"What is that?" asked Dorothy.
多蘿茜問:“輕氣球?”
"A man who goes up in a balloon on circus day, so as to draw a crowd of people together and get them to pay to see the circus," he explained.
“在馬戲團,一個人坐在升起來的輕氣球里面,吸引一大群的觀眾,趕來看馬戲,從而讓觀眾購買門票。”他解釋著。
"Oh," she said, "I know."
她說:“唔,原來是這樣。”
"Well, one day I went up in a balloon and the ropes got twisted, so that I couldn't come down again.
“啊,有一天,我坐在升起了的輕氣球里面,那繩子被弄斷了,因此,我便降落不了。”
It went way up above the clouds, so far that a current of air struck it and carried it many, many miles away.
“輕氣球飄蕩在云上面,上空有一種氣流,向那老遠的地方推著它,把它帶走很長一段路。
For a day and a night I traveled through the air,
我在高空中游蕩了一天一夜,
and on the morning of the second day I awoke and found the balloon floating over a strange and beautiful country.
在第二天早晨,我醒來時發覺輕氣球飛在異常美麗的國土上空。
"It came down gradually, and I was not hurt a bit.
“它慢慢地降落下來,我也沒有受傷。
But I found myself in the midst of a strange people, who, seeing me come from the clouds, thought I was a great Wizard.
但是我發現自己落在奇異的人群中間,他們看見我從云端里下來,便認定我是一個偉大的魔術師。
Of course I let them think so, because they were afraid of me,
當然,我也沒有糾正他們,因此他們都敬畏我,
and promised to do anything I wished them to.
而且完全聽從我的命令。
"Just to amuse myself, and keep the good people busy, I ordered them to build this City, and my Palace;
“為了讓我自己快樂,并且為了使這些善良的人民忙碌起來,我命令他們建造這座城,以及我的宮殿,
and they did it all willingly and well.
他們全都愿意而且盡力做得完美。
Then I thought, as the country was so green and beautiful, I would call it the Emerald City;
于是我想,因為這個國土覆蓋著綠色,而且這樣的美麗,我就叫它做翡翠城,
and to make the name fit better I put green spectacles on all the people, so that everything they saw was green."
為了使它更加名副其實,我命令所有的人戴上了綠眼鏡,這樣每一種東西,看起來必然都是綠的。