Mr Walrus stood before the baby oysters, holding forth most eloquently upon all the curious things that lay beyond this sea, speaking as though he had seen them all with his own eyes, ‘There are shoes, and ships, and sealing wax; there are cabbages, and kings; and do you know, why the sea is boiling hot? And whether pigs have wings? If you should wish to find out, now is the very best of times!’
The Carpenter, hearing this, came hurrying along, and thrust his head straight into the sea, gazing at the delicious oysters before him with no small longing.
The baby oysters listened, and listened, and every one of them wore a look of the most perfect bewilderment, but before long they were all giggling merrily. Mother Oyster, standing close by, shook her head again and again, saying, ‘Children, now is not yet the time to leave your bed!’
