"I should like it very much," said Alice, "but I haven't been invited yet." "You'll see me there," said the Cat, and vanished. Alice was not much surprised at this, she was getting so well used to queer things happening. While she was still looking at the place where it had been, it suddenly appeared again. "By-the-by, what became of the baby?" said the Cat. "I'd nearly forgotten to ask." "It turned into a pig," Alice answered very quietly, just as if the Cat had come back in a natural way. "I thought it would," said the Cat, and vanished again. Alice waited a little, half expecting to see it again, but it did not appear, and after a minute or two she walked on in the direction in which the March Hare was said to live. "I've seen hatters before," she said to herself: "the March Hare will be much the most interesting, and perhaps as this is May it won't be raving mad--at least not so mad as it was in March." As she said this, she looked up, and there was the Cat again, sitting on a branch of a tree. "Did you say pig, or fig?" said the Cat. "I said pig," replied Alice; "and I wish you wouldn't keep appearing and vanishing so suddenly: you make one quite giddy." "All right," said the Cat; and this time it vanished quite slowly, beginning with the end of the tail and ending with the grin, which remained some time after the rest of it had gone. "Well! I've often seen a cat without a grin," thought Alice; "but a grin without a cat!--it's the most curious thing I ever saw in all my life!" THE MOCK-TURTLE'S EDUCATION From 'Alice's Adventures in Wonderland' "When we were little," the Mock-Turtle went on at last, more calmly, 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--" "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!" "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?" 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.