Good-night and leave them, when Tweedledum sprang out from under the
umbrella and seized her by the wrist.
Do you see _that_? he said, in a voice choking with passion, and his
eyes grew large and yellow all in a moment, as he pointed with a
trembling finger at a small white thing lying under the tree.
It s only a rattle, Alice said, after a careful examination of the
little white thing. Not a rattle-_snake_, you know, she added
hastily, thinking that he was frightened: only an old rattle quite old
and broken.
I knew it was! cried Tweedledum, beginning to stamp about wildly and
tear his hair. It s spoilt, of course! Here he looked at Tweedledee,
who immediately sat down on the ground, and tried to hide himself under
the umbrella.
Alice laid her hand upon his arm, and said in a soothing tone, You
needn t be so angry about an old rattle.
But it isn t old! Tweedledum cried, in a greater fury than ever.
It s new, I tell you I bought it yesterday my nice new RATTLE! and
his voice rose to a perfect scream.
All this time Tweedledee was trying his best to fold up the umbrella,
with himself in it: which was such an extraordinary thing to do, that
it quite took off Alice s attention from the angry brother. But he
couldn t quite succeed, and it ended in his rolling over, bundled up in
the umbrella, with only his head out: and there he lay, opening and
shutting his mouth and his large eyes looking more like a fish than
anything else, Alice thought.
Of course you agree to have a battle? Tweedledum said in a calmer
tone.
I suppose so, the other sulkily replied, as he crawled out of the
umbrella: only _she_ must help us to dress up, you know.
So the two brothers went off hand-in-hand into the wood, and returned
in a minute with their arms full of things such as bolsters, blankets,
39