CHAPTER I 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 
? 8 ? 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 
consider- ing 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.) Down, down, down. Would the fall never come to an end ? ? I won- der how 
many miles I?ve fallen by this time ? ? she said aloud. ? I must ? 9 ? be getting 
somewhere near the centre of the earth. Let me see : that would be four thousand 
miles down, I think? ? (for, you see, Alice had learnt several things of this 
sort in her lessons in the school-room, and though this was not a very good 
opportunity for showing off her knowledge, as there was no one to listen to her, still 
it was good prac- tice to say it over) ? ?yes, that?s about the right 
distance?but then I wonder what Latitude or Longitude I?ve got to ? ? (Alice had not the 
slightest idea what Latitude was, or Longitude either, but she thought they were 
nice grand words to say.) Presently she began again. ? I wonder if I shall fall 
right through the earth ! How funny it?ll seem to come out among the people 
that walk with their heads downwards ! The antipathies, I think? ? (she was rather 
glad there was no one listening, this time, as it didn?t sound at all the right 
word) ? ?but I shall have to ask them what the name of the country is, you know. 
Please, Ma?am, is this New Zealand ? Or Aus- tralia ? ? (and she tried to 
curtsey as she spoke?fancy, curtseying as you?re falling through the air ! Do you 
think you could manage it ?) ? And what an ignorant little girl she?ll think me for 
asking ! No, it?ll never do to ask : perhaps I shall see it written up 
somewhere. ? Down, down, down. There was nothing else to do, so Alice soon began talking 
again. ? Dinah?ll miss me very much to-night, I should think ! ? (Dinah was the 
cat.) ? I hope they?ll remember her saucer of milk at tea-time. Dinah, my dear 
! I wish you were down here with me ! There are no mice in the air, I?m afraid, 
but you might catch a bat, and that?s very like a mouse, you know. But do cats 
eat bats, I wonder ? ? And here Alice began to get rather sleepy, and went on 
saying to her- self, in a dreamy sort of way, ? Do cats eat bats ? Do cats eat bats 
? ? and sometimes ? Do bats eat cats ? ?, for, you see, as she couldn?t answer 
either question, it didn?t much matter which way she put it. She felt that she 
was dozing off, and had just begun to dream that she was walk- ing hand in hand 
with Dinah, and was saying to her, very earnestly, ? Now, Dinah, tell me the 
truth : did you ever eat a bat ? ?, when sud- denly, thump ! thump ! down she came 
upon a heap of sticks and dry leaves, and the fall was over.