nd she really DID rise as she spoke, several inches; but
she got hold of the edge of the table, and managed to pull herself down
again.

'Take care of yourself!' screamed the White Queen, seizing Alice's hair
with both her hands. 'Something's going to happen!'

And then (as Alice afterwards described it) all sorts of things happened
in a moment. The candles all grew up to the ceiling, looking something
like a bed of rushes with fireworks at the top. As to the bottles, they
each took a pair of plates, which they hastily fitted on as wings, and
so, with forks for legs, went fluttering about in all directions: 'and
very like birds they look,' Alice thought to herself, as well as she
could in the dreadful confusion that was beginning.

At this moment she heard a hoarse laugh at her side, and turned to see
what was the matter with the White Queen; but, instead of the Queen,
there was the leg of mutton sitting in the chair. 'Here I am!' cried a
voice from the soup tureen, and Alice turned again, just in time to see
the Queen's broad good-natured face grinning at her for a moment over
the edge of the tureen, before she disappeared into the soup.

There was not a moment to be lost. Already several of the guests were
lying down in the dishes, and the soup ladle was walking up the table
towards Alice's chair, and beckoning to her impatiently to get out of
its way.

'I can't stand this any longer!' she cried as she jumped up and seized
the table-cloth with both hands: one good pull, and plates, dishes,
guests, and candles came crashing down together in a heap on the floor.

'And as for YOU,' she went on, turning fiercely upon the Red Queen, whom
she considered as the cause of all the mischief--but the Queen was no
longer at her side--she had suddenly dwindled down to the size of a
little doll, and was now on the table, merrily running round and round
after her own shawl, which was trailing behind her.

At any other time, Alice would have felt surprised at this, but she was
far too much excited to be surprised at anything NOW. 'As for YOU,'
she repeated, catching hold of the little creature in the very act of
jumping over a bottle which had just lighted upon the table, 'I'll shake
you into a kitten, that I will!'

CHAPTER X. Shaking

She took her off the table as she spoke, and shook her backwards and
forwards with all her might.

The Red Queen made no resistance whatever; only her face grew very
small, and her ey