The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Scarecrow of Oz, by L. Frank Baum

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Title: The Scarecrow of Oz

Author: L. Frank Baum

Posting Date: March 23, 2009 [EBook #957]
Release Date: June, 1997

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE SCARECROW OF OZ ***




Produced by Anthony Matonac.








THE SCARECROW of OZ


by

L. Frank Baum




  Dedicated to

  "The uplifters" of Los Angeles, California, in
  grateful appreciation of the pleasure I have derived
  from association with them, and in recognition of
  their sincere endeavor to uplift humanity through
  kindness, consideration and good-fellowship. They are
  big men--all of them--and all with the generous
  hearts of little children.

  L. Frank Baum





'TWIXT YOU AND ME

The Army of Children which besieged the Postoffice, conquered the
Postmen and delivered to me its imperious Commands, insisted that Trot
and Cap'n Bill be admitted to the Land of Oz, where Trot could enjoy
the society of Dorothy, Betsy Bobbin and Ozma, while the one-legged
sailor-man might become a comrade of the Tin Woodman, the Shaggy Man,
Tik-Tok and all the other quaint people who inhabit this wonderful
fairyland.

It was no easy task to obey this order and land Trot and Cap'n Bill
safely in Oz, as you will discover by reading this book. Indeed, it
required the best efforts of our dear old friend, the Scarecrow, to
save them from a dreadful fate on the journey; but the story leaves
them happily located in Ozma's splendid palace and Dorothy has promised
me that Button-Bright and the three girls are sure to encounter, in the
near future, some marvelous adventures in the Land of Oz, which I hope
to be permitted to relate to you in the next Oz Book.

Meantime, I am deeply grateful to my little readers for their continued
enthusiasm over the Oz stories, as evinced in the many letters they
send me, all of which are lovingly cherished. It takes more and more Oz
Books every year to satisfy the demands of old and new readers, and
there have been formed many "Oz Reading Societies," where the Oz Books
owned by different members are read aloud.  All this is very gratifying
to me and encourages me to write more stories. When the children have
had enough of them, I hope they will let me know, and then I'll try to
write something different.

L. Frank Baum
  "Royal Historian of Oz."
    "OZCOT"
      at HOLLYWOOD
        in CALIFORNIA, 1915.




LIST OF CHAPTERS

   1 - The Great Whirlpool
   2 - The Cavern Under the Sea
   3 - The Ork
   4 - Daylight at Last
   5 - The Little Old Man of the Island
   6 - The Flight of the Midgets
   7 - The Bumpy Man
   8 - Button-Bright is Lost, and Found Again
   9 - The Kingdom of Jinxland
  10 - Pon, the Gardener's Boy
  11 - The Wicked King and Googly-Goo
  12 - The Wooden-Legged Grass-Hopper
  13 - Glinda the Good and the Scarecrow of Oz
  14 - The Frozen Heart
  15 - Trot Meets the Scarecrow
  16 - Pon Summons the King to Surrender
  17 - The Ork Rescues Button-Bright
  18 - The Scarecrow Meets an Enemy
  19 - The Conquest of the Witch
  20 - Queen Gloria
  21 - Dorothy, Betsy and Ozma
  22 - The Waterfall
  23 - The Land of Oz
  24 - The Royal Reception




Chapter One

The Great Whirlpool


"Seems to me," said Cap'n Bill, as he sat beside Trot under the big
acacia tree, looking out over the blue ocean, "seems to me, Trot, as
how the more we know, the more we find we don't know."

"I can't quite make that out, Cap'n Bill," answered the little girl in
a serious voice, after a moment's thought, during which her eyes
followed those of the old sailor-man across the glassy surface of the
sea. "Seems to me that all we learn is jus' so much gained."

"I know; it looks that way at first sight," said the sailor, nodding
his head; "but those as knows the least have a habit of thinkin' they
know all there is to know, while them as knows the most admits what a
turr'ble big world this is. It's the knowing ones that realize one
lifetime ain't long enough to git more'n a few dips o' the oars of
knowledge."

Trot didn't answer. She was a very little girl, with big, solemn eyes
and an earnest, simple manner. Cap'n Bill had been her faithful
companion for years and had taught her almost everything she knew.

He was a wonderful man, this Cap'n Bill. Not so very old, although his
hair was grizzled--what there was of it. Most of his head was bald as
an egg and as shiny as oilcloth, and this made his big ears stick out
in a funny way. His eyes had a gentle look and were pale blue in color,
and his round face was rugged and bronzed. Cap'n Bill's left leg was
missing, from the knee down, and that was why the sailor no longer
sailed the seas. The wooden leg he wore was good enough to stump around
with on land, or even to take Trot out for a row or a sail on the
ocean, but when it came to "runnin' up aloft" or performing active
duties on shipboard, the old sailor was not equal to the task. The loss
of his leg had ruined his career and the old sailor found comfort in
devoting himself to the education and companionship of the little girl.

The accident to Cap'n Bill's leg bad happened at about the time Trot
was born, and ever since that he had lived with Trot's mother as "a
star boarder," having enough money saved up to pay for his weekly
"keep."  He loved the baby and often held her on his lap; her first
ride was on Cap'n Bill's shoulders, for she had no baby-carriage; and
when she began to toddle around, the child and the sailor became close
comrades and enjoyed many strange adventures together. It is said the
fairies had been present at Trot's birth and had marked her forehead
with their invisible mystic signs, so that she was able to see and do
many wonderful things.

The acacia tree was on top of a high bluff, but a path ran down the
bank in a zigzag way to the water's edge, where Cap'n Bill's boat was
moored to a rock by means of a stout cable. It had been a hot, sultry
afternoon, with scarcely a breath of air stirring, so Cap'n Bill and
Trot had been quietly sitting beneath the shade of the tree, waiting
for the sun to get low enough for them to take a row.

They had decided to visit one of the great caves which the waves had
washed out of the rocky coast during many years of steady effort. The
caves were a source of continual delight to both the girl and the
sailor, who loved to explore their awesome depths.

"I b'lieve, Cap'n," remarked Trot, at last, "that it's time for us to
start."

The old man cast a shrewd glance at the sky, the sea and the motionless
boat. Then he shook his head.

"Mebbe it's time, Trot," he answered, "but I don't jes' like the looks
o' things this afternoon."

"What's wrong?" she asked wonderingly.

"Can't say as to that. Things is too quiet to suit me, that's all. No
breeze, not a ripple a-top the water, nary a gull a-flyin' anywhere,
an' the end o' the hottest day o' the year. I ain't no weather-prophet,
Trot, but any sailor would know the signs is ominous."

"There's nothing wrong that I can see," said Trot.

"If there was a cloud in the sky even as big as my thumb, we might
worry about it; but--look, Cap'n!--the sky is as clear as can be."

He looked again and nodded.

"P'r'aps we can make the cave, all right," he agreed, not wishing to
disappoint her.  "It's only a little way out, an' we'll be on the
watch; so come along, Trot."

Together they descended the winding path to the beach. It was no
trouble for the girl to keep her footing on the steep way, but Cap'n
Bill, because of his wooden leg, had to hold on to rocks and roots now
and then to save himself from tumbling. On a level path he was as spry
as anyone, but to climb up hill or down required some care.

They reached the boat safely and while Trot was untying the rope Cap'n
Bill reached into a crevice of the rock and drew out several tallow
candles and a box of wax matches, which he thrust into the capacious
pockets of his "sou'wester."  This sou'wester was a short coat of
oilskin which the old sailor wore on all occasions--when he wore a coat
at all--and the pockets always contained a variety of objects, useful
and ornamental, which made even Trot wonder where they all came from
and why Cap'n Bill should treasure them. The jackknives--a big one and
a little one--the bits of cord, the fishhooks, the nails: these were
handy to have on certain occasions. But bits of shell, and tin boxes
with unknown contents, buttons, pincers, bottles of curious stones and
the like, seemed quite unnecessary to carry around. That was Cap'n
Bill's business, however, and now that he added the candles and the
matches to his collection Trot made no comment, for she knew these last
were to light their way through the caves. The sailor always rowed the
boat, for he handled the oars with strength and skill. Trot sat in the
stern and steered. The place where they embarked was a little bight or
circular bay, and the boat cut across a much larger bay toward a
distant headland where the caves were located, right at the water's
edge. They were nearly a mile from shore and about halfway across the
bay when Trot suddenly sat up straight and exclaimed: "What's that,
Cap'n?"

He stopped rowing and turned half around to look.

"That, Trot," he slowly replied, "looks to me mighty like a whirlpool."

"What makes it, Cap'n?"

"A whirl in the air makes the whirl in the water. I was afraid as we'd
meet with trouble, Trot. Things didn't look right. The air was too
still."

"It's coming closer," said the girl.

The old man grabbed the oars and began rowing with all his strength.

"'Tain't comin' closer to us, Trot," he gasped; "it's we that are
comin' closer to the whirlpool. The thing is drawin' us to it like a
magnet!"

Trot's sun-bronzed face was a little paler as she grasped the tiller
firmly and tried to steer the boat away; but she said not a word to
indicate fear.

The swirl of the water as they came nearer made a roaring sound that
was fearful to listen to. So fierce and powerful was the whirlpool that
it drew the surface of the sea into the form of a great basin, slanting
downward toward the center, where a big hole had been made in the
ocean--a hole with walls of water that were kept in place by the rapid
whirling of the air.

The boat in which Trot and Cap'n Bill were riding was just on the outer
edge of this saucer-like slant, and the old sailor knew very well that
unless he could quickly force the little craft away from the rushing
current they would soon be drawn into the great black hole that yawned
in the middle. So he exerted all his might and pulled as he had never
pulled before. He pulled so hard that the left oar snapped in two and
sent Cap'n Bill sprawling upon the bottom of the boat.

He scrambled up quickly enough and glanced over the side. Then he
looked at Trot, who sat quite still, with a serious, far-away look in
her sweet eyes. The boat was now speeding swiftly of its own accord,
following the line of the circular basin round and round and gradually
drawing nearer to the great hole in the center. Any further effort to
escape the whirlpool was useless, and realizing this fact Cap'n Bill
turned toward Trot and put an arm around her, as if to shield her from
the awful fate before them.  He did not try to speak, because the roar
of the waters would have drowned the sound of his voice.

These two faithful comrades had faced dangers before, but nothing to
equal that which now faced them. Yet Cap'n Bill, noting the look in
Trot's eyes and remembering how often she had been protected by unseen
powers, did not quite give way to despair.

The great hole in the dark water--now growing nearer and nearer--looked
very terrifying; but they were both brave enough to face it and await
the result of the adventure.




Chapter Two

The Cavern Under the Sea


The circles were so much smaller at the bottom of the basin, and the
boat moved so much more swiftly, that Trot was beginning to get dizzy
with the motion, when suddenly the boat made a leap and dived headlong
into the murky depths of the hole. Whirling like tops, but still
clinging together, the sailor and the girl were separated from their
boat and plunged down--down--down--into the farthermost recesses of the
great ocean.

At first their fall was swift as an arrow, but presently they seemed to
be going more moderately and Trot was almost sure that unseen arms were
about her, supporting her and protecting her. She could see nothing,
because the water filled her eyes and blurred her vision, but she clung
fast to Cap'n Bill's sou'wester, while other arms clung fast to her,
and so they gradually sank down and down until a full stop was made,
when they began to ascend again.

But it seemed to Trot that they were not rising straight to the surface
from where they had come. The water was no longer whirling them and
they seemed to be drawn in a slanting direction through still, cool
ocean depths. And then--in much quicker time than I have told it--up
they popped to the surface and were cast at full length upon a sandy
beach, where they lay choking and gasping for breath and wondering what
had happened to them.

Trot was the first to recover. Disengaging herself from Cap'n Bill's
wet embrace and sitting up, she rubbed the water from her eyes and then
looked around her.  A soft, bluish-green glow lighted the place, which
seemed to be a sort of cavern, for above and on either side of her were
rugged rocks. They had been cast upon a beach of clear sand, which
slanted upward from the pool of water at their feet--a pool which
doubtless led into the big ocean that fed it. Above the reach of the
waves of the pool were more rocks, and still more and more, into the
dim windings and recesses of which the glowing light from the water did
not penetrate.

The place looked grim and lonely, but Trot was thankful that she was
still alive and had suffered no severe injury during her trying
adventure under water. At her side Cap'n Bill was sputtering and
coughing, trying to get rid of the water he had swallowed. Both of them
were soaked through, yet the cavern was warm and comfortable and a
wetting did not dismay the little girl in the least.

She crawled up the slant of sand and gathered in her hand a bunch of
dried seaweed, with which she mopped the face of Cap'n Bill and cleared
the water from his eyes and ears. Presently the old man sat up and
stared at her intently. Then he nodded his bald head three times and
said in a gurgling voice:

"Mighty good, Trot; mighty good! We didn't reach Davy Jones's locker
that time, did we? Though why we didn't, an' why we're here, is more'n
I kin make out."

"Take it easy, Cap'n," she replied. "We're safe enough, I guess, at
least for the time being."

He squeezed the water out of the bottoms of his loose trousers and felt
of his wooden leg and arms and head, and finding he had brought all of
his person with him he gathered courage to examine closely their
surroundings.

"Where d'ye think we are, Trot?" he presently asked.

"Can't say, Cap'n. P'r'aps in one of our caves."

He shook his head. "No," said he, "I don't think that, at all.  The
distance we came up didn't seem half as far as the distance we went
down; an' you'll notice there ain't any outside entrance to this cavern
whatever. It's a reg'lar dome over this pool o' water, and unless
there's some passage at the back, up yonder, we're fast pris'ners."

Trot looked thoughtfully over her shoulder.

"When we're rested," she said, "we will crawl up there and see if
there's a way to get out."

Cap'n Bill reached in the pocket of his oilskin coat and took out his
pipe. It was still dry, for he kept it in an oilskin pouch with his
tobacco. His matches were in a tight tin box, so in a few moments the
old sailor was smoking contentedly. Trot knew it helped him to think
when he was in any difficulty. Also, the pipe did much to restore the
old sailor's composure, after his long ducking and his terrible
fright--a fright that was more on Trot's account than his own.

The sand was dry where they sat, and soaked up the water that dripped
from their clothing. When Trot had squeezed the wet out of her hair she
began to feel much like her old self again. By and by they got upon
their feet and crept up the incline to the scattered boulders above.
Some of these were of huge size, but by passing between some and around
others, they were able to reach the extreme rear of the cavern.

"Yes," said Trot, with interest, "here's a round hole."

"And it's black as night inside it," remarked Cap'n Bill.

"Just the same," answered the girl, "we ought to explore it, and see
where it goes, 'cause it's the only poss'ble way we can get out of this
place."

Cap'n Bill eyed the hole doubtfully

"It may be a way out o' here, Trot," he said, "but it may be a way into
a far worse place than this. I'm not sure but our best plan is to stay
right here."

Trot wasn't sure, either, when she thought of it in that light. After
awhile she made her way back to the sands again, and Cap'n Bill
followed her. As they sat down, the child looked thoughtfully at the
sailor's bulging pockets.

"How much food have we got, Cap'n?" she asked.

"Half a dozen ship's biscuits an' a hunk o' cheese," he replied. "Want
some now, Trot?"

She shook her head, saying:

"That ought to keep us alive 'bout three days if we're careful of it."

"Longer'n that, Trot," said Cap'n Bill, but his voice was a little
troubled and unsteady.

"But if we stay here we're bound to starve in time," continued the
girl, "while if we go into the dark hole--"

"Some things are more hard to face than starvation," said the
sailor-man, gravely. "We don't know what's inside that dark hole: Trot,
nor where it might lead us to."

"There's a way to find that out," she persisted.

Instead of replying, Cap'n Bill began searching in his pockets. He soon
drew out a little package of fish-hooks and a long line. Trot watched
him join them together. Then he crept a little way up the slope and
turned over a big rock. Two or three small crabs began scurrying away
over the sands and the old sailor caught them and put one on his hook
and the others in his pocket. Coming back to the pool he swung the hook
over his shoulder and circled it around his head and cast it nearly
into the center of the water, where he allowed it to sink gradually,
paying out the line as far as it would go. When the end was reached, he
began drawing it in again, until the crab bait was floating on the
surface.

Trot watched him cast the line a second time, and a third. She decided
that either there were no fishes in the pool or they would not bite the
crab bait. But Cap'n Bill was an old fisherman and not easily
discouraged. When the crab got away he put another on the hook. When
the crabs were all gone he climbed up the rocks and found some more.

Meantime Trot tired of watching him and lay down upon the sands, where
she fell fast asleep. During the next two hours her clothing dried
completely, as did that of the old sailor. They were both so used to
salt water that there was no danger of taking cold.

Finally the little girl was wakened by a splash beside her and a grunt
of satisfaction from Cap'n Bill. She opened her eyes to find that the
Cap'n had landed a silver-scaled fish weighing about two pounds. This
cheered her considerably and she hurried to scrape together a heap of
seaweed, while Cap'n Bill cut up the fish with his jackknife and got it
ready for cooking.

They had cooked fish with seaweed before. Cap'n Bill wrapped his fish
in some of the weed and dipped it in the water to dampen it. Then he
lighted a match and set fire to Trot's heap, which speedily burned down
to a glowing bed of ashes. Then they laid the wrapped fish on the
ashes, covered it with more seaweed, and allowed this to catch fire and
burn to embers. After feeding the fire with seaweed for some time, the
sailor finally decided that their supper was ready, so he scattered the
ashes and drew out the bits of fish, still encased in their smoking
wrappings.

When these wrappings were removed, the fish was found thoroughly cooked
and both Trot and Cap'n Bill ate of it freely. It had a slight flavor
of seaweed and would have been better with a sprinkling of salt.

The soft glow which until now had lighted the cavern, began to grow
dim, but there was a great quantity of seaweed in the place, so after
they had eaten their fish they kept the fire alive for a time by giving
it a handful of fuel now and then.

From an inner pocket the sailor drew a small flask of battered metal
and unscrewing the cap handed it to Trot.  She took but one swallow of
the water although she wanted more, and she noticed that Cap'n Bill
merely wet his lips with it.

"S'pose," said she, staring at the glowing seaweed fire and speaking
slowly, "that we can catch all the fish we need; how 'bout the
drinking-water, Cap'n?"

He moved uneasily but did not reply. Both of them were thinking about
the dark hole, but while Trot had little fear of it the old man could
not overcome his dislike to enter the place. He knew that Trot was
right, though. To remain in the cavern, where they now were, could only
result in slow but sure death.

It was nighttime up on the earth's surface, so the little girl became
drowsy and soon fell asleep. After a time the old sailor slumbered on
the sands beside her. It was very still and nothing disturbed them for
hours. When at last they awoke the cavern was light again.

They had divided one of the biscuits and were munching it for breakfast
when they were startled by a sudden splash in the pool. Looking toward
it they saw emerging from the water the most curious creature either of
them had ever beheld. It wasn't a fish, Trot decided, nor was it a
beast. It had wings, though, and queer wings they were: shaped like an
inverted chopping-bowl and covered with tough skin instead of feathers.
It had four legs--much like the legs of a stork, only double the
number--and its head was shaped a good deal like that of a poll parrot,
with a beak that curved downward in front and upward at the edges, and
was half bill and half mouth. But to call it a bird was out of the
question, because it had no feathers whatever except a crest of wavy
plumes of a scarlet color on the very top of its head. The strange
creature must have weighed as much as Cap'n Bill, and as it floundered
and struggled to get out of the water to the sandy beach it was so big
and unusual that both Trot and her companion stared at it in wonder--in
wonder that was not unmixed with fear.




Chapter Three

The Ork


The eyes that regarded them, as the creature stood dripping before
them, were bright and mild in expression, and the queer addition to
their party made no attempt to attack them and seemed quite as
surprised by the meeting as they were.

"I wonder," whispered Trot, "what it is."

"Who, me?" exclaimed the creature in a shrill, high-pitched voice.
"Why, I'm an Ork."

"Oh!" said the girl. "But what is an Ork?"

"I am," he repeated, a little proudly, as he shook the water from his
funny wings; "and if ever an Ork was glad to be out of the water and on
dry land again, you can be mighty sure that I'm that especial,
individual Ork!"

"Have you been in the water long?" inquired Cap'n Bill, thinking it
only polite to show an interest in the strange creature.

"Why, this last ducking was about ten minutes, I believe, and that's
about nine minutes and sixty seconds too long for comfort," was the
reply. "But last night I was in an awful pickle, I assure you. The
whirlpool caught me, and--"

"Oh, were you in the whirlpool, too?" asked Trot eagerly.

He gave her a glance that was somewhat reproachful.

"I believe I was mentioning the fact, young lady, when your desire to
talk interrupted me," said the Ork. "I am not usually careless in my
actions, but that whirlpool was so busy yesterday that I thought I'd
see what mischief it was up to. So I flew a little too near it and the
suction of the air drew me down into the depths of the ocean. Water and
I are natural enemies, and it would have conquered me this time had not
a bevy of pretty mermaids come to my assistance and dragged me away
from the whirling water and far up into a cavern, where they deserted
me."

"Why, that's about the same thing that happened to us," cried Trot.
"Was your cavern like this one?"

"I haven't examined this one yet," answered the Ork; "but if they
happen to be alike I shudder at our fate, for the other one was a
prison, with no outlet except by means of the water.  I stayed there
all night, however, and this morning I plunged into the pool, as far
down as I could go, and then swam as hard and as far as I could. The
rocks scraped my back, now and then, and I barely escaped the clutches
of an ugly sea-monster; but by and by I came to the surface to catch my
breath, and found myself here. That's the whole story, and as I see you
have something to eat I entreat you to give me a share of it. The truth
is, I'm half starved."

With these words the Ork squatted down beside them. Very reluctantly
Cap'n Bill drew another biscuit from his pocket and held it out. The
Ork promptly seized it in one of its front claws and began to nibble
the biscuit in much the same manner a parrot might have done.

"We haven't much grub," said the sailor-man, "but we're willin' to
share it with a comrade in distress."

"That's right," returned the Ork, cocking its head sidewise in a
cheerful manner, and then for a few minutes there was silence while
they all ate of the biscuits. After a while Trot said:

"I've never seen or heard of an Ork before. Are there many of you?"

"We are rather few and exclusive, I believe," was the reply. "In the
country where I was born we are the absolute rulers of all living
things, from ants to elephants."

"What country is that?" asked Cap'n Bill.

"Orkland."

"Where does it lie?"

"I don't know, exactly. You see, I have a restless nature, for some
reason, while all the rest of my race are quiet and contented Orks and
seldom stray far from home. From childhood days I loved to fly long
distances away, although father often warned me that I would get into
trouble by so doing.

"'It's a big world, Flipper, my son,' he would say, 'and I've heard
that in parts of it live queer two-legged creatures called Men, who war
upon all other living things and would have little respect for even an
Ork.'

"This naturally aroused my curiosity and after I had completed my
education and left school I decided to fly out into the world and try
to get a glimpse of the creatures called Men. So I left home without
saying good-bye, an act I shall always regret. Adventures were many, I
found. I sighted men several times, but have never before been so close
to them as now. Also I had to fight my way through the air, for I met
gigantic birds, with fluffy feathers all over them, which attacked me
fiercely. Besides, it kept me busy escaping from floating airships. In
my rambling I had lost all track of distance or direction, so that when
I wanted to go home I had no idea where my country was located. I've
now been trying to find it for several months and it was during one of
my flights over the ocean that I met the whirlpool and became its
victim."

Trot and Cap'n Bill listened to this recital with much interest, and
from the friendly tone and harmless appearance of the Ork they judged
he was not likely to prove so disagreeable a companion as at first they
had feared he might be.

The Ork sat upon its haunches much as a cat does, but used the
finger-like claws of its front legs almost as cleverly as if they were
hands. Perhaps the most curious thing about the creature was its tail,
or what ought to have been its tail. This queer arrangement of skin,
bones and muscle was shaped like the propellers used on boats and
airships, having fan-like surfaces and being pivoted to its body. Cap'n
Bill knew something of mechanics, and observing the propeller-like tail
of the Ork he said:

"I s'pose you're a pretty swift flyer?"

"Yes, indeed; the Orks are admitted to be Kings of the Air."

"Your wings don't seem to amount to much," remarked Trot.

"Well, they are not very big," admitted the Ork, waving the four hollow
skins gently to and fro, "but they serve to support my body in the air
while I speed along by means of my tail. Still, taken altogether, I'm
very handsomely formed, don't you think?"

Trot did not like to reply, but Cap'n Bill nodded gravely. "For an
Ork," said he, "you're a wonder. I've never seen one afore, but I can
imagine you're as good as any."

That seemed to please the creature and it began walking around the
cavern, making its way easily up the slope. While it was gone, Trot and
Cap'n Bill each took another sip from the water-flask, to wash down
their breakfast.

"Why, here's a hole--an exit--an outlet!" exclaimed the Ork from above.

"We know," said Trot. "We found it last night."

"Well, then, let's be off," continued the Ork, after sticking its head
into the black hole and sniffing once or twice. "The air seems fresh
and sweet, and it can't lead us to any worse place than this."

The girl and the sailor-man got up and climbed to the side of the Ork.

"We'd about decided to explore this hole before you came," explained
Cap'n Bill; "but it's a dangerous place to navigate in the dark, so
wait till I light a candle."

"What is a candle?" inquired the Ork.

"You'll see in a minute," said Trot.

The old sailor drew one of the candles from his right-side pocket and
the tin matchbox from his left-side pocket. When he lighted the match
the Ork gave a startled jump and eyed the flame suspiciously; but Cap'n
Bill proceeded to light the candle and the action interested the Ork
very much.

"Light," it said, somewhat nervously, "is valuable in a hole of this
sort. The candle is not dangerous, I hope?"

"Sometimes it burns your fingers," answered Trot, "but that's about the
worst it can do--'cept to blow out when you don't want it to."

Cap'n Bill shielded the flame with his hand and crept into the hole. It
wasn't any too big for a grown man, but after he had crawled a few feet
it grew larger.  Trot came close behind him and then the Ork followed.

"Seems like a reg'lar tunnel," muttered the sailor-man, who was
creeping along awkwardly because of his wooden leg. The rocks, too,
hurt his knees.

For nearly half an hour the three moved slowly along the tunnel, which
made many twists and turns and sometimes slanted downward and sometimes
upward. Finally Cap'n Bill stopped short, with an exclamation of
disappointment, and held the flickering candle far ahead to light the
scene.

"What's wrong?" demanded Trot, who could see nothing because the
sailor's form completely filled the hole.

"Why, we've come to the end of our travels, I guess," he replied.

"Is the hole blocked?" inquired the Ork.

"No; it's wuss nor that," replied Cap'n Bill sadly. "I'm on the edge of
a precipice. Wait a minute an' I'll move along and let you see for
yourselves. Be careful, Trot, not to fall."

Then he crept forward a little and moved to one side, holding the
candle so that the girl could see to follow him. The Ork came next and
now all three knelt on a narrow ledge of rock which dropped straight
away and left a huge black space which the tiny flame of the candle
could not illuminate.

"H-m!" said the Ork, peering over the edge; "this doesn't look very
promising, I'll admit. But let me take your candle, and I'll fly down
and see what's below us."

"Aren't you afraid?" asked Trot.

"Certainly I'm afraid," responded the Ork. "But if we intend to escape
we can't stay on this shelf forever. So, as I notice you poor creatures
cannot fly, it is my duty to explore the place for you."

Cap'n Bill handed the Ork the candle, which had now burned to about
half its length. The Ork took it in one claw rather cautiously and then
tipped its body forward and slipped over the edge. They heard a queer
buzzing sound, as the tail revolved, and a brisk flapping of the
peculiar wings, but they were more interested just then in following
with their eyes the tiny speck of light which marked the location of
the candle. This light first made a great circle, then dropped slowly
downward and suddenly was extinguished, leaving everything before them
black as ink.

"Hi, there! How did that happen?" cried the Ork.

"It blew out, I guess," shouted Cap'n Bill. "Fetch it here."

"I can't see where you are," said the Ork.

So Cap'n Bill got out another candle and lighted it, and its flame
enabled the Ork to fly back to them. It alighted on the edge and held
out the bit of candle.

"What made it stop burning?" asked the creature.

"The wind," said Trot. "You must be more careful, this time."

"What's the place like?" inquired Cap'n Bill.

"I don't know, yet; but there must be a bottom to it, so I'll try to
find it."

With this the Ork started out again and this time sank downward more
slowly. Down, down, down it went, till the candle was a mere spark, and
then it headed away to the left and Trot and Cap'n Bill lost all sight
of it.

In a few minutes, however, they saw the spark of light again, and as
the sailor still held the second lighted candle the Ork made straight
toward them. It was only a few yards distant when suddenly it dropped
the candle with a cry of pain and next moment alighted, fluttering
wildly, upon the rocky ledge.

"What's the matter?" asked Trot.

"It bit me!" wailed the Ork. "I don't like your candles. The thing
began to disappear slowly as soon as I took it in my claw, and it grew
smaller and smaller until just now it turned and bit me--a most
unfriendly thing to do. Oh--oh! Ouch, what a bite!"

"That's the nature of candles, I'm sorry to say," explained Cap'n Bill,
with a grin. "You have to handle 'em mighty keerful. But tell us, what
did you find down there?"

"I found a way to continue our journey," said the Ork, nursing tenderly
the claw which had been burned. "Just below us is a great lake of black
water, which looked so cold and wicked that it made me shudder; but
away at the left there's a big tunnel, which we can easily walk
through. I don't know where it leads to, of course, but we must follow
it and find out." "why, we can't get to it," protested the little girl.
"We can't fly, as you do, you must remember."

"No, that's true," replied the Ork musingly. "Your bodies are built
very poorly, it seems to me, since all you can do is crawl upon the
earth's surface. But you may ride upon my back, and in that way I can
promise you a safe journey to the tunnel."

"Are you strong enough to carry us?" asked Cap'n Bill, doubtfully.

"Yes, indeed; I'm strong enough to carry a dozen of you, if you could
find a place to sit," was the reply; "but there's only room between my
wings for one at a time, so I'll have to make two trips."

"All right; I'll go first," decided Cap'n Bill.

He lit another candle for Trot to hold while they were gone and to
light the Ork on his return to her, and then the old sailor got upon
the Ork's back, where he sat with his wooden leg sticking straight out
sidewise.

"If you start to fall, clasp your arms around my neck," advised the
creature.

"If I start to fall, it's good night an' pleasant dreams," said Cap'n
Bill.

"All ready?" asked the Ork.

"Start the buzz-tail," said Cap'n Bill, with a tremble in his voice.
But the Ork flew away so gently that the old man never even tottered in
his seat. Trot watched the light of Cap'n Bill's candle till it
disappeared in the far distance. She didn't like to be left alone on
this dangerous ledge, with a lake of black water hundreds of feet below
her; but she was a brave little girl and waited patiently for the
return of the Ork. It came even sooner than she had expected and the
creature said to her:

"Your friend is safe in the tunnel. Now, then, get aboard and I'll
carry you to him in a jiffy."

I'm sure not many little girls would have cared to take that awful ride
through the huge black cavern on the back of a skinny Ork. Trot didn't
care for it, herself, but it just had to be done and so she did it as
courageously as possible. Her heart beat fast and she was so nervous
she could scarcely hold the candle in her fingers as the Ork sped
swiftly through the darkness.

It seemed like a long ride to her, yet in reality the Ork covered the
distance in a wonderfully brief period of time and soon Trot stood
safely beside Cap'n Bill on the level floor of a big arched tunnel. The
sailor-man was very glad to greet his little comrade again and both
were grateful to the Ork for his assistance.

"I dunno where this tunnel leads to," remarked Cap'n Bill, "but it
surely looks more promisin' than that other hole we crept through."

"When the Ork is rested," said Trot, "we'll travel on and see what
happens."

"Rested!" cried the Ork, as scornfully as his shrill voice would allow.
"That bit of flying didn't tire me at all. I'm used to flying days at a
time, without ever once stopping."

"Then let's move on," proposed Cap'n Bill. He still held in his hand
one lighted candle, so Trot blew out the other flame and placed her
candle in the sailor's big pocket. She knew it was not wise to burn two
candles at once.

The tunnel was straight and smooth and very easy to walk through, so
they made good progress. Trot thought that the tunnel began about two
miles from the cavern where they had been cast by the whirlpool, but
now it was impossible to guess the miles traveled, for they walked
steadily for hours and hours without any change in their surroundings.

Finally Cap'n Bill stopped to rest.

"There's somethin' queer about this 'ere tunnel, I'm certain," he
declared, wagging his head dolefully. "Here's three candles gone
a'ready, an' only three more left us, yet the tunnel's the same as it
was when we started. An' how long it's goin' to keep up, no one knows."

"Couldn't we walk without a light?" asked Trot. "The way seems safe
enough."

"It does right now," was the reply, "but we can't tell when we are
likely to come to another gulf, or somethin' jes' as dangerous. In that
case we'd be killed afore we knew it."

"Suppose I go ahead?" suggested the Ork.  "I don't fear a fall, you
know, and if anything happens I'll call out and warn you."

"That's a good idea," declared Trot, and Cap'n Bill thought so, too. So
the Ork started off ahead, quite in the dark, and hand in band the two
followed him.

When they had walked in this way for a good long time the Ork halted
and demanded food. Cap'n Bill had not mentioned food because there was
so little left--only three biscuits and a lump of cheese about as big
as his two fingers--but he gave the Ork half of a biscuit, sighing as
he did so. The creature didn't care for the cheese, so the sailor
divided it between himself and Trot. They lighted a candle and sat down
in the tunnel while they ate.

"My feet hurt me," grumbled the Ork.  "I'm not used to walking and this
rocky passage is so uneven and lumpy that it hurts me to walk upon it."

"Can't you fly along?" asked Trot.

"No; the roof is too low," said the Ork.

After the meal they resumed their journey, which Trot began to fear
would never end. When Cap'n Bill noticed how tired the little girl was,
he paused and lighted a match and looked at his big silver watch.

"Why, it's night!" he exclaimed. "We've tramped all day, an' still
we're in this awful passage, which mebbe goes straight through the
middle of the world, an' mebbe is a circle--in which case we can keep
walkin' till doomsday. Not knowin' what's before us so well as we know
what's behind us, I propose we make a stop, now, an' try to sleep till
mornin'."

"That will suit me," asserted the Ork, with a groan. "My feet are
hurting me dreadfully and for the last few miles I've been limping with
pain."

"My foot hurts, too," said the sailor, looking for a smooth place on
the rocky floor to sit down.

"Your foot!" cried the Ork. "why, you've only one to hurt you, while I
have four. So I suffer four times as much as you possibly can. Here;
hold the candle while I look at the bottoms of my claws. I declare," he
said, examining them by the flickering light, "there are bunches of
pain all over them!"

"P'r'aps," said Trot, who was very glad to sit down beside her
companions, "you've got corns."

"Corns? Nonsense! Orks never have corns," protested the creature,
rubbing its sore feet tenderly.

"Then mebbe they're--they're-- What do you call 'em, Cap'n Bill?
Something 'bout the Pilgrim's Progress, you know."

"Bunions," said Cap'n Bill.

"Oh, yes; mebbe you've got bunions."

"It is possible," moaned the Ork.  "But whatever they are, another day
of such walking on them would drive me crazy."

"I'm sure they'll feel better by mornin'," said Cap'n Bill,
encouragingly. "Go to sleep an' try to forget your sore feet."

The Ork cast a reproachful look at the sailor-man, who didn't see it.
Then the creature asked plaintively: "Do we eat now, or do we starve?"

"There's only half a biscuit left for you," answered Cap'n Bill. "No
one knows how long we'll have to stay in this dark tunnel, where
there's nothing whatever to eat; so I advise you to save that morsel o'
food till later."

"Give it me now!" demanded the Ork. "If I'm going to starve, I'll do it
all at once--not by degrees."

Cap'n Bill produced the biscuit and the creature ate it in a trice.
Trot was rather hungry and whispered to Cap'n Bill that she'd take part
of her share; but the old man secretly broke his own half-biscuit in
two, saving Trot's share for a time of greater need.

He was beginning to be worried over the little girl's plight and long
after she was asleep and the Ork was snoring in a rather disagreeable
manner, Cap'n Bill sat with his back to a rock and smoked his pipe and
tried to think of some way to escape from this seemingly endless
tunnel. But after a time he also slept, for hobbling on a wooden leg
all day was tiresome, and there in the dark slumbered the three
adventurers for many hours, until the Ork roused itself and kicked the
old sailor with one foot.

"It must be another day," said he.




Chapter Four

Daylight at Last


Cap'n Bill rubbed his eyes, lit a match and consulted his watch.

"Nine o'clock.  Yes, I guess it's another day, sure enough. Shall we go
on?" he asked.

"Of course," replied the Ork. "Unless this tunnel is different from
everything else in the world, and has no end, we'll find a way out of
it sooner or later."

The sailor gently wakened Trot. She felt much rested by her long sleep
and sprang to her feet eagerly.

"Let's start, Cap'n," was all she said.

They resumed the journey and had only taken a few steps when the Ork
cried "Wow!" and made a great fluttering of its wings and whirling of
its tail. The others, who were following a short distance behind,
stopped abruptly.

"What's the matter?" asked Cap'n Bill.

"Give us a light," was the reply. "I think we've come to the end of the
tunnel." Then, while Cap'n Bill lighted a candle, the creature added:
"If that is true, we needn't have wakened so soon, for we were almost
at the end of this place when we went to sleep."

The sailor-man and Trot came forward with a light. A wall of rock
really faced the tunnel, but now they saw that the opening made a sharp
turn to the left. So they followed on, by a narrower passage, and then
made another sharp turn this time to the right.

"Blow out the light, Cap'n," said the Ork, in a pleased voice. "We've
struck daylight."

Daylight at last! A shaft of mellow light fell almost at their feet as
Trot and the sailor turned the corner of the passage, but it came from
above, and raising their eyes they found they were at the bottom of a
deep, rocky well, with the top far, far above their heads. And here the
passage ended.

For a while they gazed in silence, at least two of them being filled
with dismay at the sight. But the Ork merely whistled softly and said
cheerfully:

"That was the toughest journey I ever had the misfortune to undertake,
and I'm glad it's over. Yet, unless I can manage to fly to the top of
this pit, we are entombed here forever."

"Do you think there is room enough for you to fly in?" asked the little
girl anxiously; and Cap'n Bill added:

"It's a straight-up shaft, so I don't see how you'll ever manage it."

"Were I an ordinary bird--one of those horrid feathered things--I
wouldn't even make the attempt to fly out," said the Ork.  "But my
mechanical propeller tail can accomplish wonders, and whenever you're
ready I'll show you a trick that is worth while."

"Oh!" exclaimed Trot; "do you intend to take us up, too?"

"Why not?"

"I thought," said Cap'n Bill, "as you'd go first, an' then send
somebody to help us by lettin' down a rope."

"Ropes are dangerous," replied the Ork, "and I might not be able to
find one to reach all this distance. Besides, it stands to reason that
if I can get out myself I can also carry you two with me."

"Well, I'm not afraid," said Trot, who longed to be on the earth's
surface again.

"S'pose we fall?" suggested Cap'n Bill, doubtfully.

"Why, in that case we would all fall together," returned the Ork. "Get
aboard, little girl; sit across my shoulders and put both your arms
around my neck."

Trot obeyed and when she was seated on the Ork, Cap'n Bill inquired:

"How 'bout me, Mr. Ork?"

"Why, I think you'd best grab hold of my rear legs and let me carry you
up in that manner," was the reply.

Cap'n Bill looked way up at the top of the well, and then he looked at
the Ork's slender, skinny legs and heaved a deep sigh.

"It's goin' to be some dangle, I guess; but if you don't waste too much
time on the way up, I may be able to hang on," said he.

"All ready, then!" cried the Ork, and at once his whirling tail began
to revolve. Trot felt herself rising into the air; when the creature's
legs left the ground Cap'n Bill grasped two of them firmly and held on
for dear life.  The Ork's body was tipped straight upward, and Trot had
to embrace the neck very tightly to keep from sliding off. Even in this
position the Ork had trouble in escaping the rough sides of the well.
Several times it exclaimed "Wow!" as it bumped its back, or a wing hit
against some jagged projection; but the tail kept whirling with
remarkable swiftness and the daylight grew brighter and brighter. It
was, indeed, a long journey from the bottom to the top, yet almost
before Trot realized they had come so far, they popped out of the hole
into the clear air and sunshine and a moment later the Ork alighted
gently upon the ground.

The release was so sudden that even with the creature's care for its
passengers Cap'n Bill struck the earth with a shock that sent him
rolling heel over head; but by the time Trot had slid down from her
seat the old sailor-man was sitting up and looking around him with much
satisfaction.

"It's sort o' pretty here," said he.

"Earth is a beautiful place!" cried Trot.

"I wonder where on earth we are?" pondered the Ork, turning first one
bright eye and then the other to this side and that. Trees there were,
in plenty, and shrubs and flowers and green turf. But there were no
houses; there were no paths; there was no sign of civilization whatever.

"Just before I settled down on the ground I thought I caught a view of
the ocean," said the Ork. "Let's see if I was right." Then he flew to a
little hill, near by, and Trot and Cap'n Bill followed him more slowly.
When they stood on the top of the hill they could see the blue waves of
the ocean in front of them, to the right of them, and at the left of
them. Behind the hill was a forest that shut out the view.

"I hope it ain't an island, Trot," said Cap'n Bill gravely.

"If it is, I s'pose we're prisoners," she replied.

"Ezzackly so, Trot."

"But, 'even so, it's better than those terr'ble underground tunnels and
caverns," declared the girl.

"You are right, little one," agreed the Ork. "Anything above ground is
better than the best that lies under ground. So let's not quarrel with
our fate but be thankful we've escaped."

"We are, indeed!" she replied. "But I wonder if we can find something
to eat in this place?"

"Let's explore an' find out," proposed Cap'n Bill. "Those trees over at
the left look like cherry-trees."

On the way to them the explorers had to walk through a tangle of vines
and Cap'n Bill, who went first, stumbled and pitched forward on his
face.

"Why, it's a melon!" cried Trot delightedly, as she saw what had caused
the sailor to fall.

Cap'n Bill rose to his foot, for he was not at all hurt, and examined
the melon. Then he took his big jackknife from his pocket and cut the
melon open. It was quite ripe and looked delicious; but the old man
tasted it before he permitted Trot to eat any. Deciding it was good he
gave her a big slice and then offered the Ork some. The creature looked
at the fruit somewhat disdainfully, at first, but once he had tasted
its flavor he ate of it as heartily as did the others. Among the vines
they discovered many other melons, and Trot said gratefully: "Well,
there's no danger of our starving, even if this is an island."

"Melons," remarked Cap'n Bill, "are both food an' water. We couldn't
have struck anything better."

Farther on they came to the cherry trees, where they obtained some of
the fruit, and at the edge of the little forest were wild plums. The
forest itself consisted entirely of nut trees--walnuts, filberts,
almonds and chestnuts--so there would be plenty of wholesome food for
them while they remained there.

Cap'n Bill and Trot decided to walk through the forest, to discover
what was on the other side of it, but the Ork's feet were still so sore
and "lumpy" from walking on the rocks that the creature said he
preferred to fly over the tree-tops and meet them on the other side.
The forest was not large, so by walking briskly for fifteen minutes
they reached its farthest edge and saw before them the shore of the
ocean.

"It's an island, all right," said Trot, with a sigh.

"Yes, and a pretty island, too," said Cap'n Bill, trying to conceal his
disappointment on Trot's account. "I guess, partner, if the wuss comes
to the wuss, I could build a raft--or even a boat--from those trees,
so's we could sail away in it."

The little girl brightened at this suggestion. "I don't see the Ork
anywhere," she remarked, looking around. Then her eyes lighted upon
something and she exclaimed: "Oh, Cap'n Bill! Isn't that a house, over
there to the left?"

Cap'n Bill, looking closely, saw a shed-like structure built at one
edge of the forest.

"Seems like it, Trot. Not that I'd call it much of a house, but it's a
buildin', all right. Let's go over an' see if it's occypied."




Chapter Five

The Little Old Man of the Island


A few steps brought them to the shed, which was merely a roof of boughs
built over a square space, with some branches of trees fastened to the
sides to keep off the wind. The front was quite open and faced the sea,
and as our friends came nearer they observed a little man, with a long
pointed beard, sitting motionless on a stool and staring thoughtfully
out over the water.

"Get out of the way, please," he called in a fretful voice. "Can't you
see you are obstructing my view?"

"Good morning," said Cap'n Bill, politely.

"It isn't a good morning!" snapped the little man. "I've seen plenty of
mornings better than this.  Do you call it a good morning when I'm
pestered with such a crowd as you?"

Trot was astonished to hear such words from a stranger whom they had
greeted quite properly, and Cap'n Bill grew red at the little man's
rudeness. But the sailor said, in a quiet tone of voice:

"Are you the only one as lives on this 'ere island?"

"Your grammar's bad," was the reply. "But this is my own exclusive
island, and I'll thank you to get off it as soon as possible."

"We'd like to do that," said Trot, and then she and Cap'n Bill turned
away and walked down to the shore, to see if any other land was in
sight.

The little man rose and followed them, although both were now too
provoked to pay any attention to him.

"Nothin' in sight, partner," reported Cap'n Bill, shading his eyes with
his hand; "so we'll have to stay here for a time, anyhow. It isn't a
bad place, Trot, by any means."

"That's all you know about it!" broke in the little man. "The trees are
altogether too green and the rocks are harder than they ought to be. I
find the sand very grainy and the water dreadfully wet. Every breeze
makes a draught and the sun shines in the daytime, when there's no need
of it, and disappears just as soon as it begins to get dark. If you
remain here you'll find the island very unsatisfactory."

Trot turned to look at him, and her sweet face was grave and curious.

"I wonder who you are," she said.

"My name is Pessim," said he, with an air of pride. "I'm called the
Observer."

"Oh. What do you observe?" asked the little girl.

"Everything I see," was the reply, in a more surly tone. Then Pessim
drew back with a startled exclamation and looked at some footprints in
the sand. "Why, good gracious me!" he cried in distress.

"What's the matter now?" asked Cap'n Bill.

"Someone has pushed the earth in!  Don't you see it?

"It isn't pushed in far enough to hurt anything," said Trot, examining
the footprints.

"Everything hurts that isn't right," insisted the man. "If the earth
were pushed in a mile, it would be a great calamity, wouldn't it?"

"I s'pose so," admitted the little girl.

"Well, here it is pushed in a full inch!  That's a twelfth of a foot,
or a little more than a millionth part of a mile.  Therefore it is
one-millionth part of a calamity--Oh, dear! How dreadful!" said Pessim
in a wailing voice.

"Try to forget it, sir," advised Cap'n Bill, soothingly. "It's
beginning to rain. Let's get under your shed and keep dry."

"Raining!  Is it really raining?" asked Pessim, beginning to weep.

"It is," answered Cap'n Bill, as the drops began to descend, "and I
don't see any way to stop it--although I'm some observer myself."

"No; we can't stop it, I fear," said the man. "Are you very busy just
now?"

"I won't be after I get to the shed," replied the sailor-man.

"Then do me a favor, please," begged Pessim, walking briskly along
behind them, for they were hastening to the shed.

"Depends on what it is," said Cap'n Bill.

"I wish you would take my umbrella down to the shore and hold it over
the poor fishes till it stops raining. I'm afraid they'll get wet,"
said Pessim.

Trot laughed, but Cap'n Bill thought the little man was poking fun at
him and so he scowled upon Pessim in a way that showed he was angry.

They reached the shed before getting very wet, although the rain was
now coming down in big drops. The roof of the shed protected them and
while they stood watching the rainstorm something buzzed in and circled
around Pessim's head. At once the Observer began beating it away with
his hands, crying out:

"A bumblebee! A bumblebee! The queerest bumblebee I ever saw!"

Cap'n Bill and Trot both looked at it and the little girl said in
surprise:

"Dear me! It's a wee little Ork!"

"That's what it is, sure enough," exclaimed Cap'n Bill.

Really, it wasn't much bigger than a big bumblebee, and when it came
toward Trot she allowed it to alight on her shoulder.

"It's me, all right," said a very small voice in her ear; "but I'm in
an awful pickle, just the same!"

"What, are you our Ork, then?" demanded the girl, much amazed.

"No, I'm my own Ork. But I'm the only Ork you know," replied the tiny
creature.

"What's happened to you?" asked the sailor, putting his head close to
Trot's shoulder in order to hear the reply better. Pessim also put his
head close, and the Ork said:

"You will remember that when I left you I started to fly over the
trees, and just as I got to this side of the forest I saw a bush that
was loaded down with the most luscious fruit you can imagine.  The
fruit was about the size of a gooseberry and of a lovely lavender
color. So I swooped down and picked off one in my bill and ate it. At
once I began to grow small. I could feel myself shrinking, shrinking
away, and it frightened me terribly, so that I lighted on the ground to
think over what was happening. In a few seconds I had shrunk to the
size you now see me; but there I remained, getting no smaller, indeed,
but no larger. It is certainly a dreadful affliction! After I had
recovered somewhat from the shock I began to search for you. It is not
so easy to find one's way when a creature is so small, but fortunately
I spied you here in this shed and came to you at once."

Cap'n Bill and Trot were much astonished at this story and felt grieved
for the poor Ork, but the little man Pessim seemed to think it a good
joke. He began laughing when he heard the story and laughed until he
choked, after which he lay down on the ground and rolled and laughed
again, while the tears of merriment coursed down his wrinkled cheeks.

"Oh, dear! Oh, dear!" he finally gasped, sitting up and wiping his
eyes. "This is too rich! It's almost too joyful to be true."

"I don't see anything funny about it," remarked Trot indignantly.

"You would if you'd had my experience," said Pessim, getting upon his
feet and gradually resuming his solemn and dissatisfied expression of
countenance. "The same thing happened to me."

"Oh, did it?  And how did you happen to come to this island?" asked the
girl.

"I didn't come; the neighbors brought me," replied the little man, with
a frown at the recollection. "They said I was quarrelsome and
fault-finding and blamed me because I told them all the things that
went wrong, or never were right, and because I told them how things
ought to be. So they brought me here and left me all alone, saying that
if I quarreled with myself, no one else would be made unhappy. Absurd,
wasn't it?"

"Seems to me," said Cap'n Bill, "those neighbors did the proper thing."

"Well," resumed Pessim, "when I found myself King of this island I was
obliged to live upon fruits, and I found many fruits growing here that
I had never seen before. I tasted several and found them good and
wholesome. But one day I ate a lavender berry--as the Ork did--and
immediately I grew so small that I was scarcely two inches high. It was
a very unpleasant condition and like the Ork I became frightened. I
could not walk very well nor very far, for every lump of earth in my
way seemed a mountain, every blade of grass a tree and every grain of
sand a rocky boulder. For several days I stumbled around in an agony of
fear. Once a tree toad nearly gobbled me up, and if I ran out from the
shelter of the bushes the gulls and cormorants swooped down upon me.
Finally I decided to eat another berry and become nothing at all, since
life, to one as small as I was, had become a dreary nightmare.

"At last I found a small tree that I thought bore the same fruit as
that I had eaten. The berry was dark purple instead of light lavender,
but otherwise it was quite similar. Being unable to climb the tree, I
was obliged to wait underneath it until a sharp breeze arose and shook
the limbs so that a berry fell. Instantly I seized it and taking a last
view of the world--as I then thought--I ate the berry in a twinkling.
Then, to my surprise, I began to grow big again, until I became of my
former stature, and so I have since remained. Needless to say, I have
never eaten again of the lavender fruit, nor do any of the beasts or
birds that live upon this island eat it."

They had all three listened eagerly to this amazing tale, and when it
was finished the Ork exclaimed:

"Do you think, then, that the deep purple berry is the antidote for the
lavender one?"

"I'm sure of it," answered Pessim.

"Then lead me to the tree at once!" begged the Ork, "for this tiny form
I now have terrifies me greatly."

Pessim examined the Ork closely

"You are ugly enough as you are," said he. "Were you any larger you
might be dangerous."

"Oh, no," Trot assured him; "the Ork has been our good friend. Please
take us to the tree."

Then Pessim consented, although rather reluctantly. He led them to the
right, which was the east side of the island, and in a few minutes
brought them near to the edge of the grove which faced the shore of the
ocean. Here stood a small tree bearing berries of a deep purple color.
The fruit looked very enticing and Cap'n Bill reached up and selected
one that seemed especially plump and ripe.

The Ork had remained perched upon Trot's shoulder but now it flew down
to the ground. It was so difficult for Cap'n Bill to kneel down, with
his wooden leg, that the little girl took the berry from him and held
it close to the Ork's head.

"It's too big to go into my mouth," said the little creature, looking
at the fruit sidewise.

"You'll have to make sev'ral mouthfuls of it, I guess," said Trot; and
that is what the Ork did. He pecked at the soft, ripe fruit with his
bill and ate it up very quickly, because it was good.

Even before he had finished the berry they could see the Ork begin to
grow. In a few minutes he had regained his natural size and was
strutting before them, quite delighted with his transformation.

"Well, well! What do you think of me now?" he asked proudly.

"You are very skinny and remarkably ugly," declared Pessim.

"You are a poor judge of Orks," was the reply. "Anyone can see that I'm
much handsomer than those dreadful things called birds, which are all
fluff and feathers."

"Their feathers make soft beds," asserted Pessim. "And my skin would
make excellent drumheads," retorted the Ork. "Nevertheless, a plucked
bird or a skinned Ork would be of no value to himself, so we needn't
brag of our usefulness after we are dead. But for the sake of argument,
friend Pessim, I'd like to know what good you would be, were you not
alive?"

"Never mind that," said Cap'n Bill. "He isn't much good as he is."

"I am King of this Island, allow me to say, and you're intruding on my
property," declared the little man, scowling upon them. "If you don't
like me--and I'm sure you don't, for no one else does--why don't you go
away and leave me to myself?"

"Well, the Ork can fly, but we can't," explained Trot, in answer. "We
don't want to stay here a bit, but I don't see how we can get away."

"You can go back into the hole you came from."

Cap'n Bill shook his head; Trot shuddered at the thought; the Ork
laughed aloud.

"You may be King here," the creature said to Pessim, "but we intend to
run this island to suit ourselves, for we are three and you are one,
and the balance of power lies with us."

The little man made no reply to this, although as they walked back to
the shed his face wore its fiercest scowl. Cap'n Bill gathered a lot of
leaves and, assisted by Trot, prepared two nice beds in opposite
corners of the shed. Pessim slept in a hammock which he swung between
two trees.

They required no dishes, as all their food consisted of fruits and nuts
picked from the trees; they made no fire, for the weather was warm and
there was nothing to cook; the shed had no furniture other than the
rude stool which the little man was accustomed to sit upon. He called
it his "throne" and they let him keep it.

So they lived upon the island for three days, and rested and ate to
their hearts' content. Still, they were not at all happy in this life
because of Pessim. He continually found fault with them, and all that
they did, and all their surroundings. He could see nothing good or
admirable in all the world and Trot soon came to understand why the
little man's former neighbors had brought him to this island and left
him there, all alone, so he could not annoy anyone. It was their
misfortune that they had been led to this place by their adventures,
for often they would have preferred the company of a wild beast to that
of Pessim.

On the fourth day a happy thought came to the Ork. They had all been
racking their brains for a possible way to leave the island, and
discussing this or that method, without finding a plan that was
practical. Cap'n Bill had said he could make a raft of the trees, big
enough to float them all, but he had no tools except those two
pocketknives and it was not possible to chop down tree with such small
blades.

"And s'pose we got afloat on the ocean," said Trot, "where would we
drift to, and how long would it take us to get there?"

Cap'n Bill was forced to admit he didn't know. The Ork could fly away
from the island any time it wished to, but the queer creature was loyal
to his new friends and refused to leave them in such a lonely, forsaken
place.

It was when Trot urged him to go, on this fourth morning, that the Ork
had his happy thought.

"I will go," said he, "if you two will agree to ride upon my back."

"We are too heavy; you might drop us," objected Cap'n Bill.

"Yes, you are rather heavy for a long journey," acknowledged the Ork,
"but you might eat of those lavender berries and become so small that I
could carry you with ease."

This quaint suggestion startled Trot and she looked gravely at the
speaker while she considered it, but Cap'n Bill gave a scornful snort
and asked:

"What would become of us afterward? We wouldn't be much good if we were
some two or three inches high. No, Mr. Ork, I'd rather stay here, as I
am, than be a hop-o'-my-thumb somewhere else."

"Why couldn't you take some of the dark purple berries along with you,
to eat after we had reached our destination?" inquired the Ork. "Then
you could grow big again whenever you pleased."

Trot clapped her hands with delight.

"That's it!" she exclaimed. "Let's do it, Cap'n Bill."

The old sailor did not like the idea at first, but he thought it over
carefully and the more he thought the better it seemed.

"How could you manage to carry us, if we were so small?" he asked.

"I could put you in a paper bag, and tie the bag around my neck."

"But we haven't a paper bag," objected Trot.

The Ork looked at her.

"There's your sunbonnet," it said presently, "which is hollow in the
middle and has two strings that you could tie around my neck."

Trot took off her sunbonnet and regarded it critically. Yes, it might
easily hold both her and Cap'n Bill, after they had eaten the lavender
berries and been reduced in size. She tied the strings around the Ork's
neck and the sunbonnet made a bag in which two tiny people might ride
without danger of falling out. So she said:

"I b'lieve we'll do it that way, Cap'n."

Cap'n Bill groaned but could make no logical objection except that the
plan seemed to him quite dangerous--and dangerous in more ways than one.

"I think so, myself," said Trot soberly. "But nobody can stay alive
without getting into danger sometimes, and danger doesn't mean getting
hurt, Cap'n; it only means we might get hurt. So I guess we'll have to
take the risk."

"Let's go and find the berries," said the Ork.

They said nothing to Pessim, who was sitting on his stool and scowling
dismally as he stared at the ocean, but started at once to seek the
trees that bore the magic fruits. The Ork remembered very well where
the lavender berries grew and led his companions quickly to the spot.

Cap'n Bill gathered two berries and placed them carefully in his
pocket. Then they went around to the east side of the island and found
the tree that bore the dark purple berries.

"I guess I'll take four of these," said the sailor-man, "so in case one
doesn't make us grow big we can eat another."

"Better take six," advised the Ork. "It's well to be on the safe side,
and I'm sure these trees grow nowhere else in all the world."

So Cap'n Bill gathered six of the purple berries and with their
precious fruit they returned to the shed to big good-bye to Pessim.
Perhaps they would not have granted the surly little man this courtesy
had they not wished to use him to tie the sunbonnet around the Ork's
neck.

When Pessim learned they were about to leave him he at first looked
greatly pleased, but he suddenly recollected that nothing ought to
please him and so began to grumble about being left alone.

"We knew it wouldn't suit you," remarked Cap'n Bill. "It didn't suit
you to have us here, and it won't suit you to have us go away."

"That is quite true," admitted Pessim. "I haven't been suited since I
can remember; so it doesn't matter to me in the least whether you go or
stay."

He was interested in their experiment, however, and willingly agreed to
assist, although he prophesied they would fall out of the sunbonnet on
their way and be either drowned in the ocean or crushed upon some rocky
shore. This uncheerful prospect did not daunt Trot, but it made Cap'n
Bill quite nervous.

"I will eat my berry first," said Trot, as she placed her sunbonnet on
the ground, in such manner that they could get into it.

Then she ate the lavender berry and in a few seconds became so small
that Cap'n Bill picked her up gently with his thumb and one finger and
placed her in the middle of the sunbonnet. Then he placed beside her
the six purple berries--each one being about as big as the tiny Trot's
head--and all preparations being now made the old sailor ate his
lavender berry and became very small--wooden leg and all!

Cap'n Bill stumbled sadly in trying to climb over the edge of the
sunbonnet and pitched in beside Trot headfirst, which caused the
unhappy Pessim to laugh with glee. Then the King of the Island picked
up the sunbonnet--so rudely that he shook its occupants like peas in a
pod--and tied it, by means of its strings, securely around the Ork's
neck.

"I hope, Trot, you sewed those strings on tight," said Cap'n Bill
anxiously.

"Why, we are not very heavy, you know," she replied, "so I think the
stitches will hold. But be careful and not crush the berries, Cap'n."

"One is jammed already," he said, looking at them.

"All ready?" asked the Ork.

"Yes!" they cried together, and Pessim came close to the sunbonnet and
called out to them: "You'll be smashed or drowned, I'm sure you will!
But farewell, and good riddance to you."

The Ork was provoked by this unkind speech, so he turned his tail
toward the little man and made it revolve so fast that the rush of air
tumbled Pessim over backward and he rolled several times upon the
ground before he could stop himself and sit up. By that time the Ork
was high in the air and speeding swiftly over the ocean.




Chapter Six

The Flight of the Midgets


Cap'n Bill and Trot rode very comfortably in the sunbonnet.  The motion
was quite steady, for they weighed so little that the Ork flew without
effort. Yet they were both somewhat nervous about their future fate and
could not help wishing they were safe on land and their natural size
again.

"You're terr'ble small, Trot," remarked Cap'n Bill, looking at his
companion.

"Same to you, Cap'n," she said with a laugh; "but as long as we have
the purple berries we needn't worry about our size."

"In a circus," mused the old man, "we'd be curiosities. But in a
sunbonnet--high up in the air--sailin' over a big, unknown ocean--they
ain't no word in any booktionary to describe us."

"Why, we're midgets, that's all," said the little girl. The Ork flew
silently for a long time. The slight swaying of the sunbonnet made
Cap'n Bill drowsy, and he began to doze. Trot, however, was wide awake,
and after enduring the monotonous journey as long as she was able she
called out:

"Don't you see land anywhere, Mr. Ork?"

"Not yet," he answered. "This is a big ocean and I've no idea in which
direction the nearest land to that island lies; but if I keep flying in
a straight line I'm sure to reach some place some time."

That seemed reasonable, so the little people in the sunbonnet remained
as patient as possible; that is, Cap'n Bill dozed and Trot tried to
remember her geography lessons so she could figure out what land they
were likely to arrive at.

For hours and hours the Ork flew steadily, keeping to the straight line
and searching with his eyes the horizon of the ocean for land. Cap'n
Bill was fast asleep and snoring and Trot had laid her head on his
shoulder to rest it when suddenly the Ork exclaimed:

"There! I've caught a glimpse of land, at last."

At this announcement they roused themselves. Cap'n Bill stood up and
tried to peek over the edge of the sunbonnet.

"What does it look like?" he inquired.

"Looks like another island," said the Ork; "but I can judge it better
in a minute or two."

"I don't care much for islands, since we visited that other one,"
declared Trot.

Soon the Ork made another announcement.

"It is surely an island, and a little one, too," said he. "But I won't
stop, because I see a much bigger land straight ahead of it."

"That's right," approved Cap'n Bill. "The bigger the land, the better
it will suit us."

"It's almost a continent," continued the Ork after a brief silence,
during which he did not decrease the speed of his flight. "I wonder if
it can be Orkland, the place I have been seeking so long?"

"I hope not," whispered Trot to Cap'n Bill--so softly that the Ork
could not hear her--"for I shouldn't like to be in a country where only
Orks live. This one Ork isn't a bad companion, but a lot of him
wouldn't be much fun."

After a few more minutes of flying the Ork called out in a sad voice:

"No! this is not my country. It's a place I have never seen before,
although I have wandered far and wide. It seems to be all mountains and
deserts and green valleys and queer cities and lakes and rivers--mixed
up in a very puzzling way."

"Most countries are like that," commented Cap'n Bill. "Are you going to
land?"

"Pretty soon," was the reply. "There is a mountain peak just ahead of
me. What do you say to our landing on that?"

"All right," agreed the sailor-man, for both he and Trot were getting
tired of riding in the sunbonnet and longed to set foot on solid ground
again.

So in a few minutes the Ork slowed down his speed and then came to a
stop so easily that they were scarcely jarred at all. Then the creature
squatted down until the sunbonnet rested on the ground, and began
trying to unfasten with its claws the knotted strings.

This proved a very clumsy task, because the strings were tied at the
back of the Ork's neck, just where his claws would not easily reach.
After much fumbling he said:

"I'm afraid I can't let you out, and there is no one near to help me."

This was at first discouraging, but after a little thought Cap'n Bill
said:

"If you don't mind, Trot, I can cut a slit in your sunbonnet with my
knife."

"Do," she replied. "The slit won't matter, 'cause I can sew it up again
afterward, when I am big."

So Cap'n Bill got out his knife, which was just as small, in
proportion, as he was, and after considerable trouble managed to cut a
long slit in the sunbonnet. First he squeezed through the opening
himself and then helped Trot to get out.

When they stood on firm ground again their first act was to begin
eating the dark purple berries which they had brought with them. Two of
these Trot had guarded carefully during the long journey, by holding
them in her lap, for their safety meant much to the tiny people.

"I'm not very hungry," said the little girl as she handed a berry to
Cap'n Bill, "but hunger doesn't count, in this case. It's like taking
medicine to make you well, so we must manage to eat 'em, somehow or
other."

But the berries proved quite pleasant to taste and as Cap'n Bill and
Trot nibbled at their edges their forms began to grow in size--slowly
but steadily. The bigger they grew the easier it was for them to eat
the berries, which of course became smaller to them, and by the time
the fruit was eaten our friends had regained their natural size.

The little girl was greatly relieved when she found herself as large as
she had ever been, and Cap'n Bill shared her satisfaction; for,
although they had seen the effect of the berries on the Ork, they had
not been sure the magic fruit would have the same effect on human
beings, or that the magic would work in any other country than that in
which the berries grew.

"What shall we do with the other four berries?" asked Trot, as she
picked up her sunbonnet, marveling that she had ever been small enough
to ride in it. "They're no good to us now, are they, Cap'n?"

"I'm not sure as to that," he replied. "If they were eaten by one who
had never eaten the lavender berries, they might have no effect at all;
but then, contrarywise, they might. One of 'em has got badly jammed, so
I'll throw it away, but the other three I b'lieve I'll carry with me.
They're magic things, you know, and may come handy to us some time."

He now searched in his big pockets and drew out a small wooden box with
a sliding cover.  The sailor had kept an assortment of nails, of
various sizes, in this box, but those he now dumped loosely into his
pocket and in the box placed the three sound purple berries.

When this important matter was attended to they found time to look
about them and see what sort of place the Ork had landed them in.




Chapter Seven

The Bumpy Man


The mountain on which they had alighted was not a barren waste, but had
on its sides patches of green grass, some bushes, a few slender trees
and here and there masses of tumbled rocks. The sides of the slope
seemed rather steep, but with care one could climb up or down them with
ease and safety. The view from where they now stood showed pleasant
valleys and fertile hills lying below the heights. Trot thought she saw
some houses of queer shapes scattered about the lower landscape, and
there were moving dots that might be people or animals, yet were too
far away for her to see them clearly.

Not far from the place where they stood was the top of the mountain,
which seemed to be flat, so the Ork proposed to his companions that he
would fly up and see what was there.

"That's a good idea," said Trot, "'cause it's getting toward evening
and we'll have to find a place to sleep."

The Ork had not been gone more than a few minutes when they saw him
appear on the edge of the top which was nearest them.

"Come on up!" he called.

So Trot and Cap'n Bill began to ascend the steep slope and it did not
take them long to reach the place where the Ork awaited them.

Their first view of the mountain top pleased them very much. It was a
level space of wider extent than they had guessed and upon it grew
grass of a brilliant green color. In the very center stood a house
built of stone and very neatly constructed. No one was in sight, but
smoke was coming from the chimney, so with one accord all three began
walking toward the house.

"I wonder," said Trot, "in what country we are, and if it's very far
from my home in California."

"Can't say as to that, partner," answered Cap'n Bill, "but I'm mighty
certain we've come a long way since we struck that whirlpool."

"Yes," she agreed, with a sigh, "it must be miles and miles!"

"Distance means nothing," said the Ork. "I have flown pretty much all
over the world, trying to find my home, and it is astonishing how many
little countries there are, hidden away in the cracks and corners of
this big globe of Earth. If one travels, he may find some new country
at every turn, and a good many of them have never yet been put upon the
maps."

"P'raps this is one of them," suggested Trot.

They reached the house after a brisk walk and Cap'n Bill knocked upon
the door. It was at once opened by a rugged looking man who had "bumps
all over him," as Trot afterward declared. There were bumps on his
head, bumps on his body and bumps on his arms and legs and hands. Even
his fingers had bumps on the ends of them. For dress he wore an old
gray suit of fantastic design, which fitted him very badly because of
the bumps it covered but could not conceal.

But the Bumpy Man's eyes were kind and twinkling in expression and as
soon as he saw his visitors he bowed low and said in a rather bumpy
voice:

"Happy day!  Come in and shut the door, for it grows cool when the sun
goes down. Winter is now upon us."

"Why, it isn't cold a bit, outside," said Trot, "so it can't be winter
yet."

"You will change your mind about that in a little while," declared the
Bumpy Man. "My bumps always tell me the state of the weather, and they
feel just now as if a snowstorm was coming this way. But make
yourselves at home, strangers. Supper is nearly ready and there is food
enough for all."

Inside the house there was but one large room, simply but comfortably
furnished. It had benches, a table and a fireplace, all made of stone.
On the hearth a pot was bubbling and steaming, and Trot thought it had
a rather nice smell. The visitors seated themselves upon the
benches--except the Ork. which squatted by the fireplace--and the Bumpy
Man began stirring the kettle briskly.

"May I ask what country this is, sir?" inquired Cap'n Bill.

"Goodness me--fruit-cake and apple-sauce!--don't you know where you
are?" asked the Bumpy Man, as he stopped stirring and looked at the
speaker in surprise.

"No," admitted Cap'n Bill. "We've just arrived."

"Lost your way?" questioned the Bumpy Man.

"Not exactly," said Cap'n Bill. "We didn't have any way to lose."

"Ah!" said the Bumpy Man, nodding his bumpy head. "This," he announced,
in a solemn, impressive voice, "is the famous Land of Mo."

"Oh!" exclaimed the sailor and the girl, both in one breath. But, never
having heard of the Land of Mo, they were no wiser than before.

"I thought that would startle you," remarked the Bumpy Man, well
pleased, as he resumed his stirring. The Ork watched him a while in
silence and then asked:

"Who may you be?"

"Me?" answered the Bumpy Man. "Haven't you heard of me? Gingerbread and
lemon-juice! I'm known, far and wide, as the Mountain Ear."

They all received this information in silence at first, for they were
trying to think what he could mean. Finally Trot mustered up courage to
ask:

"What is a Mountain Ear, please?"

For answer the man turned around and faced them, waving the spoon with
which he had been stirring the kettle, as he recited the following
verses in a singsong tone of voice:

  "Here's a mountain, hard of hearing,
  That's sad-hearted and needs cheering,
  So my duty is to listen to all sounds that Nature makes,
  So the hill won't get uneasy--
  Get to coughing, or get sneezy--
  For this monster bump, when frightened, is quite liable to quakes.

  "You can hear a bell that's ringing;
  I can feel some people's singing;
  But a mountain isn't sensible of what goes on, and so
  When I hear a blizzard blowing
  Or it's raining hard, or snowing,
  I tell it to the mountain and the mountain seems to know.

  "Thus I benefit all people
  While I'm living on this steeple,
  For I keep the mountain steady so my neighbors all may thrive.
  With my list'ning and my shouting
  I prevent this mount from spouting,
  And that makes me so important that I'm glad that I'm alive."


When he had finished these lines of verse the Bumpy Man turned again to
resume his stirring. The Ork laughed softly and Cap'n Bill whistled to
himself and Trot made up her mind that the Mountain Ear must be a
little crazy. But the Bumpy Man seemed satisfied that he had explained
his position fully and presently he placed four stone plates upon the
table and then lifted the kettle from the fire and poured some of its
contents on each of the plates. Cap'n Bill and Trot at once approached
the table, for they were hungry, but when she examined her plate the
little girl exclaimed:

"Why, it's molasses candy!"

"To be sure," returned the Bumpy Man, with a pleasant smile. "Eat it
quick, while it's hot, for it cools very quickly this winter weather."

With this he seized a stone spoon and began putting the hot molasses
candy into his mouth, while the others watched him in astonishment.

"Doesn't it burn you?" asked the girl.

"No indeed," said he. "Why don't you eat? Aren't you hungry?"

"Yes," she replied, "I am hungry. But we usually eat our candy when it
is cold and hard. We always pull molasses candy before we eat it."

"Ha, ha, ha!" laughed the Mountain Ear. "What a funny idea! Where in
the world did you come from?"

"California," she said.

"California! Pooh! there isn't any such place. I've heard of every
place in the Land of Mo, but I never before heard of California."

"It isn't in the Land of Mo," she explained.

"Then it isn't worth talking about," declared the Bumpy Man, helping
himself again from the steaming kettle, for he had been eating all the
time he talked.

"For my part," sighed Cap'n Bill, "I'd like a decent square meal, once
more, just by way of variety. In the last place there was nothing but
fruit to eat, and here it's worse, for there's nothing but candy."

"Molasses candy isn't so bad," said Trot. "Mine's nearly cool enough to
pull, already. Wait a bit, Cap'n, and you can eat it."

A little later she was able to gather the candy from the stone plate
and begin to work it back and forth with her hands. The Mountain Ear
was greatly amazed at this and watched her closely. It was really good
candy and pulled beautifully, so that Trot was soon ready to cut it
into chunks for eating.

Cap'n Bill condescended to eat one or two pieces and the Ork ate
several, but the Bumpy Man refused to try it. Trot finished the plate
of candy herself and then asked for a drink of water.

"Water?" said the Mountain Ear wonderingly. "What is that?"

"Something to drink. Don't you have water in Mo?"

"None that ever I heard of," said he. "But I can give you some fresh
lemonade. I caught it in a jar the last time it rained, which was only
day before yesterday."

"Oh, does it rain lemonade here?" she inquired.

"Always; and it is very refreshing and healthful."

With this he brought from a cupboard a stone jar and a dipper, and the
girl found it very nice lemonade, indeed. Cap'n Bill liked it, too; but
the Ork would not touch it.

"If there is no water in this country, I cannot stay here for long,"
the creature declared. "Water means life to man and beast and bird."

"There must be water in lemonade," said Trot.

"Yes," answered the Ork, "I suppose so; but there are other things in
it, too, and they spoil the good water."

The day's adventures had made our wanderers tired, so the Bumpy Man
brought them some blankets in which they rolled themselves and then lay
down before the fire, which their host kept alive with fuel all through
the night. Trot wakened several times and found the Mountain Ear always
alert and listening intently for the slightest sound. But the little
girl could hear no sound at all except the snores of Cap'n Bill.




Chapter Eight

Button-Bright is Lost and Found Again


"Wake up--wake up!" called the voice of the Bumpy Man. "Didn't I tell
you winter was coming? I could hear it coming with my left ear, and the
proof is that it is now snowing hard outside."

"Is it?" said Trot, rubbing her eyes and creeping out of her blanket.
"Where I live, in California, I have never seen snow, except far away
on the tops of high mountains."

"Well, this is the top of a high mountain," returned the bumpy one,
"and for that reason we get our heaviest snowfalls right here."

The little girl went to  the window and looked out. The air was filled
with falling white flakes, so large in size and so queer in form that
she was puzzled.

"Are you certain this is snow?" she asked.

"To be sure. I must get my snow-shovel and turn out to shovel a path.
Would you like to come with me?"

"Yes," she said, and followed the Bumpy Man out when he opened the
door. Then she exclaimed: "Why, it isn't cold a bit!"

"Of course not," replied the man. "It was cold last night, before the
snowstorm; but snow, when it falls, is always crisp and warm."

Trot gathered a handful of it.

"Why, it's popcorn?" she cried.

"Certainly; all snow is popcorn. What did you expect it to be?"

"Popcorn is not snow in my country."

"Well, it is the only snow we have in the Land of Mo, so you may as
well make the best of it," said he, a little impatiently. "I'm not
responsible for the absurd things that happen in your country, and when
you're in Mo you must do as the Momen do. Eat some of our snow, and you
will find it is good. The only fault I find with our snow is that we
get too much of it at times."

With this the Bumpy Man set to work shoveling a path and he was so
quick and industrious that he piled up the popcorn in great banks on
either side of the trail that led to the mountain-top from the plains
below. While he worked, Trot ate popcorn and found it crisp and
slightly warm, as well as nicely salted and buttered. Presently Cap'n
Bill came out of the house and joined her.

"What's this?" he asked.

"Mo snow," said she. "But it isn't real snow, although it falls from
the sky. It's popcorn."

Cap'n Bill tasted it; then he sat down in the path and began to eat.
The Ork came out and pecked away with its bill as fast as it could.
They all liked popcorn and they all were hungry this morning.

Meantime the flakes of "Mo snow" came down so fast that the number of
them almost darkened the air. The Bumpy Man was now shoveling quite a
distance down the mountain-side, while the path behind him rapidly
filled up with fresh-fallen popcorn. Suddenly Trot heard him call out:

"Goodness gracious--mince pie and pancakes!--here is some one buried in
the snow."

She ran toward him at once and the others followed, wading through the
corn and crunching it underneath their feet. The Mo snow was pretty
deep where the Bumpy Man was shoveling and from beneath a great bank of
it he had uncovered a pair of feet.

"Dear me!  Someone has been lost in the storm," said Cap'n Bill. "I
hope he is still alive. Let's pull him out and see."

He took hold of one foot and the Bumpy Man took hold of the other. Then
they both pulled and out from the heap of popcorn came a little boy. He
was dressed in a brown velvet jacket and knickerbockers, with brown
stockings, buckled shoes and a blue shirt-waist that had frills down
its front. When drawn from the heap the boy was chewing a mouthful of
popcorn and both his hands were full of it. So at first he couldn't
speak to his rescuers but lay quite still and eyed them calmly until he
had swallowed his mouthful. Then he said:

"Get my cap," and stuffed more popcorn into his mouth.

While the Bumpy Man began shoveling into the corn-bank to find the
boy's cap, Trot was laughing joyfully and Cap'n Bill had a broad grin
on his face. The Ork looked from one to another and asked:

"Who is this stranger?"

"Why, it's Button-Bright, of course," answered Trot. "If anyone ever
finds a lost boy, he can make up his mind it's Button-Bright. But how
he ever came to be lost in this far-away country is more'n I can make
out."

"Where does he belong?" inquired the Ork.

"His home used to be in Philadelphia, I think; but I'm quite sure
Button-Bright doesn't belong anywhere."

"That's right," said the boy, nodding his head as he swallowed the
second mouthful.

"Everyone belongs somewhere," remarked the Ork.

"Not me," insisted Button-Bright. "I'm half way round the world from
Philadelphia, and I've lost my Magic Umbrella, that used to carry me
anywhere. Stands to reason that if I can't get back I haven't any home.
But I don't care much. This is a pretty good country, Trot. I've had
lots of fun here."

By this time the Mountain Ear had secured the boy's cap and was
listening to the conversation with much interest.

"It seems you know this poor, snow-covered cast-away," he said.

"Yes, indeed," answered Trot.  "We made a journey together to Sky
Island, once, and were good friends."

"Well, then I'm glad I saved his life," said the Bumpy Man.

"Much obliged, Mr. Knobs," said Button-Bright, sitting up and staring
at him, "but I don't believe you've saved anything except some popcorn
that I might have eaten had you not disturbed me. It was nice and warm
in that bank of popcorn, and there was plenty to eat. What made you dig
me out? And what makes you so bumpy everywhere?"

"As for the bumps," replied the man, looking at himself with much
pride, "I was born with them and I suspect they were a gift from the
fairies. They make me look rugged and big, like the mountain I serve."

"All right," said Button-Bright and began eating popcorn again.

It had stopped snowing, now, and great flocks of birds were gathering
around the mountain-side, eating the popcorn with much eagerness and
scarcely noticing the people at all. There were birds of every size and
color, most of them having gorgeous feathers and plumes.

"Just look at them!" exclaimed the Ork scornfully. "Aren't they
dreadful creatures, all covered with feathers?"

"I think they're beautiful," said Trot, and this made the Ork so
indignant that he went back into the house and sulked.

Button-Bright reached out his hand and caught a big bird by the leg. At
once it rose into the air and it was so strong that it nearly carried
the little boy with it. He let go the leg in a hurry and the bird flew
down again and began to eat of the popcorn, not being frightened in the
least.

This gave Cap'n Bill an idea. He felt in his pocket and drew out
several pieces of stout string. Moving very quietly, so as to not alarm
the birds, he crept up to several of the biggest ones and tied cords
around their legs, thus making them prisoners.  The birds were so
intent on their eating that they did not notice what had happened to
them, and when about twenty had been captured in this manner Cap'n Bill
tied the ends of all the strings together and fastened them to a huge
stone, so they could not escape.

The Bumpy Man watched the old sailor's actions with much curiosity.

"The birds will be quiet until they've eaten up all the snow," he said,
"but then they will want to fly away to their homes. Tell me, sir, what
will the poor things do when they find they can't fly?"

"It may worry 'em a little," replied Cap'n Bill, "but they're not going
to be hurt if they take it easy and behave themselves."

Our friends had all made a good breakfast of the delicious popcorn and
now they walked toward the house again. Button-Bright walked beside
Trot and held her hand in his, because they were old friends and he
liked the little girl very much. The boy was not so old as Trot, and
small as she was he was half a head shorter in height. The most
remarkable thing about Button-Bright was that he was always quiet and
composed, whatever happened, and nothing was ever able to astonish him.
Trot liked him because he was not rude and never tried to plague her.
Cap'n Bill liked him because he had found the boy cheerful and brave at
all times, and willing to do anything he was asked to do.

When they came to the house Trot sniffed the air and asked "Don't I
smell perfume?"

"I think you do," said the Bumpy Man. "You smell violets, and that
proves there is a breeze springing up from the south. All our winds and
breezes are perfumed and for that reason we are glad to have them blow
in our direction. The south breeze always has a violet odor; the north
breeze has the fragrance of wild roses; the east breeze is perfumed
with lilies-of-the-valley and the west wind with lilac blossoms. So we
need no weathervane to tell us which way the wind is blowing. We have
only to smell the perfume and it informs us at once."

Inside the house they found the Ork, and Button-Bright regarded the
strange, birdlike creature with curious interest. After examining it
closely for a time he asked:

"Which way does your tail whirl?"

"Either way," said the Ork.

Button-Bright put out his hand and tried to spin it.

"Don't do that!" exclaimed the Ork.

"Why not?" inquired the boy.

"Because it happens to be my tail, and I reserve the right to whirl it
myself," explained the Ork.

"Let's go out and fly somewhere," proposed Button-Bright. "I want to
see how the tail works."

"Not now," said the Ork. "I appreciate your interest in me, which I
fully deserve; but I only fly when I am going somewhere, and if I got
started I might not stop."

"That reminds me," remarked Cap'n Bill, "to ask you, friend Ork, how we
are going to get away from here?"

"Get away!" exclaimed the Bumpy Man. "Why don't you stay here? You
won't find any nicer place than Mo."

"Have you been anywhere else, sir?"

"No; I can't say that I have," admitted the Mountain Ear.

"Then permit me to say you're no judge," declared Cap'n Bill. "But you
haven't answered my question, friend Ork. How are we to get away from
this mountain?"

The Ork reflected a while before he answered.

"I might carry one of you--the boy or the girl--upon my back," said he,
"but three big people are more than I can manage, although I have
carried two of you for a short distance. You ought not to have eaten
those purple berries so soon."

"P'r'aps we did make a mistake," Cap'n Bill acknowledged.

"Or we might have brought some of those lavender berries with us,
instead of so many purple ones," suggested Trot regretfully.

Cap'n Bill made no reply to this statement, which showed he did not
fully agree with the little girl; but he fell into deep thought, with
wrinkled brows, and finally he said:

"If those purple berries would make anything grow bigger, whether it'd
eaten the lavender ones or not, I could find a way out of our troubles."

They did not understand this speech and looked at the old sailor as if
expecting him to explain what he meant. But just then a chorus of
shrill cries rose from outside.

"Here! Let me go--let me go!" the voices seemed to say. "Why are we
insulted in this way? Mountain Ear, come and help us!"

Trot ran to the window and looked out.

"It's the birds you caught, Cap'n," she said. "I didn't know they could
talk."

"Oh, yes; all the birds in Mo are educated to talk," said the Bumpy
Man. Then he looked at Cap'n Bill uneasily and added: "Won't you let
the poor things go?"

"I'll see," replied the sailor, and walked out to where the birds were
fluttering and complaining because the strings would not allow them to
fly away.

"Listen to me!" he cried, and at once they became still. "We three
people who are strangers in your land want to go to some other country,
and we want three of you birds to carry us there. We know we are asking
a great favor, but it's the only way we can think of--excep' walkin',
an' I'm not much good at that because I've a wooden leg. Besides, Trot
an' Button-Bright are too small to undertake a long and tiresome
journey. Now, tell me: Which three of you birds will consent to carry
us?"

The birds looked at one another as if greatly astonished. Then one of
them replied: "You must be crazy, old man. Not one of us is big enough
to fly with even the smallest of your party."

"I'll fix the matter of size," promised Cap'n Bill. "If three of you
will agree to carry us, I'll make you big an' strong enough to do it,
so it won't worry you a bit."

The birds considered this gravely.  Living in a magic country, they had
no doubt but that the strange one-legged man could do what he said.
After a little, one of them asked:

"If you make us big, would we stay big always?"

"I think so," replied Cap'n Bill.

They chattered a while among themselves and then the bird that had
first spoken said: "I'll go, for one."

"So will I," said another; and after a pause a third said: "I'll go,
too."

Perhaps more would have volunteered, for it seemed that for some reason
they all longed to be bigger than they were; but three were enough for
Cap'n Bill's purpose and so he promptly released all the others, who
immediately flew away.

The three that remained were cousins, and all were of the same
brilliant plumage and in size about as large as eagles. When Trot
questioned them she found they were quite young, having only abandoned
their nests a few weeks before. They were strong young birds, with
clear, brave eyes, and the little girl decided they were the most
beautiful of all the feathered creatures she had ever seen.

Cap'n Bill now took from his pocket the wooden box with the sliding
cover and removed the three purple berries, which were still in good
condition.

"Eat these," he said, and gave one to each of the birds. They obeyed,
finding the fruit very pleasant to taste. In a few seconds they began
to grow in size and grew so fast that Trot feared they would never
stop. But they finally did stop growing, and then they were much larger
than the Ork, and nearly the size of full-grown ostriches.

Cap'n Bill was much pleased by this result.

"You can carry us now, all right," said he.

The birds strutted around with pride, highly pleased with their immense
size.

"I don't see, though," said Trot doubtfully, "how we're going to ride
on their backs without falling off."

"We're not going to ride on their backs," answered Cap'n Bill. "I'm
going to make swings for us to ride in."

He then asked the Bumpy Man for some rope, but the man had no rope. He
had, however, an old suit of gray clothes which he gladly presented to
Cap'n Bill, who cut the cloth into strips and twisted it so that it was
almost as strong as rope. With this material he attached to each bird a
swing that dangled below its feet, and Button-Bright made a trial
flight in one of them to prove that it was safe and comfortable. When
all this had been arranged one of the birds asked:

"Where do you wish us to take you?"

"Why, just follow the Ork," said Cap'n Bill. "He will be our leader,
and wherever the Ork flies you are to fly, and wherever the Ork lands
you are to land. Is that satisfactory?"

The birds declared it was quite satisfactory, so Cap'n Bill took
counsel with the Ork.

"On our way here," said that peculiar creature, "I noticed a broad,
sandy desert at the left of me, on which was no living thing."

"Then we'd better keep away from it," replied the sailor.

"Not so," insisted the Ork. "I have found, on my travels, that the most
pleasant countries often lie in the midst of deserts; so I think it
would be wise for us to fly over this desert and discover what lies
beyond it. For in the direction we came from lies the ocean, as we well
know, and beyond here is this strange Land of Mo, which we do not care
to explore. On one side, as we can see from this mountain, is a broad
expanse of plain, and on the other the desert.  For my part, I vote for
the desert."

"What do you say, Trot?" inquired Cap'n Bill.

"It's all the same to me," she replied.

No one thought of asking Button-Bright's opinion, so it was decided to
fly over the desert. They bade good-bye to the Bumpy Man and thanked
him for his kindness and hospitality. Then they seated themselves in
the swings--one for each bird--and told the Ork to start away and they
would follow.

The whirl of the Ork's tail astonished the birds at first, but after he
had gone a short distance they rose in the air, carrying their
passengers easily, and flew with strong, regular strokes of their great
wings in the wake of their leader.




Chapter Nine

The Kingdom of Jinxland


Trot rode with more comfort than she had expected, although the swing
swayed so much that she had to hold on tight with both hands. Cap'n
Bill's bird followed the Ork, and Trot came next, with Button-Bright
trailing behind her. It was quite an imposing procession, but
unfortunately there was no one to see it, for the Ork had headed
straight for the great sandy desert and in a few minutes after starting
they were flying high over the broad waste, where no living thing could
exist.

The little girl thought this would be a bad place for the birds to lose
strength, or for the cloth ropes to give way; but although she could
not help feeling a trifle nervous and fidgety she had confidence in the
huge and brilliantly plumaged bird that bore her, as well as in Cap'n
Bill's knowledge of how to twist and fasten a rope so it would hold.

That was a remarkably big desert. There was nothing to relieve the
monotony of view and every minute seemed an hour and every hour a day.
Disagreeable fumes and gases rose from the sands, which would have been
deadly to the travelers had they not been so high in the air. As it
was, Trot was beginning to feel sick, when a breath of fresher air
filled her nostrils and on looking ahead she saw a great cloud of
pink-tinted mist. Even while she wondered what it could be, the Ork
plunged boldly into the mist and the other birds followed. She could
see nothing for a time, nor could the bird which carried her see where
the Ork had gone, but it kept flying as sturdily as ever and in a few
moments the mist was passed and the girl saw a most beautiful landscape
spread out below her, extending as far as her eye could reach.

She saw bits of forest, verdure clothed hills, fields of waving grain,
fountains, rivers and lakes; and throughout the scene were scattered
groups of pretty houses and a few grand castles and palaces.

Over all this delightful landscape--which from Trot's high perch seemed
like a magnificent painted picture--was a rosy glow such as we
sometimes see in the west at sunset. In this case, however, it was not
in the west only, but everywhere.

No wonder the Ork paused to circle slowly over this lovely country. The
other birds followed his action, all eyeing the place with equal
delight. Then, as with one accord, the four formed a group and slowly
sailed downward. This brought them to that part of the newly-discovered
land which bordered on the desert's edge; but it was just as pretty
here as anywhere, so the Ork and the birds alighted and the three
passengers at once got out of their swings.

"Oh, Cap'n Bill, isn't this fine an' dandy?" exclaimed Trot
rapturously. "How lucky we were to discover this beautiful country!"

"The country seems rather high class, I'll admit, Trot," replied the
old sailor-man, looking around him, "but we don't know, as yet, what
its people are like."

"No one could live in such a country without being happy and good--I'm
sure of that," she said earnestly. "Don't you think so, Button-Bright?"

"I'm not thinking, just now," answered the little boy. "It tires me to
think, and I never seem to gain anything by it. When we see the people
who live here we will know what they are like, and no 'mount of
thinking will make them any different."

"That's true enough," said the Ork. "But now I want to make a proposal.
While you are getting acquainted with this new country, which looks as
if it contains everything to make one happy, I would like to fly
along--all by myself--and see if I can find my home on the other side
of the great desert. If I do, I will stay there, of course. But if I
fail to find Orkland I will return to you in a week, to see if I can do
anything more to assist you."

They were sorry to lose their queer companion, but could offer no
objection to the plan; so the Ork bade them good-bye and rising swiftly
in the air, he flew over the country and was soon lost to view in the
distance.

The three birds which had carried our friends now begged permission to
return by the way they had come, to their own homes, saying they were
anxious to show their families how big they had become. So Cap'n Bill
and Trot and Button-Bright all thanked them gratefully for their
assistance and soon the birds began their long flight toward the Land
of Mo. Being now left to themselves in this strange land, the three
comrades selected a pretty pathway and began walking along it. They
believed this path would lead them to a splendid castle which they
espied in the distance, the turrets of which towered far above the tops
of the trees which surrounded it. It did not seem very far away, so
they sauntered on slowly, admiring the beautiful ferns and flowers that
lined the pathway and listening to the singing of the birds and the
soft chirping of the grasshoppers.

Presently the path wound over a little hill. In a valley that lay
beyond the hill was a tiny cottage surrounded by flower beds and fruit
trees. On the shady porch of the cottage they saw, as they approached,
a pleasant faced woman sitting amidst a group of children, to whom she
was telling stories. The children quickly discovered the strangers and
ran toward them with exclamations of astonishment, so that Trot and her
friends became the center of a curious group, all chattering excitedly.
Cap'n Bill's wooden leg seemed to arouse the wonder of the children, as
they could not understand why he had not two meat legs. This attention
seemed to please the old sailor, who patted the heads of the children
kindly and then, raising his hat to the woman, he inquired:

"Can you tell us, madam, just what country this is?"

She stared hard at all three of the strangers as she replied briefly:
"Jinxland."

"Oh!" exclaimed Cap'n Bill, with a puzzled look. "And where is
Jinxland, please?"

"In the Quadling Country," said she.

"What!" cried Trot, in sudden excitement. "Do you mean to say this is
the Quadling Country of the Land of Oz?"

"To be sure I do," the woman answered. "Every bit of land that is
surrounded by the great desert is the Land of Oz, as you ought to know
as well as I do; but I'm sorry to say that Jinxland is separated from
the rest of the Quadling Country by that row of high mountains you see
yonder, which have such steep sides that no one can cross them. So we
live here all by ourselves, and are ruled by our own King, instead of
by Ozma of Oz."

"I've been to the Land of Oz before," said Button-Bright, "but I've
never been here."

"Did you ever hear of Jinxland before?" asked Trot.

"No," said Button-Bright.

"It is on the Map of Oz, though," asserted the woman, "and it's a fine
country, I assure you. If only," she added, and then paused to look
around her with a frightened expression. "If only--" here she stopped
again, as if not daring to go on with her speech.

"If only what, ma'am?" asked Cap'n Bill.

The woman sent the children into the house. Then she came closer to the
strangers and whispered: "If only we had a different King, we would be
very happy and contented."

"What's the matter with your King?" asked Trot, curiously. But the
woman seemed frightened to have said so much. She retreated to her
porch, merely saying:

"The King punishes severely any treason on the part of his subjects."

"What's treason?" asked Button-Bright.

"In this case," replied Cap'n Bill, "treason seems to consist of
knockin' the King; but I guess we know his disposition now as well as
if the lady had said more."

"I wonder," said Trot, going up to the woman, "if you could spare us
something to eat. We haven't had anything but popcorn and lemonade for
a long time."

"Bless your heart! Of course I can spare you some food," the woman
answered, and entering her cottage she soon returned with a tray loaded
with sandwiches, cakes and cheese. One of the children drew a bucket of
clear, cold water from a spring and the three wanderers ate heartily
and enjoyed the good things immensely.

When Button-Bright could eat no more he filled the pockets of his
jacket with cakes and cheese, and not even the children objected to
this. Indeed they all seemed pleased to see the strangers eat, so Cap'n
Bill decided that no matter what the King of Jinxland was like, the
people would prove friendly and hospitable.

"Whose castle is that, yonder, ma'am?" he asked, waving his hand toward
the towers that rose above the trees.

"It belongs to his Majesty, King Krewl." she said.

"Oh, indeed; and does he live there?"

"When he is not out hunting with his fierce courtiers and war
captains," she replied.

"Is he hunting now?" Trot inquired.

"I do not know, my dear. The less we know about the King's actions the
safer we are."

It was evident the woman did not like to talk about King Krewl and so,
having finished their meal, they said good-bye and continued along the
pathway.

"Don't you think we'd better keep away from that King's castle, Cap'n?"
asked Trot.

"Well," said he, "King Krewl would find out, sooner or later, that we
are in his country, so we may as well face the music now. Perhaps he
isn't quite so bad as that woman thinks he is. Kings aren't always
popular with their people, you know, even if they do the best they know
how."

"Ozma is pop'lar," said Button-Bright.

"Ozma is diff'rent from any other Ruler, from all I've heard," remarked
Trot musingly, as she walked beside the boy. "And, after all, we are
really in the Land of Oz, where Ozma rules ev'ry King and ev'rybody
else. I never heard of anybody getting hurt in her dominions, did you,
Button-Bright?"

"Not when she knows about it," he replied. "But those birds landed us
in just the wrong place, seems to me. They might have carried us right
on, over that row of mountains, to the Em'rald City."

"True enough," said Cap'n Bill; "but they didn't, an' so we must make
the best of Jinxland. Let's try not to be afraid."

"Oh, I'm not very scared," said Button-Bright, pausing to look at a
pink rabbit that popped its head out of a hole in the field near by.

"Nor am I," added Trot. "Really, Cap'n, I'm so glad to be anywhere at
all in the wonderful fairyland of Oz that I think I'm the luckiest girl
in all the world. Dorothy lives in the Em'rald City, you know, and so
does the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman and Tik-Tok and the Shaggy
Man--and all the rest of 'em that we've heard so much about--not to
mention Ozma, who must be the sweetest and loveliest girl in all the
world!"

"Take your time, Trot," advised Button-Bright. "You don't have to say
it all in one breath, you know. And you haven't mentioned half of the
curious people in the Em'rald City."

"That 'ere Em'rald City," said Cap'n Bill impressively, "happens to be
on the other side o' those mountains, that we're told no one is able to
cross. I don't want to discourage of you, Trot, but we're a'most as
much separated from your Ozma an' Dorothy as we were when we lived in
Californy."

There was so much truth in this statement that they all walked on in
silence for some time. Finally they reached the grove of stately trees
that bordered the grounds of the King's castle. They had gone halfway
through it when the sound of sobbing, as of someone in bitter distress,
reached their ears and caused them to halt abruptly.




Chapter Ten

Pon, the Gardener's Boy


It was Button-Bright who first discovered, lying on his face beneath a
broad spreading tree near the pathway, a young man whose body shook
with the force of his sobs. He was dressed in a long brown smock and
had sandals on his feet, betokening one in humble life. His head was
bare and showed a shock of brown, curly hair. Button-Bright looked down
on the young man and said:

"Who cares, anyhow?"

"I do!" cried the young man, interrupting his sobs to roll over, face
upward, that he might see who had spoken. "I care, for my heart is
broken!"

"Can't you get another one?" asked the little boy.

"I don't want another!" wailed the young man.

By this time Trot and Cap'n Bill arrived at the spot and the girl
leaned over and said in a sympathetic voice:

"Tell us your troubles and perhaps we may help you."

The youth sat up, then, and bowed politely. Afterward he got upon his
feet, but still kept wringing his hands as he tried to choke down his
sobs. Trot thought he was very brave to control such awful agony so
well.

"My name is Pon," he began. "I'm the gardener's boy."

"Then the gardener of the King is your father, I suppose," said Trot.

"Not my father, but my master," was the reply

"I do the work and the gardener gives the orders. And it was not my
fault, in the least, that the Princess Gloria fell in love with me."

"Did she, really?" asked the little girl.

"I don't see why," remarked Button-Bright, staring at the youth.

"And who may the Princess Gloria be?" inquired Cap'n Bill.

"She is the niece of King Krewl, who is her guardian. The Princess
lives in the castle and is the loveliest and sweetest maiden in all
Jinxland. She is fond of flowers and used to walk in the gardens with
her attendants. At such times, if I was working at my tasks, I used to
cast down my eyes as Gloria passed me; but one day I glanced up and
found her gazing at me with a very tender look in her eyes. The next
day she dismissed her attendants and, coming to my side, began to talk
with me. She said I had touched her heart as no other young man had
ever done. I kissed her hand. Just then the King came around a bend in
the walk. He struck me with his fist and kicked me with his foot. Then
he seized the arm of the Princess and rudely dragged her into the
castle."

"Wasn't he awful!" gasped Trot indignantly.

"He is a very abrupt King," said Pon, "so it was the least I could
expect. Up to that time I had not thought of loving Princess Gloria,
but realizing it would be impolite not to return her love, I did so. We
met at evening, now and then, and she told me the King wanted her to
marry a rich courtier named Googly-Goo, who is old enough to be
Gloria's father. She has refused Googly-Goo thirty-nine times, but he
still persists and has brought many rich presents to bribe the King. On
that account King Krewl has commanded his niece to marry the old man,
but the Princess has assured me, time and again, that she will wed only
me. This morning we happened to meet in the grape arbor and as I was
respectfully saluting the cheek of the Princess, two of the King's
guards seized me and beat me terribly before the very eyes of Gloria,
whom the King himself held back so she could not interfere."

"Why, this King must be a monster!" cried Trot.

"He is far worse than that," said Pon, mournfully.

"But, see here," interrupted Cap'n Bill, who had listened carefully to
Pon. "This King may not be so much to blame, after all. Kings are proud
folks, because they're so high an' mighty, an' it isn't reasonable for
a royal Princess to marry a common gardener's boy."

"It isn't right," declared Button-Bright. "A Princess should marry a
Prince."

"I'm not a common gardener's boy," protested Pon. "If I had my rights I
would be the King instead of Krewl. As it is, I'm a Prince, and as
royal as any man in Jinxland."

"How does that come?" asked Cap'n Bill.

"My father used to be the King and Krewl was his Prime Minister. But
one day while out hunting, King Phearse--that was my father's name--had
a quarrel with Krewl and tapped him gently on the nose with the
knuckles of his closed hand. This so provoked the wicked Krewl that he
tripped my father backward, so that he fell into a deep pond. At once
Krewl threw in a mass of heavy stones, which so weighted down my poor
father that his body could not rise again to the surface. It is
impossible to kill anyone in this land, as perhaps you know, but when
my father was pressed down into the mud at the bottom of the deep pool
and the stones held him so he could never escape, he was of no more use
to himself or the world than if he had died. Knowing this, Krewl
proclaimed himself King, taking possession of the royal castle and
driving all my father's people out. I was a small boy, then, but when I
grew up I became a gardener. I have served King Krewl without his
knowing that I am the son of the same King Phearse whom he so cruelly
made away with."

"My, but that's a terr'bly exciting story!" said Trot, drawing a long
breath. "But tell us, Pon, who was Gloria's father?"

"Oh, he was the King before my father," replied Pon. "Father was Prime
Minister for King Kynd, who was Gloria's father. She was only a baby
when King Kynd fell into the Great Gulf that lies just this side of the
mountains--the same mountains that separate Jinxland from the rest of
the Land of Oz. It is said the Great Gulf has no bottom; but, however
that may be, King Kynd has never been seen again and my father became
King in his place."

"Seems to me," said Trot, "that if Gloria had her rights she would be
Queen of Jinxland."

"Well, her father was a King," admitted Pon, "and so was my father; so
we are of equal rank, although she's a great lady and I'm a humble
gardener's boy. I can't see why we should not marry if we want to
except that King Krewl won't let us."

"It's a sort of mixed-up mess, taken altogether," remarked Cap'n Bill.
"But we are on our way to visit King Krewl, and if we get a chance,
young man, we'll put in a good word for you."

"Do, please!" begged Pon.

"Was it the flogging you got that broke your heart?" inquired
Button-Bright.

"Why, it helped to break it, of course," said Pon.

"I'd get it fixed up, if I were you," advised the boy, tossing a pebble
at a chipmunk in a tree. "You ought to give Gloria just as good a heart
as she gives you."

"That's common sense," agreed Cap'n Bill. So they left the gardener's
boy standing beside the path, and resumed their journey toward the
castle.




Chapter Eleven

The Wicked King and Googly-Goo


When our friends approached the great doorway of the castle they found
it guarded by several soldiers dressed in splendid uniforms. They were
armed with swords and lances. Cap'n Bill walked straight up to them and
asked:

"Does the King happen to be at home?"

"His Magnificent and Glorious Majesty, King Krewl, is at present
inhabiting his Royal Castle," was the stiff reply.

"Then I guess we'll go in an' say how-d'ye-do," continued Cap'n Bill,
attempting to enter the doorway. But a soldier barred his way with a
lance.

"Who are you, what are your names, and where do you come from?"
demanded the soldier.

"You wouldn't know if we told you," returned the sailor, "seein' as
we're strangers in a strange land."

"Oh, if you are strangers you will be permitted to enter," said the
soldier, lowering his lance. "His Majesty is very fond of strangers."

"Do many strangers come here?" asked Trot.

"You are the first that ever came to our country," said the man. "But
his Majesty has often said that if strangers ever arrived in Jinxland
he would see that they had a very exciting time."

Cap'n Bill scratched his chin thoughtfully. He wasn't very favorably
impressed by this last remark. But he decided that as there was no way
of escape from Jinxland it would be wise to confront the King boldly
and try to win his favor. So they entered the castle, escorted by one
of the soldiers.

It was certainly a fine castle, with many large rooms, all beautifully
furnished. The passages were winding and handsomely decorated, and
after following several of these the soldier led them into an open
court that occupied the very center of the huge building. It was
surrounded on every side by high turreted walls, and contained beds of
flowers, fountains and walks of many colored marbles which were matched
together in quaint designs. In an open space near the middle of the
court they saw a group of courtiers and their ladies, who surrounded a
lean man who wore upon his head a jeweled crown. His face was hard and
sullen and through the slits of his half-closed eyelids the eyes glowed
like coals of fire. He was dressed in brilliant satins and velvets and
was seated in a golden throne-chair.

This personage was King Krewl, and as soon as Cap'n Bill saw him the
old sailor knew at once that he was not going to like the King of
Jinxland.

"Hello! who's here?" said his Majesty, with a deep scowl.

"Strangers, Sire," answered the soldier, bowing so low that his
forehead touched the marble tiles.

"Strangers, eh? Well, well; what an unexpected visit! Advance,
strangers, and give an account of yourselves."

The King's voice was as harsh as his features. Trot shuddered a little
but Cap'n Bill calmly replied:

"There ain't much for us to say, 'cept as we've arrived to look over
your country an' see how we like it. Judgin' from the way you speak,
you don't know who we are, or you'd be jumpin' up to shake hands an'
offer us seats. Kings usually treat us pretty well, in the great big
Outside World where we come from, but in this little kingdom--which
don't amount to much, anyhow--folks don't seem to 'a' got much
culchure."

The King listened with amazement to this bold speech, first with a
frown and then gazing at the two children and the old sailor with
evident curiosity. The courtiers were dumb with fear, for no one had
ever dared speak in such a manner to their self-willed, cruel King
before. His Majesty, however, was somewhat frightened, for cruel people
are always cowards, and he feared these mysterious strangers might
possess magic powers that would destroy him unless he treated them
well. So he commanded his people to give the new arrivals seats, and
they obeyed with trembling haste.

After being seated, Cap'n Bill lighted his pipe and began puffing smoke
from it, a sight so strange to them that it filled them all with
wonder. Presently the King asked:

"How did you penetrate to this hidden country? Did you cross the desert
or the mountains?"

"Desert," answered Cap'n Bill, as if the task were too easy to be worth
talking about.

"Indeed! No one has ever been able to do that before," said the King.

"Well, it's easy enough, if you know how," asserted Cap'n Bill, so
carelessly that it greatly impressed his hearers. The King shifted in
his throne uneasily. He was more afraid of these strangers than before.

"Do you intend to stay long in Jinxland?" was his next anxious question.

"Depends on how we like it," said Cap'n Bill. "Just now I might suggest
to your Majesty to order some rooms got ready for us in your dinky
little castle here. And a royal banquet, with some fried onions an'
pickled tripe, would set easy on our stomicks an' make us a bit happier
than we are now."

"Your wishes shall be attended to," said King Krewl, but his eyes
flashed from between their slits in a wicked way that made Trot hope
the food wouldn't be poisoned. At the King's command several of his
attendants hastened away to give the proper orders to the castle
servants and no sooner were they gone than a skinny old man entered the
courtyard and bowed before the King.

This disagreeable person was dressed in rich velvets, with many
furbelows and laces. He was covered with golden chains, finely wrought
rings and jeweled ornaments. He walked with mincing steps and glared at
all the courtiers as if he considered himself far superior to any or
all of them.

"Well, well, your Majesty; what news--what news?" he demanded, in a
shrill, cracked voice.

The King gave him a surly look.

"No news, Lord Googly-Goo, except that strangers have arrived," he said.

Googly-Goo cast a contemptuous glance at Cap'n Bill and a disdainful
one at Trot and Button-Bright. Then he said:

"Strangers do not interest me, your Majesty. But the Princess Gloria is
very interesting--very interesting, indeed!  What does she say, Sire?
Will she marry me?"

"Ask her," retorted the King.

"I have, many times; and every time she has refused."

"Well?" said the King harshly.

"Well," said Googly-Goo in a jaunty tone, "a bird that can sing, and
won't sing, must be made to sing."

"Huh!" sneered the King. "That's easy, with a bird; but a girl is
harder to manage."

"Still," persisted Googly-Goo, "we must overcome difficulties. The
chief trouble is that Gloria fancies she loves that miserable
gardener's boy, Pon. Suppose we throw Pon into the Great Gulf, your
Majesty?"

"It would do you no good," returned the King. "She would still love
him."

"Too bad, too bad!" sighed Googly-Goo. "I have laid aside more than a
bushel of precious gems--each worth a king's ransom--to present to your
Majesty on the day I wed Gloria."

The King's eyes sparkled, for he loved wealth above everything; but the
next moment he frowned deeply again.

"It won't help us to kill Pon," he muttered. "What we must do is kill
Gloria's love for Pon."

"That is better, if you can find a way to do it," agreed Googly-Goo.
"Everything would come right if you could kill Gloria's love for that
gardener's boy. Really, Sire, now that I come to think of it, there
must be fully a bushel and a half of those jewels!"

Just then a messenger entered the court to say that the banquet was
prepared for the strangers. So Cap'n Bill, Trot and Button-Bright
entered the castle and were taken to a room where a fine feast was
spread upon the table.

"I don't like that Lord Googly-Goo," remarked Trot as she was busily
eating.

"Nor I," said Cap'n Bill. "But from the talk we heard I guess the
gardener's boy won't get the Princess."

"Perhaps not," returned the girl; "but I hope old Googly doesn't get
her, either."

"The King means to sell her for all those jewels," observed
Button-Bright, his mouth half full of cake and jam.

"Poor Princess!" sighed Trot. "I'm sorry for her, although I've never
seen her. But if she says no to Googly-Goo, and means it, what can they
do?"

"Don't let us worry about a strange Princess," advised Cap'n Bill.
"I've a notion we're not too safe, ourselves, with this cruel King."

The two children felt the same way and all three were rather solemn
during the remainder of the meal.

When they had eaten, the servants escorted them to their rooms. Cap'n
Bill's room was way to one end of the castle, very high up, and Trot's
room was at the opposite end, rather low down. As for Button-Bright,
they placed him in the middle, so that all were as far apart as they
could possibly be. They didn't like this arrangement very well, but all
the rooms were handsomely furnished and being guests of the King they
dared not complain.

After the strangers had left the courtyard the King and Googly-Goo had
a long talk together, and the King said:

"I cannot force Gloria to marry you just now, because those strangers
may interfere. I suspect that the wooden-legged man possesses great
magical powers, or he would never have been able to carry himself and
those children across the deadly desert."

"I don't like him; he looks dangerous," answered Googly-Goo. "But
perhaps you are mistaken about his being a wizard. Why don't you test
his powers?"

"How?" asked the King.

"Send for the Wicked Witch. She will tell you in a moment whether that
wooden-legged person is a common man or a magician."

"Ha! that's a good idea," cried the King. "Why didn't I think of the
Wicked Witch before? But the woman demands rich rewards for her
services."

"Never mind; I will pay her," promised the wealthy Googly-Goo.

So a servant was dispatched to summon the Wicked Witch, who lived but a
few leagues from King Krewl's castle. While they awaited her, the
withered old courtier proposed that they pay a visit to Princess Gloria
and see if she was not now in a more complaisant mood. So the two
started away together and searched the castle over without finding
Gloria.

At last Googly-Goo suggested she might be in the rear garden, which was
a large park filled with bushes and trees and surrounded by a high
wall. And what was their anger, when they turned a corner of the path,
to find in a quiet nook the beautiful Princess, and kneeling before
her, Pon, the gardener's boy! With a roar of rage the King dashed
forward; but Pon had scaled the wall by means of a ladder, which still
stood in its place, and when he saw the King coming he ran up the
ladder and made good his escape. But this left Gloria confronted by her
angry guardian, the King, and by old Googly-Goo, who was trembling with
a fury he could not express in words.

Seizing the Princess by her arm the King dragged her back to the
castle. Pushing her into a room on the lower floor he locked the door
upon the unhappy girl. And at that moment the arrival of the Wicked
Witch was announced.

Hearing this, the King smiled, as a tiger smiles, showing his teeth.
And Googly-Goo smiled, as a serpent smiles, for he had no teeth except
a couple of fangs. And having frightened each other with these smiles
the two dreadful men went away to the Royal Council Chamber to meet the
Wicked Witch.




Chapter Twelve

The Wooden-Legged Grass-Hopper


Now it so happened that Trot, from the window of her room, had
witnessed the meeting of the lovers in the garden and had seen the King
come and drag Gloria away. The little girl's heart went out in sympathy
for the poor Princess, who seemed to her to be one of the sweetest and
loveliest young ladies she had ever seen, so she crept along the
passages and from a hidden niche saw Gloria locked in her room.

The key was still in the lock, so when the King had gone away, followed
by Googly-Goo, Trot stole up to the door, turned the key and entered.
The Princess lay prone upon a couch, sobbing bitterly. Trot went up to
her and smoothed her hair and tried to comfort her.

"Don't cry," she said. "I've unlocked the door, so you can go away any
time you want to."

"It isn't that," sobbed the Princess. "I am unhappy because they will
not let me love Pon, the gardener's boy!"

"Well, never mind; Pon isn't any great shakes, anyhow, seems to me,"
said Trot soothingly. "There are lots of other people you can love."

Gloria rolled over on the couch and looked at the little girl
reproachfully.

"Pon has won my heart, and I can't help loving him," she explained.
Then with sudden indignation she added: "But I'll never love
Googly-Goo--never, as long as I live!"

"I should say not!" replied Trot. "Pon may not be much good, but old
Googly is very, very bad. Hunt around, and I'm sure you'll find someone
worth your love. You're very pretty, you know, and almost anyone ought
to love you."

"You don't understand, my dear," said Gloria, as she wiped the tears
from her eyes with a dainty lace handkerchief bordered with pearls.
"When you are older you will realize that a young lady cannot decide
whom she will love, or choose the most worthy. Her heart alone decides
for her, and whomsoever her heart selects, she must love, whether he
amounts to much or not."

Trot was a little puzzled by this speech, which seemed to her
unreasonable; but she made no reply and presently Gloria's grief
softened and she began to question the little girl about herself and
her adventures. Trot told her how they had happened to come to
Jinxland, and all about Cap'n Bill and the Ork and Pessim and the Bumpy
Man.

While they were thus conversing together, getting more and more
friendly as they became better acquainted, in the Council Chamber the
King and Googly-Goo were talking with the Wicked Witch.

This evil creature was old and ugly. She had lost one eye and wore a
black patch over it, so the people of Jinxland had named her "Blinkie."
Of course witches are forbidden to exist in the Land of Oz, but
Jinxland was so far removed from the center of Ozma's dominions, and so
absolutely cut off from it by the steep mountains and the bottomless
gulf, that the laws of Oz were not obeyed very well in that country. So
there were several witches in Jinxland who were the terror of the
people, but King Krewl favored them and permitted them to exercise
their evil sorcery.

Blinkie was the leader of all the other witches and therefore the most
hated and feared. The King used her witchcraft at times to assist him
in carrying out his cruelties and revenge, but he was always obliged to
pay Blinkie large sums of money or heaps of precious jewels before she
would undertake an enchantment. This made him hate the old woman almost
as much as his subjects did, but to-day Lord Googly-Goo had agreed to
pay the witch's price, so the King greeted her with gracious favor.

"Can you destroy the love of Princess Gloria for the gardener's boy?"
inquired his Majesty.

The Wicked Witch thought about it before she replied:

"That's a hard question to answer. I can do lots of clever magic, but
love is a stubborn thing to conquer. When you think you've killed it,
it's liable to bob up again as strong as ever. I believe love and cats
have nine lives. In other words, killing love is a hard job, even for a
skillful witch, but I believe I can do something that will answer your
purpose just as well."

"What is that?" asked the King.

"I can freeze the girl's heart. I've got a special incantation for
that, and when Gloria's heart is thoroughly frozen she can no longer
love Pon."

"Just the thing!" exclaimed Googly-Goo, and the King was likewise much
pleased.

They bargained a long time as to the price, but finally the old
courtier agreed to pay the Wicked Witch's demands. It was arranged that
they should take Gloria to Blinkie's house the next day, to have her
heart frozen.

Then King Krewl mentioned to the old hag the strangers who had that day
arrived in Jinxland, and said to her:

"I think the two children--the boy and the girl--are unable to harm me,
but I have a suspicion that the wooden-legged man is a powerful wizard."

The witch's face wore a troubled look when she heard this.

"If you are right," she said, "this wizard might spoil my incantation
and interfere with me in other ways. So it will be best for me to meet
this stranger at once and match my magic against his, to decide which
is the stronger."

"All right," said the King. "Come with me and I will lead you to the
man's room."

Googly-Goo did not accompany them, as he was obliged to go home to get
the money and jewels he had promised to pay old Blinkie, so the other
two climbed several flights of stairs and went through many passages
until they came to the room occupied by Cap'n Bill.

The sailor-man, finding his bed soft and inviting, and being tired with
the adventures he had experienced, had decided to take a nap. When the
Wicked Witch and the King softly opened his door and entered, Cap'n
Bill was snoring with such vigor that he did not hear them at all.

Blinkie approached the bed and with her one eye anxiously stared at the
sleeping stranger.

"Ah," she said in a soft whisper, "I believe you are right, King Krewl.
The man looks to me like a very powerful wizard. But by good luck I
have caught him asleep, so I shall transform him before he wakes up,
giving him such a form that he will be unable to oppose me."

"Careful!" cautioned the King, also speaking low. "If he discovers what
you are doing he may destroy you, and that would annoy me because I
need you to attend to Gloria."

But the Wicked Witch realized as well as he did that she must be
careful. She carried over her arm a black bag, from which she now drew
several packets carefully wrapped in paper. Three of these she
selected, replacing the others in the bag. Two of the packets she mixed
together, and then she cautiously opened the third.

"Better stand back, your Majesty," she advised, "for if this powder
falls on you you might be transformed yourself."

The King hastily retreated to the end of the room. As Blinkie mixed the
third powder with the others she waved her hands over it, mumbled a few
words, and then backed away as quickly as she could.

Cap'n Bill was slumbering peacefully, all unconscious of what was going
on. Puff! A great cloud of smoke rolled over the bed and completely hid
him from view. When the smoke rolled away, both Blinkie and the King
saw that the body of the stranger had quite disappeared, while in his
place, crouching in the middle of the bed, was a little gray
grasshopper.

One curious thing about this grasshopper was that the last joint of its
left leg was made of wood. Another curious thing--considering it was a
grasshopper--was that it began talking, crying out in a tiny but sharp
voice:

"Here--you people! What do you mean by treating me so? Put me back
where I belong, at once, or you'll be sorry!"

The cruel King turned pale at hearing the grasshopper's threats, but
the Wicked Witch merely laughed in derision. Then she raised her stick
and aimed a vicious blow at the grasshopper, but before the stick
struck the bed the tiny hopper made a marvelous jump--marvelous,
indeed, when we consider that it had a wooden leg. It rose in the air
and sailed across the room and passed right through the open window,
where it disappeared from their view.

"Good!" shouted the King. "We are well rid of this desperate wizard."
And then they both laughed heartily at the success of the incantation,
and went away to complete their horrid plans.

After Trot had visited a time with Princess Gloria, the little girl
went to Button-Bright's room but did not find him there. Then she went
to Cap'n Bill's room, but he was not there because the witch and the
King had been there before her. So she made her way downstairs and
questioned the servants. They said they had seen the little boy go out
into the garden, some time ago, but the old man with the wooden leg
they had not seen at all.

Therefore Trot, not knowing what else to do, rambled through the great
gardens, seeking for Button-Bright or Cap'n Bill and not finding either
of them. This part of the garden, which lay before the castle, was not
walled in, but extended to the roadway, and the paths were open to the
edge of the forest; so, after two hours of vain search for her friends,
the little girl returned to the castle.

But at the doorway a soldier stopped her.

"I live here," said Trot, "so it's all right to let me in. The King has
given me a room."

"Well, he has taken it back again," was the soldier's reply. "His
Majesty's orders are to turn you away if you attempt to enter. I am
also ordered to forbid the boy, your companion, to again enter the
King's castle."

"How 'bout Cap'n Bill?" she inquired.

"Why, it seems he has mysteriously disappeared," replied the soldier,
shaking his head ominously. "Where he has gone to, I can't make out,
but I can assure you he is no longer in this castle. I'm sorry, little
girl, to disappoint you. Don't blame me; I must obey my master's
orders."

Now, all her life Trot had been accustomed to depend on Cap'n Bill, so
when this good friend was suddenly taken from her she felt very
miserable and forlorn indeed. She was brave enough not to cry before
the soldier, or even to let him see her grief and anxiety, but after
she was turned away from the castle she sought a quiet bench in the
garden and for a time sobbed as if her heart would break.

It was Button-Bright who found her, at last, just as the sun had set
and the shades of evening were falling. He also had been turned away
from the King's castle, when he tried to enter it, and in the park he
came across Trot.

"Never mind," said the boy. "We can find a place to sleep."

"I want Cap'n Bill," wailed the girl.

"Well, so do I," was the reply. "But we haven't got him. Where do you
s'pose he is, Trot?

"I don't s'pose anything. He's gone, an' that's all I know 'bout it."

Button-Bright sat on the bench beside her and thrust his hands in the
pockets of his knickerbockers. Then he reflected somewhat gravely for
him.

"Cap'n Bill isn't around here," he said, letting his eyes wander over
the dim garden, "so we must go somewhere else if we want to find him.
Besides, it's fast getting dark, and if we want to find a place to
sleep we must get busy while we can see where to go."

He rose from the bench as he said this and Trot also jumped up, drying
her eyes on her apron. Then she walked beside him out of the grounds of
the King's castle. They did not go by the main path, but passed through
an opening in a hedge and found themselves in a small but well-worn
roadway. Following this for some distance, along a winding way, they
came upon no house or building that would afford them refuge for the
night. It became so dark that they could scarcely see their way, and
finally Trot stopped and suggested that they camp under a tree.

"All right," said Button-Bright, "I've often found that leaves make a
good warm blanket. But--look there, Trot!--isn't that a light flashing
over yonder?"

"It certainly is, Button-Bright. Let's go over and see if it's a house.
Whoever lives there couldn't treat us worse than the King did."

To reach the light they had to leave the road, so they stumbled over
hillocks and brushwood, hand in hand, keeping the tiny speck of light
always in sight.

They were rather forlorn little waifs, outcasts in a strange country
and forsaken by their only friend and guardian, Cap'n Bill. So they
were very glad when finally they reached a small cottage and, looking
in through its one window, saw Pon, the gardener's boy, sitting by a
fire of twigs.

As Trot opened the door and walked boldly in, Pon sprang up to greet
them. They told him of Cap'n Bill's disappearance and how they had been
turned out of the King's castle. As they finished the story Pon shook
his head sadly.

"King Krewl is plotting mischief, I fear," said he, "for to-day he sent
for old Blinkie, the Wicked Witch, and with my own eyes I saw her come
from the castle and hobble away toward her hut. She had been with the
King and Googly-Goo, and I was afraid they were going to work some
enchantment on Gloria so she would no longer love me. But perhaps the
witch was only called to the castle to enchant your friend, Cap'n Bill."

"Could she do that?" asked Trot, horrified by the suggestion.

"I suppose so, for old Blinkie can do a lot of wicked magical things."

"What sort of an enchantment could she put on Cap'n Bill?"

"I don't know. But he has disappeared, so I'm pretty certain she has
done something dreadful to him. But don't worry. If it has happened, it
can't be helped, and if it hasn't happened we may be able to find him
in the morning."

With this Pon went to the cupboard and brought food for them. Trot was
far too worried to eat, but Button-Bright made a good supper from the
simple food and then lay down before the fire and went to sleep. The
little girl and the gardener's boy, however, sat for a long time
staring into the fire, busy with their thoughts. But at last Trot, too,
became sleepy and Pon gently covered her with the one blanket he
possessed. Then he threw more wood on the fire and laid himself down
before it, next to Button-Bright. Soon all three were fast asleep. They
were in a good deal of trouble; but they were young, and sleep was good
to them because for a time it made them forget.




Chapter Thirteen

Glinda the Good and the Scarecrow of Oz


That country south of the Emerald City, in the Land of Oz, is known as
the Quadling Country, and in the very southernmost part of it stands a
splendid palace in which lives Glinda the Good.

Glinda is the Royal Sorceress of Oz. She has wonderful magical powers
and uses them only to benefit the subjects of Ozma's kingdom. Even the
famous Wizard of Oz pays tribute to her, for Glinda taught him all the
real magic he knows, and she is his superior in all sorts of sorcery
Everyone loves Glinda, from the dainty and exquisite Ruler, Ozma, down
to the humblest inhabitant of Oz, for she is always kindly and helpful
and willing to listen to their troubles, however busy she may be. No
one knows her age, but all can see how beautiful and stately she is.
Her hair is like red gold and finer than the finest silken strands. Her
eyes are blue as the sky and always frank and smiling. Her cheeks are
the envy of peach-blows and her mouth is enticing as a rosebud. Glinda
is tall and wears splendid gowns that trail behind her as she walks.
She wears no jewels, for her beauty would shame them.

For attendants Glinda has half a hundred of the loveliest girls in Oz.
They are gathered from all over Oz, from among the Winkies, the
Munchkins, the Gillikins and the Quadlings, as well as from Ozma's
magnificent Emerald City, and it is considered a great favor to be
allowed to serve the Royal Sorceress.

Among the many wonderful things in Glinda's palace is the Great Book of
Records. In this book is inscribed everything that takes place in all
the world, just the instant it happens; so that by referring to its
pages Glinda knows what is taking place far and near, in every country
that exists. In this way she learns when and where she can help any in
distress or danger, and although her duties are confined to assisting
those who inhabit the Land of Oz, she is always interested in what
takes place in the unprotected outside world.

So it was that on a certain evening Glinda sat in her library,
surrounded by a bevy of her maids, who were engaged in spinning,
weaving and embroidery, when an attendant announced the arrival at the
palace of the Scarecrow.

This personage was one of the most famous and popular in all the Land
of Oz. His body was merely a suit of Munchkin clothes stuffed with
straw, but his head was a round sack filled with bran, with which the
Wizard of Oz had mixed some magic brains of a very superior sort. The
eyes, nose and mouth of the Scarecrow were painted upon the front of
the sack, as were his ears, and since this quaint being had been
endowed with life, the expression of his face was very interesting, if
somewhat comical.

The Scarecrow was good all through, even to his brains, and while he
was naturally awkward in his movements and lacked the neat symmetry of
other people, his disposition was so kind and considerate and he was so
obliging and honest, that all who knew him loved him, and there were
few people in Oz who had not met our Scarecrow and made his
acquaintance. He lived part of the time in Ozma's palace at the Emerald
City, part of the time in his own corncob castle in the Winkie Country,
and part of the time he traveled over all Oz, visiting with the people
and playing with the children, whom he dearly loved.

It was on one of his wandering journeys that the Scarecrow had arrived
at Glinda's palace, and the Sorceress at once made him welcome. As he
sat beside her, talking of his adventures, he asked:

"What's new in the way of news?"

Glinda opened her Great Book of Records and read some of the last pages.

"Here is an item quite curious and interesting," she announced, an
accent of surprise in her voice. "Three people from the big Outside
World have arrived in Jinxland."

"Where is Jinxland?" inquired the Scarecrow.

"Very near here, a little to the east of us," she said. "In fact,
Jinxland is a little slice taken off the Quadling Country, but
separated from it by a range of high mountains, at the foot of which
lies a wide, deep gulf that is supposed to be impassable."

"Then Jinxland is really a part of the Land of Oz," said he.

"Yes," returned Glinda, "but Oz people know nothing of it, except what
is recorded here in my book."

"What does the Book say about it?" asked the Scarecrow.

"It is ruled by a wicked man called King Krewl, although he has no
right to the title. Most of the people are good, but they are very
timid and live in constant fear of their fierce ruler. There are also
several Wicked Witches who keep the inhabitants of Jinxland in a state
of terror."

"Do those witches have any magical powers?" inquired the Scarecrow.

"Yes, they seem to understand witchcraft in its most evil form, for one
of them has just transformed a respectable and honest old sailor--one
of the strangers who arrived there--into a grasshopper. This same
witch, Blinkie by name, is also planning to freeze the heart of a
beautiful Jinxland girl named Princess Gloria."

"Why, that's a dreadful thing to do!" exclaimed the Scarecrow.

Glinda's face was very grave. She read in her book how Trot and
Button-Bright were turned out of the King's castle, and how they found
refuge in the hut of Pon, the gardener's boy.

"I'm afraid those helpless earth people will endure much suffering in
Jinxland, even if the wicked King and the witches permit them to live,"
said the good Sorceress, thoughtfully. "I wish I might help them."

"Can I do anything?" asked the Scarecrow, anxiously. "If so, tell me
what to do, and I'll do it."

For a few moments Glinda did not reply, but sat musing over the
records. Then she said: "I am going to send you to Jinxland, to protect
Trot and Button-Bright and Cap'n Bill."

"All right," answered the Scarecrow in a cheerful voice. "I know
Button-Bright already, for he has been in the Land of Oz before. You
remember he went away from the Land of Oz in one of our Wizard's big
bubbles."

"Yes," said Glinda, "I remember that." Then she carefully instructed
the Scarecrow what to do and gave him certain magical things which he
placed in the pockets of his ragged Munchkin coat.

"As you have no need to sleep," said she, "you may as well start at
once."

"The night is the same as day to me," he replied, "except that I cannot
see my way so well in the dark."

"I will furnish a light to guide you," promised the Sorceress.

So the Scarecrow bade her good-bye and at once started on his journey.
By morning he had reached the mountains that separated the Quadling
Country from Jinxland. The sides of these mountains were too steep to
climb, but the Scarecrow took a small rope from his pocket and tossed
one end upward, into the air. The rope unwound itself for hundreds of
feet, until it caught upon a peak of rock at the very top of a
mountain, for it was a magic rope furnished him by Glinda. The
Scarecrow climbed the rope and, after pulling it up, let it down on the
other side of the mountain range. When he descended the rope on this
side he found himself in Jinxland, but at his feet yawned the Great
Gulf, which must be crossed before he could proceed any farther.

The Scarecrow knelt down and examined the ground carefully, and in a
moment he discovered a fuzzy brown spider that had rolled itself into a
ball. So he took two tiny pills from his pocket and laid them beside
the spider, which unrolled itself and quickly ate up the pills. Then
the Scarecrow said in a voice of command:

"Spin!" and the spider obeyed instantly.

In a few moments the little creature had spun two slender but strong
strands that reached way across the gulf, one being five or six feet
above the other. When these were completed the Scarecrow started across
the tiny bridge, walking upon one strand as a person walks upon a rope,
and holding to the upper strand with his hands to prevent him from
losing his balance and toppling over into the gulf. The tiny threads
held him safely, thanks to the strength given them by the magic pills.

Presently he was safe across and standing on the plains of Jinxland.
Far away he could see the towers of the King's castle and toward this
he at once began to walk.




Chapter Fourteen

The Frozen Heart


In the hut of Pon, the gardener's boy, Button-Bright was the first to
waken in the morning. Leaving his companions still asleep, he went out
into the fresh morning air and saw some blackberries growing on bushes
in a field not far away. Going to the bushes he found the berries ripe
and sweet, so he began eating them. More bushes were scattered over the
fields, so the boy wandered on, from bush to bush, without paying any
heed to where he was wandering. Then a butterfly fluttered by. He gave
chase to it and followed it a long way. When finally he paused to look
around him, Button-Bright could see no sign of Pon's house, nor had he
the slightest idea in which direction it lay.

"Well, I'm lost again," he remarked to himself. "But never mind; I've
been lost lots of times. Someone is sure to find me."

Trot was a little worried about Button-Bright when she awoke and found
him gone. Knowing how careless he was, she believed that he had strayed
away, but felt that he would come back in time, because he had a habit
of not staying lost. Pon got the little girl some food for her
breakfast and then together they went out of the hut and stood in the
sunshine.

Pon's house was some distance off the road, but they could see it from
where they stood and both gave a start of surprise when they discovered
two soldiers walking along the roadway and escorting Princess Gloria
between them. The poor girl had her hands bound together, to prevent
her from struggling, and the soldiers rudely dragged her forward when
her steps seemed to lag.

Behind this group came King Krewl, wearing his jeweled crown and
swinging in his hand a slender golden staff with a ball of clustered
gems at one end.

"Where are they going?" asked Trot. "To the house of the Wicked Witch,
I fear," Pon replied. "Come, let us follow them, for I am sure they
intend to harm my dear Gloria."

"Won't they see us?" she asked timidly.

"We won't let them. I know a short cut through the trees to Blinkie's
house," said he.

So they hurried away through the trees and reached the house of the
witch ahead of the King and his soldiers. Hiding themselves in the
shrubbery, they watched the approach of poor Gloria and her escort, all
of whom passed so near to them that Pon could have put out a hand and
touched his sweetheart, had he dared to.

Blinkie's house had eight sides, with a door and a window in each side.
Smoke was coming out of the chimney and as the guards brought Gloria to
one of the doors it was opened by the old witch in person. She chuckled
with evil glee and rubbed her skinny hands together to show the delight
with which she greeted her victim, for Blinkie was pleased to be able
to perform her wicked rites on one so fair and sweet as the Princess.

Gloria struggled to resist when they bade her enter the house, so the
soldiers forced her through the doorway and even the King gave her a
shove as he followed close behind. Pon was so incensed at the cruelty
shown Gloria that he forgot all caution and rushed forward to enter the
house also; but one of the soldiers prevented him, pushing the
gardener's boy away with violence and slamming the door in his face.

"Never mind," said Trot soothingly, as Pon rose from where he had
fallen. "You couldn't do much to help the poor Princess if you were
inside. How unfortunate it is that you are in love with her!"

"True," he answered sadly, "it is indeed my misfortune. If I did not
love her, it would be none of my business what the King did to his
niece Gloria; but the unlucky circumstance of my loving her makes it my
duty to defend her."

"I don't see how you can, duty or no duty," observed Trot.

"No; I am powerless, for they are stronger than I. But we might peek in
through the window and see what they are doing."

Trot was somewhat curious, too, so they crept up to one of the windows
and looked in, and it so happened that those inside the witch's house
were so busy they did not notice that Pon and Trot were watching them.

Gloria had been tied to a stout post in the center of the room and the
King was giving the Wicked Witch a quantity of money and jewels, which
Googly-Goo had provided in payment. When this had been done the King
said to her:

"Are you perfectly sure you can freeze this maiden's heart, so that she
will no longer love that low gardener's boy?"

"Sure as witchcraft, your Majesty," the creature replied.

"Then get to work," said the King. "There may be some unpleasant
features about the ceremony that would annoy me, so I'll bid you good
day and leave you to carry out your contract. One word, however: If you
fail, I shall burn you at the stake!" Then he beckoned to his soldiers
to follow him, and throwing wide the door of the house walked out.

This action was so sudden that King Krewl almost caught Trot and Pon
eavesdropping, but they managed to run around the house before he saw
them. Away he marched, up the road, followed by his men, heartlessly
leaving Gloria to the mercies of old Blinkie.

When they again crept up to the window, Trot and Pon saw Blinkie
gloating over her victim. Although nearly fainting from fear, the proud
Princess gazed with haughty defiance into the face of the wicked
creature; but she was bound so tightly to the post that she could do no
more to express her loathing.

Pretty soon Blinkie went to a kettle that was swinging by a chain over
the fire and tossed into it several magical compounds. The kettle gave
three flashes, and at every flash another witch appeared in the room.

These hags were very ugly but when one-eyed Blinkie whispered her
orders to them they grinned with joy as they began dancing around
Gloria. First one and then another cast something into the kettle, when
to the astonishment of the watchers at the window all three of the old
women were instantly transformed into maidens of exquisite beauty,
dressed in the daintiest costumes imaginable. Only their eyes could not
be disguised, and an evil glare still shone in their depths. But if the
eyes were cast down or hidden, one could not help but admire these
beautiful creatures, even with the knowledge that they were mere
illusions of witchcraft.

Trot certainly admired them, for she had never seen anything so dainty
and bewitching, but her attention was quickly drawn to their deeds
instead of their persons, and then horror replaced admiration. Into the
kettle old Blinkie poured another mess from a big brass bottle she took
from a chest, and this made the kettle begin to bubble and smoke
violently. One by one the beautiful witches approached to stir the
contents of the kettle and to mutter a magic charm. Their movements
were graceful and rhythmic and the Wicked Witch who had called them to
her aid watched them with an evil grin upon her wrinkled face.

Finally the incantation was complete. The kettle ceased bubbling and
together the witches lifted it from the fire. Then Blinkie brought a
wooden ladle and filled it from the contents of the kettle. Going with
the spoon to Princess Gloria she cried:

"Love no more! Magic art Now will freeze your mortal heart!"

With this she dashed the contents of the ladle full upon Gloria's
breast.

Trot saw the body of the Princess become transparent, so that her
beating heart showed plainly. But now the heart turned from a vivid red
to gray, and then to white. A layer of frost formed about it and tiny
icicles clung to its surface. Then slowly the body of the girl became
visible again and the heart was hidden from view. Gloria seemed to have
fainted, but now she recovered and, opening her beautiful eyes, stared
coldly and without emotion at the group of witches confronting her.

Blinkie and the others knew by that one cold look that their charm had
been successful. They burst into a chorus of wild laughter and the
three beautiful ones began dancing again, while Blinkie unbound the
Princess and set her free.

Trot rubbed her eyes to prove that she was wide awake and seeing
clearly, for her astonishment was great when the three lovely maidens
turned into ugly, crooked hags again, leaning on broomsticks and canes.
They jeered at Gloria, but the Princess regarded them with cold
disdain. Being now free, she walked to a door, opened it and passed
out. And the witches let her go.

Trot and Pon had been so intent upon this scene that in their eagerness
they had pressed quite hard against the window. Just as Gloria went out
of the house the window-sash broke loose from its fastenings and fell
with a crash into the room. The witches uttered a chorus of screams and
then, seeing that their magical incantation had been observed, they
rushed for the open window with uplifted broomsticks and canes. But Pon
was off like the wind, and Trot followed at his heels. Fear lent them
strength to run, to leap across ditches, to speed up the hills and to
vault the low fences as a deer would.

The band of witches had dashed through the window in pursuit; but
Blinkie was so old, and the others so crooked and awkward, that they
soon realized they would be unable to overtake the fugitives. So the
three who had been summoned by the Wicked Witch put their canes or
broomsticks between their legs and flew away through the air, quickly
disappearing against the blue sky. Blinkie, however, was so enraged at
Pon and Trot that she hobbled on in the direction they had taken, fully
determined to catch them, in time, and to punish them terribly for
spying upon her witchcraft.

When Pon and Trot had run so far that they were confident they had made
good their escape, they sat down near the edge of a forest to get their
breath again, for both were panting hard from their exertions. Trot was
the first to recover speech, and she said to her companion:

"My! wasn't it terr'ble?"

"The most terrible thing I ever saw," Pon agreed.

"And they froze Gloria's heart; so now she can't love you any more."

"Well, they froze her heart, to be sure," admitted Pon, "but I'm in
hopes I can melt it with my love."

"Where do you s'pose Gloria is?" asked the girl, after a pause.

"She left the witch's house just before we did. Perhaps she has gone
back to the King's castle," he said.

"I'm pretty sure she started off in a diff'rent direction," declared
Trot. "I looked over my shoulder, as I ran, to see how close the
witches were, and I'm sure I saw Gloria walking slowly away toward the
north."

"Then let us circle around that way," proposed Pon, "and perhaps we
shall meet her."

Trot agreed to this and they left the grove and began to circle around
toward the north, thus drawing nearer and nearer to old Blinkie's house
again. The Wicked Witch did not suspect this change of direction, so
when she came to the grove she passed through it and continued on.

Pon and Trot had reached a place less than half a mile from the witch's
house when they saw Gloria walking toward them. The Princess moved with
great dignity and with no show of haste whatever, holding her head high
and looking neither to right nor left.

Pon rushed forward, holding out his arms as if to embrace her and
calling her sweet names. But Gloria gazed upon him coldly and repelled
him with a haughty gesture. At this the poor gardener's boy sank upon
his knees and hid his face in his arms, weeping bitter tears; but the
Princess was not at all moved by his distress. Passing him by, she drew
her skirts aside, as if unwilling they should touch him, and then she
walked up the path a way and hesitated, as if uncertain where to go
next.

Trot was grieved by Pon's sobs and indignant because Gloria treated him
so badly. But she remembered why.

"I guess your heart is frozen, all right," she said to the Princess.
Gloria nodded gravely, in reply, and then turned her back upon the
little girl. "Can't you like even me?" asked Trot, half pleadingly.

"No," said Gloria.

"Your voice sounds like a refrig'rator," sighed the little girl. "I'm
awful sorry for you, 'cause you were sweet an' nice to me before this
happened. You can't help it, of course; but it's a dreadful thing, jus'
the same."

"My heart is frozen to all mortal loves," announced Gloria, calmly. "I
do not love even myself."

"That's too bad," said Trot, "for, if you can't love anybody, you can't
expect anybody to love you."

"I do!" cried Pon. "I shall always love her."

"Well, you're just a gardener's boy," replied Trot, "and I didn't think
you 'mounted to much, from the first. I can love the old Princess
Gloria, with a warm heart an' nice manners, but this one gives me the
shivers."

"It's her icy heart, that's all," said Pon.

"That's enough," insisted Trot. "Seeing her heart isn't big enough to
skate on, I can't see that she's of any use to anyone. For my part, I'm
goin' to try to find Button-Bright an' Cap'n Bill."

"I will go with you," decided Pon. "It is evident that Gloria no longer
loves me and that her heart is frozen too stiff for me to melt it with
my own love; therefore I may as well help you to find your friends."

As Trot started off, Pon cast one more imploring look at the Princess,
who returned it with a chilly stare. So he followed after the little
girl.

As for the Princess, she hesitated a moment and then turned in the same
direction the others had taken, but going far more slowly. Soon she
heard footsteps pattering behind her, and up came Googly-Goo, a little
out of breath with running.

"Stop, Gloria!" he cried. "I have come to take you back to my mansion,
where we are to be married."

She looked at him wonderingly a moment, then tossed her head
disdainfully and walked on. But Googly-Goo kept beside her.

"What does this mean?" he demanded. "Haven't you discovered that you no
longer love that gardener's boy, who stood in my way?"

"Yes; I have discovered it," she replied. "My heart is frozen to all
mortal loves. I cannot love you, or Pon, or the cruel King my uncle, or
even myself. Go your way, Googly-Goo, for I will wed no one at all."

He stopped in dismay when he heard this, but in another minute he
exclaimed angrily:

"You must wed me, Princess Gloria, whether you want to or not! I paid
to have your heart frozen; I also paid the King to permit our marriage.
If you now refuse me it will mean that I have been
robbed--robbed--robbed of my precious money and jewels!"

He almost wept with despair, but she laughed a cold, bitter laugh and
passed on. Googly-Goo caught at her arm, as if to restrain her, but she
whirled and dealt him a blow that sent him reeling into a ditch beside
the path. Here he lay for a long time, half covered by muddy water,
dazed with surprise.

Finally the old courtier arose, dripping, and climbed from the ditch.
The Princess had gone; so, muttering threats of vengeance upon her,
upon the King and upon Blinkie, old Googly-Goo hobbled back to his
mansion to have the mud removed from his costly velvet clothes.




Chapter Fifteen

Trot Meets the Scarecrow


Trot and Pon covered many leagues of ground, searching through forests,
in fields and in many of the little villages of Jinxland, but could
find no trace of either Cap'n Bill or Button-Bright. Finally they
paused beside a cornfield and sat upon a stile to rest. Pon took some
apples from his pocket and gave one to Trot. Then he began eating
another himself, for this was their time for luncheon. When his apple
was finished Pon tossed the core into the field.

"Tchuk-tchuk!" said a strange voice. "What do you mean by hitting me in
the eye with an apple-core?"

Then rose up the form of the Scarecrow, who had hidden himself in the
cornfield while he examined Pon and Trot and decided whether they were
worthy to be helped.

"Excuse me," said Pon. "I didn't know you were there."

"How did you happen to be there, anyhow?" asked Trot.

The Scarecrow came forward with awkward steps and stood beside them.

"Ah, you are the gardener's boy," he said to Pon. Then he turned to
Trot. "And you are the little girl who came to Jinxland riding on a big
bird, and who has had the misfortune to lose her friend, Cap'n Bill,
and her chum, Button-Bright."

"Why, how did you know all that?" she inquired.

"I know a lot of things," replied the Scarecrow, winking at her
comically. "My brains are the Carefully-Assorted, Double-Distilled,
High-Efficiency sort that the Wizard of Oz makes. He admits, himself,
that my brains are the best he ever manufactured."

"I think I've heard of you," said Trot slowly, as she looked the
Scarecrow over with much interest; "but you used to live in the Land of
Oz."

"Oh, I do now," he replied cheerfully. "I've just come over the
mountains from the Quadling Country to see if I can be of any help to
you."

"Who, me?" asked Pon.

"No, the strangers from the big world. It seems they need looking
after."

"I'm doing that myself," said Pon, a little ungraciously. "If you will
pardon me for saying so, I don't see how a Scarecrow with painted eyes
can look after anyone."

"If you don't see that, you are more blind than the Scarecrow,"
asserted Trot. "He's a fairy man, Pon, and comes from the fairyland of
Oz, so he can do 'most anything. I hope," she added, turning to the
Scarecrow, "you can find Cap'n Bill for me."

"I will try, anyhow," he promised. "But who is that old woman who is
running toward us and shaking her stick at us?"

Trot and Pon turned around and both uttered an exclamation of fear. The
next instant they took to their heels and ran fast up the path. For it
was old Blinkie, the Wicked Witch, who had at last traced them to this
place. Her anger was so great that she was determined not to abandon
the chase of Pon and Trot until she had caught and punished them. The
Scarecrow understood at once that the old woman meant harm to his new
friends, so as she drew near he stepped before her. His appearance was
so sudden and unexpected that Blinkie ran into him and toppled him
over, but she tripped on his straw body and went rolling in the path
beside him.

The Scarecrow sat up and said: "I beg your pardon!" but she whacked him
with her stick and knocked him flat again. Then, furious with rage, the
old witch sprang upon her victim and began pulling the straw out of his
body. The poor Scarecrow was helpless to resist and in a few moments
all that was left of him was an empty suit of clothes and a heap of
straw beside it. Fortunately, Blinkie did not harm his head, for it
rolled into a little hollow and escaped her notice. Fearing that Pon
and Trot would escape her, she quickly resumed the chase and
disappeared over the brow of a hill, following the direction in which
she had seen them go.

Only a short time elapsed before a gray grasshopper with a wooden leg
came hopping along and lit directly on the upturned face of the
Scarecrow's head.

"Pardon me, but you are resting yourself upon my nose," remarked the
Scarecrow.

"Oh! are you alive?" asked the grasshopper.

"That is a question I have never been able to decide," said the
Scarecrow's head. "When my body is properly stuffed I have animation
and can move around as well as any live person. The brains in the head
you are now occupying as a throne, are of very superior quality and do
a lot of very clever thinking. But whether that is being alive, or not,
I cannot prove to you; for one who lives is liable to death, while I am
only liable to destruction."

"Seems to me," said the grasshopper, rubbing his nose with his front
legs, "that in your case it doesn't matter--unless you're destroyed
already."

"I am not; all I need is re-stuffing," declared the Scarecrow; "and if
Pon and Trot escape the witch, and come back here, I am sure they will
do me that favor."

"Tell me! Are Trot and Pon around here?" inquired the grasshopper, its
small voice trembling with excitement.

The Scarecrow did not answer at once, for both his eyes were staring
straight upward at a beautiful face that was slightly bent over his
head. It was, indeed, Princess Gloria, who had wandered to this spot,
very much surprised when she heard the Scarecrow's head talk and the
tiny gray grasshopper answer it.

"This," said the Scarecrow, still staring at her, "must be the Princess
who loves Pon, the gardener's boy."

"Oh, indeed!" exclaimed the grasshopper--who of course was Cap'n
Bill--as he examined the young lady curiously.

"No," said Gloria frigidly, "I do not love Pon, or anyone else, for the
Wicked Witch has frozen my heart."

"What a shame!" cried the Scarecrow. "One so lovely should be able to
love. But would you mind, my dear, stuffing that straw into my body
again?"

The dainty Princess glanced at the straw and at the well-worn blue
Munchkin clothes and shrank back in disdain. But she was spared from
refusing the Scarecrow's request by the appearance of Trot and Pon, who
had hidden in some bushes just over the brow of the hill and waited
until old Blinkie had passed them by. Their hiding place was on the
same side as the witch's blind eye, and she rushed on in the chase of
the girl and the youth without being aware that they had tricked her.

Trot was shocked at the Scarecrow's sad condition and at once began
putting the straw back into his body. Pon, at sight of Gloria, again
appealed to her to take pity on him, but the frozen-hearted Princess
turned coldly away and with a sigh the gardener's boy began to assist
Trot.

Neither of them at first noticed the small grasshopper, which at their
appearance had skipped off the Scarecrow's nose and was now clinging to
a wisp of grass beside the path, where he was not likely to be stepped
upon. Not until the Scarecrow had been neatly restuffed and set upon
his feet again--when he bowed to his restorers and expressed his
thanks--did the grasshopper move from his perch. Then he leaped lightly
into the path and called out:

"Trot--Trot! Look at me. I'm Cap'n Bill! See what the Wicked Witch has
done to me."

The voice was small, to be sure, but it reached Trot's ears and
startled her greatly. She looked intently at the grasshopper, her eyes
wide with fear at first; then she knelt down and, noticing the wooden
leg, she began to weep sorrowfully.

"Oh, Cap'n Bill--dear Cap'n Bill! What a cruel thing to do!" she sobbed.

"Don't cry, Trot," begged the grasshopper. "It didn't hurt any, and it
doesn't hurt now. But it's mighty inconvenient an' humiliatin', to say
the least."

"I wish," said the girl indignantly, while trying hard to restrain her
tears, "that I was big 'nough an' strong 'nough to give that horrid
witch a good beating. She ought to be turned into a toad for doing this
to you, Cap'n Bill!"

"Never mind," urged the Scarecrow, in a comforting voice, "such a
transformation doesn't last always, and as a general thing there's some
way to break the enchantment. I'm sure Glinda could do it, in a jiffy."

"Who is Glinda?" inquired Cap'n Bill.

Then the Scarecrow told them all about Glinda, not forgetting to
mention her beauty and goodness and her wonderful powers of magic. He
also explained how the Royal Sorceress had sent him to Jinxland
especially to help the strangers, whom she knew to be in danger because
of the wiles of the cruel King and the Wicked Witch.




Chapter Sixteen

Pon Summons the King to Surrender


Gloria had drawn near to the group to listen to their talk, and it
seemed to interest her in spite of her frigid manner. They knew, of
course, that the poor Princess could not help being cold and reserved,
so they tried not to blame her.

"I ought to have come here a little sooner," said the Scarecrow,
regretfully; "but Glinda sent me as soon as she discovered you were
here and were likely to get into trouble. And now that we are all
together--except Button-Bright, over whom it is useless to worry--I
propose we hold a council of war, to decide what is best to be done."

That seemed a wise thing to do, so they all sat down upon the grass,
including Gloria, and the grasshopper perched upon Trot's shoulder and
allowed her to stroke him gently with her hand.

"In the first place," began the Scarecrow, "this King Krewl is a
usurper and has no right to rule this Kingdom of Jinxland."

"That is true," said Pon, eagerly. "My father was King before him, and
I--"

"You are a gardener's boy," interrupted the Scarecrow. "Your father had
no right to rule, either, for the rightful King of this land was the
father of Princess Gloria, and only she is entitled to sit upon the
throne of Jinxland."

"Good!" exclaimed Trot. "But what'll we do with King Krewl? I s'pose he
won't give up the throne unless he has to."

"No, of course not," said the Scarecrow. "Therefore it will be our duty
to make him give up the throne."

"How?" asked Trot.

"Give me time to think," was the reply. "That's what my brains are for.
I don't know whether you people ever think, or not, but my brains are
the best that the Wizard of Oz ever turned out, and if I give them
plenty of time to work, the result usually surprises me."

"Take your time, then," suggested Trot. "There's no hurry."

"Thank you," said the straw man, and sat perfectly still for half an
hour. During this interval the grasshopper whispered in Trot's ear, to
which he was very close, and Trot whispered back to the grasshopper
sitting upon her shoulder. Pon cast loving glances at Gloria, who paid
not the slightest heed to them.

Finally the Scarecrow laughed aloud.

"Brains working?" inquired Trot.

"Yes. They seem in fine order to-day. We will conquer King Krewl and
put Gloria upon his throne as Queen of Jinxland."

"Fine!" cried the little girl, clapping her hands together gleefully.
"But how?"

"Leave the how to me," said the Scarecrow proudly. "As a conqueror I'm
a wonder. We will, first of all, write a message to send to King Krewl,
asking him to surrender. If he refuses, then we will make him
surrender."

"Why ask him, when we know he'll refuse?" inquired Pon.

"Why, we must be polite, whatever we do," explained the Scarecrow. "It
would be very rude to conquer a King without proper notice."

They found it difficult to write a message without paper, pen and ink,
none of which was at hand; so it was decided to send Pon as a
messenger, with instructions to ask the King, politely but firmly, to
surrender.

Pon was not anxious to be the messenger. Indeed, he hinted that it
might prove a dangerous mission. But the Scarecrow was now the
acknowledged head of the Army of Conquest, and he would listen to no
refusal. So off Pon started for the King's castle, and the others
accompanied him as far as his hut, where they had decided to await the
gardener's boy's return.

I think it was because Pon had known the Scarecrow such a short time
that he lacked confidence in the straw man's wisdom. It was easy to
say: "We will conquer King Krewl," but when Pon drew near to the great
castle he began to doubt the ability of a straw-stuffed man, a girl, a
grasshopper and a frozen-hearted Princess to do it. As for himself, he
had never thought of defying the King before.

That was why the gardener's boy was not very bold when he entered the
castle and passed through to the enclosed court where the King was just
then seated, with his favorite courtiers around him. None prevented
Pon's entrance, because he was known to be the gardener's boy, but when
the King saw him he began to frown fiercely. He considered Pon to be to
blame for all his trouble with Princess Gloria, who since her heart had
been frozen had escaped to some unknown place, instead of returning to
the castle to wed Googly-Goo, as she had been expected to do. So the
King bared his teeth angrily as he demanded:

"What have you done with Princess Gloria?"

"Nothing, your Majesty! I have done nothing at all," answered Pon in a
faltering voice. "She does not love me any more and even refuses to
speak to me."

"Then why are you here, you rascal?" roared the King.

Pon looked first one way and then another, but saw no means of escape;
so he plucked up courage.

"I am here to summon your Majesty to surrender."

"What!" shouted the King. "Surrender?  Surrender to whom?"

Pon's heart sank to his boots.

"To the Scarecrow," he replied.

Some of the courtiers began to titter, but King Krewl was greatly
annoyed. He sprang up and began to beat poor Pon with the golden staff
he carried. Pon howled lustily and would have run away had not two of
the soldiers held him until his Majesty was exhausted with punishing
the boy. Then they let him go and he left the castle and returned along
the road, sobbing at every step because his body was so sore and aching.

"Well," said the Scarecrow, "did the King surrender?"

"No; but he gave me a good drubbing!" sobbed poor Pon.

Trot was very sorry for Pon, but Gloria did not seem affected in any
way by her lover's anguish. The grasshopper leaped to the Scarecrow's
shoulder and asked him what he was going to do next.

"Conquer," was the reply. "But I will go alone, this time, for beatings
cannot hurt me at all; nor can lance thrusts--or sword cuts--or arrow
pricks."

"Why is that?" inquired Trot.

"Because I have no nerves, such as you meat people possess. Even
grasshoppers have nerves, but straw doesn't; so whatever they
do--except just one thing--they cannot injure me. Therefore I expect to
conquer King Krewl with ease."

"What is that one thing you excepted?" asked Trot.

"They will never think of it, so never mind. And now, if you will
kindly excuse me for a time, I'll go over to the castle and do my
conquering."

"You have no weapons," Pon reminded him.

"True," said the Scarecrow. "But if I carried weapons I might injure
someone--perhaps seriously--and that would make me unhappy. I will just
borrow that riding-whip, which I see in the corner of your hut, if you
don't mind. It isn't exactly proper to walk with a riding-whip, but I
trust you will excuse the inconsistency."

Pon handed him the whip and the Scarecrow bowed to all the party and
left the hut, proceeding leisurely along the way to the King's castle.




Chapter Seventeen

The Ork Rescues Button-Bright


I must now tell you what had become of Button-Bright since he wandered
away in the morning and got lost. This small boy, as perhaps you have
discovered, was almost as destitute of nerves as the Scarecrow. Nothing
ever astonished him much; nothing ever worried him or made him unhappy.
Good fortune or bad fortune he accepted with a quiet smile, never
complaining, whatever happened. This was one reason why Button-Bright
was a favorite with all who knew him--and perhaps it was the reason why
he so often got into difficulties, or found himself lost.

To-day, as he wandered here and there, over hill and down dale, he
missed Trot and Cap'n Bill, of whom he was fond, but nevertheless he
was not unhappy. The birds sang merrily and the wildflowers were
beautiful and the breeze had a fragrance of new-mown hay.

"The only bad thing about this country is its King," he reflected; "but
the country isn't to blame for that."

A prairie-dog stuck its round head out of a mound of earth and looked
at the boy with bright eyes.

"Walk around my house, please," it said, "and then you won't harm it or
disturb the babies."

"All right," answered Button-Bright, and took care not to step on the
mound. He went on, whistling merrily, until a petulant voice cried:

"Oh, stop it! Please stop that noise. It gets on my nerves."

Button-Bright saw an old gray owl sitting in the crotch of a tree, and
he replied with a laugh: "All right, old Fussy," and stopped whistling
until he had passed out of the owl's hearing. At noon he came to a
farmhouse where an aged couple lived. They gave him a good dinner and
treated him kindly, but the man was deaf and the woman was dumb, so
they could answer no questions to guide him on the way to Pon's house.
When he left them he was just as much lost as he had been before.

Every grove of trees he saw from a distance he visited, for he
remembered that the King's castle was near a grove of trees and Pon's
hut was near the King's castle; but always he met with disappointment.
Finally, passing through one of these groves, he came out into the open
and found himself face to face with the Ork.

"Hello!" said Button-Bright. "Where did you come from?"

"From Orkland," was the reply. "I've found my own country, at last, and
it is not far from here, either. I would have come back to you sooner,
to see how you are getting along, had not my family and friends
welcomed my return so royally that a great celebration was held in my
honor. So I couldn't very well leave Orkland again until the excitement
was over."

"Can you find your way back home again?" asked the boy.

"Yes, easily; for now I know exactly where it is. But where are Trot
and Cap'n Bill?"

Button-Bright related to the Ork their adventures since it had left
them in Jinxland, telling of Trot's fear that the King had done
something wicked to Cap'n Bill, and of Pon's love for Gloria, and how
Trot and Button-Bright had been turned out of the King's castle. That
was all the news that the boy had, but it made the Ork anxious for the
safety of his friends.

"We must go to them at once, for they may need us," he said.

"I don't know where to go," confessed Button-Bright. "I'm lost."

"Well, I can take you back to the hut of the gardener's boy," promised
the Ork, "for when I fly high in the air I can look down and easily spy
the King's castle. That was how I happened to spy you, just entering
the grove; so I flew down and waited until you came out."

"How can you carry me?" asked the boy.

"You'll have to sit straddle my shoulders and put your arms around my
neck. Do you think you can keep from falling off?"

"I'll try," said Button-Bright. So the Ork squatted down and the boy
took his seat and held on tight. Then the skinny creature's tail began
whirling and up they went, far above all the tree-tops.

After the Ork had circled around once or twice, its sharp eyes located
the towers of the castle and away it flew, straight toward the place.
As it hovered in the air, near by the castle, Button-Bright pointed out
Pon's hut, so they landed just before it and Trot came running out to
greet them.

Gloria was introduced to the Ork, who was surprised to find Cap'n Bill
transformed into a grasshopper.

"How do you like it?" asked the creature.

"Why, it worries me good deal," answered Cap'n Bill, perched upon
Trot's shoulder. "I'm always afraid o' bein' stepped on, and I don't
like the flavor of grass an' can't seem to get used to it. It's my
nature to eat grass, you know, but I begin to suspect it's an acquired
taste."

"Can you give molasses?" asked the Ork.

"I guess I'm not that kind of a grasshopper," replied Cap'n Bill. "But
I can't say what I might do if I was squeezed--which I hope I won't be."

"Well," said the Ork, "it's a great pity, and I'd like to meet that
cruel King and his Wicked Witch and punish them both severely. You're
awfully small, Cap'n Bill, but I think I would recognize you anywhere
by your wooden leg."

Then the Ork and Button-Bright were told all about Gloria's frozen
heart and how the Scarecrow had come from the Land of Oz to help them.
The Ork seemed rather disturbed when it learned that the Scarecrow had
gone alone to conquer King Krewl.

"I'm afraid he'll make a fizzle of it," said the skinny creature, "and
there's no telling what that terrible King might do to the poor
Scarecrow, who seems like a very interesting person. So I believe I'll
take a hand in this conquest myself."

"How?" asked Trot.

"Wait and see," was the reply. "But, first of all, I must fly home
again--back to my own country--so if you'll forgive my leaving you so
soon, I'll be off at once. Stand away from my tail, please, so that the
wind from it, when it revolves, won't knock you over."

They gave the creature plenty of room and away it went like a flash and
soon disappeared in the sky.

"I wonder," said Button-Bright, looking solemnly after the Ork,
"whether he'll ever come back again."

"Of course he will!" returned Trot. "The Ork's a pretty good fellow,
and we can depend on him. An' mark my words, Button-Bright, whenever
our Ork does come back, there's one cruel King in Jinxland that'll wish
he hadn't."




Chapter Eighteen

The Scarecrow Meets an Enemy


The Scarecrow was not a bit afraid of King Krewl. Indeed, he rather
enjoyed the prospect of conquering the evil King and putting Gloria on
the throne of Jinxland in his place. So he advanced boldly to the royal
castle and demanded admittance.

Seeing that he was a stranger, the soldiers allowed him to enter. He
made his way straight to the throne room, where at that time his
Majesty was settling the disputes among his subjects.

"Who are you?" demanded the King.

"I'm the Scarecrow of Oz, and I command you to surrender yourself my
prisoner."

"Why should I do that?" inquired the King, much astonished at the straw
man's audacity.

"Because I've decided you are too cruel a King to rule so beautiful a
country. You must remember that Jinxland is a part of Oz, and therefore
you owe allegiance to Ozma of Oz, whose friend and servant I am."

Now, when he heard this, King Krewl was much disturbed in mind, for he
knew the Scarecrow spoke the truth. But no one had ever before come to
Jinxland from the Land of Oz and the King did not intend to be put out
of his throne if he could help it. Therefore he gave a harsh, wicked
laugh of derision and said:

"I'm busy, now. Stand out of my way, Scarecrow, and I'll talk with you
by and by."

But the Scarecrow turned to the assembled courtiers and people and
called in a loud voice:

"I hereby declare, in the name of Ozma of Oz, that this man is no
longer ruler of Jinxland. From this moment Princess Gloria is your
rightful Queen, and I ask all of you to be loyal to her and to obey her
commands."

The people looked fearfully at the King, whom they all hated in their
hearts, but likewise feared. Krewl was now in a terrible rage and he
raised his golden sceptre and struck the Scarecrow so heavy a blow that
he fell to the floor.

But he was up again, in an instant, and with Pon's riding-whip he
switched the King so hard that the wicked monarch roared with pain as
much as with rage, calling on his soldiers to capture the Scarecrow.

They tried to do that, and thrust their lances and swords into the
straw body, but without doing any damage except to make holes in the
Scarecrow's clothes. However, they were many against one and finally
old Googly-Goo brought a rope which he wound around the Scarecrow,
binding his legs together and his arms to his sides, and after that the
fight was over.

The King stormed and danced around in a dreadful fury, for he had never
been so switched since he was a boy--and perhaps not then. He ordered
the Scarecrow thrust into the castle prison, which was no task at all
because one man could carry him easily, bound as he was.

Even after the prisoner was removed the King could not control his
anger. He tried to figure out some way to be revenged upon the straw
man, but could think of nothing that could hurt him. At last, when the
terrified people and the frightened courtiers had all slunk away, old
Googly-Goo approached the king with a malicious grin upon his face.

"I'll tell you what to do," said he. "Build a big bonfire and burn the
Scarecrow up, and that will be the end of him."

The King was so delighted with this suggestion that he hugged old
Googly-Goo in his joy.

"Of course!" he cried. "The very thing. Why did I not think of it
myself?"

So he summoned his soldiers and retainers and bade them prepare a great
bonfire in an open space in the castle park. Also he sent word to all
his people to assemble and witness the destruction of the Scarecrow who
had dared to defy his power. Before long a vast throng gathered in the
park and the servants had heaped up enough fuel to make a fire that
might be seen for miles away--even in the daytime.

When all was prepared, the King had his throne brought out for him to
sit upon and enjoy the spectacle, and then he sent his soldiers to
fetch the Scarecrow.

Now the one thing in all the world that the straw man really feared was
fire. He knew he would burn very easily and that his ashes wouldn't
amount to much afterward. It wouldn't hurt him to be destroyed in such
a manner, but he realized that many people in the Land of Oz, and
especially Dorothy and the Royal Ozma, would feel sad if they learned
that their old friend the Scarecrow was no longer in existence.

In spite of this, the straw man was brave and faced his fiery fate like
a hero. When they marched him out before the concourse of people he
turned to the King with great calmness and said:

"This wicked deed will cost you your throne, as well as much suffering,
for my friends will avenge my destruction."

"Your friends are not here, nor will they know what I have done to you,
when you are gone and can-not tell them," answered the King in a
scornful voice.

Then he ordered the Scarecrow bound to a stout stake that he had had
driven into the ground, and the materials for the fire were heaped all
around him. When this had been done, the King's brass band struck up a
lively tune and old Googly-Goo came forward with a lighted match and
set fire to the pile.

At once the flames shot up and crept closer and closer toward the
Scarecrow. The King and all his people were so intent upon this
terrible spectacle that none of them noticed how the sky grew suddenly
dark. Perhaps they thought that the loud buzzing sound--like the noise
of a dozen moving railway trains--came from the blazing fagots; that
the rush of wind was merely a breeze. But suddenly down swept a flock
of Orks, half a hundred of them at the least, and the powerful currents
of air caused by their revolving tails sent the bonfire scattering in
every direction, so that not one burning brand ever touched the
Scarecrow.

But that was not the only effect of this sudden tornado. King Krewl was
blown out of his throne and went tumbling heels over head until he
landed with a bump against the stone wall of his own castle, and before
he could rise a big Ork sat upon him and held him pressed flat to the
ground. Old Googly-Goo shot up into the air like a rocket and landed on
a tree, where he hung by the middle on a high limb, kicking the air
with his feet and clawing the air with his hands, and howling for mercy
like the coward he was.

The people pressed back until they were jammed close together, while
all the soldiers were knocked over and sent sprawling to the earth. The
excitement was great for a few minutes, and every frightened inhabitant
of Jinxland looked with awe and amazement at the great Orks whose
descent had served to rescue the Scarecrow and conquer King Krewl at
one and the same time.

The Ork, who was the leader of the band, soon had the Scarecrow free of
his bonds. Then he said: "Well, we were just in time to save you, which
is better than being a minute too late. You are now the master here,
and we are determined to see your orders obeyed."

With this the Ork picked up Krewl's golden crown, which had fallen off
his head, and placed it upon the head of the Scarecrow, who in his
awkward way then shuffled over to the throne and sat down in it.

Seeing this, a rousing cheer broke from the crowd of people, who tossed
their hats and waved their handkerchiefs and hailed the Scarecrow as
their King. The soldiers joined the people in the cheering, for now
they fully realized that their hated master was conquered and it would
be wise to show their good will to the conqueror. Some of them bound
Krewl with ropes and dragged him forward, dumping his body on the
ground before the Scarecrow's throne. Googly-Goo struggled until he
finally slid off the limb of the tree and came tumbling to the ground.
He then tried to sneak away and escape, but the soldiers seized and
bound him beside Krewl.

"The tables are turned," said the Scarecrow, swelling out his chest
until the straw within it crackled pleasantly, for he was highly
pleased; "but it was you and your people who did it, friend Ork, and
from this time you may count me your humble servant."




Chapter Nineteen

The Conquest of the Witch


Now as soon as the conquest of King Krewl had taken place, one of the
Orks had been dispatched to Pon's house with the joyful news. At once
Gloria and Pon and Trot and Button-Bright hastened toward the castle.
They were somewhat surprised by the sight that met their eyes, for
there was the Scarecrow, crowned King, and all the people kneeling
humbly before him. So they likewise bowed low to the new ruler and then
stood beside the throne. Cap'n Bill, as the gray grasshopper, was still
perched upon Trot's shoulder, but now he hopped to the shoulder of the
Scarecrow and whispered into the painted ear:

"I thought Gloria was to be Queen of Jinxland."

The Scarecrow shook his head.

"Not yet," he answered. "No Queen with a frozen heart is fit to rule
any country." Then he turned to his new friend, the Ork, who was
strutting about, very proud of what he had done, and said: "Do you
suppose you, or your followers, could find old Blinkie the Witch?"

"Where is she?" asked the Ork.

"Somewhere in Jinxland, I'm sure."

"Then," said the Ork, "we shall certainly be able to find her."

"It will give me great pleasure," declared the Scarecrow. "When you
have found her, bring her here to me, and I will then decide what to do
with her."

The Ork called his followers together and spoke a few words to them in
a low tone. A moment after they rose into the air--so suddenly that the
Scarecrow, who was very light in weight, was blown quite out of his
throne and into the arms of Pon, who replaced him carefully upon his
seat. There was an eddy of dust and ashes, too, and the grasshopper
only saved himself from being whirled into the crowd of people by
jumping into a tree, from where a series of hops soon brought him back
to Trot's shoulder again. The Orks were quite out of sight by this
time, so the Scarecrow made a speech to the people and presented Gloria
to them, whom they knew well already and were fond of. But not all of
them knew of her frozen heart, and when the Scarecrow related the story
of the Wicked Witch's misdeeds, which had been encouraged and paid for
by Krewl and Googly-Goo, the people were very indignant.

Meantime the fifty Orks had scattered all over Jinx land, which is not
a very big country, and their sharp eyes were peering into every valley
and grove and gully. Finally one of them spied a pair of heels sticking
out from underneath some bushes, and with a shrill whistle to warn his
comrades that the witch was found the Ork flew down and dragged old
Blinkie from her hiding-place. Then two or three of the Orks seized the
clothing of the wicked woman in their strong claws and, lifting her
high in the air, where she struggled and screamed to no avail, they
flew with her straight to the royal castle and set her down before the
throne of the Scarecrow.

"Good!" exclaimed the straw man, nodding his stuffed head with
satisfaction. "Now we can proceed to business. Mistress Witch, I am
obliged to request, gently but firmly, that you undo all the wrongs you
have done by means of your witchcraft."

"Pah!" cried old Blinkie in a scornful voice. "I defy you all! By my
magic powers I can turn you all into pigs, rooting in the mud, and I'll
do it if you are not careful."

"I think you are mistaken about that," said the Scarecrow, and rising
from his throne he walked with wobbling steps to the side of the Wicked
Witch. "Before I left the Land of Oz, Glinda the Royal Sorceress gave
me a box, which I was not to open except in an emergency. But I feel
pretty sure that this occasion is an emergency; don't you, Trot?" he
asked, turning toward the little girl.

"Why, we've got to do something," replied Trot seriously. "Things seem
in an awful muddle here, jus' now, and they'll be worse if we don't
stop this witch from doing more harm to people."

"That is my idea, exactly," said the Scarecrow, and taking a small box
from his pocket he opened the cover and tossed the contents toward
Blinkie.

The old woman shrank back, pale and trembling, as a fine white dust
settled all about her. Under its influence she seemed to the eyes of
all observers to shrivel and grow smaller.

"Oh, dear--oh, dear!" she wailed, wringing her hands in fear. "Haven't
you the antidote, Scarecrow? Didn't the great Sorceress give you
another box?"

"She did," answered the Scarecrow.

"Then give it me--quick!" pleaded the witch. "Give it me--and I'll do
anything you ask me to!"

"You will do what I ask first," declared the Scarecrow, firmly.

The witch was shriveling and growing smaller every moment.

"Be quick, then!" she cried. "Tell me what I must do and let me do it,
or it will be too late."

"You made Trot's friend, Cap'n Bill, a grasshopper. I command you to
give him back his proper form again," said the Scarecrow.

"Where is he? Where's the grasshopper? Quick--quick!" she screamed.

Cap'n Bill, who had been deeply interested in this conversation, gave a
great leap from Trot's shoulder and landed on that of the Scarecrow.
Blinkie saw him alight and at once began to make magic passes and to
mumble magic incantations. She was in a desperate hurry, knowing that
she had no time to waste, and the grasshopper was so suddenly
transformed into the old sailor-man, Cap'n Bill, that he had no
opportunity to jump off the Scarecrow's shoulder; so his great weight
bore the stuffed Scarecrow to the ground. No harm was done, however,
and the straw man got up and brushed the dust from his clothes while
Trot delightedly embraced Cap'n Bill.

"The other box! Quick! Give me the other box," begged Blinkie, who had
now shrunk to half her former size.

"Not yet," said the Scarecrow. "You must first melt Princess Gloria's
frozen heart."

"I can't; it's an awful job to do that! I can't," asserted the witch,
in an agony of fear--for still she was growing smaller.

"You must!" declared the Scarecrow, firmly.

The witch cast a shrewd look at him and saw that he meant it; so she
began dancing around Gloria in a frantic manner. The Princess looked
coldly on, as if not at all interested in the proceedings, while
Blinkie tore a handful of hair from her own head and ripped a strip of
cloth from the bottom of her gown. Then the witch sank upon her knees,
took a purple powder from her black bag and sprinkled it over the hair
and cloth.

"I hate to do it--I  hate to do it!" she wailed, "for there is no more
of this magic compound in all the world. But I must sacrifice it to
save my own life. A match! Give me a match, quick!" and panting from
lack of breath she gazed imploringly from one to another.

Cap'n Bill was the only one who had a match, but he lost no time in
handing it to Blinkie, who quickly set fire to the hair and the cloth
and the purple powder. At once a purple cloud enveloped Gloria, and
this gradually turned to a rosy pink color--brilliant and quite
transparent. Through the rosy cloud they could all see the beautiful
Princess, standing proud and erect. Then her heart became visible, at
first frosted with ice but slowly growing brighter and warmer until all
the frost had disappeared and it was beating as softly and regularly as
any other heart. And now the cloud dispersed and disclosed Gloria, her
face suffused with joy, smiling tenderly upon the friends who were
grouped about her.

Poor Pon stepped forward--timidly, fearing a repulse, but with pleading
eyes and arms fondly outstretched toward his former sweetheart--and the
Princess saw him and her sweet face lighted with a radiant smile.
Without an instant's hesitation she threw herself into Pon's arms and
this reunion of two loving hearts was so affecting that the people
turned away and lowered their eyes so as not to mar the sacred joy of
the faithful lovers.

But Blinkie's small voice was shouting to the Scarecrow for help.

"The antidote!" she screamed. "Give me the other box--quick!"

The Scarecrow looked at the witch with his quaint, painted eyes and saw
that she was now no taller than his knee. So he took from his pocket
the second box and scattered its contents on Blinkie. She ceased to
grow any smaller, but she could never regain her former size, and this
the wicked old woman well knew.

She did not know, however, that the second powder had destroyed all her
power to work magic, and seeking to be revenged upon the Scarecrow and
his friends she at once began to mumble a charm so terrible in its
effect that it would have destroyed half the population of
Jinxland--had it worked. But it did not work at all, to the amazement
of old Blinkie. And by this time the Scarecrow noticed what the little
witch was trying to do, and said to her:

"Go home, Blinkie, and behave yourself. You are no longer a witch, but
an ordinary old woman, and since you are powerless to do more evil I
advise you to try to do some good in the world. Believe me, it is more
fun to accomplish a good act than an evil one, as you will discover
when once you have tried it."

But Blinkie was at that moment filled with grief and chagrin at losing
her magic powers. She started away toward her home, sobbing and
bewailing her fate, and not one who saw her go was at all sorry for her.




Chapter Twenty

Queen Gloria


Next morning the Scarecrow called upon all the courtiers and the people
to assemble in the throne room of the castle, where there was room
enough for all that were able to attend. They found the straw man
seated upon the velvet cushions of the throne, with the King's
glittering crown still upon his stuffed head. On one side of the
throne, in a lower chair, sat Gloria, looking radiantly beautiful and
fresh as a new-blown rose. On the other side sat Pon, the gardener's
boy, still dressed in his old smock frock and looking sad and solemn;
for Pon could not make himself believe that so splendid a Princess
would condescend to love him when she had come to her own and was
seated upon a throne. Trot and Cap'n Bill sat at the feet of the
Scarecrow and were much interested in the proceedings. Button-Bright
had lost himself before breakfast, but came into the throne room before
the ceremonies were over. Back of the throne stood a row of the great
Orks, with their leader in the center, and the entrance to the palace
was guarded by more Orks, who were regarded with wonder and awe.

When all were assembled, the Scarecrow stood up and made a speech. He
told how Gloria's father, the good King Kynd, who had once ruled them
and been loved by everyone, had been destroyed by King Phearce, the
father of Pon, and how King Phearce had been destroyed by King Krewl.
This last King had been a bad ruler, as they knew very well, and the
Scarecrow declared that the only one in all Jinxland who had the right
to sit upon the throne was Princess Gloria, the daughter of King Kynd.

"But," he added, "it is not for me, a stranger, to say who shall rule
you. You must decide for yourselves, or you will not be content. So
choose now who shall be your future ruler."

And they all shouted:  "The Scarecrow!  The Scarecrow shall rule us!"

Which proved that the stuffed man had made himself very popular by his
conquest of King Krewl, and the people thought they would like him for
their King. But the Scarecrow shook his head so vigorously that it
became loose, and Trot had to pin it firmly to his body again.

"No," said he, "I belong in the Land of Oz, where I am the humble
servant of the lovely girl who rules us all--the royal Ozma. You must
choose one of your own inhabitants to rule over Jinxland. Who shall it
be?"

They hesitated for a moment, and some few cried: "Pon!" but many more
shouted: "Gloria!"

So the Scarecrow took Gloria's hand and led her to the throne, where he
first seated her and then took the glittering crown off his own head
and placed it upon that of the young lady, where it nestled prettily
amongst her soft curls. The people cheered and shouted then, kneeling
before their new Queen; but Gloria leaned down and took Pon's hand in
both her own and raised him to the seat beside her.

"You shall have both a King and a Queen to care for you and to protect
you, my dear subjects," she said in a sweet voice, while her face
glowed with happiness; "for Pon was a King's son before he became a
gardener's boy, and because I love him he is to be my Royal Consort."

That pleased them all, especially Pon, who realized that this was the
most important moment of his life. Trot and Button-Bright and Cap'n
Will all congratulated him on winning the beautiful Gloria; but the Ork
sneezed twice and said that in his opinion the young lady might have
done better.

Then the Scarecrow ordered the guards to bring in the wicked Krewl,
King no longer, and when he appeared, loaded with chains and dressed in
fustian, the people hissed him and drew back as he passed so their
garments would not touch him.

Krewl was not haughty or overbearing any more; on the contrary he
seemed very meek and in great fear of the fate his conquerors had in
store for him. But Gloria and Pon were too happy to be revengeful and
so they offered to appoint Krewl to the position of gardener's boy at
the castle, Pon having resigned to become King. But they said he must
promise to reform his wicked ways and to do his duty faithfully, and he
must change his name from Krewl to Grewl. All this the man eagerly
promised to do, and so when Pon retired to a room in the castle to put
on princely raiment, the old brown smock he had formerly worn was given
to Grewl, who then went out into the garden to water the roses.

The remainder of that famous day, which was long remembered in
Jinxland, was given over to feasting and merrymaking. In the evening
there was a grand dance in the courtyard, where the brass band played a
new piece of music called the "Ork Trot" which was dedicated to "Our
Glorious Gloria, the Queen."

While the Queen and Pon were leading this dance, and all the Jinxland
people were having a good time, the strangers were gathered in a group
in the park outside the castle. Cap'n Bill, Trot, Button-Bright and the
Scarecrow were there, and so was their old friend the Ork; but of all
the great flock of Orks which had assisted in the conquest but three
remained in Jinxland, besides their leader, the others having returned
to their own country as soon as Gloria was crowned Queen. To the young
Ork who had accompanied them in their adventures Cap'n Bill said:

"You've surely been a friend in need, and we're mighty grateful to you
for helping us. I might have been a grasshopper yet if it hadn't been
for you, an' I might remark that bein' a grasshopper isn't much fun."

"If it hadn't been for you, friend Ork," said the Scarecrow, "I fear I
could not have conquered King Krewl."

"No," agreed Trot, "you'd have been just a heap of ashes by this time."

"And I might have been lost yet," added Button-Bright. "Much obliged,
Mr. Ork."

"Oh, that's all right," replied the Ork. "Friends must stand together,
you know, or they wouldn't be friends. But now I must leave you and be
off to my own country, where there's going to be a surprise party on my
uncle, and I've promised to attend it."

"Dear me," said the Scarecrow, regretfully. "That is very unfortunate."

"Why so?" asked the Ork.

"I hoped you would consent to carry us over those mountains, into the
Land of Oz. My mission here is now finished and I want to get back to
the Emerald City."

"How did you cross the mountains before?" inquired the Ork.

"I scaled the cliffs by means of a rope, and crossed the Great Gulf on
a strand of spider web. Of course I can return in the same manner, but
it would be a hard journey--and perhaps an impossible one--for Trot and
Button-Bright and Cap'n Bill. So I thought that if you had the time you
and your people would carry us over the mountains and land us all
safely on the other side, in the Land of Oz."

The Ork thoughtfully considered the matter for a while. Then he said:

"I mustn't break my promise to be present at the surprise party; but,
tell me, could you go to Oz to-night?"

"What, now?" exclaimed Trot.

"It is a fine moonlight night," said the Ork, "and I've found in my
experience that there's no time so good as right away. The fact is," he
explained, "it's a long journey to Orkland and I and my cousins here
are all rather tired by our day's work. But if you will start now, and
be content to allow us to carry you over the mountains and dump you on
the other side, just say the word and--off we go!"

Cap'n Bill and Trot looked at one another questioningly. The little
girl was eager to visit the famous fairyland of Oz and the old sailor
had endured such hardships in Jinxland that he would be glad to be out
of it.

"It's rather impolite of us not to say good-bye to the new King and
Queen," remarked the Scarecrow, "but I'm sure they're too happy to miss
us, and I assure you it will be much easier to fly on the backs of the
Orks over those steep mountains than to climb them as I did."

"All right; let's go!" Trot decided. "But where's Button-Bright?"

Just at this important moment Button-Bright was lost again, and they
all scattered in search of him. He had been standing beside them just a
few minutes before, but his friends had an exciting hunt for him before
they finally discovered the boy seated among the members of the band,
beating the end of the bass drum with the bone of a turkey-leg that he
had taken from the table in the banquet room.

"Hello, Trot," he said, looking up at the little girl when she found
him. "This is the first chance I ever had to pound a drum with a
reg'lar drum stick. And I ate all the meat off the bone myself."

"Come quick. We're going to the Land of Oz."

"Oh, what's the hurry?" said Button-Bright; but she seized his arm and
dragged him away to the park, where the others were waiting.

Trot climbed upon the back of her old friend, the Ork leader, and the
others took their seats on the backs of his three cousins. As soon as
all were placed and clinging to the skinny necks of the creatures, the
revolving tails began to whirl and up rose the four monster Orks and
sailed away toward the mountains. They were so high in the air that
when they passed the crest of the highest peak it seemed far below
them. No sooner were they well across the barrier than the Orks swooped
downward and landed their passengers upon the ground.

"Here we are, safe in the Land of Oz!" cried the Scarecrow joyfully.

"Oh, are we?" asked Trot, looking around her curiously.

She could see the shadows of stately trees and the outlines of rolling
hills; beneath her feet was soft turf, but otherwise the subdued light
of the moon disclosed nothing clearly.

"Seems jus' like any other country," was Cap'n Bill's comment.

"But it isn't," the Scarecrow assured him. "You are now within the
borders of the most glorious fairyland in all the world. This part of
it is just a corner of the Quadling Country, and the least interesting
portion of it. It's not very thickly settled, around here, I'll admit,
but--"

He was interrupted by a sudden whir and a rush of air as the four Orks
mounted into the sky.

"Good night!" called the shrill voices of the strange creatures, and
although Trot shouted "Good night!" as loudly as she could, the little
girl was almost ready to cry because the Orks had not waited to be
properly thanked for all their kindness to her and to Cap'n Bill.

But the Orks were gone, and thanks for good deeds do not amount to much
except to prove one's politeness.

"Well, friends," said the Scarecrow, "we mustn't stay here in the
meadows all night, so let us find a pleasant place to sleep. Not that
it matters to me, in the least, for I never sleep; but I know that meat
people like to shut their eyes and lie still during the dark hours."

"I'm pretty tired," admitted Trot, yawning as she followed the straw
man along a tiny path, "so, if you don't find a house handy, Cap'n Bill
and I will sleep under the trees, or even on this soft grass."

But a house was not very far off, although when the Scarecrow stumbled
upon it there was no light in it whatever. Cap'n Bill knocked on the
door several times, and there being no response the Scarecrow boldly
lifted the latch and walked in, followed by the others. And no sooner
had they entered than a soft light filled the room. Trot couldn't tell
where it came from, for no lamp of any sort was visible, but she did
not waste much time on this problem, because directly in the center of
the room stood a table set for three, with lots of good food on it and
several of the dishes smoking hot.

The little girl and Button-Bright both uttered exclamations of
pleasure, but they looked in vain for any cook stove or fireplace, or
for any person who might have prepared for them this delicious feast.

"It's fairyland," muttered the boy, tossing his cap in a corner and
seating himself at the table. "This supper smells 'most as good as that
turkey-leg I had in Jinxland. Please pass the muffins, Cap'n Bill."

Trot thought it was strange that no people but themselves were in the
house, but on the wall opposite the door was a gold frame bearing in
big letters the word:

"WELCOME."

So she had no further hesitation in eating of the food so mysteriously
prepared for them.

"But there are only places for three!" she exclaimed.

"Three are quite enough," said the Scarecrow. "I never eat, because I
am stuffed full already, and I like my nice clean straw better than I
do food."

Trot and the sailor-man were hungry and made a hearty meal, for not
since they had left home had they tasted such good food. It was
surprising that Button-Bright could eat so soon after his feast in
Jinxland, but the boy always ate whenever there was an opportunity. "If
I don't eat now," he said, "the next time I'm hungry I'll wish I had."

"Really, Cap'n," remarked Trot, when she found a dish of ice-cream
appear beside her plate, "I b'lieve this is fairyland, sure enough."

"There's no doubt of it, Trot," he answered gravely

"I've been here before," said Button-Bright, "so I know."

After supper they discovered three tiny bedrooms adjoining the big
living room of the house, and in each room was a comfortable white bed
with downy pillows. You may be sure that the tired mortals were not
long in bidding the Scarecrow good night and creeping into their beds,
where they slept soundly until morning.

For the first time since they set eyes on the terrible whirlpool, Trot
and Cap'n Bill were free from anxiety and care. Button-Bright never
worried about anything. The Scarecrow, not being able to sleep, looked
out of the window and tried to count the stars.




Chapter Twenty-One

Dorothy, Betsy and Ozma


I suppose many of my readers have read descriptions of the beautiful
and magnificent Emerald City of Oz, so I need not describe it here,
except to state that never has any city in any fairyland ever equalled
this one in stately splendor. It lies almost exactly in the center of
the Land of Oz, and in the center of the Emerald City rises the wall of
glistening emeralds that surrounds the palace of Ozma. The palace is
almost a city in itself and is inhabited by many of the Ruler's
especial friends and those who have won her confidence and favor. As
for Ozma herself, there are no words in any dictionary I can find that
are fitted to describe this young girl's beauty of mind and person.
Merely to see her is to love her for her charming face and manners; to
know her is to love her for her tender sympathy, her generous nature,
her truth and honor. Born of a long line of Fairy Queens, Ozma is as
nearly perfect as any fairy may be, and she is noted for her wisdom as
well as for her other qualities. Her happy subjects adore their girl
Ruler and each one considers her a comrade and protector.

At the time of which I write, Ozma's best friend and most constant
companion was a little Kansas girl named Dorothy, a mortal who had come
to the Land of Oz in a very curious manner and had been offered a home
in Ozma's palace. Furthermore, Dorothy had been made a Princess of Oz,
and was as much at home in the royal palace as was the gentle Ruler.
She knew almost every part of the great country and almost all of its
numerous inhabitants. Next to Ozma she was loved better than anyone in
all Oz, for Dorothy was simple and sweet, seldom became angry and had
such a friendly, chummy way that she made friends where-ever she
wandered. It was she who first brought the Scarecrow and the Tin
Woodman and the Cowardly Lion to the Emerald City. Dorothy had also
introduced to Ozma the Shaggy Man and the Hungry Tiger, as well as
Billina the Yellow Hen, Eureka the Pink Kitten, and many other
delightful characters and creatures. Coming as she did from our world,
Dorothy was much like many other girls we know; so there were times
when she was not so wise as she might have been, and other times when
she was obstinate and got herself into trouble. But life in a
fairy-land had taught the little girl to accept all sorts of surprising
things as matters-of-course, for while Dorothy was no fairy--but just
as mortal as we are--she had seen more wonders than most mortals ever
do.

Another little girl from our outside world also lived in Ozma's palace.
This was Betsy Bobbin, whose strange adventures had brought her to the
Emerald City, where Ozma had cordially welcomed her. Betsy was a shy
little thing and could never get used to the marvels that surrounded
her, but she and Dorothy were firm friends and thought themselves very
fortunate in being together in this delightful country.

One day Dorothy and Betsy were visiting Ozma in the girl Ruler's
private apartment, and among the things that especially interested them
was Ozma's Magic Picture, set in a handsome frame and hung upon the
wall of the room. This picture was a magic one because it constantly
changed its scenes and showed events and adventures happening in all
parts of the world. Thus it was really a "moving picture" of life, and
if the one who stood before it wished to know what any absent person
was doing, the picture instantly showed that person, with his or her
surroundings.

The two girls were not wishing to see anyone in particular, on this
occasion, but merely enjoyed watching the shifting scenes, some of
which were exceedingly curious and remarkable. Suddenly Dorothy
exclaimed: "Why, there's Button-Bright!" and this drew Ozma also to
look at the picture, for she and Dorothy knew the boy well.

"Who is Button-Bright?" asked Betsy, who had never met him.

"Why, he's the little boy who is just getting off the back of that
strange flying creature," exclaimed Dorothy. Then she turned to Ozma
and asked: "What is that thing, Ozma? A bird? I've never seen anything
like it before."

"It is an Ork," answered Ozma, for they were watching the scene where
the Ork and the three big birds were first landing their passengers in
Jinxland after the long flight across the desert. "I wonder," added the
girl Ruler, musingly, "why those strangers dare venture into that
unfortunate country, which is ruled by a wicked King."

"That girl, and the one-legged man, seem to be mortals from the outside
world," said Dorothy.

"The man isn't one-legged," corrected Betsy; "he has one wooden leg."

"It's almost as bad," declared Dorothy, watching Cap'n Bill stump
around.

"They are three mortal adventurers," said Ozma, "and they seem worthy
and honest. But I fear they will be treated badly in Jinxland, and if
they meet with any misfortune there it will reflect upon me, for
Jinxland is a part of my dominions."

"Can't we help them in any way?" inquired Dorothy. "That seems like a
nice little girl. I'd be sorry if anything happened to her."

"Let us watch the picture for awhile," suggested Ozma, and so they all
drew chairs before the Magic Picture and followed the adventures of
Trot and Cap'n Bill and Button-Bright. Presently the scene shifted and
showed their friend the Scarecrow crossing the mountains into Jinxland,
and that somewhat relieved Ozma's anxiety, for she knew at once that
Glinda the Good had sent the Scarecrow to protect the strangers.

The adventures in Jinxland proved very interesting to the three girls
in Ozma's palace, who during the succeeding days spent much of their
time in watching the picture. It was like a story to them.

"That girl's a reg'lar trump!" exclaimed Dorothy, referring to Trot,
and Ozma answered:

"She's a dear little thing, and I'm sure nothing very bad will happen
to her. The old sailor is a fine character, too, for he has never once
grumbled over being a grasshopper, as so many would have done."

When the Scarecrow was so nearly burned up the girls all shivered a
little, and they clapped their hands in joy when the flock of Orks came
and saved him.

So it was that when all the exciting adventures in Jinxland were over
and the four Orks had begun their flight across the mountains to carry
the mortals into the Land of Oz, Ozma called the Wizard to her and
asked him to prepare a place for the strangers to sleep.

The famous Wizard of Oz was a quaint little man who inhabited the royal
palace and attended to all the magical things that Ozma wanted done. He
was not as powerful as Glinda, to be sure, but he could do a great many
wonderful things. He proved this by placing a house in the uninhabited
part of the Quadling Country where the Orks landed Cap'n Bill and Trot
and Button-Bright, and fitting it with all the comforts I have
described in the last chapter.

Next morning Dorothy said to Ozma:

"Oughtn't we to go meet the strangers, so we can show them the way to
the Emerald City? I'm sure that little girl will feel shy in this
beautiful land, and I know if 'twas me I'd like somebody to give me a
welcome."

Ozma smiled at her little friend and answered:

"You and Betsy may go to meet them, if you wish, but I can not leave my
palace just now, as I am to have a conference with Jack Pumpkinhead and
Professor Wogglebug on important matters. You may take the Sawhorse and
the Red Wagon, and if you start soon you will be able to meet the
Scarecrow and the strangers at Glinda's palace."

"Oh, thank you!" cried Dorothy, and went away to tell Betsy and to make
preparations for the journey.




Chapter Twenty-Two

The Waterfall


Glinda's castle was a long way from the mountains, but the Scarecrow
began the journey cheerfully, since time was of no great importance in
the Land of Oz and he had recently made the trip and knew the way. It
never mattered much to Button-Bright where he was or what he was doing;
the boy was content in being alive and having good companions to share
his wanderings. As for Trot and Cap'n Bill, they now found themselves
so comfortable and free from danger, in this fine fairyland, and they
were so awed and amazed by the adventures they were encountering, that
the journey to Glinda's castle was more like a pleasure trip than a
hardship, so many wonderful things were there to see.

Button-Bright had been in Oz before, but never in this part of it, so
the Scarecrow was the only one who knew the paths and could lead them.
They had eaten a hearty breakfast, which they found already prepared
for them and awaiting them on the table when they arose from their
refreshing sleep, so they left the magic house in a contented mood and
with hearts lighter and more happy than they had known for many a day.
As they marched along through the fields, the sun shone brightly and
the breeze was laden with delicious fragrance, for it carried with it
the breath of millions of wildflowers.

At noon, when they stopped to rest by the bank of a pretty river, Trot
said with a long-drawn breath that was much like a sigh:

"I wish we'd brought with us some of the food that was left from our
breakfast, for I'm getting hungry again."

Scarcely had she spoken when a table rose up before them, as if from
the ground itself, and it was loaded with fruits and nuts and cakes and
many other good things to eat. The little girl's eyes opened wide at
this display of magic, and Cap'n Bill was not sure that the things were
actually there and fit to eat until he had taken them in his hand and
tasted them. But the Scarecrow said with a laugh:

"Someone is looking after your welfare, that is certain, and from the
looks of this table I suspect my friend the Wizard has taken us in his
charge. I've known him to do things like this before, and if we are in
the Wizard's care you need not worry about your future."

"Who's worrying?" inquired Button-Bright, already at the table and
busily eating.

The Scarecrow looked around the place while the others were feasting,
and finding many things unfamiliar to him he shook his head and
remarked:

"I must have taken the wrong path, back in that last valley, for on my
way to Jinxland I remember that I passed around the foot of this river,
where there was a great waterfall."

"Did the river make a bend, after the waterfall?" asked Cap'n Bill.

"No, the river disappeared. Only a pool of whirling water showed what
had become of the river; but I suppose it is under ground, somewhere,
and will come to the surface again in another part of the country."

"Well," suggested Trot, as she finished her luncheon, "as there is no
way to cross this river, I s'pose we'll have to find that waterfall,
and go around it."

"Exactly," replied the Scarecrow; so they soon renewed their journey,
following the river for a long time until the roar of the waterfall
sounded in their ears. By and by they came to the waterfall itself, a
sheet of silver dropping far, far down into a tiny lake which seemed to
have no outlet. From the top of the fall, where they stood, the banks
gradually sloped away, so that the descent by land was quite easy,
while the river could do nothing but glide over an edge of rock and
tumble straight down to the depths below.

"You see," said the Scarecrow, leaning over the brink, "this is called
by our Oz people the Great Waterfall, because it is certainly the
highest one in all the land; but I think--Help!"

He had lost his balance and pitched headforemost into the river. They
saw a flash of straw and blue clothes, and the painted face looking
upward in surprise. The next moment the Scarecrow was swept over the
waterfall and plunged into the basin below.

The accident had happened so suddenly that for a moment they were all
too horrified to speak or move.

"Quick! We must go to help him or he will be drowned," Trot exclaimed.

Even while speaking she began to descend the bank to the pool below,
and Cap'n Bill followed as swiftly as his wooden leg would let him.
Button-Bright came more slowly, calling to the girl:

"He can't drown, Trot; he's a Scarecrow."

But she wasn't sure a Scarecrow couldn't drown and never relaxed her
speed until she stood on the edge of the pool, with the spray dashing
in her face. Cap'n Bill, puffing and panting, had just voice enough to
ask, as he reached her side:

"See him, Trot?"

"Not a speck of him.  Oh, Cap'n, what do you s'pose has become of him?"

"I s'pose," replied the sailor, "that he's in that water, more or less
far down, and I'm 'fraid it'll make his straw pretty soggy. But as fer
his bein' drowned, I agree with Button-Bright that it can't be done."

There was small comfort in this assurance and Trot stood for some time
searching with her eyes the bubbling water, in the hope that the
Scarecrow would finally come to the surface. Presently she heard
Button-Bright calling: "Come here, Trot!" and looking around she saw
that the boy had crept over the wet rocks to the edge of the waterfall
and seemed to be peering behind it. Making her way toward him, she
asked:

"What do you see?"

"A cave," he answered. "Let's go in. P'r'aps we'll find the Scarecrow
there."

She was a little doubtful of that, but the cave interested her, and so
did it Cap'n Bill. There was just space enough at the edge of the sheet
of water for them to crowd in behind it, but after that dangerous
entrance they found room enough to walk upright and after a time they
came to an opening in the wall of rock. Approaching this opening, they
gazed within it and found a series of steps, cut so that they might
easily descend into the cavern.

Trot turned to look inquiringly at her companions. The falling water
made such din and roaring that her voice could not be heard. Cap'n Bill
nodded his head, but before he could enter the cave, Button-Bright was
before him, clambering down the steps without a particle of fear. So
the others followed the boy.

The first steps were wet with spray, and slippery, but the remainder
were quite dry. A rosy light seemed to come from the interior of the
cave, and this lighted their way. After the steps there was a short
tunnel, high enough for them to walk erect in, and then they reached
the cave itself and paused in wonder and admiration.

They stood on the edge of a vast cavern, the walls and domed roof of
which were lined with countless rubies, exquisitely cut and flashing
sparkling rays from one to another. This caused a radiant light that
permitted the entire cavern to be distinctly seen, and the effect was
so marvelous that Trot drew in her breath with a sort of a gasp, and
stood quite still in wonder.

But the walls and roof of the cavern were merely a setting for a more
wonderful scene. In the center was a bubbling caldron of water, for
here the river rose again, splashing and dashing till its spray rose
high in the air, where it took the ruby color of the jewels and seemed
like a seething mass of flame. And while they gazed into the tumbling,
tossing water, the body of the Scarecrow suddenly rose in the center,
struggling and kicking, and the next instant wholly disappeared from
view.

"My, but he's wet!" exclaimed Button-Bright; but none of the others
heard him.

Trot and Cap'n Bill discovered that a broad ledge--covered, like the
walls, with glittering rubies--ran all around the cavern; so they
followed this gorgeous path to the rear and found where the water made
its final dive underground, before it disappeared entirely. Where it
plunged into this dim abyss the river was black and dreary looking, and
they stood gazing in awe until just beside them the body of the
Scarecrow again popped up from the water.




Chapter Twenty Three

The Land of Oz


The straw man's appearance on the water was so sudden that it startled
Trot, but Cap'n Bill had the presence of mind to stick his wooden leg
out over the water and the Scarecrow made a desperate clutch and
grabbed the leg with both hands. He managed to hold on until Trot and
Button-Bright knelt down and seized his clothing, but the children
would have been powerless to drag the soaked Scarecrow ashore had not
Cap'n Bill now assisted them. When they laid him on the ledge of rubies
he was the most useless looking Scarecrow you can imagine--his straw
sodden and dripping with water, his clothing wet and crumpled, while
even the sack upon which his face was painted had become so wrinkled
that the old jolly expression of their stuffed friend's features was
entirely gone. But he could still speak, and when Trot bent down her
ear she heard him say:

"Get me out of here as soon as you can."

That seemed a wise thing to do, so Cap'n Bill lifted his head and
shoulders, and Trot and Button-Bright each took a leg; among them they
partly carried and partly dragged the damp Scarecrow out of the Ruby
Cavern, along the tunnel, and up the flight of rock steps. It was
somewhat difficult to get him past the edge of the waterfall, but they
succeeded, after much effort, and a few minutes later laid their poor
comrade on a grassy bank where the sun shone upon him freely and he was
beyond the reach of the spray.

Cap'n Bill now knelt down and examined the straw that the Scarecrow was
stuffed with.

"I don't believe it'll be of much use to him, any more," said he, "for
it's full of polliwogs an' fish eggs, an' the water has took all the
crinkle out o' the straw an ruined it. I guess, Trot, that the best
thing for us to do is to empty out all his body an' carry his head an'
clothes along the road till we come to a field or a house where we can
get some fresh straw."

"Yes, Cap'n," she agreed, "there's nothing else to be done. But how
shall we ever find the road to Glinda's palace, without the Scarecrow
to guide us?"

"That's easy," said the Scarecrow, speaking in a rather feeble but
distinct voice. "If Cap'n Bill will carry my head on his shoulders,
eyes front, I can tell him which way to go."

So they followed that plan and emptied all the old, wet straw out of
the Scarecrow's body. Then the sailor-man wrung out the clothes and
laid them in the sun till they were quite dry. Trot took charge of the
head and pressed the wrinkles out of the face as it dried, so that
after a while the Scarecrow's expression became natural again, and as
jolly as before.

This work consumed some time, but when it was completed they again
started upon their journey, Button-Bright carrying the boots and hat,
Trot the bundle of clothes, and Cap'n Bill the head. The Scarecrow,
having regained his composure and being now in a good humor, despite
his recent mishaps, beguiled their way with stories of the Land of Oz.

It was not until the next morning, however, that they found straw with
which to restuff the Scarecrow. That evening they came to the same
little house they had slept in before, only now it was magically
transferred to a new place. The same bountiful supper as before was
found smoking hot upon the table and the same cosy beds were ready for
them to sleep in.

They rose early and after breakfast went out of doors, and there, lying
just beside the house, was a heap of clean, crisp straw. Ozma had
noticed the Scarecrow's accident in her Magic Picture and had notified
the Wizard to provide the straw, for she knew the adventurers were not
likely to find straw in the country through which they were now
traveling.

They lost no time in stuffing the Scarecrow anew, and he was greatly
delighted at being able to walk around again and to assume the
leadership of the little party.

"Really," said Trot, "I think you're better than you were before, for
you are fresh and sweet all through and rustle beautifully when you
move."

"Thank you, my dear," he replied gratefully. "I always feel like a new
man when I'm freshly stuffed. No one likes to get musty, you know, and
even good straw may be spoiled by age."

"It was water that spoiled you, the last time," remarked Button-Bright,
"which proves that too much bathing is as bad as too little. But, after
all, Scarecrow, water is not as dangerous for you as fire."

"All things are good in moderation," declared the Scarecrow. "But now,
let us hurry on, or we shall not reach Glinda's palace by nightfall."




Chapter Twenty-Four

The Royal Reception


At about four o'clock of that same day the Red Wagon drew up at the
entrance to Glinda's palace and Dorothy and Betsy jumped out. Ozma's
Red Wagon was almost a chariot, being inlaid with rubies and pearls,
and it was drawn by Ozma's favorite steed, the wooden Sawhorse.

"Shall I unharness you," asked Dorothy, "so you can come in and visit?"

"No," replied the Sawhorse. "I'll just stand here and think. Take your
time. Thinking doesn't seem to bore me at all."

"What will you think of?" inquired Betsy.

"Of the acorn that grew the tree from which I was made."

So they left the wooden animal and went in to see Glinda, who welcomed
the little girls in her most cordial manner.

"I knew you were on your way," said the good Sorceress when they were
seated in her library, "for I learned from my Record Book that you
intended to meet Trot and Button-Bright on their arrival here."

"Is the strange little girl named Trot?" asked Dorothy.

"Yes; and her companion, the old sailor, is named Cap'n Bill. I think
we shall like them very much, for they are just the kind of people to
enjoy and appreciate our fairyland and I do not see any way, at
present, for them to return again to the outside world."

"Well, there's room enough here for them, I'm sure," said Dorothy.
"Betsy and I are already eager to welcome Trot. It will keep us busy
for a year, at least, showing her all the wonderful things in Oz."

Glinda smiled.

"I have lived here many years," said she, "and I have not seen all the
wonders of Oz yet."

Meantime the travelers were drawing near to the palace, and when they
first caught sight of its towers Trot realized that it was far more
grand and imposing than was the King's castle in Jinxland. The nearer
they came, the more beautiful the palace appeared, and when finally the
Scarecrow led them up the great marble steps, even Button-Bright was
filled with awe.

"I don't see any soldiers to guard the place," said the little girl.

"There is no need to guard Glinda's palace," replied the Scarecrow. "We
have no wicked people in Oz, that we know of, and even if there were
any, Glinda's magic would be powerful enough to protect her."

Button-Bright was now standing on the top steps of the entrance, and he
suddenly exclaimed:

"Why, there's the Sawhorse and the Red Wagon! Hip, hooray!" and next
moment he was rushing down to throw his arms around the neck of the
wooden horse, which good-naturedly permitted this familiarity when it
recognized in the boy an old friend.

Button-Bright's shout had been heard inside the palace, so now Dorothy
and Betsy came running out to embrace their beloved friend, the
Scarecrow, and to welcome Trot and Cap'n Bill to the Land of Oz.

"We've been watching you for a long time, in Ozma's Magic Picture,"
said Dorothy, "and Ozma has sent us to invite you to her own palace in
the Em'rald City. I don't know if you realize how lucky you are to get
that invitation, but you'll understand it better after you've seen the
royal palace and the Em'rald City."

Glinda now appeared in person to lead all the party into her Azure
Reception Room. Trot was a little afraid of the stately Sorceress, but
gained courage by holding fast to the hands of Betsy and Dorothy. Cap'n
Bill had no one to help him feel at ease, so the old sailor sat stiffly
on the edge of his chair and said:

"Yes, ma'am," or "No, ma'am," when he was spoken to, and was greatly
embarrassed by so much splendor.

The Scarecrow had lived so much in palaces that he felt quite at home,
and he chatted to Glinda and the Oz girls in a merry, light-hearted
way. He told all about his adventures in Jinxland, and at the Great
Waterfall, and on the journey hither--most of which his hearers knew
already--and then he asked Dorothy and Betsy what had happened in the
Emerald City since he had left there.

They all passed the evening and the night at Glinda's palace, and the
Sorceress was so gracious to Cap'n Bill that the old man by degrees
regained his self-possession and began to enjoy himself. Trot had
already come to the conclusion that in Dorothy and Betsy she had found
two delightful comrades, and Button-Bright was just as much at home
here as he had been in the fields of Jinxland or when he was buried in
the popcorn snow of the Land of Mo.

The next morning they arose bright and early and after breakfast bade
good-bye to the kind Sorceress, whom Trot and Cap'n Bill thanked
earnestly for sending the Scarecrow to Jinxland to rescue them. Then
they all climbed into the Red Wagon.

There was room for all on the broad seats, and when all had taken their
places--Dorothy, Trot and Betsy on the rear seat and Cap'n Bill,
Button-Bright and the Scarecrow in front--they called "Gid-dap!" to the
Sawhorse and the wooden steed moved briskly away, pulling the Red Wagon
with ease.

It was now that the strangers began to perceive the real beauties of
the Land of Oz, for they were passing through a more thickly settled
part of the country and the population grew more dense as they drew
nearer to the Emerald City. Everyone they met had a cheery word or a
smile for the Scarecrow, Dorothy and Betsy Bobbin, and some of them
remembered Button-Bright and welcomed him back to their country.

It was a happy party, indeed, that journeyed in the Red Wagon to the
Emerald City, and Trot already began to hope that Ozma would permit her
and Cap'n Bill to live always in the Land of Oz.

When they reached the great city they were more amazed than ever, both
by the concourse of people in their quaint and picturesque costumes,
and by the splendor of the city itself. But the magnificence of the
Royal Palace quite took their breath away, until Ozma received them in
her own pretty apartment and by her charming manners and assuring
smiles made them feel they were no longer strangers.

Trot was given a lovely little room next to that of Dorothy, while
Cap'n Bill had the cosiest sort of a room next to Trot's and
overlooking the gardens. And that evening Ozma gave a grand banquet and
reception in honor of the new arrivals. While Trot had read of many of
the people she then met, Cap'n Bill was less familiar with them and
many of the unusual characters introduced to him that evening caused
the old sailor to open his eyes wide in astonishment.

He had thought the live Scarecrow about as curious as anyone could be,
but now he met the Tin Woodman, who was all made of tin, even to his
heart, and carried a gleaming axe over his shoulder wherever he went.
Then there was Jack Pumpkinhead, whose head was a real pumpkin with the
face carved upon it; and Professor Wogglebug, who had the shape of an
enormous bug but was dressed in neat fitting garments. The Professor
was an interesting talker and had very polite manners, but his face was
so comical that it made Cap'n Bill smile to look at it. A great friend
of Dorothy and Ozma seemed to be a machine man called Tik-Tok, who ran
down several times during the evening and had to be wound up again by
someone before he could move or speak.

At the reception appeared the Shaggy Man and his brother, both very
popular in Oz, as well as Dorothy's Uncle Henry and Aunt Em, two happy
old people who lived in a pretty cottage near the palace.

But what perhaps seemed most surprising to both Trot and Cap'n Bill was
the number of peculiar animals admitted into Ozma's parlors, where they
not only conducted themselves quite properly but were able to talk as
well as anyone.

There was the Cowardly Lion, an immense beast with a beautiful mane;
and the Hungry Tiger, who smiled continually; and Eureka the Pink
Kitten, who lay curled upon a cushion and had rather supercilious
manners; and the wooden Sawhorse; and nine tiny piglets that belonged
to the Wizard; and a mule named Hank, who belonged to Betsy Bobbin. A
fuzzy little terrier dog, named Toto, lay at Dorothy's feet but seldom
took part in the conversation, although he listened to every word that
was said. But the most wonderful of all to Trot was a square beast with
a winning smile, that squatted in a corner of the room and wagged his
square head at everyone in quite a jolly way. Betsy told Trot that this
unique beast was called the Woozy, and there was no other like him in
all the world.

Cap'n Bill and Trot had both looked around expectantly for the Wizard
of Oz, but the evening was far advanced before the famous little man
entered the room. But he went up to the strangers at once and said:

"I know you, but you don't know me; so let's get acquainted."

And they did get acquainted, in a very short time, and before the
evening was over Trot felt that she knew every person and animal
present at the reception, and that they were all her good friends.

Suddenly they looked around for Button-Bright, but he was nowhere to be
found.

"Dear me!" cried Trot. "He's lost again."

"Never mind, my dear," said Ozma, with her charming smile, "no one can
go far astray in the Land of Oz, and if Button-Bright isn't lost
occasionally, he isn't happy."





The Wonderful Oz Books by L. Frank Baum

  THE WIZARD OF OZ
  THE LAND OF OZ
  OZMA OF OZ
  DOROTHY AND THE WIZARD IN OZ
  THE ROAD TO OZ
  THE EMERALD CITY OF OZ
  THE PATCHWORK GIRL OF OZ
  TIK-TOK OF OZ
  THE SCARECROW OF OZ
  RINKITINK IN OZ
  THE LOST PRINCESS OF OZ
  THE TIN WOODMAN OF OZ
  THE MAGIC OF OZ
  GLINDA OF OZ








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