-
关注Ta
-
- 注册时间 2010-07-26
- 最后登录 2024-11-24
- 在线时间12073小时
-
- 发帖51697
- 搜Ta的帖子
- 精华0
- 派派币9327
- 威望19276
- 鲜花101546
- 鸡蛋260
- 在线时间12073 小时
-
访问空间加好友用道具
6.3上任 7.1生日 7.26周年 8.13结婚周年
|
Chapter 12. The Search for the Wicked Witch
The soldier with the green whiskers led them through the streets of the Emerald City until they reached the room where the Guardian of the Gates lived. This officer unlocked their spectacles to put them back in his great box, and then he politely opened the gate for our friends.
"Which road leads to the Wicked Witch of the West?" asked Dorothy.
"There is no road," answered the Guardian of the Gates. "No one ever wishes to go that way."
"How, then, are we to find her?" inquired the girl.
"That will be easy," replied the man, "for when she knows you are in the country of the Winkies she will find you, and make you all her slaves."
"Perhaps not," said the Scarecrow, "for we mean to destroy her."
"Oh, that is different," said the Guardian of the Gates. "No one has ever destroyed her before, so I naturally thought she would make slaves of you, as she has of the rest. But take care; for she is wicked and fierce, and may not allow you to destroy her. Keep to the West, where the sun sets, and you cannot fail to find her."
They thanked him and bade him good-bye, and turned toward the West, walking over fields of soft grass dotted here and there with daisies and buttercups. Dorothy still wore the pretty silk dress she had put on in the palace, but now, to her surprise, she found it was no longer green, but pure white. The ribbon around Toto's neck had also lost its green color and was as white as Dorothy's dress.
The Emerald City was soon left far behind. As they advanced the ground became rougher and hillier, for there were no farms nor houses in this country of the West, and the ground was untilled.
In the afternoon the sun shone hot in their faces, for there were no trees to offer them shade; so that before night Dorothy and Toto and the Lion were tired, and lay down upon the grass and fell asleep, with the Woodman and the Scarecrow keeping watch.
Now the Wicked Witch of the West had but one eye, yet that was as powerful as a telescope, and could see everywhere. So, as she sat in the door of her castle, she happened to look around and saw Dorothy lying asleep, with her friends all about her. They were a long distance off, but the Wicked Witch was angry to find them in her country; so she blew upon a silver whistle that hung around her neck.
At once there came running to her from all directions a pack of great wolves. They had long legs and fierce eyes and sharp teeth.
"Go to those people," said the Witch, "and tear them to pieces."
"Are you not going to make them your slaves?" asked the leader of the wolves.
"No," she answered, "one is of tin, and one of straw; one is a girl and another a Lion. None of them is fit to work, so you may tear them into small pieces."
"Very well," said the wolf, and he dashed away at full speed, followed by the others.
It was lucky the Scarecrow and the Woodman were wide awake and heard the wolves coming.
"This is my fight," said the Woodman, "so get behind me and I will meet them as they come."
He seized his axe, which he had made very sharp, and as the leader of the wolves came on the Tin Woodman swung his arm and chopped the wolf's head from its body, so that it immediately died. As soon as he could raise his axe another wolf came up, and he also fell under the sharp edge of the Tin Woodman's weapon. There were forty wolves, and forty times a wolf was killed, so that at last they all lay dead in a heap before the Woodman.
Then he put down his axe and sat beside the Scarecrow, who said, "It was a good fight, friend."
They waited until Dorothy awoke the next morning. The little girl was quite frightened when she saw the great pile of shaggy wolves, but the Tin Woodman told her all. She thanked him for saving them and sat down to breakfast, after which they started again upon their journey.
Now this same morning the Wicked Witch came to the door of her castle and looked out with her one eye that could see far off. She saw all her wolves lying dead, and the strangers still traveling through her country. This made her angrier than before, and she blew her silver whistle twice.
Straightway a great flock of wild crows came flying toward her, enough to darken the sky.
And the Wicked Witch said to the King Crow, "Fly at once to the strangers; peck out their eyes and tear them to pieces."
The wild crows flew in one great flock toward Dorothy and her companions. When the little girl saw them coming she was afraid.
But the Scarecrow said, "This is my battle, so lie down beside me and you will not be harmed."
So they all lay upon the ground except the Scarecrow, and he stood up and stretched out his arms. And when the crows saw him they were frightened, as these birds always are by scarecrows, and did not dare to come any nearer. But the King Crow said:
"It is only a stuffed man. I will peck his eyes out."
The King Crow flew at the Scarecrow, who caught it by the head and twisted its neck until it died. And then another crow flew at him, and the Scarecrow twisted its neck also. There were forty crows, and forty times the Scarecrow twisted a neck, until at last all were lying dead beside him. Then he called to his companions to rise, and again they went upon their journey.
When the Wicked Witch looked out again and saw all her crows lying in a heap, she got into a terrible rage, and blew three times upon her silver whistle.
Forthwith there was heard a great buzzing in the air, and a swarm of black bees came flying toward her.
"Go to the strangers and sting them to death!" commanded the Witch, and the bees turned and flew rapidly until they came to where Dorothy and her friends were walking. But the Woodman had seen them coming, and the Scarecrow had decided what to do.
"Take out my straw and scatter it over the little girl and the dog and the Lion," he said to the Woodman, "and the bees cannot sting them." This the Woodman did, and as Dorothy lay close beside the Lion and held Toto in her arms, the straw covered them entirely.
The bees came and found no one but the Woodman to sting, so they flew at him and broke off all their stings against the tin, without hurting the Woodman at all. And as bees cannot live when their stings are broken that was the end of the black bees, and they lay scattered thick about the Woodman, like little heaps of fine coal.
Then Dorothy and the Lion got up, and the girl helped the Tin Woodman put the straw back into the Scarecrow again, until he was as good as ever. So they started upon their journey once more.
The Wicked Witch was so angry when she saw her black bees in little heaps like fine coal that she stamped her foot and tore her hair and gnashed her teeth. And then she called a dozen of her slaves, who were the Winkies, and gave them sharp spears, telling them to go to the strangers and destroy them.
The Winkies were not a brave people, but they had to do as they were told. So they marched away until they came near to Dorothy. Then the Lion gave a great roar and sprang towards them, and the poor Winkies were so frightened that they ran back as fast as they could.
When they returned to the castle the Wicked Witch beat them well with a strap, and sent them back to their work, after which she sat down to think what she should do next. She could not understand how all her plans to destroy these strangers had failed; but she was a powerful Witch, as well as a wicked one, and she soon made up her mind how to act.
There was, in her cupboard, a Golden Cap, with a circle of diamonds and rubies running round it. This Golden Cap had a charm. Whoever owned it could call three times upon the Winged Monkeys, who would obey any order they were given. But no person could command these strange creatures more than three times. Twice already the Wicked Witch had used the charm of the Cap. Once was when she had made the Winkies her slaves, and set herself to rule over their country. The Winged Monkeys had helped her do this. The second time was when she had fought against the Great Oz himself, and driven him out of the land of the West. The Winged Monkeys had also helped her in doing this. Only once more could she use this Golden Cap, for which reason she did not like to do so until all her other powers were exhausted. But now that her fierce wolves and her wild crows and her stinging bees were gone, and her slaves had been scared away by the Cowardly Lion, she saw there was only one way left to destroy Dorothy and her friends.
So the Wicked Witch took the Golden Cap from her cupboard and placed it upon her head. Then she stood upon her left foot and said slowly:
"Ep-pe, pep-pe, kak-ke!"
Next she stood upon her right foot and said:
"Hil-lo, hol-lo, hel-lo!"
After this she stood upon both feet and cried in a loud voice:
"Ziz-zy, zuz-zy, zik!"
Now the charm began to work. The sky was darkened, and a low rumbling sound was heard in the air. There was a rushing of many wings, a great chattering and laughing, and the sun came out of the dark sky to show the Wicked Witch surrounded by a crowd of monkeys, each with a pair of immense and powerful wings on his shoulders.
One, much bigger than the others, seemed to be their leader. He flew close to the Witch and said, "You have called us for the third and last time. What do you command?"
"Go to the strangers who are within my land and destroy them all except the Lion," said the Wicked Witch. "Bring that beast to me, for I have a mind to harness him like a horse, and make him work."
"Your commands shall be obeyed," said the leader. Then, with a great deal of chattering and noise, the Winged Monkeys flew away to the place where Dorothy and her friends were walking.
Some of the Monkeys seized the Tin Woodman and carried him through the air until they were over a country thickly covered with sharp rocks. Here they dropped the poor Woodman, who fell a great distance to the rocks, where he lay so battered and dented that he could neither move nor groan.
Others of the Monkeys caught the Scarecrow, and with their long fingers pulled all of the straw out of his clothes and head. They made his hat and boots and clothes into a small bundle and threw it into the top branches of a tall tree.
The remaining Monkeys threw pieces of stout rope around the Lion and wound many coils about his body and head and legs, until he was unable to bite or scratch or struggle in any way. Then they lifted him up and flew away with him to the Witch's castle, where he was placed in a small yard with a high iron fence around it, so that he could not escape.
But Dorothy they did not harm at all. She stood, with Toto in her arms, watching the sad fate of her comrades and thinking it would soon be her turn. The leader of the Winged Monkeys flew up to her, his long, hairy arms stretched out and his ugly face grinning terribly; but he saw the mark of the Good Witch's kiss upon her forehead and stopped short, motioning the others not to touch her.
"We dare not harm this little girl," he said to them, "for she is protected by the Power of Good, and that is greater than the Power of Evil. All we can do is to carry her to the castle of the Wicked Witch and leave her there."
So, carefully and gently, they lifted Dorothy in their arms and carried her swiftly through the air until they came to the castle, where they set her down upon the front doorstep. Then the leader said to the Witch:
"We have obeyed you as far as we were able. The Tin Woodman and the Scarecrow are destroyed, and the Lion is tied up in your yard. The little girl we dare not harm, nor the dog she carries in her arms. Your power over our band is now ended, and you will never see us again."
Then all the Winged Monkeys, with much laughing and chattering and noise, flew into the air and were soon out of sight.
The Wicked Witch was both surprised and worried when she saw the mark on Dorothy's forehead, for she knew well that neither the Winged Monkeys nor she, herself, dare hurt the girl in any way. She looked down at Dorothy's feet, and seeing the Silver Shoes, began to tremble with fear, for she knew what a powerful charm belonged to them. At first the Witch was tempted to run away from Dorothy; but she happened to look into the child's eyes and saw how simple the soul behind them was, and that the little girl did not know of the wonderful power the Silver Shoes gave her. So the Wicked Witch laughed to herself, and thought, "I can still make her my slave, for she does not know how to use her power." Then she said to Dorothy, harshly and severely:
"Come with me; and see that you mind everything I tell you, for if you do not I will make an end of you, as I did of the Tin Woodman and the Scarecrow."
Dorothy followed her through many of the beautiful rooms in her castle until they came to the kitchen, where the Witch bade her clean the pots and kettles and sweep the floor and keep the fire fed with wood.
Dorothy went to work meekly, with her mind made up to work as hard as she could; for she was glad the Wicked Witch had decided not to kill her.
With Dorothy hard at work, the Witch thought she would go into the courtyard and harness the Cowardly Lion like a horse; it would amuse her, she was sure, to make him draw her chariot whenever she wished to go to drive. But as she opened the gate the Lion gave a loud roar and bounded at her so fiercely that the Witch was afraid, and ran out and shut the gate again.
"If I cannot harness you," said the Witch to the Lion, speaking through the bars of the gate, "I can starve you. You shall have nothing to eat until you do as I wish."
So after that she took no food to the imprisoned Lion; but every day she came to the gate at noon and asked, "Are you ready to be harnessed like a horse?"
And the Lion would answer, "No. If you come in this yard, I will bite you."
The reason the Lion did not have to do as the Witch wished was that every night, while the woman was asleep, Dorothy carried him food from the cupboard. After he had eaten he would lie down on his bed of straw, and Dorothy would lie beside him and put her head on his soft, shaggy mane, while they talked of their troubles and tried to plan some way to escape. But they could find no way to get out of the castle, for it was constantly guarded by the yellow Winkies, who were the slaves of the Wicked Witch and too afraid of her not to do as she told them.
The girl had to work hard during the day, and often the Witch threatened to beat her with the same old umbrella she always carried in her hand. But, in truth, she did not dare to strike Dorothy, because of the mark upon her forehead. The child did not know this, and was full of fear for herself and Toto. Once the Witch struck Toto a blow with her umbrella and the brave little dog flew at her and bit her leg in return. The Witch did not bleed where she was bitten, for she was so wicked that the blood in her had dried up many years before.
Dorothy's life became very sad as she grew to understand that it would be harder than ever to get back to Kansas and Aunt Em again. Sometimes she would cry bitterly for hours, with Toto sitting at her feet and looking into her face, whining dismally to show how sorry he was for his little mistress. Toto did not really care whether he was in Kansas or the Land of Oz so long as Dorothy was with him; but he knew the little girl was unhappy, and that made him unhappy too.
Now the Wicked Witch had a great longing to have for her own the Silver Shoes which the girl always wore. Her bees and her crows and her wolves were lying in heaps and drying up, and she had used up all the power of the Golden Cap; but if she could only get hold of the Silver Shoes, they would give her more power than all the other things she had lost. She watched Dorothy carefully, to see if she ever took off her shoes, thinking she might steal them. But the child was so proud of her pretty shoes that she never took them off except at night and when she took her bath. The Witch was too much afraid of the dark to dare go in Dorothy's room at night to take the shoes, and her dread of water was greater than her fear of the dark, so she never came near when Dorothy was bathing. Indeed, the old Witch never touched water, nor ever let water touch her in any way.
But the wicked creature was very cunning, and she finally thought of a trick that would give her what she wanted. She placed a bar of iron in the middle of the kitchen floor, and then by her magic arts made the iron invisible to human eyes. So that when Dorothy walked across the floor she stumbled over the bar, not being able to see it, and fell at full length. She was not much hurt, but in her fall one of the Silver Shoes came off; and before she could reach it, the Witch had snatched it away and put it on her own skinny foot.
The wicked woman was greatly pleased with the success of her trick, for as long as she had one of the shoes she owned half the power of their charm, and Dorothy could not use it against her, even had she known how to do so.
The little girl, seeing she had lost one of her pretty shoes, grew angry, and said to the Witch, "Give me back my shoe!"
"I will not," retorted the Witch, "for it is now my shoe, and not yours."
"You are a wicked creature!" cried Dorothy. "You have no right to take my shoe from me."
"I shall keep it, just the same," said the Witch, laughing at her, "and someday I shall get the other one from you, too."
This made Dorothy so very angry that she picked up the bucket of water that stood near and dashed it over the Witch, wetting her from head to foot.
Instantly the wicked woman gave a loud cry of fear, and then, as Dorothy looked at her in wonder, the Witch began to shrink and fall away.
"See what you have done!" she screamed. "In a minute I shall melt away."
"I'm very sorry, indeed," said Dorothy, who was truly frightened to see the Witch actually melting away like brown sugar before her very eyes.
"Didn't you know water would be the end of me?" asked the Witch, in a wailing, despairing voice.
"Of course not," answered Dorothy. "How should I?"
"Well, in a few minutes I shall be all melted, and you will have the castle to yourself. I have been wicked in my day, but I never thought a little girl like you would ever be able to melt me and end my wicked deeds. Look out--here I go!"
With these words the Witch fell down in a brown, melted, shapeless mass and began to spread over the clean boards of the kitchen floor. Seeing that she had really melted away to nothing, Dorothy drew another bucket of water and threw it over the mess. She then swept it all out the door. After picking out the silver shoe, which was all that was left of the old woman, she cleaned and dried it with a cloth, and put it on her foot again. Then, being at last free to do as she chose, she ran out to the courtyard to tell the Lion that the Wicked Witch of the West had come to an end, and that they were no longer prisoners in a strange land.
第12章寻找西方女巫
那个绿胡须的兵士,带着他们穿过悲翠城中的一些街道,直送到守城门人住的地方。这个守城门的,用钥匙打开他们的眼镜,放回到大箱子里,随后,又很有礼貌地给他们打开了城门。
多萝茜问:“怎样找到西方女巫,该走哪一条路?”
“没有路通到她那里,因为西方女巫的国土周围都很荒凉,女巫不允许国土内的任何一个人走出来。”守城门的人回答说:“当然没有一个人愿意走上那条路。”
女孩子追问道:“请你告诉我们,怎样才能找到她?”
“那很简单,”这人回答说,“如果女巫知道你们到温基了,她就会把你们一起抓了去做她的奴隶。”
“不会吧,”稻草人说,“我们是要去杀死她的。”
“啊,这就另当别论,”守城门的人说。“在你们以前,没有一个人想去杀死她,所以当然想到她会把你们当作奴隶,就像她把任何一个去温基的人却会抓去一样。但请留神,她残酷而又凶猛,你们恐怕很难杀死她。你们一直向西走,在日落的地方,一定会找到她。”
他们向他道了谢,并且向他说了声再会,就转向西面,走过柔软的长满雏菊的草地,虽然多萝茜仍旧穿着美丽的绿绸衣,现在使她吃惊的,她发现不再是绿色了,却是纯洁的白色了。
系在托托颈里的绿丝带,也褪去了它的绿色,变成白的了。
他们继续向西走着,悲翠城被远远地抛在了后面,路面也渐渐不平坦了,并且高起来,周围没有屋子、田地一片荒凉。
似乎连鸟兽也不愿意被西方女巫统治,从这里逃走了。
到了下午,太阳晒得他们的脸儿发烫,因为这里没有树木遮蔽;所以多萝茜和托托,还有狮子,都跑得很疲倦,躺在草地上睡着了,铁皮人和稻草人守在他们旁边。
那西方的恶女巫只有一只眼睛,然而那只眼睛却像望远镜一样地具有穿透力,能看到老远的地方。
下午的时候,当她坐在城堡的门口,无聊地四处观望时,就望见多萝茜睡熟了,还有她的朋友们在旁边卫护她。他们还有很远的一段路程,但是坏女巫已经看见他们在她的国土上了,因此十分愤怒;吹响了挂在她颈项里的一个银笛。
立刻,从四面八方聚集了一群恶狼。它们的腿很长,瞪着凶恶的绿眼睛,露出尖利的牙齿。
女巫指点着说:“看到他们了吗,去把他们撕成碎片。”
恶狼的头头问道:“你愿意让她们做你的奴隶吗?”
“那倒不必,”她回答说,“一个是铁皮人,一个是稻草人,一个是小女孩子,还有一只是狮子。他们做不了什么工作的,你们把他们撕成一小块一小块罢。”
“太好了,”这只狼说着,它迅速地跑去了,后面跟着许多狼。
铁皮人和稻草人清醒着,发现了恶狼们冲过来了。
“这次我来解决它们,”铁皮人说;“你们躲在我的后面,等它们冲过来时,我跟他们博斗。”
他手举着磨得很快的斧头来,当恶狼的头头奔过来时,铁皮人迅速地一挥,它的头从身上掉了下来,立刻就死了。
另一只狼奔上来,当他又举起斧头来劈过去,也倒在铁皮人锋利的斧头下。这次来了四十只恶狼,斧头挥动了四十次,每一次都准确地命中目标;到了最后,在铁皮人面前,是一堆恶狼支离破碎的尸体。
于是,他放下斧头,坐了下来,对稻草人说:“朋友,这是一场大战斗。”
直到第二天早晨,多萝茜在醒过来,看见了一大堆毛茸茸的恶狼尸体,这个小女孩子惊恐万分,铁皮人详细地告诉她昨晚发生的事情。她感谢了他,坐下来吃着早餐,吃完以后,他们又出发了。
这天早晨,西方女巫来到城堡的门口,用她的单眼四处望着,瞭望远处。她发现恶狼们全都躺着死了,那些陌生的客人,仍旧在她的国土上向前行进。这使得她更加愤怒了,吹了两声银笛。
立刻飞来一大群野乌鸦,遮黑了一大片天空。
女巫命令乌鸦王说:“火速飞到那些陌生的客人走的地方去;啄掉他们的眼睛,把他们撕成碎片罢。”
野乌鸦们疯狂地飞向多萝茜和她的同伴。当这小女孩子看到黑压压的一群鸟儿飞来时,惊慌万分,稻草人却镇定地说:“这次我来解决;请你们躺在我的身旁,就不会伤害到你们了。”
这时,除了稻草人站着外,他们一起躺在地上,他伸出手臂,起初这些乌鸦们看见了他,都很害怕,因为这些鸟儿们,都是被稻草人吓惯了的,远远的徘徊在空中。
然而乌鸦王说道:“那只是一个稻草人。我去啄掉他的眼睛。”
乌鸦王猛然向稻草人冲过去,稻草人掐住它的脖子,绞着,一直把它绞到死去。接着另一只乌鸦向他冲来,也被它绞死了。
就这样,稻草人扭绞了四十次脖子,所有的乌鸦都死了,躺在他的旁边,稻草人喊起他的同伴们,又踏上旅途。
当女巫又望见她的乌鸦们全死掉了,恨恨地咬着牙,她不能再忍受了,发誓要把那帮陌生送进地狱,第三次吹响她的银笛。
立刻听到空中有一阵嗡嗡的声音,是一群黑蜂飞来了。
“飞到那些陌生的客人待着的地方,螫死他们罢!”女巫翻着一只白眼下着这个命令。
黑蜂转过弯来急速地飞着,几乎快飞到多萝茜和她的朋友们赶路的地方。铁皮人已经发现它们来了,稻草人也已经决定做什么了。
他急忙对铁皮人说:“快把我身体里塞着的稻草拿出来,盖在小女孩子和狗以及狮子的身上,黑蜂们就螫不到他们了。”
铁皮人很快的做完了这些,多萝茜在靠近狮子身旁躺着,还把托托抱在她的臂弯里,他们就这样被稻草遮没了。
黑蜂们飞来,找不到他们,只能螫着铁皮人,所以它们都刺向铁皮人,却白白地在铁皮面上,折损了它们所有的刺,铁皮人却没有受到任何伤害。
黑蜂们的刺毁了,那是黑蜂的末日,许多黑蜂散落在铁皮人的四周,厚厚地像一小堆上等的媒。
于是多萝茜和狮子站起来,他们再把稻草塞进稻草人的身体,使他完好如初。接着,他们就出发了。
这个坏女巫疯狂了,她看见黑蜂们像一小堆上等的煤样地死了,顿着她的脚,撕扯着她的头发,咬着她的牙齿。
于是她叫来了十二个奴隶,都是温基人,交给他们锐利的熗,命令他们冲到陌生的客人那里去杀死他们。
这几个温基人都是很怯懦的人,他们还是接受了命令,只能去干;他们向前走去,碰到了那个小团体。于是狮子大吼一声,猛然出现在他们的面前,可怜的温基人,他们害怕极了,四散逃命去了。
当那帮可怜的温基人逃回去后,女巫用铁条惩罚了他们。
女巫便思索她杀人计划失败的原因,她始终没有想明白,而她是个恶毒的女巫,没多久,又想出了新的办法。
在她的橱里,有一顶金冠,四周镶嵌着一圈金钢钻和红宝石。这顶金冠有神奇的魔力。只要戴上它,可以召唤出一批飞猴,飞猴能听从任何命令。然而召唤这些奇怪的动物不能超过三次。
她已经用过两次这顶金冠的魔力了。第一次是当她想奴役温基人,让她能够统治他们的国土。飞猴们曾经帮助她实现她的愿望。第二次是当她对大麽术师奥芝作战,并且把他从这西方赶出去。飞猴们也让她如愿以偿。
这顶金冠,她只能用一次了,现在她那凶猛的恶狼们和野乌鸦们,以及螫人的黑蜂们,都被那帮陌生人杀掉了,她的奴隶们也给小胆狮吓了回来,她明白,她要杀死在她国土上的陌生客人,只能使用这顶金冠,别无其它的办法。
因此,坏女巫就从她的橱里取出金冠来,戴在头上。于是她独立着左脚,慢慢地说:“哎—泼,攀—泼,步—基!”
然后她右脚独立着说:“唏—罗,呵—罗,哈—罗!”
最后她并立着两只脚,高声叫着:“西—楚,如—楚,西—克!”
果然,金冠发挥了魔力。天空乌压压的,发出隆隆的声音,随后飞来了许多飞猴,发出一阵极大的喋喋声和嘻笑声;阳光从黑天空里射出来时,照见了恶女巫身旁围绕着的一群猴子,每一只猴子都有一对阔大有力的翅翼。
其中一只飞猴,看上去比其他的大得多了,它似乎是飞猴的头头,飞近女巫耳畔低声说道:“你这是第三次召唤我们了,也是最后一次了。你又有什么吩咐?”
“把那些在我国土上的陌生客人,除掉狮子以外,全部杀掉罢,”女巫说。“把那只狮子带回来,因为我突然有一个想法,让他像马一样做苦工。”
“完全遵守你的命令,”猴王说,随着一阵极大的喋喋声和嘈杂声,飞猴们向着多萝茜和她的朋友们赶路的地方去了。
好几只猴子捉住了铁皮人,带着他飞出国境,直飞到堆着厚厚的尖锐石头的深谷,把铁皮人扔了下去,铁皮人全身受到损害,支离破碎,动弹不得。
猴子们捉住了稻草人,用长臂拉出他衣服里面所有的稻草,用他的帽子、鞋子和衣服,打成一个小包,抛在一颗高大的树顶上。
其余的猴子们甩出结实的绳子,缚住狮子,左右抛散下来的绳子从狮子的身上、头上,腿上,盘绕了好多圈,直绕到它再也动弹不了。飞猴们举起它来,飞到女巫的城堡里去,把它扔进一个四周围着密密匝匝的铁栅的小天井里,它根本没法逃走。
飞猴们却不伤害多萝茜。她站着,她的臂弯里抱着托托,她眼看着她的朋友遇到不测,并且想着马上就要轮到她自己了。
飞猴的头头在她头顶上盘旋着,伸出它那长而多毛的两臂,它的丑陋的脸扭曲着,露出了碜人的狞笑;但是当它看见善女巫印在她额角上的吻时,就停止了无礼,警告他的猴子们,一定不能触犯她。
“我们不敢冒犯这个小女孩子,”它的同伙说,“因为她是被东方善女巫保护着的,善女巫远比那坏女巫伟大得多。我们只能带她到西方女巫的城堡里去,把她留在那里。”
所以,他们小心翼翼地,很礼貌地,在臂上抬举起了多萝茜,并且轻快地带着她穿过天空,一直飞到城堡,轻轻地把她放下在前面的阶石上,只听见飞猴头头对女巫说:“我们已经尽力做了,我们所能做的。那铁皮人和稻草人都被杀死了,狮子已经缚住在你的院子里了,只有这个小女孩子,我们不能伤害她,也不敢伤害抱在她臂弯里的狗。你的命令我做一切事的权力,现在是完结了,你将永远见不到我们了。”
于是所有的猴子们,伴随着一阵可怕的笑声,喋喋声,喧噪声,飞上天空,马上就无影无踪了。
西方女巫在多萝茜的额角上的吻,她又吃惊,又害怕,因为她很明白,不仅是飞猴们不敢,就是她自己也不敢伤害这个小女孩子。
她俯看多萝茜的脚,发现了一双银鞋子,更是害怕得发抖,因为她清楚这一双银鞋子,它有强大而神奇的魔力。
本来,这个坏女巫想从多萝茜面前逃走;然而她偶然地望着小女孩子的一双眼睛,发觉她眸子清明,灵魂是纯洁的,便明白了小女孩子并不晓得这一双银鞋子的神奇魔力。
恶女巫得意地笑着,并且想道:“我还是能让她做我的奴隶;女孩子根本不懂得去运用它的魔力。”
于是,她对多萝茜粗暴地严厉地命令着说:“跟我来;你要为我做些事情,如果你不好好做,你就没命啦,像铁皮人和稻草人那样。”
多萝茜跟在女巫后面,穿过城堡里的许多美丽的房间,直跑到厨房里,女巫吩咐她洗干净锅子和水壶,打扫地板,并燃起炉火来。
多萝茜顺从地干活,她决定不辞辛苦地做下去;因为坏女巫不会杀死她,她已经很欣慰了。
多萝茜在辛苦地忙碌着。这个女巫想,现在她可以到院子里去,像一匹马那样地驾御着那只庞大的狮子了;她想从中找乐,便决定让狮子拉游览车,她想到什么地方去就让它拉着去。
当她打开栅门时,狮子却对她大吼,凶猛地向她冲过去,女巫怕极了,急忙跑出去,锁上了铁门。
“我倒是有办法治你,”女巫从门柱的缝里对狮子说:“我先把你饿起来。直饿到你先愿意为我做事,在你顺从以前,你不会有任何东西吃。”
以后几天里,她不拿食物给被囚的狮子吃,总是每天中午,她跑到门旁去问:“你想好没有,像一匹马那样地为我拉车?”
狮子坚定地回答说:“不,如果你进来,我要咬死你。”
其实那狮子并没有饿到那种地步,原来每天夜里,女巫熟睡了,多萝茜便从厨房拿食物给它吃。在它吃饱以后,就躺下在稻草铺的床上,多萝茜在它的旁边,她的头枕在它那柔软的、蓬松的长鬣上,他们便讨论如何摆脱困境,想方设法逃出去。
然而他们仍一筹莫展,因为那些黄色的温基人,时时刻刻看守着,他们是女巫的奴隶,不敢违抗她的命令,更不敢做多萝茜要他们做的事。
在白天,多萝茜不得不努力做工,那女巫常常手里拿着一柄旧雨伞,说要打她,恐吓她。可是,事实上,她不敢打多萝茜,因为在她的额角上有东方女巫的吻。不过小女孩并没有意识到这一点,常常为了自己和托托,心中充满着恐惧。
有一次,那女巫用她的伞柄敲了托托一下,这只愤怒的小狗冲上去咬住她的腿。女巫虽然被咬,并不流血,因为她是那么可恶,她的血在多年以前已经干枯了。
多萝茜的生活,变得十分悲惨,她越来越清楚的意识到,她要再回到堪萨斯州,再见到爱姆婶婶,更加困难了。
有时候,她忧愁地哭上几个钟头,托托蹲在她的脚旁,惨然地呜呜地叫着,似乎表明它和主人一样忧愁。托托并不真的关心它是在堪萨斯州还是在奥芝,重要的是和多萝茜住在一起;但是,它发觉了小女孩子不快乐,它也是一副很凄惨的样子。
现在,那坏女巫非常的渴望,把那女孩子的一双银鞋子,据为己有。她的黑蜂和她的恶狼,成了她骄傲的灰烬,她已用完了金冠的魔力;如果能得到银鞋子,那就能能够补偿她失去的一切东西,并且且有更强大的魔力。
她细心地监视着多萝茜,看她什么时候脱掉她的鞋子,就去偷它们。但是女孩子非常珍视她美丽的银鞋子,除非在夜里,当她去洗澡的时候,她才暂时把它脱下来。女巫怕黑暗,不敢在夜里到多萝茜的房间里去拿走她的银鞋子,并且她怕水,这恐怕是她最害怕的了,所以当多萝茜洗澡的时候,恶女巫也害怕走过去。的确,这个老女巫从来不敢触碰过水,无论如何,也从来没有让水触碰着她。
但是,这个坏女巫是十分狡猾的,最后她想出了一个诡计,使她得到她所要得到的东西。
她在厨房间的地板的中央,放着一根铁条,用她的魔术,使得人类的一双眼睛看不见它。
当多萝茜走过这地板上时,就直挺挺地跌下去。摔在铁条上面,她摔得不是很厉害,也没有受伤,一只银鞋子脱落了,在她捡回来以前,却给女巫抢了去,穿在她干瘪的脚上。
那女巫因为她的阴谋得逞,大大地快活,她得到了这一只银鞋子,就得到了魔力的一半,即使将来多萝茜懂得怎样地应用,也不能制服她了。
小女孩子发觉她的一只美丽的鞋子被女巫穿在脚上,就生气起来,对着女巫喊道:“把鞋子还给我!”
“不,”女巫反斥着,“现在这只鞋子属于我了,不是你的了。”
“你这个坏蛋!”多萝茜叫喊着。”为什么拿走我的鞋子?”
“我帮你保存它,就跟你保存它是一样的,”女巫说了,向她大笑着,“以后,你的那一只也会被我拿到。”
这话使得多萝茜愤怒了,她拿起放在旁边的一桶水,对着女巫泼了过去,把她从头到脚淋了透。女巫立刻发出惊惧的叫喊声,多萝茜吃惊地看见,女巫的身体开始萎缩着,倒下去了。
“看,天哪,你怎么能这样!”女巫尖声地叫着。“在一分钟里,我就完全溶化了!”
“真的,我很抱歉,”多萝茜一边说时,一边睁大了眼睛,眼看那个女巫,在她面前冰块在阳光下一样地被溶化了。
“你难道不知道,水是可以结果我的生命吗?”女巫在哀哀哭泣的绝望声中说。
“当然不知道,”多萝茜说;“我怎么可能知道?”
“唔,几分钟后我就彻底溶掉了,你可以占有这座城堡了。
我在过去的日子里,作了很多的坏事,但是我永远不会想到像你这样的小女孩子,结果了我的性命,结束了我的恶行为。看着——我去了!”
说完这几句话,女巫就已经变成一堆棕色的、溶化了的、流质的东西,淌开在清洁光滑的厨房的地板上。
事实上,她已成为一滩没用的秽物了,多萝茜倒着另外一桶水,把它扫出门口。她拾起了那老女巫抢走的一只银鞋子,用一块布把它擦干净,并且揩干了,再穿在另一只脚上。
于是在最后,她想做什么就可以做了。她跑到院子里,告诉那狮子,那西方的女巫已经死了,他们已经获得了自由。
|
|