old now, that if you do not
take care she will drop to pieces before you get back to the present
time."

Jack knew it was of no use saying anything to this formidable
creature, before whom the river-horses and the elephants were rushing
to the shore; but when he looked and saw down the river rainbow behind
rainbow,--I mean coil behind coil,--glittering in the sun, like so
many glorious arches that did not reach to the banks, he felt
extremely glad that this was a dream, and besides that, he thought to
himself, "It's only a fabled monster."

"No, it's only a fable to these times," said Mopsa, answering his
thought; "but in spite of that we shall have to go through all the
rings."

They went under one,--silver, green, and blue, and gold. The water
dripped from it upon them, and the boat trembled, either because of
its great age, or because it felt the rest of the coil underneath.

A good way off was another coil, and they went so safely under that,
that Jack felt himself getting used to Crakens, and not afraid. Then
they went under thirteen more. These kept getting nearer and nearer
together, but, besides that, the fourteenth had not quite such a high
span as the former ones; but there were a great many to come, and yet
they got lower and lower.

Both Jack and Mopsa noticed this, but neither said a word. The
thirtieth coil brushed Jack's cap off, then they had to stoop to pass
under the two next, and then they had to lie down in the bottom of the
boat, and they got through with the greatest difficulty; but still
before them was another! The boat was driving straight towards it, and
it lay so close to the water that the arch it made was only a foot
high. When Jack saw it, he called out, "No! that I cannot bear.
Somebody else may do the rest of this dream. I shall jump overboard."

Mopsa seemed to answer in quite a pleasant voice, as if she was not
afraid,--

"No, you'd much better wake." And then she went on, "Jack! Jack! why
don't you wake!"

Then all on a sudden Jack opened his eyes, and found that he was lying
quietly on the grass, that little Mopsa really had asked him why he
did not wake. He saw the Queen too, standing by, looking at him, and
saying to herself, "_I_ did not put him to sleep. _I_ did not put him
to sleep."

"We don't want any more stories to-day, Queen," said the apple-woman,
in a disrespectful tone, and she immediately began to sing, clattering
some tea-things all the time, for a kettle