The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
by
L. Frank Baum
Part 3 out of 3
and, really, that was the only thing I wished in all the world."
"For my part, I am content in knowing I am as brave as any
beast that ever lived, if not braver," said the Lion modestly.
"If Dorothy would only be contented to live in the Emerald City,"
continued the Scarecrow, "we might all be happy together."
"But I don't want to live here," cried Dorothy. "I want to go
to Kansas, and live with Aunt Em and Uncle Henry."
"Well, then, what can be done?" inquired the Woodman.
The Scarecrow decided to think, and he thought so hard that the
pins and needles began to stick out of his brains. Finally he said:
"Why not call the Winged Monkeys, and ask them to carry you
over the desert?"
"I never thought of that!" said Dorothy joyfully. "It's just
the thing. I'll go at once for the Golden Cap."
When she brought it into the Throne Room she spoke the magic
words, and soon the band of Winged Monkeys flew in through the
open window and stood beside her.
"This is the second time you have called us," said the Monkey
King, bowing before the little girl. "What do you wish?"
"I want you to fly with me to Kansas," said Dorothy.
But the Monkey King shook his head.
"That cannot be done," he said. "We belong to this country alone,
and cannot leave it. There has never been a Winged Monkey in Kansas yet,
and I suppose there never will be, for they don't belong there. We shall
be glad to serve you in any way in our power, but we cannot cross the desert.
Good-bye."
And with another bow, the Monkey King spread his wings and
flew away through the window, followed by all his band.
Dorothy was ready to cry with disappointment. "I have wasted
the charm of the Golden Cap to no purpose," she said, "for the
Winged Monkeys cannot help me."
"It is certainly too bad!" said the tender-hearted Woodman.
The Scarecrow was thinking again, and his head bulged out so
horribly that Dorothy feared it would burst.
"Let us call in the soldier with the green whiskers," he said,
"and ask his advice."
So the soldier was summoned and entered the Throne Room
timidly, for while Oz was alive he never was allowed to come
farther than the door.
"This little girl," said the Scarecrow to the soldier,
"wishes to cross the desert. How can she do so?"
"I cannot tell," answered the soldier, "for nobody has ever
crossed the desert, unless it is Oz himself."
"Is there no one who can help me?" asked Dorothy earnestly.
"Glinda might," he suggested.
"Who is Glinda?" inquired the Scarecrow.
"The Witch of the South. She is the most powerful of all the
Witches, and rules over the Quadlings. Besides, her castle stands
on the edge of the desert, so she may know a way to cross it."
"Glinda is a Good Witch, isn't she?" asked the child.
"The Quadlings think she is good," said the soldier, "and she
is kind to everyone. I have heard that Glinda is a beautiful woman,
who knows how to keep young in spite of the many years she has lived."
"How can I get to her castle?" asked Dorothy.
"The road is straight to the South," he answered, "but it is
said to be full of dangers to travelers. There are wild beasts in
the woods, and a race of queer men who do not like strangers to
cross their country. For this reason none of the Quadlings ever
come to the Emerald City."
The soldier then left them and the Scarecrow said:
"It seems, in spite of dangers, that the best thing Dorothy
can do is to travel to the Land of the South and ask Glinda to
help her. For, of course, if Dorothy stays here she will never
get back to Kansas."
"You must have been thinking again," remarked the Tin Woodman.
"I have," said the Scarecrow.
"I shall go with Dorothy," declared the Lion, "for I am
tired of your city and long for the woods and the country again.
I am really a wild beast, you know. Besides, Dorothy will need
someone to protect her."
"That is true," agreed the Woodman. "My axe may be of service
to her; so I also will go with her to the Land of the South."
"When shall we start?" asked the Scarecrow.
"Are you going?" they asked, in surprise.
"Certainly. If it wasn't for Dorothy I should never have had brains.
She lifted me from the pole in the cornfield and brought me to the
Emerald City. So my good luck is all due to her, and I shall never
leave her until she starts back to Kansas for good and all."
"Thank you," said Dorothy gratefully. "You are all very kind
to me. But I should like to start as soon as possible."
"We shall go tomorrow morning," returned the Scarecrow. "So
now let us all get ready, for it will be a long journey."
19. Attacked by the Fighting Trees
The next morning Dorothy kissed the pretty green girl good-bye,
and they all shook hands with the soldier with the green whiskers,
who had walked with them as far as the gate. When the Guardian of
the Gate saw them again he wondered greatly that they could leave
the beautiful City to get into new trouble. But he at once
unlocked their spectacles, which he put back into the green box,
and gave them many good wishes to carry with them.
"You are now our ruler," he said to the Scarecrow;
"so you must come back to us as soon as possible."
"I certainly shall if I am able," the Scarecrow replied;
"but I must help Dorothy to get home, first."
As Dorothy bade the good-natured Guardian a last farewell she said:
"I have been very kindly treated in your lovely City, and
everyone has been good to me. I cannot tell you how grateful I am."
"Don't try, my dear," he answered. "We should like to keep
you with us, but if it is your wish to return to Kansas, I hope
you will find a way." He then opened the gate of the outer wall,
and they walked forth and started upon their journey.
The sun shone brightly as our friends turned their faces
toward the Land of the South. They were all in the best of spirits,
and laughed and chatted together. Dorothy was once more filled with
the hope of getting home, and the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman were
glad to be of use to her. As for the Lion, he sniffed the fresh air
with delight and whisked his tail from side to side in pure joy at
being in the country again, while Toto ran around them and chased
the moths and butterflies, barking merrily all the time.
"City life does not agree with me at all," remarked the Lion,
as they walked along at a brisk pace. "I have lost much flesh
since I lived there, and now I am anxious for a chance to show the
other beasts how courageous I have grown."
They now turned and took a last look at the Emerald City.
All they could see was a mass of towers and steeples behind the
green walls, and high up above everything the spires and dome
of the Palace of Oz.
"Oz was not such a bad Wizard, after all," said the Tin
Woodman, as he felt his heart rattling around in his breast.
"He knew how to give me brains, and very good brains, too,"
said the Scarecrow.
"If Oz had taken a dose of the same courage he gave me,"
added the Lion, "he would have been a brave man."
Dorothy said nothing. Oz had not kept the promise he made her,
but he had done his best, so she forgave him. As he said, he was
a good man, even if he was a bad Wizard.
The first day's journey was through the green fields and
bright flowers that stretched about the Emerald City on every side.
They slept that night on the grass, with nothing but the stars
over them; and they rested very well indeed.
In the morning they traveled on until they came to a thick wood.
There was no way of going around it, for it seemed to extend to the
right and left as far as they could see; and, besides, they did not
dare change the direction of their journey for fear of getting lost.
So they looked for the place where it would be easiest to get into
the forest.
The Scarecrow, who was in the lead, finally discovered a big
tree with such wide-spreading branches that there was room for the
party to pass underneath. So he walked forward to the tree, but
just as he came under the first branches they bent down and twined
around him, and the next minute he was raised from the ground and
flung headlong among his fellow travelers.
This did not hurt the Scarecrow, but it surprised him, and he
looked rather dizzy when Dorothy picked him up.
"Here is another space between the trees," called the Lion.
"Let me try it first," said the Scarecrow, "for it doesn't hurt
me to get thrown about." He walked up to another tree, as he spoke,
but its branches immediately seized him and tossed him back again.
"This is strange," exclaimed Dorothy. "What shall we do?"
"The trees seem to have made up their minds to fight us,
and stop our journey," remarked the Lion.
"I believe I will try it myself," said the Woodman, and
shouldering his axe, he marched up to the first tree that had
handled the Scarecrow so roughly. When a big branch bent down to
seize him the Woodman chopped at it so fiercely that he cut it in two.
At once the tree began shaking all its branches as if in pain, and the
Tin Woodman passed safely under it.
"Come on!" he shouted to the others. "Be quick!" They all
ran forward and passed under the tree without injury, except Toto,
who was caught by a small branch and shaken until he howled.
But the Woodman promptly chopped off the branch and set the
little dog free.
The other trees of the forest did nothing to keep them back,
so they made up their minds that only the first row of trees could
bend down their branches, and that probably these were the
policemen of the forest, and given this wonderful power in order
to keep strangers out of it.
The four travelers walked with ease through the trees until they
came to the farther edge of the wood. Then, to their surprise, they
found before them a high wall which seemed to be made of white china.
It was smooth, like the surface of a dish, and higher than their heads.
"What shall we do now?" asked Dorothy.
"I will make a ladder," said the Tin Woodman, "for we certainly
must climb over the wall."
20. The Dainty China Country
While the Woodman was making a ladder from wood which he found
in the forest Dorothy lay down and slept, for she was tired by the
long walk. The Lion also curled himself up to sleep and Toto lay
beside him.
The Scarecrow watched the Woodman while he worked, and said to him:
"I cannot think why this wall is here, nor what it is made of."
"Rest your brains and do not worry about the wall," replied the Woodman.
"When we have climbed over it, we shall know what is on the other side."
After a time the ladder was finished. It looked clumsy, but
the Tin Woodman was sure it was strong and would answer their purpose.
The Scarecrow waked Dorothy and the Lion and Toto, and told them that
the ladder was ready. The Scarecrow climbed up the ladder first, but
he was so awkward that Dorothy had to follow close behind and keep him
from falling off. When he got his head over the top of the wall the
Scarecrow said, "Oh, my!"
"Go on," exclaimed Dorothy.
So the Scarecrow climbed farther up and sat down on the top of
the wall, and Dorothy put her head over and cried, "Oh, my!" just
as the Scarecrow had done.
Then Toto came up, and immediately began to bark, but Dorothy
made him be still.
The Lion climbed the ladder next, and the Tin Woodman came
last; but both of them cried, "Oh, my!" as soon as they looked
over the wall. When they were all sitting in a row on the top
of the wall, they looked down and saw a strange sight.
Before them was a great stretch of country having a floor as
smooth and shining and white as the bottom of a big platter.
Scattered around were many houses made entirely of china and
painted in the brightest colors. These houses were quite small,
the biggest of them reaching only as high as Dorothy's waist.
There were also pretty little barns, with china fences around them;
and many cows and sheep and horses and pigs and chickens, all made
of china, were standing about in groups.
But the strangest of all were the people who lived in this
queer country. There were milkmaids and shepherdesses, with
brightly colored bodices and golden spots all over their gowns;
and princesses with most gorgeous frocks of silver and gold and
purple; and shepherds dressed in knee breeches with pink and
yellow and blue stripes down them, and golden buckles on their
shoes; and princes with jeweled crowns upon their heads, wearing
ermine robes and satin doublets; and funny clowns in ruffled gowns,
with round red spots upon their cheeks and tall, pointed caps.
And, strangest of all, these people were all made of china, even to
their clothes, and were so small that the tallest of them was no
higher than Dorothy's knee.
No one did so much as look at the travelers at first, except
one little purple china dog with an extra-large head, which came
to the wall and barked at them in a tiny voice, afterwards running
away again.
"How shall we get down?" asked Dorothy.
They found the ladder so heavy they could not pull it up, so
the Scarecrow fell off the wall and the others jumped down upon him
so that the hard floor would not hurt their feet. Of course they
took pains not to light on his head and get the pins in their feet.
When all were safely down they picked up the Scarecrow, whose body
was quite flattened out, and patted his straw into shape again.
"We must cross this strange place in order to get to the other side,"
said Dorothy, "for it would be unwise for us to go any other way except
due South."
They began walking through the country of the china people,
and the first thing they came to was a china milkmaid milking a
china cow. As they drew near, the cow suddenly gave a kick and
kicked over the stool, the pail, and even the milkmaid herself,
and all fell on the china ground with a great clatter.
Dorothy was shocked to see that the cow had broken her leg
off, and that the pail was lying in several small pieces, while
the poor milkmaid had a nick in her left elbow.
"There!" cried the milkmaid angrily. "See what you have done!
My cow has broken her leg, and I must take her to the mender's
shop and have it glued on again. What do you mean by coming here
and frightening my cow?"
"I'm very sorry," returned Dorothy. "Please forgive us."
But the pretty milkmaid was much too vexed to make any answer.
She picked up the leg sulkily and led her cow away, the poor
animal limping on three legs. As she left them the milkmaid cast
many reproachful glances over her shoulder at the clumsy strangers,
holding her nicked elbow close to her side.
Dorothy was quite grieved at this mishap.
"We must be very careful here," said the kind-hearted Woodman,
"or we may hurt these pretty little people so they will never get over it."
A little farther on Dorothy met a most beautifully dressed
young Princess, who stopped short as she saw the strangers and
started to run away.
Dorothy wanted to see more of the Princess, so she ran after her.
But the china girl cried out:
"Don't chase me! Don't chase me!"
She had such a frightened little voice that Dorothy stopped
and said, "Why not?"
"Because," answered the Princess, also stopping, a safe
distance away, "if I run I may fall down and break myself."
"But could you not be mended?" asked the girl.
"Oh, yes; but one is never so pretty after being mended, you know,"
replied the Princess.
"I suppose not," said Dorothy.
"Now there is Mr. Joker, one of our clowns," continued the
china lady, "who is always trying to stand upon his head. He has
broken himself so often that he is mended in a hundred places, and
doesn't look at all pretty. Here he comes now, so you can see for
yourself."
Indeed, a jolly little clown came walking toward them, and
Dorothy could see that in spite of his pretty clothes of red and
yellow and green he was completely covered with cracks, running
every which way and showing plainly that he had been mended in
many places.
The Clown put his hands in his pockets, and after puffing out
his cheeks and nodding his head at them saucily, he said:
"My lady fair,
Why do you stare
At poor old Mr. Joker?
You're quite as stiff
And prim as if
You'd eaten up a poker!"
"Be quiet, sir!" said the Princess. "Can't you see these are
strangers, and should be treated with respect?"
"Well, that's respect, I expect," declared the Clown,
and immediately stood upon his head.
"Don't mind Mr. Joker," said the Princess to Dorothy. "He is
considerably cracked in his head, and that makes him foolish."
"Oh, I don't mind him a bit," said Dorothy. "But you are so
beautiful," she continued, "that I am sure I could love you dearly.
Won't you let me carry you back to Kansas, and stand you on
Aunt Em's mantel? I could carry you in my basket."
"That would make me very unhappy," answered the china Princess.
"You see, here in our country we live contentedly, and can talk and
move around as we please. But whenever any of us are taken away our
joints at once stiffen, and we can only stand straight and look pretty.
Of course that is all that is expected of us when we are on mantels and
cabinets and drawing-room tables, but our lives are much pleasanter
here in our own country."
"I would not make you unhappy for all the world!" exclaimed Dorothy.
"So I'll just say good-bye."
"Good-bye," replied the Princess.
They walked carefully through the china country. The little
animals and all the people scampered out of their way, fearing the
strangers would break them, and after an hour or so the travelers
reached the other side of the country and came to another china wall.
It was not so high as the first, however, and by standing upon
the Lion's back they all managed to scramble to the top. Then the
Lion gathered his legs under him and jumped on the wall; but just
as he jumped, he upset a china church with his tail and smashed it
all to pieces.
"That was too bad," said Dorothy, "but really I think we were
lucky in not doing these little people more harm than breaking a
cow's leg and a church. They are all so brittle!"
"They are, indeed," said the Scarecrow, "and I am thankful I
am made of straw and cannot be easily damaged. There are worse
things in the world than being a Scarecrow."
21. The Lion Becomes the King of Beasts
After climbing down from the china wall the travelers found
themselves in a disagreeable country, full of bogs and marshes and
covered with tall, rank grass. It was difficult to walk without
falling into muddy holes, for the grass was so thick that it hid
them from sight. However, by carefully picking their way, they
got safely along until they reached solid ground. But here the
country seemed wilder than ever, and after a long and tiresome
walk through the underbrush they entered another forest, where the
trees were bigger and older than any they had ever seen.
"This forest is perfectly delightful," declared the Lion, looking
around him with joy. "Never have I seen a more beautiful place."
"It seems gloomy," said the Scarecrow.
"Not a bit of it," answered the Lion. "I should like to live
here all my life. See how soft the dried leaves are under your
feet and how rich and green the moss is that clings to these old
trees. Surely no wild beast could wish a pleasanter home."
"Perhaps there are wild beasts in the forest now," said Dorothy.
"I suppose there are," returned the Lion, "but I do not see
any of them about."
They walked through the forest until it became too dark to go
any farther. Dorothy and Toto and the Lion lay down to sleep,
while the Woodman and the Scarecrow kept watch over them as usual.
When morning came, they started again. Before they had gone
far they heard a low rumble, as of the growling of many wild animals.
Toto whimpered a little, but none of the others was frightened,
and they kept along the well-trodden path until they came to
an opening in the wood, in which were gathered hundreds of
beasts of every variety. There were tigers and elephants and
bears and wolves and foxes and all the others in the natural
history, and for a moment Dorothy was afraid. But the Lion
explained that the animals were holding a meeting, and he judged
by their snarling and growling that they were in great trouble.
As he spoke several of the beasts caught sight of him, and at
once the great assemblage hushed as if by magic. The biggest of
the tigers came up to the Lion and bowed, saying:
"Welcome, O King of Beasts! You have come in good time to
fight our enemy and bring peace to all the animals of the forest
once more."
"What is your trouble?" asked the Lion quietly.
"We are all threatened," answered the tiger, "by a fierce
enemy which has lately come into this forest. It is a most
tremendous monster, like a great spider, with a body as big as an
elephant and legs as long as a tree trunk. It has eight of these
long legs, and as the monster crawls through the forest he seizes
an animal with a leg and drags it to his mouth, where he eats it
as a spider does a fly. Not one of us is safe while this fierce
creature is alive, and we had called a meeting to decide how to
take care of ourselves when you came among us."
The Lion thought for a moment.
"Are there any other lions in this forest?" he asked.
"No; there were some, but the monster has eaten them all. And,
besides, they were none of them nearly so large and brave as you."
"If I put an end to your enemy, will you bow down to me and
obey me as King of the Forest?" inquired the Lion.
"We will do that gladly," returned the tiger; and all the
other beasts roared with a mighty roar: "We will!"
"Where is this great spider of yours now?" asked the Lion.
"Yonder, among the oak trees," said the tiger, pointing with
his forefoot.
"Take good care of these friends of mine," said the Lion, "and
I will go at once to fight the monster."
He bade his comrades good-bye and marched proudly away to do
battle with the enemy.
The great spider was lying asleep when the Lion found him,
and it looked so ugly that its foe turned up his nose in disgust.
Its legs were quite as long as the tiger had said, and its body
covered with coarse black hair. It had a great mouth, with a row
of sharp teeth a foot long; but its head was joined to the pudgy
body by a neck as slender as a wasp's waist. This gave the Lion a
hint of the best way to attack the creature, and as he knew it was
easier to fight it asleep than awake, he gave a great spring and
landed directly upon the monster's back. Then, with one blow of
his heavy paw, all armed with sharp claws, he knocked the spider's
head from its body. Jumping down, he watched it until the long
legs stopped wiggling, when he knew it was quite dead.
The Lion went back to the opening where the beasts of the
forest were waiting for him and said proudly:
"You need fear your enemy no longer."
Then the beasts bowed down to the Lion as their King, and he
promised to come back and rule over them as soon as Dorothy was
safely on her way to Kansas.
22. The Country of the Quadlings
The four travelers passed through the rest of the forest in
safety, and when they came out from its gloom saw before them a
steep hill, covered from top to bottom with great pieces of rock.
"That will be a hard climb," said the Scarecrow, "but we must
get over the hill, nevertheless."
So he led the way and the others followed. They had nearly
reached the first rock when they heard a rough voice cry out,
"Keep back!"
"Who are you?" asked the Scarecrow.
Then a head showed itself over the rock and the same voice said,
"This hill belongs to us, and we don't allow anyone to cross it."
"But we must cross it," said the Scarecrow. "We're going to
the country of the Quadlings."
"But you shall not!" replied the voice, and there stepped from
behind the rock the strangest man the travelers had ever seen.
He was quite short and stout and had a big head, which was
flat at the top and supported by a thick neck full of wrinkles.
But he had no arms at all, and, seeing this, the Scarecrow did not
fear that so helpless a creature could prevent them from climbing
the hill. So he said, "I'm sorry not to do as you wish, but we
must pass over your hill whether you like it or not," and he
walked boldly forward.
As quick as lightning the man's head shot forward and his neck
stretched out until the top of the head, where it was flat, struck
the Scarecrow in the middle and sent him tumbling, over and over,
down the hill. Almost as quickly as it came the head went back to
the body, and the man laughed harshly as he said, "It isn't as
easy as you think!"
A chorus of boisterous laughter came from the other rocks, and
Dorothy saw hundreds of the armless Hammer-Heads upon the
hillside, one behind every rock.
The Lion became quite angry at the laughter caused by the
Scarecrow's mishap, and giving a loud roar that echoed like thunder,
he dashed up the hill.
Again a head shot swiftly out, and the great Lion went rolling
down the hill as if he had been struck by a cannon ball.
Dorothy ran down and helped the Scarecrow to his feet, and the
Lion came up to her, feeling rather bruised and sore, and said,
"It is useless to fight people with shooting heads; no one can
withstand them."
"What can we do, then?" she asked.
"Call the Winged Monkeys," suggested the Tin Woodman. "You
have still the right to command them once more."
"Very well," she answered, and putting on the Golden Cap she
uttered the magic words. The Monkeys were as prompt as ever, and
in a few moments the entire band stood before her.
"What are your commands?" inquired the King of the Monkeys,
bowing low.
"Carry us over the hill to the country of the Quadlings,"
answered the girl.
"It shall be done," said the King, and at once the Winged Monkeys
caught the four travelers and Toto up in their arms and flew away with them.
As they passed over the hill the Hammer-Heads yelled with vexation, and shot
their heads high in the air, but they could not reach the Winged Monkeys,
which carried Dorothy and her comrades safely over the hill and set them
down in the beautiful country of the Quadlings.
"This is the last time you can summon us," said the leader to
Dorothy; "so good-bye and good luck to you."
"Good-bye, and thank you very much," returned the girl; and
the Monkeys rose into the air and were out of sight in a twinkling.
The country of the Quadlings seemed rich and happy. There was
field upon field of ripening grain, with well-paved roads running
between, and pretty rippling brooks with strong bridges across them.
The fences and houses and bridges were all painted bright red,
just as they had been painted yellow in the country of the Winkies
and blue in the country of the Munchkins. The Quadlings themselves,
who were short and fat and looked chubby and good-natured, were
dressed all in red, which showed bright against the green grass
and the yellowing grain.
The Monkeys had set them down near a farmhouse, and the four
travelers walked up to it and knocked at the door. It was opened
by the farmer's wife, and when Dorothy asked for something to eat
the woman gave them all a good dinner, with three kinds of cake
and four kinds of cookies, and a bowl of milk for Toto.
"How far is it to the Castle of Glinda?" asked the child.
"It is not a great way," answered the farmer's wife.
"Take the road to the South and you will soon reach it."
Thanking the good woman, they started afresh and walked by the
fields and across the pretty bridges until they saw before them a
very beautiful Castle. Before the gates were three young girls,
dressed in handsome red uniforms trimmed with gold braid; and as
Dorothy approached, one of them said to her:
"Why have you come to the South Country?"
"To see the Good Witch who rules here," she answered.
"Will you take me to her?"
"Let me have your name, and I will ask Glinda if she will
receive you." They told who they were, and the girl soldier went
into the Castle. After a few moments she came back to say that
Dorothy and the others were to be admitted at once.
23. Glinda The Good Witch Grants Dorothy's Wish
Before they went to see Glinda, however, they were taken to a
room of the Castle, where Dorothy washed her face and combed her
hair, and the Lion shook the dust out of his mane, and the
Scarecrow patted himself into his best shape, and the Woodman
polished his tin and oiled his joints.
When they were all quite presentable they followed the soldier
girl into a big room where the Witch Glinda sat upon a throne of rubies.
She was both beautiful and young to their eyes. Her hair was
a rich red in color and fell in flowing ringlets over her shoulders.
Her dress was pure white but her eyes were blue, and they looked
kindly upon the little girl.
"What can I do for you, my child?" she asked.
Dorothy told the Witch all her story: how the cyclone had
brought her to the Land of Oz, how she had found her companions,
and of the wonderful adventures they had met with.
"My greatest wish now," she added, "is to get back to Kansas,
for Aunt Em will surely think something dreadful has happened to me,
and that will make her put on mourning; and unless the crops are better
this year than they were last, I am sure Uncle Henry cannot afford it."
Glinda leaned forward and kissed the sweet, upturned face of
the loving little girl.
"Bless your dear heart," she said, "I am sure I can tell you
of a way to get back to Kansas." Then she added, "But, if I do,
you must give me the Golden Cap."
"Willingly!" exclaimed Dorothy; "indeed, it is of no use to
me now, and when you have it you can command the Winged Monkeys
three times."
"And I think I shall need their service just those three times,"
answered Glinda, smiling.
Dorothy then gave her the Golden Cap, and the Witch said to
the Scarecrow, "What will you do when Dorothy has left us?"
"I will return to the Emerald City," he replied, "for Oz has
made me its ruler and the people like me. The only thing that
worries me is how to cross the hill of the Hammer-Heads."
"By means of the Golden Cap I shall command the Winged Monkeys
to carry you to the gates of the Emerald City," said Glinda, "for
it would be a shame to deprive the people of so wonderful a ruler."
"Am I really wonderful?" asked the Scarecrow.
"You are unusual," replied Glinda.
Turning to the Tin Woodman, she asked, "What will become of
you when Dorothy leaves this country?"
He leaned on his axe and thought a moment. Then he said,
"The Winkies were very kind to me, and wanted me to rule over them
after the Wicked Witch died. I am fond of the Winkies, and if I
could get back again to the Country of the West, I should like
nothing better than to rule over them forever."
"My second command to the Winged Monkeys," said Glinda "will
be that they carry you safely to the land of the Winkies. Your
brain may not be so large to look at as those of the Scarecrow,
but you are really brighter than he is--when you are well polished--
and I am sure you will rule the Winkies wisely and well."
Then the Witch looked at the big, shaggy Lion and asked, "When
Dorothy has returned to her own home, what will become of you?"
"Over the hill of the Hammer-Heads," he answered, "lies a
grand old forest, and all the beasts that live there have made me
their King. If I could only get back to this forest, I would pass
my life very happily there."
"My third command to the Winged Monkeys," said Glinda, "shall
be to carry you to your forest. Then, having used up the powers
of the Golden Cap, I shall give it to the King of the Monkeys,
that he and his band may thereafter be free for evermore."
The Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman and the Lion now thanked the
Good Witch earnestly for her kindness; and Dorothy exclaimed:
"You are certainly as good as you are beautiful! But you have
not yet told me how to get back to Kansas."
"Your Silver Shoes will carry you over the desert," replied Glinda.
"If you had known their power you could have gone back to your Aunt Em
the very first day you came to this country."
"But then I should not have had my wonderful brains!" cried the Scarecrow.
"I might have passed my whole life in the farmer's cornfield."
"And I should not have had my lovely heart," said the Tin Woodman.
"I might have stood and rusted in the forest till the end of the world."
"And I should have lived a coward forever," declared the Lion,
"and no beast in all the forest would have had a good word to say to me."
"This is all true," said Dorothy, "and I am glad I was of use
to these good friends. But now that each of them has had what he
most desired, and each is happy in having a kingdom to rule besides,
I think I should like to go back to Kansas."
"The Silver Shoes," said the Good Witch, "have wonderful powers.
And one of the most curious things about them is that they can carry
you to any place in the world in three steps, and each step will be
made in the wink of an eye. All you have to do is to knock the heels
together three times and command the shoes to carry you wherever you
wish to go."
"If that is so," said the child joyfully, "I will ask them to
carry me back to Kansas at once."
She threw her arms around the Lion's neck and kissed him,
patting his big head tenderly. Then she kissed the Tin Woodman,
who was weeping in a way most dangerous to his joints. But she
hugged the soft, stuffed body of the Scarecrow in her arms instead
of kissing his painted face, and found she was crying herself at
this sorrowful parting from her loving comrades.
Glinda the Good stepped down from her ruby throne to give the
little girl a good-bye kiss, and Dorothy thanked her for all the
kindness she had shown to her friends and herself.
Dorothy now took Toto up solemnly in her arms, and having said
one last good-bye she clapped the heels of her shoes together three
times, saying:
"Take me home to Aunt Em!"
Instantly she was whirling through the air, so swiftly that
all she could see or feel was the wind whistling past her ears.
The Silver Shoes took but three steps, and then she stopped so
suddenly that she rolled over upon the grass several times before
she knew where she was.
At length, however, she sat up and looked about her.
"Good gracious!" she cried.
For she was sitting on the broad Kansas prairie, and just
before her was the new farmhouse Uncle Henry built after the
cyclone had carried away the old one. Uncle Henry was milking the
cows in the barnyard, and Toto had jumped out of her arms and was
running toward the barn, barking furiously.
Dorothy stood up and found she was in her stocking-feet.
For the Silver Shoes had fallen off in her flight through the air,
and were lost forever in the desert.
24. Home Again
Aunt Em had just come out of the house to water the cabbages
when she looked up and saw Dorothy running toward her.
"My darling child!" she cried, folding the little girl in her
arms and covering her face with kisses. "Where in the world did
you come from?"
"From the Land of Oz," said Dorothy gravely. "And here is
Toto, too. And oh, Aunt Em! I'm so glad to be at home again!"
Back to Full Books
|