Читать книгу Алиса в Стране чудес / Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland онлайн

She was frightened by this change; so she ate some of the other bit. Finally, she was near the right size. She went forward and saw a little house about four feet high. She ate a bit of the mushroom again and became nine inches high.

'This is the right size to enter the house,' said Alice.

For a minute or two she stood near the house. She was wondering what to do next, when suddenly a servant – a fish – came out of the wood and knocked loudly at the door. Another servant with a round face, and large eyes like a frog opened the door.

The Fish-Servant said, in a solemn tone, 'For the Duchess. An invitation from the Queen to play croquet.'

The Frog-Servant repeated, in the same solemn tone, 'From the Queen. An invitation for the Duchess to play croquet.'

Then the Fish-Servant ran away. Alice went timidly up to the door, and knocked.

'Why do you knock?' asked the Frog, 'I'm on the same side of the door as you are. And they're making such a noise inside, no one can possibly hear you.'

And certainly there was a most extraordinary noise within.

'Please, then,' said Alice, 'how to get in?'

'Are you sure you want to get in?' said the Frog. 'That's the first question, you know.'

'It's really dreadful,' Alice muttered to herself, 'they like to argue, these animals!'

The Frog said, 'I shall sit here, for days and days.'

'But what am I to do?' said Alice.

'Anything you like,' said the Servant, and began to whistle.

'Oh, he's idiotic!' said Alice desperately. And she opened the door and went in.

The door led right into a large kitchen, which was full of smoke from one end to the other. The Duchess was sitting on a three-legged stool in the middle, she was nursing a baby. The cook was leaning over the fire, there was a large cauldron full of soup.

'There's certainly too much pepper in that soup!' Alice said to herself, and began to sneeze.

Even the Duchess sneezed occasionally; and the baby was sneezing and howling all the time. Only the cook and a large cat did not sneeze. The cat was sitting on the hearth and grinning from ear to ear.