,alice's ,adventures in ,wonderland ,lewis ,carroll1 #ahfe ,chapter ,i -- ,down the ,rabbit-,hole ,alice was beginning to get very tired of sitting by her sister on the bank1 and of having nothing to do3 once or twice she had peeped into the book her sister was reading1 but it had no pictures or conversations in it1 8and what is the use of a book10 thought ,alice 8without pictures or conversations80 ,so she was considering in her own mind "1 whether the pleasure of making a daisy-chain would be worth the trouble of getting up and picking the daisies1 when suddenly a ,white ,rabbit with pink eyes ran close by her4 ,there was nothing so .-very.- remarkable in that2 nor did ,alice think it so .-very.- much out of the way to hear the ,rabbit say to itself1 8,oh dear6 ,oh dear6 ,i shall be late60 "2 but when the ,rabbit actually .-took a watch out of its waistcoat-pocket.-1 and looked at it1 and then hurried on1 ,alice started to her feet1 for it flashed across her mind that she had never before seen a rabbit with either a waistcoat-pocket1 or a watch to take out of it1 and burning with curiosity1 she ran across the field after it1 and fortunately was just in time to see it pop down a large rabbit-hole under the hedge4 ,in another moment down went ,alice after it1 never once considering how in the world she was to get out again4 ,the rabbit-hole went straight on like a tunnel for some way1 and then dipped suddenly down1 so suddenly that ,alice had not a moment to think about stopping herself before she found herself falling down a very deep well4 ,either the well was very deep1 or she fell very slowly1 for she had plenty of time as she went down to look about her and to wonder what was going to happen next4 ,first1 she tried to look down and make out what she was coming to1 but it was too dark to see anything2 then she looked at the sides of the well1 and noticed that they were filled with cupboards and book-shelves2 here and there she saw maps and pictures hung upon pegs4 ,she took down a jar from one of the shelves as she passed2 it was labelled 8,,orange ,,marmalade01 but to her great disappointment it was empty3 she did not like to drop the jar for fear of killing somebody underneath1 so managed to put it into one of the cupboards as she fell past it4 8,well60 thought ,alice to herself1 8after such a fall as this1 ,i shall think nothing of tumbling down stairs6 ,how brave they'll all think me at home6 ,why1 ,i wouldn't say anything about it1 even if ,i fell off the top of the house60 "<,which was very likely true4"> ,down1 down1 down4 ,would the fall .-never.- come to an end8 8,i wonder how many miles ,i've fallen by this time80 she said aloud4 8,i must be getting somewhere near the centre of the earth4 ,let me see3 that would be four thousand miles down1 ,i think--0 " 8--yes1 that's about the right distance--but then ,i wonder what ,latitude or ,longitude ,i've got to80 "<,alice had no idea what ,latitude was1 or ,longitude either1 but thought they were nice grand words to say4"> ,presently she began again4 8,i wonder if ,i shall fall right .-through.- the earth6 ,how funny it'll seem to come out among the people that walk with their heads downward6 ,the ,antipathies1 ,i think--0 " 8--but ,i shall have to ask them what the name of the country is1 you know4 ,please1 ,ma'am1 is this ,new ,zealand or ,australia80 " 8,and what an ignorant little girl she'll think me for asking6 ,no1 it'll never do to ask3 perhaps ,i shall see it written up somewhere40 ,down1 down1 down4 ,there was nothing else to do1 so ,alice soon began talking again4 8,dinah'll miss me very much to-night1 ,i should think60 "<,dinah was the cat4"> 8,i hope they'll remember her saucer of milk at tea-time4 ,dinah my dear6 ,i wish you were down here with me6 ,there are no mice in the air1 ,i'm afraid1 but you might catch a bat1 and that's very like a mouse1 you know4 ,but do cats eat bats1 ,i wonder80 ,and here ,alice began to get rather sleepy1 and went on saying to herself1 in a dreamy sort of way1 8,do cats eat bats8 ,do cats eat bats80 and sometimes1 8,do bats eat cats80 for1 you see1 as she couldn't answer either question1 it didn't much matter which way she put it4 ,she felt that she was dozing off1 and had just begun to dream that she was walking hand in hand with ,dinah1 and saying to her very earnestly1 8,now1 ,dinah1 tell me the truth3 did you ever eat a bat80 when suddenly1 thump6 thump6 down she came upon a heap of sticks and dry leaves1 and the fall was over4 ,alice was not a bit hurt1 and she jumped up on to her feet in a moment3 she looked up1 but it was all dark overhead2 before her was another long passage1 and the ,white ,rabbit was still in sight1 hurrying down it4 ,there was not a moment to be lost3 away went ,alice like the wind1 and was just in time to hear it say1 as it turned a corner1 8,oh my ears and whiskers1 how late it's getting60 ,she was close behind it when she turned the corner1 but the ,rabbit was no longer to be seen3 she found herself in a long1 low hall1 which was lit up by a row of lamps hanging from the roof4 ,there were doors all round the hall1 but they were all locked2 and when ,alice had been all the way down one side and up the other1 trying every door1 she walked sadly down the middle1 wondering how she was ever to get out again4 ,suddenly she came upon a little three-legged table1 all made of solid glass2 there was nothing on it except a tiny golden key1 and ,alice's first thought was that it might belong to one of the doors of the hall2 but1 alas6 either the locks were too large1 or the key was too small1 but at any rate it would not open any of them4 ,however1 on the second time round1 she came upon a low curtain she had not noticed before1 and behind it was a little door about fifteen inches high3 she tried the little golden key in the lock1 and to her great delight it fitted6 ,alice opened the door and found that it led into a small passage1 not much larger than a rat-hole3 she knelt down and looked along the passage into the loveliest garden you ever saw4 ,how she longed to get out of that dark hall1 and wander about among those beds of bright flowers and those cool fountains1 but she could not even get her head through the doorway2 8and even if my head would go through10 thought poor ,alice1 8it would be of very little use without my shoulders4 ,oh1 how ,i wish ,i could shut up like a telescope6 ,i think ,i could1 if ,i only knew how to begin40 ,for1 you see1 so many out-of-the-way things had happened lately1 that ,alice had begun to think that very few things indeed were really impossible4 ,there seemed to be no use in waiting by the little door1 so she went back to the table1 half hoping she might find another key on it1 or at any rate a book of rules for shutting people up like telescopes3 this time she found a little bottle on it1 "<0which certainly was not here before10 said ,alice1"> and round the neck of the bottle was a paper label1 with the words 8,,drink ,,me10 beautifully printed on it in large letters4 ,it was all very well to say 8,drink me10 but the wise little ,alice was not going to do .-that.- in a hurry4 8,no1 ,i'll look first10 she said1 8and see whether it's marked '.-poison.-' or not02 for she had read several nice little histories about children who had got burnt1 and eaten up by wild beasts and other unpleasant things1 all because they .-would.- not remember the simple rules their friends had taught them3 such as1 that a red-hot poker will burn you if you hold it too long2 and that if you cut your finger .-very.- deeply with a knife1 it usually bleeds2 and she had never forgotten that1 if you drink much from a bottle marked 8poison10 it is almost certain to disagree with you1 sooner or later4 ,however1 this bottle was .-not.- marked 8poison10 so ,alice ventured to taste it1 and finding it very nice1 " she very soon finished it off4 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 8,what a curious feeling60 said ,alice2 8,i must be shutting up like a telescope40 ,and so it was indeed3 she was now only ten inches high1 and her face brightened up at the thought that she was now the right size for going through the little door into that lovely garden4 ,first1 however1 she waited for a few minutes to see if she was going to shrink any further3 she felt a little nervous about this2 8for it might end1 you know10 said ,alice to herself1 8in my going out altogether1 like a candle4 ,i wonder what ,i should be like then80 ,and she tried to fancy what the flame of a candle is like after the candle is blown out1 for she could not remember ever having seen such a thing4 ,after a while1 finding that nothing more happened1 she decided on going into the garden at once2 but1 alas for poor ,alice6 when she got to the door1 she found she had forgotten the little golden key1 and when she went back to the table for it1 she found she could not possibly reach it3 she could see it quite plainly through the glass1 and she tried her best to climb up one of the legs of the table1 but it was too slippery2 and when she had tired herself out with trying1 the poor little thing sat down and cried4 8,come1 there's no use in crying like that60 said ,alice to herself1 rather sharply2 8,i advise you to leave off this minute60 ,she generally gave herself very good advice1 "1 and sometimes she scolded herself so severely as to bring tears into her eyes2 and once she remembered trying to box her own ears for having cheated herself in a game of croquet she was playing against herself1 for this curious child was very fond of pretending to be two people4 8,but it's no use now10 thought poor ,alice1 8to pretend to be two people6 ,why1 there's hardly enough of me left to make .-one.- respectable person60 ,soon her eye fell on a little glass box that was lying under the table3 she opened it1 and found in it a very small cake1 on which the words 8,,eat ,,me0 were beautifully marked in currants4 8,well1 ,i'll eat it10 said ,alice1 8and if it makes me grow larger1 ,i can reach the key2 and if it makes me grow smaller1 ,i can creep under the door2 so either way ,i'll get into the garden1 and ,i don't care which happens60 ,she ate a little bit1 and said anxiously to herself1 8,which way8 ,which way801 holding her hand on the top of her head to feel which way it was growing1 and she was quite surprised to find that she remained the same size3 to be sure1 this generally happens when one eats cake1 but ,alice had got so much into the way of expecting nothing but out-of-the-way things to happen1 that it seemed quite dull and stupid for life to go on in the common way4 ,so she set to work1 and very soon finished off the cake4 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9 "9