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the wonderful wizard of oz-第7章

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〃When they scratched against the tin it made a cold shiver run

down my back。  What is that little animal you are so tender of?〃



    〃He is my dog; Toto;〃 answered Dorothy。



    〃Is he made of tin; or stuffed?〃 asked the Lion。



    〃Neither。  He's aaa meat dog;〃 said the girl。



    〃Oh!  He's a curious animal and seems remarkably small;

now that I look at him。  No one would think of biting such a

little thing; except a coward like me;〃 continued the Lion sadly。



    〃What makes you a coward?〃 asked Dorothy; looking at the great

beast in wonder; for he was as big as a small horse。



    〃It's a mystery;〃 replied the Lion。  〃I suppose I was born

that way。  All the other animals in the forest naturally expect me

to be brave; for the Lion is everywhere thought to be the King of

Beasts。  I learned that if I roared very loudly every living thing

was frightened and got out of my way。  Whenever I've met a man

I've been awfully scared; but I just roared at him; and he has

always run away as fast as he could go。  If the elephants and the

tigers and the bears had ever tried to fight me; I should have run

myselfI'm such a coward; but just as soon as they hear me roar

they all try to get away from me; and of course I let them go。〃



    〃But that isn't right。  The King of Beasts shouldn't be a coward;〃

said the Scarecrow。



    〃I know it;〃 returned the Lion; wiping a tear from his eye

with the tip of his tail。  〃It is my great sorrow; and makes my

life very unhappy。  But whenever there is danger; my heart begins

to beat fast。〃



    〃Perhaps you have heart disease;〃 said the Tin Woodman。



    〃It may be;〃 said the Lion。



    〃If you have;〃 continued the Tin Woodman; 〃you ought to be glad;

for it proves you have a heart。  For my part; I have no heart; so I

cannot have heart disease。〃



    〃Perhaps;〃 said the Lion thoughtfully; 〃if I had no heart I should

not be a coward。〃



    〃Have you brains?〃 asked the Scarecrow。



    〃I suppose so。  I've never looked to see;〃 replied the Lion。



    〃I am going to the Great Oz to ask him to give me some;〃

remarked the Scarecrow; 〃for my head is stuffed with straw。〃



    〃And I am going to ask him to give me a heart;〃 said the Woodman。



    〃And I am going to ask him to send Toto and me back to Kansas;〃

added Dorothy。



    〃Do you think Oz could give me courage?〃 asked the Cowardly Lion。



    〃Just as easily as he could give me brains;〃 said the Scarecrow。



    〃Or give me a heart;〃 said the Tin Woodman。



    〃Or send me back to Kansas;〃 said Dorothy。



    〃Then; if you don't mind; I'll go with you;〃 said the Lion;

〃for my life is simply unbearable without a bit of courage。〃



    〃You will be very welcome;〃 answered Dorothy; 〃for you will help

to keep away the other wild beasts。  It seems to me they must be more

cowardly than you are if they allow you to scare them so easily。〃



    〃They really are;〃 said the Lion; 〃but that doesn't make me any braver;

and as long as I know myself to be a coward I shall be unhappy。〃



    So once more the little company set off upon the journey; the

Lion walking with stately strides at Dorothy's side。  Toto did not

approve this new comrade at first; for he could not forget how

nearly he had been crushed between the Lion's great jaws。  But

after a time he became more at ease; and presently Toto and the

Cowardly Lion had grown to be good friends。



    During the rest of that day there was no other adventure to

mar the peace of their journey。  Once; indeed; the Tin Woodman

stepped upon a beetle that was crawling along the road; and killed

the poor little thing。  This made the Tin Woodman very unhappy;

for he was always careful not to hurt any living creature; and as

he walked along he wept several tears of sorrow and regret。  These

tears ran slowly down his face and over the hinges of his jaw; and

there they rusted。  When Dorothy presently asked him a question

the Tin Woodman could not open his mouth; for his jaws were

tightly rusted together。  He became greatly frightened at this and

made many motions to Dorothy to relieve him; but she could not

understand。  The Lion was also puzzled to know what was wrong。

But the Scarecrow seized the oil…can from Dorothy's basket and

oiled the Woodman's jaws; so that after a few moments he could

talk as well as before。



    〃This will serve me a lesson;〃 said he; 〃to look where I step。

For if I should kill another bug or beetle I should surely cry again;

and crying rusts my jaws so that I cannot speak。〃



    Thereafter he walked very carefully; with his eyes on the road;

and when he saw a tiny ant toiling by he would step over it; so as

not to harm it。  The Tin Woodman knew very well he had no heart; and

therefore he took great care never to be cruel or unkind to anything。



    〃You people with hearts;〃 he said; 〃have something to guide you; and

need never do wrong; but I have no heart; and so I must be very careful。

When Oz gives me a heart of course I needn't mind so much。〃









                 7。  The Journey to the Great Oz





    They were obliged to camp out that night under a large tree in

the forest; for there were no houses near。  The tree made a good;

thick covering to protect them from the dew; and the Tin Woodman

chopped a great pile of wood with his axe and Dorothy built a

splendid fire that warmed her and made her feel less lonely。  She

and Toto ate the last of their bread; and now she did not know

what they would do for breakfast。



    〃If you wish;〃 said the Lion; 〃I will go into the forest and

kill a deer for you。  You can roast it by the fire; since your

tastes are so peculiar that you prefer cooked food; and then you

will have a very good breakfast。〃



    〃Don't!  Please don't;〃 begged the Tin Woodman。  〃I should

certainly weep if you killed a poor deer; and then my jaws would

rust again。〃



    But the Lion went away into the forest and found his own supper;

and no one ever knew what it was; for he didn't mention it。  And the

Scarecrow found a tree full of nuts and filled Dorothy's basket with them;

so that she would not be hungry for a long time。  She thought this was

very kind and thoughtful of the Scarecrow; but she laughed heartily at the

awkward way in which the poor creature picked up the nuts。  His padded

hands were so clumsy and the nuts were so small that he dropped almost

as many as he put in the basket。  But the Scarecrow did not mind how long

it took him to fill the basket; for it enabled him to keep away from the fire;

as he feared a spark might get into his straw and burn him up。  So he kept a

good distance away from the flames; and only came near to cover Dorothy with

dry leaves when she lay down to sleep。  These kept her very snug and warm;

and she slept soundly until morning。



    When it was daylight; the girl bathed her face in a little rippling brook;

and soon after they all started toward the Emerald City。



    This was to be an eventful day for the travelers。  They had

hardly been walking an hour when they saw before them a great

ditch that crossed the road and divided the forest as far as they

could see on either side。  It was a very wide ditch; and when they

crept up to the edge and looked into it they could see it was also

very deep; and there were many big; jagged rocks at the bottom。

The sides were so steep that none of them could climb down; and

for a moment it seemed that their journey must end。



    〃What shall we do?〃 asked Dorothy despairingly。



    〃I haven't the faintest idea;〃 said the Tin Woodman; and the

Lion shook his shaggy mane and looked thoughtful。



    But the Scarecrow said; 〃We cannot fly; that is certain。

Neither can we climb down into this great ditch。  Therefore;

if we cannot jump over it; we must stop where we are。〃



    〃I think I could jump over it;〃 said the Cowardly Lion; after

measuring the distance carefully in his mind。



    〃Then we are all right;〃 answered the Scarecrow; 〃for you can

carry us all over on your back; one at a time。〃



    〃Well; I'll try it;〃 said the Lion。  〃Who will go first?〃



    〃I will;〃 declared the Scarecrow; 〃for; if you found that you

could not jump over the gulf; Dorothy would be killed; or the Tin

Woodman badly dented on the rocks below。  But if I am on your back

it will not matter so much; for the fall would not hurt me at all。〃



    〃I am terribly afraid of falling; myself;〃 said the Cowardly

Lion; 〃but I suppose there is nothing to do but try it。  So get on

my back and we will make the attempt。〃



    The Scarecrow sat upon the Lion's back; and the big beast

walked to the edge of the gulf and crouched down。



    〃Why don't you run and jump?〃 asked the Scarecrow。



    〃Because that isn't the way we Lions do these things;〃 he replied。

Then giving a great spring; he shot through the ai
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