This is page 12 of 12. Use http://codebase.md/getzep/graphiti?lines=true&page={x} to view the full context.
# Directory Structure
```
├── .env.example
├── .github
│ ├── dependabot.yml
│ ├── ISSUE_TEMPLATE
│ │ └── bug_report.md
│ ├── pull_request_template.md
│ ├── secret_scanning.yml
│ └── workflows
│ ├── ai-moderator.yml
│ ├── cla.yml
│ ├── claude-code-review-manual.yml
│ ├── claude-code-review.yml
│ ├── claude.yml
│ ├── codeql.yml
│ ├── daily_issue_maintenance.yml
│ ├── issue-triage.yml
│ ├── lint.yml
│ ├── release-graphiti-core.yml
│ ├── release-mcp-server.yml
│ ├── release-server-container.yml
│ ├── typecheck.yml
│ └── unit_tests.yml
├── .gitignore
├── AGENTS.md
├── CLAUDE.md
├── CODE_OF_CONDUCT.md
├── conftest.py
├── CONTRIBUTING.md
├── depot.json
├── docker-compose.test.yml
├── docker-compose.yml
├── Dockerfile
├── ellipsis.yaml
├── examples
│ ├── azure-openai
│ │ ├── .env.example
│ │ ├── azure_openai_neo4j.py
│ │ └── README.md
│ ├── data
│ │ └── manybirds_products.json
│ ├── ecommerce
│ │ ├── runner.ipynb
│ │ └── runner.py
│ ├── langgraph-agent
│ │ ├── agent.ipynb
│ │ └── tinybirds-jess.png
│ ├── opentelemetry
│ │ ├── .env.example
│ │ ├── otel_stdout_example.py
│ │ ├── pyproject.toml
│ │ ├── README.md
│ │ └── uv.lock
│ ├── podcast
│ │ ├── podcast_runner.py
│ │ ├── podcast_transcript.txt
│ │ └── transcript_parser.py
│ ├── quickstart
│ │ ├── quickstart_falkordb.py
│ │ ├── quickstart_neo4j.py
│ │ ├── quickstart_neptune.py
│ │ ├── README.md
│ │ └── requirements.txt
│ └── wizard_of_oz
│ ├── parser.py
│ ├── runner.py
│ └── woo.txt
├── graphiti_core
│ ├── __init__.py
│ ├── cross_encoder
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── bge_reranker_client.py
│ │ ├── client.py
│ │ ├── gemini_reranker_client.py
│ │ └── openai_reranker_client.py
│ ├── decorators.py
│ ├── driver
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── driver.py
│ │ ├── falkordb_driver.py
│ │ ├── graph_operations
│ │ │ └── graph_operations.py
│ │ ├── kuzu_driver.py
│ │ ├── neo4j_driver.py
│ │ ├── neptune_driver.py
│ │ └── search_interface
│ │ └── search_interface.py
│ ├── edges.py
│ ├── embedder
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── azure_openai.py
│ │ ├── client.py
│ │ ├── gemini.py
│ │ ├── openai.py
│ │ └── voyage.py
│ ├── errors.py
│ ├── graph_queries.py
│ ├── graphiti_types.py
│ ├── graphiti.py
│ ├── helpers.py
│ ├── llm_client
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── anthropic_client.py
│ │ ├── azure_openai_client.py
│ │ ├── client.py
│ │ ├── config.py
│ │ ├── errors.py
│ │ ├── gemini_client.py
│ │ ├── groq_client.py
│ │ ├── openai_base_client.py
│ │ ├── openai_client.py
│ │ ├── openai_generic_client.py
│ │ └── utils.py
│ ├── migrations
│ │ └── __init__.py
│ ├── models
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── edges
│ │ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ │ └── edge_db_queries.py
│ │ └── nodes
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ └── node_db_queries.py
│ ├── nodes.py
│ ├── prompts
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── dedupe_edges.py
│ │ ├── dedupe_nodes.py
│ │ ├── eval.py
│ │ ├── extract_edge_dates.py
│ │ ├── extract_edges.py
│ │ ├── extract_nodes.py
│ │ ├── invalidate_edges.py
│ │ ├── lib.py
│ │ ├── models.py
│ │ ├── prompt_helpers.py
│ │ ├── snippets.py
│ │ └── summarize_nodes.py
│ ├── py.typed
│ ├── search
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── search_config_recipes.py
│ │ ├── search_config.py
│ │ ├── search_filters.py
│ │ ├── search_helpers.py
│ │ ├── search_utils.py
│ │ └── search.py
│ ├── telemetry
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ └── telemetry.py
│ ├── tracer.py
│ └── utils
│ ├── __init__.py
│ ├── bulk_utils.py
│ ├── datetime_utils.py
│ ├── maintenance
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── community_operations.py
│ │ ├── dedup_helpers.py
│ │ ├── edge_operations.py
│ │ ├── graph_data_operations.py
│ │ ├── node_operations.py
│ │ └── temporal_operations.py
│ ├── ontology_utils
│ │ └── entity_types_utils.py
│ └── text_utils.py
├── images
│ ├── arxiv-screenshot.png
│ ├── graphiti-graph-intro.gif
│ ├── graphiti-intro-slides-stock-2.gif
│ └── simple_graph.svg
├── LICENSE
├── Makefile
├── mcp_server
│ ├── .env.example
│ ├── .python-version
│ ├── config
│ │ ├── config-docker-falkordb-combined.yaml
│ │ ├── config-docker-falkordb.yaml
│ │ ├── config-docker-neo4j.yaml
│ │ ├── config.yaml
│ │ └── mcp_config_stdio_example.json
│ ├── docker
│ │ ├── build-standalone.sh
│ │ ├── build-with-version.sh
│ │ ├── docker-compose-falkordb.yml
│ │ ├── docker-compose-neo4j.yml
│ │ ├── docker-compose.yml
│ │ ├── Dockerfile
│ │ ├── Dockerfile.standalone
│ │ ├── github-actions-example.yml
│ │ ├── README-falkordb-combined.md
│ │ └── README.md
│ ├── docs
│ │ └── cursor_rules.md
│ ├── main.py
│ ├── pyproject.toml
│ ├── pytest.ini
│ ├── README.md
│ ├── src
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── config
│ │ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ │ └── schema.py
│ │ ├── graphiti_mcp_server.py
│ │ ├── models
│ │ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ │ ├── entity_types.py
│ │ │ └── response_types.py
│ │ ├── services
│ │ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ │ ├── factories.py
│ │ │ └── queue_service.py
│ │ └── utils
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── formatting.py
│ │ └── utils.py
│ ├── tests
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── conftest.py
│ │ ├── pytest.ini
│ │ ├── README.md
│ │ ├── run_tests.py
│ │ ├── test_async_operations.py
│ │ ├── test_comprehensive_integration.py
│ │ ├── test_configuration.py
│ │ ├── test_falkordb_integration.py
│ │ ├── test_fixtures.py
│ │ ├── test_http_integration.py
│ │ ├── test_integration.py
│ │ ├── test_mcp_integration.py
│ │ ├── test_mcp_transports.py
│ │ ├── test_stdio_simple.py
│ │ └── test_stress_load.py
│ └── uv.lock
├── OTEL_TRACING.md
├── py.typed
├── pyproject.toml
├── pytest.ini
├── README.md
├── SECURITY.md
├── server
│ ├── .env.example
│ ├── graph_service
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ ├── config.py
│ │ ├── dto
│ │ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ │ ├── common.py
│ │ │ ├── ingest.py
│ │ │ └── retrieve.py
│ │ ├── main.py
│ │ ├── routers
│ │ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ │ ├── ingest.py
│ │ │ └── retrieve.py
│ │ └── zep_graphiti.py
│ ├── Makefile
│ ├── pyproject.toml
│ ├── README.md
│ └── uv.lock
├── signatures
│ └── version1
│ └── cla.json
├── tests
│ ├── cross_encoder
│ │ ├── test_bge_reranker_client_int.py
│ │ └── test_gemini_reranker_client.py
│ ├── driver
│ │ ├── __init__.py
│ │ └── test_falkordb_driver.py
│ ├── embedder
│ │ ├── embedder_fixtures.py
│ │ ├── test_gemini.py
│ │ ├── test_openai.py
│ │ └── test_voyage.py
│ ├── evals
│ │ ├── data
│ │ │ └── longmemeval_data
│ │ │ ├── longmemeval_oracle.json
│ │ │ └── README.md
│ │ ├── eval_cli.py
│ │ ├── eval_e2e_graph_building.py
│ │ ├── pytest.ini
│ │ └── utils.py
│ ├── helpers_test.py
│ ├── llm_client
│ │ ├── test_anthropic_client_int.py
│ │ ├── test_anthropic_client.py
│ │ ├── test_azure_openai_client.py
│ │ ├── test_client.py
│ │ ├── test_errors.py
│ │ └── test_gemini_client.py
│ ├── test_edge_int.py
│ ├── test_entity_exclusion_int.py
│ ├── test_graphiti_int.py
│ ├── test_graphiti_mock.py
│ ├── test_node_int.py
│ ├── test_text_utils.py
│ └── utils
│ ├── maintenance
│ │ ├── test_bulk_utils.py
│ │ ├── test_edge_operations.py
│ │ ├── test_node_operations.py
│ │ └── test_temporal_operations_int.py
│ └── search
│ └── search_utils_test.py
├── uv.lock
└── Zep-CLA.md
```
# Files
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
/examples/wizard_of_oz/woo.txt:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
```
1 | Chapter I
2 | The Cyclone
3 |
4 |
5 | Dorothy lived in the midst of the great Kansas prairies, with Uncle
6 | Henry, who was a farmer, and Aunt Em, who was the farmer’s wife. Their
7 | house was small, for the lumber to build it had to be carried by wagon
8 | many miles. There were four walls, a floor and a roof, which made one
9 | room; and this room contained a rusty looking cookstove, a cupboard for
10 | the dishes, a table, three or four chairs, and the beds. Uncle Henry
11 | and Aunt Em had a big bed in one corner, and Dorothy a little bed in
12 | another corner. There was no garret at all, and no cellar—except a
13 | small hole dug in the ground, called a cyclone cellar, where the family
14 | could go in case one of those great whirlwinds arose, mighty enough to
15 | crush any building in its path. It was reached by a trap door in the
16 | middle of the floor, from which a ladder led down into the small, dark
17 | hole.
18 |
19 | When Dorothy stood in the doorway and looked around, she could see
20 | nothing but the great gray prairie on every side. Not a tree nor a
21 | house broke the broad sweep of flat country that reached to the edge of
22 | the sky in all directions. The sun had baked the plowed land into a
23 | gray mass, with little cracks running through it. Even the grass was
24 | not green, for the sun had burned the tops of the long blades until
25 | they were the same gray color to be seen everywhere. Once the house had
26 | been painted, but the sun blistered the paint and the rains washed it
27 | away, and now the house was as dull and gray as everything else.
28 |
29 | When Aunt Em came there to live she was a young, pretty wife. The sun
30 | and wind had changed her, too. They had taken the sparkle from her eyes
31 | and left them a sober gray; they had taken the red from her cheeks and
32 | lips, and they were gray also. She was thin and gaunt, and never smiled
33 | now. When Dorothy, who was an orphan, first came to her, Aunt Em had
34 | been so startled by the child’s laughter that she would scream and
35 | press her hand upon her heart whenever Dorothy’s merry voice reached
36 | her ears; and she still looked at the little girl with wonder that she
37 | could find anything to laugh at.
38 |
39 | Uncle Henry never laughed. He worked hard from morning till night and
40 | did not know what joy was. He was gray also, from his long beard to his
41 | rough boots, and he looked stern and solemn, and rarely spoke.
42 |
43 | It was Toto that made Dorothy laugh, and saved her from growing as gray
44 | as her other surroundings. Toto was not gray; he was a little black
45 | dog, with long silky hair and small black eyes that twinkled merrily on
46 | either side of his funny, wee nose. Toto played all day long, and
47 | Dorothy played with him, and loved him dearly.
48 |
49 | Today, however, they were not playing. Uncle Henry sat upon the
50 | doorstep and looked anxiously at the sky, which was even grayer than
51 | usual. Dorothy stood in the door with Toto in her arms, and looked at
52 | the sky too. Aunt Em was washing the dishes.
53 |
54 | From the far north they heard a low wail of the wind, and Uncle Henry
55 | and Dorothy could see where the long grass bowed in waves before the
56 | coming storm. There now came a sharp whistling in the air from the
57 | south, and as they turned their eyes that way they saw ripples in the
58 | grass coming from that direction also.
59 |
60 | Suddenly Uncle Henry stood up.
61 |
62 | “There’s a cyclone coming, Em,” he called to his wife. “I’ll go look
63 | after the stock.” Then he ran toward the sheds where the cows and
64 | horses were kept.
65 |
66 | Aunt Em dropped her work and came to the door. One glance told her of
67 | the danger close at hand.
68 |
69 | “Quick, Dorothy!” she screamed. “Run for the cellar!”
70 |
71 | Toto jumped out of Dorothy’s arms and hid under the bed, and the girl
72 | started to get him. Aunt Em, badly frightened, threw open the trap door
73 | in the floor and climbed down the ladder into the small, dark hole.
74 | Dorothy caught Toto at last and started to follow her aunt. When she
75 | was halfway across the room there came a great shriek from the wind,
76 | and the house shook so hard that she lost her footing and sat down
77 | suddenly upon the floor.
78 |
79 | Then a strange thing happened.
80 |
81 | The house whirled around two or three times and rose slowly through the
82 | air. Dorothy felt as if she were going up in a balloon.
83 |
84 | The north and south winds met where the house stood, and made it the
85 | exact center of the cyclone. In the middle of a cyclone the air is
86 | generally still, but the great pressure of the wind on every side of
87 | the house raised it up higher and higher, until it was at the very top
88 | of the cyclone; and there it remained and was carried miles and miles
89 | away as easily as you could carry a feather.
90 |
91 | It was very dark, and the wind howled horribly around her, but Dorothy
92 | found she was riding quite easily. After the first few whirls around,
93 | and one other time when the house tipped badly, she felt as if she were
94 | being rocked gently, like a baby in a cradle.
95 |
96 | Toto did not like it. He ran about the room, now here, now there,
97 | barking loudly; but Dorothy sat quite still on the floor and waited to
98 | see what would happen.
99 |
100 | Once Toto got too near the open trap door, and fell in; and at first
101 | the little girl thought she had lost him. But soon she saw one of his
102 | ears sticking up through the hole, for the strong pressure of the air
103 | was keeping him up so that he could not fall. She crept to the hole,
104 | caught Toto by the ear, and dragged him into the room again, afterward
105 | closing the trap door so that no more accidents could happen.
106 |
107 | Hour after hour passed away, and slowly Dorothy got over her fright;
108 | but she felt quite lonely, and the wind shrieked so loudly all about
109 | her that she nearly became deaf. At first she had wondered if she would
110 | be dashed to pieces when the house fell again; but as the hours passed
111 | and nothing terrible happened, she stopped worrying and resolved to
112 | wait calmly and see what the future would bring. At last she crawled
113 | over the swaying floor to her bed, and lay down upon it; and Toto
114 | followed and lay down beside her.
115 |
116 | In spite of the swaying of the house and the wailing of the wind,
117 | Dorothy soon closed her eyes and fell fast asleep.
118 |
119 |
120 |
121 |
122 | Chapter II
123 | The Council with the Munchkins
124 |
125 |
126 | She was awakened by a shock, so sudden and severe that if Dorothy had
127 | not been lying on the soft bed she might have been hurt. As it was, the
128 | jar made her catch her breath and wonder what had happened; and Toto
129 | put his cold little nose into her face and whined dismally. Dorothy sat
130 | up and noticed that the house was not moving; nor was it dark, for the
131 | bright sunshine came in at the window, flooding the little room. She
132 | sprang from her bed and with Toto at her heels ran and opened the door.
133 |
134 | The little girl gave a cry of amazement and looked about her, her eyes
135 | growing bigger and bigger at the wonderful sights she saw.
136 |
137 | The cyclone had set the house down very gently—for a cyclone—in the
138 | midst of a country of marvelous beauty. There were lovely patches of
139 | greensward all about, with stately trees bearing rich and luscious
140 | fruits. Banks of gorgeous flowers were on every hand, and birds with
141 | rare and brilliant plumage sang and fluttered in the trees and bushes.
142 | A little way off was a small brook, rushing and sparkling along between
143 | green banks, and murmuring in a voice very grateful to a little girl
144 | who had lived so long on the dry, gray prairies.
145 |
146 | While she stood looking eagerly at the strange and beautiful sights,
147 | she noticed coming toward her a group of the queerest people she had
148 | ever seen. They were not as big as the grown folk she had always been
149 | used to; but neither were they very small. In fact, they seemed about
150 | as tall as Dorothy, who was a well-grown child for her age, although
151 | they were, so far as looks go, many years older.
152 |
153 | Three were men and one a woman, and all were oddly dressed. They wore
154 | round hats that rose to a small point a foot above their heads, with
155 | little bells around the brims that tinkled sweetly as they moved. The
156 | hats of the men were blue; the little woman’s hat was white, and she
157 | wore a white gown that hung in pleats from her shoulders. Over it were
158 | sprinkled little stars that glistened in the sun like diamonds. The men
159 | were dressed in blue, of the same shade as their hats, and wore
160 | well-polished boots with a deep roll of blue at the tops. The men,
161 | Dorothy thought, were about as old as Uncle Henry, for two of them had
162 | beards. But the little woman was doubtless much older. Her face was
163 | covered with wrinkles, her hair was nearly white, and she walked rather
164 | stiffly.
165 |
166 | When these people drew near the house where Dorothy was standing in the
167 | doorway, they paused and whispered among themselves, as if afraid to
168 | come farther. But the little old woman walked up to Dorothy, made a low
169 | bow and said, in a sweet voice:
170 |
171 | “You are welcome, most noble Sorceress, to the land of the Munchkins.
172 | We are so grateful to you for having killed the Wicked Witch of the
173 | East, and for setting our people free from bondage.”
174 |
175 | Dorothy listened to this speech with wonder. What could the little
176 | woman possibly mean by calling her a sorceress, and saying she had
177 | killed the Wicked Witch of the East? Dorothy was an innocent, harmless
178 | little girl, who had been carried by a cyclone many miles from home;
179 | and she had never killed anything in all her life.
180 |
181 | But the little woman evidently expected her to answer; so Dorothy said,
182 | with hesitation, “You are very kind, but there must be some mistake. I
183 | have not killed anything.”
184 |
185 | “Your house did, anyway,” replied the little old woman, with a laugh,
186 | “and that is the same thing. See!” she continued, pointing to the
187 | corner of the house. “There are her two feet, still sticking out from
188 | under a block of wood.”
189 |
190 | Dorothy looked, and gave a little cry of fright. There, indeed, just
191 | under the corner of the great beam the house rested on, two feet were
192 | sticking out, shod in silver shoes with pointed toes.
193 |
194 | “Oh, dear! Oh, dear!” cried Dorothy, clasping her hands together in
195 | dismay. “The house must have fallen on her. Whatever shall we do?”
196 |
197 | “There is nothing to be done,” said the little woman calmly.
198 |
199 | “But who was she?” asked Dorothy.
200 |
201 | “She was the Wicked Witch of the East, as I said,” answered the little
202 | woman. “She has held all the Munchkins in bondage for many years,
203 | making them slave for her night and day. Now they are all set free, and
204 | are grateful to you for the favor.”
205 |
206 | “Who are the Munchkins?” inquired Dorothy.
207 |
208 | “They are the people who live in this land of the East where the Wicked
209 | Witch ruled.”
210 |
211 | “Are you a Munchkin?” asked Dorothy.
212 |
213 | “No, but I am their friend, although I live in the land of the North.
214 | When they saw the Witch of the East was dead the Munchkins sent a swift
215 | messenger to me, and I came at once. I am the Witch of the North.”
216 |
217 | “Oh, gracious!” cried Dorothy. “Are you a real witch?”
218 |
219 | “Yes, indeed,” answered the little woman. “But I am a good witch, and
220 | the people love me. I am not as powerful as the Wicked Witch was who
221 | ruled here, or I should have set the people free myself.”
222 |
223 | “But I thought all witches were wicked,” said the girl, who was half
224 | frightened at facing a real witch. “Oh, no, that is a great mistake.
225 | There were only four witches in all the Land of Oz, and two of them,
226 | those who live in the North and the South, are good witches. I know
227 | this is true, for I am one of them myself, and cannot be mistaken.
228 | Those who dwelt in the East and the West were, indeed, wicked witches;
229 | but now that you have killed one of them, there is but one Wicked Witch
230 | in all the Land of Oz—the one who lives in the West.”
231 |
232 | “But,” said Dorothy, after a moment’s thought, “Aunt Em has told me
233 | that the witches were all dead—years and years ago.”
234 |
235 | “Who is Aunt Em?” inquired the little old woman.
236 |
237 | “She is my aunt who lives in Kansas, where I came from.”
238 |
239 | The Witch of the North seemed to think for a time, with her head bowed
240 | and her eyes upon the ground. Then she looked up and said, “I do not
241 | know where Kansas is, for I have never heard that country mentioned
242 | before. But tell me, is it a civilized country?”
243 |
244 | “Oh, yes,” replied Dorothy.
245 |
246 | “Then that accounts for it. In the civilized countries I believe there
247 | are no witches left, nor wizards, nor sorceresses, nor magicians. But,
248 | you see, the Land of Oz has never been civilized, for we are cut off
249 | from all the rest of the world. Therefore we still have witches and
250 | wizards amongst us.”
251 |
252 | “Who are the wizards?” asked Dorothy.
253 |
254 | “Oz himself is the Great Wizard,” answered the Witch, sinking her voice
255 | to a whisper. “He is more powerful than all the rest of us together. He
256 | lives in the City of Emeralds.”
257 |
258 | Dorothy was going to ask another question, but just then the Munchkins,
259 | who had been standing silently by, gave a loud shout and pointed to the
260 | corner of the house where the Wicked Witch had been lying.
261 |
262 | “What is it?” asked the little old woman, and looked, and began to
263 | laugh. The feet of the dead Witch had disappeared entirely, and nothing
264 | was left but the silver shoes.
265 |
266 | “She was so old,” explained the Witch of the North, “that she dried up
267 | quickly in the sun. That is the end of her. But the silver shoes are
268 | yours, and you shall have them to wear.” She reached down and picked up
269 | the shoes, and after shaking the dust out of them handed them to
270 | Dorothy.
271 |
272 | “The Witch of the East was proud of those silver shoes,” said one of
273 | the Munchkins, “and there is some charm connected with them; but what
274 | it is we never knew.”
275 |
276 | Dorothy carried the shoes into the house and placed them on the table.
277 | Then she came out again to the Munchkins and said:
278 |
279 | “I am anxious to get back to my aunt and uncle, for I am sure they will
280 | worry about me. Can you help me find my way?”
281 |
282 | The Munchkins and the Witch first looked at one another, and then at
283 | Dorothy, and then shook their heads.
284 |
285 | “At the East, not far from here,” said one, “there is a great desert,
286 | and none could live to cross it.”
287 |
288 | “It is the same at the South,” said another, “for I have been there and
289 | seen it. The South is the country of the Quadlings.”
290 |
291 | “I am told,” said the third man, “that it is the same at the West. And
292 | that country, where the Winkies live, is ruled by the Wicked Witch of
293 | the West, who would make you her slave if you passed her way.”
294 |
295 | “The North is my home,” said the old lady, “and at its edge is the same
296 | great desert that surrounds this Land of Oz. I’m afraid, my dear, you
297 | will have to live with us.”
298 |
299 | Dorothy began to sob at this, for she felt lonely among all these
300 | strange people. Her tears seemed to grieve the kind-hearted Munchkins,
301 | for they immediately took out their handkerchiefs and began to weep
302 | also. As for the little old woman, she took off her cap and balanced
303 | the point on the end of her nose, while she counted “One, two, three”
304 | in a solemn voice. At once the cap changed to a slate, on which was
305 | written in big, white chalk marks:
306 |
307 | “LET DOROTHY GO TO THE CITY OF EMERALDS”
308 |
309 |
310 | The little old woman took the slate from her nose, and having read the
311 | words on it, asked, “Is your name Dorothy, my dear?”
312 |
313 | “Yes,” answered the child, looking up and drying her tears.
314 |
315 | “Then you must go to the City of Emeralds. Perhaps Oz will help you.”
316 |
317 | “Where is this city?” asked Dorothy.
318 |
319 | “It is exactly in the center of the country, and is ruled by Oz, the
320 | Great Wizard I told you of.”
321 |
322 | “Is he a good man?” inquired the girl anxiously.
323 |
324 | “He is a good Wizard. Whether he is a man or not I cannot tell, for I
325 | have never seen him.”
326 |
327 | “How can I get there?” asked Dorothy.
328 |
329 | “You must walk. It is a long journey, through a country that is
330 | sometimes pleasant and sometimes dark and terrible. However, I will use
331 | all the magic arts I know of to keep you from harm.”
332 |
333 | “Won’t you go with me?” pleaded the girl, who had begun to look upon
334 | the little old woman as her only friend.
335 |
336 | “No, I cannot do that,” she replied, “but I will give you my kiss, and
337 | no one will dare injure a person who has been kissed by the Witch of
338 | the North.”
339 |
340 | She came close to Dorothy and kissed her gently on the forehead. Where
341 | her lips touched the girl they left a round, shining mark, as Dorothy
342 | found out soon after.
343 |
344 | “The road to the City of Emeralds is paved with yellow brick,” said the
345 | Witch, “so you cannot miss it. When you get to Oz do not be afraid of
346 | him, but tell your story and ask him to help you. Good-bye, my dear.”
347 |
348 | The three Munchkins bowed low to her and wished her a pleasant journey,
349 | after which they walked away through the trees. The Witch gave Dorothy
350 | a friendly little nod, whirled around on her left heel three times, and
351 | straightway disappeared, much to the surprise of little Toto, who
352 | barked after her loudly enough when she had gone, because he had been
353 | afraid even to growl while she stood by.
354 |
355 | But Dorothy, knowing her to be a witch, had expected her to disappear
356 | in just that way, and was not surprised in the least.
357 |
358 |
359 |
360 |
361 | Chapter III
362 | How Dorothy Saved the Scarecrow
363 |
364 |
365 | When Dorothy was left alone she began to feel hungry. So she went to
366 | the cupboard and cut herself some bread, which she spread with butter.
367 | She gave some to Toto, and taking a pail from the shelf she carried it
368 | down to the little brook and filled it with clear, sparkling water.
369 | Toto ran over to the trees and began to bark at the birds sitting
370 | there. Dorothy went to get him, and saw such delicious fruit hanging
371 | from the branches that she gathered some of it, finding it just what
372 | she wanted to help out her breakfast.
373 |
374 | Then she went back to the house, and having helped herself and Toto to
375 | a good drink of the cool, clear water, she set about making ready for
376 | the journey to the City of Emeralds.
377 |
378 | Dorothy had only one other dress, but that happened to be clean and was
379 | hanging on a peg beside her bed. It was gingham, with checks of white
380 | and blue; and although the blue was somewhat faded with many washings,
381 | it was still a pretty frock. The girl washed herself carefully, dressed
382 | herself in the clean gingham, and tied her pink sunbonnet on her head.
383 | She took a little basket and filled it with bread from the cupboard,
384 | laying a white cloth over the top. Then she looked down at her feet and
385 | noticed how old and worn her shoes were.
386 |
387 | “They surely will never do for a long journey, Toto,” she said. And
388 | Toto looked up into her face with his little black eyes and wagged his
389 | tail to show he knew what she meant.
390 |
391 | At that moment Dorothy saw lying on the table the silver shoes that had
392 | belonged to the Witch of the East.
393 |
394 | “I wonder if they will fit me,” she said to Toto. “They would be just
395 | the thing to take a long walk in, for they could not wear out.”
396 |
397 | She took off her old leather shoes and tried on the silver ones, which
398 | fitted her as well as if they had been made for her.
399 |
400 | Finally she picked up her basket.
401 |
402 | “Come along, Toto,” she said. “We will go to the Emerald City and ask
403 | the Great Oz how to get back to Kansas again.”
404 |
405 | She closed the door, locked it, and put the key carefully in the pocket
406 | of her dress. And so, with Toto trotting along soberly behind her, she
407 | started on her journey.
408 |
409 | There were several roads nearby, but it did not take her long to find
410 | the one paved with yellow bricks. Within a short time she was walking
411 | briskly toward the Emerald City, her silver shoes tinkling merrily on
412 | the hard, yellow road-bed. The sun shone bright and the birds sang
413 | sweetly, and Dorothy did not feel nearly so bad as you might think a
414 | little girl would who had been suddenly whisked away from her own
415 | country and set down in the midst of a strange land.
416 |
417 | She was surprised, as she walked along, to see how pretty the country
418 | was about her. There were neat fences at the sides of the road, painted
419 | a dainty blue color, and beyond them were fields of grain and
420 | vegetables in abundance. Evidently the Munchkins were good farmers and
421 | able to raise large crops. Once in a while she would pass a house, and
422 | the people came out to look at her and bow low as she went by; for
423 | everyone knew she had been the means of destroying the Wicked Witch and
424 | setting them free from bondage. The houses of the Munchkins were
425 | odd-looking dwellings, for each was round, with a big dome for a roof.
426 | All were painted blue, for in this country of the East blue was the
427 | favorite color.
428 |
429 | Toward evening, when Dorothy was tired with her long walk and began to
430 | wonder where she should pass the night, she came to a house rather
431 | larger than the rest. On the green lawn before it many men and women
432 | were dancing. Five little fiddlers played as loudly as possible, and
433 | the people were laughing and singing, while a big table near by was
434 | loaded with delicious fruits and nuts, pies and cakes, and many other
435 | good things to eat.
436 |
437 | The people greeted Dorothy kindly, and invited her to supper and to
438 | pass the night with them; for this was the home of one of the richest
439 | Munchkins in the land, and his friends were gathered with him to
440 | celebrate their freedom from the bondage of the Wicked Witch.
441 |
442 | Dorothy ate a hearty supper and was waited upon by the rich Munchkin
443 | himself, whose name was Boq. Then she sat upon a settee and watched the
444 | people dance.
445 |
446 | When Boq saw her silver shoes he said, “You must be a great sorceress.”
447 |
448 | “Why?” asked the girl.
449 |
450 | “Because you wear silver shoes and have killed the Wicked Witch.
451 | Besides, you have white in your frock, and only witches and sorceresses
452 | wear white.”
453 |
454 | “My dress is blue and white checked,” said Dorothy, smoothing out the
455 | wrinkles in it.
456 |
457 | “It is kind of you to wear that,” said Boq. “Blue is the color of the
458 | Munchkins, and white is the witch color. So we know you are a friendly
459 | witch.”
460 |
461 | Dorothy did not know what to say to this, for all the people seemed to
462 | think her a witch, and she knew very well she was only an ordinary
463 | little girl who had come by the chance of a cyclone into a strange
464 | land.
465 |
466 | When she had tired watching the dancing, Boq led her into the house,
467 | where he gave her a room with a pretty bed in it. The sheets were made
468 | of blue cloth, and Dorothy slept soundly in them till morning, with
469 | Toto curled up on the blue rug beside her.
470 |
471 | She ate a hearty breakfast, and watched a wee Munchkin baby, who played
472 | with Toto and pulled his tail and crowed and laughed in a way that
473 | greatly amused Dorothy. Toto was a fine curiosity to all the people,
474 | for they had never seen a dog before.
475 |
476 | “How far is it to the Emerald City?” the girl asked.
477 |
478 | “I do not know,” answered Boq gravely, “for I have never been there. It
479 | is better for people to keep away from Oz, unless they have business
480 | with him. But it is a long way to the Emerald City, and it will take
481 | you many days. The country here is rich and pleasant, but you must pass
482 | through rough and dangerous places before you reach the end of your
483 | journey.”
484 |
485 | This worried Dorothy a little, but she knew that only the Great Oz
486 | could help her get to Kansas again, so she bravely resolved not to turn
487 | back.
488 |
489 | She bade her friends good-bye, and again started along the road of
490 | yellow brick. When she had gone several miles she thought she would
491 | stop to rest, and so climbed to the top of the fence beside the road
492 | and sat down. There was a great cornfield beyond the fence, and not far
493 | away she saw a Scarecrow, placed high on a pole to keep the birds from
494 | the ripe corn.
495 |
496 | Dorothy leaned her chin upon her hand and gazed thoughtfully at the
497 | Scarecrow. Its head was a small sack stuffed with straw, with eyes,
498 | nose, and mouth painted on it to represent a face. An old, pointed blue
499 | hat, that had belonged to some Munchkin, was perched on his head, and
500 | the rest of the figure was a blue suit of clothes, worn and faded,
501 | which had also been stuffed with straw. On the feet were some old boots
502 | with blue tops, such as every man wore in this country, and the figure
503 | was raised above the stalks of corn by means of the pole stuck up its
504 | back.
505 |
506 | While Dorothy was looking earnestly into the queer, painted face of the
507 | Scarecrow, she was surprised to see one of the eyes slowly wink at her.
508 | She thought she must have been mistaken at first, for none of the
509 | scarecrows in Kansas ever wink; but presently the figure nodded its
510 | head to her in a friendly way. Then she climbed down from the fence and
511 | walked up to it, while Toto ran around the pole and barked.
512 |
513 | “Good day,” said the Scarecrow, in a rather husky voice.
514 |
515 | “Did you speak?” asked the girl, in wonder.
516 |
517 | “Certainly,” answered the Scarecrow. “How do you do?”
518 |
519 | “I’m pretty well, thank you,” replied Dorothy politely. “How do you
520 | do?”
521 |
522 | “I’m not feeling well,” said the Scarecrow, with a smile, “for it is
523 | very tedious being perched up here night and day to scare away crows.”
524 |
525 | “Can’t you get down?” asked Dorothy.
526 |
527 | “No, for this pole is stuck up my back. If you will please take away
528 | the pole I shall be greatly obliged to you.”
529 |
530 | Dorothy reached up both arms and lifted the figure off the pole, for,
531 | being stuffed with straw, it was quite light.
532 |
533 | “Thank you very much,” said the Scarecrow, when he had been set down on
534 | the ground. “I feel like a new man.”
535 |
536 | Dorothy was puzzled at this, for it sounded queer to hear a stuffed man
537 | speak, and to see him bow and walk along beside her.
538 |
539 | “Who are you?” asked the Scarecrow when he had stretched himself and
540 | yawned. “And where are you going?”
541 |
542 | “My name is Dorothy,” said the girl, “and I am going to the Emerald
543 | City, to ask the Great Oz to send me back to Kansas.”
544 |
545 | “Where is the Emerald City?” he inquired. “And who is Oz?”
546 |
547 | “Why, don’t you know?” she returned, in surprise.
548 |
549 | “No, indeed. I don’t know anything. You see, I am stuffed, so I have no
550 | brains at all,” he answered sadly.
551 |
552 | “Oh,” said Dorothy, “I’m awfully sorry for you.”
553 |
554 | “Do you think,” he asked, “if I go to the Emerald City with you, that
555 | Oz would give me some brains?”
556 |
557 | “I cannot tell,” she returned, “but you may come with me, if you like.
558 | If Oz will not give you any brains you will be no worse off than you
559 | are now.”
560 |
561 | “That is true,” said the Scarecrow. “You see,” he continued
562 | confidentially, “I don’t mind my legs and arms and body being stuffed,
563 | because I cannot get hurt. If anyone treads on my toes or sticks a pin
564 | into me, it doesn’t matter, for I can’t feel it. But I do not want
565 | people to call me a fool, and if my head stays stuffed with straw
566 | instead of with brains, as yours is, how am I ever to know anything?”
567 |
568 | “I understand how you feel,” said the little girl, who was truly sorry
569 | for him. “If you will come with me I’ll ask Oz to do all he can for
570 | you.”
571 |
572 | “Thank you,” he answered gratefully.
573 |
574 | They walked back to the road. Dorothy helped him over the fence, and
575 | they started along the path of yellow brick for the Emerald City.
576 |
577 | Toto did not like this addition to the party at first. He smelled
578 | around the stuffed man as if he suspected there might be a nest of rats
579 | in the straw, and he often growled in an unfriendly way at the
580 | Scarecrow.
581 |
582 | “Don’t mind Toto,” said Dorothy to her new friend. “He never bites.”
583 |
584 | “Oh, I’m not afraid,” replied the Scarecrow. “He can’t hurt the straw.
585 | Do let me carry that basket for you. I shall not mind it, for I can’t
586 | get tired. I’ll tell you a secret,” he continued, as he walked along.
587 | “There is only one thing in the world I am afraid of.”
588 |
589 | “What is that?” asked Dorothy; “the Munchkin farmer who made you?”
590 |
591 | “No,” answered the Scarecrow; “it’s a lighted match.”
592 |
593 |
594 |
595 |
596 | Chapter IV
597 | The Road Through the Forest
598 |
599 |
600 | After a few hours the road began to be rough, and the walking grew so
601 | difficult that the Scarecrow often stumbled over the yellow bricks,
602 | which were here very uneven. Sometimes, indeed, they were broken or
603 | missing altogether, leaving holes that Toto jumped across and Dorothy
604 | walked around. As for the Scarecrow, having no brains, he walked
605 | straight ahead, and so stepped into the holes and fell at full length
606 | on the hard bricks. It never hurt him, however, and Dorothy would pick
607 | him up and set him upon his feet again, while he joined her in laughing
608 | merrily at his own mishap.
609 |
610 | The farms were not nearly so well cared for here as they were farther
611 | back. There were fewer houses and fewer fruit trees, and the farther
612 | they went the more dismal and lonesome the country became.
613 |
614 | At noon they sat down by the roadside, near a little brook, and Dorothy
615 | opened her basket and got out some bread. She offered a piece to the
616 | Scarecrow, but he refused.
617 |
618 | “I am never hungry,” he said, “and it is a lucky thing I am not, for my
619 | mouth is only painted, and if I should cut a hole in it so I could eat,
620 | the straw I am stuffed with would come out, and that would spoil the
621 | shape of my head.”
622 |
623 | Dorothy saw at once that this was true, so she only nodded and went on
624 | eating her bread.
625 |
626 | “Tell me something about yourself and the country you came from,” said
627 | the Scarecrow, when she had finished her dinner. So she told him all
628 | about Kansas, and how gray everything was there, and how the cyclone
629 | had carried her to this queer Land of Oz.
630 |
631 | The Scarecrow listened carefully, and said, “I cannot understand why
632 | you should wish to leave this beautiful country and go back to the dry,
633 | gray place you call Kansas.”
634 |
635 | “That is because you have no brains” answered the girl. “No matter how
636 | dreary and gray our homes are, we people of flesh and blood would
637 | rather live there than in any other country, be it ever so beautiful.
638 | There is no place like home.”
639 |
640 | The Scarecrow sighed.
641 |
642 | “Of course I cannot understand it,” he said. “If your heads were
643 | stuffed with straw, like mine, you would probably all live in the
644 | beautiful places, and then Kansas would have no people at all. It is
645 | fortunate for Kansas that you have brains.”
646 |
647 | “Won’t you tell me a story, while we are resting?” asked the child.
648 |
649 | The Scarecrow looked at her reproachfully, and answered:
650 |
651 | “My life has been so short that I really know nothing whatever. I was
652 | only made day before yesterday. What happened in the world before that
653 | time is all unknown to me. Luckily, when the farmer made my head, one
654 | of the first things he did was to paint my ears, so that I heard what
655 | was going on. There was another Munchkin with him, and the first thing
656 | I heard was the farmer saying, ‘How do you like those ears?’
657 |
658 | “‘They aren’t straight,’” answered the other.
659 |
660 | “‘Never mind,’” said the farmer. “‘They are ears just the same,’” which
661 | was true enough.
662 |
663 | “‘Now I’ll make the eyes,’” said the farmer. So he painted my right
664 | eye, and as soon as it was finished I found myself looking at him and
665 | at everything around me with a great deal of curiosity, for this was my
666 | first glimpse of the world.
667 |
668 | “‘That’s a rather pretty eye,’” remarked the Munchkin who was watching
669 | the farmer. “‘Blue paint is just the color for eyes.’
670 |
671 | “‘I think I’ll make the other a little bigger,’” said the farmer. And
672 | when the second eye was done I could see much better than before. Then
673 | he made my nose and my mouth. But I did not speak, because at that time
674 | I didn’t know what a mouth was for. I had the fun of watching them make
675 | my body and my arms and legs; and when they fastened on my head, at
676 | last, I felt very proud, for I thought I was just as good a man as
677 | anyone.
678 |
679 | “‘This fellow will scare the crows fast enough,’ said the farmer. ‘He
680 | looks just like a man.’
681 |
682 | “‘Why, he is a man,’ said the other, and I quite agreed with him. The
683 | farmer carried me under his arm to the cornfield, and set me up on a
684 | tall stick, where you found me. He and his friend soon after walked
685 | away and left me alone.
686 |
687 | “I did not like to be deserted this way. So I tried to walk after them.
688 | But my feet would not touch the ground, and I was forced to stay on
689 | that pole. It was a lonely life to lead, for I had nothing to think of,
690 | having been made such a little while before. Many crows and other birds
691 | flew into the cornfield, but as soon as they saw me they flew away
692 | again, thinking I was a Munchkin; and this pleased me and made me feel
693 | that I was quite an important person. By and by an old crow flew near
694 | me, and after looking at me carefully he perched upon my shoulder and
695 | said:
696 |
697 | “‘I wonder if that farmer thought to fool me in this clumsy manner. Any
698 | crow of sense could see that you are only stuffed with straw.’ Then he
699 | hopped down at my feet and ate all the corn he wanted. The other birds,
700 | seeing he was not harmed by me, came to eat the corn too, so in a short
701 | time there was a great flock of them about me.
702 |
703 | “I felt sad at this, for it showed I was not such a good Scarecrow
704 | after all; but the old crow comforted me, saying, ‘If you only had
705 | brains in your head you would be as good a man as any of them, and a
706 | better man than some of them. Brains are the only things worth having
707 | in this world, no matter whether one is a crow or a man.’
708 |
709 | “After the crows had gone I thought this over, and decided I would try
710 | hard to get some brains. By good luck you came along and pulled me off
711 | the stake, and from what you say I am sure the Great Oz will give me
712 | brains as soon as we get to the Emerald City.”
713 |
714 | “I hope so,” said Dorothy earnestly, “since you seem anxious to have
715 | them.”
716 |
717 | “Oh, yes; I am anxious,” returned the Scarecrow. “It is such an
718 | uncomfortable feeling to know one is a fool.”
719 |
720 | “Well,” said the girl, “let us go.” And she handed the basket to the
721 | Scarecrow.
722 |
723 | There were no fences at all by the roadside now, and the land was rough
724 | and untilled. Toward evening they came to a great forest, where the
725 | trees grew so big and close together that their branches met over the
726 | road of yellow brick. It was almost dark under the trees, for the
727 | branches shut out the daylight; but the travelers did not stop, and
728 | went on into the forest.
729 |
730 | “If this road goes in, it must come out,” said the Scarecrow, “and as
731 | the Emerald City is at the other end of the road, we must go wherever
732 | it leads us.”
733 |
734 | “Anyone would know that,” said Dorothy.
735 |
736 | “Certainly; that is why I know it,” returned the Scarecrow. “If it
737 | required brains to figure it out, I never should have said it.”
738 |
739 | After an hour or so the light faded away, and they found themselves
740 | stumbling along in the darkness. Dorothy could not see at all, but Toto
741 | could, for some dogs see very well in the dark; and the Scarecrow
742 | declared he could see as well as by day. So she took hold of his arm
743 | and managed to get along fairly well.
744 |
745 | “If you see any house, or any place where we can pass the night,” she
746 | said, “you must tell me; for it is very uncomfortable walking in the
747 | dark.”
748 |
749 | Soon after the Scarecrow stopped.
750 |
751 | “I see a little cottage at the right of us,” he said, “built of logs
752 | and branches. Shall we go there?”
753 |
754 | “Yes, indeed,” answered the child. “I am all tired out.”
755 |
756 | So the Scarecrow led her through the trees until they reached the
757 | cottage, and Dorothy entered and found a bed of dried leaves in one
758 | corner. She lay down at once, and with Toto beside her soon fell into a
759 | sound sleep. The Scarecrow, who was never tired, stood up in another
760 | corner and waited patiently until morning came.
761 |
762 |
763 |
764 |
765 | Chapter V
766 | The Rescue of the Tin Woodman
767 |
768 |
769 | When Dorothy awoke the sun was shining through the trees and Toto had
770 | long been out chasing birds around him and squirrels. She sat up and
771 | looked around her. There was the Scarecrow, still standing patiently in
772 | his corner, waiting for her.
773 |
774 | “We must go and search for water,” she said to him.
775 |
776 | “Why do you want water?” he asked.
777 |
778 | “To wash my face clean after the dust of the road, and to drink, so the
779 | dry bread will not stick in my throat.”
780 |
781 | “It must be inconvenient to be made of flesh,” said the Scarecrow
782 | thoughtfully, “for you must sleep, and eat and drink. However, you have
783 | brains, and it is worth a lot of bother to be able to think properly.”
784 |
785 | They left the cottage and walked through the trees until they found a
786 | little spring of clear water, where Dorothy drank and bathed and ate
787 | her breakfast. She saw there was not much bread left in the basket, and
788 | the girl was thankful the Scarecrow did not have to eat anything, for
789 | there was scarcely enough for herself and Toto for the day.
790 |
791 | When she had finished her meal, and was about to go back to the road of
792 | yellow brick, she was startled to hear a deep groan near by.
793 |
794 | “What was that?” she asked timidly.
795 |
796 | “I cannot imagine,” replied the Scarecrow; “but we can go and see.”
797 |
798 | Just then another groan reached their ears, and the sound seemed to
799 | come from behind them. They turned and walked through the forest a few
800 | steps, when Dorothy discovered something shining in a ray of sunshine
801 | that fell between the trees. She ran to the place and then stopped
802 | short, with a little cry of surprise.
803 |
804 | One of the big trees had been partly chopped through, and standing
805 | beside it, with an uplifted axe in his hands, was a man made entirely
806 | of tin. His head and arms and legs were jointed upon his body, but he
807 | stood perfectly motionless, as if he could not stir at all.
808 |
809 | Dorothy looked at him in amazement, and so did the Scarecrow, while
810 | Toto barked sharply and made a snap at the tin legs, which hurt his
811 | teeth.
812 |
813 | “Did you groan?” asked Dorothy.
814 |
815 | “Yes,” answered the tin man, “I did. I’ve been groaning for more than a
816 | year, and no one has ever heard me before or come to help me.”
817 |
818 | “What can I do for you?” she inquired softly, for she was moved by the
819 | sad voice in which the man spoke.
820 |
821 | “Get an oil-can and oil my joints,” he answered. “They are rusted so
822 | badly that I cannot move them at all; if I am well oiled I shall soon
823 | be all right again. You will find an oil-can on a shelf in my cottage.”
824 |
825 | Dorothy at once ran back to the cottage and found the oil-can, and then
826 | she returned and asked anxiously, “Where are your joints?”
827 |
828 | “Oil my neck, first,” replied the Tin Woodman. So she oiled it, and as
829 | it was quite badly rusted the Scarecrow took hold of the tin head and
830 | moved it gently from side to side until it worked freely, and then the
831 | man could turn it himself.
832 |
833 | “Now oil the joints in my arms,” he said. And Dorothy oiled them and
834 | the Scarecrow bent them carefully until they were quite free from rust
835 | and as good as new.
836 |
837 | The Tin Woodman gave a sigh of satisfaction and lowered his axe, which
838 | he leaned against the tree.
839 |
840 | “This is a great comfort,” he said. “I have been holding that axe in
841 | the air ever since I rusted, and I’m glad to be able to put it down at
842 | last. Now, if you will oil the joints of my legs, I shall be all right
843 | once more.”
844 |
845 | So they oiled his legs until he could move them freely; and he thanked
846 | them again and again for his release, for he seemed a very polite
847 | creature, and very grateful.
848 |
849 | “I might have stood there always if you had not come along,” he said;
850 | “so you have certainly saved my life. How did you happen to be here?”
851 |
852 | “We are on our way to the Emerald City to see the Great Oz,” she
853 | answered, “and we stopped at your cottage to pass the night.”
854 |
855 | “Why do you wish to see Oz?” he asked.
856 |
857 | “I want him to send me back to Kansas, and the Scarecrow wants him to
858 | put a few brains into his head,” she replied.
859 |
860 | The Tin Woodman appeared to think deeply for a moment. Then he said:
861 |
862 | “Do you suppose Oz could give me a heart?”
863 |
864 | “Why, I guess so,” Dorothy answered. “It would be as easy as to give
865 | the Scarecrow brains.”
866 |
867 | “True,” the Tin Woodman returned. “So, if you will allow me to join
868 | your party, I will also go to the Emerald City and ask Oz to help me.”
869 |
870 | “Come along,” said the Scarecrow heartily, and Dorothy added that she
871 | would be pleased to have his company. So the Tin Woodman shouldered his
872 | axe and they all passed through the forest until they came to the road
873 | that was paved with yellow brick.
874 |
875 | The Tin Woodman had asked Dorothy to put the oil-can in her basket.
876 | “For,” he said, “if I should get caught in the rain, and rust again, I
877 | would need the oil-can badly.”
878 |
879 | It was a bit of good luck to have their new comrade join the party, for
880 | soon after they had begun their journey again they came to a place
881 | where the trees and branches grew so thick over the road that the
882 | travelers could not pass. But the Tin Woodman set to work with his axe
883 | and chopped so well that soon he cleared a passage for the entire
884 | party.
885 |
886 | Dorothy was thinking so earnestly as they walked along that she did not
887 | notice when the Scarecrow stumbled into a hole and rolled over to the
888 | side of the road. Indeed he was obliged to call to her to help him up
889 | again.
890 |
891 | “Why didn’t you walk around the hole?” asked the Tin Woodman.
892 |
893 | “I don’t know enough,” replied the Scarecrow cheerfully. “My head is
894 | stuffed with straw, you know, and that is why I am going to Oz to ask
895 | him for some brains.”
896 |
897 | “Oh, I see,” said the Tin Woodman. “But, after all, brains are not the
898 | best things in the world.”
899 |
900 | “Have you any?” inquired the Scarecrow.
901 |
902 | “No, my head is quite empty,” answered the Woodman. “But once I had
903 | brains, and a heart also; so, having tried them both, I should much
904 | rather have a heart.”
905 |
906 | “And why is that?” asked the Scarecrow.
907 |
908 | “I will tell you my story, and then you will know.”
909 |
910 | So, while they were walking through the forest, the Tin Woodman told
911 | the following story:
912 |
913 | “I was born the son of a woodman who chopped down trees in the forest
914 | and sold the wood for a living. When I grew up, I too became a
915 | woodchopper, and after my father died I took care of my old mother as
916 | long as she lived. Then I made up my mind that instead of living alone
917 | I would marry, so that I might not become lonely.
918 |
919 | “There was one of the Munchkin girls who was so beautiful that I soon
920 | grew to love her with all my heart. She, on her part, promised to marry
921 | me as soon as I could earn enough money to build a better house for
922 | her; so I set to work harder than ever. But the girl lived with an old
923 | woman who did not want her to marry anyone, for she was so lazy she
924 | wished the girl to remain with her and do the cooking and the
925 | housework. So the old woman went to the Wicked Witch of the East, and
926 | promised her two sheep and a cow if she would prevent the marriage.
927 | Thereupon the Wicked Witch enchanted my axe, and when I was chopping
928 | away at my best one day, for I was anxious to get the new house and my
929 | wife as soon as possible, the axe slipped all at once and cut off my
930 | left leg.
931 |
932 | “This at first seemed a great misfortune, for I knew a one-legged man
933 | could not do very well as a wood-chopper. So I went to a tinsmith and
934 | had him make me a new leg out of tin. The leg worked very well, once I
935 | was used to it. But my action angered the Wicked Witch of the East, for
936 | she had promised the old woman I should not marry the pretty Munchkin
937 | girl. When I began chopping again, my axe slipped and cut off my right
938 | leg. Again I went to the tinsmith, and again he made me a leg out of
939 | tin. After this the enchanted axe cut off my arms, one after the other;
940 | but, nothing daunted, I had them replaced with tin ones. The Wicked
941 | Witch then made the axe slip and cut off my head, and at first I
942 | thought that was the end of me. But the tinsmith happened to come
943 | along, and he made me a new head out of tin.
944 |
945 | “I thought I had beaten the Wicked Witch then, and I worked harder than
946 | ever; but I little knew how cruel my enemy could be. She thought of a
947 | new way to kill my love for the beautiful Munchkin maiden, and made my
948 | axe slip again, so that it cut right through my body, splitting me into
949 | two halves. Once more the tinsmith came to my help and made me a body
950 | of tin, fastening my tin arms and legs and head to it, by means of
951 | joints, so that I could move around as well as ever. But, alas! I had
952 | now no heart, so that I lost all my love for the Munchkin girl, and did
953 | not care whether I married her or not. I suppose she is still living
954 | with the old woman, waiting for me to come after her.
955 |
956 | “My body shone so brightly in the sun that I felt very proud of it and
957 | it did not matter now if my axe slipped, for it could not cut me. There
958 | was only one danger—that my joints would rust; but I kept an oil-can in
959 | my cottage and took care to oil myself whenever I needed it. However,
960 | there came a day when I forgot to do this, and, being caught in a
961 | rainstorm, before I thought of the danger my joints had rusted, and I
962 | was left to stand in the woods until you came to help me. It was a
963 | terrible thing to undergo, but during the year I stood there I had time
964 | to think that the greatest loss I had known was the loss of my heart.
965 | While I was in love I was the happiest man on earth; but no one can
966 | love who has not a heart, and so I am resolved to ask Oz to give me
967 | one. If he does, I will go back to the Munchkin maiden and marry her.”
968 |
969 | Both Dorothy and the Scarecrow had been greatly interested in the story
970 | of the Tin Woodman, and now they knew why he was so anxious to get a
971 | new heart.
972 |
973 | “All the same,” said the Scarecrow, “I shall ask for brains instead of
974 | a heart; for a fool would not know what to do with a heart if he had
975 | one.”
976 |
977 | “I shall take the heart,” returned the Tin Woodman; “for brains do not
978 | make one happy, and happiness is the best thing in the world.”
979 |
980 | Dorothy did not say anything, for she was puzzled to know which of her
981 | two friends was right, and she decided if she could only get back to
982 | Kansas and Aunt Em, it did not matter so much whether the Woodman had
983 | no brains and the Scarecrow no heart, or each got what he wanted.
984 |
985 | What worried her most was that the bread was nearly gone, and another
986 | meal for herself and Toto would empty the basket. To be sure, neither
987 | the Woodman nor the Scarecrow ever ate anything, but she was not made
988 | of tin nor straw, and could not live unless she was fed.
989 |
990 |
991 |
992 |
993 | Chapter VI
994 | The Cowardly Lion
995 |
996 |
997 | All this time Dorothy and her companions had been walking through the
998 | thick woods. The road was still paved with yellow brick, but these were
999 | much covered by dried branches and dead leaves from the trees, and the
1000 | walking was not at all good.
1001 |
1002 | There were few birds in this part of the forest, for birds love the
1003 | open country where there is plenty of sunshine. But now and then there
1004 | came a deep growl from some wild animal hidden among the trees. These
1005 | sounds made the little girl’s heart beat fast, for she did not know
1006 | what made them; but Toto knew, and he walked close to Dorothy’s side,
1007 | and did not even bark in return.
1008 |
1009 | “How long will it be,” the child asked of the Tin Woodman, “before we
1010 | are out of the forest?”
1011 |
1012 | “I cannot tell,” was the answer, “for I have never been to the Emerald
1013 | City. But my father went there once, when I was a boy, and he said it
1014 | was a long journey through a dangerous country, although nearer to the
1015 | city where Oz dwells the country is beautiful. But I am not afraid so
1016 | long as I have my oil-can, and nothing can hurt the Scarecrow, while
1017 | you bear upon your forehead the mark of the Good Witch’s kiss, and that
1018 | will protect you from harm.”
1019 |
1020 | “But Toto!” said the girl anxiously. “What will protect him?”
1021 |
1022 | “We must protect him ourselves if he is in danger,” replied the Tin
1023 | Woodman.
1024 |
1025 | Just as he spoke there came from the forest a terrible roar, and the
1026 | next moment a great Lion bounded into the road. With one blow of his
1027 | paw he sent the Scarecrow spinning over and over to the edge of the
1028 | road, and then he struck at the Tin Woodman with his sharp claws. But,
1029 | to the Lion’s surprise, he could make no impression on the tin,
1030 | although the Woodman fell over in the road and lay still.
1031 |
1032 | Little Toto, now that he had an enemy to face, ran barking toward the
1033 | Lion, and the great beast had opened his mouth to bite the dog, when
1034 | Dorothy, fearing Toto would be killed, and heedless of danger, rushed
1035 | forward and slapped the Lion upon his nose as hard as she could, while
1036 | she cried out:
1037 |
1038 | “Don’t you dare to bite Toto! You ought to be ashamed of yourself, a
1039 | big beast like you, to bite a poor little dog!”
1040 |
1041 | “I didn’t bite him,” said the Lion, as he rubbed his nose with his paw
1042 | where Dorothy had hit it.
1043 |
1044 | “No, but you tried to,” she retorted. “You are nothing but a big
1045 | coward.”
1046 |
1047 | “I know it,” said the Lion, hanging his head in shame. “I’ve always
1048 | known it. But how can I help it?”
1049 |
1050 | “I don’t know, I’m sure. To think of your striking a stuffed man, like
1051 | the poor Scarecrow!”
1052 |
1053 | “Is he stuffed?” asked the Lion in surprise, as he watched her pick up
1054 | the Scarecrow and set him upon his feet, while she patted him into
1055 | shape again.
1056 |
1057 | “Of course he’s stuffed,” replied Dorothy, who was still angry.
1058 |
1059 | “That’s why he went over so easily,” remarked the Lion. “It astonished
1060 | me to see him whirl around so. Is the other one stuffed also?”
1061 |
1062 | “No,” said Dorothy, “he’s made of tin.” And she helped the Woodman up
1063 | again.
1064 |
1065 | “That’s why he nearly blunted my claws,” said the Lion. “When they
1066 | scratched against the tin it made a cold shiver run down my back. What
1067 | is that little animal you are so tender of?”
1068 |
1069 | “He is my dog, Toto,” answered Dorothy.
1070 |
1071 | “Is he made of tin, or stuffed?” asked the Lion.
1072 |
1073 | “Neither. He’s a—a—a meat dog,” said the girl.
1074 |
1075 | “Oh! He’s a curious animal and seems remarkably small, now that I look
1076 | at him. No one would think of biting such a little thing, except a
1077 | coward like me,” continued the Lion sadly.
1078 |
1079 | “What makes you a coward?” asked Dorothy, looking at the great beast in
1080 | wonder, for he was as big as a small horse.
1081 |
1082 | “It’s a mystery,” replied the Lion. “I suppose I was born that way. All
1083 | the other animals in the forest naturally expect me to be brave, for
1084 | the Lion is everywhere thought to be the King of Beasts. I learned that
1085 | if I roared very loudly every living thing was frightened and got out
1086 | of my way. Whenever I’ve met a man I’ve been awfully scared; but I just
1087 | roared at him, and he has always run away as fast as he could go. If
1088 | the elephants and the tigers and the bears had ever tried to fight me,
1089 | I should have run myself—I’m such a coward; but just as soon as they
1090 | hear me roar they all try to get away from me, and of course I let them
1091 | go.”
1092 |
1093 | “But that isn’t right. The King of Beasts shouldn’t be a coward,” said
1094 | the Scarecrow.
1095 |
1096 | “I know it,” returned the Lion, wiping a tear from his eye with the tip
1097 | of his tail. “It is my great sorrow, and makes my life very unhappy.
1098 | But whenever there is danger, my heart begins to beat fast.”
1099 |
1100 | “Perhaps you have heart disease,” said the Tin Woodman.
1101 |
1102 | “It may be,” said the Lion.
1103 |
1104 | “If you have,” continued the Tin Woodman, “you ought to be glad, for it
1105 | proves you have a heart. For my part, I have no heart; so I cannot have
1106 | heart disease.”
1107 |
1108 | “Perhaps,” said the Lion thoughtfully, “if I had no heart I should not
1109 | be a coward.”
1110 |
1111 | “Have you brains?” asked the Scarecrow.
1112 |
1113 | “I suppose so. I’ve never looked to see,” replied the Lion.
1114 |
1115 | “I am going to the Great Oz to ask him to give me some,” remarked the
1116 | Scarecrow, “for my head is stuffed with straw.”
1117 |
1118 | “And I am going to ask him to give me a heart,” said the Woodman.
1119 |
1120 | “And I am going to ask him to send Toto and me back to Kansas,” added
1121 | Dorothy.
1122 |
1123 | “Do you think Oz could give me courage?” asked the Cowardly Lion.
1124 |
1125 | “Just as easily as he could give me brains,” said the Scarecrow.
1126 |
1127 | “Or give me a heart,” said the Tin Woodman.
1128 |
1129 | “Or send me back to Kansas,” said Dorothy.
1130 |
1131 | “Then, if you don’t mind, I’ll go with you,” said the Lion, “for my
1132 | life is simply unbearable without a bit of courage.”
1133 |
1134 | “You will be very welcome,” answered Dorothy, “for you will help to
1135 | keep away the other wild beasts. It seems to me they must be more
1136 | cowardly than you are if they allow you to scare them so easily.”
1137 |
1138 | “They really are,” said the Lion, “but that doesn’t make me any braver,
1139 | and as long as I know myself to be a coward I shall be unhappy.”
1140 |
1141 | So once more the little company set off upon the journey, the Lion
1142 | walking with stately strides at Dorothy’s side. Toto did not approve of
1143 | this new comrade at first, for he could not forget how nearly he had
1144 | been crushed between the Lion’s great jaws. But after a time he became
1145 | more at ease, and presently Toto and the Cowardly Lion had grown to be
1146 | good friends.
1147 |
1148 | During the rest of that day there was no other adventure to mar the
1149 | peace of their journey. Once, indeed, the Tin Woodman stepped upon a
1150 | beetle that was crawling along the road, and killed the poor little
1151 | thing. This made the Tin Woodman very unhappy, for he was always
1152 | careful not to hurt any living creature; and as he walked along he wept
1153 | several tears of sorrow and regret. These tears ran slowly down his
1154 | face and over the hinges of his jaw, and there they rusted. When
1155 | Dorothy presently asked him a question the Tin Woodman could not open
1156 | his mouth, for his jaws were tightly rusted together. He became greatly
1157 | frightened at this and made many motions to Dorothy to relieve him, but
1158 | she could not understand. The Lion was also puzzled to know what was
1159 | wrong. But the Scarecrow seized the oil-can from Dorothy’s basket and
1160 | oiled the Woodman’s jaws, so that after a few moments he could talk as
1161 | well as before.
1162 |
1163 | “This will serve me a lesson,” said he, “to look where I step. For if I
1164 | should kill another bug or beetle I should surely cry again, and crying
1165 | rusts my jaws so that I cannot speak.”
1166 |
1167 | Thereafter he walked very carefully, with his eyes on the road, and
1168 | when he saw a tiny ant toiling by he would step over it, so as not to
1169 | harm it. The Tin Woodman knew very well he had no heart, and therefore
1170 | he took great care never to be cruel or unkind to anything.
1171 |
1172 | “You people with hearts,” he said, “have something to guide you, and
1173 | need never do wrong; but I have no heart, and so I must be very
1174 | careful. When Oz gives me a heart of course I needn’t mind so much.”
1175 |
1176 |
1177 |
1178 |
1179 | Chapter VII
1180 | The Journey to the Great Oz
1181 |
1182 |
1183 | They were obliged to camp out that night under a large tree in the
1184 | forest, for there were no houses near. The tree made a good, thick
1185 | covering to protect them from the dew, and the Tin Woodman chopped a
1186 | great pile of wood with his axe and Dorothy built a splendid fire that
1187 | warmed her and made her feel less lonely. She and Toto ate the last of
1188 | their bread, and now she did not know what they would do for breakfast.
1189 |
1190 | “If you wish,” said the Lion, “I will go into the forest and kill a
1191 | deer for you. You can roast it by the fire, since your tastes are so
1192 | peculiar that you prefer cooked food, and then you will have a very
1193 | good breakfast.”
1194 |
1195 | “Don’t! Please don’t,” begged the Tin Woodman. “I should certainly weep
1196 | if you killed a poor deer, and then my jaws would rust again.”
1197 |
1198 | But the Lion went away into the forest and found his own supper, and no
1199 | one ever knew what it was, for he didn’t mention it. And the Scarecrow
1200 | found a tree full of nuts and filled Dorothy’s basket with them, so
1201 | that she would not be hungry for a long time. She thought this was very
1202 | kind and thoughtful of the Scarecrow, but she laughed heartily at the
1203 | awkward way in which the poor creature picked up the nuts. His padded
1204 | hands were so clumsy and the nuts were so small that he dropped almost
1205 | as many as he put in the basket. But the Scarecrow did not mind how
1206 | long it took him to fill the basket, for it enabled him to keep away
1207 | from the fire, as he feared a spark might get into his straw and burn
1208 | him up. So he kept a good distance away from the flames, and only came
1209 | near to cover Dorothy with dry leaves when she lay down to sleep. These
1210 | kept her very snug and warm, and she slept soundly until morning.
1211 |
1212 | When it was daylight, the girl bathed her face in a little rippling
1213 | brook, and soon after they all started toward the Emerald City.
1214 |
1215 | This was to be an eventful day for the travelers. They had hardly been
1216 | walking an hour when they saw before them a great ditch that crossed
1217 | the road and divided the forest as far as they could see on either
1218 | side. It was a very wide ditch, and when they crept up to the edge and
1219 | looked into it they could see it was also very deep, and there were
1220 | many big, jagged rocks at the bottom. The sides were so steep that none
1221 | of them could climb down, and for a moment it seemed that their journey
1222 | must end.
1223 |
1224 | “What shall we do?” asked Dorothy despairingly.
1225 |
1226 | “I haven’t the faintest idea,” said the Tin Woodman, and the Lion shook
1227 | his shaggy mane and looked thoughtful.
1228 |
1229 | But the Scarecrow said, “We cannot fly, that is certain. Neither can we
1230 | climb down into this great ditch. Therefore, if we cannot jump over it,
1231 | we must stop where we are.”
1232 |
1233 | “I think I could jump over it,” said the Cowardly Lion, after measuring
1234 | the distance carefully in his mind.
1235 |
1236 | “Then we are all right,” answered the Scarecrow, “for you can carry us
1237 | all over on your back, one at a time.”
1238 |
1239 | “Well, I’ll try it,” said the Lion. “Who will go first?”
1240 |
1241 | “I will,” declared the Scarecrow, “for, if you found that you could not
1242 | jump over the gulf, Dorothy would be killed, or the Tin Woodman badly
1243 | dented on the rocks below. But if I am on your back it will not matter
1244 | so much, for the fall would not hurt me at all.”
1245 |
1246 | “I am terribly afraid of falling, myself,” said the Cowardly Lion, “but
1247 | I suppose there is nothing to do but try it. So get on my back and we
1248 | will make the attempt.”
1249 |
1250 | The Scarecrow sat upon the Lion’s back, and the big beast walked to the
1251 | edge of the gulf and crouched down.
1252 |
1253 | “Why don’t you run and jump?” asked the Scarecrow.
1254 |
1255 | “Because that isn’t the way we Lions do these things,” he replied. Then
1256 | giving a great spring, he shot through the air and landed safely on the
1257 | other side. They were all greatly pleased to see how easily he did it,
1258 | and after the Scarecrow had got down from his back the Lion sprang
1259 | across the ditch again.
1260 |
1261 | Dorothy thought she would go next; so she took Toto in her arms and
1262 | climbed on the Lion’s back, holding tightly to his mane with one hand.
1263 | The next moment it seemed as if she were flying through the air; and
1264 | then, before she had time to think about it, she was safe on the other
1265 | side. The Lion went back a third time and got the Tin Woodman, and then
1266 | they all sat down for a few moments to give the beast a chance to rest,
1267 | for his great leaps had made his breath short, and he panted like a big
1268 | dog that has been running too long.
1269 |
1270 | They found the forest very thick on this side, and it looked dark and
1271 | gloomy. After the Lion had rested they started along the road of yellow
1272 | brick, silently wondering, each in his own mind, if ever they would
1273 | come to the end of the woods and reach the bright sunshine again. To
1274 | add to their discomfort, they soon heard strange noises in the depths
1275 | of the forest, and the Lion whispered to them that it was in this part
1276 | of the country that the Kalidahs lived.
1277 |
1278 | “What are the Kalidahs?” asked the girl.
1279 |
1280 | “They are monstrous beasts with bodies like bears and heads like
1281 | tigers,” replied the Lion, “and with claws so long and sharp that they
1282 | could tear me in two as easily as I could kill Toto. I’m terribly
1283 | afraid of the Kalidahs.”
1284 |
1285 | “I’m not surprised that you are,” returned Dorothy. “They must be
1286 | dreadful beasts.”
1287 |
1288 | The Lion was about to reply when suddenly they came to another gulf
1289 | across the road. But this one was so broad and deep that the Lion knew
1290 | at once he could not leap across it.
1291 |
1292 | So they sat down to consider what they should do, and after serious
1293 | thought the Scarecrow said:
1294 |
1295 | “Here is a great tree, standing close to the ditch. If the Tin Woodman
1296 | can chop it down, so that it will fall to the other side, we can walk
1297 | across it easily.”
1298 |
1299 | “That is a first-rate idea,” said the Lion. “One would almost suspect
1300 | you had brains in your head, instead of straw.”
1301 |
1302 | The Woodman set to work at once, and so sharp was his axe that the tree
1303 | was soon chopped nearly through. Then the Lion put his strong front
1304 | legs against the tree and pushed with all his might, and slowly the big
1305 | tree tipped and fell with a crash across the ditch, with its top
1306 | branches on the other side.
1307 |
1308 | They had just started to cross this queer bridge when a sharp growl
1309 | made them all look up, and to their horror they saw running toward them
1310 | two great beasts with bodies like bears and heads like tigers.
1311 |
1312 | “They are the Kalidahs!” said the Cowardly Lion, beginning to tremble.
1313 |
1314 | “Quick!” cried the Scarecrow. “Let us cross over.”
1315 |
1316 | So Dorothy went first, holding Toto in her arms, the Tin Woodman
1317 | followed, and the Scarecrow came next. The Lion, although he was
1318 | certainly afraid, turned to face the Kalidahs, and then he gave so loud
1319 | and terrible a roar that Dorothy screamed and the Scarecrow fell over
1320 | backward, while even the fierce beasts stopped short and looked at him
1321 | in surprise.
1322 |
1323 | But, seeing they were bigger than the Lion, and remembering that there
1324 | were two of them and only one of him, the Kalidahs again rushed
1325 | forward, and the Lion crossed over the tree and turned to see what they
1326 | would do next. Without stopping an instant the fierce beasts also began
1327 | to cross the tree. And the Lion said to Dorothy:
1328 |
1329 | “We are lost, for they will surely tear us to pieces with their sharp
1330 | claws. But stand close behind me, and I will fight them as long as I am
1331 | alive.”
1332 |
1333 | “Wait a minute!” called the Scarecrow. He had been thinking what was
1334 | best to be done, and now he asked the Woodman to chop away the end of
1335 | the tree that rested on their side of the ditch. The Tin Woodman began
1336 | to use his axe at once, and, just as the two Kalidahs were nearly
1337 | across, the tree fell with a crash into the gulf, carrying the ugly,
1338 | snarling brutes with it, and both were dashed to pieces on the sharp
1339 | rocks at the bottom.
1340 |
1341 | “Well,” said the Cowardly Lion, drawing a long breath of relief, “I see
1342 | we are going to live a little while longer, and I am glad of it, for it
1343 | must be a very uncomfortable thing not to be alive. Those creatures
1344 | frightened me so badly that my heart is beating yet.”
1345 |
1346 | “Ah,” said the Tin Woodman sadly, “I wish I had a heart to beat.”
1347 |
1348 | This adventure made the travelers more anxious than ever to get out of
1349 | the forest, and they walked so fast that Dorothy became tired, and had
1350 | to ride on the Lion’s back. To their great joy the trees became thinner
1351 | the farther they advanced, and in the afternoon they suddenly came upon
1352 | a broad river, flowing swiftly just before them. On the other side of
1353 | the water they could see the road of yellow brick running through a
1354 | beautiful country, with green meadows dotted with bright flowers and
1355 | all the road bordered with trees hanging full of delicious fruits. They
1356 | were greatly pleased to see this delightful country before them.
1357 |
1358 | “How shall we cross the river?” asked Dorothy.
1359 |
1360 | “That is easily done,” replied the Scarecrow. “The Tin Woodman must
1361 | build us a raft, so we can float to the other side.”
1362 |
1363 | So the Woodman took his axe and began to chop down small trees to make
1364 | a raft, and while he was busy at this the Scarecrow found on the
1365 | riverbank a tree full of fine fruit. This pleased Dorothy, who had
1366 | eaten nothing but nuts all day, and she made a hearty meal of the ripe
1367 | fruit.
1368 |
1369 | But it takes time to make a raft, even when one is as industrious and
1370 | untiring as the Tin Woodman, and when night came the work was not done.
1371 | So they found a cozy place under the trees where they slept well until
1372 | the morning; and Dorothy dreamed of the Emerald City, and of the good
1373 | Wizard Oz, who would soon send her back to her own home again.
1374 |
1375 |
1376 |
1377 |
1378 | Chapter VIII
1379 | The Deadly Poppy Field
1380 |
1381 |
1382 | Our little party of travelers awakened the next morning refreshed and
1383 | full of hope, and Dorothy breakfasted like a princess off peaches and
1384 | plums from the trees beside the river. Behind them was the dark forest
1385 | they had passed safely through, although they had suffered many
1386 | discouragements; but before them was a lovely, sunny country that
1387 | seemed to beckon them on to the Emerald City.
1388 |
1389 | To be sure, the broad river now cut them off from this beautiful land.
1390 | But the raft was nearly done, and after the Tin Woodman had cut a few
1391 | more logs and fastened them together with wooden pins, they were ready
1392 | to start. Dorothy sat down in the middle of the raft and held Toto in
1393 | her arms. When the Cowardly Lion stepped upon the raft it tipped badly,
1394 | for he was big and heavy; but the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman stood
1395 | upon the other end to steady it, and they had long poles in their hands
1396 | to push the raft through the water.
1397 |
1398 | They got along quite well at first, but when they reached the middle of
1399 | the river the swift current swept the raft downstream, farther and
1400 | farther away from the road of yellow brick. And the water grew so deep
1401 | that the long poles would not touch the bottom.
1402 |
1403 | “This is bad,” said the Tin Woodman, “for if we cannot get to the land
1404 | we shall be carried into the country of the Wicked Witch of the West,
1405 | and she will enchant us and make us her slaves.”
1406 |
1407 | “And then I should get no brains,” said the Scarecrow.
1408 |
1409 | “And I should get no courage,” said the Cowardly Lion.
1410 |
1411 | “And I should get no heart,” said the Tin Woodman.
1412 |
1413 | “And I should never get back to Kansas,” said Dorothy.
1414 |
1415 | “We must certainly get to the Emerald City if we can,” the Scarecrow
1416 | continued, and he pushed so hard on his long pole that it stuck fast in
1417 | the mud at the bottom of the river. Then, before he could pull it out
1418 | again—or let go—the raft was swept away, and the poor Scarecrow was
1419 | left clinging to the pole in the middle of the river.
1420 |
1421 | “Good-bye!” he called after them, and they were very sorry to leave
1422 | him. Indeed, the Tin Woodman began to cry, but fortunately remembered
1423 | that he might rust, and so dried his tears on Dorothy’s apron.
1424 |
1425 | Of course this was a bad thing for the Scarecrow.
1426 |
1427 | “I am now worse off than when I first met Dorothy,” he thought. “Then,
1428 | I was stuck on a pole in a cornfield, where I could make-believe scare
1429 | the crows, at any rate. But surely there is no use for a Scarecrow
1430 | stuck on a pole in the middle of a river. I am afraid I shall never
1431 | have any brains, after all!”
1432 |
1433 | Down the stream the raft floated, and the poor Scarecrow was left far
1434 | behind. Then the Lion said:
1435 |
1436 | “Something must be done to save us. I think I can swim to the shore and
1437 | pull the raft after me, if you will only hold fast to the tip of my
1438 | tail.”
1439 |
1440 | So he sprang into the water, and the Tin Woodman caught fast hold of
1441 | his tail. Then the Lion began to swim with all his might toward the
1442 | shore. It was hard work, although he was so big; but by and by they
1443 | were drawn out of the current, and then Dorothy took the Tin Woodman’s
1444 | long pole and helped push the raft to the land.
1445 |
1446 | They were all tired out when they reached the shore at last and stepped
1447 | off upon the pretty green grass, and they also knew that the stream had
1448 | carried them a long way past the road of yellow brick that led to the
1449 | Emerald City.
1450 |
1451 | “What shall we do now?” asked the Tin Woodman, as the Lion lay down on
1452 | the grass to let the sun dry him.
1453 |
1454 | “We must get back to the road, in some way,” said Dorothy.
1455 |
1456 | “The best plan will be to walk along the riverbank until we come to the
1457 | road again,” remarked the Lion.
1458 |
1459 | So, when they were rested, Dorothy picked up her basket and they
1460 | started along the grassy bank, to the road from which the river had
1461 | carried them. It was a lovely country, with plenty of flowers and fruit
1462 | trees and sunshine to cheer them, and had they not felt so sorry for
1463 | the poor Scarecrow, they could have been very happy.
1464 |
1465 | They walked along as fast as they could, Dorothy only stopping once to
1466 | pick a beautiful flower; and after a time the Tin Woodman cried out:
1467 | “Look!”
1468 |
1469 | Then they all looked at the river and saw the Scarecrow perched upon
1470 | his pole in the middle of the water, looking very lonely and sad.
1471 |
1472 | “What can we do to save him?” asked Dorothy.
1473 |
1474 | The Lion and the Woodman both shook their heads, for they did not know.
1475 | So they sat down upon the bank and gazed wistfully at the Scarecrow
1476 | until a Stork flew by, who, upon seeing them, stopped to rest at the
1477 | water’s edge.
1478 |
1479 | “Who are you and where are you going?” asked the Stork.
1480 |
1481 | “I am Dorothy,” answered the girl, “and these are my friends, the Tin
1482 | Woodman and the Cowardly Lion; and we are going to the Emerald City.”
1483 |
1484 | “This isn’t the road,” said the Stork, as she twisted her long neck and
1485 | looked sharply at the queer party.
1486 |
1487 | “I know it,” returned Dorothy, “but we have lost the Scarecrow, and are
1488 | wondering how we shall get him again.”
1489 |
1490 | “Where is he?” asked the Stork.
1491 |
1492 | “Over there in the river,” answered the little girl.
1493 |
1494 | “If he wasn’t so big and heavy I would get him for you,” remarked the
1495 | Stork.
1496 |
1497 | “He isn’t heavy a bit,” said Dorothy eagerly, “for he is stuffed with
1498 | straw; and if you will bring him back to us, we shall thank you ever
1499 | and ever so much.”
1500 |
1501 | “Well, I’ll try,” said the Stork, “but if I find he is too heavy to
1502 | carry I shall have to drop him in the river again.”
1503 |
1504 | So the big bird flew into the air and over the water till she came to
1505 | where the Scarecrow was perched upon his pole. Then the Stork with her
1506 | great claws grabbed the Scarecrow by the arm and carried him up into
1507 | the air and back to the bank, where Dorothy and the Lion and the Tin
1508 | Woodman and Toto were sitting.
1509 |
1510 | When the Scarecrow found himself among his friends again, he was so
1511 | happy that he hugged them all, even the Lion and Toto; and as they
1512 | walked along he sang “Tol-de-ri-de-oh!” at every step, he felt so gay.
1513 |
1514 | “I was afraid I should have to stay in the river forever,” he said,
1515 | “but the kind Stork saved me, and if I ever get any brains I shall find
1516 | the Stork again and do her some kindness in return.”
1517 |
1518 | “That’s all right,” said the Stork, who was flying along beside them.
1519 | “I always like to help anyone in trouble. But I must go now, for my
1520 | babies are waiting in the nest for me. I hope you will find the Emerald
1521 | City and that Oz will help you.”
1522 |
1523 | “Thank you,” replied Dorothy, and then the kind Stork flew into the air
1524 | and was soon out of sight.
1525 |
1526 | They walked along listening to the singing of the brightly colored
1527 | birds and looking at the lovely flowers which now became so thick that
1528 | the ground was carpeted with them. There were big yellow and white and
1529 | blue and purple blossoms, besides great clusters of scarlet poppies,
1530 | which were so brilliant in color they almost dazzled Dorothy’s eyes.
1531 |
1532 | “Aren’t they beautiful?” the girl asked, as she breathed in the spicy
1533 | scent of the bright flowers.
1534 |
1535 | “I suppose so,” answered the Scarecrow. “When I have brains, I shall
1536 | probably like them better.”
1537 |
1538 | “If I only had a heart, I should love them,” added the Tin Woodman.
1539 |
1540 | “I always did like flowers,” said the Lion. “They seem so helpless and
1541 | frail. But there are none in the forest so bright as these.”
1542 |
1543 | They now came upon more and more of the big scarlet poppies, and fewer
1544 | and fewer of the other flowers; and soon they found themselves in the
1545 | midst of a great meadow of poppies. Now it is well known that when
1546 | there are many of these flowers together their odor is so powerful that
1547 | anyone who breathes it falls asleep, and if the sleeper is not carried
1548 | away from the scent of the flowers, he sleeps on and on forever. But
1549 | Dorothy did not know this, nor could she get away from the bright red
1550 | flowers that were everywhere about; so presently her eyes grew heavy
1551 | and she felt she must sit down to rest and to sleep.
1552 |
1553 | But the Tin Woodman would not let her do this.
1554 |
1555 | “We must hurry and get back to the road of yellow brick before dark,”
1556 | he said; and the Scarecrow agreed with him. So they kept walking until
1557 | Dorothy could stand no longer. Her eyes closed in spite of herself and
1558 | she forgot where she was and fell among the poppies, fast asleep.
1559 |
1560 | “What shall we do?” asked the Tin Woodman.
1561 |
1562 | “If we leave her here she will die,” said the Lion. “The smell of the
1563 | flowers is killing us all. I myself can scarcely keep my eyes open, and
1564 | the dog is asleep already.”
1565 |
1566 | It was true; Toto had fallen down beside his little mistress. But the
1567 | Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman, not being made of flesh, were not
1568 | troubled by the scent of the flowers.
1569 |
1570 | “Run fast,” said the Scarecrow to the Lion, “and get out of this deadly
1571 | flower bed as soon as you can. We will bring the little girl with us,
1572 | but if you should fall asleep you are too big to be carried.”
1573 |
1574 | So the Lion aroused himself and bounded forward as fast as he could go.
1575 | In a moment he was out of sight.
1576 |
1577 | “Let us make a chair with our hands and carry her,” said the Scarecrow.
1578 | So they picked up Toto and put the dog in Dorothy’s lap, and then they
1579 | made a chair with their hands for the seat and their arms for the arms
1580 | and carried the sleeping girl between them through the flowers.
1581 |
1582 | On and on they walked, and it seemed that the great carpet of deadly
1583 | flowers that surrounded them would never end. They followed the bend of
1584 | the river, and at last came upon their friend the Lion, lying fast
1585 | asleep among the poppies. The flowers had been too strong for the huge
1586 | beast and he had given up at last, and fallen only a short distance
1587 | from the end of the poppy bed, where the sweet grass spread in
1588 | beautiful green fields before them.
1589 |
1590 | “We can do nothing for him,” said the Tin Woodman, sadly; “for he is
1591 | much too heavy to lift. We must leave him here to sleep on forever, and
1592 | perhaps he will dream that he has found courage at last.”
1593 |
1594 | “I’m sorry,” said the Scarecrow. “The Lion was a very good comrade for
1595 | one so cowardly. But let us go on.”
1596 |
1597 | They carried the sleeping girl to a pretty spot beside the river, far
1598 | enough from the poppy field to prevent her breathing any more of the
1599 | poison of the flowers, and here they laid her gently on the soft grass
1600 | and waited for the fresh breeze to waken her.
1601 |
1602 |
1603 |
1604 |
1605 | Chapter IX
1606 | The Queen of the Field Mice
1607 |
1608 |
1609 | “We cannot be far from the road of yellow brick, now,” remarked the
1610 | Scarecrow, as he stood beside the girl, “for we have come nearly as far
1611 | as the river carried us away.”
1612 |
1613 | The Tin Woodman was about to reply when he heard a low growl, and
1614 | turning his head (which worked beautifully on hinges) he saw a strange
1615 | beast come bounding over the grass toward them. It was, indeed, a great
1616 | yellow Wildcat, and the Woodman thought it must be chasing something,
1617 | for its ears were lying close to its head and its mouth was wide open,
1618 | showing two rows of ugly teeth, while its red eyes glowed like balls of
1619 | fire. As it came nearer the Tin Woodman saw that running before the
1620 | beast was a little gray field mouse, and although he had no heart he
1621 | knew it was wrong for the Wildcat to try to kill such a pretty,
1622 | harmless creature.
1623 |
1624 | So the Woodman raised his axe, and as the Wildcat ran by he gave it a
1625 | quick blow that cut the beast’s head clean off from its body, and it
1626 | rolled over at his feet in two pieces.
1627 |
1628 | The field mouse, now that it was freed from its enemy, stopped short;
1629 | and coming slowly up to the Woodman it said, in a squeaky little voice:
1630 |
1631 | “Oh, thank you! Thank you ever so much for saving my life.”
1632 |
1633 | “Don’t speak of it, I beg of you,” replied the Woodman. “I have no
1634 | heart, you know, so I am careful to help all those who may need a
1635 | friend, even if it happens to be only a mouse.”
1636 |
1637 | “Only a mouse!” cried the little animal, indignantly. “Why, I am a
1638 | Queen—the Queen of all the Field Mice!”
1639 |
1640 | “Oh, indeed,” said the Woodman, making a bow.
1641 |
1642 | “Therefore you have done a great deed, as well as a brave one, in
1643 | saving my life,” added the Queen.
1644 |
1645 | At that moment several mice were seen running up as fast as their
1646 | little legs could carry them, and when they saw their Queen they
1647 | exclaimed:
1648 |
1649 | “Oh, your Majesty, we thought you would be killed! How did you manage
1650 | to escape the great Wildcat?” They all bowed so low to the little Queen
1651 | that they almost stood upon their heads.
1652 |
1653 | “This funny tin man,” she answered, “killed the Wildcat and saved my
1654 | life. So hereafter you must all serve him, and obey his slightest
1655 | wish.”
1656 |
1657 | “We will!” cried all the mice, in a shrill chorus. And then they
1658 | scampered in all directions, for Toto had awakened from his sleep, and
1659 | seeing all these mice around him he gave one bark of delight and jumped
1660 | right into the middle of the group. Toto had always loved to chase mice
1661 | when he lived in Kansas, and he saw no harm in it.
1662 |
1663 | But the Tin Woodman caught the dog in his arms and held him tight,
1664 | while he called to the mice, “Come back! Come back! Toto shall not hurt
1665 | you.”
1666 |
1667 | At this the Queen of the Mice stuck her head out from underneath a
1668 | clump of grass and asked, in a timid voice, “Are you sure he will not
1669 | bite us?”
1670 |
1671 | “I will not let him,” said the Woodman; “so do not be afraid.”
1672 |
1673 | One by one the mice came creeping back, and Toto did not bark again,
1674 | although he tried to get out of the Woodman’s arms, and would have
1675 | bitten him had he not known very well he was made of tin. Finally one
1676 | of the biggest mice spoke.
1677 |
1678 | “Is there anything we can do,” it asked, “to repay you for saving the
1679 | life of our Queen?”
1680 |
1681 | “Nothing that I know of,” answered the Woodman; but the Scarecrow, who
1682 | had been trying to think, but could not because his head was stuffed
1683 | with straw, said, quickly, “Oh, yes; you can save our friend, the
1684 | Cowardly Lion, who is asleep in the poppy bed.”
1685 |
1686 | “A Lion!” cried the little Queen. “Why, he would eat us all up.”
1687 |
1688 | “Oh, no,” declared the Scarecrow; “this Lion is a coward.”
1689 |
1690 | “Really?” asked the Mouse.
1691 |
1692 | “He says so himself,” answered the Scarecrow, “and he would never hurt
1693 | anyone who is our friend. If you will help us to save him I promise
1694 | that he shall treat you all with kindness.”
1695 |
1696 | “Very well,” said the Queen, “we trust you. But what shall we do?”
1697 |
1698 | “Are there many of these mice which call you Queen and are willing to
1699 | obey you?”
1700 |
1701 | “Oh, yes; there are thousands,” she replied.
1702 |
1703 | “Then send for them all to come here as soon as possible, and let each
1704 | one bring a long piece of string.”
1705 |
1706 | The Queen turned to the mice that attended her and told them to go at
1707 | once and get all her people. As soon as they heard her orders they ran
1708 | away in every direction as fast as possible.
1709 |
1710 | “Now,” said the Scarecrow to the Tin Woodman, “you must go to those
1711 | trees by the riverside and make a truck that will carry the Lion.”
1712 |
1713 | So the Woodman went at once to the trees and began to work; and he soon
1714 | made a truck out of the limbs of trees, from which he chopped away all
1715 | the leaves and branches. He fastened it together with wooden pegs and
1716 | made the four wheels out of short pieces of a big tree trunk. So fast
1717 | and so well did he work that by the time the mice began to arrive the
1718 | truck was all ready for them.
1719 |
1720 | They came from all directions, and there were thousands of them: big
1721 | mice and little mice and middle-sized mice; and each one brought a
1722 | piece of string in his mouth. It was about this time that Dorothy woke
1723 | from her long sleep and opened her eyes. She was greatly astonished to
1724 | find herself lying upon the grass, with thousands of mice standing
1725 | around and looking at her timidly. But the Scarecrow told her about
1726 | everything, and turning to the dignified little Mouse, he said:
1727 |
1728 | “Permit me to introduce to you her Majesty, the Queen.”
1729 |
1730 | Dorothy nodded gravely and the Queen made a curtsy, after which she
1731 | became quite friendly with the little girl.
1732 |
1733 | The Scarecrow and the Woodman now began to fasten the mice to the
1734 | truck, using the strings they had brought. One end of a string was tied
1735 | around the neck of each mouse and the other end to the truck. Of course
1736 | the truck was a thousand times bigger than any of the mice who were to
1737 | draw it; but when all the mice had been harnessed, they were able to
1738 | pull it quite easily. Even the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman could sit
1739 | on it, and were drawn swiftly by their queer little horses to the place
1740 | where the Lion lay asleep.
1741 |
1742 | After a great deal of hard work, for the Lion was heavy, they managed
1743 | to get him up on the truck. Then the Queen hurriedly gave her people
1744 | the order to start, for she feared if the mice stayed among the poppies
1745 | too long they also would fall asleep.
1746 |
1747 | At first the little creatures, many though they were, could hardly stir
1748 | the heavily loaded truck; but the Woodman and the Scarecrow both pushed
1749 | from behind, and they got along better. Soon they rolled the Lion out
1750 | of the poppy bed to the green fields, where he could breathe the sweet,
1751 | fresh air again, instead of the poisonous scent of the flowers.
1752 |
1753 | Dorothy came to meet them and thanked the little mice warmly for saving
1754 | her companion from death. She had grown so fond of the big Lion she was
1755 | glad he had been rescued.
1756 |
1757 | Then the mice were unharnessed from the truck and scampered away
1758 | through the grass to their homes. The Queen of the Mice was the last to
1759 | leave.
1760 |
1761 | “If ever you need us again,” she said, “come out into the field and
1762 | call, and we shall hear you and come to your assistance. Good-bye!”
1763 |
1764 | “Good-bye!” they all answered, and away the Queen ran, while Dorothy
1765 | held Toto tightly lest he should run after her and frighten her.
1766 |
1767 | After this they sat down beside the Lion until he should awaken; and
1768 | the Scarecrow brought Dorothy some fruit from a tree near by, which she
1769 | ate for her dinner.
1770 |
1771 |
1772 |
1773 |
1774 | Chapter X
1775 | The Guardian of the Gate
1776 |
1777 |
1778 | It was some time before the Cowardly Lion awakened, for he had lain
1779 | among the poppies a long while, breathing in their deadly fragrance;
1780 | but when he did open his eyes and roll off the truck he was very glad
1781 | to find himself still alive.
1782 |
1783 | “I ran as fast as I could,” he said, sitting down and yawning, “but the
1784 | flowers were too strong for me. How did you get me out?”
1785 |
1786 | Then they told him of the field mice, and how they had generously saved
1787 | him from death; and the Cowardly Lion laughed, and said:
1788 |
1789 | “I have always thought myself very big and terrible; yet such little
1790 | things as flowers came near to killing me, and such small animals as
1791 | mice have saved my life. How strange it all is! But, comrades, what
1792 | shall we do now?”
1793 |
1794 | “We must journey on until we find the road of yellow brick again,” said
1795 | Dorothy, “and then we can keep on to the Emerald City.”
1796 |
1797 | So, the Lion being fully refreshed, and feeling quite himself again,
1798 | they all started upon the journey, greatly enjoying the walk through
1799 | the soft, fresh grass; and it was not long before they reached the road
1800 | of yellow brick and turned again toward the Emerald City where the
1801 | Great Oz dwelt.
1802 |
1803 | The road was smooth and well paved, now, and the country about was
1804 | beautiful, so that the travelers rejoiced in leaving the forest far
1805 | behind, and with it the many dangers they had met in its gloomy shades.
1806 | Once more they could see fences built beside the road; but these were
1807 | painted green, and when they came to a small house, in which a farmer
1808 | evidently lived, that also was painted green. They passed by several of
1809 | these houses during the afternoon, and sometimes people came to the
1810 | doors and looked at them as if they would like to ask questions; but no
1811 | one came near them nor spoke to them because of the great Lion, of
1812 | which they were very much afraid. The people were all dressed in
1813 | clothing of a lovely emerald-green color and wore peaked hats like
1814 | those of the Munchkins.
1815 |
1816 | “This must be the Land of Oz,” said Dorothy, “and we are surely getting
1817 | near the Emerald City.”
1818 |
1819 | “Yes,” answered the Scarecrow. “Everything is green here, while in the
1820 | country of the Munchkins blue was the favorite color. But the people do
1821 | not seem to be as friendly as the Munchkins, and I’m afraid we shall be
1822 | unable to find a place to pass the night.”
1823 |
1824 | “I should like something to eat besides fruit,” said the girl, “and I’m
1825 | sure Toto is nearly starved. Let us stop at the next house and talk to
1826 | the people.”
1827 |
1828 | So, when they came to a good-sized farmhouse, Dorothy walked boldly up
1829 | to the door and knocked.
1830 |
1831 | A woman opened it just far enough to look out, and said, “What do you
1832 | want, child, and why is that great Lion with you?”
1833 |
1834 | “We wish to pass the night with you, if you will allow us,” answered
1835 | Dorothy; “and the Lion is my friend and comrade, and would not hurt you
1836 | for the world.”
1837 |
1838 | “Is he tame?” asked the woman, opening the door a little wider.
1839 |
1840 | “Oh, yes,” said the girl, “and he is a great coward, too. He will be
1841 | more afraid of you than you are of him.”
1842 |
1843 | “Well,” said the woman, after thinking it over and taking another peep
1844 | at the Lion, “if that is the case you may come in, and I will give you
1845 | some supper and a place to sleep.”
1846 |
1847 | So they all entered the house, where there were, besides the woman, two
1848 | children and a man. The man had hurt his leg, and was lying on the
1849 | couch in a corner. They seemed greatly surprised to see so strange a
1850 | company, and while the woman was busy laying the table the man asked:
1851 |
1852 | “Where are you all going?”
1853 |
1854 | “To the Emerald City,” said Dorothy, “to see the Great Oz.”
1855 |
1856 | “Oh, indeed!” exclaimed the man. “Are you sure that Oz will see you?”
1857 |
1858 | “Why not?” she replied.
1859 |
1860 | “Why, it is said that he never lets anyone come into his presence. I
1861 | have been to the Emerald City many times, and it is a beautiful and
1862 | wonderful place; but I have never been permitted to see the Great Oz,
1863 | nor do I know of any living person who has seen him.”
1864 |
1865 | “Does he never go out?” asked the Scarecrow.
1866 |
1867 | “Never. He sits day after day in the great Throne Room of his Palace,
1868 | and even those who wait upon him do not see him face to face.”
1869 |
1870 | “What is he like?” asked the girl.
1871 |
1872 | “That is hard to tell,” said the man thoughtfully. “You see, Oz is a
1873 | Great Wizard, and can take on any form he wishes. So that some say he
1874 | looks like a bird; and some say he looks like an elephant; and some say
1875 | he looks like a cat. To others he appears as a beautiful fairy, or a
1876 | brownie, or in any other form that pleases him. But who the real Oz is,
1877 | when he is in his own form, no living person can tell.”
1878 |
1879 | “That is very strange,” said Dorothy, “but we must try, in some way, to
1880 | see him, or we shall have made our journey for nothing.”
1881 |
1882 | “Why do you wish to see the terrible Oz?” asked the man.
1883 |
1884 | “I want him to give me some brains,” said the Scarecrow eagerly.
1885 |
1886 | “Oh, Oz could do that easily enough,” declared the man. “He has more
1887 | brains than he needs.”
1888 |
1889 | “And I want him to give me a heart,” said the Tin Woodman.
1890 |
1891 | “That will not trouble him,” continued the man, “for Oz has a large
1892 | collection of hearts, of all sizes and shapes.”
1893 |
1894 | “And I want him to give me courage,” said the Cowardly Lion.
1895 |
1896 | “Oz keeps a great pot of courage in his Throne Room,” said the man,
1897 | “which he has covered with a golden plate, to keep it from running
1898 | over. He will be glad to give you some.”
1899 |
1900 | “And I want him to send me back to Kansas,” said Dorothy.
1901 |
1902 | “Where is Kansas?” asked the man, with surprise.
1903 |
1904 | “I don’t know,” replied Dorothy sorrowfully, “but it is my home, and
1905 | I’m sure it’s somewhere.”
1906 |
1907 | “Very likely. Well, Oz can do anything; so I suppose he will find
1908 | Kansas for you. But first you must get to see him, and that will be a
1909 | hard task; for the Great Wizard does not like to see anyone, and he
1910 | usually has his own way. But what do YOU want?” he continued, speaking
1911 | to Toto. Toto only wagged his tail; for, strange to say, he could not
1912 | speak.
1913 |
1914 | The woman now called to them that supper was ready, so they gathered
1915 | around the table and Dorothy ate some delicious porridge and a dish of
1916 | scrambled eggs and a plate of nice white bread, and enjoyed her meal.
1917 | The Lion ate some of the porridge, but did not care for it, saying it
1918 | was made from oats and oats were food for horses, not for lions. The
1919 | Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman ate nothing at all. Toto ate a little of
1920 | everything, and was glad to get a good supper again.
1921 |
1922 | The woman now gave Dorothy a bed to sleep in, and Toto lay down beside
1923 | her, while the Lion guarded the door of her room so she might not be
1924 | disturbed. The Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman stood up in a corner and
1925 | kept quiet all night, although of course they could not sleep.
1926 |
1927 | The next morning, as soon as the sun was up, they started on their way,
1928 | and soon saw a beautiful green glow in the sky just before them.
1929 |
1930 | “That must be the Emerald City,” said Dorothy.
1931 |
1932 | As they walked on, the green glow became brighter and brighter, and it
1933 | seemed that at last they were nearing the end of their travels. Yet it
1934 | was afternoon before they came to the great wall that surrounded the
1935 | City. It was high and thick and of a bright green color.
1936 |
1937 | In front of them, and at the end of the road of yellow brick, was a big
1938 | gate, all studded with emeralds that glittered so in the sun that even
1939 | the painted eyes of the Scarecrow were dazzled by their brilliancy.
1940 |
1941 | There was a bell beside the gate, and Dorothy pushed the button and
1942 | heard a silvery tinkle sound within. Then the big gate swung slowly
1943 | open, and they all passed through and found themselves in a high arched
1944 | room, the walls of which glistened with countless emeralds.
1945 |
1946 | Before them stood a little man about the same size as the Munchkins. He
1947 | was clothed all in green, from his head to his feet, and even his skin
1948 | was of a greenish tint. At his side was a large green box.
1949 |
1950 | When he saw Dorothy and her companions the man asked, “What do you wish
1951 | in the Emerald City?”
1952 |
1953 | “We came here to see the Great Oz,” said Dorothy.
1954 |
1955 | The man was so surprised at this answer that he sat down to think it
1956 | over.
1957 |
1958 | “It has been many years since anyone asked me to see Oz,” he said,
1959 | shaking his head in perplexity. “He is powerful and terrible, and if
1960 | you come on an idle or foolish errand to bother the wise reflections of
1961 | the Great Wizard, he might be angry and destroy you all in an instant.”
1962 |
1963 | “But it is not a foolish errand, nor an idle one,” replied the
1964 | Scarecrow; “it is important. And we have been told that Oz is a good
1965 | Wizard.”
1966 |
1967 | “So he is,” said the green man, “and he rules the Emerald City wisely
1968 | and well. But to those who are not honest, or who approach him from
1969 | curiosity, he is most terrible, and few have ever dared ask to see his
1970 | face. I am the Guardian of the Gates, and since you demand to see the
1971 | Great Oz I must take you to his Palace. But first you must put on the
1972 | spectacles.”
1973 |
1974 | “Why?” asked Dorothy.
1975 |
1976 | “Because if you did not wear spectacles the brightness and glory of the
1977 | Emerald City would blind you. Even those who live in the City must wear
1978 | spectacles night and day. They are all locked on, for Oz so ordered it
1979 | when the City was first built, and I have the only key that will unlock
1980 | them.”
1981 |
1982 | He opened the big box, and Dorothy saw that it was filled with
1983 | spectacles of every size and shape. All of them had green glasses in
1984 | them. The Guardian of the Gates found a pair that would just fit
1985 | Dorothy and put them over her eyes. There were two golden bands
1986 | fastened to them that passed around the back of her head, where they
1987 | were locked together by a little key that was at the end of a chain the
1988 | Guardian of the Gates wore around his neck. When they were on, Dorothy
1989 | could not take them off had she wished, but of course she did not wish
1990 | to be blinded by the glare of the Emerald City, so she said nothing.
1991 |
1992 | Then the green man fitted spectacles for the Scarecrow and the Tin
1993 | Woodman and the Lion, and even on little Toto; and all were locked fast
1994 | with the key.
1995 |
1996 | Then the Guardian of the Gates put on his own glasses and told them he
1997 | was ready to show them to the Palace. Taking a big golden key from a
1998 | peg on the wall, he opened another gate, and they all followed him
1999 | through the portal into the streets of the Emerald City.
2000 |
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 | Chapter XI
2005 | The Wonderful City of Oz
2006 |
2007 |
2008 | Even with eyes protected by the green spectacles, Dorothy and her
2009 | friends were at first dazzled by the brilliancy of the wonderful City.
2010 | The streets were lined with beautiful houses all built of green marble
2011 | and studded everywhere with sparkling emeralds. They walked over a
2012 | pavement of the same green marble, and where the blocks were joined
2013 | together were rows of emeralds, set closely, and glittering in the
2014 | brightness of the sun. The window panes were of green glass; even the
2015 | sky above the City had a green tint, and the rays of the sun were
2016 | green.
2017 |
2018 | There were many people—men, women, and children—walking about, and
2019 | these were all dressed in green clothes and had greenish skins. They
2020 | looked at Dorothy and her strangely assorted company with wondering
2021 | eyes, and the children all ran away and hid behind their mothers when
2022 | they saw the Lion; but no one spoke to them. Many shops stood in the
2023 | street, and Dorothy saw that everything in them was green. Green candy
2024 | and green pop corn were offered for sale, as well as green shoes, green
2025 | hats, and green clothes of all sorts. At one place a man was selling
2026 | green lemonade, and when the children bought it Dorothy could see that
2027 | they paid for it with green pennies.
2028 |
2029 | There seemed to be no horses nor animals of any kind; the men carried
2030 | things around in little green carts, which they pushed before them.
2031 | Everyone seemed happy and contented and prosperous.
2032 |
2033 | The Guardian of the Gates led them through the streets until they came
2034 | to a big building, exactly in the middle of the City, which was the
2035 | Palace of Oz, the Great Wizard. There was a soldier before the door,
2036 | dressed in a green uniform and wearing a long green beard.
2037 |
2038 | “Here are strangers,” said the Guardian of the Gates to him, “and they
2039 | demand to see the Great Oz.”
2040 |
2041 | “Step inside,” answered the soldier, “and I will carry your message to
2042 | him.”
2043 |
2044 | So they passed through the Palace Gates and were led into a big room
2045 | with a green carpet and lovely green furniture set with emeralds. The
2046 | soldier made them all wipe their feet upon a green mat before entering
2047 | this room, and when they were seated he said politely:
2048 |
2049 | “Please make yourselves comfortable while I go to the door of the
2050 | Throne Room and tell Oz you are here.”
2051 |
2052 | They had to wait a long time before the soldier returned. When, at
2053 | last, he came back, Dorothy asked:
2054 |
2055 | “Have you seen Oz?”
2056 |
2057 | “Oh, no,” returned the soldier; “I have never seen him. But I spoke to
2058 | him as he sat behind his screen and gave him your message. He said he
2059 | will grant you an audience, if you so desire; but each one of you must
2060 | enter his presence alone, and he will admit but one each day.
2061 | Therefore, as you must remain in the Palace for several days, I will
2062 | have you shown to rooms where you may rest in comfort after your
2063 | journey.”
2064 |
2065 | “Thank you,” replied the girl; “that is very kind of Oz.”
2066 |
2067 | The soldier now blew upon a green whistle, and at once a young girl,
2068 | dressed in a pretty green silk gown, entered the room. She had lovely
2069 | green hair and green eyes, and she bowed low before Dorothy as she
2070 | said, “Follow me and I will show you your room.”
2071 |
2072 | So Dorothy said good-bye to all her friends except Toto, and taking the
2073 | dog in her arms followed the green girl through seven passages and up
2074 | three flights of stairs until they came to a room at the front of the
2075 | Palace. It was the sweetest little room in the world, with a soft
2076 | comfortable bed that had sheets of green silk and a green velvet
2077 | counterpane. There was a tiny fountain in the middle of the room, that
2078 | shot a spray of green perfume into the air, to fall back into a
2079 | beautifully carved green marble basin. Beautiful green flowers stood in
2080 | the windows, and there was a shelf with a row of little green books.
2081 | When Dorothy had time to open these books she found them full of queer
2082 | green pictures that made her laugh, they were so funny.
2083 |
2084 | In a wardrobe were many green dresses, made of silk and satin and
2085 | velvet; and all of them fitted Dorothy exactly.
2086 |
2087 | “Make yourself perfectly at home,” said the green girl, “and if you
2088 | wish for anything ring the bell. Oz will send for you tomorrow
2089 | morning.”
2090 |
2091 | She left Dorothy alone and went back to the others. These she also led
2092 | to rooms, and each one of them found himself lodged in a very pleasant
2093 | part of the Palace. Of course this politeness was wasted on the
2094 | Scarecrow; for when he found himself alone in his room he stood
2095 | stupidly in one spot, just within the doorway, to wait till morning. It
2096 | would not rest him to lie down, and he could not close his eyes; so he
2097 | remained all night staring at a little spider which was weaving its web
2098 | in a corner of the room, just as if it were not one of the most
2099 | wonderful rooms in the world. The Tin Woodman lay down on his bed from
2100 | force of habit, for he remembered when he was made of flesh; but not
2101 | being able to sleep, he passed the night moving his joints up and down
2102 | to make sure they kept in good working order. The Lion would have
2103 | preferred a bed of dried leaves in the forest, and did not like being
2104 | shut up in a room; but he had too much sense to let this worry him, so
2105 | he sprang upon the bed and rolled himself up like a cat and purred
2106 | himself asleep in a minute.
2107 |
2108 | The next morning, after breakfast, the green maiden came to fetch
2109 | Dorothy, and she dressed her in one of the prettiest gowns, made of
2110 | green brocaded satin. Dorothy put on a green silk apron and tied a
2111 | green ribbon around Toto’s neck, and they started for the Throne Room
2112 | of the Great Oz.
2113 |
2114 | First they came to a great hall in which were many ladies and gentlemen
2115 | of the court, all dressed in rich costumes. These people had nothing to
2116 | do but talk to each other, but they always came to wait outside the
2117 | Throne Room every morning, although they were never permitted to see
2118 | Oz. As Dorothy entered they looked at her curiously, and one of them
2119 | whispered:
2120 |
2121 | “Are you really going to look upon the face of Oz the Terrible?”
2122 |
2123 | “Of course,” answered the girl, “if he will see me.”
2124 |
2125 | “Oh, he will see you,” said the soldier who had taken her message to
2126 | the Wizard, “although he does not like to have people ask to see him.
2127 | Indeed, at first he was angry and said I should send you back where you
2128 | came from. Then he asked me what you looked like, and when I mentioned
2129 | your silver shoes he was very much interested. At last I told him about
2130 | the mark upon your forehead, and he decided he would admit you to his
2131 | presence.”
2132 |
2133 | Just then a bell rang, and the green girl said to Dorothy, “That is the
2134 | signal. You must go into the Throne Room alone.”
2135 |
2136 | She opened a little door and Dorothy walked boldly through and found
2137 | herself in a wonderful place. It was a big, round room with a high
2138 | arched roof, and the walls and ceiling and floor were covered with
2139 | large emeralds set closely together. In the center of the roof was a
2140 | great light, as bright as the sun, which made the emeralds sparkle in a
2141 | wonderful manner.
2142 |
2143 | But what interested Dorothy most was the big throne of green marble
2144 | that stood in the middle of the room. It was shaped like a chair and
2145 | sparkled with gems, as did everything else. In the center of the chair
2146 | was an enormous Head, without a body to support it or any arms or legs
2147 | whatever. There was no hair upon this head, but it had eyes and a nose
2148 | and mouth, and was much bigger than the head of the biggest giant.
2149 |
2150 | As Dorothy gazed upon this in wonder and fear, the eyes turned slowly
2151 | and looked at her sharply and steadily. Then the mouth moved, and
2152 | Dorothy heard a voice say:
2153 |
2154 | “I am Oz, the Great and Terrible. Who are you, and why do you seek me?”
2155 |
2156 | It was not such an awful voice as she had expected to come from the big
2157 | Head; so she took courage and answered:
2158 |
2159 | “I am Dorothy, the Small and Meek. I have come to you for help.”
2160 |
2161 | The eyes looked at her thoughtfully for a full minute. Then said the
2162 | voice:
2163 |
2164 | “Where did you get the silver shoes?”
2165 |
2166 | “I got them from the Wicked Witch of the East, when my house fell on
2167 | her and killed her,” she replied.
2168 |
2169 | “Where did you get the mark upon your forehead?” continued the voice.
2170 |
2171 | “That is where the Good Witch of the North kissed me when she bade me
2172 | good-bye and sent me to you,” said the girl.
2173 |
2174 | Again the eyes looked at her sharply, and they saw she was telling the
2175 | truth. Then Oz asked, “What do you wish me to do?”
2176 |
2177 | “Send me back to Kansas, where my Aunt Em and Uncle Henry are,” she
2178 | answered earnestly. “I don’t like your country, although it is so
2179 | beautiful. And I am sure Aunt Em will be dreadfully worried over my
2180 | being away so long.”
2181 |
2182 | The eyes winked three times, and then they turned up to the ceiling and
2183 | down to the floor and rolled around so queerly that they seemed to see
2184 | every part of the room. And at last they looked at Dorothy again.
2185 |
2186 | “Why should I do this for you?” asked Oz.
2187 |
2188 | “Because you are strong and I am weak; because you are a Great Wizard
2189 | and I am only a little girl.”
2190 |
2191 | “But you were strong enough to kill the Wicked Witch of the East,” said
2192 | Oz.
2193 |
2194 | “That just happened,” returned Dorothy simply; “I could not help it.”
2195 |
2196 | “Well,” said the Head, “I will give you my answer. You have no right to
2197 | expect me to send you back to Kansas unless you do something for me in
2198 | return. In this country everyone must pay for everything he gets. If
2199 | you wish me to use my magic power to send you home again you must do
2200 | something for me first. Help me and I will help you.”
2201 |
2202 | “What must I do?” asked the girl.
2203 |
2204 | “Kill the Wicked Witch of the West,” answered Oz.
2205 |
2206 | “But I cannot!” exclaimed Dorothy, greatly surprised.
2207 |
2208 | “You killed the Witch of the East and you wear the silver shoes, which
2209 | bear a powerful charm. There is now but one Wicked Witch left in all
2210 | this land, and when you can tell me she is dead I will send you back to
2211 | Kansas—but not before.”
2212 |
2213 | The little girl began to weep, she was so much disappointed; and the
2214 | eyes winked again and looked upon her anxiously, as if the Great Oz
2215 | felt that she could help him if she would.
2216 |
2217 | “I never killed anything, willingly,” she sobbed. “Even if I wanted to,
2218 | how could I kill the Wicked Witch? If you, who are Great and Terrible,
2219 | cannot kill her yourself, how do you expect me to do it?”
2220 |
2221 | “I do not know,” said the Head; “but that is my answer, and until the
2222 | Wicked Witch dies you will not see your uncle and aunt again. Remember
2223 | that the Witch is Wicked—tremendously Wicked—and ought to be killed.
2224 | Now go, and do not ask to see me again until you have done your task.”
2225 |
2226 | Sorrowfully Dorothy left the Throne Room and went back where the Lion
2227 | and the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman were waiting to hear what Oz had
2228 | said to her. “There is no hope for me,” she said sadly, “for Oz will
2229 | not send me home until I have killed the Wicked Witch of the West; and
2230 | that I can never do.”
2231 |
2232 | Her friends were sorry, but could do nothing to help her; so Dorothy
2233 | went to her own room and lay down on the bed and cried herself to
2234 | sleep.
2235 |
2236 | The next morning the soldier with the green whiskers came to the
2237 | Scarecrow and said:
2238 |
2239 | “Come with me, for Oz has sent for you.”
2240 |
2241 | So the Scarecrow followed him and was admitted into the great Throne
2242 | Room, where he saw, sitting in the emerald throne, a most lovely Lady.
2243 | She was dressed in green silk gauze and wore upon her flowing green
2244 | locks a crown of jewels. Growing from her shoulders were wings,
2245 | gorgeous in color and so light that they fluttered if the slightest
2246 | breath of air reached them.
2247 |
2248 | When the Scarecrow had bowed, as prettily as his straw stuffing would
2249 | let him, before this beautiful creature, she looked upon him sweetly,
2250 | and said:
2251 |
2252 | “I am Oz, the Great and Terrible. Who are you, and why do you seek me?”
2253 |
2254 | Now the Scarecrow, who had expected to see the great Head Dorothy had
2255 | told him of, was much astonished; but he answered her bravely.
2256 |
2257 | “I am only a Scarecrow, stuffed with straw. Therefore I have no brains,
2258 | and I come to you praying that you will put brains in my head instead
2259 | of straw, so that I may become as much a man as any other in your
2260 | dominions.”
2261 |
2262 | “Why should I do this for you?” asked the Lady.
2263 |
2264 | “Because you are wise and powerful, and no one else can help me,”
2265 | answered the Scarecrow.
2266 |
2267 | “I never grant favors without some return,” said Oz; “but this much I
2268 | will promise. If you will kill for me the Wicked Witch of the West, I
2269 | will bestow upon you a great many brains, and such good brains that you
2270 | will be the wisest man in all the Land of Oz.”
2271 |
2272 | “I thought you asked Dorothy to kill the Witch,” said the Scarecrow, in
2273 | surprise.
2274 |
2275 | “So I did. I don’t care who kills her. But until she is dead I will not
2276 | grant your wish. Now go, and do not seek me again until you have earned
2277 | the brains you so greatly desire.”
2278 |
2279 | The Scarecrow went sorrowfully back to his friends and told them what
2280 | Oz had said; and Dorothy was surprised to find that the Great Wizard
2281 | was not a Head, as she had seen him, but a lovely Lady.
2282 |
2283 | “All the same,” said the Scarecrow, “she needs a heart as much as the
2284 | Tin Woodman.”
2285 |
2286 | On the next morning the soldier with the green whiskers came to the Tin
2287 | Woodman and said:
2288 |
2289 | “Oz has sent for you. Follow me.”
2290 |
2291 | So the Tin Woodman followed him and came to the great Throne Room. He
2292 | did not know whether he would find Oz a lovely Lady or a Head, but he
2293 | hoped it would be the lovely Lady. “For,” he said to himself, “if it is
2294 | the head, I am sure I shall not be given a heart, since a head has no
2295 | heart of its own and therefore cannot feel for me. But if it is the
2296 | lovely Lady I shall beg hard for a heart, for all ladies are themselves
2297 | said to be kindly hearted.”
2298 |
2299 | But when the Woodman entered the great Throne Room he saw neither the
2300 | Head nor the Lady, for Oz had taken the shape of a most terrible Beast.
2301 | It was nearly as big as an elephant, and the green throne seemed hardly
2302 | strong enough to hold its weight. The Beast had a head like that of a
2303 | rhinoceros, only there were five eyes in its face. There were five long
2304 | arms growing out of its body, and it also had five long, slim legs.
2305 | Thick, woolly hair covered every part of it, and a more
2306 | dreadful-looking monster could not be imagined. It was fortunate the
2307 | Tin Woodman had no heart at that moment, for it would have beat loud
2308 | and fast from terror. But being only tin, the Woodman was not at all
2309 | afraid, although he was much disappointed.
2310 |
2311 | “I am Oz, the Great and Terrible,” spoke the Beast, in a voice that was
2312 | one great roar. “Who are you, and why do you seek me?”
2313 |
2314 | “I am a Woodman, and made of tin. Therefore I have no heart, and cannot
2315 | love. I pray you to give me a heart that I may be as other men are.”
2316 |
2317 | “Why should I do this?” demanded the Beast.
2318 |
2319 | “Because I ask it, and you alone can grant my request,” answered the
2320 | Woodman.
2321 |
2322 | Oz gave a low growl at this, but said, gruffly: “If you indeed desire a
2323 | heart, you must earn it.”
2324 |
2325 | “How?” asked the Woodman.
2326 |
2327 | “Help Dorothy to kill the Wicked Witch of the West,” replied the Beast.
2328 | “When the Witch is dead, come to me, and I will then give you the
2329 | biggest and kindest and most loving heart in all the Land of Oz.”
2330 |
2331 | So the Tin Woodman was forced to return sorrowfully to his friends and
2332 | tell them of the terrible Beast he had seen. They all wondered greatly
2333 | at the many forms the Great Wizard could take upon himself, and the
2334 | Lion said:
2335 |
2336 | “If he is a Beast when I go to see him, I shall roar my loudest, and so
2337 | frighten him that he will grant all I ask. And if he is the lovely
2338 | Lady, I shall pretend to spring upon her, and so compel her to do my
2339 | bidding. And if he is the great Head, he will be at my mercy; for I
2340 | will roll this head all about the room until he promises to give us
2341 | what we desire. So be of good cheer, my friends, for all will yet be
2342 | well.”
2343 |
2344 | The next morning the soldier with the green whiskers led the Lion to
2345 | the great Throne Room and bade him enter the presence of Oz.
2346 |
2347 | The Lion at once passed through the door, and glancing around saw, to
2348 | his surprise, that before the throne was a Ball of Fire, so fierce and
2349 | glowing he could scarcely bear to gaze upon it. His first thought was
2350 | that Oz had by accident caught on fire and was burning up; but when he
2351 | tried to go nearer, the heat was so intense that it singed his
2352 | whiskers, and he crept back tremblingly to a spot nearer the door.
2353 |
2354 | Then a low, quiet voice came from the Ball of Fire, and these were the
2355 | words it spoke:
2356 |
2357 | “I am Oz, the Great and Terrible. Who are you, and why do you seek me?”
2358 |
2359 | And the Lion answered, “I am a Cowardly Lion, afraid of everything. I
2360 | came to you to beg that you give me courage, so that in reality I may
2361 | become the King of Beasts, as men call me.”
2362 |
2363 | “Why should I give you courage?” demanded Oz.
2364 |
2365 | “Because of all Wizards you are the greatest, and alone have power to
2366 | grant my request,” answered the Lion.
2367 |
2368 | The Ball of Fire burned fiercely for a time, and the voice said, “Bring
2369 | me proof that the Wicked Witch is dead, and that moment I will give you
2370 | courage. But as long as the Witch lives, you must remain a coward.”
2371 |
2372 | The Lion was angry at this speech, but could say nothing in reply, and
2373 | while he stood silently gazing at the Ball of Fire it became so
2374 | furiously hot that he turned tail and rushed from the room. He was glad
2375 | to find his friends waiting for him, and told them of his terrible
2376 | interview with the Wizard.
2377 |
2378 | “What shall we do now?” asked Dorothy sadly.
2379 |
2380 | “There is only one thing we can do,” returned the Lion, “and that is to
2381 | go to the land of the Winkies, seek out the Wicked Witch, and destroy
2382 | her.”
2383 |
2384 | “But suppose we cannot?” said the girl.
2385 |
2386 | “Then I shall never have courage,” declared the Lion.
2387 |
2388 | “And I shall never have brains,” added the Scarecrow.
2389 |
2390 | “And I shall never have a heart,” spoke the Tin Woodman.
2391 |
2392 | “And I shall never see Aunt Em and Uncle Henry,” said Dorothy,
2393 | beginning to cry.
2394 |
2395 | “Be careful!” cried the green girl. “The tears will fall on your green
2396 | silk gown and spot it.”
2397 |
2398 | So Dorothy dried her eyes and said, “I suppose we must try it; but I am
2399 | sure I do not want to kill anybody, even to see Aunt Em again.”
2400 |
2401 | “I will go with you; but I’m too much of a coward to kill the Witch,”
2402 | said the Lion.
2403 |
2404 | “I will go too,” declared the Scarecrow; “but I shall not be of much
2405 | help to you, I am such a fool.”
2406 |
2407 | “I haven’t the heart to harm even a Witch,” remarked the Tin Woodman;
2408 | “but if you go I certainly shall go with you.”
2409 |
2410 | Therefore it was decided to start upon their journey the next morning,
2411 | and the Woodman sharpened his axe on a green grindstone and had all his
2412 | joints properly oiled. The Scarecrow stuffed himself with fresh straw
2413 | and Dorothy put new paint on his eyes that he might see better. The
2414 | green girl, who was very kind to them, filled Dorothy’s basket with
2415 | good things to eat, and fastened a little bell around Toto’s neck with
2416 | a green ribbon.
2417 |
2418 | They went to bed quite early and slept soundly until daylight, when
2419 | they were awakened by the crowing of a green cock that lived in the
2420 | back yard of the Palace, and the cackling of a hen that had laid a
2421 | green egg.
2422 |
2423 |
2424 |
2425 |
2426 | Chapter XII
2427 | The Search for the Wicked Witch
2428 |
2429 |
2430 | The soldier with the green whiskers led them through the streets of the
2431 | Emerald City until they reached the room where the Guardian of the
2432 | Gates lived. This officer unlocked their spectacles to put them back in
2433 | his great box, and then he politely opened the gate for our friends.
2434 |
2435 | “Which road leads to the Wicked Witch of the West?” asked Dorothy.
2436 |
2437 | “There is no road,” answered the Guardian of the Gates. “No one ever
2438 | wishes to go that way.”
2439 |
2440 | “How, then, are we to find her?” inquired the girl.
2441 |
2442 | “That will be easy,” replied the man, “for when she knows you are in
2443 | the country of the Winkies she will find you, and make you all her
2444 | slaves.”
2445 |
2446 | “Perhaps not,” said the Scarecrow, “for we mean to destroy her.”
2447 |
2448 | “Oh, that is different,” said the Guardian of the Gates. “No one has
2449 | ever destroyed her before, so I naturally thought she would make slaves
2450 | of you, as she has of the rest. But take care; for she is wicked and
2451 | fierce, and may not allow you to destroy her. Keep to the West, where
2452 | the sun sets, and you cannot fail to find her.”
2453 |
2454 | They thanked him and bade him good-bye, and turned toward the West,
2455 | walking over fields of soft grass dotted here and there with daisies
2456 | and buttercups. Dorothy still wore the pretty silk dress she had put on
2457 | in the palace, but now, to her surprise, she found it was no longer
2458 | green, but pure white. The ribbon around Toto’s neck had also lost its
2459 | green color and was as white as Dorothy’s dress.
2460 |
2461 | The Emerald City was soon left far behind. As they advanced the ground
2462 | became rougher and hillier, for there were no farms nor houses in this
2463 | country of the West, and the ground was untilled.
2464 |
2465 | In the afternoon the sun shone hot in their faces, for there were no
2466 | trees to offer them shade; so that before night Dorothy and Toto and
2467 | the Lion were tired, and lay down upon the grass and fell asleep, with
2468 | the Woodman and the Scarecrow keeping watch.
2469 |
2470 | Now the Wicked Witch of the West had but one eye, yet that was as
2471 | powerful as a telescope, and could see everywhere. So, as she sat in
2472 | the door of her castle, she happened to look around and saw Dorothy
2473 | lying asleep, with her friends all about her. They were a long distance
2474 | off, but the Wicked Witch was angry to find them in her country; so she
2475 | blew upon a silver whistle that hung around her neck.
2476 |
2477 | At once there came running to her from all directions a pack of great
2478 | wolves. They had long legs and fierce eyes and sharp teeth.
2479 |
2480 | “Go to those people,” said the Witch, “and tear them to pieces.”
2481 |
2482 | “Are you not going to make them your slaves?” asked the leader of the
2483 | wolves.
2484 |
2485 | “No,” she answered, “one is of tin, and one of straw; one is a girl and
2486 | another a Lion. None of them is fit to work, so you may tear them into
2487 | small pieces.”
2488 |
2489 | “Very well,” said the wolf, and he dashed away at full speed, followed
2490 | by the others.
2491 |
2492 | It was lucky the Scarecrow and the Woodman were wide awake and heard
2493 | the wolves coming.
2494 |
2495 | “This is my fight,” said the Woodman, “so get behind me and I will meet
2496 | them as they come.”
2497 |
2498 | He seized his axe, which he had made very sharp, and as the leader of
2499 | the wolves came on the Tin Woodman swung his arm and chopped the wolf’s
2500 | head from its body, so that it immediately died. As soon as he could
2501 | raise his axe another wolf came up, and he also fell under the sharp
2502 | edge of the Tin Woodman’s weapon. There were forty wolves, and forty
2503 | times a wolf was killed, so that at last they all lay dead in a heap
2504 | before the Woodman.
2505 |
2506 | Then he put down his axe and sat beside the Scarecrow, who said, “It
2507 | was a good fight, friend.”
2508 |
2509 | They waited until Dorothy awoke the next morning. The little girl was
2510 | quite frightened when she saw the great pile of shaggy wolves, but the
2511 | Tin Woodman told her all. She thanked him for saving them and sat down
2512 | to breakfast, after which they started again upon their journey.
2513 |
2514 | Now this same morning the Wicked Witch came to the door of her castle
2515 | and looked out with her one eye that could see far off. She saw all her
2516 | wolves lying dead, and the strangers still traveling through her
2517 | country. This made her angrier than before, and she blew her silver
2518 | whistle twice.
2519 |
2520 | Straightway a great flock of wild crows came flying toward her, enough
2521 | to darken the sky.
2522 |
2523 | And the Wicked Witch said to the King Crow, “Fly at once to the
2524 | strangers; peck out their eyes and tear them to pieces.”
2525 |
2526 | The wild crows flew in one great flock toward Dorothy and her
2527 | companions. When the little girl saw them coming she was afraid.
2528 |
2529 | But the Scarecrow said, “This is my battle, so lie down beside me and
2530 | you will not be harmed.”
2531 |
2532 | So they all lay upon the ground except the Scarecrow, and he stood up
2533 | and stretched out his arms. And when the crows saw him they were
2534 | frightened, as these birds always are by scarecrows, and did not dare
2535 | to come any nearer. But the King Crow said:
2536 |
2537 | “It is only a stuffed man. I will peck his eyes out.”
2538 |
2539 | The King Crow flew at the Scarecrow, who caught it by the head and
2540 | twisted its neck until it died. And then another crow flew at him, and
2541 | the Scarecrow twisted its neck also. There were forty crows, and forty
2542 | times the Scarecrow twisted a neck, until at last all were lying dead
2543 | beside him. Then he called to his companions to rise, and again they
2544 | went upon their journey.
2545 |
2546 | When the Wicked Witch looked out again and saw all her crows lying in a
2547 | heap, she got into a terrible rage, and blew three times upon her
2548 | silver whistle.
2549 |
2550 | Forthwith there was heard a great buzzing in the air, and a swarm of
2551 | black bees came flying toward her.
2552 |
2553 | “Go to the strangers and sting them to death!” commanded the Witch, and
2554 | the bees turned and flew rapidly until they came to where Dorothy and
2555 | her friends were walking. But the Woodman had seen them coming, and the
2556 | Scarecrow had decided what to do.
2557 |
2558 | “Take out my straw and scatter it over the little girl and the dog and
2559 | the Lion,” he said to the Woodman, “and the bees cannot sting them.”
2560 | This the Woodman did, and as Dorothy lay close beside the Lion and held
2561 | Toto in her arms, the straw covered them entirely.
2562 |
2563 | The bees came and found no one but the Woodman to sting, so they flew
2564 | at him and broke off all their stings against the tin, without hurting
2565 | the Woodman at all. And as bees cannot live when their stings are
2566 | broken that was the end of the black bees, and they lay scattered thick
2567 | about the Woodman, like little heaps of fine coal.
2568 |
2569 | Then Dorothy and the Lion got up, and the girl helped the Tin Woodman
2570 | put the straw back into the Scarecrow again, until he was as good as
2571 | ever. So they started upon their journey once more.
2572 |
2573 | The Wicked Witch was so angry when she saw her black bees in little
2574 | heaps like fine coal that she stamped her foot and tore her hair and
2575 | gnashed her teeth. And then she called a dozen of her slaves, who were
2576 | the Winkies, and gave them sharp spears, telling them to go to the
2577 | strangers and destroy them.
2578 |
2579 | The Winkies were not a brave people, but they had to do as they were
2580 | told. So they marched away until they came near to Dorothy. Then the
2581 | Lion gave a great roar and sprang towards them, and the poor Winkies
2582 | were so frightened that they ran back as fast as they could.
2583 |
2584 | When they returned to the castle the Wicked Witch beat them well with a
2585 | strap, and sent them back to their work, after which she sat down to
2586 | think what she should do next. She could not understand how all her
2587 | plans to destroy these strangers had failed; but she was a powerful
2588 | Witch, as well as a wicked one, and she soon made up her mind how to
2589 | act.
2590 |
2591 | There was, in her cupboard, a Golden Cap, with a circle of diamonds and
2592 | rubies running round it. This Golden Cap had a charm. Whoever owned it
2593 | could call three times upon the Winged Monkeys, who would obey any
2594 | order they were given. But no person could command these strange
2595 | creatures more than three times. Twice already the Wicked Witch had
2596 | used the charm of the Cap. Once was when she had made the Winkies her
2597 | slaves, and set herself to rule over their country. The Winged Monkeys
2598 | had helped her do this. The second time was when she had fought against
2599 | the Great Oz himself, and driven him out of the land of the West. The
2600 | Winged Monkeys had also helped her in doing this. Only once more could
2601 | she use this Golden Cap, for which reason she did not like to do so
2602 | until all her other powers were exhausted. But now that her fierce
2603 | wolves and her wild crows and her stinging bees were gone, and her
2604 | slaves had been scared away by the Cowardly Lion, she saw there was
2605 | only one way left to destroy Dorothy and her friends.
2606 |
2607 | So the Wicked Witch took the Golden Cap from her cupboard and placed it
2608 | upon her head. Then she stood upon her left foot and said slowly:
2609 |
2610 | “Ep-pe, pep-pe, kak-ke!”
2611 |
2612 | Next she stood upon her right foot and said:
2613 |
2614 | “Hil-lo, hol-lo, hel-lo!”
2615 |
2616 | After this she stood upon both feet and cried in a loud voice:
2617 |
2618 | “Ziz-zy, zuz-zy, zik!”
2619 |
2620 | Now the charm began to work. The sky was darkened, and a low rumbling
2621 | sound was heard in the air. There was a rushing of many wings, a great
2622 | chattering and laughing, and the sun came out of the dark sky to show
2623 | the Wicked Witch surrounded by a crowd of monkeys, each with a pair of
2624 | immense and powerful wings on his shoulders.
2625 |
2626 | One, much bigger than the others, seemed to be their leader. He flew
2627 | close to the Witch and said, “You have called us for the third and last
2628 | time. What do you command?”
2629 |
2630 | “Go to the strangers who are within my land and destroy them all except
2631 | the Lion,” said the Wicked Witch. “Bring that beast to me, for I have a
2632 | mind to harness him like a horse, and make him work.”
2633 |
2634 | “Your commands shall be obeyed,” said the leader. Then, with a great
2635 | deal of chattering and noise, the Winged Monkeys flew away to the place
2636 | where Dorothy and her friends were walking.
2637 |
2638 | Some of the Monkeys seized the Tin Woodman and carried him through the
2639 | air until they were over a country thickly covered with sharp rocks.
2640 | Here they dropped the poor Woodman, who fell a great distance to the
2641 | rocks, where he lay so battered and dented that he could neither move
2642 | nor groan.
2643 |
2644 | Others of the Monkeys caught the Scarecrow, and with their long fingers
2645 | pulled all of the straw out of his clothes and head. They made his hat
2646 | and boots and clothes into a small bundle and threw it into the top
2647 | branches of a tall tree.
2648 |
2649 | The remaining Monkeys threw pieces of stout rope around the Lion and
2650 | wound many coils about his body and head and legs, until he was unable
2651 | to bite or scratch or struggle in any way. Then they lifted him up and
2652 | flew away with him to the Witch’s castle, where he was placed in a
2653 | small yard with a high iron fence around it, so that he could not
2654 | escape.
2655 |
2656 | But Dorothy they did not harm at all. She stood, with Toto in her arms,
2657 | watching the sad fate of her comrades and thinking it would soon be her
2658 | turn. The leader of the Winged Monkeys flew up to her, his long, hairy
2659 | arms stretched out and his ugly face grinning terribly; but he saw the
2660 | mark of the Good Witch’s kiss upon her forehead and stopped short,
2661 | motioning the others not to touch her.
2662 |
2663 | “We dare not harm this little girl,” he said to them, “for she is
2664 | protected by the Power of Good, and that is greater than the Power of
2665 | Evil. All we can do is to carry her to the castle of the Wicked Witch
2666 | and leave her there.”
2667 |
2668 | So, carefully and gently, they lifted Dorothy in their arms and carried
2669 | her swiftly through the air until they came to the castle, where they
2670 | set her down upon the front doorstep. Then the leader said to the
2671 | Witch:
2672 |
2673 | “We have obeyed you as far as we were able. The Tin Woodman and the
2674 | Scarecrow are destroyed, and the Lion is tied up in your yard. The
2675 | little girl we dare not harm, nor the dog she carries in her arms. Your
2676 | power over our band is now ended, and you will never see us again.”
2677 |
2678 | Then all the Winged Monkeys, with much laughing and chattering and
2679 | noise, flew into the air and were soon out of sight.
2680 |
2681 | The Wicked Witch was both surprised and worried when she saw the mark
2682 | on Dorothy’s forehead, for she knew well that neither the Winged
2683 | Monkeys nor she, herself, dare hurt the girl in any way. She looked
2684 | down at Dorothy’s feet, and seeing the Silver Shoes, began to tremble
2685 | with fear, for she knew what a powerful charm belonged to them. At
2686 | first the Witch was tempted to run away from Dorothy; but she happened
2687 | to look into the child’s eyes and saw how simple the soul behind them
2688 | was, and that the little girl did not know of the wonderful power the
2689 | Silver Shoes gave her. So the Wicked Witch laughed to herself, and
2690 | thought, “I can still make her my slave, for she does not know how to
2691 | use her power.” Then she said to Dorothy, harshly and severely:
2692 |
2693 | “Come with me; and see that you mind everything I tell you, for if you
2694 | do not I will make an end of you, as I did of the Tin Woodman and the
2695 | Scarecrow.”
2696 |
2697 | Dorothy followed her through many of the beautiful rooms in her castle
2698 | until they came to the kitchen, where the Witch bade her clean the pots
2699 | and kettles and sweep the floor and keep the fire fed with wood.
2700 |
2701 | Dorothy went to work meekly, with her mind made up to work as hard as
2702 | she could; for she was glad the Wicked Witch had decided not to kill
2703 | her.
2704 |
2705 | With Dorothy hard at work, the Witch thought she would go into the
2706 | courtyard and harness the Cowardly Lion like a horse; it would amuse
2707 | her, she was sure, to make him draw her chariot whenever she wished to
2708 | go to drive. But as she opened the gate the Lion gave a loud roar and
2709 | bounded at her so fiercely that the Witch was afraid, and ran out and
2710 | shut the gate again.
2711 |
2712 | “If I cannot harness you,” said the Witch to the Lion, speaking through
2713 | the bars of the gate, “I can starve you. You shall have nothing to eat
2714 | until you do as I wish.”
2715 |
2716 | So after that she took no food to the imprisoned Lion; but every day
2717 | she came to the gate at noon and asked, “Are you ready to be harnessed
2718 | like a horse?”
2719 |
2720 | And the Lion would answer, “No. If you come in this yard, I will bite
2721 | you.”
2722 |
2723 | The reason the Lion did not have to do as the Witch wished was that
2724 | every night, while the woman was asleep, Dorothy carried him food from
2725 | the cupboard. After he had eaten he would lie down on his bed of straw,
2726 | and Dorothy would lie beside him and put her head on his soft, shaggy
2727 | mane, while they talked of their troubles and tried to plan some way to
2728 | escape. But they could find no way to get out of the castle, for it was
2729 | constantly guarded by the yellow Winkies, who were the slaves of the
2730 | Wicked Witch and too afraid of her not to do as she told them.
2731 |
2732 | The girl had to work hard during the day, and often the Witch
2733 | threatened to beat her with the same old umbrella she always carried in
2734 | her hand. But, in truth, she did not dare to strike Dorothy, because of
2735 | the mark upon her forehead. The child did not know this, and was full
2736 | of fear for herself and Toto. Once the Witch struck Toto a blow with
2737 | her umbrella and the brave little dog flew at her and bit her leg in
2738 | return. The Witch did not bleed where she was bitten, for she was so
2739 | wicked that the blood in her had dried up many years before.
2740 |
2741 | Dorothy’s life became very sad as she grew to understand that it would
2742 | be harder than ever to get back to Kansas and Aunt Em again. Sometimes
2743 | she would cry bitterly for hours, with Toto sitting at her feet and
2744 | looking into her face, whining dismally to show how sorry he was for
2745 | his little mistress. Toto did not really care whether he was in Kansas
2746 | or the Land of Oz so long as Dorothy was with him; but he knew the
2747 | little girl was unhappy, and that made him unhappy too.
2748 |
2749 | Now the Wicked Witch had a great longing to have for her own the Silver
2750 | Shoes which the girl always wore. Her bees and her crows and her wolves
2751 | were lying in heaps and drying up, and she had used up all the power of
2752 | the Golden Cap; but if she could only get hold of the Silver Shoes,
2753 | they would give her more power than all the other things she had lost.
2754 | She watched Dorothy carefully, to see if she ever took off her shoes,
2755 | thinking she might steal them. But the child was so proud of her pretty
2756 | shoes that she never took them off except at night and when she took
2757 | her bath. The Witch was too much afraid of the dark to dare go in
2758 | Dorothy’s room at night to take the shoes, and her dread of water was
2759 | greater than her fear of the dark, so she never came near when Dorothy
2760 | was bathing. Indeed, the old Witch never touched water, nor ever let
2761 | water touch her in any way.
2762 |
2763 | But the wicked creature was very cunning, and she finally thought of a
2764 | trick that would give her what she wanted. She placed a bar of iron in
2765 | the middle of the kitchen floor, and then by her magic arts made the
2766 | iron invisible to human eyes. So that when Dorothy walked across the
2767 | floor she stumbled over the bar, not being able to see it, and fell at
2768 | full length. She was not much hurt, but in her fall one of the Silver
2769 | Shoes came off; and before she could reach it, the Witch had snatched
2770 | it away and put it on her own skinny foot.
2771 |
2772 | The wicked woman was greatly pleased with the success of her trick, for
2773 | as long as she had one of the shoes she owned half the power of their
2774 | charm, and Dorothy could not use it against her, even had she known how
2775 | to do so.
2776 |
2777 | The little girl, seeing she had lost one of her pretty shoes, grew
2778 | angry, and said to the Witch, “Give me back my shoe!”
2779 |
2780 | “I will not,” retorted the Witch, “for it is now my shoe, and not
2781 | yours.”
2782 |
2783 | “You are a wicked creature!” cried Dorothy. “You have no right to take
2784 | my shoe from me.”
2785 |
2786 | “I shall keep it, just the same,” said the Witch, laughing at her, “and
2787 | someday I shall get the other one from you, too.”
2788 |
2789 | This made Dorothy so very angry that she picked up the bucket of water
2790 | that stood near and dashed it over the Witch, wetting her from head to
2791 | foot.
2792 |
2793 | Instantly the wicked woman gave a loud cry of fear, and then, as
2794 | Dorothy looked at her in wonder, the Witch began to shrink and fall
2795 | away.
2796 |
2797 | “See what you have done!” she screamed. “In a minute I shall melt
2798 | away.”
2799 |
2800 | “I’m very sorry, indeed,” said Dorothy, who was truly frightened to see
2801 | the Witch actually melting away like brown sugar before her very eyes.
2802 |
2803 | “Didn’t you know water would be the end of me?” asked the Witch, in a
2804 | wailing, despairing voice.
2805 |
2806 | “Of course not,” answered Dorothy. “How should I?”
2807 |
2808 | “Well, in a few minutes I shall be all melted, and you will have the
2809 | castle to yourself. I have been wicked in my day, but I never thought a
2810 | little girl like you would ever be able to melt me and end my wicked
2811 | deeds. Look out—here I go!”
2812 |
2813 | With these words the Witch fell down in a brown, melted, shapeless mass
2814 | and began to spread over the clean boards of the kitchen floor. Seeing
2815 | that she had really melted away to nothing, Dorothy drew another bucket
2816 | of water and threw it over the mess. She then swept it all out the
2817 | door. After picking out the silver shoe, which was all that was left of
2818 | the old woman, she cleaned and dried it with a cloth, and put it on her
2819 | foot again. Then, being at last free to do as she chose, she ran out to
2820 | the courtyard to tell the Lion that the Wicked Witch of the West had
2821 | come to an end, and that they were no longer prisoners in a strange
2822 | land.
2823 |
2824 |
2825 |
2826 |
2827 | Chapter XIII
2828 | The Rescue
2829 |
2830 |
2831 | The Cowardly Lion was much pleased to hear that the Wicked Witch had
2832 | been melted by a bucket of water, and Dorothy at once unlocked the gate
2833 | of his prison and set him free. They went in together to the castle,
2834 | where Dorothy’s first act was to call all the Winkies together and tell
2835 | them that they were no longer slaves.
2836 |
2837 | There was great rejoicing among the yellow Winkies, for they had been
2838 | made to work hard during many years for the Wicked Witch, who had
2839 | always treated them with great cruelty. They kept this day as a
2840 | holiday, then and ever after, and spent the time in feasting and
2841 | dancing.
2842 |
2843 | “If our friends, the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman, were only with us,”
2844 | said the Lion, “I should be quite happy.”
2845 |
2846 | “Don’t you suppose we could rescue them?” asked the girl anxiously.
2847 |
2848 | “We can try,” answered the Lion.
2849 |
2850 | So they called the yellow Winkies and asked them if they would help to
2851 | rescue their friends, and the Winkies said that they would be delighted
2852 | to do all in their power for Dorothy, who had set them free from
2853 | bondage. So she chose a number of the Winkies who looked as if they
2854 | knew the most, and they all started away. They traveled that day and
2855 | part of the next until they came to the rocky plain where the Tin
2856 | Woodman lay, all battered and bent. His axe was near him, but the blade
2857 | was rusted and the handle broken off short.
2858 |
2859 | The Winkies lifted him tenderly in their arms, and carried him back to
2860 | the Yellow Castle again, Dorothy shedding a few tears by the way at the
2861 | sad plight of her old friend, and the Lion looking sober and sorry.
2862 | When they reached the castle Dorothy said to the Winkies:
2863 |
2864 | “Are any of your people tinsmiths?”
2865 |
2866 | “Oh, yes. Some of us are very good tinsmiths,” they told her.
2867 |
2868 | “Then bring them to me,” she said. And when the tinsmiths came,
2869 | bringing with them all their tools in baskets, she inquired, “Can you
2870 | straighten out those dents in the Tin Woodman, and bend him back into
2871 | shape again, and solder him together where he is broken?”
2872 |
2873 | The tinsmiths looked the Woodman over carefully and then answered that
2874 | they thought they could mend him so he would be as good as ever. So
2875 | they set to work in one of the big yellow rooms of the castle and
2876 | worked for three days and four nights, hammering and twisting and
2877 | bending and soldering and polishing and pounding at the legs and body
2878 | and head of the Tin Woodman, until at last he was straightened out into
2879 | his old form, and his joints worked as well as ever. To be sure, there
2880 | were several patches on him, but the tinsmiths did a good job, and as
2881 | the Woodman was not a vain man he did not mind the patches at all.
2882 |
2883 | When, at last, he walked into Dorothy’s room and thanked her for
2884 | rescuing him, he was so pleased that he wept tears of joy, and Dorothy
2885 | had to wipe every tear carefully from his face with her apron, so his
2886 | joints would not be rusted. At the same time her own tears fell thick
2887 | and fast at the joy of meeting her old friend again, and these tears
2888 | did not need to be wiped away. As for the Lion, he wiped his eyes so
2889 | often with the tip of his tail that it became quite wet, and he was
2890 | obliged to go out into the courtyard and hold it in the sun till it
2891 | dried.
2892 |
2893 | “If we only had the Scarecrow with us again,” said the Tin Woodman,
2894 | when Dorothy had finished telling him everything that had happened, “I
2895 | should be quite happy.”
2896 |
2897 | “We must try to find him,” said the girl.
2898 |
2899 | So she called the Winkies to help her, and they walked all that day and
2900 | part of the next until they came to the tall tree in the branches of
2901 | which the Winged Monkeys had tossed the Scarecrow’s clothes.
2902 |
2903 | It was a very tall tree, and the trunk was so smooth that no one could
2904 | climb it; but the Woodman said at once, “I’ll chop it down, and then we
2905 | can get the Scarecrow’s clothes.”
2906 |
2907 | Now while the tinsmiths had been at work mending the Woodman himself,
2908 | another of the Winkies, who was a goldsmith, had made an axe-handle of
2909 | solid gold and fitted it to the Woodman’s axe, instead of the old
2910 | broken handle. Others polished the blade until all the rust was removed
2911 | and it glistened like burnished silver.
2912 |
2913 | As soon as he had spoken, the Tin Woodman began to chop, and in a short
2914 | time the tree fell over with a crash, whereupon the Scarecrow’s clothes
2915 | fell out of the branches and rolled off on the ground.
2916 |
2917 | Dorothy picked them up and had the Winkies carry them back to the
2918 | castle, where they were stuffed with nice, clean straw; and behold!
2919 | here was the Scarecrow, as good as ever, thanking them over and over
2920 | again for saving him.
2921 |
2922 | Now that they were reunited, Dorothy and her friends spent a few happy
2923 | days at the Yellow Castle, where they found everything they needed to
2924 | make them comfortable.
2925 |
2926 | But one day the girl thought of Aunt Em, and said, “We must go back to
2927 | Oz, and claim his promise.”
2928 |
2929 | “Yes,” said the Woodman, “at last I shall get my heart.”
2930 |
2931 | “And I shall get my brains,” added the Scarecrow joyfully.
2932 |
2933 | “And I shall get my courage,” said the Lion thoughtfully.
2934 |
2935 | “And I shall get back to Kansas,” cried Dorothy, clapping her hands.
2936 | “Oh, let us start for the Emerald City tomorrow!”
2937 |
2938 | This they decided to do. The next day they called the Winkies together
2939 | and bade them good-bye. The Winkies were sorry to have them go, and
2940 | they had grown so fond of the Tin Woodman that they begged him to stay
2941 | and rule over them and the Yellow Land of the West. Finding they were
2942 | determined to go, the Winkies gave Toto and the Lion each a golden
2943 | collar; and to Dorothy they presented a beautiful bracelet studded with
2944 | diamonds; and to the Scarecrow they gave a gold-headed walking stick,
2945 | to keep him from stumbling; and to the Tin Woodman they offered a
2946 | silver oil-can, inlaid with gold and set with precious jewels.
2947 |
2948 | Every one of the travelers made the Winkies a pretty speech in return,
2949 | and all shook hands with them until their arms ached.
2950 |
2951 | Dorothy went to the Witch’s cupboard to fill her basket with food for
2952 | the journey, and there she saw the Golden Cap. She tried it on her own
2953 | head and found that it fitted her exactly. She did not know anything
2954 | about the charm of the Golden Cap, but she saw that it was pretty, so
2955 | she made up her mind to wear it and carry her sunbonnet in the basket.
2956 |
2957 | Then, being prepared for the journey, they all started for the Emerald
2958 | City; and the Winkies gave them three cheers and many good wishes to
2959 | carry with them.
2960 |
2961 |
2962 |
2963 |
2964 | Chapter XIV
2965 | The Winged Monkeys
2966 |
2967 |
2968 | You will remember there was no road—not even a pathway—between the
2969 | castle of the Wicked Witch and the Emerald City. When the four
2970 | travelers went in search of the Witch she had seen them coming, and so
2971 | sent the Winged Monkeys to bring them to her. It was much harder to
2972 | find their way back through the big fields of buttercups and yellow
2973 | daisies than it was being carried. They knew, of course, they must go
2974 | straight east, toward the rising sun; and they started off in the right
2975 | way. But at noon, when the sun was over their heads, they did not know
2976 | which was east and which was west, and that was the reason they were
2977 | lost in the great fields. They kept on walking, however, and at night
2978 | the moon came out and shone brightly. So they lay down among the sweet
2979 | smelling yellow flowers and slept soundly until morning—all but the
2980 | Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman.
2981 |
2982 | The next morning the sun was behind a cloud, but they started on, as if
2983 | they were quite sure which way they were going.
2984 |
2985 | “If we walk far enough,” said Dorothy, “I am sure we shall sometime
2986 | come to some place.”
2987 |
2988 | But day by day passed away, and they still saw nothing before them but
2989 | the scarlet fields. The Scarecrow began to grumble a bit.
2990 |
2991 | “We have surely lost our way,” he said, “and unless we find it again in
2992 | time to reach the Emerald City, I shall never get my brains.”
2993 |
2994 | “Nor I my heart,” declared the Tin Woodman. “It seems to me I can
2995 | scarcely wait till I get to Oz, and you must admit this is a very long
2996 | journey.”
2997 |
2998 | “You see,” said the Cowardly Lion, with a whimper, “I haven’t the
2999 | courage to keep tramping forever, without getting anywhere at all.”
3000 |
3001 | Then Dorothy lost heart. She sat down on the grass and looked at her
3002 | companions, and they sat down and looked at her, and Toto found that
3003 | for the first time in his life he was too tired to chase a butterfly
3004 | that flew past his head. So he put out his tongue and panted and looked
3005 | at Dorothy as if to ask what they should do next.
3006 |
3007 | “Suppose we call the field mice,” she suggested. “They could probably
3008 | tell us the way to the Emerald City.”
3009 |
3010 | “To be sure they could,” cried the Scarecrow. “Why didn’t we think of
3011 | that before?”
3012 |
3013 | Dorothy blew the little whistle she had always carried about her neck
3014 | since the Queen of the Mice had given it to her. In a few minutes they
3015 | heard the pattering of tiny feet, and many of the small gray mice came
3016 | running up to her. Among them was the Queen herself, who asked, in her
3017 | squeaky little voice:
3018 |
3019 | “What can I do for my friends?”
3020 |
3021 | “We have lost our way,” said Dorothy. “Can you tell us where the
3022 | Emerald City is?”
3023 |
3024 | “Certainly,” answered the Queen; “but it is a great way off, for you
3025 | have had it at your backs all this time.” Then she noticed Dorothy’s
3026 | Golden Cap, and said, “Why don’t you use the charm of the Cap, and call
3027 | the Winged Monkeys to you? They will carry you to the City of Oz in
3028 | less than an hour.”
3029 |
3030 | “I didn’t know there was a charm,” answered Dorothy, in surprise. “What
3031 | is it?”
3032 |
3033 | “It is written inside the Golden Cap,” replied the Queen of the Mice.
3034 | “But if you are going to call the Winged Monkeys we must run away, for
3035 | they are full of mischief and think it great fun to plague us.”
3036 |
3037 | “Won’t they hurt me?” asked the girl anxiously.
3038 |
3039 | “Oh, no. They must obey the wearer of the Cap. Good-bye!” And she
3040 | scampered out of sight, with all the mice hurrying after her.
3041 |
3042 | Dorothy looked inside the Golden Cap and saw some words written upon
3043 | the lining. These, she thought, must be the charm, so she read the
3044 | directions carefully and put the Cap upon her head.
3045 |
3046 | “Ep-pe, pep-pe, kak-ke!” she said, standing on her left foot.
3047 |
3048 | “What did you say?” asked the Scarecrow, who did not know what she was
3049 | doing.
3050 |
3051 | “Hil-lo, hol-lo, hel-lo!” Dorothy went on, standing this time on her
3052 | right foot.
3053 |
3054 | “Hello!” replied the Tin Woodman calmly.
3055 |
3056 | “Ziz-zy, zuz-zy, zik!” said Dorothy, who was now standing on both feet.
3057 | This ended the saying of the charm, and they heard a great chattering
3058 | and flapping of wings, as the band of Winged Monkeys flew up to them.
3059 |
3060 | The King bowed low before Dorothy, and asked, “What is your command?”
3061 |
3062 | “We wish to go to the Emerald City,” said the child, “and we have lost
3063 | our way.”
3064 |
3065 | “We will carry you,” replied the King, and no sooner had he spoken than
3066 | two of the Monkeys caught Dorothy in their arms and flew away with her.
3067 | Others took the Scarecrow and the Woodman and the Lion, and one little
3068 | Monkey seized Toto and flew after them, although the dog tried hard to
3069 | bite him.
3070 |
3071 | The Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman were rather frightened at first, for
3072 | they remembered how badly the Winged Monkeys had treated them before;
3073 | but they saw that no harm was intended, so they rode through the air
3074 | quite cheerfully, and had a fine time looking at the pretty gardens and
3075 | woods far below them.
3076 |
3077 | Dorothy found herself riding easily between two of the biggest Monkeys,
3078 | one of them the King himself. They had made a chair of their hands and
3079 | were careful not to hurt her.
3080 |
3081 | “Why do you have to obey the charm of the Golden Cap?” she asked.
3082 |
3083 | “That is a long story,” answered the King, with a winged laugh; “but as
3084 | we have a long journey before us, I will pass the time by telling you
3085 | about it, if you wish.”
3086 |
3087 | “I shall be glad to hear it,” she replied.
3088 |
3089 | “Once,” began the leader, “we were a free people, living happily in the
3090 | great forest, flying from tree to tree, eating nuts and fruit, and
3091 | doing just as we pleased without calling anybody master. Perhaps some
3092 | of us were rather too full of mischief at times, flying down to pull
3093 | the tails of the animals that had no wings, chasing birds, and throwing
3094 | nuts at the people who walked in the forest. But we were careless and
3095 | happy and full of fun, and enjoyed every minute of the day. This was
3096 | many years ago, long before Oz came out of the clouds to rule over this
3097 | land.
3098 |
3099 | “There lived here then, away at the North, a beautiful princess, who
3100 | was also a powerful sorceress. All her magic was used to help the
3101 | people, and she was never known to hurt anyone who was good. Her name
3102 | was Gayelette, and she lived in a handsome palace built from great
3103 | blocks of ruby. Everyone loved her, but her greatest sorrow was that
3104 | she could find no one to love in return, since all the men were much
3105 | too stupid and ugly to mate with one so beautiful and wise. At last,
3106 | however, she found a boy who was handsome and manly and wise beyond his
3107 | years. Gayelette made up her mind that when he grew to be a man she
3108 | would make him her husband, so she took him to her ruby palace and used
3109 | all her magic powers to make him as strong and good and lovely as any
3110 | woman could wish. When he grew to manhood, Quelala, as he was called,
3111 | was said to be the best and wisest man in all the land, while his manly
3112 | beauty was so great that Gayelette loved him dearly, and hastened to
3113 | make everything ready for the wedding.
3114 |
3115 | “My grandfather was at that time the King of the Winged Monkeys which
3116 | lived in the forest near Gayelette’s palace, and the old fellow loved a
3117 | joke better than a good dinner. One day, just before the wedding, my
3118 | grandfather was flying out with his band when he saw Quelala walking
3119 | beside the river. He was dressed in a rich costume of pink silk and
3120 | purple velvet, and my grandfather thought he would see what he could
3121 | do. At his word the band flew down and seized Quelala, carried him in
3122 | their arms until they were over the middle of the river, and then
3123 | dropped him into the water.
3124 |
3125 | “‘Swim out, my fine fellow,’ cried my grandfather, ‘and see if the
3126 | water has spotted your clothes.’ Quelala was much too wise not to swim,
3127 | and he was not in the least spoiled by all his good fortune. He
3128 | laughed, when he came to the top of the water, and swam in to shore.
3129 | But when Gayelette came running out to him she found his silks and
3130 | velvet all ruined by the river.
3131 |
3132 | “The princess was angry, and she knew, of course, who did it. She had
3133 | all the Winged Monkeys brought before her, and she said at first that
3134 | their wings should be tied and they should be treated as they had
3135 | treated Quelala, and dropped in the river. But my grandfather pleaded
3136 | hard, for he knew the Monkeys would drown in the river with their wings
3137 | tied, and Quelala said a kind word for them also; so that Gayelette
3138 | finally spared them, on condition that the Winged Monkeys should ever
3139 | after do three times the bidding of the owner of the Golden Cap. This
3140 | Cap had been made for a wedding present to Quelala, and it is said to
3141 | have cost the princess half her kingdom. Of course my grandfather and
3142 | all the other Monkeys at once agreed to the condition, and that is how
3143 | it happens that we are three times the slaves of the owner of the
3144 | Golden Cap, whosoever he may be.”
3145 |
3146 | “And what became of them?” asked Dorothy, who had been greatly
3147 | interested in the story.
3148 |
3149 | “Quelala being the first owner of the Golden Cap,” replied the Monkey,
3150 | “he was the first to lay his wishes upon us. As his bride could not
3151 | bear the sight of us, he called us all to him in the forest after he
3152 | had married her and ordered us always to keep where she could never
3153 | again set eyes on a Winged Monkey, which we were glad to do, for we
3154 | were all afraid of her.
3155 |
3156 | “This was all we ever had to do until the Golden Cap fell into the
3157 | hands of the Wicked Witch of the West, who made us enslave the Winkies,
3158 | and afterward drive Oz himself out of the Land of the West. Now the
3159 | Golden Cap is yours, and three times you have the right to lay your
3160 | wishes upon us.”
3161 |
3162 | As the Monkey King finished his story Dorothy looked down and saw the
3163 | green, shining walls of the Emerald City before them. She wondered at
3164 | the rapid flight of the Monkeys, but was glad the journey was over. The
3165 | strange creatures set the travelers down carefully before the gate of
3166 | the City, the King bowed low to Dorothy, and then flew swiftly away,
3167 | followed by all his band.
3168 |
3169 | “That was a good ride,” said the little girl.
3170 |
3171 | “Yes, and a quick way out of our troubles,” replied the Lion. “How
3172 | lucky it was you brought away that wonderful Cap!”
3173 |
3174 |
3175 |
3176 |
3177 | Chapter XV
3178 | The Discovery of Oz, the Terrible
3179 |
3180 |
3181 | The four travelers walked up to the great gate of Emerald City and rang
3182 | the bell. After ringing several times, it was opened by the same
3183 | Guardian of the Gates they had met before.
3184 |
3185 | “What! are you back again?” he asked, in surprise.
3186 |
3187 | “Do you not see us?” answered the Scarecrow.
3188 |
3189 | “But I thought you had gone to visit the Wicked Witch of the West.”
3190 |
3191 | “We did visit her,” said the Scarecrow.
3192 |
3193 | “And she let you go again?” asked the man, in wonder.
3194 |
3195 | “She could not help it, for she is melted,” explained the Scarecrow.
3196 |
3197 | “Melted! Well, that is good news, indeed,” said the man. “Who melted
3198 | her?”
3199 |
3200 | “It was Dorothy,” said the Lion gravely.
3201 |
3202 | “Good gracious!” exclaimed the man, and he bowed very low indeed before
3203 | her.
3204 |
3205 | Then he led them into his little room and locked the spectacles from
3206 | the great box on all their eyes, just as he had done before. Afterward
3207 | they passed on through the gate into the Emerald City. When the people
3208 | heard from the Guardian of the Gates that Dorothy had melted the Wicked
3209 | Witch of the West, they all gathered around the travelers and followed
3210 | them in a great crowd to the Palace of Oz.
3211 |
3212 | The soldier with the green whiskers was still on guard before the door,
3213 | but he let them in at once, and they were again met by the beautiful
3214 | green girl, who showed each of them to their old rooms at once, so they
3215 | might rest until the Great Oz was ready to receive them.
3216 |
3217 | The soldier had the news carried straight to Oz that Dorothy and the
3218 | other travelers had come back again, after destroying the Wicked Witch;
3219 | but Oz made no reply. They thought the Great Wizard would send for them
3220 | at once, but he did not. They had no word from him the next day, nor
3221 | the next, nor the next. The waiting was tiresome and wearing, and at
3222 | last they grew vexed that Oz should treat them in so poor a fashion,
3223 | after sending them to undergo hardships and slavery. So the Scarecrow
3224 | at last asked the green girl to take another message to Oz, saying if
3225 | he did not let them in to see him at once they would call the Winged
3226 | Monkeys to help them, and find out whether he kept his promises or not.
3227 | When the Wizard was given this message he was so frightened that he
3228 | sent word for them to come to the Throne Room at four minutes after
3229 | nine o’clock the next morning. He had once met the Winged Monkeys in
3230 | the Land of the West, and he did not wish to meet them again.
3231 |
3232 | The four travelers passed a sleepless night, each thinking of the gift
3233 | Oz had promised to bestow on him. Dorothy fell asleep only once, and
3234 | then she dreamed she was in Kansas, where Aunt Em was telling her how
3235 | glad she was to have her little girl at home again.
3236 |
3237 | Promptly at nine o’clock the next morning the green-whiskered soldier
3238 | came to them, and four minutes later they all went into the Throne Room
3239 | of the Great Oz.
3240 |
3241 | Of course each one of them expected to see the Wizard in the shape he
3242 | had taken before, and all were greatly surprised when they looked about
3243 | and saw no one at all in the room. They kept close to the door and
3244 | closer to one another, for the stillness of the empty room was more
3245 | dreadful than any of the forms they had seen Oz take.
3246 |
3247 | Presently they heard a solemn Voice, that seemed to come from somewhere
3248 | near the top of the great dome, and it said:
3249 |
3250 | “I am Oz, the Great and Terrible. Why do you seek me?”
3251 |
3252 | They looked again in every part of the room, and then, seeing no one,
3253 | Dorothy asked, “Where are you?”
3254 |
3255 | “I am everywhere,” answered the Voice, “but to the eyes of common
3256 | mortals I am invisible. I will now seat myself upon my throne, that you
3257 | may converse with me.” Indeed, the Voice seemed just then to come
3258 | straight from the throne itself; so they walked toward it and stood in
3259 | a row while Dorothy said:
3260 |
3261 | “We have come to claim our promise, O Oz.”
3262 |
3263 | “What promise?” asked Oz.
3264 |
3265 | “You promised to send me back to Kansas when the Wicked Witch was
3266 | destroyed,” said the girl.
3267 |
3268 | “And you promised to give me brains,” said the Scarecrow.
3269 |
3270 | “And you promised to give me a heart,” said the Tin Woodman.
3271 |
3272 | “And you promised to give me courage,” said the Cowardly Lion.
3273 |
3274 | “Is the Wicked Witch really destroyed?” asked the Voice, and Dorothy
3275 | thought it trembled a little.
3276 |
3277 | “Yes,” she answered, “I melted her with a bucket of water.”
3278 |
3279 | “Dear me,” said the Voice, “how sudden! Well, come to me tomorrow, for
3280 | I must have time to think it over.”
3281 |
3282 | “You’ve had plenty of time already,” said the Tin Woodman angrily.
3283 |
3284 | “We shan’t wait a day longer,” said the Scarecrow.
3285 |
3286 | “You must keep your promises to us!” exclaimed Dorothy.
3287 |
3288 | The Lion thought it might be as well to frighten the Wizard, so he gave
3289 | a large, loud roar, which was so fierce and dreadful that Toto jumped
3290 | away from him in alarm and tipped over the screen that stood in a
3291 | corner. As it fell with a crash they looked that way, and the next
3292 | moment all of them were filled with wonder. For they saw, standing in
3293 | just the spot the screen had hidden, a little old man, with a bald head
3294 | and a wrinkled face, who seemed to be as much surprised as they were.
3295 | The Tin Woodman, raising his axe, rushed toward the little man and
3296 | cried out, “Who are you?”
3297 |
3298 | “I am Oz, the Great and Terrible,” said the little man, in a trembling
3299 | voice. “But don’t strike me—please don’t—and I’ll do anything you want
3300 | me to.”
3301 |
3302 | Our friends looked at him in surprise and dismay.
3303 |
3304 | “I thought Oz was a great Head,” said Dorothy.
3305 |
3306 | “And I thought Oz was a lovely Lady,” said the Scarecrow.
3307 |
3308 | “And I thought Oz was a terrible Beast,” said the Tin Woodman.
3309 |
3310 | “And I thought Oz was a Ball of Fire,” exclaimed the Lion.
3311 |
3312 | “No, you are all wrong,” said the little man meekly. “I have been
3313 | making believe.”
3314 |
3315 | “Making believe!” cried Dorothy. “Are you not a Great Wizard?”
3316 |
3317 | “Hush, my dear,” he said. “Don’t speak so loud, or you will be
3318 | overheard—and I should be ruined. I’m supposed to be a Great Wizard.”
3319 |
3320 | “And aren’t you?” she asked.
3321 |
3322 | “Not a bit of it, my dear; I’m just a common man.”
3323 |
3324 | “You’re more than that,” said the Scarecrow, in a grieved tone; “you’re
3325 | a humbug.”
3326 |
3327 | “Exactly so!” declared the little man, rubbing his hands together as if
3328 | it pleased him. “I am a humbug.”
3329 |
3330 | “But this is terrible,” said the Tin Woodman. “How shall I ever get my
3331 | heart?”
3332 |
3333 | “Or I my courage?” asked the Lion.
3334 |
3335 | “Or I my brains?” wailed the Scarecrow, wiping the tears from his eyes
3336 | with his coat sleeve.
3337 |
3338 | “My dear friends,” said Oz, “I pray you not to speak of these little
3339 | things. Think of me, and the terrible trouble I’m in at being found
3340 | out.”
3341 |
3342 | “Doesn’t anyone else know you’re a humbug?” asked Dorothy.
3343 |
3344 | “No one knows it but you four—and myself,” replied Oz. “I have fooled
3345 | everyone so long that I thought I should never be found out. It was a
3346 | great mistake my ever letting you into the Throne Room. Usually I will
3347 | not see even my subjects, and so they believe I am something terrible.”
3348 |
3349 | “But, I don’t understand,” said Dorothy, in bewilderment. “How was it
3350 | that you appeared to me as a great Head?”
3351 |
3352 | “That was one of my tricks,” answered Oz. “Step this way, please, and I
3353 | will tell you all about it.”
3354 |
3355 | He led the way to a small chamber in the rear of the Throne Room, and
3356 | they all followed him. He pointed to one corner, in which lay the great
3357 | Head, made out of many thicknesses of paper, and with a carefully
3358 | painted face.
3359 |
3360 | “This I hung from the ceiling by a wire,” said Oz. “I stood behind the
3361 | screen and pulled a thread, to make the eyes move and the mouth open.”
3362 |
3363 | “But how about the voice?” she inquired.
3364 |
3365 | “Oh, I am a ventriloquist,” said the little man. “I can throw the sound
3366 | of my voice wherever I wish, so that you thought it was coming out of
3367 | the Head. Here are the other things I used to deceive you.” He showed
3368 | the Scarecrow the dress and the mask he had worn when he seemed to be
3369 | the lovely Lady. And the Tin Woodman saw that his terrible Beast was
3370 | nothing but a lot of skins, sewn together, with slats to keep their
3371 | sides out. As for the Ball of Fire, the false Wizard had hung that also
3372 | from the ceiling. It was really a ball of cotton, but when oil was
3373 | poured upon it the ball burned fiercely.
3374 |
3375 | “Really,” said the Scarecrow, “you ought to be ashamed of yourself for
3376 | being such a humbug.”
3377 |
3378 | “I am—I certainly am,” answered the little man sorrowfully; “but it was
3379 | the only thing I could do. Sit down, please, there are plenty of
3380 | chairs; and I will tell you my story.”
3381 |
3382 | So they sat down and listened while he told the following tale.
3383 |
3384 | “I was born in Omaha—”
3385 |
3386 | “Why, that isn’t very far from Kansas!” cried Dorothy.
3387 |
3388 | “No, but it’s farther from here,” he said, shaking his head at her
3389 | sadly. “When I grew up I became a ventriloquist, and at that I was very
3390 | well trained by a great master. I can imitate any kind of a bird or
3391 | beast.” Here he mewed so like a kitten that Toto pricked up his ears
3392 | and looked everywhere to see where she was. “After a time,” continued
3393 | Oz, “I tired of that, and became a balloonist.”
3394 |
3395 | “What is that?” asked Dorothy.
3396 |
3397 | “A man who goes up in a balloon on circus day, so as to draw a crowd of
3398 | people together and get them to pay to see the circus,” he explained.
3399 |
3400 | “Oh,” she said, “I know.”
3401 |
3402 | “Well, one day I went up in a balloon and the ropes got twisted, so
3403 | that I couldn’t come down again. It went way up above the clouds, so
3404 | far that a current of air struck it and carried it many, many miles
3405 | away. For a day and a night I traveled through the air, and on the
3406 | morning of the second day I awoke and found the balloon floating over a
3407 | strange and beautiful country.
3408 |
3409 | “It came down gradually, and I was not hurt a bit. But I found myself
3410 | in the midst of a strange people, who, seeing me come from the clouds,
3411 | thought I was a great Wizard. Of course I let them think so, because
3412 | they were afraid of me, and promised to do anything I wished them to.
3413 |
3414 | “Just to amuse myself, and keep the good people busy, I ordered them to
3415 | build this City, and my Palace; and they did it all willingly and well.
3416 | Then I thought, as the country was so green and beautiful, I would call
3417 | it the Emerald City; and to make the name fit better I put green
3418 | spectacles on all the people, so that everything they saw was green.”
3419 |
3420 | “But isn’t everything here green?” asked Dorothy.
3421 |
3422 | “No more than in any other city,” replied Oz; “but when you wear green
3423 | spectacles, why of course everything you see looks green to you. The
3424 | Emerald City was built a great many years ago, for I was a young man
3425 | when the balloon brought me here, and I am a very old man now. But my
3426 | people have worn green glasses on their eyes so long that most of them
3427 | think it really is an Emerald City, and it certainly is a beautiful
3428 | place, abounding in jewels and precious metals, and every good thing
3429 | that is needed to make one happy. I have been good to the people, and
3430 | they like me; but ever since this Palace was built, I have shut myself
3431 | up and would not see any of them.
3432 |
3433 | “One of my greatest fears was the Witches, for while I had no magical
3434 | powers at all I soon found out that the Witches were really able to do
3435 | wonderful things. There were four of them in this country, and they
3436 | ruled the people who live in the North and South and East and West.
3437 | Fortunately, the Witches of the North and South were good, and I knew
3438 | they would do me no harm; but the Witches of the East and West were
3439 | terribly wicked, and had they not thought I was more powerful than they
3440 | themselves, they would surely have destroyed me. As it was, I lived in
3441 | deadly fear of them for many years; so you can imagine how pleased I
3442 | was when I heard your house had fallen on the Wicked Witch of the East.
3443 | When you came to me, I was willing to promise anything if you would
3444 | only do away with the other Witch; but, now that you have melted her, I
3445 | am ashamed to say that I cannot keep my promises.”
3446 |
3447 | “I think you are a very bad man,” said Dorothy.
3448 |
3449 | “Oh, no, my dear; I’m really a very good man, but I’m a very bad
3450 | Wizard, I must admit.”
3451 |
3452 | “Can’t you give me brains?” asked the Scarecrow.
3453 |
3454 | “You don’t need them. You are learning something every day. A baby has
3455 | brains, but it doesn’t know much. Experience is the only thing that
3456 | brings knowledge, and the longer you are on earth the more experience
3457 | you are sure to get.”
3458 |
3459 | “That may all be true,” said the Scarecrow, “but I shall be very
3460 | unhappy unless you give me brains.”
3461 |
3462 | The false Wizard looked at him carefully.
3463 |
3464 | “Well,” he said with a sigh, “I’m not much of a magician, as I said;
3465 | but if you will come to me tomorrow morning, I will stuff your head
3466 | with brains. I cannot tell you how to use them, however; you must find
3467 | that out for yourself.”
3468 |
3469 | “Oh, thank you—thank you!” cried the Scarecrow. “I’ll find a way to use
3470 | them, never fear!”
3471 |
3472 | “But how about my courage?” asked the Lion anxiously.
3473 |
3474 | “You have plenty of courage, I am sure,” answered Oz. “All you need is
3475 | confidence in yourself. There is no living thing that is not afraid
3476 | when it faces danger. The True courage is in facing danger when you are
3477 | afraid, and that kind of courage you have in plenty.”
3478 |
3479 | “Perhaps I have, but I’m scared just the same,” said the Lion. “I shall
3480 | really be very unhappy unless you give me the sort of courage that
3481 | makes one forget he is afraid.”
3482 |
3483 | “Very well, I will give you that sort of courage tomorrow,” replied Oz.
3484 |
3485 | “How about my heart?” asked the Tin Woodman.
3486 |
3487 | “Why, as for that,” answered Oz, “I think you are wrong to want a
3488 | heart. It makes most people unhappy. If you only knew it, you are in
3489 | luck not to have a heart.”
3490 |
3491 | “That must be a matter of opinion,” said the Tin Woodman. “For my part,
3492 | I will bear all the unhappiness without a murmur, if you will give me
3493 | the heart.”
3494 |
3495 | “Very well,” answered Oz meekly. “Come to me tomorrow and you shall
3496 | have a heart. I have played Wizard for so many years that I may as well
3497 | continue the part a little longer.”
3498 |
3499 | “And now,” said Dorothy, “how am I to get back to Kansas?”
3500 |
3501 | “We shall have to think about that,” replied the little man. “Give me
3502 | two or three days to consider the matter and I’ll try to find a way to
3503 | carry you over the desert. In the meantime you shall all be treated as
3504 | my guests, and while you live in the Palace my people will wait upon
3505 | you and obey your slightest wish. There is only one thing I ask in
3506 | return for my help—such as it is. You must keep my secret and tell no
3507 | one I am a humbug.”
3508 |
3509 | They agreed to say nothing of what they had learned, and went back to
3510 | their rooms in high spirits. Even Dorothy had hope that “The Great and
3511 | Terrible Humbug,” as she called him, would find a way to send her back
3512 | to Kansas, and if he did she was willing to forgive him everything.
3513 |
3514 |
3515 |
3516 |
3517 | Chapter XVI
3518 | The Magic Art of the Great Humbug
3519 |
3520 |
3521 | Next morning the Scarecrow said to his friends:
3522 |
3523 | “Congratulate me. I am going to Oz to get my brains at last. When I
3524 | return I shall be as other men are.”
3525 |
3526 | “I have always liked you as you were,” said Dorothy simply.
3527 |
3528 | “It is kind of you to like a Scarecrow,” he replied. “But surely you
3529 | will think more of me when you hear the splendid thoughts my new brain
3530 | is going to turn out.” Then he said good-bye to them all in a cheerful
3531 | voice and went to the Throne Room, where he rapped upon the door.
3532 |
3533 | “Come in,” said Oz.
3534 |
3535 | The Scarecrow went in and found the little man sitting down by the
3536 | window, engaged in deep thought.
3537 |
3538 | “I have come for my brains,” remarked the Scarecrow, a little uneasily.
3539 |
3540 | “Oh, yes; sit down in that chair, please,” replied Oz. “You must excuse
3541 | me for taking your head off, but I shall have to do it in order to put
3542 | your brains in their proper place.”
3543 |
3544 | “That’s all right,” said the Scarecrow. “You are quite welcome to take
3545 | my head off, as long as it will be a better one when you put it on
3546 | again.”
3547 |
3548 | So the Wizard unfastened his head and emptied out the straw. Then he
3549 | entered the back room and took up a measure of bran, which he mixed
3550 | with a great many pins and needles. Having shaken them together
3551 | thoroughly, he filled the top of the Scarecrow’s head with the mixture
3552 | and stuffed the rest of the space with straw, to hold it in place.
3553 |
3554 | When he had fastened the Scarecrow’s head on his body again he said to
3555 | him, “Hereafter you will be a great man, for I have given you a lot of
3556 | bran-new brains.”
3557 |
3558 | The Scarecrow was both pleased and proud at the fulfillment of his
3559 | greatest wish, and having thanked Oz warmly he went back to his
3560 | friends.
3561 |
3562 | Dorothy looked at him curiously. His head was quite bulged out at the
3563 | top with brains.
3564 |
3565 | “How do you feel?” she asked.
3566 |
3567 | “I feel wise indeed,” he answered earnestly. “When I get used to my
3568 | brains I shall know everything.”
3569 |
3570 | “Why are those needles and pins sticking out of your head?” asked the
3571 | Tin Woodman.
3572 |
3573 | “That is proof that he is sharp,” remarked the Lion.
3574 |
3575 | “Well, I must go to Oz and get my heart,” said the Woodman. So he
3576 | walked to the Throne Room and knocked at the door.
3577 |
3578 | “Come in,” called Oz, and the Woodman entered and said, “I have come
3579 | for my heart.”
3580 |
3581 | “Very well,” answered the little man. “But I shall have to cut a hole
3582 | in your breast, so I can put your heart in the right place. I hope it
3583 | won’t hurt you.”
3584 |
3585 | “Oh, no,” answered the Woodman. “I shall not feel it at all.”
3586 |
3587 | So Oz brought a pair of tinsmith’s shears and cut a small, square hole
3588 | in the left side of the Tin Woodman’s breast. Then, going to a chest of
3589 | drawers, he took out a pretty heart, made entirely of silk and stuffed
3590 | with sawdust.
3591 |
3592 | “Isn’t it a beauty?” he asked.
3593 |
3594 | “It is, indeed!” replied the Woodman, who was greatly pleased. “But is
3595 | it a kind heart?”
3596 |
3597 | “Oh, very!” answered Oz. He put the heart in the Woodman’s breast and
3598 | then replaced the square of tin, soldering it neatly together where it
3599 | had been cut.
3600 |
3601 | “There,” said he; “now you have a heart that any man might be proud of.
3602 | I’m sorry I had to put a patch on your breast, but it really couldn’t
3603 | be helped.”
3604 |
3605 | “Never mind the patch,” exclaimed the happy Woodman. “I am very
3606 | grateful to you, and shall never forget your kindness.”
3607 |
3608 | “Don’t speak of it,” replied Oz.
3609 |
3610 | Then the Tin Woodman went back to his friends, who wished him every joy
3611 | on account of his good fortune.
3612 |
3613 | The Lion now walked to the Throne Room and knocked at the door.
3614 |
3615 | “Come in,” said Oz.
3616 |
3617 | “I have come for my courage,” announced the Lion, entering the room.
3618 |
3619 | “Very well,” answered the little man; “I will get it for you.”
3620 |
3621 | He went to a cupboard and reaching up to a high shelf took down a
3622 | square green bottle, the contents of which he poured into a green-gold
3623 | dish, beautifully carved. Placing this before the Cowardly Lion, who
3624 | sniffed at it as if he did not like it, the Wizard said:
3625 |
3626 | “Drink.”
3627 |
3628 | “What is it?” asked the Lion.
3629 |
3630 | “Well,” answered Oz, “if it were inside of you, it would be courage.
3631 | You know, of course, that courage is always inside one; so that this
3632 | really cannot be called courage until you have swallowed it. Therefore
3633 | I advise you to drink it as soon as possible.”
3634 |
3635 | The Lion hesitated no longer, but drank till the dish was empty.
3636 |
3637 | “How do you feel now?” asked Oz.
3638 |
3639 | “Full of courage,” replied the Lion, who went joyfully back to his
3640 | friends to tell them of his good fortune.
3641 |
3642 | Oz, left to himself, smiled to think of his success in giving the
3643 | Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman and the Lion exactly what they thought
3644 | they wanted. “How can I help being a humbug,” he said, “when all these
3645 | people make me do things that everybody knows can’t be done? It was
3646 | easy to make the Scarecrow and the Lion and the Woodman happy, because
3647 | they imagined I could do anything. But it will take more than
3648 | imagination to carry Dorothy back to Kansas, and I’m sure I don’t know
3649 | how it can be done.”
3650 |
3651 |
3652 |
3653 |
3654 | Chapter XVII
3655 | How the Balloon Was Launched
3656 |
3657 |
3658 | For three days Dorothy heard nothing from Oz. These were sad days for
3659 | the little girl, although her friends were all quite happy and
3660 | contented. The Scarecrow told them there were wonderful thoughts in his
3661 | head; but he would not say what they were because he knew no one could
3662 | understand them but himself. When the Tin Woodman walked about he felt
3663 | his heart rattling around in his breast; and he told Dorothy he had
3664 | discovered it to be a kinder and more tender heart than the one he had
3665 | owned when he was made of flesh. The Lion declared he was afraid of
3666 | nothing on earth, and would gladly face an army or a dozen of the
3667 | fierce Kalidahs.
3668 |
3669 | Thus each of the little party was satisfied except Dorothy, who longed
3670 | more than ever to get back to Kansas.
3671 |
3672 | On the fourth day, to her great joy, Oz sent for her, and when she
3673 | entered the Throne Room he greeted her pleasantly:
3674 |
3675 | “Sit down, my dear; I think I have found the way to get you out of this
3676 | country.”
3677 |
3678 | “And back to Kansas?” she asked eagerly.
3679 |
3680 | “Well, I’m not sure about Kansas,” said Oz, “for I haven’t the faintest
3681 | notion which way it lies. But the first thing to do is to cross the
3682 | desert, and then it should be easy to find your way home.”
3683 |
3684 | “How can I cross the desert?” she inquired.
3685 |
3686 | “Well, I’ll tell you what I think,” said the little man. “You see, when
3687 | I came to this country it was in a balloon. You also came through the
3688 | air, being carried by a cyclone. So I believe the best way to get
3689 | across the desert will be through the air. Now, it is quite beyond my
3690 | powers to make a cyclone; but I’ve been thinking the matter over, and I
3691 | believe I can make a balloon.”
3692 |
3693 | “How?” asked Dorothy.
3694 |
3695 | “A balloon,” said Oz, “is made of silk, which is coated with glue to
3696 | keep the gas in it. I have plenty of silk in the Palace, so it will be
3697 | no trouble to make the balloon. But in all this country there is no gas
3698 | to fill the balloon with, to make it float.”
3699 |
3700 | “If it won’t float,” remarked Dorothy, “it will be of no use to us.”
3701 |
3702 | “True,” answered Oz. “But there is another way to make it float, which
3703 | is to fill it with hot air. Hot air isn’t as good as gas, for if the
3704 | air should get cold the balloon would come down in the desert, and we
3705 | should be lost.”
3706 |
3707 | “We!” exclaimed the girl. “Are you going with me?”
3708 |
3709 | “Yes, of course,” replied Oz. “I am tired of being such a humbug. If I
3710 | should go out of this Palace my people would soon discover I am not a
3711 | Wizard, and then they would be vexed with me for having deceived them.
3712 | So I have to stay shut up in these rooms all day, and it gets tiresome.
3713 | I’d much rather go back to Kansas with you and be in a circus again.”
3714 |
3715 | “I shall be glad to have your company,” said Dorothy.
3716 |
3717 | “Thank you,” he answered. “Now, if you will help me sew the silk
3718 | together, we will begin to work on our balloon.”
3719 |
3720 | So Dorothy took a needle and thread, and as fast as Oz cut the strips
3721 | of silk into proper shape the girl sewed them neatly together. First
3722 | there was a strip of light green silk, then a strip of dark green and
3723 | then a strip of emerald green; for Oz had a fancy to make the balloon
3724 | in different shades of the color about them. It took three days to sew
3725 | all the strips together, but when it was finished they had a big bag of
3726 | green silk more than twenty feet long.
3727 |
3728 | Then Oz painted it on the inside with a coat of thin glue, to make it
3729 | airtight, after which he announced that the balloon was ready.
3730 |
3731 | “But we must have a basket to ride in,” he said. So he sent the soldier
3732 | with the green whiskers for a big clothes basket, which he fastened
3733 | with many ropes to the bottom of the balloon.
3734 |
3735 | When it was all ready, Oz sent word to his people that he was going to
3736 | make a visit to a great brother Wizard who lived in the clouds. The
3737 | news spread rapidly throughout the city and everyone came to see the
3738 | wonderful sight.
3739 |
3740 | Oz ordered the balloon carried out in front of the Palace, and the
3741 | people gazed upon it with much curiosity. The Tin Woodman had chopped a
3742 | big pile of wood, and now he made a fire of it, and Oz held the bottom
3743 | of the balloon over the fire so that the hot air that arose from it
3744 | would be caught in the silken bag. Gradually the balloon swelled out
3745 | and rose into the air, until finally the basket just touched the
3746 | ground.
3747 |
3748 | Then Oz got into the basket and said to all the people in a loud voice:
3749 |
3750 | “I am now going away to make a visit. While I am gone the Scarecrow
3751 | will rule over you. I command you to obey him as you would me.”
3752 |
3753 | The balloon was by this time tugging hard at the rope that held it to
3754 | the ground, for the air within it was hot, and this made it so much
3755 | lighter in weight than the air without that it pulled hard to rise into
3756 | the sky.
3757 |
3758 | “Come, Dorothy!” cried the Wizard. “Hurry up, or the balloon will fly
3759 | away.”
3760 |
3761 | “I can’t find Toto anywhere,” replied Dorothy, who did not wish to
3762 | leave her little dog behind. Toto had run into the crowd to bark at a
3763 | kitten, and Dorothy at last found him. She picked him up and ran
3764 | towards the balloon.
3765 |
3766 | She was within a few steps of it, and Oz was holding out his hands to
3767 | help her into the basket, when, crack! went the ropes, and the balloon
3768 | rose into the air without her.
3769 |
3770 | “Come back!” she screamed. “I want to go, too!”
3771 |
3772 | “I can’t come back, my dear,” called Oz from the basket. “Good-bye!”
3773 |
3774 | “Good-bye!” shouted everyone, and all eyes were turned upward to where
3775 | the Wizard was riding in the basket, rising every moment farther and
3776 | farther into the sky.
3777 |
3778 | And that was the last any of them ever saw of Oz, the Wonderful Wizard,
3779 | though he may have reached Omaha safely, and be there now, for all we
3780 | know. But the people remembered him lovingly, and said to one another:
3781 |
3782 | “Oz was always our friend. When he was here he built for us this
3783 | beautiful Emerald City, and now he is gone he has left the Wise
3784 | Scarecrow to rule over us.”
3785 |
3786 | Still, for many days they grieved over the loss of the Wonderful
3787 | Wizard, and would not be comforted.
3788 |
3789 |
3790 |
3791 |
3792 | Chapter XVIII
3793 | Away to the South
3794 |
3795 |
3796 | Dorothy wept bitterly at the passing of her hope to get home to Kansas
3797 | again; but when she thought it all over she was glad she had not gone
3798 | up in a balloon. And she also felt sorry at losing Oz, and so did her
3799 | companions.
3800 |
3801 | The Tin Woodman came to her and said:
3802 |
3803 | “Truly I should be ungrateful if I failed to mourn for the man who gave
3804 | me my lovely heart. I should like to cry a little because Oz is gone,
3805 | if you will kindly wipe away my tears, so that I shall not rust.”
3806 |
3807 | “With pleasure,” she answered, and brought a towel at once. Then the
3808 | Tin Woodman wept for several minutes, and she watched the tears
3809 | carefully and wiped them away with the towel. When he had finished, he
3810 | thanked her kindly and oiled himself thoroughly with his jeweled
3811 | oil-can, to guard against mishap.
3812 |
3813 | The Scarecrow was now the ruler of the Emerald City, and although he
3814 | was not a Wizard the people were proud of him. “For,” they said, “there
3815 | is not another city in all the world that is ruled by a stuffed man.”
3816 | And, so far as they knew, they were quite right.
3817 |
3818 | The morning after the balloon had gone up with Oz, the four travelers
3819 | met in the Throne Room and talked matters over. The Scarecrow sat in
3820 | the big throne and the others stood respectfully before him.
3821 |
3822 | “We are not so unlucky,” said the new ruler, “for this Palace and the
3823 | Emerald City belong to us, and we can do just as we please. When I
3824 | remember that a short time ago I was up on a pole in a farmer’s
3825 | cornfield, and that now I am the ruler of this beautiful City, I am
3826 | quite satisfied with my lot.”
3827 |
3828 | “I also,” said the Tin Woodman, “am well-pleased with my new heart;
3829 | and, really, that was the only thing I wished in all the world.”
3830 |
3831 | “For my part, I am content in knowing I am as brave as any beast that
3832 | ever lived, if not braver,” said the Lion modestly.
3833 |
3834 | “If Dorothy would only be contented to live in the Emerald City,”
3835 | continued the Scarecrow, “we might all be happy together.”
3836 |
3837 | “But I don’t want to live here,” cried Dorothy. “I want to go to
3838 | Kansas, and live with Aunt Em and Uncle Henry.”
3839 |
3840 | “Well, then, what can be done?” inquired the Woodman.
3841 |
3842 | The Scarecrow decided to think, and he thought so hard that the pins
3843 | and needles began to stick out of his brains. Finally he said:
3844 |
3845 | “Why not call the Winged Monkeys, and ask them to carry you over the
3846 | desert?”
3847 |
3848 | “I never thought of that!” said Dorothy joyfully. “It’s just the thing.
3849 | I’ll go at once for the Golden Cap.”
3850 |
3851 | When she brought it into the Throne Room she spoke the magic words, and
3852 | soon the band of Winged Monkeys flew in through the open window and
3853 | stood beside her.
3854 |
3855 | “This is the second time you have called us,” said the Monkey King,
3856 | bowing before the little girl. “What do you wish?”
3857 |
3858 | “I want you to fly with me to Kansas,” said Dorothy.
3859 |
3860 | But the Monkey King shook his head.
3861 |
3862 | “That cannot be done,” he said. “We belong to this country alone, and
3863 | cannot leave it. There has never been a Winged Monkey in Kansas yet,
3864 | and I suppose there never will be, for they don’t belong there. We
3865 | shall be glad to serve you in any way in our power, but we cannot cross
3866 | the desert. Good-bye.”
3867 |
3868 | And with another bow, the Monkey King spread his wings and flew away
3869 | through the window, followed by all his band.
3870 |
3871 | Dorothy was ready to cry with disappointment. “I have wasted the charm
3872 | of the Golden Cap to no purpose,” she said, “for the Winged Monkeys
3873 | cannot help me.”
3874 |
3875 | “It is certainly too bad!” said the tender-hearted Woodman.
3876 |
3877 | The Scarecrow was thinking again, and his head bulged out so horribly
3878 | that Dorothy feared it would burst.
3879 |
3880 | “Let us call in the soldier with the green whiskers,” he said, “and ask
3881 | his advice.”
3882 |
3883 | So the soldier was summoned and entered the Throne Room timidly, for
3884 | while Oz was alive he never was allowed to come farther than the door.
3885 |
3886 | “This little girl,” said the Scarecrow to the soldier, “wishes to cross
3887 | the desert. How can she do so?”
3888 |
3889 | “I cannot tell,” answered the soldier, “for nobody has ever crossed the
3890 | desert, unless it is Oz himself.”
3891 |
3892 | “Is there no one who can help me?” asked Dorothy earnestly.
3893 |
3894 | “Glinda might,” he suggested.
3895 |
3896 | “Who is Glinda?” inquired the Scarecrow.
3897 |
3898 | “The Witch of the South. She is the most powerful of all the Witches,
3899 | and rules over the Quadlings. Besides, her castle stands on the edge of
3900 | the desert, so she may know a way to cross it.”
3901 |
3902 | “Glinda is a Good Witch, isn’t she?” asked the child.
3903 |
3904 | “The Quadlings think she is good,” said the soldier, “and she is kind
3905 | to everyone. I have heard that Glinda is a beautiful woman, who knows
3906 | how to keep young in spite of the many years she has lived.”
3907 |
3908 | “How can I get to her castle?” asked Dorothy.
3909 |
3910 | “The road is straight to the South,” he answered, “but it is said to be
3911 | full of dangers to travelers. There are wild beasts in the woods, and a
3912 | race of queer men who do not like strangers to cross their country. For
3913 | this reason none of the Quadlings ever come to the Emerald City.”
3914 |
3915 | The soldier then left them and the Scarecrow said:
3916 |
3917 | “It seems, in spite of dangers, that the best thing Dorothy can do is
3918 | to travel to the Land of the South and ask Glinda to help her. For, of
3919 | course, if Dorothy stays here she will never get back to Kansas.”
3920 |
3921 | “You must have been thinking again,” remarked the Tin Woodman.
3922 |
3923 | “I have,” said the Scarecrow.
3924 |
3925 | “I shall go with Dorothy,” declared the Lion, “for I am tired of your
3926 | city and long for the woods and the country again. I am really a wild
3927 | beast, you know. Besides, Dorothy will need someone to protect her.”
3928 |
3929 | “That is true,” agreed the Woodman. “My axe may be of service to her;
3930 | so I also will go with her to the Land of the South.”
3931 |
3932 | “When shall we start?” asked the Scarecrow.
3933 |
3934 | “Are you going?” they asked, in surprise.
3935 |
3936 | “Certainly. If it wasn’t for Dorothy I should never have had brains.
3937 | She lifted me from the pole in the cornfield and brought me to the
3938 | Emerald City. So my good luck is all due to her, and I shall never
3939 | leave her until she starts back to Kansas for good and all.”
3940 |
3941 | “Thank you,” said Dorothy gratefully. “You are all very kind to me. But
3942 | I should like to start as soon as possible.”
3943 |
3944 | “We shall go tomorrow morning,” returned the Scarecrow. “So now let us
3945 | all get ready, for it will be a long journey.”
3946 |
3947 |
3948 |
3949 |
3950 | Chapter XIX
3951 | Attacked by the Fighting Trees
3952 |
3953 |
3954 | The next morning Dorothy kissed the pretty green girl good-bye, and
3955 | they all shook hands with the soldier with the green whiskers, who had
3956 | walked with them as far as the gate. When the Guardian of the Gate saw
3957 | them again he wondered greatly that they could leave the beautiful City
3958 | to get into new trouble. But he at once unlocked their spectacles,
3959 | which he put back into the green box, and gave them many good wishes to
3960 | carry with them.
3961 |
3962 | “You are now our ruler,” he said to the Scarecrow; “so you must come
3963 | back to us as soon as possible.”
3964 |
3965 | “I certainly shall if I am able,” the Scarecrow replied; “but I must
3966 | help Dorothy to get home, first.”
3967 |
3968 | As Dorothy bade the good-natured Guardian a last farewell she said:
3969 |
3970 | “I have been very kindly treated in your lovely City, and everyone has
3971 | been good to me. I cannot tell you how grateful I am.”
3972 |
3973 | “Don’t try, my dear,” he answered. “We should like to keep you with us,
3974 | but if it is your wish to return to Kansas, I hope you will find a
3975 | way.” He then opened the gate of the outer wall, and they walked forth
3976 | and started upon their journey.
3977 |
3978 | The sun shone brightly as our friends turned their faces toward the
3979 | Land of the South. They were all in the best of spirits, and laughed
3980 | and chatted together. Dorothy was once more filled with the hope of
3981 | getting home, and the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman were glad to be of
3982 | use to her. As for the Lion, he sniffed the fresh air with delight and
3983 | whisked his tail from side to side in pure joy at being in the country
3984 | again, while Toto ran around them and chased the moths and butterflies,
3985 | barking merrily all the time.
3986 |
3987 | “City life does not agree with me at all,” remarked the Lion, as they
3988 | walked along at a brisk pace. “I have lost much flesh since I lived
3989 | there, and now I am anxious for a chance to show the other beasts how
3990 | courageous I have grown.”
3991 |
3992 | They now turned and took a last look at the Emerald City. All they
3993 | could see was a mass of towers and steeples behind the green walls, and
3994 | high up above everything the spires and dome of the Palace of Oz.
3995 |
3996 | “Oz was not such a bad Wizard, after all,” said the Tin Woodman, as he
3997 | felt his heart rattling around in his breast.
3998 |
3999 | “He knew how to give me brains, and very good brains, too,” said the
4000 | Scarecrow.
4001 |
4002 | “If Oz had taken a dose of the same courage he gave me,” added the
4003 | Lion, “he would have been a brave man.”
4004 |
4005 | Dorothy said nothing. Oz had not kept the promise he made her, but he
4006 | had done his best, so she forgave him. As he said, he was a good man,
4007 | even if he was a bad Wizard.
4008 |
4009 | The first day’s journey was through the green fields and bright flowers
4010 | that stretched about the Emerald City on every side. They slept that
4011 | night on the grass, with nothing but the stars over them; and they
4012 | rested very well indeed.
4013 |
4014 | In the morning they traveled on until they came to a thick wood. There
4015 | was no way of going around it, for it seemed to extend to the right and
4016 | left as far as they could see; and, besides, they did not dare change
4017 | the direction of their journey for fear of getting lost. So they looked
4018 | for the place where it would be easiest to get into the forest.
4019 |
4020 | The Scarecrow, who was in the lead, finally discovered a big tree with
4021 | such wide-spreading branches that there was room for the party to pass
4022 | underneath. So he walked forward to the tree, but just as he came under
4023 | the first branches they bent down and twined around him, and the next
4024 | minute he was raised from the ground and flung headlong among his
4025 | fellow travelers.
4026 |
4027 | This did not hurt the Scarecrow, but it surprised him, and he looked
4028 | rather dizzy when Dorothy picked him up.
4029 |
4030 | “Here is another space between the trees,” called the Lion.
4031 |
4032 | “Let me try it first,” said the Scarecrow, “for it doesn’t hurt me to
4033 | get thrown about.” He walked up to another tree, as he spoke, but its
4034 | branches immediately seized him and tossed him back again.
4035 |
4036 | “This is strange,” exclaimed Dorothy. “What shall we do?”
4037 |
4038 | “The trees seem to have made up their minds to fight us, and stop our
4039 | journey,” remarked the Lion.
4040 |
4041 | “I believe I will try it myself,” said the Woodman, and shouldering his
4042 | axe, he marched up to the first tree that had handled the Scarecrow so
4043 | roughly. When a big branch bent down to seize him the Woodman chopped
4044 | at it so fiercely that he cut it in two. At once the tree began shaking
4045 | all its branches as if in pain, and the Tin Woodman passed safely under
4046 | it.
4047 |
4048 | “Come on!” he shouted to the others. “Be quick!” They all ran forward
4049 | and passed under the tree without injury, except Toto, who was caught
4050 | by a small branch and shaken until he howled. But the Woodman promptly
4051 | chopped off the branch and set the little dog free.
4052 |
4053 | The other trees of the forest did nothing to keep them back, so they
4054 | made up their minds that only the first row of trees could bend down
4055 | their branches, and that probably these were the policemen of the
4056 | forest, and given this wonderful power in order to keep strangers out
4057 | of it.
4058 |
4059 | The four travelers walked with ease through the trees until they came
4060 | to the farther edge of the wood. Then, to their surprise, they found
4061 | before them a high wall which seemed to be made of white china. It was
4062 | smooth, like the surface of a dish, and higher than their heads.
4063 |
4064 | “What shall we do now?” asked Dorothy.
4065 |
4066 | “I will make a ladder,” said the Tin Woodman, “for we certainly must
4067 | climb over the wall.”
4068 |
4069 |
4070 |
4071 |
4072 | Chapter XX
4073 | The Dainty China Country
4074 |
4075 |
4076 | While the Woodman was making a ladder from wood which he found in the
4077 | forest Dorothy lay down and slept, for she was tired by the long walk.
4078 | The Lion also curled himself up to sleep and Toto lay beside him.
4079 |
4080 | The Scarecrow watched the Woodman while he worked, and said to him:
4081 |
4082 | “I cannot think why this wall is here, nor what it is made of.”
4083 |
4084 | “Rest your brains and do not worry about the wall,” replied the
4085 | Woodman. “When we have climbed over it, we shall know what is on the
4086 | other side.”
4087 |
4088 | After a time the ladder was finished. It looked clumsy, but the Tin
4089 | Woodman was sure it was strong and would answer their purpose. The
4090 | Scarecrow waked Dorothy and the Lion and Toto, and told them that the
4091 | ladder was ready. The Scarecrow climbed up the ladder first, but he was
4092 | so awkward that Dorothy had to follow close behind and keep him from
4093 | falling off. When he got his head over the top of the wall the
4094 | Scarecrow said, “Oh, my!”
4095 |
4096 | “Go on,” exclaimed Dorothy.
4097 |
4098 | So the Scarecrow climbed farther up and sat down on the top of the
4099 | wall, and Dorothy put her head over and cried, “Oh, my!” just as the
4100 | Scarecrow had done.
4101 |
4102 | Then Toto came up, and immediately began to bark, but Dorothy made him
4103 | be still.
4104 |
4105 | The Lion climbed the ladder next, and the Tin Woodman came last; but
4106 | both of them cried, “Oh, my!” as soon as they looked over the wall.
4107 | When they were all sitting in a row on the top of the wall, they looked
4108 | down and saw a strange sight.
4109 |
4110 | Before them was a great stretch of country having a floor as smooth and
4111 | shining and white as the bottom of a big platter. Scattered around were
4112 | many houses made entirely of china and painted in the brightest colors.
4113 | These houses were quite small, the biggest of them reaching only as
4114 | high as Dorothy’s waist. There were also pretty little barns, with
4115 | china fences around them; and many cows and sheep and horses and pigs
4116 | and chickens, all made of china, were standing about in groups.
4117 |
4118 | But the strangest of all were the people who lived in this queer
4119 | country. There were milkmaids and shepherdesses, with brightly colored
4120 | bodices and golden spots all over their gowns; and princesses with most
4121 | gorgeous frocks of silver and gold and purple; and shepherds dressed in
4122 | knee breeches with pink and yellow and blue stripes down them, and
4123 | golden buckles on their shoes; and princes with jeweled crowns upon
4124 | their heads, wearing ermine robes and satin doublets; and funny clowns
4125 | in ruffled gowns, with round red spots upon their cheeks and tall,
4126 | pointed caps. And, strangest of all, these people were all made of
4127 | china, even to their clothes, and were so small that the tallest of
4128 | them was no higher than Dorothy’s knee.
4129 |
4130 | No one did so much as look at the travelers at first, except one little
4131 | purple china dog with an extra-large head, which came to the wall and
4132 | barked at them in a tiny voice, afterwards running away again.
4133 |
4134 | “How shall we get down?” asked Dorothy.
4135 |
4136 | They found the ladder so heavy they could not pull it up, so the
4137 | Scarecrow fell off the wall and the others jumped down upon him so that
4138 | the hard floor would not hurt their feet. Of course they took pains not
4139 | to light on his head and get the pins in their feet. When all were
4140 | safely down they picked up the Scarecrow, whose body was quite
4141 | flattened out, and patted his straw into shape again.
4142 |
4143 | “We must cross this strange place in order to get to the other side,”
4144 | said Dorothy, “for it would be unwise for us to go any other way except
4145 | due South.”
4146 |
4147 | They began walking through the country of the china people, and the
4148 | first thing they came to was a china milkmaid milking a china cow. As
4149 | they drew near, the cow suddenly gave a kick and kicked over the stool,
4150 | the pail, and even the milkmaid herself, and all fell on the china
4151 | ground with a great clatter.
4152 |
4153 | Dorothy was shocked to see that the cow had broken her leg off, and
4154 | that the pail was lying in several small pieces, while the poor
4155 | milkmaid had a nick in her left elbow.
4156 |
4157 | “There!” cried the milkmaid angrily. “See what you have done! My cow
4158 | has broken her leg, and I must take her to the mender’s shop and have
4159 | it glued on again. What do you mean by coming here and frightening my
4160 | cow?”
4161 |
4162 | “I’m very sorry,” returned Dorothy. “Please forgive us.”
4163 |
4164 | But the pretty milkmaid was much too vexed to make any answer. She
4165 | picked up the leg sulkily and led her cow away, the poor animal limping
4166 | on three legs. As she left them the milkmaid cast many reproachful
4167 | glances over her shoulder at the clumsy strangers, holding her nicked
4168 | elbow close to her side.
4169 |
4170 | Dorothy was quite grieved at this mishap.
4171 |
4172 | “We must be very careful here,” said the kind-hearted Woodman, “or we
4173 | may hurt these pretty little people so they will never get over it.”
4174 |
4175 | A little farther on Dorothy met a most beautifully dressed young
4176 | Princess, who stopped short as she saw the strangers and started to run
4177 | away.
4178 |
4179 | Dorothy wanted to see more of the Princess, so she ran after her. But
4180 | the china girl cried out:
4181 |
4182 | “Don’t chase me! Don’t chase me!”
4183 |
4184 | She had such a frightened little voice that Dorothy stopped and said,
4185 | “Why not?”
4186 |
4187 | “Because,” answered the Princess, also stopping, a safe distance away,
4188 | “if I run I may fall down and break myself.”
4189 |
4190 | “But could you not be mended?” asked the girl.
4191 |
4192 | “Oh, yes; but one is never so pretty after being mended, you know,”
4193 | replied the Princess.
4194 |
4195 | “I suppose not,” said Dorothy.
4196 |
4197 | “Now there is Mr. Joker, one of our clowns,” continued the china lady,
4198 | “who is always trying to stand upon his head. He has broken himself so
4199 | often that he is mended in a hundred places, and doesn’t look at all
4200 | pretty. Here he comes now, so you can see for yourself.”
4201 |
4202 | Indeed, a jolly little clown came walking toward them, and Dorothy
4203 | could see that in spite of his pretty clothes of red and yellow and
4204 | green he was completely covered with cracks, running every which way
4205 | and showing plainly that he had been mended in many places.
4206 |
4207 | The Clown put his hands in his pockets, and after puffing out his
4208 | cheeks and nodding his head at them saucily, he said:
4209 |
4210 | “My lady fair,
4211 | Why do you stare
4212 | At poor old Mr. Joker?
4213 | You’re quite as stiff
4214 | And prim as if
4215 | You’d eaten up a poker!”
4216 |
4217 |
4218 | “Be quiet, sir!” said the Princess. “Can’t you see these are strangers,
4219 | and should be treated with respect?”
4220 |
4221 | “Well, that’s respect, I expect,” declared the Clown, and immediately
4222 | stood upon his head.
4223 |
4224 | “Don’t mind Mr. Joker,” said the Princess to Dorothy. “He is
4225 | considerably cracked in his head, and that makes him foolish.”
4226 |
4227 | “Oh, I don’t mind him a bit,” said Dorothy. “But you are so beautiful,”
4228 | she continued, “that I am sure I could love you dearly. Won’t you let
4229 | me carry you back to Kansas, and stand you on Aunt Em’s mantel? I could
4230 | carry you in my basket.”
4231 |
4232 | “That would make me very unhappy,” answered the china Princess. “You
4233 | see, here in our country we live contentedly, and can talk and move
4234 | around as we please. But whenever any of us are taken away our joints
4235 | at once stiffen, and we can only stand straight and look pretty. Of
4236 | course that is all that is expected of us when we are on mantels and
4237 | cabinets and drawing-room tables, but our lives are much pleasanter
4238 | here in our own country.”
4239 |
4240 | “I would not make you unhappy for all the world!” exclaimed Dorothy.
4241 | “So I’ll just say good-bye.”
4242 |
4243 | “Good-bye,” replied the Princess.
4244 |
4245 | They walked carefully through the china country. The little animals and
4246 | all the people scampered out of their way, fearing the strangers would
4247 | break them, and after an hour or so the travelers reached the other
4248 | side of the country and came to another china wall.
4249 |
4250 | It was not so high as the first, however, and by standing upon the
4251 | Lion’s back they all managed to scramble to the top. Then the Lion
4252 | gathered his legs under him and jumped on the wall; but just as he
4253 | jumped, he upset a china church with his tail and smashed it all to
4254 | pieces.
4255 |
4256 | “That was too bad,” said Dorothy, “but really I think we were lucky in
4257 | not doing these little people more harm than breaking a cow’s leg and a
4258 | church. They are all so brittle!”
4259 |
4260 | “They are, indeed,” said the Scarecrow, “and I am thankful I am made of
4261 | straw and cannot be easily damaged. There are worse things in the world
4262 | than being a Scarecrow.”
4263 |
4264 |
4265 |
4266 |
4267 | Chapter XXI
4268 | The Lion Becomes the King of Beasts
4269 |
4270 |
4271 | After climbing down from the china wall the travelers found themselves
4272 | in a disagreeable country, full of bogs and marshes and covered with
4273 | tall, rank grass. It was difficult to walk without falling into muddy
4274 | holes, for the grass was so thick that it hid them from sight. However,
4275 | by carefully picking their way, they got safely along until they
4276 | reached solid ground. But here the country seemed wilder than ever, and
4277 | after a long and tiresome walk through the underbrush they entered
4278 | another forest, where the trees were bigger and older than any they had
4279 | ever seen.
4280 |
4281 | “This forest is perfectly delightful,” declared the Lion, looking
4282 | around him with joy. “Never have I seen a more beautiful place.”
4283 |
4284 | “It seems gloomy,” said the Scarecrow.
4285 |
4286 | “Not a bit of it,” answered the Lion. “I should like to live here all
4287 | my life. See how soft the dried leaves are under your feet and how rich
4288 | and green the moss is that clings to these old trees. Surely no wild
4289 | beast could wish a pleasanter home.”
4290 |
4291 | “Perhaps there are wild beasts in the forest now,” said Dorothy.
4292 |
4293 | “I suppose there are,” returned the Lion, “but I do not see any of them
4294 | about.”
4295 |
4296 | They walked through the forest until it became too dark to go any
4297 | farther. Dorothy and Toto and the Lion lay down to sleep, while the
4298 | Woodman and the Scarecrow kept watch over them as usual.
4299 |
4300 | When morning came, they started again. Before they had gone far they
4301 | heard a low rumble, as of the growling of many wild animals. Toto
4302 | whimpered a little, but none of the others was frightened, and they
4303 | kept along the well-trodden path until they came to an opening in the
4304 | wood, in which were gathered hundreds of beasts of every variety. There
4305 | were tigers and elephants and bears and wolves and foxes and all the
4306 | others in the natural history, and for a moment Dorothy was afraid. But
4307 | the Lion explained that the animals were holding a meeting, and he
4308 | judged by their snarling and growling that they were in great trouble.
4309 |
4310 | As he spoke several of the beasts caught sight of him, and at once the
4311 | great assemblage hushed as if by magic. The biggest of the tigers came
4312 | up to the Lion and bowed, saying:
4313 |
4314 | “Welcome, O King of Beasts! You have come in good time to fight our
4315 | enemy and bring peace to all the animals of the forest once more.”
4316 |
4317 | “What is your trouble?” asked the Lion quietly.
4318 |
4319 | “We are all threatened,” answered the tiger, “by a fierce enemy which
4320 | has lately come into this forest. It is a most tremendous monster, like
4321 | a great spider, with a body as big as an elephant and legs as long as a
4322 | tree trunk. It has eight of these long legs, and as the monster crawls
4323 | through the forest he seizes an animal with a leg and drags it to his
4324 | mouth, where he eats it as a spider does a fly. Not one of us is safe
4325 | while this fierce creature is alive, and we had called a meeting to
4326 | decide how to take care of ourselves when you came among us.”
4327 |
4328 | The Lion thought for a moment.
4329 |
4330 | “Are there any other lions in this forest?” he asked.
4331 |
4332 | “No; there were some, but the monster has eaten them all. And, besides,
4333 | they were none of them nearly so large and brave as you.”
4334 |
4335 | “If I put an end to your enemy, will you bow down to me and obey me as
4336 | King of the Forest?” inquired the Lion.
4337 |
4338 | “We will do that gladly,” returned the tiger; and all the other beasts
4339 | roared with a mighty roar: “We will!”
4340 |
4341 | “Where is this great spider of yours now?” asked the Lion.
4342 |
4343 | “Yonder, among the oak trees,” said the tiger, pointing with his
4344 | forefoot.
4345 |
4346 | “Take good care of these friends of mine,” said the Lion, “and I will
4347 | go at once to fight the monster.”
4348 |
4349 | He bade his comrades good-bye and marched proudly away to do battle
4350 | with the enemy.
4351 |
4352 | The great spider was lying asleep when the Lion found him, and it
4353 | looked so ugly that its foe turned up his nose in disgust. Its legs
4354 | were quite as long as the tiger had said, and its body covered with
4355 | coarse black hair. It had a great mouth, with a row of sharp teeth a
4356 | foot long; but its head was joined to the pudgy body by a neck as
4357 | slender as a wasp’s waist. This gave the Lion a hint of the best way to
4358 | attack the creature, and as he knew it was easier to fight it asleep
4359 | than awake, he gave a great spring and landed directly upon the
4360 | monster’s back. Then, with one blow of his heavy paw, all armed with
4361 | sharp claws, he knocked the spider’s head from its body. Jumping down,
4362 | he watched it until the long legs stopped wiggling, when he knew it was
4363 | quite dead.
4364 |
4365 | The Lion went back to the opening where the beasts of the forest were
4366 | waiting for him and said proudly:
4367 |
4368 | “You need fear your enemy no longer.”
4369 |
4370 | Then the beasts bowed down to the Lion as their King, and he promised
4371 | to come back and rule over them as soon as Dorothy was safely on her
4372 | way to Kansas.
4373 |
4374 |
4375 |
4376 |
4377 | Chapter XXII
4378 | The Country of the Quadlings
4379 |
4380 |
4381 | The four travelers passed through the rest of the forest in safety, and
4382 | when they came out from its gloom saw before them a steep hill, covered
4383 | from top to bottom with great pieces of rock.
4384 |
4385 | “That will be a hard climb,” said the Scarecrow, “but we must get over
4386 | the hill, nevertheless.”
4387 |
4388 | So he led the way and the others followed. They had nearly reached the
4389 | first rock when they heard a rough voice cry out, “Keep back!”
4390 |
4391 | “Who are you?” asked the Scarecrow.
4392 |
4393 | Then a head showed itself over the rock and the same voice said, “This
4394 | hill belongs to us, and we don’t allow anyone to cross it.”
4395 |
4396 | “But we must cross it,” said the Scarecrow. “We’re going to the country
4397 | of the Quadlings.”
4398 |
4399 | “But you shall not!” replied the voice, and there stepped from behind
4400 | the rock the strangest man the travelers had ever seen.
4401 |
4402 | He was quite short and stout and had a big head, which was flat at the
4403 | top and supported by a thick neck full of wrinkles. But he had no arms
4404 | at all, and, seeing this, the Scarecrow did not fear that so helpless a
4405 | creature could prevent them from climbing the hill. So he said, “I’m
4406 | sorry not to do as you wish, but we must pass over your hill whether
4407 | you like it or not,” and he walked boldly forward.
4408 |
4409 | As quick as lightning the man’s head shot forward and his neck
4410 | stretched out until the top of the head, where it was flat, struck the
4411 | Scarecrow in the middle and sent him tumbling, over and over, down the
4412 | hill. Almost as quickly as it came the head went back to the body, and
4413 | the man laughed harshly as he said, “It isn’t as easy as you think!”
4414 |
4415 | A chorus of boisterous laughter came from the other rocks, and Dorothy
4416 | saw hundreds of the armless Hammer-Heads upon the hillside, one behind
4417 | every rock.
4418 |
4419 | The Lion became quite angry at the laughter caused by the Scarecrow’s
4420 | mishap, and giving a loud roar that echoed like thunder, he dashed up
4421 | the hill.
4422 |
4423 | Again a head shot swiftly out, and the great Lion went rolling down the
4424 | hill as if he had been struck by a cannon ball.
4425 |
4426 | Dorothy ran down and helped the Scarecrow to his feet, and the Lion
4427 | came up to her, feeling rather bruised and sore, and said, “It is
4428 | useless to fight people with shooting heads; no one can withstand
4429 | them.”
4430 |
4431 | “What can we do, then?” she asked.
4432 |
4433 | “Call the Winged Monkeys,” suggested the Tin Woodman. “You have still
4434 | the right to command them once more.”
4435 |
4436 | “Very well,” she answered, and putting on the Golden Cap she uttered
4437 | the magic words. The Monkeys were as prompt as ever, and in a few
4438 | moments the entire band stood before her.
4439 |
4440 | “What are your commands?” inquired the King of the Monkeys, bowing low.
4441 |
4442 | “Carry us over the hill to the country of the Quadlings,” answered the
4443 | girl.
4444 |
4445 | “It shall be done,” said the King, and at once the Winged Monkeys
4446 | caught the four travelers and Toto up in their arms and flew away with
4447 | them. As they passed over the hill the Hammer-Heads yelled with
4448 | vexation, and shot their heads high in the air, but they could not
4449 | reach the Winged Monkeys, which carried Dorothy and her comrades safely
4450 | over the hill and set them down in the beautiful country of the
4451 | Quadlings.
4452 |
4453 | “This is the last time you can summon us,” said the leader to Dorothy;
4454 | “so good-bye and good luck to you.”
4455 |
4456 | “Good-bye, and thank you very much,” returned the girl; and the Monkeys
4457 | rose into the air and were out of sight in a twinkling.
4458 |
4459 | The country of the Quadlings seemed rich and happy. There was field
4460 | upon field of ripening grain, with well-paved roads running between,
4461 | and pretty rippling brooks with strong bridges across them. The fences
4462 | and houses and bridges were all painted bright red, just as they had
4463 | been painted yellow in the country of the Winkies and blue in the
4464 | country of the Munchkins. The Quadlings themselves, who were short and
4465 | fat and looked chubby and good-natured, were dressed all in red, which
4466 | showed bright against the green grass and the yellowing grain.
4467 |
4468 | The Monkeys had set them down near a farmhouse, and the four travelers
4469 | walked up to it and knocked at the door. It was opened by the farmer’s
4470 | wife, and when Dorothy asked for something to eat the woman gave them
4471 | all a good dinner, with three kinds of cake and four kinds of cookies,
4472 | and a bowl of milk for Toto.
4473 |
4474 | “How far is it to the Castle of Glinda?” asked the child.
4475 |
4476 | “It is not a great way,” answered the farmer’s wife. “Take the road to
4477 | the South and you will soon reach it.”
4478 |
4479 | Thanking the good woman, they started afresh and walked by the fields
4480 | and across the pretty bridges until they saw before them a very
4481 | beautiful Castle. Before the gates were three young girls, dressed in
4482 | handsome red uniforms trimmed with gold braid; and as Dorothy
4483 | approached, one of them said to her:
4484 |
4485 | “Why have you come to the South Country?”
4486 |
4487 | “To see the Good Witch who rules here,” she answered. “Will you take me
4488 | to her?”
4489 |
4490 | “Let me have your name, and I will ask Glinda if she will receive you.”
4491 | They told who they were, and the girl soldier went into the Castle.
4492 | After a few moments she came back to say that Dorothy and the others
4493 | were to be admitted at once.
4494 |
4495 |
4496 |
4497 |
4498 | Chapter XXIII
4499 | Glinda The Good Witch Grants Dorothy’s Wish
4500 |
4501 |
4502 | Before they went to see Glinda, however, they were taken to a room of
4503 | the Castle, where Dorothy washed her face and combed her hair, and the
4504 | Lion shook the dust out of his mane, and the Scarecrow patted himself
4505 | into his best shape, and the Woodman polished his tin and oiled his
4506 | joints.
4507 |
4508 | When they were all quite presentable they followed the soldier girl
4509 | into a big room where the Witch Glinda sat upon a throne of rubies.
4510 |
4511 | She was both beautiful and young to their eyes. Her hair was a rich red
4512 | in color and fell in flowing ringlets over her shoulders. Her dress was
4513 | pure white but her eyes were blue, and they looked kindly upon the
4514 | little girl.
4515 |
4516 | “What can I do for you, my child?” she asked.
4517 |
4518 | Dorothy told the Witch all her story: how the cyclone had brought her
4519 | to the Land of Oz, how she had found her companions, and of the
4520 | wonderful adventures they had met with.
4521 |
4522 | “My greatest wish now,” she added, “is to get back to Kansas, for Aunt
4523 | Em will surely think something dreadful has happened to me, and that
4524 | will make her put on mourning; and unless the crops are better this
4525 | year than they were last, I am sure Uncle Henry cannot afford it.”
4526 |
4527 | Glinda leaned forward and kissed the sweet, upturned face of the loving
4528 | little girl.
4529 |
4530 | “Bless your dear heart,” she said, “I am sure I can tell you of a way
4531 | to get back to Kansas.” Then she added, “But, if I do, you must give me
4532 | the Golden Cap.”
4533 |
4534 | “Willingly!” exclaimed Dorothy; “indeed, it is of no use to me now, and
4535 | when you have it you can command the Winged Monkeys three times.”
4536 |
4537 | “And I think I shall need their service just those three times,”
4538 | answered Glinda, smiling.
4539 |
4540 | Dorothy then gave her the Golden Cap, and the Witch said to the
4541 | Scarecrow, “What will you do when Dorothy has left us?”
4542 |
4543 | “I will return to the Emerald City,” he replied, “for Oz has made me
4544 | its ruler and the people like me. The only thing that worries me is how
4545 | to cross the hill of the Hammer-Heads.”
4546 |
4547 | “By means of the Golden Cap I shall command the Winged Monkeys to carry
4548 | you to the gates of the Emerald City,” said Glinda, “for it would be a
4549 | shame to deprive the people of so wonderful a ruler.”
4550 |
4551 | “Am I really wonderful?” asked the Scarecrow.
4552 |
4553 | “You are unusual,” replied Glinda.
4554 |
4555 | Turning to the Tin Woodman, she asked, “What will become of you when
4556 | Dorothy leaves this country?”
4557 |
4558 | He leaned on his axe and thought a moment. Then he said, “The Winkies
4559 | were very kind to me, and wanted me to rule over them after the Wicked
4560 | Witch died. I am fond of the Winkies, and if I could get back again to
4561 | the Country of the West, I should like nothing better than to rule over
4562 | them forever.”
4563 |
4564 | “My second command to the Winged Monkeys,” said Glinda “will be that
4565 | they carry you safely to the land of the Winkies. Your brain may not be
4566 | so large to look at as those of the Scarecrow, but you are really
4567 | brighter than he is—when you are well polished—and I am sure you will
4568 | rule the Winkies wisely and well.”
4569 |
4570 | Then the Witch looked at the big, shaggy Lion and asked, “When Dorothy
4571 | has returned to her own home, what will become of you?”
4572 |
4573 | “Over the hill of the Hammer-Heads,” he answered, “lies a grand old
4574 | forest, and all the beasts that live there have made me their King. If
4575 | I could only get back to this forest, I would pass my life very happily
4576 | there.”
4577 |
4578 | “My third command to the Winged Monkeys,” said Glinda, “shall be to
4579 | carry you to your forest. Then, having used up the powers of the Golden
4580 | Cap, I shall give it to the King of the Monkeys, that he and his band
4581 | may thereafter be free for evermore.”
4582 |
4583 | The Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman and the Lion now thanked the Good
4584 | Witch earnestly for her kindness; and Dorothy exclaimed:
4585 |
4586 | “You are certainly as good as you are beautiful! But you have not yet
4587 | told me how to get back to Kansas.”
4588 |
4589 | “Your Silver Shoes will carry you over the desert,” replied Glinda. “If
4590 | you had known their power you could have gone back to your Aunt Em the
4591 | very first day you came to this country.”
4592 |
4593 | “But then I should not have had my wonderful brains!” cried the
4594 | Scarecrow. “I might have passed my whole life in the farmer’s
4595 | cornfield.”
4596 |
4597 | “And I should not have had my lovely heart,” said the Tin Woodman. “I
4598 | might have stood and rusted in the forest till the end of the world.”
4599 |
4600 | “And I should have lived a coward forever,” declared the Lion, “and no
4601 | beast in all the forest would have had a good word to say to me.”
4602 |
4603 | “This is all true,” said Dorothy, “and I am glad I was of use to these
4604 | good friends. But now that each of them has had what he most desired,
4605 | and each is happy in having a kingdom to rule besides, I think I should
4606 | like to go back to Kansas.”
4607 |
4608 | “The Silver Shoes,” said the Good Witch, “have wonderful powers. And
4609 | one of the most curious things about them is that they can carry you to
4610 | any place in the world in three steps, and each step will be made in
4611 | the wink of an eye. All you have to do is to knock the heels together
4612 | three times and command the shoes to carry you wherever you wish to
4613 | go.”
4614 |
4615 | “If that is so,” said the child joyfully, “I will ask them to carry me
4616 | back to Kansas at once.”
4617 |
4618 | She threw her arms around the Lion’s neck and kissed him, patting his
4619 | big head tenderly. Then she kissed the Tin Woodman, who was weeping in
4620 | a way most dangerous to his joints. But she hugged the soft, stuffed
4621 | body of the Scarecrow in her arms instead of kissing his painted face,
4622 | and found she was crying herself at this sorrowful parting from her
4623 | loving comrades.
4624 |
4625 | Glinda the Good stepped down from her ruby throne to give the little
4626 | girl a good-bye kiss, and Dorothy thanked her for all the kindness she
4627 | had shown to her friends and herself.
4628 |
4629 | Dorothy now took Toto up solemnly in her arms, and having said one last
4630 | good-bye she clapped the heels of her shoes together three times,
4631 | saying:
4632 |
4633 | “Take me home to Aunt Em!”
4634 |
4635 |
4636 | Instantly she was whirling through the air, so swiftly that all she
4637 | could see or feel was the wind whistling past her ears.
4638 |
4639 | The Silver Shoes took but three steps, and then she stopped so suddenly
4640 | that she rolled over upon the grass several times before she knew where
4641 | she was.
4642 |
4643 | At length, however, she sat up and looked about her.
4644 |
4645 | “Good gracious!” she cried.
4646 |
4647 | For she was sitting on the broad Kansas prairie, and just before her
4648 | was the new farmhouse Uncle Henry built after the cyclone had carried
4649 | away the old one. Uncle Henry was milking the cows in the barnyard, and
4650 | Toto had jumped out of her arms and was running toward the barn,
4651 | barking furiously.
4652 |
4653 | Dorothy stood up and found she was in her stocking-feet. For the Silver
4654 | Shoes had fallen off in her flight through the air, and were lost
4655 | forever in the desert.
4656 |
4657 |
4658 |
4659 |
4660 | Chapter XXIV
4661 | Home Again
4662 |
4663 |
4664 | Aunt Em had just come out of the house to water the cabbages when she
4665 | looked up and saw Dorothy running toward her.
4666 |
4667 | “My darling child!” she cried, folding the little girl in her arms and
4668 | covering her face with kisses. “Where in the world did you come from?”
4669 |
4670 | “From the Land of Oz,” said Dorothy gravely. “And here is Toto, too.
4671 | And oh, Aunt Em! I’m so glad to be at home again!”
4672 |
```