Alice in Wonderland, Part 6, Pig and Pepper"

Hello. Alice is in the woods. She’s trying to find her way back to the beautiful garden that she saw when she first arrived in Wonderland. Here she is, outside a little house. She’s wondering who lives there.

I wonder who could live in such a little house!

Before she had the chance to wonder for very long, a fish ran out of the woods and knocked on the door. The fish was wearing a footman’s uniform. Another footman opened the door. Alice was near enough to hear what the fish said.

From the Queen. An invitation for the Duchess to play croquet .

The Duchess!!

Alice was so curious she went to knock on the door. But there was no use knocking, because it was so noisy inside the house that no-one could possibly hear her little knock. Alice was even more curious now so she opened the door…

Hello?

And she found herself in a noisy, smoky kitchen. A cook was cooking a pan of soup over the fire and the Duchess was holding a crying baby.

There was also a big cat who was sitting above the fire and smiling from ear to ear. Everyone was sneezing except the cook and the cat.

There’s too much pepper in that soup! Please would you tell me why your cat grins like that?

It’s a Cheshire-Cat, and that’s why.

I didn’t know Cheshire-Cats grinned. In fact , I didn’t know cats could grin.

You don’t know much, and that’s a fact.

Just then, the cook took the pan of soup off the fire, and started throwing pots and pans and plates and dishes all around the kitchen.

Some of them hit the Duchess, but she didn’t seem to notice. Some of them hit the baby, who was crying anyway.

Oh please! The baby! Be careful!

Here! You hold it if you like!

And the Duchess threw the baby at Alice who just managed to catch it.

Ohhh!!

I must go and get ready to play croquet with the Queen.

And, with that, The Duchess left. Alice held the baby and wondered what to do with it.

What am I going to do with you? You’re a strange shape… Oh! You’re a not a baby. You’re a… you’re a pig!

It was easy to decide what to do with a pig. Alice took it outside and let it go into the woods. The Cheshire-Cat sat in a tree and watched her.

Cheshire-Cat, could you tell me which way I should go?

A Hatter lives over here, and a March Hare lives over there. They’re both mad .

But I don’t want to meet mad people.

Oh, we’re all mad here. Are you playing croquet with the Queen today?

I’d love to play croquet with the Queen… but she hasn’t invited me .

You’ll see me there…

The cat disappeared. Alice set off in the direction of the March Hare’s house and soon she came to a house. Outside the house she saw a tea-party quite unlike any tea-party she had ever seen before.

Next time, I’ll tell you all about the Tea Party and what happened when Alice met the March Hare and the Hatter. Goodbye.