Who Stole the Tarts？
The trial of the Knave of Hearts for stealing the Queen of Hearts' tarts is the climactic event of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, a chaotic and absurd legal proceeding that parodies the justice system and culminates in Alice's final confrontation with the arbitrary authority of the Queen of Hearts, leading to her awakening from the dream.
Setting and Participants
The trial takes place in a crowded court, with the King and Queen of Hearts seated on their throne. The Knave of Hearts stands before them in chains, guarded by a soldier on each side. Near the King is the White Rabbit, holding a trumpet in one hand and a scroll of parchment in the other. In the very middle of the court is a table bearing a large dish of tarts, which look so good that Alice, who has joined the spectators, feels quite hungry. The jury box contains twelve creatures—some animals, some birds—who are all writing busily on slates. Alice, who has never been in a court of justice before, is pleased to recognize the names of nearly everything, identifying the judge by his great wig (the judge is the King himself, wearing his crown over the wig). The Gryphon is also present, and Alice sits near the Dormouse.
The Accusation and First Witnesses
The White Rabbit blows three blasts on the trumpet, unrolls the parchment scroll, and reads the accusation: "The Queen of Hearts, she made some tarts, / All on a summer day: / The Knave of Hearts, he stole those tarts, / And took them quite away!" The King tells the jury to consider their verdict, but the Rabbit interrupts, insisting there is a great deal more to come. The first witness is the Hatter, who enters with a teacup in one hand and a piece of bread-and-butter in the other, explaining he had not quite finished his tea when sent for. The King questions him about when he began his tea, and the Hatter, the March Hare, and the Dormouse give conflicting dates (the Fourteenth, Fifteenth, and Sixteenth of March). The King orders the jury to write down all three dates, which they do, adding them up and reducing the answer to shillings and pence. The Queen puts on her spectacles and stares at the Hatter, who turns pale and fidgets. The King tells him to give his evidence, threatening execution if he is nervous. The Hatter, in confusion, bites a large piece out of his teacup instead of the bread-and-butter. The Queen demands the list of singers from the last concert, causing the Hatter to tremble so violently that he shakes both his shoes off. His testimony becomes increasingly incoherent, involving the March Hare and the Dormouse, and he is eventually dismissed, with the Queen ordering his head to be taken off outside. The next witness is the Duchess's cook, who carries a pepper-box and causes everyone near the door to sneeze. She refuses to give evidence, and the King, after a reluctant cross-examination, learns that tarts are made of "Pepper, mostly." A sleepy voice adds "Treacle," and the Queen shrieks for the Dormouse to be beheaded and turned out of court. After the confusion subsides, the cook has disappeared.
Alice's Testimony and the Verses
The White Rabbit calls Alice as the next witness. She jumps up so hastily that she tips over the jury-box with her skirt, spilling all the jurymen onto the heads of the crowd below. She picks them up again, but in her haste puts the Lizard in head downwards. The King insists the trial cannot proceed until all jurymen are back in their proper places. When asked what she knows about the business, Alice replies "Nothing," which the King first calls "very important" before being corrected by the White Rabbit to "unimportant." The King then invokes Rule Forty-Two, which states that all persons more than a mile high must leave the court. Alice, who has been growing larger, refuses to go, pointing out that the rule is not a regular one and was just invented. The King turns pale and shuts his notebook. The White Rabbit produces a new piece of evidence: a set of verses, supposedly written by the prisoner to somebody. The Knave denies writing them, noting there is no signature. The King argues that the lack of a signature makes the matter worse. The verses are read aloud, a confusing poem about giving and receiving, swimming, and secrets. The King declares it the most important piece of evidence, but Alice interrupts, offering sixpence to anyone who can explain it, as she believes there is not an atom of meaning in it. The King attempts to interpret the verses, finding apparent references to the tarts and the jury, but his reasoning is strained and circular.
Alice's Rebellion and the Dream's End
The Queen demands "Sentence first—verdict afterwards," a reversal of proper legal procedure. Alice loudly declares this "Stuff and nonsense!" and refuses to hold her tongue when the Queen commands it. The Queen shouts "Off with her head!" but nobody moves. Alice, having grown to her full size, declares, "Who cares for you? You're nothing but a pack of cards!" At this, the whole pack of cards rises into the air and flies down upon her. She gives a little scream, half of fright and half of anger, and tries to beat them off—and finds herself lying on the bank, with her head in the lap of her sister, who is gently brushing away dead leaves from her face. The trial, and all of Wonderland, dissolves into the reality of the riverbank, and Alice wakes to her sister's voice saying, "Wake up, Alice dear! Why, what a long sleep you've had!"
