2.3 The Mad Tea Party
Tea at six o’clock forever, with three hosts and not enough clean cups
Introduction
The Mad Hatter, the March Hare, and the Dormouse sit at one corner of a long table set for many, and shout No room! No room! when Alice approaches the empty places. She joins them anyway, and is treated to riddles without answers, a watch that tells the day of the month, and a Dormouse who keeps falling asleep mid-story about three little girls who lived at the bottom of a treacle-well. The tea is never poured, the clean cups never arrive, and the party never ends — because Time, having quarrelled with the Hatter, has simply stopped attending.