李斌

The farm in Kansas

Dorothy lived in a little farmhouse in the middle of Kansas. She lived there with her Uncle Henry and Aunt Em. Uncle Henry was a farmer.

There were no other families to visit， or children to play with.

But Dorothy had one person to play with. That was a little dog. His name was Toto. He had long black hair， small bright eyes， and a funny little cold wet nose. Toto played all day long and Dorothy played with him. Dorothy loved Toto very much.

A strange thing happens

One day Dorothy was standing at the door with Toto in her arms. She was looking at the sky.

From the north Dorothy heard the noise of the wind. She saw small waves① in the grass coming quickly towards them.

Dorothy heard the wind making a very loud noise. The house shook. Dorothy fell over.

Then a very strange② thing happened.

The house moved. It turned round two or three times. Then it rose slowly into the air.

“It feels like we are going up in a balloon③，” thought Dorothy.

The house went up and up until it was high in the sky.

Dorothy is not frightened

It was dark and noisy inside the house. Toto did not like it. He ran about the room， barking loudly. But Dorothy found she was riding④ along quite easily. She just sat still on the floor. She waited to see what would happen.

Hour after hour passed. Dorothy began to feel less frightened⑤. She went and lay down on her bed. Toto followed and lay down beside her. Dorothy closed her eyes. Soon they were both asleep.

The Munchkins

The house hit the ground. Dorothy woke up.

The little girl saw that the house was not moving any more. Everything was quiet. Bright⑥ sunshine was coming through the window. It filled the little house with golden light. Dorothy jumped from her bed and ran to open the door.

When she looked out， she could see that the house was not in Kansas. Also， standing at the door were some strange-looking people.

There were three men and a woman. They looked quite old， but they were no taller than Dorothy. The men were dressed in blue clothes. The woman was dressed in white. The little old woman walked up to Dorothy and bowed⑦.

“Welcome to the land of the Munchkins， Most Wonderful Witch，” she said. “These people want to thank you for killing the Wicked Witch of the East.”

Dorothy was surprised. “You are very kind; but there must be some mistake，” she said. “I am not a Witch⑧. I have not killed anyone.”

“Well， your house did，” replied the little old woman with a laugh. “Look！ There are her feet. You can see them sticking out⑨.”

Dorothy looked. It was true. Two feet were sticking out from under a corner of the house. The feet had Silver⑩ Shoes on.

Silver Shoes

The old lady told Dorothy that her house had come down in the land of Oz. She was in the country of the Munchkins.

“The rulers11 here are witches and wizards，” the old lady said. “Some are good， and some are bad， I am the Good Witch of the North. There are just two other witches now. They are the Good Witch of the South， and the Wicked Witch of the West.”

“Look！” one of the Munchkins cried out. He was pointing at something.

The two Silver Shoes were lying on the ground beside the house. The feet had gone. The old lady picked up the shoes.

You may have the Silver Shoes， my dear.” She gave the shoes to Dorothy.

How to get back to Kansas

Dorothy thanked the witch and took the shoes.

“I must go back to Kansas，” she said. “Can you tell me the way？”

“I am afraid① not，” the Witch answered. “A big desert②? goes all round this land. No one can cross it. It seems， my dear， you must stay with us.”

Dorothy began to cry. Then the little old woman thought of something. “Of course，” she said， “you could go to the City of Emeralds. That is where Oz， the Great and Terrible Wizard， lives. Oz will know how you can get back to Kansas.”

“How can I get to the City of Emeralds？” asked Dorothy.

“You must walk，” said the Witch. “It is a long way. You must go through some dark and terrible places. I will give you my kiss to keep you safe. No one in Oz will hurt a person who has been kissed by the Witch of the North.”

She kissed Dorothy on the forehead③. Where her lips touched the little girl， they left a round， shining④ mark.

“The road to the City of Emeralds is made of yellow bricks⑤，” said the Witch. “You cannot miss it.”

Then the three Munchkins and the Witch smiled at the little girl， and went away.

The yellow-brick road

Dorothy got ready for her journey.

“Perhaps those Silver Shoes will fit me，” she said to herself.

She tried them on. They fitted very well.

She picked up her basket.

“Come along， Toto，” she said.

And so， with Toto running along behind her， she started on her journey.

Dorothy found the road made of yellow bricks. Soon she was walking quickly along it towards the Emerald City.

Another surprise

After a while she stopped to rest. She sat down on a fence⑥ beside the road. She saw a Scarecrow⑦ not far away. It was standing in the middle of a field.

One of the Scarecrows eyes moved. Dorothy was surprised. She thought she must be dreaming. She walked up to the Scarecrow to look at it more carefully.

“Good day，” said the Scarecrow.

“Did you speak？” asked the little girl.

“Yes，” answered the Scarecrow. “How do you do？”

“Im pretty well， thank you，” replied Dorothy. “How do you do？”

“Not so good，” said the Scarecrow. “I hate being out here in the middle of this field.”

“Cant you move？” asked Dorothy.

“No. You see， this pole⑧ is stuck up⑨ my back，” the Scarecrow said. “If you could take me off the pole， I would feel much happier.”

A friend with no brains

Dorothy lifted the Scarecrow off the pole.

“Thank you，” said the Scarecrow when Dorothy put him down. “I feel like a new man. Now， who are you， and where are you going？”

“I am Dorothy，” said the girl. “I am going to the Emerald City. I am going to ask the Great Oz to send me back to Kansas.”

“Where is the Emerald City？” the Scarecrow asked. “And who is Oz？”

“Dont you know？” said Dorothy in surprise.

“I dont know anything，” the Scarecrow replied. “You see， my head is stuffed⑩ with straw， so I am very stupid. If I go to the? ? ? Emerald City， do you think that Oz would give me some brains11？”

“I dont know，” Dorothy replied. “But you may come with me if you like. I will ask Oz to help you.”

“Thank you，” said the Scarecrow.

So the Scarecrow and the little girl and Toto walked back to the yellow-brick road. Together they started on their long journey to the Emerald City. （To be continued）