4uchess, ;and that s why( 6ig, !he said the last word with such sudden violence that Alice -uite .u"ped* but she saw in another "o"ent that it was addressed to the baby, and not to her, so she took courage, and went on again:%% I didn t know that Cheshire cats always grinned* in fact, I didn t know that cats could grin( ;)hey all can, said the 4uchess* ;and "ost of e" do( ;I don t know of any that do, Alice said very politely, feeling -uite pleased to have got into a conversation( ;=ou don t know "uch, said the 4uchess* ;and that s a fact( Alice did not at all like the tone of this re"ark, and thought it would be as well to introduce so"e other sub.ect of conversation( &hile she was trying to fi/ on one, the cook took the cauldron of soup off the fire, and at once set to work throwing everything within her reach at the 4uchess and the baby% %the fire%irons ca"e first* then followed a shower of saucepans, plates, and dishes( )he 4uchess took no notice of the" even when they hit her* and the baby was howling so "uch already, that it was -uite i"possible to say whether the blows hurt it or not(

;+h, 0lease "ind what you re doing, cried Alice, .u"ping up and down in an agony of terror( ;+h, there goes his 0recious nose * as an unusually large saucepan flew close by it, and very nearly carried it off( ;If everybody "inded their own business, the 4uchess said in a hoarse growl, ;the world would go round a deal faster than it does( ;&hich would not be an advantage, said Alice, who felt very glad to get an opportunity of showing off a little of her knowledge( ;<ust think of what work it would "ake with the day and night, =ou see the earth takes twenty%four hours to turn round on its a/is%% ;)alking of a/es, said the 4uchess, ;chop off her head, Alice glanced rather an/iously at the cook, to see if she "eant to take the hint* but the cook was busily stirring the soup, and see"ed not to be listening, so she went on again: ;)wenty% four hours, ) thin.* or is it twelve? I%% ;+h, don t bother ,e, said the 4uchess* ;I never could abide figures, And with that she began nursing her child again, singing a sort of lullaby to it as she did so, and giving it a violent shake at the end of every line:
`-pea$ roughly to your little boy, And beat him when he snee.es/ He only does it to annoy, 'ecause he $nows it teases(' '/O0$,% 1In which the coo) and the !a!y -oined2"&& `Wow! wow! wow!'

&hile the 4uchess sang the second verse of the song, she kept tossing the baby violently up and down, and the poor little thing howled so, that Alice could hardly hear the words:%%
`& spea$ se erely to my boy, & beat him when he snee.es! For he can thoroughly enjoy +he pepper when he pleases!' '/O0$,% `Wow! wow! wow!'

;5ere, you "ay nurse it a bit, if you like, the 4uchess said to Alice, flinging the baby at her as she spoke( ;I "ust go and get ready to play cro-uet with the @ueen, and she hurried out of the roo"( )he cook threw a frying%pan after her as she went out, but it .ust "issed her(

Alice caught the baby with so"e difficulty, as it was a -ueer% shaped little creature, and held out its ar"s and legs in all directions, ;.ust like a star%fish, thought Alice( )he poor little thing was snorting like a stea"%engine when she caught it, and kept doubling itself up and straightening itself out again, so that altogether, for the first "inute or two, it was as "uch as she could do to hold it( As soon as she had "ade out the proper way of nursing it, #which was to twist it up into a sort of knot, and then keep tight hold of its right ear and left foot, so as to prevent its undoing itself,$ she carried it out into the open air( ;If I don t take this child away with "e, thought Alice, ;they re sure to kill it in a day or two: wouldn t it be "urder to leave it behind? !he said the last words out loud, and the little thing grunted in reply #it had left off snee9ing by this ti"e$( ;4on t grunt, said Alice* ;that s not at all a proper way of e/pressing yourself( )he baby grunted again, and Alice looked very an/iously into its face to see what was the "atter with it( )here could be no doubt that it had a ver( turn%up nose, "uch "ore like a snout than a real nose* also its eyes were getting e/tre"ely s"all for a baby: altogether Alice did not like the look of the thing at all( ;8ut perhaps it was only sobbing, she thought, and looked into its eyes again, to see if there were any tears( 1o, there were no tears( ;If you re going to turn into a pig, "y dear, said Alice, seriously, ;I ll have nothing "ore to do with you( 3ind now, )he poor little thing sobbed again #or grunted, it was i"possible to say which$, and they went on for so"e while in silence( Alice was .ust beginning to think to herself, ;1ow, what a" I to do with this creature when I get it ho"e? when it grunted again, so violently, that she looked down into its face in so"e alar"( )his ti"e there could be no "istake about it: it was neither "ore nor less than a pig, and she felt that it would be -uite absurd for her to carry it further(

!o she set the little creature down, and felt -uite relieved to see it trot away -uietly into the wood( ;If it had grown up, she said to herself, ;it would have "ade a dreadfully ugly child: but it "akes rather a handso"e pig, I think( And she began thinking over other children she knew, who "ight do very well as pigs, and was .ust saying to herself, ;if one only knew the right way to change the"%% when she was a little startled by seeing the Cheshire Cat sitting on a bough of a tree a few yards off( )he Cat only grinned when it saw Alice( It looked good% natured, she thought: still it had ver(long claws and a great "any teeth, so she felt that it ought to be treated with respect( ;Cheshire 6uss, she began, rather ti"idly, as she did not at all know whether it would like the na"e: however, it only grinned a little wider( ;Co"e, it s pleased so far, thought Alice, and she went on( ;&ould you tell "e, please, which way I ought to go fro" here? ;)hat depends a good deal on where you want to get to, said the Cat( ;I don t "uch care where%% said Alice( ;)hen it doesn t "atter which way you go, said the Cat( ;%%so long as I get so,ewhere, Alice added as an e/planation( ;+h, you re sure to do that, said the Cat, ;if you only walk long enough( Alice felt that this could not be denied, so she tried another -uestion( ;&hat sort of people live about here? ;In that direction, the Cat said, waving its right paw round, ;lives a 5atter: and in that direction, waving the other paw, ;lives a 3arch 5are( ?isit either you like: they re both "ad( ;8ut I don t want to go a"ong "ad people, Alice re"arked( ;+h, you can t help that, said the Cat: ;we re all "ad here( I " "ad( =ou re "ad( ;5ow do you know I " "ad? said Alice( ;=ou "ust be, said the Cat, ;or you wouldn t have co"e here( Alice didn t think that proved it at all* however, she went on ;And how do you know that you re "ad?

;)o begin with, said the Cat, ;a dog s not "ad( =ou grant that? ;I suppose so, said Alice( ;&ell, then, the Cat went on, ;you see, a dog growls when it s angry, and wags its tail when it s pleased( 1ow I growl when I " pleased, and wag "y tail when I " angry( )herefore I " "ad( ;I call it purring, not growling, said Alice( ;Call it what you like, said the Cat( ;4o you play cro-uet with the @ueen to%day? ;I should like it very "uch, said Alice, ;but I haven t been invited yet( ;=ou ll see "e there, said the Cat, and vanished( Alice was not "uch surprised at this, she was getting so used to -ueer things happening( &hile she was looking at the place where it had been, it suddenly appeared again( ;8y%the%bye, what beca"e of the baby? said the Cat( ;I d nearly forgotten to ask( ;It turned into a pig, Alice -uietly said, .ust as if it had co"e back in a natural way( ;I thought it would, said the Cat, and vanished again( Alice waited a little, half e/pecting to see it again, but it did not appear, and after a "inute or two she walked on in the direction in which the 3arch 5are was said to live( ;I ve seen hatters before, she said to herself* ;the 3arch 5are will be "uch the "ost interesting, and perhaps as this is 3ay it won t be raving "ad%%at least not so "ad as it was in 3arch( As she said this, she looked up, and there was the Cat again, sitting on a branch of a tree( ;4id you say pig, or fig? said the Cat( ;I said pig, replied Alice* ;and I wish you wouldn t keep appearing and vanishing so suddenly: you "ake on -uite giddy( ;All right, said the Cat* and this ti"e it vanished -uite slowly, beginning with the end of the tail, and ending with the grin, which re"ained so"e ti"e after the rest of it had gone(

;&ell, I ve often seen a cat without a grin, thought Alice* ;but a grin without a cat, It s the "ost curious thing I ever say in "y life, !he had not gone "uch farther before she ca"e in sight of the house of the 3arch 5are: she thought it "ust be the right house, because the chi"neys were shaped like ears and the roof was thatched with fur( It was so large a house, that she did not like to go nearer till she had nibbled so"e "ore of the lefthand bit of "ushroo", and raised herself to about two feet high: even then she walked up towards it rather ti"idly, saying to herself ;!uppose it should be raving "ad after all, I al"ost wish I d gone to see the 5atter instead,

CHAPTER VII A MAD TEA-PARTY )here was a table set out under a tree in front of the house, and the 3arch 5are and the 5atter were having tea at it: a 4or"ouse was sitting between the", fast asleep, and the other two were using it as a cushion, resting their elbows on it, and the talking over its head( ;?ery unco"fortable for the 4or"ouse, thought Alice* ;only, as it s asleep, I suppose it doesn t "ind( )he table was a large one, but the three were all crowded together at one corner of it: ;1o roo", 1o roo", they cried out when they saw Alice co"ing( ;)here s 0lent( of roo", said Alice indignantly, and she sat down in a large ar"%chair at one end of the table( ;5ave so"e wine, the 3arch 5are said in an encouraging tone( Alice looked all round the table, but there was nothing on it but tea( ;I don t see any wine, she re"arked( ;)here isn t any, said the 3arch 5are( ;)hen it wasn t very civil of you to offer it, said Alice angrily( ;It wasn t very civil of you to sit down without being invited, said the 3arch 5are( ;I didn t know it was (our table, said Alice* ;it s laid for a great "any "ore than three( ;=our hair wants cutting, said the 5atter( 5e had been looking at Alice for so"e ti"e with great curiosity, and this was his first speech( ;=ou should learn not to "ake personal re"arks, Alice said with so"e severity* ;it s very rude( )he 5atter opened his eyes very wide on hearing this* but all he said was, ;&hy is a raven like a writing%desk?

;Co"e, we shall have so"e fun now, thought Alice( ;I " glad they ve begun asking riddles(%%I believe I can guess that, she added aloud( ;4o you "ean that you think you can find out the answer to it? said the 3arch 5are( ;E/actly so, said Alice( ;)hen you should say what you "ean, the 3arch 5are went on( ;I do, Alice hastily replied* ;at least%%at least I "ean what I say%%that s the sa"e thing, you know( ;1ot the sa"e thing a bit, said the 5atter( ;=ou "ight .ust as well say that "I see what I eat" is the sa"e thing as "I eat what I see", ;=ou "ight .ust as well say, added the 3arch 5are, ;that "I like what I get" is the sa"e thing as "I get what I like", ;=ou "ight .ust as well say, added the 4or"ouse, who see"ed to be talking in his sleep, ;that "I breathe when I sleep" is the sa"e thing as "I sleep when I breathe", ;It is the sa"e thing with you, said the 5atter, and here the conversation dropped, and the party sat silent for a "inute, while Alice thought over all she could re"e"ber about ravens and writing%desks, which wasn t "uch( )he 5atter was the first to break the silence( ;&hat day of the "onth is it? he said, turning to Alice: he had taken his watch out of his pocket, and was looking at it uneasily, shaking it every now and then, and holding it to his ear( Alice considered a little, and then said ;)he fourth( ;)wo days wrong, sighed the 5atter( ;I told you butter wouldn t suit the works, he added looking angrily at the 3arch 5are( ;It was the -est butter, the 3arch 5are "eekly replied( ;=es, but so"e cru"bs "ust have got in as well, the 5atter gru"bled: ;you shouldn t have put it in with the bread%knife( )he 3arch 5are took the watch and looked at it gloo"ily: then he dipped it into his cup of tea, and looked at it again: but he could think of nothing better to say than his first re"ark, ;It was the -est butter, you know(

Alice had been looking over his shoulder with so"e curiosity( ;&hat a funny watch, she re"arked( ;It tells the day of the "onth, and doesn t tell what o clock it is, ;&hy should it? "uttered the 5atter( ;4oes (our watch tell you what year it is? ;+f course not, Alice replied very readily: ;but that s because it stays the sa"e year for such a long ti"e together( ;&hich is .ust the case with ,ine, said the 5atter( Alice felt dreadfully pu99led( )he 5atter s re"ark see"ed to have no sort of "eaning in it, and yet it was certainly English( ;I don t -uite understand you, she said, as politely as she could( ;)he 4or"ouse is asleep again, said the 5atter, and he poured a little hot tea upon its nose( )he 4or"ouse shook its head i"patiently, and said, without opening its eyes, ;+f course, of course* .ust what I was going to re"ark "yself( ;5ave you guessed the riddle yet? the 5atter said, turning to Alice again( ;1o, I give it up, Alice replied: ;that s the answer? ;I haven t the slightest idea, said the 5atter( ;1or I, said the 3arch 5are( Alice sighed wearily( ;I think you "ight do so"ething better with the ti"e, she said, ;than waste it in asking riddles that have no answers( ;If you knew )i"e as well as I do, said the 5atter, ;you wouldn t talk about wasting it( It s hi,( ;I don t know what you "ean, said Alice( ;+f course you don t, the 5atter said, tossing his head conte"ptuously( ;I dare say you never even spoke to )i"e, ;6erhaps not, Alice cautiously replied: ;but I know I have to beat ti"e when I learn "usic( ;Ah, that accounts for it, said the 5atter( ;5e won t stand beating( 1ow, if you only kept on good ter"s with hi", he d do al"ost anything you liked with the clock( 0or instance, suppose it were nine o clock in the "orning, .ust ti"e to begin lessons: you d only have to whisper a hint to )i"e, and round goes the clock in a twinkling, 5alf%past one, ti"e for dinner, #;I only wish it was, the 3arch 5are said to itself in a whisper($ ;)hat would be grand, certainly, said Alice thoughtfully: ;but then%%I shouldn t be hungry for it, you know(

;1ot at first, perhaps, said the 5atter: ;but you could keep it to half%past one as long as you liked( ;Is that the way (ou "anage? Alice asked( )he 5atter shook his head "ournfully( ;1ot I, he replied( ;&e -uarrelled last 3arch%%.ust before he went "ad, you know%% #pointing with his tea spoon at the 3arch 5are,$ ;%%it was at the great concert given by the @ueen of 5earts, and I had to sing
"Twin)le, twin)le, little !at! /ow I wonder what you(re at!"

=ou know the song, perhaps? ;I ve heard so"ething like it, said Alice( ;It goes on, you know, the 5atter continued, ;in this way:%%
"$p a!ove the world you fly, i)e a tea&tray in the s)y% Twin)le, twin)le&&"(

5ere the 4or"ouse shook itself, and began singing in its sleep ;)winkle, twinkle, twinkle, twinkle%% and went on so long that they had to pinch it to "ake it stop( ;&ell, I d hardly finished the first verse, said the 5atter, ;when the @ueen .u"ped up and bawled out, "5e s "urdering the ti"e, +ff with his head," ;5ow dreadfully savage, e/clai"ed Alice( ;And ever since that, the 5atter went on in a "ournful tone, ;he won t do a thing I ask, It s always si/ o clock now( A bright idea ca"e into Alice s head( ;Is that the reason so "any tea%things are put out here? she asked( ;=es, that s it, said the 5atter with a sigh: ;it s always tea%ti"e, and we ve no ti"e to wash the things between whiles( ;)hen you keep "oving round, I suppose? said Alice( ;E/actly so, said the 5atter: ;as the things get used up( ;8ut what happens when you co"e to the beginning again? Alice ventured to ask( ;!uppose we change the sub.ect, the 3arch 5are interrupted, yawning( ;I " getting tired of this( I vote the young lady tells us a story(

;I " afraid I don t know one, said Alice, rather alar"ed at the proposal( ;)hen the 4or"ouse shall, they both cried( ;&ake up, 4or"ouse, And they pinched it on both sides at once( )he 4or"ouse slowly opened his eyes( ;I wasn t asleep, he said in a hoarse, feeble voice: ;I heard every word you fellows were saying( ;)ell us a story, said the 3arch 5are( ;=es, please do, pleaded Alice( ;And be -uick about it, added the 5atter, ;or you ll be asleep again before it s done( ;+nce upon a ti"e there were three little sisters, the 4or"ouse began in a great hurry* ;and their na"es were Elsie, Lacie, and )illie* and they lived at the botto" of a well%% ;&hat did they live on? said Alice, who always took a great interest in -uestions of eating and drinking( ;)hey lived on treacle, said the 4or"ouse, after thinking a "inute or two( ;)hey couldn t have done that, you know, Alice gently re"arked* ;they d have been ill( ;!o they were, said the 4or"ouse* ver( ill( Alice tried to fancy to herself what such an e/traordinary ways of living would be like, but it pu99led her too "uch, so she went on: ;8ut why did they live at the botto" of a well? ;)ake so"e "ore tea, the 3arch 5are said to Alice, very earnestly( ;I ve had nothing yet, Alice replied in an offended tone, ;so I can t take "ore( ;=ou "ean you can t take less, said the 5atter: ;it s very easy to take ,ore than nothing( ;1obody asked (our opinion, said Alice( ;&ho s "aking personal re"arks now? the 5atter asked triu"phantly( Alice did not -uite know what to say to this: so she helped herself to so"e tea and bread%and% butter, and then turned to the 4or"ouse, and repeated her -uestion( ;&hy did they live at the botto" of a well? )he 4or"ouse again took a "inute or two to think about it, and then said, ;It was a treacle% well( ;)here s no such thing, Alice was beginning very angrily, but the 5atter and the 3arch 5are went ;!h, sh, and the 4or"ouse sulkily re"arked, ;If you can t be civil, you d better finish the story for yourself(

;1o, please go on, Alice said very hu"bly* ;I won t interrupt again( I dare say there "ay be one( ;+ne, indeed, said the 4or"ouse indignantly( 5owever, he consented to go on( ;And so these three little sisters%%they were learning to draw, you know%% ;&hat did they draw? said Alice, -uite forgetting her pro"ise( ;)reacle, said the 4or"ouse, without considering at all this ti"e( ;I want a clean cup, interrupted the 5atter: ;let s all "ove one place on( 5e "oved on as he spoke, and the 4or"ouse followed hi": the 3arch 5are "oved into the 4or"ouse s place, and Alice rather unwillingly took the place of the 3arch 5are( )he 5atter was the only one who got any advantage fro" the change: and Alice was a good deal worse off than before, as the 3arch 5are had .ust upset the "ilk%.ug into his plate( Alice did not wish to offend the 4or"ouse again, so she began very cautiously: ;8ut I don t understand( &here did they draw the treacle fro"? ;=ou can draw water out of a water%well, said the 5atter* ;so I should think you could draw treacle out of a treacle%well%%eh, stupid? ;8ut they were in the well, Alice said to the 4or"ouse, not choosing to notice this last re"ark( ;+f course they were , said the 4or"ouse* ;%%well in( )his answer so confused poor Alice, that she let the 4or"ouse go on for so"e ti"e without interrupting it( ;)hey were learning to draw, the 4or"ouse went on, yawning and rubbing its eyes, for it was getting very sleepy* ;and they drew all "anner of things%%everything that begins with an 3%% ;&hy with an 3? said Alice( ;&hy not? said the 3arch 5are( Alice was silent( )he 4or"ouse had closed its eyes by this ti"e, and was going off into a do9e* but, on being pinched by the 5atter, it woke up again with a little shriek, and went on: ;%%that begins with an 3, such as "ouse%traps, and the "oon, and "e"ory, and "uchness%% you know you say things are ""uch of a "uchness"%%did you ever see such a thing as a drawing of a "uchness? ;'eally, now you ask "e, said Alice, very "uch confused, ;I don t think%% ;)hen you shouldn t talk, said the 5atter(

)his piece of rudeness was "ore than Alice could bear: she got up in great disgust, and walked off* the 4or"ouse fell asleep instantly, and neither of the others took the least notice of her going, though she looked back once or twice, half hoping that they would call after her: the last ti"e she saw the", they were trying to put the 4or"ouse into the teapot( ;At any rate I ll never go there again, said Alice as she picked her way through the wood( ;It s the stupidest tea%party I ever was at in all "y life, <ust as she said this, she noticed that one of the trees had a door leading right into it( ;)hat s very curious, she thought( ;8ut everything s curious today( I think I "ay as well go in at once( And in she went( +nce "ore she found herself in the long hall, and close to the little glass table( ;1ow, I ll "anage better this ti"e, she said to herself, and began by taking the little golden key, and unlocking the door that led into the garden( )hen she wet to work nibbling at the "ushroo" #she had kept a piece of it in her pocked$ till she was about a foot high: then she walked down the little passage: and then%%she found herself at last in the beautiful garden, a"ong the bright flower%beds and the cool fountains(

CHAPTER VIII THE QUEEN'S CROQUET-GROUND A large rose%tree stood near the entrance of the garden: the roses growing on it were white, but there were three gardeners at it, busily painting the" red( Alice thought this a very curious thing, and she went nearer to watch the", and .ust as she ca"e up to the" she heard one of the" say, ;Look out now, 0ive, 4on t go splashing paint over "e like that, ;I couldn t help it, said 0ive, in a sulky tone* ;!even .ogged "y elbow(

+n which !even looked up and said, ;)hat s right, 0ive, Always lay the bla"e on others, ;&ou'd better not talk, said 0ive( ;I heard the @ueen say only yesterday you deserved to be beheaded, ;&hat for? said the one who had spoken first( ;)hat s none of (our business, )wo, said !even( ;=es, it is his business, said 0ive, ;and I ll tell hi"%%it was for bringing the cook tulip%roots instead of onions( !even flung down his brush, and had .ust begun ;&ell, of all the un.ust things%% when his eye chanced to fall upon Alice, as she stood watching the", and he checked hi"self suddenly: the others looked round also, and all of the" bowed low( ;&ould you tell "e, said Alice, a little ti"idly, ;why you are painting those roses? 0ive and !even said nothing, but looked at )wo( )wo began in a low voice, ;&hy the fact is, you see, 3iss, this here ought to have been a red rose%tree, and we put a white one in by "istake* and if the @ueen was to find it out, we should all have our heads cut off, you know( !o you see, 3iss, we re doing our best, afore she co"es, to%% At this "o"ent 0ive, who had been an/iously looking across the garden, called out ;)he @ueen, )he @ueen, and the three gardeners instantly threw the"selves flat upon their faces( )here was a sound of "any footsteps, and Alice looked round, eager to see the @ueen( 0irst ca"e ten soldiers carrying clubs* these were all shaped like the three gardeners, oblong and flat, with their hands and feet at the corners: ne/t the ten courtiers* these were orna"ented all over with dia"onds, and walked two and two, as the soldiers did( After these ca"e the royal children* there were ten of the", and the little dears ca"e .u"ping "errily along hand in hand, in couples: they were all orna"ented with hearts( 1e/t ca"e the guests, "ostly :ings and @ueens, and a"ong the" Alice recognised the &hite 'abbit: it was talking in a hurried nervous "anner, s"iling at everything that was said, and went by without noticing her( )hen followed the :nave of 5earts, carrying the :ing s crown on a cri"son velvet cushion* and, last of all this grand procession, ca"e )5E :I12 A14 @>EE1 +0 5EA')!( Alice was rather doubtful whether she ought not to lie down on her face like the three gardeners, but she could not re"e"ber every having heard of such a rule at processions* ;and besides, what would be the use of a procession, thought she, ;if people had all to lie down upon their faces, so that they couldn t see it? !o she stood still where she was, and waited(

&hen the procession ca"e opposite to Alice, they all stopped and looked at her, and the @ueen said severely ;&ho is this? !he said it to the :nave of 5earts, who only bowed and s"iled in reply( ;Idiot, said the @ueen, tossing her head i"patiently* and, turning to Alice, she went on, ;&hat s your na"e, child? ;3y na"e is Alice, so please your 3a.esty, said Alice very politely* but she added, to herself, ;&hy, they re only a pack of cards, after all( I needn t be afraid of the", ;And who are these? said the @ueen, pointing to the three gardeners who were lying round the rosetree* for, you see, as they were lying on their faces, and the pattern on their backs was the sa"e as the rest of the pack, she could not tell whether they were gardeners, or soldiers, or courtiers, or three of her own children( ;5ow should I know? said Alice, surprised at her own courage( ;It s no business of ,ine( )he @ueen turned cri"son with fury, and, after glaring at her for a "o"ent like a wild beast, screa"ed $+ff with her head, +ff%% ;1onsense, said Alice, very loudly and decidedly, and the @ueen was silent( )he :ing laid his hand upon her ar", and ti"idly said ;Consider, "y dear: she is only a child, )he @ueen turned angrily away fro" hi", and said to the :nave ;)urn the" over, )he :nave did so, very carefully, with one foot( ;2et up, said the @ueen, in a shrill, loud voice, and the three gardeners instantly .u"ped up, and began bowing to the :ing, the @ueen, the royal children, and everybody else( ;Leave off that, screa"ed the @ueen( ;=ou "ake "e giddy( And then, turning to the rose% tree, she went on, ;&hat have you been doing here? ;3ay it please your 3a.esty, said )wo, in a very hu"ble tone, going down on one knee as he spoke, ;we were trying%% ;I see, said the @ueen, who had "eanwhile been e/a"ining the roses( ;+ff with their heads, and the procession "oved on, three of the soldiers re"aining behind to e/ecute the unfortunate gardeners, who ran to Alice for protection(

;=ou shan t be beheaded, said Alice, and she put the" into a large flower%pot that stood near( )he three soldiers wandered about for a "inute or two, looking for the", and then -uietly "arched off after the others( ;Are their heads off? shouted the @ueen( ;)heir heads are gone, if it please your 3a.esty, the soldiers shouted in reply( ;)hat s right, shouted the @ueen( ;Can you play cro-uet? )he soldiers were silent, and looked at Alice, as the -uestion was evidently "eant for her( ;=es, shouted Alice( ;Co"e on, then, roared the @ueen, and Alice .oined the procession, wondering very "uch what would happen ne/t( ;It s%%it s a very fine day, said a ti"id voice at her side( !he was walking by the &hite 'abbit, who was peeping an/iously into her face( ;?ery, said Alice: ;%%where s the 4uchess? ;5ush, 5ush, said the 'abbit in a low, hurried tone( 5e looked an/iously over his shoulder as he spoke, and then raised hi"self upon tiptoe, put his "outh close to her ear, and whispered ;!he s under sentence of e/ecution( ;&hat for? said Alice( ;4id you say "&hat a pity,"? the 'abbit asked( ;1o, I didn t, said Alice: ;I don t think it s at all a pity( I said "&hat for?" ;!he bo/ed the @ueen s ears%% the 'abbit began( Alice gave a little screa" of laughter( ;+h, hush, the 'abbit whispered in a frightened tone( ;)he @ueen will hear you, =ou see, she ca"e rather late, and the @ueen said%% ;2et to your places, shouted the @ueen in a voice of thunder, and people began running about in all directions, tu"bling up against each other* however, they got settled down in a "inute or two, and the ga"e began( Alice thought she had never seen such a curious cro-uet%ground in her life* it was all ridges and furrows* the balls were live hedgehogs, the "allets live fla"ingoes, and the soldiers had to double the"selves up and to stand on their hands and feet, to "ake the arches( )he chief difficulty Alice found at first was in "anaging her fla"ingo: she succeeded in getting its body tucked away, co"fortably enough, under her ar", with its legs hanging down, but generally, .ust as she had got its neck nicely straightened out, and was going to give the hedgehog a blow with its head, it would twist itself round and look up in her face, with such a pu99led e/pression that she could not help bursting out laughing: and when she had got its head down, and was going to begin again, it was very provoking to find that the hedgehog had unrolled itself, and was in the act of crawling away: besides all this, there was generally a

ridge or furrow in the way wherever she wanted to send the hedgehog to, and, as the doubled% up soldiers were always getting up and walking off to other parts of the ground, Alice soon ca"e to the conclusion that it was a very difficult ga"e indeed( )he players all played at once without waiting for turns, -uarrelling all the while, and fighting for the hedgehogs* and in a very short ti"e the @ueen was in a furious passion, and went sta"ping about, and shouting ;+ff with his head, or ;+ff with her head, about once in a "inute( Alice began to feel very uneasy: to be sure, she had not as yet had any dispute with the @ueen, but she knew that it "ight happen any "inute, ;and then, thought she, ;what would beco"e of "e? )hey re dreadfully fond of beheading people here* the great wonder is, that there s any one left alive, !he was looking about for so"e way of escape, and wondering whether she could get away without being seen, when she noticed a curious appearance in the air: it pu99led her very "uch at first, but, after watching it a "inute or two, she "ade it out to be a grin, and she said to herself ;It s the Cheshire Cat: now I shall have so"ebody to talk to( ;5ow are you getting on? said the Cat, as soon as there was "outh enough for it to speak with( Alice waited till the eyes appeared, and then nodded( ;It s no use speaking to it, she thought, ;till its ears have co"e, or at least one of the"( In another "inute the whole head appeared, and then Alice put down her fla"ingo, and began an account of the ga"e, feeling very glad she had so"eone to listen to her( )he Cat see"ed to think that there was enough of it now in sight, and no "ore of it appeared( ;I don t think they play at all fairly, Alice began, in rather a co"plaining tone, and they all -uarrel so dreadfully one can t hear oneself speak%%and they don t see" to have any rules in particular* at least, if there are, nobody attends to the"%%and you ve no idea how confusing it is all the things being alive* for instance, there s the arch I ve got to go through ne/t walking about at the other end of the ground%%and I should have cro-ueted the @ueen s hedgehog .ust now, only it ran away when it saw "ine co"ing? ;5ow do you like the @ueen? said the Cat in a low voice( ;1ot at all, said Alice: ;she s so e/tre"ely%% <ust then she noticed that the @ueen was close behind her, listening: so she went on, ;%%likely to win, that it s hardly worth while finishing the ga"e( )he @ueen s"iled and passed on(

;&ho are you talking to? said the :ing, going up to Alice, and looking at the Cat s head with great curiosity( ;It s a friend of "ine%%a Cheshire Cat, said Alice: ;allow "e to introduce it( ;I don t like the look of it at all, said the :ing: ;however, it "ay kiss "y hand if it likes( ;I d rather not, the Cat re"arked( ;4on t be i"pertinent, said the :ing, ;and don t look at "e like that, 5e got behind Alice as he spoke( ;A cat "ay look at a king, said Alice( ;I ve read that in so"e book, but I don t re"e"ber where( ;&ell, it "ust be re"oved, said the :ing very decidedly, and he called the @ueen, who was passing at the "o"ent, ;3y dear, I wish you would have this cat re"oved, )he @ueen had only one way of settling all difficulties, great or s"all( ;+ff with his head, she said, without even looking round( ;I ll fetch the e/ecutioner "yself, said the :ing eagerly, and he hurried off( Alice thought she "ight as well go back, and see how the ga"e was going on, as she heard the @ueen s voice in the distance, screa"ing with passion( !he had already heard her sentence three of the players to be e/ecuted for having "issed their turns, and she did not like the look of things at all, as the ga"e was in such confusion that she never knew whether it was her turn or not( !o she went in search of her hedgehog( )he hedgehog was engaged in a fight with another hedgehog, which see"ed to Alice an e/cellent opportunity for cro-ueting one of the" with the other: the only difficulty was, that her fla"ingo was gone across to the other side of the garden, where Alice could see it trying in a helpless sort of way to fly up into a tree( 8y the ti"e she had caught the fla"ingo and brought it back, the fight was over, and both the hedgehogs were out of sight: ;but it doesn t "atter "uch, thought Alice, ;as all the arches are gone fro" the side of the ground( !o she tucked it away under her ar", that it "ight not escape again, and went back for a little "ore conversation with her friend( &hen she got back to the Cheshire Cat, she was surprised to find -uite a large crowd collected round it: there was a dispute going on between the e/ecutioner, the :ing, and the @ueen, who were all talking at once, while all the rest were -uite silent, and looked very unco"fortable(

)he "o"ent Alice appeared, she was appealed to by all three to settle the -uestion, and they repeated their argu"ents to her, though, as they all spoke at once, she found it very hard indeed to "ake out e/actly what they said( )he e/ecutioner s argu"ent was, that you couldn t cut off a head unless there was a body to cut it off fro": that he had never had to do such a thing before, and he wasn t going to begin at H)S ti"e of life( )he :ing s argu"ent was, that anything that had a head could be beheaded, and that you weren t to talk nonsense( )he @ueen s argu"ent was, that if so"ething wasn t done about it in less than no ti"e she d have everybody e/ecuted, all round( #It was this last re"ark that had "ade the whole party look so grave and an/ious($ Alice could think of nothing else to say but ;It belongs to the 4uchess: you d better ask her about it( ;!he s in prison, the @ueen said to the e/ecutioner: ;fetch her here( And the e/ecutioner went off like an arrow( )he Cat s head began fading away the "o"ent he was gone, and, by the ti"e he had disappeared* so the :ing and the e/ecutioner ran wildly up and down looking for it, while the rest of the party went back to the ga"e(

CHAPTER IX THE MOCK-TURTLE'S STORY ;=ou can t think you glad I a" to see you again, you dear old thing, said the 4uchess, as she tucked her ar" affectionately into Alice s, and they walked off together( Alice was very glad to find her in such a pleasant te"per, and thought to herself that perhaps it was only the pepper that had "ade her so savage when they "et in the kitchen( ;&hen )', a 4uchess, she said to herself, #not in a very hopeful tone though$, ;I won t have any pepper in "y kitchen at all( !oup does very well without%%3aybe it s always pepper that "akes people hot%te"pered, she went on, very "uch pleased at having found out a new kind of rule, ;and vinegar that "akes the" sour%%and ca"o"ile that "akes the" bitter%%and%%and

barley%sugar and such things that "ake children sweet%te"pered( I only wish people knew that: then they wouldn t be so stingy about it, you know%% !he had -uite forgotten the 4uchess by this ti"e, and was a little startled when she heard her voice close to her ear( ;=ou re thinking about so"ething, "y dear, and that "akes you forget to talk( I can t tell you .ust now what the "oral of that is, but I shall re"e"ber it in a bit( ;6erhaps it hasn t one, Alice ventured to re"ark( ;)ut, tut, child, said the 4uchess( ;Everything s got a "oral, if only you can find it( And she s-uee9ed herself up closer to Alice s side as she spoke( Alice did not "uch like keeping so close to her: first, because the 4uchess was ver( ugly* and secondly, because she was e/actly the right height to rest her chin upon Alice s shoulder, and it was an unco"fortably sharp chin( 5owever, she did not like to be rude, so she bore it as well as she could( ;)he ga"e s going on rather better now, she said, by way of keeping up the conversation a little( ; )is so, said the 4uchess: ;and the "oral of that is%%"+h, tis love, tis love, that "akes the world go round," ;!o"ebody said, Alice whispered, ;that it s done by everybody "inding their own business, ;Ah, well, It "eans "uch the sa"e thing, said the 4uchess, digging her sharp little chin into Alice s shoulder as she added, ;and the "oral of that is%%")ake care of the sense, and the sounds will take care of the"selves(" ;5ow fond she is of finding "orals in things, Alice thought to herself( ;I dare say you re wondering why I don t put "y ar" round your waist, the 4uchess said after a pause: ;the reason is, that I " doubtful about the te"per of your fla"ingo( !hall I try the e/peri"ent? ;He "ight bite, Alice cautiously replied, not feeling at all an/ious to have the e/peri"ent tried( ;?ery true, said the 4uchess: ;fla"ingoes and "ustard both bite( And the "oral of that is%%"8irds of a feather flock together(" ;+nly "ustard isn t a bird, Alice re"arked( ;'ight, as usual, said the 4uchess: ;what a clear way you have of putting things, ;It s a "ineral, ) thin., said Alice( ;+f course it is, said the 4uchess, who see"ed ready to agree to everything that Alice said* ;there s a large "ustard%"ine near here( And the "oral of that is%%")he "ore there is of "ine, the less there is of yours("

;+h, I know, e/clai"ed Alice, who had not attended to this last re"ark, ;it s a vegetable( It doesn t look like one, but it is( ;I -uite agree with you, said the 4uchess* ;and the "oral of that is%%"8e what you would see" to be"%%or if you d like it put "ore si"ply%%"1ever i"agine yourself not to be otherwise than what it "ight appear to others that what you were or "ight have been was not otherwise than what you had been would have appeared to the" to be otherwise(" ;I think I should understand that better, Alice said very politely, ;if I had it written down: but I can t -uite follow it as you say it( ;)hat s nothing to what I could say if I chose, the 4uchess replied, in a pleased tone( ;6ray don t trouble yourself to say it any longer than that, said Alice( ;+h, don t talk about trouble, said the 4uchess( ;I "ake you a present of everything I ve said as yet( ;A cheap sort of present, thought Alice( ;I " glad they don t give birthday presents like that, 8ut she did not venture to say it out loud( ;)hinking again? the 4uchess asked, with another dig of her sharp little chin( ;I ve a right to think said Alice sharply, for she was beginning to feel a little worried( ;<ust about as "uch right, said the 4uchess, ;as pigs have to fly* and the "%% 8ut here, to Alice s great surprise, the 4uchess s voice died away, even in the "iddle of her favourite word ;"oral, and the ar" that was linked into hers began to tre"ble( Alice looked up, and there stood the @ueen in front of the", with her ar"s folded, frowning like a thunderstor"( ;A fine day, your 3a.esty, the 4uchess began in a low, weak voice( ;1ow, I give you fair warning, shouted the @ueen, sta"ping on the ground as she spoke* ;either you or your head "ust be off, and that in about half no ti"e, )ake your choice, )he 4uchess took her choice, and was gone in a "o"ent( ;Let s go on with the ga"e, the @ueen said to Alice* and Alice was too "uch frightened to say a word, but slowly followed her back to the cro-uet%ground( )he other guests had taken advantage of the @ueen s absence, and were resting in the shade: however, the "o"ent they saw her, they hurried back to the ga"e, the @ueen "erely re"arking that a "o"ent s delay would cost the" their lives( All the ti"e they were playing the @ueen never left off -uarrelling with the other players, and shouting ;+ff with his head, or ;+ff with her head, )hose who" she sentenced were taken into custody by the soldiers, who of course had to leave off being arches to do this, so that by

the end of half an hour or so there were no arches left, and all the players, e/cept the :ing, the @ueen, and Alice, were in custody and under sentence of e/ecution( )hen the @ueen left off, -uite out of breath, and said to Alice, ;5ave you seen the 3ock )urtle yet? ;1o, said Alice( ;I don t even know what a 3ock )urtle is( ;It s the thing 3ock )urtle !oup is "ade fro", said the @ueen( ;I never saw one, or heard of one, said Alice( ;Co"e on, then, said the @ueen, ;and he shall tell you his history, As they walked off together, Alice heard the :ing say in a low voice, to the co"pany generally, ;=ou are all pardoned( ;Co"e, that's a good thing, she said to herself, for she had felt -uite unhappy at the nu"ber of e/ecutions the @ueen had ordered( )hey very soon ca"e upon a 2ryphon, lying fast asleep in the sun( #If you don t know what a 2ryphon is, look at the picture($ ;>p, la9y thing, said the @ueen, ;and take this young lady to see the 3ock )urtle, and to hear his history( I "ust go back and see after so"e e/ecutions I have ordered * and she walked off, leaving Alice alone with the 2ryphon( Alice did not -uite like the look of the creature, but on the whole she thought it would be -uite as safe to stay with it as to go after that savage @ueen: so she waited( )he 2ryphon sat up and rubbed its eyes: then it watched the @ueen till she was out of sight: then it chuckled( ;&hat fun, said the 2ryphon, half to itself, half to Alice( ;&hat is the fun? said Alice( ;&hy, she, said the 2ryphon( ;It s all her fancy, that: they never e/ecutes nobody, you know( Co"e on, ;Everybody says "co"e on," here, thought Alice, as she went slowly after it: ;I never was so ordered about in all "y life, never, )hey had not gone far before they saw the 3ock )urtle in the distance, sitting sad and lonely on a little ledge of rock, and, as they ca"e nearer, Alice could hear hi" sighing as if his heart would break( !he pitied hi" deeply( ;&hat is his sorrow? she asked the 2ryphon, and the

2ryphon answered, very nearly in the sa"e words as before, ;It s all his fancy, that: he hasn t got no sorrow, you know( Co"e on, !o they went up to the 3ock )urtle, who looked at the" with large eyes full of tears, but said nothing( ;)his here young lady, said the 2ryphon, ;she wants for to know your history, she do( ;I ll tell it her, said the 3ock )urtle in a deep, hollow tone: ;sit down, both of you, and don t speak a word till I ve finished( !o they sat down, and nobody spoke for so"e "inutes( Alice thought to herself, ;I don t see how he can even finish, if he doesn t begin( 8ut she waited patiently( ;+nce, said the 3ock )urtle at last, with a deep sigh, ;I was a real )urtle( )hese words were followed by a very long silence, broken only by an occasional e/cla"ation of ;5.ckrrh, fro" the 2ryphon, and the constant heavy sobbing of the 3ock )urtle( Alice was very nearly getting up and saying, ;)hank you, sir, for your interesting story, but she could not help thinking there ,ust be "ore to co"e, so she sat still and said nothing( ;&hen we were little, the 3ock )urtle went on at last, "ore cal"ly, though still sobbing a little now and then, ;we went to school in the sea( )he "aster was an old )urtle%%we used to call hi" )ortoise%% ;&hy did you call hi" )ortoise, if he wasn t one? Alice asked( ;&e called hi" )ortoise because he taught us, said the 3ock )urtle angrily: ;really you are very dull, ;=ou ought to be asha"ed of yourself for asking such a si"ple -uestion, added the 2ryphon* and then they both sat silent and looked at poor Alice, who felt ready to sink into the earth( At last the 2ryphon said to the 3ock )urtle, ;4rive on, old fellow, 4on t be all day about it, and he went on in these words: ;=es, we went to school in the sea, though you "ayn t believe it%% ;I never said I didn t, interrupted Alice( ;=ou did, said the 3ock )urtle(

;5old your tongue, added the 2ryphon, before Alice could speak again( )he 3ock )urtle went on( ;&e had the best of educations%%in fact, we went to school every day%% ;)'ve been to a day%school, too, said Alice* ;you needn t be so proud as all that( ;&ith e/tras? asked the 3ock )urtle a little an/iously( ;=es, said Alice, ;we learned 0rench and "usic( ;And washing? said the 3ock )urtle( ;Certainly not, said Alice indignantly( ;Ah, then yours wasn t a really good school, said the 3ock )urtle in a tone of great relief( ;1ow at ours they had at the end of the bill, "0rench, "usic, and washing%%e/tra(" ;=ou couldn t have wanted it "uch, said Alice* ;living at the botto" of the sea( ;I couldn t afford to learn it( said the 3ock )urtle with a sigh( ;I only took the regular course( ;&hat was that? in-uired Alice( ;'eeling and &rithing, of course, to begin with, the 3ock )urtle replied* ;and then the different branches of Arith"etic%% A"bition, 4istraction, >glification, and 4erision( ;I never heard of ">glification," Alice ventured to say( ;&hat is it? )he 2ryphon lifted up both its paws in surprise( ;&hat, 1ever heard of uglifying, it e/clai"ed( ;=ou know what to beautify is, I suppose? ;=es, said Alice doubtfully: ;it "eans%%to%%"ake%%anything%% prettier( ;&ell, then, the 2ryphon went on, ;if you don t know what to uglify is, you are a si"pleton( Alice did not feel encouraged to ask any "ore -uestions about it, so she turned to the 3ock )urtle, and said ;&hat else had you to learn? ;&ell, there was 3ystery, the 3ock )urtle replied, counting off the sub.ects on his flappers, ;%%3ystery, ancient and "odern, with !eaography: then 4rawling%%the 4rawling%"aster was an old conger%eel, that used to co"e once a week: he taught us 4rawling, !tretching, and 0ainting in Coils( ;&hat was that like? said Alice( ;&ell, I can t show it you "yself, the 3ock )urtle said: ;I " too stiff( And the 2ryphon never learnt it(

;5adn t ti"e, said the 2ryphon: ;I went to the Classics "aster, though( 5e was an old crab, 5E was( ;I never went to hi", the 3ock )urtle said with a sigh: ;he taught Laughing and 2rief, they used to say( ;!o he did, so he did, said the 2ryphon, sighing in his turn* and both creatures hid their faces in their paws( ;And how "any hours a day did you do lessons? said Alice, in a hurry to change the sub.ect( ;)en hours the first day, said the 3ock )urtle: ;nine the ne/t, and so on( ;&hat a curious plan, e/clai"ed Alice( ;)hat s the reason they re called lessons, the 2ryphon re"arked: ;because they lessen fro" day to day( )his was -uite a new idea to Alice, and she thought it over a little before she "ade her ne/t re"ark( ;)hen the eleventh day "ust have been a holiday? ;+f course it was, said the 3ock )urtle( ;And how did you "anage on the twelfth? Alice went on eagerly( ;)hat s enough about lessons, the 2ryphon interrupted in a very decided tone: ;tell her so"ething about the ga"es now(

CHAPTER X THE LOBSTER QUADRILLE )he 3ock )urtle sighed deeply, and drew the back of one flapper across his eyes( 5e looked at Alice, and tried to speak, but for a "inute or two sobs choked his voice( ;!a"e as if he had a bone in his throat, said the 2ryphon: and it set to work shaking hi" and punching hi" in the back( At last the 3ock )urtle recovered his voice, and, with tears running down his cheeks, he went on again:%% ;=ou "ay not have lived "uch under the sea%% #I haven t, said Alice$%%;and perhaps you were never even introduced to a lobster% % #Alice began to say ;I once tasted%% but checked herself hastily, and said ;1o, never $ ;%%so you can have no idea what a delightful thing a Lobster @uadrille is, ;1o, indeed, said Alice( ;&hat sort of a dance is it? ;&hy, said the 2ryphon, ;you first for" into a line along the sea%shore%%

;)wo lines, cried the 3ock )urtle( ;!eals, turtles, sal"on, and so on* then, when you ve cleared all the .elly%fish out of the way%% ;That generally takes so"e ti"e, interrupted the 2ryphon( ;%%you advance twice%% ;Each with a lobster as a partner, cried the 2ryphon( ;+f course, the 3ock )urtle said: ;advance twice, set to partners%% ;%%change lobsters, and retire in sa"e order, continued the 2ryphon( ;)hen, you know, the 3ock )urtle went on, ;you throw the%% ;)he lobsters, shouted the 2ryphon, with a bound into the air( ;%%as far out to sea as you can%% ;!wi" after the", screa"ed the 2ryphon( ;8ack to land again, and that s all the first figure, said the 3ock )urtle, suddenly dropping his voice* and the two creatures, who had been .u"ping about like "ad things all this ti"e, sat down again very sadly and -uietly, and looked at Alice( ;It "ust be a very pretty dance, said Alice ti"idly( ;&ould you like to see a little of it? said the 3ock )urtle( ;?ery "uch indeed, said Alice( ;Co"e, let s try the first figure, said the 3ock )urtle to the 2ryphon( ;&e can do without lobsters, you know( &hich shall sing? ;+h, (ou sing, said the 2ryphon( ;I ve forgotten the words( !o they began sole"nly dancing round and round Alice, every now and then treading on her toes when they passed too close, and waving their forepaws to "ark the ti"e, while the 3ock )urtle sang this, very slowly and sadly:%%
`"+ill you wal) a little faster3" said a whiting to a snail% "There(s a porpoise close !ehind us, and he(s treading on my tail% ,ee how eagerly the lo!sters and the turtles all advance! They are waiting on the shingle&&will you come and -oin the dance3

+ill you, won(t you, will you, won(t you, will you -oin the dance3 +ill you, won(t you, will you, won(t you, won(t you -oin the dance3 "#ou can really have no notion how delightful it will !e +hen they ta)e us up and throw us, with the lo!sters, out 4ut the snail replied "Too far, too far!" and gave a loo) ,aid he than)ed the whiting )indly, !ut he would not -oin dance% +ould not, could not, would not, could not, would not dance% +ould not, could not, would not, could not, could not dance% to sea!" as)ance&& the -oin the -oin the

`"+hat matters it how far we go3" his scaly friend replied% "There is another shore, you )now, upon the other side% The further off from 5ngland the nearer is to France&& Then turn not pale, !eloved snail, !ut come and -oin the dance% +ill you, won(t you, will you, won(t you, will you -oin the dance3 +ill you, won(t you, will you, won(t you, won(t you -oin the dance3"(

;)hank you, it s a very interesting dance to watch, said Alice, feeling very glad that it was over at last: ;and I do so like that curious song about the whiting, ;+h, as to the whiting, said the 3ock )urtle, ;they%%you ve seen the", of course? ;=es, said Alice, ;I ve often seen the" at dinn%% she checked herself hastily( ;I don t know where 4inn "ay be, said the 3ock )urtle, ;but if you ve seen the" so often, of course you know what they re like( ;I believe so, Alice replied thoughtfully( ;)hey have their tails in their "ouths%%and they re all over cru"bs( ;=ou re wrong about the cru"bs, said the 3ock )urtle: ;cru"bs would all wash off in the sea( 8ut they have their tails in their "ouths* and the reason is%% here the 3ock )urtle yawned and shut his eyes(%%;)ell her about the reason and all that, he said to the 2ryphon( ;)he reason is, said the 2ryphon, ;that they would go with the lobsters to the dance( !o they got thrown out to sea( !o they had to fall a long way( !o they got their tails fast in their "ouths( !o they couldn t get the" out again( )hat s all( ;)hank you, said Alice, ;it s very interesting( I never knew so "uch about a whiting before( ;I can tell you "ore than that, if you like, said the 2ryphon( ;4o you know why it s called a whiting? ;I never thought about it, said Alice( ;&hy? ;)t does the -oots and shoes. the 2ryphon replied very sole"nly(

Alice was thoroughly pu99led( ;4oes the boots and shoes, she repeated in a wondering tone( ;&hy, what are (our shoes done with? said the 2ryphon( ;I "ean, what "akes the" so shiny? Alice looked down at the", and considered a little before she gave her answer( ;)hey re done with blacking, I believe( ;8oots and shoes under the sea, the 2ryphon went on in a deep voice, ;are done with a whiting( 1ow you know( ;And what are they "ade of? Alice asked in a tone of great curiosity( ;!oles and eels, of course, the 2ryphon replied rather i"patiently: ;any shri"p could have told you that( ;If I d been the whiting, said Alice, whose thoughts were still running on the song, ;I d have said to the porpoise, ":eep back, please: we don t want (ou with us," ;)hey were obliged to have hi" with the", the 3ock )urtle said: ;no wise fish would go anywhere without a porpoise( ;&ouldn t it really? said Alice in a tone of great surprise( ;+f course not, said the 3ock )urtle: ;why, if a fish ca"e to ,e, and told "e he was going a .ourney, I should say "&ith what porpoise?" ;4on t you "ean "purpose"? said Alice( ;I "ean what I say, the 3ock )urtle replied in an offended tone( And the 2ryphon added ;Co"e, let s hear so"e of (our adventures( ;I could tell you "y adventures%%beginning fro" this "orning, said Alice a little ti"idly: ;but it s no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then( ;E/plain all that, said the 3ock )urtle( ;1o, no, )he adventures first, said the 2ryphon in an i"patient tone: ;e/planations take such a dreadful ti"e( !o Alice began telling the" her adventures fro" the ti"e when she first saw the &hite 'abbit( !he was a little nervous about it .ust at first, the two creatures got so close to her, one on each side, and opened their eyes and "ouths so ver( wide, but she gained courage as she went on( 5er listeners were perfectly -uiet till she got to the part about her repeating 1&ou are old, Father illia,,' to the Caterpillar, and the words all co"ing different, and then the 3ock )urtle drew a long breath, and said ;)hat s very curious( ;It s all about as curious as it can be, said the 2ryphon(

;It all ca"e different, the 3ock )urtle repeated thoughtfully( ;I should like to hear her try and repeat so"ething now( )ell her to begin( 5e looked at the 2ryphon as if he thought it had so"e kind of authority over Alice( ;!tand up and repeat +'Tis the voice o/ the sluggard,+ said the 2ryphon( ;5ow the creatures order one about, and "ake one repeat lessons, thought Alice* ;I "ight as well be at school at once( 5owever, she got up, and began to repeat it, but her head was so full of the Lobster @uadrille, that she hardly knew what she was saying, and the words ca"e very -ueer indeed:%%
"(Tis the "#ou have As a duc) Trims his voice of !a)ed me with its !elt and the o!ster* I heard him declare, too !rown, I must sugar my hair%" eyelids, so he with his nose his !uttons, and turns out his toes%(

;)hat s different fro" what I used to say when I was a child, said the 2ryphon( ;&ell, I never heard it before, said the 3ock )urtle* ;but it sounds unco""on nonsense( Alice said nothing* she had sat down with her face in her hands, wondering if anything would ever happen in a natural way again( ;I should like to have it e/plained, said the 3ock )urtle( ;!he can t e/plain it, said the 2ryphon hastily( ;2o on with the ne/t verse( ;8ut about his toes? the 3ock )urtle persisted( ;5ow could he turn the" out with his nose, you know? ;It s the first position in dancing( Alice said* but was dreadfully pu99led by the whole thing, and longed to change the sub.ect( ;2o on with the ne/t verse, the 2ryphon repeated i"patiently: ;it begins "I passed by his garden(" Alice did not dare to disobey, though she felt sure it would all co"e wrong, and she went on in a tre"bling voice:%%
`I passed !y his garden, and mar)ed, with one eye, /ow the Owl and the 6anther were sharing a pie&&(

;&hat is the use of repeating all that stuff, the 3ock )urtle interrupted, ;if you don t e/plain it as you go on? It s by far the "ost confusing thing I ever heard, ;=es, I think you d better leave off, said the 2ryphon: and Alice was only too glad to do so( ;!hall we try another figure of the Lobster @uadrille? the 2ryphon went on( ;+r would you like the 3ock )urtle to sing you a song? ;+h, a song, please, if the 3ock )urtle would be so kind, Alice replied, so eagerly that the 2ryphon said, in a rather offended toe, ;5", 1o accounting for tastes, !ing her ")urtle !oup," will you, old fellow? )he 3ock )urtle sighed deeply, and began, in a voice so"eti"es choked with sobs, to sing this:%%
`4eautiful ,oup, so rich and green, +aiting in a hot tureen! +ho for such dainties would not stoop3 ,oup of the evening, !eautiful ,oup! ,oup of the evening, !eautiful ,oup! 4eau&&ootiful ,oo&&oop! 4eau&&ootiful ,oo&&oop! ,oo&&oop of the e&&e&&evening, 4eautiful, !eautiful ,oup! `4eautiful ,oup! +ho cares for fish, 7ame, or any other dish3 +ho would not give all else for two 6ennyworth only of !eautiful ,oup3 6ennyworth only of !eautiful ,oup3 4eau&&ootiful ,oo&&oop! 4eau&&ootiful ,oo&&oop! ,oo&&oop of the e&&e&&evening, 4eautiful, !eauti&&F$ ,O$6!(

;Chorus again, cried the 2ryphon, and the 3ock )urtle had .ust begun to repeat it, when a cry of ;)he trial s beginning, was heard in the distance( ;Co"e on, cried the 2ryphon, and, taking Alice by the hand, it hurried off, without waiting for the end of the song( ;&hat trial is it? Alice panted as she ran* but the 2ryphon only answered ;Co"e on, and ran the faster, while "ore and "ore faintly ca"e, carried on the bree9e that followed the", the "elancholy words:%%
`,oo&&oop of the e&&e&&evening, 4eautiful, !eautiful ,oup!(

CHAPTER XI

WHO STOLE THE TARTS? )he :ing and @ueen of 5earts were seated on their throne when they arrived, with a great crowd asse"bled about the"%%all sorts of little birds and beasts, as well as the whole pack of cards: the :nave was standing before the", in chains, with a soldier on each side to guard hi"* and near the :ing was the &hite 'abbit, with a tru"pet in one hand, and a scroll of parch"ent in the other( In the very "iddle of the court was a table, with a large dish of tarts upon it: they looked so good, that it "ade Alice -uite hungry to look at the"%%;I wish they d get the trial done, she thought, ;and hand round the refresh"ents, 8ut there see"ed to be no chance of this, so she began looking at everything about her, to pass away the ti"e( Alice had never been in a court of .ustice before, but she had read about the" in books, and she was -uite pleased to find that she knew the na"e of nearly everything there( ;)hat s the .udge, she said to herself, ;because of his great wig( )he .udge, by the way, was the :ing* and as he wore his crown over the wig, #look at the frontispiece if you want to see how he did it,$ he did not look at all co"fortable, and it was certainly not beco"ing( ;And that s the .ury%bo/, thought Alice, ;and those twelve creatures, #she was obliged to say ;creatures, you see, because so"e of the" were ani"als, and so"e were birds,$ ;I suppose they are the .urors( !he said this last word two or three ti"es over to herself, being rather proud of it: for she thought, and rightly too, that very few little girls of her age knew the "eaning of it at all( 5owever, ;.ury%"en would have done .ust as well( )he twelve .urors were all writing very busily on slates( ;&hat are they doing? Alice whispered to the 2ryphon( ;)hey can t have anything to put down yet, before the trial s begun( ;)hey re putting down their na"es, the 2ryphon whispered in reply, ;for fear they should forget the" before the end of the trial( 1!tupid things,' Alice began in a loud, indignant voice, but she stopped hastily, for the &hite 'abbit cried out, ;!ilence in the court, and the :ing put on his spectacles and looked an/iously round, to "ake out who was talking( Alice could see, as well as if she were looking over their shoulders, that all the .urors were writing down ;stupid things, on their slates, and she could even "ake out that one of the" didn t know how to spell ;stupid, and that he had to ask his neighbour to tell hi"( ;A nice "uddle their slates ll be in before the trial s over, thought Alice( +ne of the .urors had a pencil that s-ueaked( )his of course, Alice could not stand, and she went round the court and got behind hi", and very soon found an opportunity of taking it away( !he did it so -uickly that the poor little .uror #it was 8ill, the Li9ard$ could not "ake out at all what had beco"e of it* so, after hunting all about for it, he was obliged to write with one finger for the rest of the day* and this was of very little use, as it left no "ark on the slate( ;5erald, read the accusation, said the :ing(

+n this the &hite 'abbit blew three blasts on the tru"pet, and then unrolled the parch"ent scroll, and read as follows:%%
`The 8ueen of /earts, she made some tarts, All on a summer day" The 9nave of /earts, he stole those tarts, And too) them :uite away!(

;Consider your verdict, the :ing said to the .ury( ;1ot yet, not yet, the 'abbit hastily interrupted( ;)here s a great deal to co"e before that, ;Call the first witness, said the :ing* and the &hite 'abbit blew three blasts on the tru"pet, and called out, ;0irst witness, )he first witness was the 5atter( 5e ca"e in with a teacup in one hand and a piece of bread% and%butter in the other( ;I beg pardon, your 3a.esty, he began, ;for bringing these in: but I hadn t -uite finished "y tea when I was sent for( ;=ou ought to have finished, said the :ing( ;&hen did you begin? )he 5atter looked at the 3arch 5are, who had followed hi" into the court, ar"%in%ar" with the 4or"ouse( ;0ourteenth of 3arch, I think it was, he said( ;0ifteenth, said the 3arch 5are( ;!i/teenth, added the 4or"ouse( ;&rite that down, the :ing said to the .ury, and the .ury eagerly wrote down all three dates on their slates, and then added the" up, and reduced the answer to shillings and pence( ;)ake off your hat, the :ing said to the 5atter( ;It isn t "ine, said the 5atter( $Stolen, the :ing e/clai"ed, turning to the .ury, who instantly "ade a "e"orandu" of the fact( ;I keep the" to sell, the 5atter added as an e/planation* ;I ve none of "y own( I " a hatter( 5ere the @ueen put on her spectacles, and began staring at the 5atter, who turned pale and fidgeted(

;2ive your evidence, said the :ing* ;and don t be nervous, or I ll have you e/ecuted on the spot( )his did not see" to encourage the witness at all: he kept shifting for" one foot to the other, looking uneasily at the @ueen, and in his confusion he bit a large piece out of his teacup instead of the bread%and%butter( <ust at this "o"ent Alice felt a very curious sensation, which pu99led her a good deal until she "ade out what it was: she was beginning to grow larger again, and she thought at first she would get up and leave the court* but on second thoughts she decided to re"ain where she was as long as there was roo" for her( ;I wish you wouldn t s-uee9e so( said the 4or"ouse, who was sitting ne/t to her( ;I can hardly breathe( ;I can t help it, said Alice very "eekly: ;I " growing( ;=ou ve no right to grow here, said the 4or"ouse( ;4on t talk nonsense, said Alice "ore boldly: ;you know you re growing too( ;=es, but I grow at a reasonable pace, said the 4or"ouse: ;not in that ridiculous fashion( And he got up very sulkily and crossed over to the other side of the court( All this ti"e the @ueen had never left off staring at the 5atter, and, .ust as the 4or"ouse crossed the court, she said to one of the officers of the court, ;8ring "e the list of the singers in the last concert, on which the wretched 5atter tre"bled so, that he shook both his shoes off( ;2ive your evidence, the :ing repeated angrily, ;or I ll have you e/ecuted, whether you re nervous or not( ;I " a poor "an, your 3a.esty, the 5atter began, in a tre"bling voice, ;%%and I hadn t begun "y tea%%not above a week or so%%and what with the bread%and% butter getting so thin%%and the twinkling of the tea%% ;)he twinkling of the what? said the :ing( ;It began with the tea, the 5atter replied( ;+f course twinkling begins with a ), said the :ing sharply( ;4o you take "e for a dunce? 2o on, ;I " a poor "an, the 5atter went on, ;and "ost things twinkled after that%%only the 3arch 5are said%% ;I didn t, said the 5atter(

;I deny it, said the :ing: ;leave out that part( ;&ell, at any rate, the 4or"ouse said%% the 5atter went on, looking an/iously round to see if he would deny it too: but the 4or"ouse denied nothing, being fast asleep( ;After that, continued the 5atter, ;I cut so"e "ore bread% and%butter%% ;8ut what did the 4or"ouse say? one of the .ury asked( ;)hat I can t re"e"ber, said the 5atter( ;=ou ,ust re"e"ber, re"arked the :ing, ;or I ll have you e/ecuted( )he "iserable 5atter dropped his teacup and bread%and%butter, and went down on one knee( ;I " a poor "an, your 3a.esty, he began( ;=ou re a ver( poor s0ea.er, said the :ing( 5ere one of the guinea%pigs cheered, and was i""ediately suppressed by the officers of the court( #As that is rather a hard word, I will .ust e/plain to you how it was done( )hey had a large canvas bag, which tied up at the "outh with strings: into this they slipped the guinea% pig, head first, and then sat upon it($ ;I " glad I ve seen that done, thought Alice( ;I ve so often read in the newspapers, at the end of trials, ")here was so"e atte"pts at applause, which was i""ediately suppressed by the officers of the court," and I never understood what it "eant till now( ;If that s all you know about it, you "ay stand down, continued the :ing( ;I can t go no lower, said the 5atter: ;I " on the floor, as it is( ;)hen you "ay sit down, the :ing replied( 5ere the other guinea%pig cheered, and was suppressed( ;Co"e, that finished the guinea%pigs, thought Alice( ;1ow we shall get on better( ;I d rather finish "y tea, said the 5atter, with an an/ious look at the @ueen, who was reading the list of singers( ;=ou "ay go, said the :ing, and the 5atter hurriedly left the court, without even waiting to put his shoes on( ;%%and .ust take his head off outside, the @ueen added to one of the officers: but the 5atter was out of sight before the officer could get to the door( ;Call the ne/t witness, said the :ing(

)he ne/t witness was the 4uchess s cook( !he carried the pepper%bo/ in her hand, and Alice guessed who it was, even before she got into the court, by the way the people near the door began snee9ing all at once( ;2ive your evidence, said the :ing( ;!han t, said the cook( )he :ing looked an/iously at the &hite 'abbit, who said in a low voice, ;=our 3a.esty "ust cross%e/a"ine this witness( ;&ell, if I "ust, I "ust, the :ing said, with a "elancholy air, and, after folding his ar"s and frowning at the cook till his eyes were nearly out of sight, he said in a deep voice, ;&hat are tarts "ade of? ;6epper, "ostly, said the cook( ;)reacle, said a sleepy voice behind her( 1Collar that 4or"ouse,' the @ueen shrieked out( $8ehead that 4or"ouse, )urn that 4or"ouse out of court, !uppress hi", 6inch hi", +ff with his whiskers, 0or so"e "inutes the whole court was in confusion, getting the 4or"ouse turned out, and, by the ti"e they had settled down again, the cook had disappeared( ;1ever "ind, said the :ing, with an air of great relief( ;Call the ne/t witness( And he added in an undertone to the @ueen, ;'eally, "y dear, (ou "ust cross%e/a"ine the ne/t witness( It -uite "akes "y forehead ache, Alice watched the &hite 'abbit as he fu"bled over the list, feeling very curious to see what the ne/t witness would be like, ;%%for they haven t got "uch evidence (et, she said to herself( I"agine her surprise, when the &hite 'abbit read out, at the top of his shrill little voice, the na"e $Alice, CHAPTER XII ALICE'S EVIDENCE ;5ere, cried Alice, -uite forgetting in the flurry of the "o"ent how large she had grown in the last few "inutes, and she .u"ped up in such a hurry that she tipped over the .ury%bo/ with the edge of her skirt, upsetting all the .ury"en on to the heads of the crowd below, and there they lay sprawling about, re"inding her very "uch of a globe of goldfish she had accidentally upset the week before( 1+h, I -eg your pardon,' she e/clai"ed in a tone of great dis"ay, and began picking the" up again as -uickly as she could, for the accident of the goldfish kept running in her head, and she had a vague sort of idea that they "ust be collected at once and put back into the .ury%bo/, or they would die(

;)he trial cannot proceed, said the :ing in a very grave voice, ;until all the .ury"en are back in their proper places%% all, he repeated with great e"phasis, looking hard at Alice as he said do( Alice looked at the .ury%bo/, and saw that, in her haste, she had put the Li9ard in head downwards, and the poor little thing was waving its tail about in a "elancholy way, being -uite unable to "ove( !he soon got it out again, and put it right* ;not that it signifies "uch, she said to herself* ;I should think it would be quite as "uch use in the trial one way up as the other( As soon as the .ury had a little recovered fro" the shock of being upset, and their slates and pencils had been found and handed back to the", they set to work very diligently to write out a history of the accident, all e/cept the Li9ard, who see"ed too "uch overco"e to do anything but sit with its "outh open, ga9ing up into the roof of the court( ;&hat do you know about this business? the :ing said to Alice( ;1othing, said Alice( ;1othing whatever? persisted the :ing( ;1othing whatever, said Alice( ;)hat s very i"portant, the :ing said, turning to the .ury( )hey were .ust beginning to write this down on their slates, when the &hite 'abbit interrupted: ;"ni"portant, your 3a.esty "eans, of course, he said in a very respectful tone, but frowning and "aking faces at hi" as he spoke( ;"ni"portant, of course, I "eant, the :ing hastily said, and went on to hi"self in an undertone, ;i"portant%%uni"portant%% uni"portant%%i"portant%% as if he were trying which word sounded best( !o"e of the .ury wrote it down ;i"portant, and so"e ;uni"portant( Alice could see this, as she was near enough to look over their slates* ;but it doesn t "atter a bit, she thought to herself( At this "o"ent the :ing, who had been for so"e ti"e busily writing in his note%book, cackled out ;!ilence, and read out fro" his book, ;'ule 0orty%two( All 0ersons ,ore than a ,ile high to leave the court( Everybody looked at Alice(

;)', not a "ile high, said Alice( ;=ou are, said the :ing( ;1early two "iles high, added the @ueen( ;&ell, I shan t go, at any rate, said Alice: ;besides, that s not a regular rule: you invented it .ust now( ;It s the oldest rule in the book, said the :ing( ;)hen it ought to be 1u"ber +ne, said Alice( )he :ing turned pale, and shut his note%book hastily( ;Consider your verdict, he said to the .ury, in a low, tre"bling voice( ;)here s "ore evidence to co"e yet, please your 3a.esty, said the &hite 'abbit, .u"ping up in a great hurry* ;this paper has .ust been picked up( ;&hat s in it? said the @ueen( ;I haven t opened it yet, said the &hite 'abbit, ;but it see"s to be a letter, written by the prisoner to%%to so"ebody( ;It "ust have been that, said the :ing, ;unless it was written to nobody, which isn t usual, you know( ;&ho is it directed to? said one of the .ury"en( ;It isn t directed at all, said the &hite 'abbit* ;in fact, there s nothing written on the outside( 5e unfolded the paper as he spoke, and added ;It isn t a letter, after all: it s a set of verses( ;Are they in the prisoner s handwriting? asked another of they .ury"en( ;1o, they re not, said the &hite 'abbit, ;and that s the -ueerest thing about it( #)he .ury all looked pu99led($ ;5e "ust have i"itated so"ebody else s hand, said the :ing( #)he .ury all brightened up again($ ;6lease your 3a.esty, said the :nave, ;I didn t write it, and they can t prove I did: there s no na"e signed at the end( ;If you didn t sign it, said the :ing, ;that only "akes the "atter worse( =ou 2"ST have "eant so"e "ischief, or else you d have signed your na"e like an honest "an( )here was a general clapping of hands at this: it was the first really clever thing the :ing had said that day( ;)hat 3R!%ES his guilt, said the @ueen(

;It proves nothing of the sort, said Alice( ;&hy, you don t even know what they re about, ;'ead the", said the :ing( )he &hite 'abbit put on his spectacles( ;&here shall I begin, please your 3a.esty? he asked( ;8egin at the beginning, the :ing said gravely, ;and go on till you co"e to the end: then stop( )hese were the verses the &hite 'abbit read:%%
`+hey told me you had been to her, And mentioned me to him/ -he ga e me a good character, 'ut said & could not swim( He sent them word & had not gone 0We $now it to be true1/ &f she should push the matter on, What would become of you% & ga e her one, they ga e him two, You ga e us three or more! +hey all returned from him to you, +hough they were mine before( &f & or she should chance to be &n ol ed in this affair, He trusts to you to set them free, 2*actly as we were( 3y notion was that you had been 0'efore she had this fit1 An obstacle that came between Him, and oursel es, and it( #on't let him $now she li$ed them best, For this must e er be A secret, $ept from all the rest, 'etween yourself and me('

;)hat s the "ost i"portant piece of evidence we ve heard yet, said the :ing, rubbing his hands* ;so now let the .ury%% ;If any one of the" can e/plain it, said Alice, #she had grown so large in the last few "inutes that she wasn t a bit afraid of interrupting hi",$ ;I ll give hi" si/pence( AIA don t believe there s an ato" of "eaning in it( )he .ury all wrote down on their slates, ;She doesn t believe there s an ato" of "eaning in it, but none of the" atte"pted to e/plain the paper( ;If there s no "eaning in it, said the :ing, ;that saves a world of trouble, you know, as we needn t try to find any( And yet I don t know, he went on, spreading out the verses on his

knee, and looking at the" with one eye* ;I see" to see so"e "eaning in the", after all( +44 said ) could not swi,44+ you can t swi", can you? he added, turning to the :nave( )he :nave shook his head sadly( ;4o I look like it? he said( #&hich he certainly did not, being "ade entirely of cardboard($ ;All right, so far, said the :ing, and he went on "uttering over the verses to hi"self: ;+ e .now it to -e true44+ that s the .ury, of course%% +) gave her one, the( gave hi, two44+ why, that "ust be what he did with the tarts, you know%% ;8ut, it goes on +The( all returned /ro, hi, to (ou,+ said Alice( ;&hy, there they are, said the :ing triu"phantly, pointing to the tarts on the table( ;1othing can be clearer than that( )hen again%%+-e/ore she had this /it44+ you never had fits, "y dear, I think? he said to the @ueen( $1ever, said the @ueen furiously, throwing an inkstand at the Li9ard as she spoke( #)he unfortunate little 8ill had left off writing on his slate with one finger, as he found it "ade no "ark* but he now hastily began again, using the ink, that was trickling down his face, as long as it lasted($ ;)hen the words don t /it you, said the :ing, looking round the court with a s"ile( )here was a dead silence( ;It s a pun, the :ing added in an offended tone, and everybody laughed, ;Let the .ury consider their verdict, the :ing said, for about the twentieth ti"e that day( ;1o, no, said the @ueen( ;!entence first%%verdict afterwards( ;!tuff and nonsense, said Alice loudly( ;)he idea of having the sentence first, ;5old your tongue, said the @ueen, turning purple( ;I won t, said Alice( $+ff with her head, the @ueen shouted at the top of her voice( 1obody "oved( ;&ho cares for you? said Alice, #she had grown to her full si9e by this ti"e($ ;=ou re nothing but a pack of cards,

At this the whole pack rose up into the air, and ca"e flying down upon her: she gave a little screa", half of fright and half of anger, and tried to beat the" off, and found herself lying on the bank, with her head in the lap of her sister, who was gently brushing away so"e dead leaves that had fluttered down fro" the trees upon her face( ;&ake up, Alice dear, said her sister* ;&hy, what a long sleep you ve had, ;+h, I ve had such a curious drea", said Alice, and she told her sister, as well as she could re"e"ber the", all these strange Adventures of hers that you have .ust been reading about* and when she had finished, her sister kissed her, and said, ;It was a curious drea", dear, certainly: but now run in to your tea* it s getting late( !o Alice got up and ran off, thinking while she ran, as well she "ight, what a wonderful drea" it had been( 8ut her sister sat still .ust as she left her, leaning her head on her hand, watching the setting sun, and thinking of little Alice and all her wonderful Adventures, till she too began drea"ing after a fashion, and this was her drea":%% 0irst, she drea"ed of little Alice herself, and once again the tiny hands were clasped upon her knee, and the bright eager eyes were looking up into hers%%she could hear the very tones of her voice, and see that -ueer little toss of her head to keep back the wandering hair that !"#$ always get into her eyes%%and still as she listened, or see"ed to listen, the whole place around her beca"e alive the strange creatures of her little sister s drea"( )he long grass rustled at her feet as the &hite 'abbit hurried by%%the frightened 3ouse splashed his way through the neighbouring pool%%she could hear the rattle of the teacups as the 3arch 5are and his friends shared their never%ending "eal, and the shrill voice of the @ueen ordering off her unfortunate guests to e/ecution%%once "ore the pig%baby was snee9ing on the 4uchess s knee, while plates and dishes crashed around it%%once "ore the shriek of the 2ryphon, the s-ueaking of the Li9ard s slate%pencil, and the choking of the suppressed guinea% pigs, filled the air, "i/ed up with the distant sobs of the "iserable 3ock )urtle( !o she sat on, with closed eyes, and half believed herself in &onderland, though she knew she had but to open the" again, and all would change to dull reality%%the grass would be only rustling in the wind, and the pool rippling to the waving of the reeds%%the rattling teacups would change to tinkling sheep% bells, and the @ueen s shrill cries to the voice of the shepherd boy%%and the snee9e of the baby, the shriek of the 2ryphon, and all thy other -ueer noises, would change #she knew$ to the confused cla"our of the busy far"%yard%%while the lowing of the cattle in the distance would take the place of the 3ock )urtle s heavy sobs(

Lastly, she pictured to herself how this sa"e little sister of hers would, in the after%ti"e, be herself a grown wo"an* and how she would keep, through all her riper years, the si"ple and loving heart of her childhood: and how she would gather about her other little children, and "ake their eyes bright and eager with "any a strange tale, perhaps even with the drea" of &onderland of long ago: and how she would feel with all their si"ple sorrows, and find a pleasure in all their si"ple .oys, re"e"bering her own child%life, and the happy su""er days(