At last the Red Queen began . ` You 've missed the soup and fish , ' she said . ` Put on the joint ! ' And the waiters set a leg of mutton before Alice , who looked at it rather anxiously , as she had never had to carve a joint before . ` You look a little shy ; let me introduce you to that leg of mutton , ' said the Red Queen . ` Alice -- Mutton ; Mutton -- Alice . ' The leg of mutton got up in the dish and made a little bow to Alice ; and Alice returned the bow , not knowing whether to be frightened or amused . ` May I give you a slice ? ' she said , taking up the knife and fork , and looking from one Queen to the other . ` Certainly not , ' the Red Queen said , very decidedly : ` it is n't etiquette to cut any one you 've been introduced to . Remove the joint ! ' And the waiters carried it off , and brought a large plum-pudding in its place . ' I wo n't be introduced to the pudding , please , ' Alice said rather hastily , ` or we shall get no dinner at all . May I give you some ? ' But the Red Queen looked sulky , and growled ` Pudding -- Alice ; Alice -- Pudding . Remove the pudding ! ' and the waiters took it away so quickly that Alice could n't return its bow . However , she did n't see why the Red Queen should be the only one to give orders , so , as an experiment , she called out ` Waiter ! Bring back the pudding ! ' and there it was again in a moment like a conjuring-trick .
It was so large that she could n't help feeling a LITTLE shy with it , as she had been with the mutton ; however , she conquered her shyness by a great effort and cut a slice and handed it to the Red XXXXX .
Alice May Pudding Queen conjuring-trick etiquette experiment fork plum-pudding soup