lewis carrol - alice's adventures in wonderland

7/29/2019 Lewis Carrol - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

1/55

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

by Lewis Carroll


2/55

Chapter 1 - 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 orconversations in it, `and what is the use of a book,' thought Alice `without pictures or conversation?'

So she was considering in her own ind !as well as she could, for the hot day ade her feel verysleepy and stupid", whether the pleasure of aking a daisy# chain would be worth the trouble of gettingup and picking the daisies, when suddenly a $hite %abbit with pink eyes ran close by her&

here was nothing so very rearkable in that( nor did Alice think it so very uch out of the way tohear the %abbit say to itself, `)h dear* )h dear* + shall be late*' !when she thought it over afterwards, it

occurred to her that she ought to have wondered at this, but at the tie it all seeed uite natural"( but

when the %abbit actually took a watch out of its waistcoat# pocket, and looked at it, and then hurriedon, 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 fortunately was -ust in tie to see it pop down a large rabbit#hole under the hedge&

+n another oent 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 soe way, and then dipped suddenly down, so

suddenly that Alice had not a oent to think about stopping herself before she found herself falling

down a very deep well&

.ither the well was very deep, or she fell very slowly, for she had plenty of tie 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 akeout what she was coing 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 apsand pictures hung upon pegs& She took down a -ar fro one of the shelves as she passed( it was labelled

`)%A12. 3A%3ALA4.', but to her great disappointent it was epty: she did not like to drop the-ar for fear of killing soebody, 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, + shall think nothing of tubling down stairs*5ow brave they'll all think e at hoe* $hy, + wouldn't say anything about it, even if + fell off the top

of the house*' !$hich was very likely true&"

4own, down, down& $ould the fall never coe to an end* `+ wonder how any iles +'ve fallen by this

tie?' she said aloud& `+ ust be getting soewhere near the centre of the earth& Let e see: that would

be four thousand iles down , + think##' !for, you see, Alice had learnt several things of this sort in herlessons in the schoolroo, 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 + wonder what Latitude or Longitude +'ve got to?' !Alice had no idea

what Latitude was, or Longitude either, but thought they were nice grand words to say &"

6resently she began again& `+ wonder if + shall fall right through the earth* 5ow funny it'll see to

coe out aong the people that walk with their heads downward* he Antipathies, + think##' !she wasrather glad there was no one listening, this tie, as it didn't sound at all the right word" `##but + shall


3/55

have to ask the what the nae of the country is, you know& 6lease, 3a' a, is this 1ew 7ealand or

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?" Ànd what an ignorant little girl she'll think e for asking* 1o, it'll

never do to ask: perhaps + shall see it written up soewhere&'

4own, down, down& here was nothing else to do, so Alice soon began talking again& `4inah'll iss e

very uch to#night, + should think*' !4inah was the cat &" `+ hope they'll reeber her saucer of ilk attea#tie& 4inah y dear* + wish you were down here with e* here are no ice in the air, +' afraid,

but you ight catch a bat, and that's very like a ouse, you know& 8ut do cats eat bats, + wonder?' And

here Alice began to get rather sleepy, and went on saying to herself, in a dreay sort of way, `4o catseat bats? 4o cats eat bats?' and soeties, `4o bats eat cats?' for, you see, as she couldn't answer either

uestion, it didn't uch atter which way she put it& She felt that she was do9ing off, and had -ust

begun to drea that she was walking hand in hand with 4inah, and saying to her very earnestly, `1ow,4inah, tell e the truth: did you ever eat a bat?' when suddenly, thup* thup* down she cae upon a

heap of sticks and dry leaves, and the fall was over&

6icture;

Alice was not a bit hurt, and she -uped up on to her feet in a oent: she looked up, but it was all

dark overhead( before her was another long passage, and the $hite %abbit was still in sight, hurryingdown it& here was not a oent to be lost: away went Alice like the wind, and was -ust in tie to hear

it say, as it turned a corner, `)h y ears and whiskers, how late it's getting*' She was close behind it

when she turned the corner, but the %abbit was no longer to be seen: she found herself in a long, lowhall, which was lit up by a row of laps 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 howshe was ever to get out again&

Suddenly she cae upon a little three#legged table, all ade of solid glass( there was nothing on ite/cept a tiny golden key, and Alice's first thought was that it ight belong to one of the doors of the

hall( but, alas* either the locks were too large, or the key was too sall, but at any rate it would not

open any of the& 5owever, on the second tie round, she cae upon a low curtain she had notnoticed 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 sall 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 aong those beds of bright flowers and those cool fountains,

but she could not even get her head though the doorway( ànd even if y head would go through,'thought poor Alice, ìt would be of very little use without y shoulders& )h, how + wish + could shut up

like a telescope* + think + could, if + only know 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 reallyipossible&

6icture;here seeed to be no use in waiting by the little door, so she went back to the table, halfhoping she ight find another key on it, or at any rate a book of rules for shutting people up like

telescopes: this tie she found a little bottle on it, !`which certainly was not here before,' said Alice,"

and round the neck of the bottle was a paper label, with the words `4%+1< 3.' beautifully printed on


4/55

it in large letters&

+t was all very well to say `4rink e,' but the wise little Alice was not going to do that in a hurry& `1o,

+'ll look first,' she said, ànd see whether it's arked =poison= or not'( for she had read several nice littlehistories about children who had got burnt, and eaten up by wild beasts and other unpleasant things, all

because they would not reeber the siple 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, itusually bleeds( and she had never forgotten that, if you drink uch fro a bottle arked `poison,' it is

alost certain to disagree with you, sooner or later&

5owever, this bottle was 1) 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, toffee, and hot

buttered toast," she very soon finished it off&

> > > > > > >

> > > > > >

> > > > > > >

`$hat a curious feeling*' said Alice( `+ 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 thatshe was now the right si9e for going though 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, ìn y going out altogether, like a candle& +

wonder what + should be like then?' And she tried to fancy what the flae of a candle is like after thecandle is blown out, for she could not reeber 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 he 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 clib up one of the legs of the table, but it was tooslippery( and when she had tired herself out with trying, the poor little thing sat down and cried&

`Coe, there's no use in crying like that*' said Alice to herself, rather sharply( `+ advise you to leave offthis inute*' She generally gave herself very good advice, !though she very seldo followed it", and

soeties she scolded herself so severely as to bring tears into her eyes( and once she reebered

trying to bo/ her own ears for having cheated herself in a gae of crouet 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 )1.

respectable person*'

Soon her eye fell on a little glass bo/ that was lying under the table: she opened it, and found in it a

very sall cake, on which the words `.A 3.' were beautifully arked in currants& `$ell, +'ll eat it,'

said Alice, ànd if it akes e grow larger, + can reach the key( and if it akes e grow saller, + cancreep under the door( so either way +'ll get into the garden, and + don't care which happens*'

She ate a little bit, and said an/iously to herself, `$hich way? $hich way?', holding her hand on the


5/55

top of her head to feel which way it was growing, and she was uite surprised to find that she reained

the sae si9e: to be sure, this 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 seeed uite dull and stupid for

life to go on in the coon way&

So she set to work, and very soon finished off the cake&

> > > > > > >

> > > > > >

> > > > > > >

Chapter 2 - The Pool of Tears

`Curiouser and curiouser*' cried Alice !she was so uch surprised, that for the oent she uite forgothow to speak good .nglish"( `now +' opening out like the largest telescope that ever was* 2ood#bye,

feet*' !for when she looked down at her feet, they seeed to be alost out of sight, they were getting sofar off"& `)h, y poor little feet, + wonder who will put on your shoes and stockings for you now,

dears? +' sure + shan't be able* + shall be a great deal too far off to trouble yself about you: you

ust anage the best way you can( ##but + ust be kind to the,' thought Alice, òr perhaps they won'twalk the way + want to go* Let e see: +'ll give the a new pair of boots every Christas&'

And she went on planning to herself how she would anage it& `hey ust go by the carrier,' shethought( ànd how funny it'll see, sending presents to one's own feet* And how odd the directions will

look*

AL+C.'S %+25 0)), .S@&5.A%5%2,

1.A% 5. 0.14.%,

!$+5 AL+C.'S L)B."&

)h dear, what nonsense +' 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* +t was as uch as she could do, lying down on one side, to look through into the gardenwith one eye( but to get through was ore hopeless than ever: she sat down and began to cry again&

`Dou ought to be ashaed of yourself,' said Alice, à great girl like you,' ! she ight well say this", `togo on crying in this way* Stop this oent, + tell you*' 8ut she went on all the sae, 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 tie she heard a little pattering of feet in the distance, and she hastily dried her eyes to see what


6/55

was coing& +t 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 cae trotting along in a great hurry, uttering to hiself as he

cae, `)h* the 4uchess, the 4uchess* )h* won't she be savage if +'ve kept her waiting*' Alice felt so

desperate that she was ready to ask help of any one( so, when the %abbit cae near her, she began, in alow, tiid voice, `+f 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 tie she

went on talking: `4ear, dear* 5ow ueer everything is to#day* And yesterday things went on -ust as

usual& + wonder if +' ve been changed in the night? Let e think: was + the sae when + got up thisorning? + alost think + can reeber feeling a little different& 8ut if +' not the sae, the ne/t

uestion is, $ho in the world a +? Ah, 5A'S the great pu99le*' And she began thinking over all the

children she knew that were of the sae age as herself, to see if she could have been changed for any ofthe&

`+' sure +' not Ada,' she said, `for her hair goes in such long ringlets, and ine doesn't go in ringlets

at all( and +' sure + can't be 3abel, for + know all sorts of things, and she, oh* she knows such a verylittle* 8esides, S5.'S she, and +' +, and##oh dear, how pu99ling it all is* +'ll try if + know all the things

+ used to know& Let e see: four ties five is twelve, and four ties si/ is thirteen, and four ties

seven is##oh dear* + shall never get to twenty at that rate* 5owever, the 3ultiplication able doesn'tsignify: let's try 2eography& London is the capital of 6aris, and 6aris is the capital of %oe, and

%oe##no, 5A'S all wrong, +' certain* + ust have been changed for 3abel* +'ll try and say =5ow

doth the little##=' and she crossed her hands on her lap as if she were saying lessons, and began to repeatit, but her voice sounded hoarse and strange, and the words did not coe the sae as they used to do:##

`5ow doth the little crocodile +prove his shining tail, And pour the waters of the 1ile )n every

golden scale*

`5ow cheerfully he sees to grin, 5ow neatly spread his claws, And welcoe little fishes in $ith

gently siling -aws*'

`+' sure those are not the right words,' said poor Alice, and her eyes filled with tears again as she went

on, `+ ust be 3abel after all, and + shall have to go and live in that poky little house, and have ne/t tono toys to play with, and oh* ever so any lessons to learn* 1o, +'ve ade up y ind about it( if +'

3abel, +'ll stay down here* +t'll be no use their putting their heads down and saying =Coe up again,

dear*= + shall only look up and say =$ho a + then? ell e that first, and then, if + like being thatperson, +'ll coe up: if not, +'ll stay down here till +' soebody else=##but, oh dear*' cried Alice, with a

sudden burst of tears, `+ do wish they $)L4 put their heads down* + a so B.%D 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 CA1 + have done that?' she thought& `+

ust be growing sall again&' She 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

tie 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


7/55

door: but, alas* the little door was shut again, and the little golden key was lying on the glass table as

before, ànd things are worse than ever,' thought the poor child, `for + never was so sall as this before,

never* And + declare it's too bad, that it is*'

As she said these words her foot slipped, and in another oent, splash* she was up to her chin in salt

water& 5e first idea was that she had soehow fallen into the sea, ànd in that case + can go back by

railway,' she said to herself& !Alice had been to the seaside once in her life, and had coe to the generalconclusion, that wherever you go to on the .nglish coast you find a nuber of bathing achines in the

sea, soe 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 hadwept when she was nine feet high&

`+ wish + hadn't cried so uch*' said Alice, as she swa about, trying to find her way out& `+ shall bepunished for it now, + suppose, by being drowned in y own tears* hat $+LL be a ueer thing, to be

sure* 5owever, everything is ueer to#day&'

ust then she heard soething splashing about in the pool a little way off, and she swa nearer to akeout what it was: at first she thought it ust be a walrus or hippopotaus, but then she reebered how

sall 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? .verything is so out#of#the#way

down here, that + should think very likely it can talk: at any rate, there's no har in trying&' So she

began: `) 3ouse, do you know the way out of this pool? + a very tired of swiing 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 reebered having seen in her brother's Latin 2raar, À ouse##of a ouse##

to a ouse##a ouse##) ouse*' he 3ouse looked at her rather inuisitively, and seeed to her to

wink with one of its little eyes, but it said nothing&

`6erhaps it doesn't understand .nglish,' thought Alice( `+ daresay it's a 0rench ouse, coe over with

$illia the Conueror&' !0or, with all her knowledge of history, Alice had no very clear notion howlong ago anything had happened&" So 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 seeed to uiver all

over with fright& `)h, + beg your pardon*' cried Alice hastily, afraid that she had hurt the poor anial'sfeelings& `+ uite forgot you didn't like cats&'

`1ot like cats*' cried the 3ouse, in a shrill, passionate voice& `$ould D) like cats if you were e?'

`$ell, perhaps not,' said Alice in a soothing tone: `don't be angry about it& And yet + wish + could show

you our cat 4inah: + think you'd take a fancy to cats if you could only see her& She is such a dear uiet

thing,' Alice went on, half to herself, as she swa la9ily about in the pool, ànd she sits purring sonicely 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, + beg your pardon*' cried Alice again, for this tie the

3ouse was bristling all over, and she felt certain it ust be really offended& `$e won't talk about herany ore if you'd rather not&'

`$e indeed*' cried the 3ouse, who was trebling down to the end of his tail& Às if + would talk onsuch a sub-ect* )ur faily always 5A.4 cats: nasty, low, vulgar things* 4on't let e hear the nae

again*'


8/55

`+ won't indeed*' said Alice, in a great hurry to change the sub-ect of conversation& Àre 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 + 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, andall sorts of things##+ can't reeber half of the## and it belongs to a farer, 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, `+' afraid +'ve offended it again*' 0or the 3ouse was swiing away fro her as hardas it could go, and aking uite a cootion in the pool as it went&

So she called softly after it, `3ouse dear* 4o coe back again, and we won't talk about cats or dogseither, 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 trebling voice, `Let us

get to the shore, and then +'ll tell you y history, and you'll understand why it is + hate cats and dogs&'

+t was high tie to go, for the pool was getting uite crowded with the birds and anials that had fallen

into it: there were a 4uck and a 4odo, a Lory and an .aglet, and several other curious creatures& Alice

led the way, and the whole party swa to the shore&

Chapter - A Caucus-Race and a !on" Tale

hey were indeed a ueer#looking party that assebled on the bank##the birds with draggled feathers,the anials with their fur clinging close to the, and all dripping wet, cross, and uncofortable&

he first uestion of course was, how to get dry again: they had a consultation about this, and after afew inutes it seeed uite natural to Alice to find herself talking failiarly with the, as if she had

known the all her life& +ndeed, she had uite a long arguent with the Lory, who at last turned sulky,

and would only say, `+ a older than you, and ust know better'( and this Alice would not allowwithout knowing how old it was, and, as the Lory positively refused to tell its age, there was no ore tobe said&

At last the 3ouse, who seeed to be a person of authority aong the, called out, `Sit down, all ofyou, 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&

Àhe*' said the 3ouse with an iportant air, àre you all ready? his is the driest thing + know&

Silence all round, if you please* =$illia the Conueror, whose cause was favoured by the pope, was

soon subitted to by the .nglish, who wanted leaders, and had been of late uch accustoed tousurpation and conuest& .dwin and 3orcar, the earls of 3ercia and 1orthubria##='

`gh*' said the Lory, with a shiver&

`+ beg your pardon*' said the 3ouse, frowning, but very politely: `4id you speak?'

`1ot +*' said the Lory hastily&


9/55

`+ thought you did,' said the 3ouse& `##+ proceed& =.dwin and 3orcar, the earls of 3ercia and

1orthubria, declared for hi: and even Stigand, the patriotic archbishop of Canterbury, found it

advisable##='

`0ound $5A?' said the 4uck&

`0ound +,' the 3ouse replied rather crossly: òf course you know what =it= eans&'

`+ know what =it= eans well enough, when + find a thing,' said the 4uck: ìt '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 .dgar

Atheling to eet $illia and offer hi the crown& $illia's conduct at first was oderate& 8ut theinsolence of his 1orans##= 5ow are you getting on now, y dear?' it continued, turning to Alice as it

spoke&

Às wet as ever,' said Alice in a elancholy tone: ìt doesn't see to dry e at all&'

`+n that case,' said the 4odo solenly, rising to its feet, `+ ove that the eeting ad-ourn, for the

iediate adoption of ore energetic reedies##'

`Speak .nglish*' said the .aglet& `+ don't know the eaning of half those long words, and, what's ore,

+ don't believe you do either*' And the .aglet bent down its head to hide a sile: soe of the otherbirds tittered audibly&

`$hat + 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 +S a Caucus#race?' said Alice( not that she wanted uch to know, but the 4odo had paused as if

it thought that S)3.8)4D ought to speak, and no one else seeed 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, soe winter day, + 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 tie with

one finger pressed upon its forehead !the position in which you usually see Shakespeare, in the picturesof hi", while the rest waited in silence& At last the 4odo said, `.B.%D8)4D has won, and all ust

have pri9es&'

`8ut who is to give the pri9es?' uite a chorus of voices asked&

`$hy, S5., of course,' said the 4odo, pointing to Alice with one finger( and the whole party at once


10/55

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

cofits, !luckily the salt water had not got into it", and handed the round as pri9es& here was e/actlyone 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 thible,' said Alice sadly&

`5and it over here,' said the 4odo&

hen they all crowded round her once ore, while the 4odo solenly presented the thible, saying

`$e beg your acceptance of this elegant thible'( and, when it had finished this short speech, they allcheered&

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 siply bowed, and took the thible, looking as

solen as she could&

he ne/t thing was to eat the cofits: this caused soe noise and confusion, as the large birds

coplained that they could not taste theirs, and the sall 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

soething ore&

`Dou proised 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&

`+t +S 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 soething like this:##

`0ury said to a ouse, hat he et in the house, =Let us both go to law: + will prosecute D)& ##Coe,

+'ll take no denial( $e ust have a trial: 0or really this orning +'ve nothing to do&= Said the ouse to

the cur, =Such a trial, dear Sir, $ith no -ury or -udge, would be wasting our breath&= =+'ll be -udge, +'llbe -ury,= Said cunning old 0ury: =+'ll try the whole cause, and conden you to death&='

`Dou are not attending*' said the 3ouse to Alice severely& `$hat are you thinking of?'

`+ beg your pardon,' said Alice very hubly: `you had got to the fifth bend, + think?'

`+ had 1)*' 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


11/55

e help to undo it*'

`+ shall do nothing of the sort,' said the 3ouse, getting up and walking away & `Dou insult e by talking

such nonsense*'

`+ didn't ean it*' pleaded poor Alice& `8ut you're so easily offended, you know*'

he 3ouse only growled in reply&

`6lease coe back and finish your story*' Alice called after it( and the others all -oined in chorus, `Des,please do*' but the 3ouse only shook its head ipatiently, 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 tookthe opportunity of saying to her daughter `Ah, y dear* Let this be a lesson to you never to lose D)%

teper*' `5old your tongue, 3a*' said the young Crab, a little snappishly& `Dou're enough to try the

patience of an oyster*'

`+ wish + had our 4inah here, + know + do*' said Alice aloud, addressing nobody in particular& `She'd

soon fetch it back*'

`And who is 4inah, if + 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 acapital one for catching ice you can't think* And oh, + 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 rearkable sensation aong the party& Soe of the birds hurried off at once: onethe old 3agpie began wrapping itself up very carefully, rearking, `+ really ust be getting hoe( the

night#air doesn't suit y throat* ' and a Canary called out in a trebling voice to its children, `Coe

away, y dears* +t's high tie you were all in bed*' )n various prete/ts they all oved off, and Alicewas soon left alone&

`+ wish + hadn't entioned 4inah*' she said to herself in a elancholy tone& `1obody sees to like her,down here, and +' sure she's the best cat in the world* )h, y dear 4inah* + wonder if + shall ever see

you any ore*' And here poor Alice began to cry again, for she felt very lonely and low#spirited& +n a

little while, however, she again heard a little pattering of footsteps in the distance, and she looked upeagerly, half hoping that the 3ouse had changed his ind, and was coing back to finish his story&

Chapter # - The Rabbit $ends in a !ittle %ill

+t was the $hite %abbit, trotting slowly back again, and looking an/iously about as it went, as if it hadlost soething( and she heard it uttering to itself `he 4uchess* he 4uchess* )h y dear paws* )h

y fur and whiskers* She' ll get e e/ecuted, as sure as ferrets are ferrets* $here CA1 + have dropped

the, + wonder?' Alice guessed in a oent that it was looking for the fan and the pair of white kidgloves, and she very good#naturedly began hunting about for the, but they were nowhere to be seen##

everything seeed to have changed since her swi in the pool, and the great hall, with the glass table


12/55

and the little door, had vanished copletely&

Bery soon the %abbit noticed Alice, as she went hunting about, and called out to her in an angry tone,

`$hy, 3ary Ann, what A%. you doing out here? %un hoe this oent, and fetch e a pair of glovesand 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 houseaid,' she said to herself as she ran& `5ow surprised he'll be when he finds

out who + a* 8ut +'d better take hi his fan and gloves##that is, if + can find the&' As she said this,

she cae upon a neat little house, on the door of which was a bright brass plate with the nae `$&%A88+' engraved upon it& She 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 sees,' Alice said to herself, `to be going essages for a rabbit* + suppose 4inah'll be

sending e on essages ne/t*' And she began fancying the sort of thing that would happen: `=3iss

Alice* Coe here directly, and get ready for your walk*= =Coing in a inute, nurse* 8ut +'ve got to

see that the ouse doesn't get out&= )nly + don't think,' Alice went on, `that they' d let 4inah stop in thehouse if it began ordering people about like that*'

8y this tie she had found her way into a tidy little roo with a table in the window, and on it !as shehad 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 tie with the words `4%+1< 3.,' but nevertheless sheuncorked it and put it to her lips& `+ know S)3.5+12 interesting is sure to happen,' she said to

herself, `whenever + eat or drink anything( so +'ll -ust see what this bottle does& + do hope it'll ake e

grow large again, for really +' uite tired of being such a tiny little thing*'

+t 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& She

hastily put down the bottle, saying to herself `hat's uite enough##+ hope + shan't grow any ore##As itis, + can't get out at the door##+ do wish + hadn't drunk uite so uch*'

Alas* it was too late to wish that* She went on growing, and growing, and very soon had to kneel downon 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& Still she went on growing,

and, as a last resource, she put one ar out of the window, and one foot up the chiney, and said toherself `1ow + can do no ore, whatever happens& $hat $+LL becoe of e?'

Luckily for Alice, the little agic bottle had now had its full effect, and she grew no larger: still it was

very uncofortable, and, as there seeed to be no sort of chance of her ever getting out of the rooagain, no wonder she felt unhappy&

`+t was uch pleasanter at hoe,' thought poor Alice, `when one wasn't always growing larger andsaller, and being ordered about by ice and rabbits& + alost wish + hadn't gone down that rabbit#

hole##and yet##and yet##it's rather curious, you know, this sort of life* + do wonder what CA1 have

happened to e* $hen + used to read fairy#tales, + fancied that kind of thing never happened, and nowhere + a in the iddle of one* here ought to be a book written about e, that there ought* And when

+ grow up, +'ll write one##but +' grown up now,' she added in a sorrowful tone( `at least there's no roo

to grow up any ore 5.%.&'


13/55

`8ut then,' thought Alice, `shall + 1.B.% get any older than + a now? hat' ll be a cofort, one

way##never to be an old woan# #but then##always to have lessons to learn* )h, + shouldn't like

5A*'

`)h, you foolish Alice*' she answered herself& `5ow can you learn lessons in here? $hy, there's hardly

roo for D), 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 oent*' hen cae a little pattering

of feet on the stairs& Alice knew it was the %abbit coing to look for her, and she trebled till sheshook the house, uite forgetting that she was now about a thousand ties as large as the %abbit, and

had no reason to be afraid of it&

6resently the %abbit cae up to the door, and tried to open it( but, as the door opened inwards, andAlice's elbow was pressed hard against it, that attept proved a failure& Alice heard it say to itself

`hen +'ll go round and get in at the window&'

`5A 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& She did not get hold of

anything, but she heard a little shriek and a fall, and a crash of broken glass, fro which she concludedthat it was -ust possible it had fallen into a cucuber#frae, or soething of the sort&

1e/t cae an angry voice##the %abbit's##`6at* 6at* $here are you?' And then a voice she had never

heard before, `Sure then +' here* 4igging for apples, yer honour*'

`4igging for apples, indeed*' said the %abbit angrily& `5ere* Coe and help e out of 5+S*' !Sounds

of ore broken glass&"

`1ow tell e, 6at, what's that in the window?'

`Sure, 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*'

`Sure, 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, `Sure, +

don't like it, yer honour, at all, at all*' `4o as + tell you, you coward*' and at last she spread out her handagain, and ade another snatch in the air& his tie there were $) little shrieks, and ore sounds of

broken glass& `$hat a nuber of cucuber#fraes there ust be*' thought Alice& `+ wonder what they'll

do ne/t* As for pulling e out of the window, + only wish they C)L4* +' sure + don't want to stay inhere any longer *'

She waited for soe tie without hearing anything ore: at last cae a rubling of little cartwheels,


14/55

and the sound of a good any voice all talking together: she ade out the words: `$here's the other

ladder?##$hy, + 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 looseslate##)h, it's coing down* 5eads below*' !a loud crash"##`1ow, who did that?##+t was 8ill, + fancy##

$ho's to go down the chiney?##1ay, + shan't* D) do it*##hat + won't, then*##8ill's to go down##

5ere, 8ill* the aster says you're to go down the chiney*'

`)h* So 8ill's got to coe down the chiney, has he?' said Alice to herself& `Shy, they see to put

everything upon 8ill* + wouldn't be in 8ill's place for a good deal: this fireplace is narrow, to be sure(but + 5+1< + can kick a little *'

She drew her foot as far down the chiney as she could, and waited till she heard a little anial !shecouldn't guess of what sort it was" scratching and scrabling about in the chiney 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 cae a little feeble, sueaking voice, !`hat's 8ill,' thought Alice," ` $ell, + hardly know##1o

ore, thank ye( +' better now##but +' a deal too flustered to tell you##all + know is, soething coesat e like a ack#in#the# bo/, and up + goes like a sky#rocket*'

`So 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, `+f

you do& +'ll set 4inah at you*'

here was a dead silence instantly, and Alice thought to herself, `+ wonder what they $+LL do ne/t* +f

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, À barrowful will do, to begin with&'

À barrowful of $5A?' thought Alice( but she had not long to doubt, for the ne/t oent a shower

of little pebbles cae rattling in at the window, and soe of the hit her in the face& `+'ll put a stop tothis,' she said to herself, and shouted out, `Dou'd better not do that again*' which produced another dead

silence&

Alice noticed with soe surprise that the pebbles were all turning into little cakes as they lay on thefloor, and a bright idea cae into her head& `+f + eat one of these cakes,' she thought, ìt's sure to ake

S)3. change in y si9e( and as it can't possibly ake e larger, it ust ake e saller, + suppose&'

So she swallowed one of the cakes, and was delighted to find that she began shrinking directly& As soon

as she was sall enough to get through the door, she ran out of the house, and found uite a crowd of

little anials and birds waiting outside& he poor little Li9ard, 8ill, was in the iddle, being held up bytwo guinea#pigs, who were giving it soething out of a bottle& hey all ade a rush at Alice the

oent she appeared( but she ran off as hard as she could, and soon found herself safe in a thick wood&


15/55

`he first thing +'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& + think that will be

the best plan&'

+t sounded an e/cellent plan, no doubt, and very neatly and siply arranged( the only difficulty was,

that she had not the sallest idea how to set about it( and while she was peering about an/iously aong

the trees, a little sharp bark -ust over her head ade her look up in a great hurry&

An enorous 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 tie 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 -uped 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 oent she appeared on the other side, the puppy ade another rush at thestick, and tubled head over heels in its hurry to get hold of it( then Alice, thinking it was very like

having a gae of play with a cart#horse, and e/pecting every oent to be trapled under its feet, ran

round the thistle again( then the puppy began a series of short charges at the stick, running a very littleway forwards each tie 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 seeed 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, andfanned herself with one of the leaves: `+ should have liked teaching it tricks very uch, if##if +'d only

been the right si9e to do it* )h dear* +'d nearly forgotten that +'ve got to grow up again* Let e see#

#how +S it to be anaged? + suppose + ought to eat or drink soething or other( but the great uestionis, what?'

he great uestion certainly was, what? Alice looked all round her at the flowers and the blades ofgrass, but she did not see anything that looked like the right thing to eat or drink under the

circustances& here was a large ushroo growing near her, about the sae 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 aswell look and see what was on the top of it&

She stretched herself up on tiptoe, and peeped over the edge of the ushroo, and her eyes

iediately et those of a large caterpillar, that was sitting on the top with its ars folded, uietlysoking a long hookah, and taking not the sallest notice of her or of anything else&

Chapter & - Advice fro a Caterpillar

he Caterpillar and Alice looked at each other for soe tie in silence: at last the Caterpillar took the

hookah out of its outh, and addressed her in a languid, sleepy voice&


16/55

`$ho are D)?' said the Caterpillar&

his was not an encouraging opening for a conversation& Alice replied, rather shyly, `+##+ hardly know,sir, -ust at present## at least + know who + $AS when + got up this orning, but + think + ust have

been changed several ties since then&'

`$hat do you ean by that?' said the Caterpillar sternly& `./plain yourself*'

`+ can't e/plain 3DS.L0, +' afraid, sir' said Alice, `because +' not yself, you see&'

`+ don't see,' said the Caterpillar&

`+' afraid + can't put it ore clearly,' Alice replied very politely, `for + can't understand it yself to

begin with( and being so any different si9es in a day is very confusing&'

`+t 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 soe day, you know##and then after that into a butterfly, + 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 + know is, it would feel very ueer to

3.&'

`Dou*' said the Caterpillar conteptuously& `$ho are D)?'

$hich brought the back again to the beginning of the conversation& Alice felt a little irritated at theCaterpillar's aking such B.%D short rearks, and she drew herself up and said, very gravely, `+

think, you ought to tell e who D) are, first&'

`$hy?' said the Caterpillar&

5ere was another pu99ling uestion( and as Alice could not think of any good reason, and as theCaterpillar seeed to be in a B.%D unpleasant state of ind, she turned away&

`Coe back*' the Caterpillar called after her& `+'ve soething iportant to say*'

his sounded proising, certainly: Alice turned and cae back again&

`


17/55

her soething worth hearing& 0or soe inutes it puffed away without speaking, but at last it unfolded

its ars, took the hookah out of its outh again, and said, `So you think you're changed, do you?'

`+' afraid + a, sir,' said Alice( `+ can't reeber things as + used##and + don't keep the sae si9e forten inutes together*'

`Can't reeber $5A things?' said the Caterpillar&

`$ell, +'ve tried to say =5)$ 4)5 5. L+L. 8SD 8..,= but it all cae different*' Alice

replied in a very elancholy voice&

`%epeat, =D) A%. )L4, 0A5.% $+LL+A3,=' said the Caterpillar&

Alice folded her hands, and began:##

`Dou are old, 0ather $illia,' the young an said, Ànd your hair has becoe very white( And yet you

incessantly stand on your head## 4o you think, at your age, it is right?'

`+n y youth,' 0ather $illia replied to his son, `+ feared it ight in-ure the brain( 8ut, now that +'

perfectly sure + have none, $hy, + do it again and again&'

`Dou are old,' said the youth, às + entioned before, And have grown ost uncoonly fat( Det you

turned a back#soersault in at the door## 6ray, what is the reason of that?'

`+n y youth,' said the sage, as he shook his grey locks, `+ kept all y libs very supple 8y the use of

this ointent##one shilling the bo/## Allow e to sell you a couple?'

`Dou are old,' said the youth, ànd your -aws are too weak 0or anything tougher than suet( Det you

finished the goose, with the bones and the beak## 6ray how did you anage to do it?'

`+n y youth,' said his father, `+ took to the law, And argued each case with y wife( And the uscular

strength, which it gave to y -aw, 5as lasted the rest of y life&'

`Dou are old,' said the youth, òne would hardly suppose hat your eye was as steady as ever( Det you

balanced an eel on the end of your nose## $hat ade you so awfully clever?'

`+ have answered three uestions, and that is enough,' Said his father( `don't give yourself airs* 4o you

think + can listen all day to such stuff? 8e off, or +'ll kick you down stairs*'

`hat is not said right,' said the Caterpillar&

`1ot @+. right, +' afraid,' said Alice, tiidly( `soe of the words have got altered&'

`+t is wrong fro beginning to end,' said the Caterpillar decidedly, and there was silence for soe

inutes&

he Caterpillar was the first to speak&

`$hat si9e do you want to be?' it asked&


18/55

`)h, +' not particular as to si9e,' Alice hastily replied( ònly one doesn't like changing so often, you

know&'

`+ 4)1' know,' said the Caterpillar&

Alice said nothing: she had never been so uch contradicted in her life before, and she felt that she waslosing her teper&

Àre you content now?' said the Caterpillar&

`$ell, + should like to be a L+L. larger, sir, if you wouldn't ind,' said Alice: `three inches is such a

wretched height to be&'

`+t is a very good height indeed*' said the Caterpillar angrily, rearing itself upright as it spoke !it was

e/actly three inches high"&

`8ut +' not used to it*' pleaded poor Alice in a piteous tone& And she thought of herself, `+ wish the

creatures wouldn't be so easily offended*'

`Dou'll get used to it in tie,' said the Caterpillar( and it put the hookah into its outh and began

soking again&

his tie Alice waited patiently until it chose to speak again& +n 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 rearking as it went, `)ne side will ake you grow

taller, and the other side will ake you grow shorter&'

`)ne side of $5A? he other side of $5A?' thought Alice to herself&

`)f the ushroo,' said the Caterpillar, -ust as if she had asked it aloud( and in another oent it was

out of sight&

Alice reained 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 ars round it as far as they would go, and broke off a bit of the edge with each hand&

Ànd now which is which?' she said to herself, and nibbled a little of the right#hand bit to try the effect:

the ne/t oent she felt a violent blow underneath her chin: it had struck her foot*

She was a good deal frightened by this very sudden change, but she felt that there was no tie to be

lost, as she was shrinking rapidly( so she set to work at once to eat soe 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&

> > > > > > >

> > > > > >


19/55

> > > > > > >

`Coe, y head's free at last*' said Alice in a tone of delight, which changed into alar in another

oent, when she found that her shoulders were nowhere to be found: all she could see, when shelooked down, was an iense length of neck, which seeed to rise like a stalk out of a sea of green

leaves that lay far below her&

`$hat CA1 all that green stuff be?' said Alice& Ànd where 5AB. y shoulders got to? And oh, y

poor hands, how is it + can't see you?' She was oving the about as she spoke, but no result seeed to

follow, e/cept a little shaking aong the distant green leaves&

As there seeed 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&She had -ust succeeded in curving it down into a graceful 9ig9ag, and was going to dive in aong 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&

`Serpent*' screaed the 6igeon&

`+' 1) a serpent*' said Alice indignantly& `Let e alone*'

`Serpent, + say again*' repeated the 6igeon, but in a ore subdued tone, and added with a kind of sob,`+'ve tried every way, and nothing sees to suit the*'

`+ haven't the least idea what you're talking about,' said Alice&

`+'ve tried the roots of trees, and +'ve tried banks, and +'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&

Às if it wasn't trouble enough hatching the eggs,' said the 6igeon( `but + ust be on the look#out for

serpents night and day* $hy, + haven't had a wink of sleep these three weeks*'

`+' very sorry you've been annoyed,' said Alice, who was beginning to see its eaning&

Ànd -ust as +'d taken the highest tree in the wood,' continued the 6igeon, raising its voice to a shriek,

ànd -ust as + was thinking + should be free of the at last, they ust needs coe wriggling down frothe sky* gh, Serpent*'

`8ut +' 1) a serpent, + tell you*' said Alice& `+' a##+' a##'

`$ell* $5A are you?' said the 6igeon& `+ can see you're trying to invent soething*'

`+##+' a little girl,' said Alice, rather doubtfully, as she reebered the nuber of changes she had

gone through that day&


20/55

`A likely story indeed*' said the 6igeon in a tone of the deepest contept& `+'ve seen a good any little

girls in y tie, but never )1. with such a neck as that* 1o, no* Dou're a serpent( and there's no use

denying it& + suppose you'll be telling e ne/t that you never tasted an egg*'

`+ 5AB. tasted eggs, certainly,' said Alice, who was a very truthful child( `but little girls eat eggs uite

as uch as serpents do, you know&'

`+ don't believe it,' said the 6igeon( `but if they do, why then they're a kind of serpent, that's all + 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, `Dou're looking for eggs, + know 5A well enough( and what does it

atter to e whether you're a little girl or a serpent?'

`+t atters a good deal to 3.,' said Alice hastily( `but +' not looking for eggs, as it happens( and if +

was, + shouldn't want D)%S: + 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 aong the trees as well as she could, for her neck kept getting entangled aong the

branches, and every now and then she had to stop and untwist it& After a while she reebered that shestill 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 soeties taller and soeties shorter, until she had succeeded in

bringing herself down to her usual height&

+t 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& `Coe, there's half y plan done

now* 5ow pu99ling all these changes are* +' never sure what +' going to be, fro one inute toanother* 5owever, +'ve got back to y right si9e: the ne/t thing is, to get into that beautiful garden##

how +S that to be done, + wonder?' As she said this, she cae 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 coe upon the5+S si9e: why, + should frighten the out of their wits*' So 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 ( - Pi" and Pepper

0or a inute or two she stood looking at the house, and wondering what to do ne/t, when suddenly a

footan in livery cae running out of the wood##!she considered hi to be a footan because he was

in livery: otherwise, -udging by his face only, she would have called hi a fish"##and rapped loudly atthe door with his knuckles& +t was opened by another footan in livery, with a round face, and large

eyes like a frog( and both footen, Alice noticed, had powdered hair that curled all over their heads&

She felt very curious to know what it was all about, and crept a little way out of the wood to listen&

he 0ish#0ootan began by producing fro under his ar a great letter, nearly as large as hiself, and

this he handed over to the other, saying, in a solen tone, `0or the 4uchess& An invitation fro the@ueen to play crouet&' he 0rog#0ootan repeated, in the sae solen tone, only changing the order

of the words a little, `0ro the @ueen& An invitation for the 4uchess to play crouet&'


21/55

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( andwhen she ne/t peeped out the 0ish#0ootan was gone, and the other was sitting on the ground near the

door, staring stupidly up into the sky&

Alice went tiidly up to the door, and knocked&

`here's no sort of use in knocking,' said the 0ootan, ànd that for two reasons& 0irst, because +' onthe sae 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 beenbroken to pieces&

`6lease, then,' said Alice, `how a + to get in?'

`here ight be soe sense in your knocking,' the 0ootan went on without attending to her, ìf we

had the door between us& 0or instance, if you were +1S+4., you ight knock, and + could let you out,

you know&' 5e was looking up into the sky all the tie he was speaking, and this Alice thoughtdecidedly uncivil& `8ut perhaps he can't help it,' she said to herself( `his eyes are so B.%D nearly at the

top of his head& 8ut at any rate he ight answer uestions#5ow a + to get in?' she repeated, aloud&

`+ shall sit here,' the 0ootan rearked, `till toorrow##'

At this oent the door of the house opened, and a large plate cae skiing out, straight at the

0ootan's head: it -ust gra9ed his nose, and broke to pieces against one of the trees behind hi&

`##or ne/t day, aybe,' the 0ootan continued in the sae tone, e/actly as if nothing had happened&

`5ow a + to get in?' asked Alice again, in a louder tone&

À%. you to get in at all?' said the 0ootan& `hat's the first uestion, you know&'

+t was, no doubt: only Alice did not like to be told so& `+t's really dreadful,' she uttered to herself, `the

way all the creatures argue& +t's enough to drive one cra9y*'

he 0ootan seeed to think this a good opportunity for repeating his reark, with variations& `+ shall

sit here,' he said, òn and off, for days and days&'

`8ut what a + to do?' said Alice&

Ànything you like,' said the 0ootan, 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 soke 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,


22/55

stirring a large cauldron which seeed 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& .ven the 4uchess snee9ed occasionally( and as for the

baby, it was snee9ing and howling alternately without a oent'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 froear to ear&

`6lease would you tell e,' said Alice, a little tiidly, for she was not uite sure whether it was goodanners for her to speak first, `why your cat grins like that?'

`+t's a Cheshire cat,' said the 4uchess, ànd that's why& 6ig*'

She said the last word with such sudden violence that Alice uite -uped( but she saw in another

oent that it was addressed to the baby, and not to her, so she took courage, and went on again:##

`+ didn't know that Cheshire cats always grinned( in fact, + didn't know that cats C)L4 grin&'

`hey all can,' said the 4uchess( ànd ost of 'e do&'

`+ don't know of any that do,' Alice said very politely, feeling uite pleased to have got into a

conversation&

`Dou don't know uch,' said the 4uchess( ànd that's a fact&'

Alice did not at all like the tone of this reark, and thought it would be as well to introduce soe othersub-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 cae first( then followed a shower of saucepans, plates, and dishes& he 4uchess took nonotice of the even when they hit her( and the baby was howling so uch already, that it was uite

ipossible to say whether the blows hurt it or not&

`)h, 6L.AS. ind what you're doing*' cried Alice, -uping up and down in an agony of terror& `)h,

there goes his 6%.C+)S nose'( as an unusually large saucepan flew close by it, and very nearly

carried it off&

`+f 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 1) be an advantage,' said Alice, who felt very glad to get an opportunity of showing

off a little of her knowledge& ùst think of what work it would ake with the day and night* Dou see

the earth takes twenty#four hours to turn round on its a/is##'

àlking 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 seeed not to be listening, so she went on again: `wenty#four hours, + 5+1


23/55

`)h, don't bother 3.,' said the 4uchess( `+ 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:

`Speak roughly to your little boy, And beat hi when he snee9es: 5e only does it to annoy, 8ecause he

knows it teases&'

C5)%S&

!+n which the cook and the baby -oined":##

`$ow* 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:##

`+ speak severely to y boy, + beat hi when he snee9es( 0or he can thoroughly en-oy he pepper

when he pleases*'

C5)%S&

`$ow* 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& `+ ust go and get ready to play crouet 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 soe difficulty, as it was a ueer# shaped little creature, and held out its

ars and legs in all directions, `-ust like a star#fish,' thought Alice& he poor little thing was snortinglike 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& `+0 + don't take this child away with e,' thought Alice, `they're sure to kill it in aday or two: wouldn't it be urder to leave it behind?' She said the last words out loud, and the little

thing grunted in reply !it had left off snee9ing by this tie"& `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 B.%D turn#up nose, uch ore like a snout than a real nose(

also its eyes were getting e/treely sall for a baby: altogether Alice did not like the look of the thingat 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& `+f you're going to turn into a pig, y dear,' said Alice, seriously, `+'ll have

nothing ore to do with you& 3ind now*' he poor little thing sobbed again !or grunted, it was

ipossible to say which", and they went on for soe while in silence&


24/55

Alice was -ust beginning to think to herself, `1ow, what a + to do with this creature when + get it

hoe?' when it grunted again, so violently, that she looked down into its face in soe alar& his tie

there could be 1) istake about it: it was neither ore nor less than a pig, and she felt that it would beuite absurd for her to carry it further&

So she set the little creature down, and felt uite relieved to see it trot away uietly into the wood& `+f ithad grown up,' she said to herself, ìt would have ade a dreadfully ugly child: but it akes rather a

handsoe pig, + think&' And she began thinking over other children she knew, who ight do very well

as pigs, and was -ust saying to herself, ìf one only knew the right way to change the##' when she wasa 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& +t looked good# natured, she thought: still it had B.%D longclaws and a great any teeth, so she felt that it ought to be treated with respect&

`Cheshire 6uss,' she began, rather tiidly, as she did not at all know whether it would like the nae:

however, it only grinned a little wider& `Coe, it's pleased so far,' thought Alice, and she went on&`$ould you tell e, please, which way + ought to go fro here?'

`hat depends a good deal on where you want to get to,' said the Cat&

`+ don't uch care where##' said Alice&

`hen it doesn't atter which way you go,' said the Cat&

`##so long as + get S)3.$5.%.,' Alice added as an e/planation&

`)h, you're sure to do that,' said the Cat, ìf you only walk long enough&'

Alice felt that this could not be denied, so she tried another uestion& `$hat sort of people live abouthere?'

`+n 5A direction,' the Cat said, waving its right paw round, `lives a 5atter: and in 5A direction,'waving the other paw, `lives a 3arch 5are& Bisit either you like: they're both ad&'

`8ut + don't want to go aong ad people,' Alice rearked&

`)h, you can't help that,' said the Cat: `we're all ad here& +' ad& Dou're ad&'

`5ow do you know +' ad?' said Alice&

`Dou ust be,' said the Cat, òr you wouldn't have coe here&'

Alice didn't think that proved it at all( however, she went on Ànd how do you know that you're ad?'

ò begin with,' said the Cat, à dog's not ad& Dou grant that?'

`+ suppose so,' said Alice&


25/55

`$ell, then,' the Cat went on, `you see, a dog growls when it's angry, and wags its tail when it's

pleased& 1ow + growl when +' pleased, and wag y tail when +' angry& herefore +' ad&'

`+ call it purring, not growling,' said Alice&

`Call it what you like,' said the Cat& `4o you play crouet with the @ueen to#day?'

`+ should like it very uch,' said Alice, `but + haven't been invited yet&'

`Dou'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 becae of the baby?' said the Cat& `+'d nearly forgotten to ask&'

`+t turned into a pig,' Alice uietly said, -ust as if it had coe back in a natural way&

`+ 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& `+'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 beraving 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&

`+ said pig,' replied Alice( `and + wish you wouldn't keep appearing and vanishing so suddenly: you

ake one uite giddy&'

`All right,' said the Cat( and this tie it vanished uite slowly, beginning with the end of the tail, and

ending with the grin, which reained soe tie after the rest of it had gone&

`$ell* +'ve often seen a cat without a grin,' thought Alice( `but a grin without a cat* +t's the ost curious

thing + ever say in y life*'

She had not gone uch farther before she cae in sight of the house of the 3arch 5are: she thought it

ust be the right house, because the chineys were shaped like ears and the roof was thatched with

fur& +t was so large a house, that she did not like to go nearer till she had nibbled soe ore of thelefthand bit of ushroo, and raised herself to about two feet high: even then she walked up towards it

rather tiidly, saying to herself `Suppose it should be raving ad after all* + alost wish +'d gone to

see the 5atter instead*'

Chapter ) - A *ad Tea-Part+


26/55

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 4orouse 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& `Bery uncofortable for the

4orouse,' thought Alice( ònly, as it's asleep, + 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 coing& `here's 6L.1D of roo*' said Alice indignantly,and she sat down in a large ar#chair at one end of the table&

`5ave soe wine,' the 3arch 5are said in an encouraging tone&

Alice looked all round the table, but there was nothing on it but tea& `+ don't see any wine,' she

rearked&

`here isn't any,' said the 3arch 5are&

`hen it wasn't very civil of you to offer it,' said Alice angrily&

`+t wasn't very civil of you to sit down without being invited,' said the 3arch 5are&

`+ didn't know it was D)% table,' said Alice( ìt's laid for a great any ore than three&'

`Dour hair wants cutting,' said the 5atter& 5e had been looking at Alice for soe tie with greatcuriosity, and this was his first speech&

`Dou should learn not to ake personal rearks,' Alice said with soe severity( ìt's very rude&'

he 5atter opened his eyes very wide on hearing this( but all he SA+4 was, `$hy is a raven like a

writing#desk?'

`Coe, we shall have soe fun now*' thought Alice& `+' glad they've begun asking riddles#+ believe +

can guess that,' she added aloud&

`4o you ean that you think you can find out the answer to it?' said the 3arch 5are&

`./actly so,' said Alice&

`hen you should say what you ean,' the 3arch 5are went on&

`+ do,' Alice hastily replied( àt least##at least + ean what + say##that's the sae thing, you know&'

`1ot the sae thing a bit*' said the 5atter& `Dou ight -ust as well say that =+ see what + eat= is the sae

thing as =+ eat what + see=*'

`Dou ight -ust as well say,' added the 3arch 5are, `that =+ like what + get= is the sae thing as =+ get

what + like=*'

`Dou ight -ust as well say,' added the 4orouse, who seeed to be talking in his sleep, `that =+

breathe when + sleep= is the sae thing as =+ sleep when + breathe=*'


27/55

`+t +S the sae 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 reeber 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& `+ told you butter wouldn't suit the works*' he added looking

angrily at the 3arch 5are&

`+t was the 8.S butter,' the 3arch 5are eekly replied&

`Des, but soe crubs ust have got in as well,' the 5atter grubled: `you shouldn't have put it inwith the bread#knife&'

he 3arch 5are took the watch and looked at it glooily: then he dipped it into his cup of tea, andlooked at it again: but he could think of nothing better to say than his first reark, `+t was the 8.S

butter, you know&'

Alice had been looking over his shoulder with soe curiosity& `$hat a funny watch*' she rearked& `+t

tells the day of the onth, and doesn't tell what o'clock it is*'

`$hy should it?' uttered the 5atter& `4oes D)% watch tell you what year it is?'

`)f course not,' Alice replied very readily: `but that's because it stays the sae year for such a long

tie together&'

`$hich is -ust the case with 3+1.,' said the 5atter&

Alice felt dreadfully pu99led& he 5atter's reark seeed to have no sort of eaning in it, and yet it

was certainly .nglish& `+ don't uite understand you,' she said, as politely as she could&

`he 4orouse is asleep again,' said the 5atter, and he poured a little hot tea upon its nose&

he 4orouse shook its head ipatiently, and said, without opening its eyes, `)f course, of course(

-ust what + was going to reark yself&'

`5ave you guessed the riddle yet?' the 5atter said, turning to Alice again&

`1o, + give it up,' Alice replied: `what's the answer?'

`+ haven't the slightest idea,' said the 5atter&

`1or +,' said the 3arch 5are&


28/55

Alice sighed wearily& `+ think you ight do soething better with the tie,' she said, `than waste it in

asking riddles that have no answers&'

`+f you knew ie as well as + do,' said the 5atter, `you wouldn't talk about wasting +& +t's 5+3&'

`+ don't know what you ean,' said Alice&

`)f course you don't*' the 5atter said, tossing his head conteptuously& `+ dare say you never even

spoke to ie*'

`6erhaps not,' Alice cautiously replied: `but + know + have to beat tie when + learn usic&'

Àh* that accounts for it,' said the 5atter& `5e won't stand beating& 1ow, if you only kept on good terswith hi, he'd do alost anything you liked with the clock& 0or instance, suppose it were nine o'clock

in the orning, -ust tie to begin lessons: you'd only have to whisper a hint to ie, and round goes

the clock in a twinkling* 5alf#past one, tie for dinner*'

!`+ only wish it was,' the 3arch 5are said to itself in a whisper&"

`hat would be grand, certainly,' said Alice thoughtfully: `but then##+ shouldn't be hungry for it, youknow&'

`1ot at first, perhaps,' said the 5atter: `but you could keep it to half#past one as long as you liked&'

`+s that the way D) anage?' Alice asked&

he 5atter shook his head ournfully& `1ot +*' he replied& `$e uarrelled last 3arch##-ust before 5.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 + had to sing

=winkle, twinkle, little bat* 5ow + wonder what you're at*=

Dou know the song, perhaps?'

`+'ve heard soething like it,' said Alice&

`+t goes on, you know,' the 5atter continued, ìn this way:##

=p above the world you fly, Like a tea#tray in the sky& winkle, twinkle##='

5ere the 4orouse 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, +'d hardly finished the first verse,' said the 5atter, `when the @ueen -uped up and bawled out,

=5e's urdering the tie* )ff with his head*='

`5ow dreadfully savage*' e/claied Alice&

Ànd ever since that,' the 5atter went on in a ournful tone, `he won't do a thing + ask* +t's always si/


29/55

o'clock now&'

A bright idea cae into Alice's head& `+s that the reason so any tea#things are put out here?' she asked&

`Des, that's it,' said the 5atter with a sigh: ìt's always tea#tie, and we've no tie to wash the things

between whiles&'

`hen you keep oving round, + suppose?' said Alice&

`./actly so,' said the 5atter: às the things get used up&'

`8ut what happens when you coe to the beginning again?' Alice ventured to ask&

`Suppose we change the sub-ect,' the 3arch 5are interrupted, yawning& `+' getting tired of this& + vote

the young lady tells us a story&'

`+' afraid + don't know one,' said Alice, rather alared at the proposal&

`hen the 4orouse shall*' they both cried& `$ake up, 4orouse*' And they pinched it on both sides at

once&

he 4orouse slowly opened his eyes& `+ wasn't asleep,' he said in a hoarse, feeble voice: `+ heard

every word you fellows were saying&'

èll us a story*' said the 3arch 5are&

`Des, please do*' pleaded Alice&

Ànd be uick about it,' added the 5atter, òr you'll be asleep again before it's done&'

`)nce upon a tie there were three little sisters,' the 4orouse began in a great hurry( ànd their naes

were .lsie, 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 4orouse, after thinking a inute or two&

`hey couldn't have done that, you know,' Alice gently rearked( `they'd have been ill&'

`So they were,' said the 4orouse( `B.%D ill&'

Alice tried to fancy to herself what such an e/traordinary ways of living would be like, but it pu99ledher too uch, so she went on: `8ut why did they live at the botto of a well?'

àke soe ore tea,' the 3arch 5are said to Alice, very earnestly&

`+'ve had nothing yet,' Alice replied in an offended tone, `so + can't take ore&'


30/55

`Dou ean you can't take L.SS,' said the 5atter: ìt's very easy to take 3)%. than nothing&'

`1obody asked D)% opinion,' said Alice&

`$ho's aking personal rearks now?' the 5atter asked triuphantly&

Alice did not uite know what to say to this: so she helped herself to soe tea and bread#and#butter,and then turned to the 4orouse, and repeated her uestion& `$hy did they live at the botto of a

well?'

he 4orouse again took a inute or two to think about it, and then said, `+t was a treacle#well&'

`here's no such thing*' Alice was beginning very angrily, but the 5atter and the 3arch 5are went `Sh*sh*' and the 4orouse sulkily rearked, `+f you can't be civil, you'd better finish the story for yourself&'

`1o, please go on*' Alice said very hubly( `+ won't interrupt again& + dare say there ay be )1.&'

`)ne, indeed*' said the 4orouse indignantly& 5owever, he consented to go on& Ànd so these three

little sisters##they were learning to draw, you know##'

`$hat did they draw?' said Alice, uite forgetting her proise&

`reacle,' said the 4orouse, without considering at all this tie&

`+ want a clean cup,' interrupted the 5atter: `let's all ove one place on&'

5e oved on as he spoke, and the 4orouse followed hi: the 3arch 5are oved into the4orouse'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 4orouse again, so she began very cautiously: `8ut + don't understand&

$here did they draw the treacle fro?'

`Dou can draw water out of a water#well,' said the 5atter( `so + should think you could draw treacle out

of a treacle#well##eh, stupid?'

`8ut they were +1 the well,' Alice said to the 4orouse, not choosing to notice this last reark&

`)f course they were', said the 4orouse( `##well in&'

his answer so confused poor Alice, that she let the 4orouse go on for soe tie without

interrupting it&

`hey were learning to draw,' the 4orouse went on, yawning and rubbing its eyes, for it was getting

very sleepy( ànd they drew all anner of things##everything that begins with an 3##'

`$hy with an 3?' said Alice&


31/55

`$hy not?' said the 3arch 5are&

Alice was silent&

he 4orouse had closed its eyes by this tie, 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 eory, and uchness## you know you say things are =uch of auchness=##did you ever see such a thing as a drawing of a uchness?'

`%eally, now you ask e,' said Alice, very uch confused, `+ don't think##'

`hen you shouldn't talk,' sa

lewis carrol - alice's adventures in wonderland

Documents