"Having rallied my troops," said the Red Knight, "I will now march to
settle the Trust problem at the head of my convincible army."
"You mean _in_vincible, don't you?" said Alice.
"I mean _con_vincible," replied the Red Knight. "Because we always march
to battle convinced that we shall be robbed of the fruits of victory."
"Then why fight at all?" said Alice.
The Red Knight looked at her in astonishment. "If we don't fight, how
can we cry fraud afterwards?"
"But you don't absolutely have to cry fraud, do you?" said Alice,
timidly.
For the first time since their acquaintance the Red Knight grew
sarcastic. "If you can tell me any other way we can keep our spirits up,
I'd be much obliged," he said.
"Your army doesn't seem to be a very large one," said Alice.
"Yes, it is," said the Red Knight. "I have countless millions on my
side. But they are of a rather retiring disposition. You'd never suspect
they were there if I didn't tell you. These men you see are only my
Field Marshals. I don't suppose you have ever met them before, have
you?"
"I never have," said Alice. "I am only eight, you know, and Mamma says I
must be seventeen before I go out in mixed company."
"Then I must introduce you," said the Red Knight. "The small man in
armor is George the Harvester. We call him that because he thinks he
can sow money and reap delegates. He just loves the people. And he is so
modest that the people don't even suspect it. A good man, the Harvester,
and as true as United States Steel."
"I don't think I like him," said Alice.
"I didn't until he came out for me," said the Red Knight. "That showed
how mistaken I was. The tall, thin man, next to him is Gifford the
Forester, so-called because he is frequently up a tree. He is a nice
fellow, but not practical enough. I sometimes wonder whether he belongs
with the rest of my Field-Marshals. The one in sheepskin is Ormsby the
Barrister. He got his title from his willingness to round up Southern
delegates for any candidate, bar none. He is the most unprejudiced man I
know. The last man on the left, in a uniform of colored frontispieces is
Frank the Publisher. He is always in high spirits because his
circulation is so good. Have you ever seen a more impressive lot of
men?"
Alice couldn't honestly say that she had. So the Red Knight gave the
signal and the convincible army started out. Soon they came to two
finger-posts pointing in the same direction. One finger-post said, "To
the House of the Good Trust," and the other finger-post said, "To the
House of the Bad Trust."
Alice thought that was very odd, but she was resolved she'd wait until
they came to a fork in the road. But when they did the road on the left
had no guide-posts at all, and the two fingers continued to point down
the other road.
"Do Good Trust and Bad Trust both live in the same house?" asked Alice.
"I shouldn't be surprised," said the Red Knight, and they marched on
till they came to New Jersey; and there, sure enough--but what Alice saw
there will be told by the Red Knight in the preceding chapter.