狮子成为百兽之王
从瓷器墙爬下后， travelers发现自己来到一片令人不快的乡野，到处是泥沼和湿地，长满了高大丛生的野草。若不留神，很容易掉进泥洞里，因为草太密，把坑洞都遮住了。不过，他们小心择路，总算平安走过，来到坚实的地面。可这里似乎比之前更荒凉，穿过矮树丛走了漫长而疲惫的一段路后，他们进入另一片森林，这里的树木比他们见过的任何树都要巨大、古老。
“这森林真是妙极了，”狮子环顾四周，欢喜地说，“我从未见过更美的地方。”
“看着怪阴森的。”稻草人说。
“一点也不会，”狮子答道，“我愿意在此终老。瞧你脚下干叶多软，老树上攀附的苔藓多茂密青翠。野兽断不会想要比这更惬意的家。”
“也许此刻林中就有野兽。”多萝西说。
“想必是有的，”狮子回道，“但我没见着什么。”
他们穿林而行，直到天黑得走不动了。多萝西、托托和狮子躺下睡了，铁皮人和稻草人如常守着他们。
晨光初露，他们又上路。没走多远，便听见低沉的隆隆声，像是许多野兽在咆哮。托托轻轻呜咽，旁人却都不怕，顺着踩出的小径走，来到林间一片空地，里头聚着成百上千各式各样的兽类。有虎、象、熊、狼、狐，以及自然史里其他的走兽，多萝西一时有些害怕。狮子却说兽群在开会，从嘶吼声听来，它们正大难临头。
他说话时，几只野兽瞥见了他，庞大的集会顿时如施了魔法般静下。最大的老虎走上前，向狮子鞠躬道：
“欢迎，百兽之王！您来得正好，替我们除敌，还森林众兽以安宁。”
“你们有何难？”狮子淡然问。
“我们全受威胁，”老虎答，“近来林里来了个凶敌。那是极可怕的怪物，像巨蛛，身如象大，腿如树干长。它有八条这样的长腿，爬过林子时，用腿擒兽拖到嘴边，如蛛吃蝇般吞掉。这恶物一日不死，谁也不安稳。正开会商议自保之法，您就来了。”
狮子想了想。
“林中还有别的狮子么？”他问。
“没有；从前有，叫怪物吃光了。况且，它们没一只能比您这么大、这么勇。”
“若我除了你们的对头，你们可愿俯首称臣，奉我为森林之王？”狮子问。
“甘愿效命，”老虎回道；众兽齐声大吼：“愿！”
“那大蛛现在何处？”狮子问。
“那边，橡树间。”老虎以爪指道。
“好生照看我这些朋友，”狮子说，“我去战那怪物。”
他辞了同伴，昂然出发迎敌。
狮子寻见巨蛛时，它正睡着，丑陋不堪，叫对头厌恶地皱鼻。腿确如虎所言般长，身覆粗黑毛。嘴阔齿利，一排牙有一尺长；头与臃肿的身以细如蜂腰的脖相连。狮子由此瞧出攻它的最好法子，又知睡时比醒时易斗，便猛一跃，正落怪物背上。随即重物前掌一挥，利爪尽出，将蛛头从身子上击落。跳下地，他守着，直到长腿不再抽动，知它死透。
狮子回至兽群等候的空地，傲然道：
“你们再不必怕那仇敌了。”
众兽俯首，奉狮子为王；他许诺，等多萝西平安踏上去堪萨斯的路，便回来统治它们。
The Lion Becomes the King of Beasts
After climbing down from the china wall the travelers found themselves
in a disagreeable country, full of bogs and marshes and covered with
tall, rank grass. It was difficult to walk without falling into muddy
holes, for the grass was so thick that it hid them from sight. However,
by carefully picking their way, they got safely along until they
reached solid ground. But here the country seemed wilder than ever, and
after a long and tiresome walk through the underbrush they entered
another forest, where the trees were bigger and older than any they had
ever seen.
“This forest is perfectly delightful,” declared the Lion, looking
around him with joy. “Never have I seen a more beautiful place.”
“It seems gloomy,” said the Scarecrow.
“Not a bit of it,” answered the Lion. “I should like to live here all
my life. See how soft the dried leaves are under your feet and how rich
and green the moss is that clings to these old trees. Surely no wild
beast could wish a pleasanter home.”
“Perhaps there are wild beasts in the forest now,” said Dorothy.
“I suppose there are,” returned the Lion, “but I do not see any of them
about.”
They walked through the forest until it became too dark to go any
farther. Dorothy and Toto and the Lion lay down to sleep, while the
Woodman and the Scarecrow kept watch over them as usual.
When morning came, they started again. Before they had gone far they
heard a low rumble, as of the growling of many wild animals. Toto
whimpered a little, but none of the others was frightened, and they
kept along the well-trodden path until they came to an opening in the
wood, in which were gathered hundreds of beasts of every variety. There
were tigers and elephants and bears and wolves and foxes and all the
others in the natural history, and for a moment Dorothy was afraid. But
the Lion explained that the animals were holding a meeting, and he
judged by their snarling and growling that they were in great trouble.
As he spoke several of the beasts caught sight of him, and at once the
great assemblage hushed as if by magic. The biggest of the tigers came
up to the Lion and bowed, saying:
“Welcome, O King of Beasts! You have come in good time to fight our
enemy and bring peace to all the animals of the forest once more.”
“What is your trouble?” asked the Lion quietly.
“We are all threatened,” answered the tiger, “by a fierce enemy which
has lately come into this forest. It is a most tremendous monster, like
a great spider, with a body as big as an elephant and legs as long as a
tree trunk. It has eight of these long legs, and as the monster crawls
through the forest he seizes an animal with a leg and drags it to his
mouth, where he eats it as a spider does a fly. Not one of us is safe
while this fierce creature is alive, and we had called a meeting to
decide how to take care of ourselves when you came among us.”
The Lion thought for a moment.
“Are there any other lions in this forest?” he asked.
“No; there were some, but the monster has eaten them all. And, besides,
they were none of them nearly so large and brave as you.”
“If I put an end to your enemy, will you bow down to me and obey me as
King of the Forest?” inquired the Lion.
“We will do that gladly,” returned the tiger; and all the other beasts
roared with a mighty roar: “We will!”
“Where is this great spider of yours now?” asked the Lion.
“Yonder, among the oak trees,” said the tiger, pointing with his
forefoot.
“Take good care of these friends of mine,” said the Lion, “and I will
go at once to fight the monster.”
He bade his comrades good-bye and marched proudly away to do battle
with the enemy.
The great spider was lying asleep when the Lion found him, and it
looked so ugly that its foe turned up his nose in disgust. Its legs
were quite as long as the tiger had said, and its body covered with
coarse black hair. It had a great mouth, with a row of sharp teeth a
foot long; but its head was joined to the pudgy body by a neck as
slender as a wasp’s waist. This gave the Lion a hint of the best way to
attack the creature, and as he knew it was easier to fight it asleep
than awake, he gave a great spring and landed directly upon the
monster’s back. Then, with one blow of his heavy paw, all armed with
sharp claws, he knocked the spider’s head from its body. Jumping down,
he watched it until the long legs stopped wiggling, when he knew it was
quite dead.
The Lion went back to the opening where the beasts of the forest were
waiting for him and said proudly:
“You need fear your enemy no longer.”
Then the beasts bowed down to the Lion as their King, and he promised
to come back and rule over them as soon as Dorothy was safely on her
way to Kansas.
