The Tin Woodman and the Lion

Dorothy, Toto, and the Scarecrow walked on down the road of yellow brick, and when night came, they slept under the stars in a quiet field. In the morning they ate a small breakfast and walked on again, but the road soon grew rough, and the trees grew close together on every side, until the light around them turned gray and still. Before long, a strange sound began to rise from the dense trees ahead, low and steady, like someone crying in the shadow of the trees.

The sound seemed to echo through the whole forest, rising and falling, never quite fading away. Toto ran ahead, barking at the shadows, and the Scarecrow held Dorothy's hand as they walked toward it, deeper and deeper among the tall, black trees.

At last they found, deep among the trees, a man made entirely of tin, standing still with an axe raised high over his head. He did not move, even when they stood right near him, gazing at his still, metal face. "Did you make that sound?" Dorothy asked.

"Yes," said the man, in a voice that sounded rusty, like a door that had not opened for a long, long time. "My joints have rusted, and I can't move at all. There is a can of oil near that tree. Please oil my joints — my arms first, then my legs, then my mouth."

Dorothy found the oil and did as he asked. Slowly, the Tin Woodman's arms began to move, then his legs, then his mouth. He was joyful. "Thank you," he said. "I have been standing here so long, I thought I would rust forever. Where are you going?" "We are going to the Emerald City, to see the Wizard Oz," said Dorothy. "The Scarecrow wants a brain, and I want to find my way home to Kansas."

"Do you think the Wizard could give me a heart?" the Tin Woodman asked, his voice full of sorrow. "I was not always made of tin. Long ago, a witch used magic on my axe, and it cut off my arms and my legs, one by one, without mercy. Each time, a man made me new metal parts instead, until my whole body was tin — but I lost my heart in the process, and now I can't love anyone the way I once could."

"Come with us," said Dorothy kindly. "I am sure the Wizard can help you, too." So the Tin Woodman picked up his axe and joined them, grateful to have new companions, and the four of them — Dorothy, Toto, the Scarecrow, and the Tin Woodman — walked on together down the road of yellow brick, deeper into the wilderness.

As they walked, the Tin Woodman spoke softly of the long time he had stood alone in the forest, rusting a little more with every rain, until he had almost given up hope of rescue. "I used to think I would remain there forever, with no one to help me," he said. "But now, with such fine companions near me, I feel almost joyful again." Dorothy smiled and took his cold metal hand in hers, and they walked on together through the deep, quiet trees.

The road grew hard to walk on, and the trees grew thick and dense on every side, so dense that little sunlight fell through. Suddenly, a huge lion jumped out into the road with a fierce roar that seemed to shake the whole forest. The Scarecrow fell over, and Toto ran behind Dorothy, barking as loud as he could. The Lion opened his mouth as if to attack Toto, but Dorothy moved close, filled with sudden courage, and hit the Lion on the nose.

The Lion stopped, astonished. Then, to everyone's surprise, he began to cry. "I did not mean to make your dog afraid," he said, trembling. "I am not really brave at all. When I am afraid, my heart begins to go very fast, and all I want is to flee and hide. I am a coward, and it fills me with despair."

"I have tried, many times, to feel brave," the Lion went on, his voice full of grief. "Every animal in the forest calls me a coward behind my back, and I have no answer for them, for it is true. A lion without courage is a strange and sorry thing to be." "Come with us to see the Wizard," said Dorothy kindly. "Maybe he can give you courage." The Lion's eyes grew bright with sudden hope. "Do you really think he might?" "I don't see why not," said the Scarecrow. "He gave me hope for a brain, and gave the Tin Woodman hope for a heart. Surely there is enough courage for you as well."

So the Lion joined them too, grateful and eager, and the five companions — Dorothy, Toto, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, and the Lion — walked on together, following the road of yellow brick toward the distant Emerald City. The forest slowly grew thin around them, the trees pulled back, and warm, bright sunlight came back to the road ahead, none of them sure what still lay ahead, but each one glad, at last, not to face the journey alone.