Chapter 6

The Cowardly Lion

All this time Dorothy and her companions had been walking through the thick woods. The road was still paved with yellow brick, but it was covered by dried branches and dead leaves from the trees.

“How long will it be,” the child asked of the Tin Woodman, “before we are out of the forest?”

“I cannot tell,” was the answer, “for I have never been to the Emerald City. But my father went there once, when I was a boy, and he said it was a long journey through a dangerous country. But I am not afraid so long as I have my oil-can. Nothing can hurt the Scarecrow, and you bear the mark of the Good Witch’s kiss, and that will protect you from harm.”

“But Toto!” said the girl anxiously. “What will protect him?”

“We must protect him ourselves,” replied the Tin Woodman.

Just as he spoke there came a terrible roar from the forest, and the next moment a great Lion jumped into the road. With one blow of his paw he sent the Scarecrow spinning over and over to the edge of the road, and then he struck at the Tin Woodman with his sharp claws. He didn’t break the tin, although the Woodman fell over in the road and lay still.

Little Toto, now that he had an enemy to face, ran barking toward the Lion. The beast had opened his mouth to bite the dog, when Dorothy rushed forward, slapped the Lion upon his nose as hard as she could, and cried out:

“Don’t you dare to bite Toto! You ought to be ashamed of yourself, a big beast like you, to bite a poor little dog!”

“I didn’t bite him,” said the Lion, as he rubbed his nose with his paw where Dorothy had hit it.

“No, but you tried to,” she said. “You are a big coward.”

“I know it,” said the Lion, hanging his head in shame. “I’ve always known it. But how can I help it?”

“What makes you a coward?” asked Dorothy, who by now helped the Scarecrow and the Woodman to get up. She looked at the beast in wonder, for he was very big.

“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. I learned that if I roared very loudly every living thing was frightened and got out of my way.”

“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 makes me very unhappy.”

“We’re going to the Emerald City, to ask the Great Oz for help,” said Dorothy.

“Do you think Oz could give me courage?” asked the Cowardly Lion.

“Yes,” said the Scarecrow.

“Then, if you don’t mind, I’ll go with you,” said the Lion, “for I need a bit of courage.”

“You will be very welcome,” answered Dorothy, “for you will help to keep away the other wild beasts.”

So once more the little company set off upon the journey, the Lion walking at Dorothy’s side. Toto did not approve of this new comrade at first. But after a time he became more at ease, and they grew to be good friends.

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

Chapter 7

The Journey to the Great Oz

They had to camp out that night under a large tree in the forest, for there were no houses nearby. The Tin Woodman chopped a great pile of wood with his axe and Dorothy built a 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 and have a very good breakfast.”

“Don’t! Please don’t,” begged the Tin Woodman. “I will weep if you kill a poor deer, and then my jaws would rust.”

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. Then they went to sleep.

When it was daylight, the girl washed 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. There were many big, jagged rocks at the bottom. The sides were so steep to climb down.

“What shall we do?” asked Dorothy.

“I don’t know,” said the Tin Woodman.

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.

“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,” said the Scarecrow, “for, if I fall, I won’t be hurt.”

“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.”

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 air and landed safely on the other side. They were all greatly pleased to see that. After the Scarecrow got down from his back the Lion jumped across the ditch again.

Dorothy thought she would go next; so she took Toto in her arms and climbed on the Lion’s back. The next moment it seemed as if she were flying through the air; and then, before she had time to think about it, she was safe on the other side. The Lion went back a third time and got the Tin Woodman, and then they all sat down for a few moments to give the beast a chance to rest.

The forest was very thick here, and it looked dark and gloomy. After the Lion had rested they started along the road of yellow brick.

Soon heard strange noises in the depths of the forest, and the Lion whispered to them that it was in this part of the country that the Kalidahs lived.

“What are the Kalidahs?” asked the girl.

“They are monstrous beasts with bodies like bears and heads like tigers,” replied the Lion, “and with claws so long and sharp that they could tear me in two. I’m terribly afraid of the Kalidahs.”

“I’m not surprised that you are,” returned Dorothy. “They must be scary beasts.”

The Lion was about to reply when suddenly they came to another ditch across the road. But this one was too broad for the Lion to jumps across.

So they started thinking about what they could do. The Scarecrow said:

“There is a big tree here. If the Tin Woodman can chop it down, so that it will fall to the other side, we can walk across it easily.”

“That is a good idea,” said the Lion. “One would almost suspect you had brains in your head, instead of straw.”

The Woodman set to work at once, and he chopped the tree almost all the way through. Then the Lion pushed with all his might, and slowly the big tree tipped and fell across the ditch.

They had just started to cross this new bridge when a sharp growl made them all look up. They saw running toward them two great beasts with bodies like bears and heads like tigers.

“They are the Kalidahs!” said the Cowardly Lion, beginning to tremble.

“Quick!” cried the Scarecrow. “Let us cross over.”

So Dorothy went first, holding Toto in her arms, the Tin Woodman followed, and the Scarecrow came next. The Lion, even though he was afraid, turned to face the Kalidahs, and roared so terribly that the beasts stopped and looked at him in surprise. But then they remembered that they were bigger and there were two of them, and rushed forward again. The Lion crossed over the tree and turned to see what they would do next. Without stopping an instant the beasts also began to cross the tree. And the Lion said to Dorothy:

“We are lost, for they will surely tear us to pieces. But stand close behind me, and I will fight them as long as I am alive.”

“Wait a minute!” called the Scarecrow. He asked the Woodman to chop away the end of the tree that rested on their side of the ditch. The Tin Woodman began to use his axe at once, and, just as the two Kalidahs were nearly across, the tree fell with a crash into the ditch. The beasts fell down with it and hit the sharp rocks at the bottom.

“Well,” said the Cowardly Lion, “Those creatures frightened me so badly that my heart is beating yet.”

“Ah,” said the Tin Woodman sadly, “I wish I had a heart to beat.”

This adventure made the travelers more anxious than ever to get out of the forest. They walked so fast that Dorothy became tired, and had to ride on the Lion’s back. To their great joy in the afternoon they suddenly came upon a broad river. On the other side of the water they could see the road of yellow brick running through a beautiful country, with green meadows dotted with bright flowers. They were very pleased to see this delightful country before them.

“How will we cross the river?” asked Dorothy.

“The Tin Woodman must build us a raft, so we can float to the other side,” said the Scarecrow.

So the Woodman took his axe and began to chop down small trees to make a raft. But it took some time, and when the night came the work was not done. So they found a cozy place under the trees where they slept well until the morning.