Oz 06: Emerald City of Oz by L. Frank Baum
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field . we'll go there some_time and_see him, and we'll call on professor Wogglebug, too . the shaggy man will_be at_the luncheon, I guess, and Tiktok . and now I'll take you out to_see Billina, who has a house of her own ."

so they went into_the back yard, and after walking along winding paths some distance through_the beautiful gardens they came to an attractive little house where the yellow Hen sat on_the front porch sunning herself .

" good morning, my dear mistress," called Billina, fluttering down to meet them ." i_was expecting you to_call, for I heard you had come back and brought your uncle and aunt with_you ."

" we're here for good and all, this_time, Billina," cried Dorothy, joyfully ." uncle Henry and aunt Em belong to Oz now as_much as I_do ! "

" then they_are very lucky people," declared Billina; " for there couldn't be a nicer place to live . but come, my dear; I_must show you all my Dorothys .Nine are living and_have grown up to_be very respectable hens; but one took cold at Ozma's birthday party and died of_the pip, and_the other two turned out to_be horrid roosters, so I had to_change their names from Dorothy to Daniel . they all had the letter 'D' engraved upon their gold lockets, you remember, with your picture inside, and 'D' stands for Daniel as_well as for Dorothy ."

" did you call both the roosters Daniel ? " asked uncle Henry .

" yes, indeed .I've nine Dorothys and two Daniels; and_the nine Dorothys have eighty-six sons and daughters and over three hundred grandchildren," said Billina, proudly .

" what names do_you give 'em all, dear ? " inquired the little girl .

"Oh, they_are all Dorothys and Daniels, some being Juniors and some double-Juniors . Dorothy and Daniel are two good names, and I_see no object in hunting for others," declared the yellow Hen ." but just think, Dorothy, what a big chicken family we've grown to_be, and_our numbers increase nearly every day ! Ozma doesn't know what to_do with all the eggs we lay, and we_are never eaten or harmed in any_way, as chickens are in your country . they give_us everything to_make us contented and happy, and I, my dear, am the acknowledged queen and governor of every chicken in Oz, because I'm the eldest and started the whole colony ."

" you ought_to_be very proud, MA'am," said uncle Henry, who was astonished to hear ahen talk so sensibly .

"Oh, I_am," she replied ."I've the loveliest pearl necklace you ever saw . come in_the house and I'll show it to_you . and I've nine leg bracelets and a diamond pin for each wing . but I only wear them on state occasions ."

they followed the yellow Hen into_the house, which aunt Em declared was neat as a pin . they_could_not sit down, because all Billina's chairs were roosting-poles made of silver; so they had to stand while the hen fussily showed them her treasures .

then they had to_go into_the back rooms occupied by Billina's nine Dorothys and two Daniels, who were all plump yellow chickens and greeted the visitors very politely . it_was easy to_see that_they were well bred and_that Billina had looked after their education .

in_the yards were all the children and grandchildren of_these eleven elders and_they were of all sizes, from well- grown hens to tiny chickens just out_of_the shell . about fifty fluffy yellow youngsters were at school, being taught good manners and good grammar by a young hen who wore spectacles . they sang in chorus a patriotic song of_the land of Oz, in honor of_their visitors, and aunt Em was much impressed by_these talking chickens .

Dorothy wanted to stay and play with_the young chickens for awhile, but uncle Henry and aunt Em had_not seen the palace grounds and gardens yet and were eager to_get better acquainted with_the marvelous and delightful land in_which they were to live .

"I'll stay here, and you_can go for a walk," said Dorothy ." you'll be perfec'ly safe anywhere, and may do whatever you_want to . when_you get tired, go back to_the palace and find your rooms, and I'll come to_you before luncheon is ready ."

so uncle Henry and aunt Em started out alone to explore the grounds, and Dorothy knew that_they couldn't get lost, because all the palace grounds were enclosed by a high wall of green marble set with emeralds .

it_was a rare treat to_these simple folk, who had lived in_the country all their lives and known little enjoyment of any sort, to wear beautiful clothes and live in a palace and be treated with respect and consideration by all around them . they were very happy indeed as_they strolled up the shady walks and looked upon_the gorgeous flowers and shrubs, feeling that their new home was more beautiful than any tongue could describe .

suddenly, as_they turned a corner and walked through a gap in a high hedge, they came face_to_face with an enormous lion, which crouched upon_the green lawn and seemed surprised by their appearance .

they stopped short, uncle Henry trembling with horror and aunt Em too terrified to scream . next moment the poor woman clasped her husband around the neck and cried:

" save me, Henry, save me ! "

" can't even save myself, Em," he returned, in a husky voice, " for_the animile looks as_if it could eat both of us an' lick its chops for more ! if I only had a gun--"

" haven't you, Henry ? haven't you ? " she asked anxiously .

"Nary gun, Em . so let's die as brave an' graceful as_we_can . I_knew our luck couldn't last ! "

"I won't die .I won't be eaten by a lion ! " wailed aunt Em, glaring upon_the huge beast . then a thought struck her, and she whispered, "Henry, I've heard as savage beastses can_be conquered by_the human eye .I'll eye that lion out o' countenance an' save our lives ."

" try it, Em," he returned, also in a whisper ." look at him as_you_do at me when I'm late to dinner ."

aunt Em turned upon_the lion a determined countenance and a wild dilated eye . she glared at_the immense beast steadily, and_the lion, who had_been quietly blinking at them, began to appear uneasy and disturbed .

" is anything the matter, MA'am ? " he asked, in a mild voice .

at_this speech from_the terrible beast aunt Em and uncle Henry both were startled, and then uncle Henry remembered that_this must_be the lion they had seen in Ozma's throne room .

" hold on, Em ! " he exclaimed ." quit the eagle eye conquest an' take courage .I guess this_is_the same cowardly lion Dorothy has told us about ."

"Oh, is_it ? " she cried, much relieved .

" when he spoke, I got the idea; and when he looked so ' shamed like, i_was sure of it," uncle Henry continued .

aunt Em regarded the animal with new interest .

" are_you the cowardly lion ? " she inquired ." are_you Dorothy's friend ? "

" yes'm," answered the lion, meekly ." Dorothy and I are old chums and_are very fond of each_other .I'm the king of Beasts, you_know, and_the hungry tiger and I serve princess Ozma as her body guards ."

" to_be_sure," said aunt Em, nodding ." but the king of Beasts shouldn't be cowardly ."

"I've heard that said before," remarked the lion, yawning till he showed two great rows of sharp white teeth; " but that_does_not keep me from being frightened whenever I go into battle ."

" what do_you do, run ? " asked uncle Henry .

" no; that_would_be foolish, for_the enemy would run after me," declared the lion ." so I tremble with fear and pitch in as hard as I_can; and so_far I_have always won my fight ."

"Ah, I begin to understand," said uncle Henry .

" were you scared when I looked at you just now ? " inquired aunt Em .

" terribly scared, madam," answered the lion, " for at first i_thought you were going to_have a fit . then I noticed you were trying to overcome me by_the power of your eye, and your glance was so fierce and penetrating that I shook with fear ."

this greatly pleased the lady, and she said quite cheerfully:

" well, I won't hurt you, so don't be scared any more .I just wanted to_see what the human eye was good for ."

" the human eye is a fearful weapon," remarked the lion, scratching his nose softly with_his paw to hide a smile ." had I not known you were Dorothy's friends I_might_have torn you both into shreds in_order to escape your terrible gaze ."

aunt Em shuddered at hearing this, and uncle Henry said hastily:

"I'm glad you_knew us . good morning, Mr lion; we'll hope to_see you again-- by and by-- some_time in_the_future ."

" good morning," replied the lion, squatting down upon_the lawn again ." you_are likely to_see a good_deal of me, if_you live in_the land of Oz ."

8 . how the grand Gallipoot joined the Nomes

after leaving the Whimsies, Guph continued on_his journey and penetrated far into_the northwest . he_wanted to_get to_the country of_the Growleywogs, and in_order to do_that he_must cross the ripple land, which_was a hard thing to_do . for_the ripple land was a succession of hills and valleys, all very steep and rocky, and_they changed places constantly by rippling . while Guph was climbing a hill it sank down under him and became a valley, and while he_was descending into a valley it rose up and carried him to_the top of a hill . this_was very perplexing to_the traveler, and a stranger might_have thought he_could never cross the ripple land at all . but Guph knew that if he kept steadily on he_would get to_the end at last; so he paid no attention to_the changing hills and valleys and plodded along as calmly as_if walking upon_the level ground .

the result of_this wise persistence was_that the general finally reached firmer soil and, after penetrating a dense forest, came to_the dominion of_the Growleywogs .

no sooner had he crossed the border of_this domain when two guards seized him and carried him before_the grand Gallipoot of_the Growleywogs, who scowled upon him ferociously and asked him why he dared intrude upon his territory .

"I'm the lord high general of_the invincible army of_the Nomes, and my name is Guph," was_the reply ." all the world trembles when_that name is mentioned ."

the Growleywogs gave a shout of jeering laughter at_this, and one_of_them caught the Nome in_his strong arms and tossed him high into_the air .Guph was considerably shaken when he fell upon_the hard ground, but he appeared to_take no notice of_the impertinence and composed himself to_speak again to_the grand Gallipoot .

" my master, king Roquat the red, has sent me here to confer with_you . he wishes your assistance to conquer the land of Oz ."

here the general paused, and_the grand Gallipoot scowled upon him more terribly than ever and said:

" go on ! "

the voice of_the grand Gallipoot was partly a roar and partly a growl . he mumbled his words badly and Guph had to listen carefully in_order to understand him .

these Growleywogs were certainly remarkable creatures . they were of gigantic size, yet were all bone and skin and muscle, there being no meat or fat upon their bodies at all . their powerful muscles lay just underneath their skins, like bunches of tough rope, and_the weakest Growleywog was so strong that he_could pick up an elephant and toss it seven miles away .

it seems unfortunate that strong people are usually so disagreeable and overbearing that no one cares for_them . in_fact, to_be different from your fellow creatures is always a misfortune . the Growleywogs knew that_they were disliked and avoided by every_one, so they had become surly and unsociable even among themselves .Guph knew that_they hated all people, including the Nomes; but he hoped to win them over, nevertheless, and knew that if he succeeded they_would afford him very powerful assistance .

" the land of Oz is ruled by anamby-pamby girl who_is disgustingly kind and good," he continued ." her people are all happy and contented and_have no care or worries whatever ."

" go on ! " growled the grand Gallipoot .

" once the Nome king enslaved the royal family of Ev-- another goody-goody lot that we detest," said the general ." but Ozma interfered, although it_was none of her business, and marched her army against us . with her was a Kansas girl named Dorothy, and a yellow Hen, and_they marched directly into_the Nome king's cavern . there they liberated our slaves from Ev and stole king Roquat's magic belt, which they carried away with_them . so now our king is making a tunnel under the deadly desert, so we_can march through it to_the emerald city . when we get there we mean to conquer and destroy all the land and recapture the magic belt ."

again he paused, and again the grand Gallipoot growled:

" go on ! "

Guph tried to_think what to_say next, and a happy thought soon occurred to him .

" we_want you to help_us in_this conquest," he announced, " for we_need the mighty aid of_the Growleywogs in_order to_make sure that we_shall_not be defeated . you_are the strongest people in all the world, and you hate good and happy creatures as_much as_we Nomes do . I_am_sure it_will_be a real pleasure to_you to tear down the beautiful emerald city, and in return for your valuable assistance we_will allow you to bring back to your country ten thousand people of Oz, to_be your slaves ."

"Twenty thousand ! " growled the grand Gallipoot .

" all right, we promise you twenty thousand," agreed the general .

the Gallipoot made a signal and at once his attendants picked up general Guph and carried him away to a prison, where the jailer amused himself by sticking pins in_the round

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