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第17章

the lost princess of oz-第17章

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Sawhorse。 〃You never hear me snore; because I never



sleep。 I don't even whinny; as those puffy meat horses



do。 I wish that whoever stole Toto's growl had taken



the Mule's bray and the Lion's roar and the Woozy's



snore at the same time。〃







〃Do you think; then; that my growl was stolen?〃







〃You have never lost it before; have you?〃 inquired



the Sawhorse。







〃Only once; when I had a sore throat from barking too



long at the moon。〃







〃Is your throat sore now?〃 asked the Woozy。







〃No;〃 replied the dog。







〃I can't understand;〃 said Hank; 〃why dogs bark at



the moon; They can't scare the moon; and the moon



doesn't pay any attention to the bark。 So why do dogs



do it?〃







〃Were you ever a dog?〃 asked Toto。







〃No; indeed;〃 replied Hank。 〃I am thankful to say I



was created a mule  the most beautiful of all beasts



 and have always remained one。〃







The Woozy sat upon his square haunches to examine



Hank with care。







〃Beauty;〃 said he; 〃must be a matter of taste。 I



don't say your judgment is bad; friend Hank; or that



you are so vulgar as to be conceited。 But if you admire



big waggly ears; and a tail like a paint…brush; and



hoofs big enough for an elephant; and a long neck and a



body so skinny that one can count the ribs with one eye



shut  if that's your idea of beauty; Hank  then



either you or I must be much mistaken。〃







〃You're full of edges;〃 sneered the Mule。 〃If I were



square; as you are; I suppose you'd think me lovely。〃







〃Outwardly; dear Hank; I would;〃 replied the Woozy。



〃But to be really lovely one must be beautiful without



and within。〃







The Mule couldn't deny this statement; so he gave a



disgusted grunt and rolled over so that his back was



toward the Woozy。 But the Lion; regarding the two



calmly with his great yellow eyes; said to the dog:







〃My dear Toto; our friends have taught us a lesson in



humility。 If the Woozy and the Mule are indeed



beautiful creatures; as they seem to think; you and I



must be decidedly ugly。〃







〃Not to ourselves;〃 protested Toto; who was a shrewd



little dog。 〃You and I; Lion; are fine specimens of our



own races。 I am a fine dog and you are a fine lion。



Only in point of comparison; one with another; can we



be properly judged; so I will leave it to the poor old



Sawhorse to decide which is the most beautiful animal



among us all。 The Sawhorse is wood; so he won't be



prejudiced and will speak the truth。〃







〃I surely will;〃 responded the Sawhorse; wagging his



ears; which were chips set in his wooden head。 〃Are you



all agreed to accept my judgment?〃







〃We are!〃 they declared; each one hopeful。







〃Then;〃 said the Sawhorse; 〃I must point out to you



the fact that you are all meat creatures; who tire



unless they sleep; and starve unless they eat; and



suffer from thirst unless they drink。 Such animals must



be very imperfect; and imperfect Creatures cannot be



beautiful。 Now; I am made of wood。〃







〃You surely have a wooden head;〃 said the Mule。







〃Yes; and a wooden body and wooden legs  which are



as swift as the wind and as tireless。 I've heard



Dorothy say that 'handsome is as handsome does;' and I



surely perform my duties in a handsome manner。



Therefore; if you wish my honest judgement; I will



confess that among us all I am the most beautiful。〃







The Mule snorted and the Woozy laughed; Toto had lost



his growl and could only look scornfully at the



Sawhorse; who stood in his place unmoved。 But the Lion



stretched himself and yawned; saying quietly:







〃Were we all like the Sawhorse we would all be



Sawhorses; which would be too many of the kind; were we



all like Hank; we would be a herd of mules; if like



Toto; we would be a pack of dogs; should we all become



the shape of the Woozy; he would no longer be



remarkable for his unusual appearance。 Finally; were



you all like me; I would consider you so common that I



would not care to associate with you。 To be individual;



my friends; to be different from others; is the only



way to become distinguished from the common herd。 Let



us be glad; therefore; that we differ from one another



in form and in disposition。 Variety is the spice of



life and we are various enough to enjoy one another's



society; so let us be content。〃







〃There is some truth in that speech;〃 remarked Toto



reflectively。 〃But how about my lost growl?〃







〃The growl is of importance only to you;〃 responded



the Lion; 〃so it is your business to worry over the



loss; not ours。 If you love us; do not inflict your



burdens on us; be unhappy all by yourself。〃







〃If the same person stole my growl who stole Ozma;〃



said the little dog; 〃I hope we shall find him very



soon and punish him as he deserves。 He must be the most



cruel person in all the world; for to prevent a dog



from growling when it is his nature to growl is just as



wicked; in my opinion; as stealing all the magic in



Oz。〃



















Chapter Eleven







Button…Bright Loses Himself











The Patchwork Girl; who never slept and who could see



very well in the dark; had wandered among the rocks and



bushes all night long; with the result that she was



able to tell some good news the next morning。







〃Over the crest of the hill before us;〃 she said; 〃is



a big grove of trees of many kinds; on which all sorts



of fruits grow。 If you will go there you will find a



nice breakfast awaiting you。〃







This made them eager to start; so as soon as the



blankets were folded and strapped to the back of the



Sawhorse they all took their places on the animals and



set out for the big grove Scraps had told them of。







As soon as they got over the brow of the hill they



discovered it to be a really immense orchard; extending



for miles to the right and left of them。 As their way



led straight through the trees they hurried forward as



fast as possible。







The first trees they came to bore quinces; which they



did not like。 Then there were rows of citron trees and



then crab apples and after。 ward limes and lemons。 But



beyond these they found a grove of big golden oranges;



juicy and sweet; and the fruit hung low on the



branches; so they could pluck it easily。







They helped themselves freely and all ate oranges as



they continued on their way。 Then; a little farther



along; they came to some trees bearing fine red apples;



which they also feasted on; and the Wizard stopped here



long enough to tie a lot of the apples in one end of a



blanket。







〃We do not know what will happen to us after we leave



this delightful orchard;〃 he said; 〃so I think it wise



to carry a supply of apples with us。 We can't starve as



long as we have apples; you know。〃







Scraps wasn't riding the Woozy just now。 She loved to



climb the trees and swing herself by the branches from



one tree to another。 Some of the choicest fruit was



gathered by the Patchwork Girl from the very highest



limbs and tossed down to the others。 Suddenly Trot



asked: 〃Where's Button…Bright?〃 and when the others



looked for him they found the boy had disappeared。







〃Dear me!〃 cried Dorothy。 〃I guess he's lost again;



and that will mean our waiting here until we can find



him。〃







〃It's a good place to wait;〃 suggested Betsy; who had



found a plum tree and w

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