Pig and Pepper

           Foraminuteortwoshestoodlookingatthehouse,andwonderingwhattodonext,whensuddenlyafootmaninliverycamerunningoutofthewood— (sheconsideredhimtobeafootmanbecausehewasinlivery:otherwise,judgingbyhisfaceonly,shewouldhavecalledhimafish) —andrappedloudlyatthedoorwithhisknuckles. Itwasopenedbyanotherfootmaninlivery,witharoundface,andlargeeyeslikeafrog; andbothfootmen,Alicenoticed,hadpowderedhairthatcurledallovertheirheads. Shefeltverycurioustoknowwhatitwasallabout,andcreptalittlewayoutofthewoodtolisten. 

           TheFish-Footmanbeganbyproducingfromunderhisarmagreatletter,nearlyaslargeashimself,andthishehandedovertotheother,saying,inasolemntone,‘FortheDuchess. AninvitationfromtheQueentoplaycroquet. ’TheFrog-Footmanrepeated,inthesamesolemntone,onlychangingtheorderofthewordsalittle, ‘FromtheQueen. AninvitationfortheDuchesstoplaycroquet.’ 

           Thentheybothbowedlow,andtheircurlsgotentangledtogether. 

           Alicelaughedsomuchatthis,thatshehadtorunbackintothewoodforfearoftheirhearingher; andwhenshenextpeepedouttheFish-Footmanwasgone,andtheotherwassittingonthegroundnearthedoor,staringstupidlyupintothesky. 

           Alicewenttimidlyuptothedoor,andknocked. 

           ‘There’snosortofuseinknocking,’saidtheFootman,‘andthatfortworeasons. First,becauseI’monthesamesideofthedoorasyouare;