There was silence in a moment, and several of the pink daisies turned
white.
That s right! said the Tiger-lily. The daisies are worst of all.
When one speaks, they all begin together, and it s enough to make one
wither to hear the way they go on!
How is it you can all talk so nicely? Alice said, hoping to get it
into a better temper by a compliment. I ve been in many gardens
before, but none of the flowers could talk.
Put your hand down, and feel the ground, said the Tiger-lily. Then
you ll know why.
Alice did so. It s very hard, she said, but I don t see what that
has to do with it.
In most gardens, the Tiger-lily said, they make the beds too soft so
that the flowers are always asleep.
This sounded a very good reason, and Alice was quite pleased to know
it. I never thought of that before! she said.
It s _my_ opinion that you never think _at all_, the Rose said in a
rather severe tone.
I never saw anybody that looked stupider, a Violet said, so suddenly,
that Alice quite jumped; for it hadn t spoken before.
Hold _your_ tongue! cried the Tiger-lily. As if _you_ ever saw
anybody! You keep your head under the leaves, and snore away there,
till you know no more what s going on in the world, than if you were a
bud!
Are there any more people in the garden besides me? Alice said, not
choosing to notice the Rose s last remark.
There s one other flower in the garden that can move about like you,
said the Rose. I wonder how you do it ( You re always wondering,
said the Tiger-lily), but she s more bushy than you are.
15