'Not bit,' said the Caterpillar

'Well, perhaps your feelings different,' said Alice; 'all is, it would feel very queer '

'You ! ' said the Caterpillar contemptuously 'Who ? '

Which brought them back again beginning conversation Alice felt little irritated Caterpillar's making such VERY short remarks, and she drew herself up and said, very gravely, ' , you ought me who , first '

'Why ? ' said the Caterpillar

Here was another puzzling question; and as Alice think of any good reason, and Caterpillar seemed in VERY unpleasant state of mind, she turned away

'Come back ! ' the Caterpillar called after her 'I've something important ! '

This sounded promising, certainly: Alice turned and came back again

'Keep your temper,' said the Caterpillar

' all ? ' said Alice, swallowing down her anger as

'No,' said the Caterpillar

Alice thought she might wait, as she had nothing else , and perhaps after all it might tell her something worth hearing For some minutes it puffed away without speaking, but at last it unfolded its arms, took the hookah out mouth again, and said, 'So you're changed, ? '

'I'm afraid , sir,' said Alice; ' 't remember things as I used--and I don't keep the same size for ten minutes together ! '

'Can't remember WHAT things ? ' said the Caterpillar

'Well, I've tried "HOW DOTH THE LITTLE BUSY BEE," but it all came different ! ' Alice replied in very melancholy voice

'Repeat, " OLD, FATHER WILLIAM,"' said the Caterpillar

Alice folded her hands, and began:--

' old, Father William,' the young man said, 'And your hair has become very white; And yet you incessantly stand head-- , at your age, right ? '

'In my youth,' Father William replied son, 'I feared it might injure the brain; But, now that I'm perfectly sure none, Why, I again and again '

' old,' said the youth, 'as I mentioned before, grown most uncommonly fat; Yet you turned back-somersault in door-- Pray, the reason ? '

'In my youth,' said the sage, as he shook his grey locks, 'I kept all my limbs very supple use ointment--one shilling the box-- Allow me you couple ? '

' old,' said the youth, 'and your jaws are too weak For anything tougher than suet; Yet you finished the goose, bones beak-- Pray how did you manage ? '

'In my youth,' said his father, ' law, And argued with my wife; muscular strength, which it gave to my jaw, Has lasted the rest life '

' old,' said the youth, 'one would hardly suppose That your eye was as steady as ever; Yet you balanced an eel end of your nose-- What made you so awfully clever ? '

' answered three questions, is enough,' Said his father; 'don't give yourself airs ! listen all day to such stuff ? Be off, or I'll kick you down stairs ! '

' said right,' said the Caterpillar

'Not QUITE right, I'm afraid,' said Alice, timidly; ' words have got altered '

' wrong from beginning to end,' said the Caterpillar decidedly, and silence for some minutes

The Caterpillar first

'What size ? ' it asked

'Oh, I'm not particular size,' Alice hastily replied; ' doesn't like changing so often, '

'I DON'T know,' said the Caterpillar

Alice said nothing: she had never been contradicted in her life before, and she felt that she was losing her temper

' content now ? ' said the Caterpillar

'Well, like LITTLE larger, sir, wouldn't mind,' said Alice: 'three inches is such wretched height '

' height indeed ! ' said the Caterpillar angrily, rearing itself upright as it spoke ( exactly three inches high)

'But I'm not used ! ' pleaded poor Alice in piteous tone And she thought of herself, ' the creatures wouldn't be so easily offended ! '

'You'll get used ,' said the Caterpillar; and it put the hookah into its mouth and began smoking again

Alice waited patiently until it chose again In minute or two the Caterpillar took the hookah out mouth and yawned , and shook itself Then it got down off the mushroom, and crawled away grass, merely remarking as it went, 'One side will make you grow taller, other side will make you grow shorter '

'One side of WHAT ? The other side of WHAT ? ' thought Alice to herself

' mushroom,' said the Caterpillar, just she had asked it aloud; and in another moment out of sight

Alice remained looking thoughtfully mushroom for minute, trying out which were the two sides of it; and as perfectly round, she found this very difficult question However, at last she stretched her arms round it as far as go, and broke off bit edge with each hand

'And now which ? ' she said to herself, and nibbled little right-hand bit the effect: the next moment she felt violent blow underneath her chin: it had struck her foot !

She was frightened very sudden change, but she felt that no time lost, as she was shrinking rapidly; so she set to work at once to eat other bit Her chin was pressed so closely against her foot, that hardly room to open her mouth; but she did it at last, and managed to swallow morsel lefthand bit

* * * * * * *

* * * * * *

* * * * * * *

'Come, my head's free at last ! ' said Alice in tone of delight, which changed into alarm in another moment, when she found that her shoulders were nowhere found: all she , when she looked down, was an immense length of neck, which seemed to rise like stalk out of sea of green leaves that lay far below her

'What CAN all that green stuff be ? ' said Alice 'And where HAVE my shoulders got to ? And oh, my poor hands, how 't see you ? ' She was moving them about as she spoke, but no result seemed , except little shaking distant green leaves

As there seemed no chance of getting her hands her head, she tried her head down , and was delighted that her neck would bend about easily in any direction, like serpent She had just succeeded in curving it down into graceful zigzag, and was going to dive in leaves, which she found nothing but the tops trees under which she wandering, when sharp hiss made her draw back in hurry: large pigeon had flown into her face, and was beating her violently with its wings

'Serpent ! ' screamed the Pigeon

'I'm NOT serpent ! ' said Alice indignantly 'Let me alone ! '

'Serpent, again ! ' repeated the Pigeon, but in more subdued tone, and added with kind of sob, 'I've tried every way, and nothing seems to suit them ! '

'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 Pigeon went on, without attending to her; 'but those serpents ! There's no pleasing them ! '

Alice was more and more puzzled, but she thought no use in saying anything more till the Pigeon had finished

' it wasn't trouble enough hatching the eggs,' said the Pigeon; 'but look-out for serpents night and day ! Why, I haven't had wink of sleep these three weeks ! '

'I'm very sorry you've been annoyed,' said Alice, who was beginning its meaning

'And just as I'd taken the highest tree wood,' continued the Pigeon, raising its voice to shriek, 'and just as thinking free at last, needs come wriggling down sky ! Ugh, Serpent ! '

'But I'm NOT serpent, I tell you ! ' said Alice 'I'm a--I'm a--'

'Well ! you ? ' said the Pigeon ' you're trying to invent something ! '

'I--I'm little girl,' said Alice, rather doubtfully, as she remembered the number of changes she had gone day

'A likely story indeed ! ' said the Pigeon in tone deepest contempt 'I've seen little girls in , but never ONE neck ! No, no ! You're serpent; and there's no use denying it I suppose you'll be telling me next that you never tasted an egg ! '

' tasted eggs, certainly,' said Alice, who was very truthful child; 'but little girls eat eggs quite as serpents do, '

'I don't believe it,' said the Pigeon; 'but do, why then they're kind of serpent, that's all '

such new idea to Alice, that she was quite silent for minute or two, which gave the Pigeon the opportunity of adding, 'You're looking for eggs, THAT well enough; and what does it matter whether you're little girl or serpent ? '

'It matters ,' said Alice hastily; 'but I'm not looking for eggs, as it happens; and if , I shouldn't want YOURS: I don't like them raw '

'Well, be off, then ! ' said the Pigeon in sulky tone, as it settled down again into its nest Alice crouched down trees as , for her neck kept getting entangled branches, and every she had to stop and untwist it After while she remembered that she still held the pieces of mushroom in her hands, and she set to work very carefully, nibbling first at one and then other, and growing sometimes taller and sometimes shorter, until she had succeeded in bringing herself down to her usual height

since she anything near the right size, felt quite strange at first; but she got used , and began talking to herself, as usual 'Come, there's half my plan done now ! How puzzling all these changes are ! I'm never sure what I'm going , from one minute to another ! However, I've got back to my right size: the next thing is, into that beautiful garden--how , I wonder ? ' As she said this, she came suddenly upon an open place, with little house about four feet high 'Whoever lives there,' thought Alice, 'it'll never do upon them THIS size: why, frighten them out wits ! ' So she began nibbling righthand bit again, and venture near the house till she had brought herself down to nine inches high

Chapter VI: Pig and Pepper