“I’m sure those are not the right words,” said poor Alice, and her eyes filled with tears again as
she went on, “I must be Mabel after all, and I shall have to go and live in that poky little house,
and have next to no toys to play with, and oh! ever so many lessons to learn! No, I’ve made up
my mind about it; if I’m Mabel, I’ll stay down here! It’ll be no use their putting their heads down and
saying, ‘Come up again, dear!’ I shall only look up and say, ‘Who am I then? Tell me that first, and
then, if I like being that person, I’ll come up: if not, I’ll stay down here till I’m somebody else’—but,
oh dear!” cried Alice, with a sudden burst of tears, “I do wish they would put their heads down! I
am so very tired of being all alone here!”