whole

                          cause,

                             and

                        condemn

                       you

                      to

                       death."'

  `You are not attending!' said the Mouse to Alice severely.

`What are you thinking of?'

  `I beg your pardon,' said Alice very humbly:  `you had got to

the fifth bend, I think?'

  `I had NOT!' cried the Mouse, sharply and very angrily.

  `A knot!' said Alice, always ready to make herself useful, and

looking anxiously about her.  `Oh, do let me help to undo it!'

  `I shall do nothing of the sort,' said the Mouse, getting up

and walking away.  `You insult me by talking such nonsense!'

  `I didn't mean it!' pleaded poor Alice.  `But you're so easily

offended, you know!'

  The Mouse only growled in reply.

  `Please come back and finish your story!' Alice called after

it; and the others all joined in chorus, `Yes, please do!' but

the Mouse only shook its head impatiently, and walked a little

quicker.

  `What a pity it wouldn't stay!' sighed the Lory, as soon as it

was quite out of sight; and an old Crab took the opportunity of

saying to her daughter `Ah, my dear!  Let this be a lesson to you

never to lose YOUR temper!'  `Hold your tongue, Ma!' said the

young Crab, a little snappishly.  `You're enough to try the

patience of an oyster!'

  `I wish I had our Dinah here, I know I do!' said Alice aloud,

addressing nobody in particular.  `She'd soon fetch it back!'

  `And who is Dinah, if I might venture to ask the question?'

said the Lory.

  Alice replied eagerly, for she was always ready to talk about

her pet:  `Dinah's our cat.  And she's such a capital one for ()