Chapter 5
The caterpillar did not budge an inch from its position. After staring at Alice for a few minutes, it said to Alice in a soft tone, “May I know who you are? Where have you come from” What brings you here?”
Hearing the series of question posed by the caterpillar Alice was dumbfounded. After thinking for a while she replied, “Dear Caterpillar! I myself don’t know who I am.”
Hearing of the reply of Alice the caterpillar looked somewhat confused and perplexed. It softly asked, “What do you mean to say? Please elaborate in detail. I have failed to understand what you want to convey.”
Now Alice told the caterpillar, “Dear! I knew very well who I was when I woke up this very morning. Since then I have undergone several changes. So, it is hard to tell you who I am and where from I have come.”
But the caterpillar was still not satisfied with the reply of Alice. It observed, “I am still confused. Please explain yourself clearly and plainly. Don’t be a puzzle to me.
Hearing the words of the caterpillar Alice remarked respectfully, “Sir! I wonder I can’t tell you who I am. I am not myself today, frankly speaking. Please believe in what I say. I am speaking the truth.”
Thereupon the caterpillar stated, “I don’t see eye to eye with you. You don’t want to reveal to me, who you are. You are telling a lie. It is crystal-clear.”
Alice observed, “Please believe in my words. I can’t put it more clearly. I know this much about myself. I have been changed several times. At present I myself have no idea of who I am. If you had asked me some time back I would have surely told you about me. But this is not possible right now. I have been through so Many different sizes. It is all very confusing and embarrassing. I again urge you to believe my words. Whatever I am telling you is true and reliable to the best of my knowledge and belief.”
But the caterpillar was still reluctant. His question still stood. It was hard for Alice to bring the caterpillar round to her viewpoint. The caterpillar took a big yawn and asked Alice, “O dear! Please tell me who you are and where from you have come from. Whatever you have told me so far is totally unreliable. I can’t rely on what you say. Please tell me who you are.”
Hearing the same question time and again Alice felt bored and irritated. She thought hard and hard about the ways and means of getting rid of the caterpillar which was quite obstinate. At last she came up with an idea. She moved close to the caterpillar and gave it a hard look.
Then she said to the caterpillar in a soft voice, “Dear! I think it is high time you should tell me who you are and where from you have come. After you have told me about yourself only then I shall tell you about myself.”
Hearing of the words of Alice the caterpillar turned red in rage. It said angrily, “Why should I tell you about myself? How dare you pose me a question? It is none of your business.”
Now Alice was confused. She didn’t have the solid reason. She hung her head in surprise. She was out of her wits. She could not utter a single word. Her lips were sealed. Seeing that the caterpillar was not in the best of moods Alice turned her back to go away from there.
Seeing Alice moving away the caterpillar shouted, “Hey! Don’t go. Please return. I have something urgent to say to you. You can’t go away like this. It is my order and you have to abide by it.”
Hearing the words of the caterpillar Alice thought, ‘I should go back to the caterpillar. Maybe it would be of some help to me.’
Thinking so Alice turned back and came up to the caterpillar which observed, “Dear! Keep cool. Don’t get frustrated. Control your anger which is man’s worst enemy.”
“Is that all you wanted to say to me,” shot back Alice in an angry tone.
“No, not at all, dear. Please wait for a while. I shall tell you everything by and by,” remarked the caterpillar.
Alice had no alternative but to stand there and wait for something to happen. Although she was fed up with the array of questions posed by the caterpillar yet she deemed it fit and suitable to wait there.
The caterpillar was puffing away at his long hookah without saying anything. It was in a relaxed mooed. It was not in a tearing hurry. It kept on smoking the hookah for a long time. Alice was fuming with anger in her heart of hearts. But she kept mum. She did not lose heart. She kept her composure. She tried to interrupt the caterpillar while it was smoking. But all her efforts proved an exercise in futility.
Every time she went ahead to speak something, the caterpillar raised its arm to stop her. The poor Alice checked herself and refrained from uttering a word.
After a few hours when the caterpillar had done away with the hookah, it unfolded his arms and took the nozzle of the hookah out of his mouth. Taking a big yawn it said to Alice, “Dear! You say that you have been changed several times, haven’t you?”
Hearing the words of the caterpillar Alice replied, “Mr. Caterpillar, you are absolutely right. I have gone through several changes. I have been of different sizes. At present, I have a weak memory as I am changed every ten minutes. Before the expiry of ten minutes or so I am changed completely. I used to have a sharp memory but constant changes in my size have weakened my memory a lot. Now I fail to remember different things. Sometime I fail to recollect what my name is.”
Hearing the words of Alice the caterpillar observed, “But how it all happened? What different things are you talking about, I mean to say what things you are unable to remember. Please tell me everything, in detail. May be I can be of some help to you.”
Thereupon Alice said softly, “Dear! I tell you everything very clearly. I met a busy bee which recited me a poem. To my mind, it is not correct as stated by the bee. May I recite you that poem if you permit?”
The caterpillar at once said, “Why not, dear. Please recite the poem without any hesitation. I am all ears.” Thus Alice began to recite the poem. All of a sudden, the caterpillar interrupted saying, “Please say again the first line. If I am not mistaken, this is not the correct version of the poem.”
With palms joined in utter reverence Alice again began to recite the entire poem. When Alice had finished reciting the poem, the caterpillar observed, “Dear! You are absolutely right. This is not the correct poem. It is totally wrong.”
But Alice changed her stance saying, “Maybe some of the words have got altered, otherwise the poem is correct to the best of my knowledge and belief.”
But the caterpillar was dead sure that the poem was wrong. So, it said to Alice emphatically, “Undoubtedly, the poem is out of context. Its beginning as well as end is wrong. The busy bee has made fun of you reciting you a wrong poem.”
A pin drop silence prevailed upon there for some minutes. After some time it was the caterpillar which broke the silence saying to Alice, “Dear! Leave the poem. I have nothing to do with the poem. It is not my cup of tea. But tell me what size you want to be. Maybe I can help you in this regard.”
Hearing the words of the caterpillar Alice observed, “Dear caterpillar! Size doesn’t matter a lot to me. The constant changes in size have confused me. I have been out of my wits several times. I detest to be changed every ten minutes.”
Hearing the words of Alice the caterpillar asked, “Tell me whether the present size is appropriate for you or not. Would you like to be in the same size for good?”
Thinking for a while Alice responded saying, “It would be much better if I have a little larger size. At present, I stand three inches tall. It is by no means a standard height as you know. Please do away with this height of mine and bless me with a height a bit larger.”
Comparing its height to that of Alice the caterpillar remarked, “Dear, it is a good height. Three inches is no less. I too am three inches in height. I look so handsome in this height.”
Saying these words the caterpillar reared itself upright to show its height. Lo and behold! It stood exactly three inches in height. But Alice was not happy with her height. She asserted that she was not accustomed to it. But the caterpillar observed, “Don’t worry, dear. You will soon get used to it. It is a very good height.”
Saying these words the caterpillar put the nozzle of the hookah and started smoking it once again. But Alice was very much offended. She was impatient. She wanted to speak to the caterpillar but it was relishing its hookah.
Seeing Alice impatient and flustered the caterpillar chose to speak to her. It put the hookah to one side and took a big yawn. Then it shook itself terribly. Climbing down the mushroom and crawling away into the grass the caterpillar observed, “Dear, there can be one thing for sure. This mushroom can make you regain height or lose it. Now it is up to you. One side of it will help you grow taller whereas the other side will help you grow shorter. The choice is yours. You can be taller or shorter as you wish.”
Hearing the words of the caterpillar Alice was in a thoughtful mood. She moved close to the mushroom and began to look at its sides carefully. As she moved around to ask the caterpillar some questions, the caterpillar was nowhere to be seen. It had gone away. But it had done its duty. It had told Alice how she could regain height.
Now Alice moved more close to the mushroom to have a look at its all sides. But she was utterly confused as it was round from all sides. As a last resort, she stretched her arms round it and snapped a bit of the edge of the mushroom with her each hand. In order to see the effect of the mushroom Alice ate the bit of the mushroom which she held in her right hand. No sooner did she consume it than she began to shrink in size. The bit of mushroom had struck her foot and she felt a violent blow right under her chin. She was shrinking rapidly.
Such was the effect of the mushroom. Without losing much time Alice consumed the bit of the mushroom which she held in her left hand. Lo and behold! Her head began to move upward whereas her shoulders began to shrink. Soon her shoulders were nowhere to be seen. She could see her long neck which seemed to sit like a stalk out of the sea of green leaves. In no time Alice’s neck had become very flexible. She could bend it easily in any direction she liked. She had somewhat assumed the shape of a serpent.
She started to move here, there and everywhere in a graceful zigzag. She was free to go anywhere—on top of trees, among the leaves etc. As she was going up a tree, a sharp hiss checked her progress. A pigeon from somewhere came there and started beating Alice violently with its large wings. It took her for a serpent. Alice was terribly frightened. She was quite unaware of this attack.
She begged the pigeon saying, “Dear! I am not a serpent.
Please let me go.” But the pigeon was bent upon killing Alice. It said to her, “You are telling a lie. You are surely a serpent and you have come here to steal my eggs. I know you are a reptile. I can’t be taken in by your oily words. I will put an end to you there and then.”
After many repeated requests Alice managed to bring the pigeon round to her viewpoint. Leaving Alice alone the pigeon settled down again into its nest. But it kept a tight vigil on Alice lest she should harm its eggs. Alice on the other hand, found herself crouched down among the trees. Her neck being unusually long in size kept getting entangled among the branches. Off and on, she had to stop to untangle it.
All in all, Alice was in a miserable position. All of a sudden, she remembered that she still had some bits of mushroom in her hands. Without losing any time she gulped down the remaining bits of the mushroom in the hope that she would regain her original size. As she nibbled at the bits of the mushroom which she held in her right hand, she grew taller. When she nibbled at the bits of the mushroom which she held in her left hand, she grew shorter. After growing taller and shorter alternately, she managed to bring herself down to her usual height.
She thanked the Almighty God and praised her stars. She prayed to God saying, “O God! You are great. You are benevolent. You have helped me in this hour of need. I bow to you.”
The next moment Alice took a big yawn and fell fast asleep under a shady tree. When she got up, she felt very happy on finding that her size had not changed at all. Now her size had stopped changing after so many variations.
Alice said to herself, ‘Thank God, I have attained my original size. Really, these changes have been puzzling
and mind boggling. Now I am least worried. I must find my way to the lovely garden. But how will I reach there? This is the question which disturbs me off and on.’
No sooner did she finish speaking these words than she found herself in an open place. There was a little house which was four feet in height. Seeing the beautiful house Alice thought to enter it.
She said to herself, ‘I must enter this house. It does not matter who lives in this house. By eating the bit of the mushroom in my right hand I shall make myself grow taller. The residents of this house will get scared of my height and will run away from here.’ Thinking so Alice consumed the bit of the mushroom. Lo and behold! She grew herself to a height of nine inches. Now she got herself ready to enter the house.
