The Lions of England

        Glenys's grandfather often took her for a walk through the woods when she came to visit him. Glenys lived in a town, but her grandfather lived in the country, so he used to tell her all about the trees and birds and animals that she didn't normally see at home.
        One day, Glenys's grandfather pointed with his walking stick to an old tree with the bark stripped off its trunk. "See that?" he said, gravely. "One of the lions of England did that."
        Glenys didn't believe him for a moment, for her grandfather often told her tall stories. "What, a real lion? Like in the zoo?" she asked.
        Glenys's grandfather laughed. "Oh no, those are tame, African lions. The ones around here are wild, English lions, and they're much, much bigger."
        "Bigger than an elephant?" asked Glenys, suspiciously.
        "Bigger than an elephant standing upright on its back legs waving a spoon in its trunk," replied her grandfather.
        Glenys wasn't afraid, in fact she was cross. She knew her grandfather was making it all up in a silly attempt to tease her. "Why don't the lions try to eat us, then?" she asked.
        Glenys's grandfather raised his walking stick. "One of them did pounce on me when I was younger, but I beat it off with this. Now, so long as the lions can see it, they won't give us any trouble."
        Glenys frowned. "You're fibbing," she said, and she ran off ahead along the winding path, deeper into the woods.
        "Come back, Glenys!" called her grandfather. "It isn't safe! The lions of England will get you!"
        "There's no such thing!" she shouted back. "You're just telling made-up stories that aren't funny, and I don't want to listen to them ever again."
        And at that very moment, an enormous lion leaped out of a tree and bit her head right off.

So

Not everything grandads tell you turns out to be complete nonsense.

Illustration by Roy Bartle
Image size: approx. 38K.