ted after Jill  day. As  soon as t of ting party  off, sour  of tle and asking questions, but all in suc, babyis  no one could suspect  design. tongue ill, you  could alked: stled and giggled. So everyone - ters, ting, and t lords . Sted to being kissed and pa by any number of  giantesses, many of tle t;  tant fact t you out ter  you did not o cross tyard or pass t gatecended to be greedy, and ate all sorts of scraps o give  upstairs among tions about  feast, and o sit up,  and  made  all  over er very fetc, and say, quot;O omorroime ill t; And all tesses said s  little darling; and some of to cry.

    quot;ttle t t age,quot; said one giantess to anot;It  seems almost a pity . . .”

    Scrubb and Puddleglum bot, but girls do t kind of tter t better than Marsh-wiggles.

    At lunco leave tle of tle Giants. t  a little table of t a bigger table, about ty yards aook no more notice of it ters outside  traffic noises in treet. ting cold venison, a kind of food  ed before, and s.

    Suddenly Puddleglum turned to t you  could see tural muddiness of his complexion. he said:

    quot;Dont eat anote.”

    quot;s ; asked two in a whisper.

    quot;Didnt you  ts s a nice tender   stag  one. `O oug like me.quot; For a moment Jill did not realize t s;So ing a talking stag.”

    t ly t on all of to t ag and t it rotten of ts  to   one talking  beast as   feel about a murder. But  Puddleglum,  as you would feel if you found  you en a baby.

    quot;eve broug; ;ts  attending to t. If it   to take to our own s.”

    And gradually even Jill came to see it from  of vie any rate,  none of ted any more lunc it safe t  quietly out of the hall.

    It o t time of t in passages and ed for to become quiet. ts in t on a dreadfully long time after telling a story.  ravellers  dao tc till plenty of giants t least in tting t ing till t a last only one old giantess  in ttered about, and pottered about, and at last travellers realized  s intend to go a all.

    quot;ell, dearies,quot; so t;t jobs about ts put ttle there.

    tll make a nice cup of tea presently. Nole bit of a  rest. Just look into ts, and tell me if the back door is open.”

    quot;Yes, it is,quot; said Scrubb.

    quot;ts rig open so as Puss can get in and out, thing.”

    t doher.

    quot;I dont kno; said tess. quot;If only  t blarney ing party doesnt come back too soon.”

    All ts leaped up y urn of ting party.

    quot;; asked Jill.

    quot;You never can tell,quot; said tess. quot;But t for a  bit, my dearies.”

    treated to tc  into tess  sat up, opened her eyes, and brushed  away a fly.

    quot;Dont try it till ll spoil everyt; So t tcing and c t ters mig any moment errible. And tess y.  so sleep, she moved.

    quot;I cant bear t; t Jill. to distract   in front of able wo clean pie-dis, and an  open book.

    t pie-dis t s comfortably in one of table to look at ty of ways.

    quot;Its a cookery book,quot; t Jill  mucerest, and glanced over  her shoulder.

    tesss eyes  s look as if s t  t entry  seemed to stop beating; It ran  MAN. t little biped  forms  a traditional part of tumn Feast, and is served bet.  Each Man...

    but s bear to read any more. Surned round. tess  of couged to  ted t over till  reading about o cook Men o t entry belo. It ies reject toget for  giants consumption because of its stringy consistency and muddy flavour. tly reduced if-  Jill touc, and Scrubbs, gently. All t tess. ly open and from  t  moment was

    more o t ion  of tiptoe  daring to go too fast, o breat t sculleries smell  at last into t of a er  afternoon.

    t top of a rougtle pateeply do side of tle; ty Ruinous eep road le. t side. If it  no one mig. But ty too, t ty Ruinous, didnt  offer as muc   stones. to make matters  ts  nig Puddleglum, oo long for  a scarlet mantle fringed e fur.  Scrubb  stockings, blue tunic and cloak, a gold-ed s.

    quot;Nice bits of colour, you t; muttered Puddleglum. quot;Stily on a er day. t arc miss eitalking of arc to   too, they?”

    quot;Yes, Im freezing already,quot; said Jill.

    A fees ago   if only t out of tle, t complete.  S t dangerous part of it ill to come.

    quot;Steady, steady,quot; said Puddleglum. quot;Dont look back. Dont oo  quickly. ever you do, dont run. Look as if  taking a stroll, and t, just possibly, not bot we look like people running  away, were done.”

    tance to ty Ruinous seemed longer than Jill would have  believed possible.

    But bit by bit t. t ;s t?”

    quot;ing ; whispered Scrubb.

    quot;But dont run even no; said Puddleglum. quot;Not until I give the word.”

    time Jill couldnt   returning from be.

    t clamour of giant voices arose: ts  and hollas.

    quot;t; said Puddleglum.

    Jill gats - aking t, quot;After ter tomorrow.”

    S of tones, ting in . to run upony slope  step of  t stair tter off even if top.

    But s t t. Sed animal noer  run till she dropped.

    to t step opped,  looked a little to , and all of a sudden darted into a little  ttom of it. o it, looked very like tated and ter o t a minute later. It tractive one about t long and  o fling yourself flat on  your face and cra do it so very quickly eit sure t a  dogs teet inside.

    quot;Quick, quick. Stones. Fill up t; came Puddleglums voice in t c for t in t,  ely to pile up stones. tant tones o t t pretty  at all.

    quot;Fart; said Puddleglums voice.

    quot;Lets all ; said Jill.

    quot;Good idea,quot; said Scrubb. But it took te a long time to find one  anot the barrier  now.

    quot;try if and up,quot; suggested Scrubb. t t a o Scrubb, and Scrubb  beo Jill ( t), t and stumbling foro t ones underfoot. to a  wall of rock.

    turned a little to t and  on. ts and

    turns. Jill ion at all, and no idea whe cave lay.

    quot;tion is,quot; came Puddleglums voice out of t;  be better to go back (if s a treat at t feast of tead of losing our s of a  en to one, ter and - O go! Save  yourselves.

    Im -”

    After t all y,  gravelly noise, a rattle of stones, and Jill found  do greeeper every moment. It  a smoot a slope of small stones and rubbisood up, it  slope you  your foot  on  Jill anding. And turbed all tones and eart t  faster and louder and dustier and dirtier. From t t many of tones ty  a furious rate and felt  sure so bits at ttom.

    Yet some. t sticky  stuff on o be blood. And sucones  up. te t it made no difference at all   moment Jill had ever known in her  life.

    Supposing ss around ly all t none  of to have any broken bones.

    quot;e can never get up t again,quot; said Scrubbs voice.

    quot;And iced  is?quot; said t;t  means  be nearly a mile.”

    No one said anytime later Puddleglum added:  quot;My tinder-box has gone.”

    After anot;Im terribly ty.”

    No one suggested doing anyto be done.  For t, t feel it quite so badly as one miged;  t ired.

    Long, long after test terly strange  voice spoke. t once t it  tly been   voice - almost, if you  kno means, a pitc said:  quot; make you ures of the Overworld?”