just made."

"It's the first rule in the book," said the King.

"Then it ought to be Rule One," said Al-ice.

The King turned pale and shut his note-book at once.

"The ju-ry can now take the case," he said in a weak voice.

"There's more to come yet, please your ma-jes-ty," said the White
Rab-bit, as he jumped up; "this thing has just been picked up."

"What's in it?" asked the Queen.

"I haven't read it yet," said the White Rab-bit, "but it seems to be a
note from the Knave of Hearts to some one."

"Whose name is on it?" said one of the ju-rors.

"There's no name on it," said the White Rab-bit; he looked at it with
more care as he spoke, and add-ed, "it isn't a note at all; it's a set
of rhymes."

"Please your ma-jes-ty," said the Knave, "I didn't write it, and they
can't prove that I did; there's no name signed at the end."

"If you didn't sign it," said the King, "that makes your case worse. You
must have meant some harm or you'd have signed your name like an hon-est
man."

All clapped their hands at this as it was the first smart thing the King
had said that day.

"That proves his guilt," said the Queen.

"It does not prove a thing," said Al-ice, "Why you don't so much as know
what the rhymes are."

"Read them," said the King.

"Where shall I be-gin, your ma-jes-ty?" the White Rab-bit asked.

"Why at the first verse, of course," the King said look-ing quite grave,
"and go on till you come to the end; then stop."

The White Rab-bit read:

"They told me you had been to her,
And spoke of me to him:
She gave me a good name, in-deed,
But said I could not swim.

"He sent them word that I had gone
(We know it to be true):
If she should push the mat-ter on
What would be-come of you?

"I gave her one, they gave him two,
You gave us three, or more;
They all came back from him to you,
Though they were mine be-fore.

"My no-tion was, she liked him best,
(Be-fore she had this fit)
This must be kept from all the rest
But him and you and it."

"That's the best thing we've heard yet," said the King, rub-bing his
hands as if much pleased; "so now let the ju-ry--"

"If one of you can tell what it means," said Al-ice (she had grown so
large by this time that she had no fear of the King) "I should be glad
to hear it. I don't think there's a grain of sense in it."

The ju-ry all wrote down on their slates, "She doesn't