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The next thing was to eat the comfits: this caused some noise `
`
and confusion, as the large birds complained that they could not `
`
taste theirs, and the small ones choked and had to be patted on `
`
the back. However, it was over at last, and they sat down again `
`
in a ring, and begged the Mouse to tell them something more. `
`
`
`
`You promised to tell me your history, you know,' said Alice, `
`
`and why it is you hate--C and D,' she added in a whisper, half `
`
afraid that it would be offended again. `
`
`
`
`Mine is a long and a sad tale!' said the Mouse, turning to `
`
Alice, and sighing. `
`
`
`
`It IS a long tail, certainly,' said Alice, looking down with `
`
wonder at the Mouse's tail; `but why do you call it sad?' And `
`
she kept on puzzling about it while the Mouse was speaking, so `
`
that her idea of the tale was something like this:-- `
`
`
`
`Fury said to a `
`
mouse, That he `
`
met in the `
`
house, `
`
"Let us `
`
both go to `
`
law: I will `
`
prosecute `
`
YOU. --Come, `
`
I'll take no `
`
denial; We `
`
must have a `
`
trial: For `
`
really this `
`
morning I've `
`
nothing `
`
to do." `
`
Said the `
`
mouse to the `
`
cur, "Such `
`
a trial, `
`
dear Sir, `
`
With `
`
no jury `
`
or judge, `
`
would be `
`
wasting `
`
our `
`
breath." `
`
"I'll be `
`
judge, I'll `
`
be jury," `
`
Said `
`
cunning `
`
old Fury: `
`
"I'll `
`
try the `
`
whole `
`
cause, `
`
and `
`
condemn `
`
you `
`
to `
`
death."' `
`
`
`
`
`
`You are not attending!' said the Mouse to Alice severely. `
`
`What are you thinking of?' `
`
`
`
`I beg your pardon,' said Alice very humbly: `you had got to `
`
the fifth bend, I think?' `
`
`
`
`I had NOT!' cried the Mouse, sharply and very angrily. `
`
`
`
`A knot!' said Alice, always ready to make herself useful, and `
`
looking anxiously about her. `Oh, do let me help to undo it!' `
`
`
`
`I shall do nothing of the sort,' said the Mouse, getting up `
`
and walking away. `You insult me by talking such nonsense!' `
`
`
`
`I didn't mean it!' pleaded poor Alice. `But you're so easily `
`
offended, you know!' `
`
`
`
The Mouse only growled in reply. `
`
`
`
`Please come back and finish your story!' Alice called after `
`
it; and the others all joined in chorus, `Yes, please do!' but `
`
the Mouse only shook its head impatiently, and walked a little `
`
quicker. `
`
`
`
`What a pity it wouldn't stay!' sighed the Lory, as soon as it `
`
was quite out of sight; and an old Crab took the opportunity of `
`
saying to her daughter `Ah, my dear! Let this be a lesson to you `
`
never to lose YOUR temper!' `Hold your tongue, Ma!' said the `
`
young Crab, a little snappishly. `You're enough to try the `
`
patience of an oyster!' `
`
`
`
`I wish I had our Dinah here, I know I do!' said Alice aloud, `
`
addressing nobody in particular. `She'd soon fetch it back!' `
`
`
`
`And who is Dinah, if I might venture to ask the question?' `
`
said the Lory. `
`
`
`
Alice replied eagerly, for she was always ready to talk about `
`
her pet: `Dinah's our cat. And she's such a capital one for `
`
catching mice you can't think! And oh, I wish you could see her `
`
after the birds! Why, she'll eat a little bird as soon as look `
`
at it!' `
`
`
`
This speech caused a remarkable sensation among the party. `
`
Some of the birds hurried off at once: one old Magpie began `
`
wrapping itself up very carefully, remarking, `I really must be `
`
getting home; the night-air doesn't suit my throat!' and a Canary `
`
called out in a trembling voice to its children, `Come away, my `
`
dears! It's high time you were all in bed!' On various pretexts `
`
they all moved off, and Alice was soon left alone. `
`
`
`
`I wish I hadn't mentioned Dinah!' she said to herself in a `
`
melancholy tone. `Nobody seems to like her, down here, and I'm `
`
sure she's the best cat in the world! Oh, my dear Dinah! I `
`
wonder if I shall ever see you any more!' 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 Mouse had changed his mind, and was coming back to `
`
finish his story. `
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
CHAPTER IV `
`
`
`
The Rabbit Sends in a Little Bill `
`
`
`
`
`
It was the White Rabbit, trotting slowly back again, and `
`
looking anxiously about as it went, as if it had lost something; `
`
and she heard it muttering to itself `The Duchess! The Duchess! `
`
Oh my dear paws! Oh my fur and whiskers! She'll get me `
`
executed, as sure as ferrets are ferrets! Where CAN I have `
`
dropped them, I wonder?' Alice guessed in a moment that it was `
`
looking for the fan and the pair of white kid gloves, and she `
`
very good-naturedly began hunting about for them, but they were `
`
nowhere to be seen--everything seemed to have changed since her `
`
swim in the pool, and the great hall, with the glass table and `
`
the little door, had vanished completely. `
`
`
`
Very soon the Rabbit noticed Alice, as she went hunting about, `
`
and called out to her in an angry tone, `Why, Mary Ann, what ARE `
`
you doing out here? Run home this moment, and fetch me a pair of `
`
gloves and a fan! Quick, now!' And Alice was so much frightened `
`
that she ran off at once in the direction it pointed to, without `
`
trying to explain the mistake it had made. `
`
`
`
`He took me for his housemaid,' she said to herself as she ran. `
`
`How surprised he'll be when he finds out who I am! But I'd `
`
better take him his fan and gloves--that is, if I can find them.' `
`
As she said this, she came upon a neat little house, on the door `
`
of which was a bright brass plate with the name `W. RABBIT' `
`
engraved upon it. She went in without knocking, and hurried `
`
upstairs, in great fear lest she should meet the real Mary Ann, `
`
and be turned out of the house before she had found the fan and `
`
gloves. `
`
`
`
`How queer it seems,' Alice said to herself, `to be going `
`
messages for a rabbit! I suppose Dinah'll be sending me on `
`
messages next!' And she began fancying the sort of thing that `
`
would happen: `"Miss Alice! Come here directly, and get ready `
`
for your walk!" "Coming in a minute, nurse! But I've got to see `
`
that the mouse doesn't get out." Only I don't think,' Alice went `
`
on, `that they'd let Dinah stop in the house if it began ordering `
`
people about like that!' `
`
`
`
By this time she had found her way into a tidy little room 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 just going to leave the room, when `
`
her eye fell upon a little bottle that stood near the looking- `
`
glass. There was no label this time with the words `DRINK ME,' `
`
but nevertheless she uncorked it and put it to her lips. `I know `
`
SOMETHING interesting is sure to happen,' she said to herself, `
`
`whenever I eat or drink anything; so I'll just see what this `
`
bottle does. I do hope it'll make me grow large again, for `
`
really I'm quite tired of being such a tiny little thing!' `
`
`
`
It did so indeed, and much sooner than she had expected: `
`
before she had drunk half the bottle, she found her head pressing `
`
against the ceiling, and had to stoop to save her neck from being `
`
broken. She hastily put down the bottle, saying to herself `
`
`That's quite enough--I hope I shan't grow any more--As it is, I `
`
can't get out at the door--I do wish I hadn't drunk quite so `
`
much!' `
`
`
`
Alas! it was too late to wish that! She went on growing, and `
`
growing, and very soon had to kneel down on the floor: in `
`
another minute there was not even room for this, and she tried `
`
the effect of lying down with one elbow against the door, and the `
`
other arm curled round her head. Still she went on growing, and, `
`
as a last resource, she put one arm out of the window, and one `
`
foot up the chimney, and said to herself `Now I can do no more, `
`
whatever happens. What WILL become of me?' `
`
`
`
Luckily for Alice, the little magic bottle had now had its full `
`
effect, and she grew no larger: still it was very uncomfortable, `
`
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