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8 it if you like, but you'd much better not. Look here! If you've really nothing else on hand this morning, supposing we drop down the river together, and have a long day of it?'

The Mole waggled his toes from sheer happiness, spread his chest with a sigh of full contentment, and leaned back blissfully into the soft cushions. 'What a day I'm having!' he said. 'Let us start at once!'

'Hold hard a minute, then!' said the Rat. He looped the painter through a ring in his landing-stage, climbed up into his hole above, and after a short interval reappeared staggering under a fat, wicker luncheon-basket.

'Shove that under your feet,' he observed to the Mole, as he passed it down into the boat. Then he untied the painter and took the sculls again.

'What's inside it?' asked the Mole, wriggling with curiosity.

'There's cold chicken inside it,' replied the Rat briefly; 'cold&shy;tongue&shy;cold&shy;ham&shy;cold&shy;beef&shy;pickled&shy;gherkins&shy;salad&shy;french&shy;rolls&shy;cress&shy;sandwiches&shy;potted&shy;meat&shy;ginger&shy;beer&shy;lemonade&shy;soda&shy;water'

'O stop, stop,' cried the Mole in ecstacies: 'This is too much!'