Читать книгу Алиса в Стране чудес / Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Алиса в Зазеркалье / Through the Looking-glass, and What Alice Found There - Льюис Кэрролл, Льюїс Керролл, Furniss Harry - Страница 12

The Mock Turtle sighed deeply again. He looked at Alice, and tried to speak, but for a minute or two he couldn’t. At last the Mock Turtle went on with tears running down his cheeks.

“You have not lived much under the sea, so you have no idea what a delightful thing a Lobster Quadrille is!” said the Mock Turtle.

“It must be a very pretty dance,” said Alice timidly.

“Would you like to see a little of it?” asked the sad creature.

“Very much,” said Alice.

“Come, let’s try the first figure![152]” said the Mock Turtle to the Gryphon. “We can do without[153] lobsters, you know. Who shall sing?”

“Oh, YOU sing,” said the Gryphon. “I’ve forgotten the words.”

So they began solemnly dancing round and round Alice, while the Mock Turtle sang very slowly and sadly. The dance was long and dull. So Alice felt very glad when it was over at last and she said, “Thank you, it’s a very interesting dance to watch.”

Suddenly the Gryphon said, “Come, let’s hear some of YOUR adventures.”

“I could tell you my adventures – beginning from this morning,” said Alice a little timidly: “but it’s no use[154] going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then.”

“Explain all that,” demanded the Mock Turtle.

“No, no! The adventures first,” said the Gryphon in an impatient tone: “explanations take such a long time.”

So Alice began telling them her adventures from the time when she first saw the White Rabbit. She was a little nervous about it at first because the two creatures came so close to her, one on each side, and opened their eyes and mouths so wide, but she gained courage and went on. Her listeners were perfectly quiet all the time.

Then the Mock Turtle said thoughtfully. “I would like to hear her try and repeat something now. Tell her to begin.” And he looked at the Gryphon.

“Stand up and repeat ‘TIS THE VOICE OF THE SLUGGARD,’[155]” said the Gryphon.

“I could as well be at school now,[156]” thought Alice. However, she got up, and began to repeat it, but her head was so full of the Lobster Quadrille, that she didn’t think what she was saying, so the words were very strange: —

“That’s different from what I said when I was a child,” said the Gryphon.

“Well, I never heard it before,” said the Mock Turtle; “but it sounds uncommon nonsense.”

Alice said nothing; she had sat down with her face in her hands, wondering if anything would EVER happen in a natural way again.

“I would like to have an explanation,” said the Mock Turtle.

“She can’t explain it,” said the Gryphon hastily. “Go on with the next verse.”

“But about his toes?” the Mock Turtle asked again. “How COULD he turn them out with his nose, you know?”

“It’s the first position in dancing.” Alice said; but she was greatly puzzled by the whole thing, and wanted so much to change the subject.

“Go on with the next verse,” the Gryphon repeated impatiently: “it begins “I passed by his garden.””

Alice felt sure it would all be wrong too, but she was ready to continue when suddenly the Mock Turtle interrupted her, “What IS the use of repeating all those things, if you don’t explain them? It’s the most confusing thing I ever heard!”

“Yes, I think you’d better stop it,” said the Gryphon: and Alice was very glad to do so.

“Shall we try another figure of the Lobster Quadrille?” the Gryphon went on. “Or would you like the Mock Turtle to sing you a song?”

“Oh, a song, please, if the Mock Turtle would be so kind,” Alice replied, so fast that the Gryphon said, in a rather offended tone, “Hm! Sing her “Turtle Soup,” then, old fellow.[158]”

The Mock Turtle sighed deeply, and began to sing.

Suddenly a cry “The trial’s beginning!” was heard in the distance.

“Come on!” cried the Gryphon, and, taking Alice by the hand, hurried off, without waiting for the end of the song.

“What trial is it?” Alice tried to ask as she ran; but the Gryphon only answered “Come on!” and they ran faster.