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"Now don't stand arguing, please," said Shift "What does an ass like you know about things of that sort? You know you're no good at thinking, Puzzle, so why don't you letfor you? Why don't you treatI know you're better at soo into the Pool; I knew you'd do it better thanI can do and you can't? A? Do be fair Turn and turn about"

"Oh, well, of course, if you put it that way," said Puzzle

"I tell you what," said Shift "You'd better take a good brisk trot down river as far as Chippingford and see if they have any oranges or bananas"

"But I'm so tired, Shift," pleaded Puzzle

"Yes, but you are very cold and wet," said the Ape "You want so Besides, it's ford today" And then of course Puzzle said he would go

As soon as he was alone Shift went sha, sometimes on ts and so hi all the time, and went into his little house He found needle and thread and a big pair of scissors there; for he was a clever Ape and the Dwarfs had taught him how to sew He put the ball of thread (it was very thick stuff, more like cord than thread) into hisbit of toffee He held the needle between his lips and took the scissors in his left paw Then he came down the tree and shaot to work

He saw at once that the body of the lion-skin would be too long for Puzzle and its neck too short So he cut a good piece out of the body and used it toneck Then he cut off the head and sewed the collar in between the head and the shoulders He put threads on both sides of the skin so that it would tie up under Puzzle's chest and stomach Every now and then a bird would pass overhead and Shift would stop his work, looking anxiously up He did not want anyone to see what he was doing But none of the birds he saere Talking Birds, so it didn't matter

Late in the afternoon Puzzle ca, the way donkeys do

"There weren't any oranges," he said, "and there weren't any bananas And I'm very tired" He lay down

"Come and try on your beautiful new lion-skin coat," said Shift

"Oh bother that old skin," said Puzzle "I'll try it on in the ht"

"You are unkind, Puzzle," said Shift "If you're tired what do you think I a walk down the valley, I've been working hard to make you a coat My paws are so tired I can hardly hold these scissors And you won't say thank you -and you won't even look at the coat -and you don't care - and- and-"

"My dear Shift," said Puzzle getting up at once, "I am so sorry I've been horrid Of course I'd love to try it on And it looks simply splendid Do try it on me at once Please do"

"Well, stand still then," said the Ape The skin was very heavy for hi and puffing and blowing, he got it on to the donkey He tied it underneath Puzzle's body and he tied the legs to Puzzle's legs and the tail to Puzzle's tail A good deal of Puzzle's grey nose and face could be seen through the open mouth of the lion's head No one who had ever seen a real lion would have been taken in for a moment But if someone who had never seen a lion looked at Puzzle in his lion-skin he just ht mistake hiht was not too good, and if Puzzle didn't let out a bray and didn't make any noise with his hoofs

"You look wonderful, wonderful," said the Ape "If anyone saw you now, they'd think you were Aslan, the Great Lion, himself"

"That would be dreadful," said Puzzle

"No it wouldn't," said Shift "Everyone would do whatever you told them"

"But I don't want to tell the"

"But you think of the good we could do!" said Shift "You'd have me to advise you, you know I'd think of sensible orders for you to give And everyone would have to obey us, even the King hiht in Narnia"

"But isn't everything right already?" said Puzzle

"What!" cried Shift "Everything right?-when there are no oranges or bananas?"

"Well, you know," said Puzzle, "there aren't many people - in fact, I don't think there's anyone but yourself ants those sort of things"

"There's sugar too," said Shift

"H'ar"

"Well then, that's settled," said the Ape "You will pretend to be Aslan, and I'll tell you what to say"

"No, no, no," said Puzzle "Don't say such dreadful things It would be wrong, Shift I maybe not very clever but I know that much What would become of us if the real Aslan turned up?"

"I expect he'd be very pleased," said Shift "Probably he sent us the lion-skin on purpose, so that we could set things to right Anyway, he never does turn up, you know Not nowadays"

At that round trembled with a small earthquake Both the ani on their faces

"There!" gasped Puzzle, as soon as he had breath to speak "It's a sign, a warning I kneere doing so dreadfully wicked Take this wretched skin off me at once"

"No, no," said the Ape (whose n the other way I was just going to say that if the real Aslan, as you call hio on with this, he would send us a thunderclap and an earth-tren itself caot to do it now, Puzzle And please don't let us have any s What could a donkey know about signs?"