"I dare say you're wondering why I don't put my arm round your waist," the Duchess said after a pause: "the reason is, that I'm doubtful about the temper of your flamingo. Shall I try the experiment (试用)?"
"He might bite," Alice cautiously replied, not feeling at all anxious to have the experiment tried.
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"Very true," said the Duchess: "flamingoes and mustard (芥末) both bite. And the moral of that is--"Birds of a feather flock together.'"
"Only mustard isn't a bird," Alice remarked.
"Right, as usual," said the Duchess: "what a clear way you have of putting things!"
"It's a mineral (矿物), I think," said Alice.
"Of course it is," said the Duchess, who seemed ready to agree to everything that Alice said; "there's a large mustard-mine near here. And the moral of that is-- "The more there is of mine, the less there is of yours.'"
"Oh, I know!" exclaimed Alice, who had not attended to this last remark, "it's a vegetable (植物). It doesn't look like one, but it is."
"I quite agree with you," said the Duchess; "and the moral of that is--"Be what you would seem to be"--or if you'd like it put more simply--'Never imagine yourself not to be otherwise (否则) than what it might appear to others that what you were or might have been was not otherwise than what you had been would have appeared to them to be otherwise.'"
"I think I should understand that better," Alice said very politely, "if I had it written down: but I can't quite follow it as you say it."
"That's nothing to what I could say if I chose," the Duchess replied, in a pleased tone.
"Pray don't trouble yourself to say it any longer than that," said Alice.
"Oh, don't talk about trouble!" said the Duchess. "I make you a present of everything I've said as yet."
"A cheap sort of present!" thought Alice. "I'm glad they don't give birthday presents like that!" But she did not venture to say it out loud.
"Thinking again?" the Duchess asked, with another dig (戳) of her sharp little chin.
"I've a right to think," said Alice sharply, for she was beginning to feel a little worried.
"Just about as much right," said the Duchess, "as pigs have to fly; and the m--"
But here, to Alice's great surprise, the Duchess's voice died away, even in the middle of her favourite word "moral," and the arm that was linked into hers began to tremble (颤抖). Alice looked up, and there stood the Queen in front of them, with her arms folded, frowning (皱眉) like a thunderstorm.
"A fine day, your Majesty!" the Duchess began in a low, weak voice.
"Now, I give you fair warning," shouted the Queen, stamping (跺脚) on the ground as she spoke; "either you or your head must be off, and that in about half no time! Take your choice!"
The Duchess took her choice, and was gone in a moment.
"Let's go on with the game," the Queen said to Alice; and Alice was too much frightened to say a word, but slowly followed her back to the croquet-ground (槌球场地).
The other guests had taken advantage of the Queen's absence (不在场), and were resting in the shade: however, the moment they saw her, they hurried back to the game, the Queen merely (仅仅) remarking that a moment's delay (延误) would cost them their lives.
All the time they were playing the Queen never left off quarrelling with the other players, and shouting "Off with his head!" or "Off with her head!"
Those whom she sentenced were taken into custody (监禁) by the soldiers, who of course had to leave off being arches (拱门) to do this, so that by the end of half an hour or so there were no arches left, and all the players, except the King, the Queen, and Alice, were in custody and under sentence (判决) of execution (处死).
Then the Queen left off, quite out of breath, and said to Alice, "Have you seen the Mock Turtle yet?"
"No," said Alice. "I don't even know what a Mock Turtle is."
"It's the thing Mock Turtle Soup is made from," said the Queen.
"I never saw one, or heard of one," said Alice.
"Come on, then," said the Queen, "and he shall tell you his history."
As they walked off together, Alice heard the King say in a low voice, to the company generally, "You are all pardoned (宽恕)."
"Come, that's a good thing!" she said to herself, for she had felt quite unhappy at the number of executions the Queen had ordered.
They very soon came upon a Gryphon (希腊神话中半狮半鹫的怪兽), lying fast asleep in the sun. (IF you don't know what a Gryphon is, look at the picture.) "Up, lazy thing!" said the Queen, "and take this young lady to see the Mock Turtle, and to hear his history.
I must go back and see after some executions I have ordered"; and she walked off, leaving Alice alone with the Gryphon. Alice did not quite like the look of the creature, but on the whole she thought it would be quite as safe to stay with it as to go after that savage (凶残的) Queen: so she waited.
The Gryphon sat up and rubbed (揉搓) its eyes: then it watched the Queen till she was out of sight: then it chuckled (轻笑). "What fun!" said the Gryphon, half to itself, half to Alice.
"What is the fun?" said Alice.
"Why, she," said the Gryphon. "It's all her fancy, that: they never executes nobody, you know. Come on!"
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"Everybody says 'come on!' here," thought Alice, as she went slowly after it: "I never was so ordered about in all my life, never!"
They had not gone far before they saw the Mock Turtle in the distance, sitting sad and lonely on a little ledge (突出的部分) of rock, and, as they came nearer, Alice could hear him sighing as if his heart would break. She pitied him deeply.
"What is his sorrow?" she asked the Gryphon, and the Gryphon answered, very nearly in the same words as before, "It's all his fancy, that: he hasn't got no sorrow, you know. Come on!"
So they went up to the Mock Turtle, who looked at them with large eyes full of tears, but said nothing.
"This here young lady," said the Gryphon, "she wants for to know your history, she do."
"I'll tell it her," said the Mock Turtle in a deep, hollow (空洞的) tone: "sit down, both of you, and don't speak a word till I've finished."
So they sat down, and nobody spoke for some minutes. Alice thought to herself, "I don't see how he can even finish, if he doesn't begin." But she waited patiently.
"Once," said the Mock Turtle at last, with a deep sigh, "I was a real Turtle."
These words were followed by a very long silence, broken only by an occasional exclamation of "Hjckrrh!" from the Gryphon, and the constant heavy sobbing of the Mock Turtle.
Alice was very nearly getting up and saying, "Thank you, sir, for your interesting story," but she could not help thinking there must be more to come, so she sat still and said nothing.
"When we were little," the Mock Turtle went on at last, more calmly (平静地), though still sobbing a little now and then, "we went to school in the sea. The master was an old Turtle--we used to call him Tortoise (陆龟)--"
"Why did you call him Tortoise, if he wasn't one?" Alice asked.
"We called him Tortoise because he taught us," said the Mock Turtle angrily: "really you are very dull (迟钝的)!"
"You ought to be ashamed of yourself for asking such a simple question," added the Gryphon; and then they both sat silent and looked at poor Alice, who felt ready to sink into the earth. At last the Gryphon said to the Mock Turtle, "Drive on, old fellow! Don't be all day about it!" and he went on in these words:
"Yes, we went to school in the sea, though you mayn't believe it--"
"I never said I didn't!" interrupted Alice.
"You did," said the Mock Turtle.
"Hold your tongue!" added the Gryphon, before Alice could speak again. The Mock Turtle went on.
"We had the best of educations--in fact, we went to school every day--"
"I've been to a day-school, too," said Alice; "you needn't be so proud as all that."
"With extras (文中指副课)?" asked the Mock Turtle a little anxiously.
"Yes," said Alice, "we learned French and music."
"And washing?" said the Mock Turtle.
"Certainly not!" said Alice indignantly (气愤地).