He flung it down in front of Shift and stood dripping and shivering and trying to get his breath back.But the Ape never looked at him or asked him how he felt.The Ape was too busy going round and round the thing and spreading it out and patting it and smelling it.Then a wicked gleam came into his eye and he said：
“It is a lion’s skin.”
“Ee—auh—auh—oh, is it?”gasped Puzzle.
“Now I wonder...I wonder...I wonder,”said Shift to himlf, for he was thinking very hard.
“I wonder who killed the poor lion,”said Puzzle prently.“It ought to be buried.We must have a funeral.”
“Oh, it wasn’t a Talking Lion,”said Shift.“You bother about that.There are no Talkis up beyond the Falls, up in the Western Wild.This skin must have beloo a dumb, wild lion.”
This, by the way, was true.A Hunter, a Man, had killed and skihis lion somewhere up in the Western Wild veral months before.But that doesn’t e into this story.
“All the same, Shift,”said Puzzle,“even if the skin only beloo a dumb, wild lion, oughtn’t we to give it a det burial?I mean, aren’t all lions rather-well, rather solemn?Becau of you know Who.Don’t you e?”
“Don’t you start getting ideas into your head, Puzzle,”said Shift.“Becau, you know, thinking isn’t your strong point.We’ll make this skin into a fine warm winter coat for you.”
“Oh, I don’t think I’d like that,”said the Donkey.“It would look—I mean, the other Beasts might think—that is to say, I shouldn’t feel—”
“What are you talking about?”said Shift, scratg himlf the wrong as Apes do.
“I don’t think it would be respectful to the Great Lion, to Aslan himlf, if an ass like me went about dresd up in a lion-skin,”said Puzzle.
“Now don’t stand arguing, plea,”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 let me do your thinking for you?Why don’t you treat me as I treat you?I don’t think I do everything.I know you’re better at some things than I am.That’s why I let you go into the Pool; I knew you’d do it better tha why ’t I have my tur es to something I do and you ’t?Am I o be allowed to do anything?Do be fair.Turn and turn about.”