Alice's Evidence We Reach The Final Chapter of Alice's
Alice's Evidence We Reach The Final Chapter of Alice's
Alice's Evidence We Reach The Final Chapter of Alice's
Adventures in Wonderland but don’t worry there are more adventures to come “Through
The Looking Glass”.Justice is not exactly done in this Wonderland trial in fact Alice is
infuriated by the lack of it. She is growing again in stature and in confidence, and is provoked
to shout her famous line: “You’re nothing but a pack of cards!”The lyrical epilogue is in a
different vein to the rest of Alice perhaps a touch of Victoriana but it brings the book to a
suitably reamy conclusion.Read by Natasha. Duration 17.23 `Here!’ cried Alice, quite
forgetting in the flurry of themoment how large she had grown in the last few minutes, and
shejumped up in such a hurry that she tipped over the jurybox withthe edge of her skirt,
upsetting all the jurymen on to the headsof the crowd below, and there they lay sprawling
about, remindingher very much of a globe of goldfish she had accidentally upset the week
before.
`Oh, I BEG your pardon!’ she exclaimed in a tone of greatdismay, and began picking them up
again as quickly as she could,for the accident of the goldfish kept running in her head,
andshe had a vague sort of idea that they must be collected at onceand put back into the
jurybox, or they would die.
`The trial cannot proceed,’ said the King in a very gravevoice, `until all the jurymen are back
in their proper places–ALL,’ he repeated with great emphasis, looking hard at Alice ashe said
do.
Alice looked at the jurybox, and saw that, in her haste, shehad put the Lizard in head
downwards, and the poor little thingwas waving its tail about in a melancholy way, being quite
unableto move. She soon got it out again, and put it right; `not thatit signifies much,’ she said
to herself; `I should think itwould be QUITE as much use in the trial one way up as the other.’
As soon as the jury had a little recovered from the shock ofbeing upset, and their slates and
pencils had been found andhanded back to them, they set to work very diligently to writeout
a history of the accident, all except the Lizard, who seemedtoo much overcome to do
anything but sit with its mouth open,gazing up into the roof of the court.
`What do you know about this business?’ the King said toAlice.
`Nothing,’ said Alice.
`Nothing WHATEVER?’ persisted the King.
`Nothing whatever,’ said Alice.
`That’s very important,’ the King said, turning to the jury.They were just beginning to write this
down on their slates, whenthe White Rabbit interrupted: `UNimportant, your Majesty
means,of course,’ he said in a very respectful tone, but frowning andmaking faces at him as
he spoke.
`UNimportant, of course, I meant,’ the King hastily said, andwent on to himself in an
undertone, `important–unimportant–unimportant–important–’ as if he were trying which
wordsounded best.
Some of the jury wrote it down `important,’ and some`unimportant.’ Alice could see this, as
she was near enough tolook over their slates; `but it doesn’t matter a bit,’ shethought to
herself.
At this moment the King, who had been for some time busilywriting in his notebook, cackled
out `Silence!’ and read outfrom his book, `Rule Fortytwo. ALL PERSONS MORE THAN A
MILEHIGH TO LEAVE THE COURT.’
Everybody looked at Alice.
`I’M not a mile high,’ said Alice.
`You are,’ said the King.
`Nearly two miles high,’ added the Queen.
`Well, I shan’t go, at any rate,’ said Alice: `besides,that’s not a regular rule: you invented it
just now.’
`It’s the oldest rule in the book,’ said the King.`Then it ought to be Number One,’ said Alice.
The King turned pale, and shut his notebook hastily.`Consider your verdict,’ he said to the
jury, in a low, tremblingvoice.
`There’s more evidence to come yet, please your Majesty,’ saidthe White Rabbit, jumping up
in a great hurry; `this paper hasjust been picked up.’
`What’s in it?’ said the Queen.
`I haven’t opened it yet,’ said the White Rabbit, `but it seemsto be a letter, written by the
prisoner to–to somebody.’
`It must have been that,’ said the King, `unless it waswritten to nobody, which isn’t usual, you
know.’
`Who is it directed to?’ said one of the jurymen.
`It isn’t directed at all,’ said the White Rabbit; `in fact,there’s nothing written on the OUTSIDE.’
He unfolded the paperas he spoke, and added `It isn’t a letter, after all: it’s a setof verses.’
`Are they in the prisoner’s handwriting?’ asked another ofthe jurymen.
`No, they’re not,’ said the White Rabbit, `and that’s thequeerest thing about it.’ (The jury all
looked puzzled.)
`He must have imitated somebody else’s hand,’ said the King.(The jury all brightened up
again.)
`Please your Majesty,’ said the Knave, `I didn’t write it, andthey can’t prove I did: there’s no
name signed at the end.’
`If you didn’t sign it,’ said the King, `that only makes thematter worse. You MUST have meant
some mischief, or else you’dhave signed your name like an honest man.’
There was a general clapping of hands at this: it was thefirst really clever thing the King had
said that day.
`That PROVES his guilt,’ said the Queen.
`It proves nothing of the sort!’ said Alice. `Why, you don’teven know what they’re about!’
`Read them,’ said the King.
The White Rabbit put on his spectacles. `Where shall I begin,please your Majesty?’ he
asked.
`Begin at the beginning,’ the King said gravely, `and go ontill you come to the end: then stop.’
These were the verses the White Rabbit read:–
`They told me you had been to her, And mentioned me to him: She gave me a good
character, But said I could not swim.
He sent them word I had not gone (We know it to be true): If she should push the matter on,
What would become of you?
I gave her one, they gave him two, You gave us three or more; They all returned from him to
you, Though they were mine before.
If I or she should chance to be Involved in this affair, He trusts to you to set them free,
Exactly as we were.
My notion was that you had been (Before she had this fit) An obstacle that came between
Him, and ourselves, and it.
Don’t let him know she liked them best, For this must ever be A secret, kept from all the rest,
Between yourself and me.’
`That’s the most important piece of evidence we’ve heard yet,’said the King, rubbing his
hands; `so now let the jury–’
`If any one of them can explain it,’ said Alice, (she hadgrown so large in the last few minutes
that she wasn’t a bitafraid of interrupting him,) `I’ll give him sixpence. _I_ don’tbelieve there’s
an atom of meaning in it.The jury all wrote down on their slates, `SHE doesn’t believethere’s
an atom of meaning in it,’ but none of them attempted toexplain the paper.
`If there’s no meaning in it,’ said the King, `that saves aworld of trouble, you know, as we
needn’t try to find any. Andyet I don’t know,’ he went on, spreading out the verses on hisknee,
and looking at them with one eye; `I seem to see somemeaning in them, after all. “–SAID I
COULD NOT SWIM–” youcan’t swim, can you?’ he added, turning to the Knave.
The Knave shook his head sadly. `Do I look like it?’ he said.(Which he certainly did NOT,
being made entirely of cardboard.)
`All right, so far,’ said the King, and he went on mutteringover the verses to himself: `”WE
KNOW IT TO BE TRUE–” that’sthe jury, of course– “I GAVE HER ONE, THEY GAVE HIM
TWO–” why,that must be what he did with the tarts, you know–’
`But, it goes on “THEY ALL RETURNED FROM HIM TO YOU,”‘ saidAlice.
`Why, there they are!’ said the King triumphantly, pointing tothe tarts on the table. `Nothing
can be clearer than THAT.Then again–”BEFORE SHE HAD THIS FIT–” you never had fits,
mydear, I think?’ he said to the Queen.
`Never!’ said the Queen furiously, throwing an inkstand at theLizard as she spoke. (The
unfortunate little Bill had left offwriting on his slate with one finger, as he found it made
nomark; but he now hastily began again, using the ink, that wastrickling down his face, as
long as it lasted.)
`Then the words don’t FIT you,’ said the King, looking roundthe court with a smile. There was
a dead silence.
`It’s a pun!’ the King added in an offended tone, andeverybody laughed, `Let the jury
consider their verdict,’ theKing said, for about the twentieth time that day.
`No, no!’ said the Queen. `Sentence first–verdict afterwards.’
`Stuff and nonsense!’ said Alice loudly. `The idea of havingthe sentence first!’
`Hold your tongue!’ said the Queen, turning purple.
`I won’t!’ said Alice.
`Off with her head!’ the Queen shouted at the top of her voice.Nobody moved.
`Who cares for you?’ said Alice, (she had grown to her fullsize by this time.) `You’re nothing
but a pack of cards!’
At this the whole pack rose up into the air, and came flyingdown upon her: she gave a little
scream, half of fright and halfof anger, and tried to beat them off, and found herself lying
onthe bank, with her head in the lap of her sister, who was gentlybrushing away some dead
leaves that had fluttered down from thetrees upon her face.
`Wake up, Alice dear!’ said her sister; `Why, what a longsleep you’ve had!’
`Oh, I’ve had such a curious dream!’ said Alice, and she toldher sister, as well as she could
remember them, all these strangeAdventures of hers that you have just been reading about;
andwhen she had finished, her sister kissed her, and said, `It WAS acurious dream, dear,
certainly: but now run in to your tea; it’sgetting late.’ So Alice got up and ran off, thinking
while sheran, as well she might, what a wonderful dream it had been.
But her sister sat still just as she left her, leaning herhead on her hand, watching the setting
sun, and thinking oflittle Alice and all her wonderful Adventures, till she too begandreaming
after a fashion, and this was her dream:–
First, she dreamed of little Alice herself, and once again thetiny hands were clasped upon
her knee, and the bright eager eyeswere looking up into hers–she could hear the very tones
of hervoice, and see that queer little toss of her head to keep backthe wandering hair that
WOULD always get into her eyes–andstill as she listened, or seemed to listen, the whole
placearound her became alive the strange creatures of her littlesister’s dream.
The long grass rustled at her feet as the White Rabbit hurriedby–the frightened Mouse
splashed his way through theneighbouring pool–she could hear the rattle of the teacups
asthe March Hare and his friends shared their neverending meal,and the shrill voice of the
Queen ordering off her unfortunateguests to execution–once more the pigbaby was
sneezing on theDuchess’s knee, while plates and dishes crashed around it–oncemore the
shriek of the Gryphon, the squeaking of the Lizard’sslatepencil, and the choking of the
suppressed guineapigs,filled the air, mixed up with the distant sobs of the miserableMock
Turtle.
So she sat on, with closed eyes, and half believed herself inWonderland, though she knew
she had but to open them again, andall would change to dull reality–the grass would be
onlyrustling in the wind, and the pool rippling to the waving of thereeds–the rattling teacups
would change to tinkling sheepbells, and the Queen’s shrill cries to the voice of the
shepherdboy–and the sneeze of the baby, the shriek of the Gryphon, andall the other queer
noises, would change (she knew) to theconfused clamour of the busy farmyard–while the
lowing of thecattle in the distance would take the place of the Mock Turtle’sheavy sobs.
Lastly, she pictured to herself how this same little sister ofhers would, in the aftertime, be
herself a grown woman; and howshe would keep, through all her riper years, the simple
andloving heart of her childhood: and how she would gather abouther other little children,
and make THEIR eyes bright and eagerwith many a strange tale, perhaps even with the
dream ofWonderland of long ago: and how she would feel with all theirsimple sorrows, and
find a pleasure in all their simple joys,remembering her own childlife, and the happy summer
days.
THE END