THERE WAS A LITTLE MAN There was a little man, And he had a little gun, And his bullets were made of lead, lead, lead; He went to a brook, And fired at a duck, And shot him right through the head, head, head. He carried it home To his good wife Joan, And bade her a fire to make, make, make; To roast the little duck, He'd shot in the brook, And he'd go fetch the drake, drake, drake. The drake was a-swimming With his curly tail, The little man made it his mark, mark, mark; He shot off his gun, DOWN IN THE RABBIT-HOLE I. It was a lovely summer day. Alice was sitting on the grass beside her sister who was reading. Alice did not want to read and her sister did not want to talk. Soon Alice grew very sleepy. She was thinking about picking some daisies to make a daisy-chain, when suddenly a Rabbit ran by. It was a White Rabbit with pink eyes. “Oh, dear! oh, dear!” the Rabbit said. "I shall be too late!" And he looked at his watch which he took from his waistcoat pocket. Alice thought it was very queer to see a Rabbit with a waistcoat pocket and a watch, so she ran after him. She was just in time to see him pop down into a large rabbit-hole under the hedge. In another minute down went Alice after him, never once thinking how in the world she was to get out again. Alice found herself falling down what seemed to be a very deep well. “After such a fall as this," she thought to herself, “I shall think nothing of tumbling down. stairs! How brave they'll think me at home! Why, I shouldn'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 end? "I wonder if I shall fall right through the earth!" she thought. "How funny it'll seem to come out among the people. that walk with their heads downwards!" Down, down, down. "Dinah'll miss me very much to-night." (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!" II. Suddenly, thump! thump! down Alice came upon a heap of sticks and dry leaves, and the fall was over. Alice was not a bit hurt, and she jumped up on her feet in a moment; she looked up, but it was all dark overhead; before her was a long passage and the White Rabbit was hurrying down it. There was not a moment to be lost; away went Alice like the wind and was just in time to hear the Rabbit say, as he turned a corner, "Oh, my ears and whiskers, how late it is getting!" Alice was close behind the Rabbit, but when she turned the corner he was no longer to be seen. She found herself in a long, low hall, which was lit by a row of lamps hanging from the roof. |