DOWN THE RABBIT-HOLE
Alice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her
sister on the bank, and of having nothing to do: once or
twice she had peeped into the book her sister was reading,
but it had no pictures or conversations in it, “and what
is the use of a book,” thought Alice, “without pictures or conversations?”
So she was considering, in her own mind (as well as she
could, for the hot day made her feel very sleepy and stupid),
whether the pleasure of making a daisy-chain would be worth
the trouble of getting up and picking the daisies, when suddenly
a White Rabbit with pink eyes ran close by her.
There was nothing so
very remarkable in that; nor did Alice
think it so
very much out of the way to hear the Rabbit say
to itself “Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!” (when she
thought it over afterwards, it occurred to her that she ought
to have wondered at this, but at the time it all seemed quite
natural); but, when the Rabbit actually
took a watch out of its waistcoat-pocket, and looked at it, and then hurried on, Alice
started to her feet, for it flashed across her mind that she had
never before seen a rabbit with either a waistcoat-pocket, or
a watch to take out of it, and, burning with curiosity, she ran
across the field after it, and was just in time to see it pop down
a large rabbit-hole under the hedge.
In another moment down went Alice after it, never once
considering how in the world she was to get out again.
The rabbit-hole went straight on like a tunnel for some
way, and then dipped suddenly down, so suddenly that Alice
had not a moment to think about stopping herself before she
found herself falling down what seemed to be a very deep well.
Either the well was very deep, or she fell very slowly, for
she had plenty of time as she went down to look about her,
and to wonder what was going to happen next. First, she tried
to look down and make out what she was coming 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 maps and pictures
hung upon pegs. She took down a jar from one of the shelves
as she passed: it was labeled ORANGE MARMALADE, but to her
great disappointment it was empty: she did not like to drop
the jar, for fear of killing somebody underneath, so managed
to put it into one of the cupboards as she fell past it.
“Well!” thought Alice to herself. “After such
a fall as this, I shall think nothing of tumbling
down-stairs! How brave they’ll all think me at
home! Why, I wouldn’t say anything about it,
even if I fell off the top of the house!” (Which
was very likely true.)
Copyright © 2020 by Lewis Carroll. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
