The Nursery Alice
The Nursery AliceA Nursery Darling.PREFACE.I.THE WHITE RABBIT.II.HOW ALICE GREW TALL.III.THE POOL OF TEARS.IV.THE CAUCUS-RACE.V.BILL, THE LIZARD.VI.THE DEAR LITTLE PUPPY.VII.THE BLUE CATERPILLAR.VIII.THE PIG-BABY.IX.THE CHESHIRE-CAT.X.THE MAD TEA-PARTY.XI.THE QUEEN’S GARDEN.XII.THE LOBSTER-QUADRILLE.XIII.WHO STOLE THE TARTS?XIV.THE SHOWER OF CARDS.AN EASTER GREETINGTOEVERY CHILD WHO LOVES “ALICE.”CHRISTMAS GREETINGS.NotesCopyright
The Nursery Alice
Lewis Carroll
A Nursery Darling.
A Mother’s breast:Safe refuge from her childish fears,From childish troubles, childish tears,Mists that enshroud her dawning years!See how in sleep she seems to singA voiceless psalm—an offeringRaised, to the glory of her King,In Love: for Love is Rest.A Darling’s kiss:Dearest of all the signs that fleetFrom lips that lovingly repeatAgain, again, their message sweet!Full to the brim with girlish glee,A child, a very child is she,Whose dream of Heaven is still to beA: Home: for Home is Bliss.
PREFACE.
(ADDRESSED TO ANY MOTHER.)I have reason to believe that “Alice’s Adventures in
Wonderland” has been read by some hundreds of English Children,
aged from Five to Fifteen: also by Children, aged from Fifteen to
Twenty-five: yet again by Children, aged from Twenty-five to
Thirty-five: and even by Children—for therearesuch—Children in whom no waning of
health and strength, no weariness of the solemn mockery, and the
gaudy glitter, and the hopeless misery, of Life has availed to
parch the pure fountain of joy that wells up in all child-like
hearts—Children of a “certain” age, whose tale of years must be
left untold, and buried in respectful silence.And my ambitionnowis (is
it a vain one?) to be read by Children aged from Nought to Five. To
be read? Nay, not so! Say rather to be thumbed, to be cooed over,
to be dogs’-eared, to be rumpled, to be kissed, by the illiterate,
ungrammatical, dimpled Darlings, that fill your Nursery with merry
uproar, and your inmost heart of hearts with a restful
gladness!Such, for instance, as a child I once knew, who—having been
carefully instructed thatoneof
any earthly thing was enough for any little girl; and that to ask
fortwobuns,twooranges,twoof anything, would certainly bring
upon her the awful charge of being “greedy”—was found one morning
sitting up in bed, solemnly regarding hertwolittle naked feet, and murmuring to
herself, softly and penitently, “deedy!”Eastertide, 1889.
I.THE WHITE RABBIT.
Once upon a time, there was a little girl called Alice: and
she had a very curious dream.Would you like to hear what it was that she dreamed
about?Well, this was thefirstthing that happened. A White Rabbit came running by, in a
great hurry; and, just as it passed Alice, it stopped, and took its
watch out of its pocket.Wasn’tthata funny thing?
Didyouever see a Rabbit that
had a watch, and a pocket to put it in? Of course, when a Rabbit
has a watch, itmusthave a
pocket to put it in: it would never do to carry it about in its
mouth——and it wants its hands sometimes, to run about
with.Hasn’t it got pretty pink eyes (I thinkallWhite Rabbits have pink eyes); and
pink ears; and a nice brown coat; and you can just see its red
pocket-handkerchief peeping out of its coat-pocket: and, what with
its blue neck-tie and its yellow waistcoat, it really isverynicely dressed.
“ Oh dear, oh dear!” said the Rabbit. “I shall be too
late!”Whatwould it be too
latefor, I wonder? Well, you
see, it had to go and visit the Duchess (you’ll see a picture of
the Duchess, soon, sitting in her kitchen): and the Duchess was a
very cross old lady: and the Rabbitknewshe’d be very angry indeed if he
kept her waiting. So the poor thing was as frightened as frightened
could be (Don’t you see how he’s trembling? Just shake the book a
little, from side to side, and you’ll soon see him tremble),
because he thought the Duchess would have his head cut off, for a
punishment. That was what the Queen of Hearts used to do,
whenshewas angry with people
(you’ll see a picture ofher,
soon): at least she used toordertheir heads to be cut off, and she alwaysthoughtit was done, though they
neverreallydid
it.
