Oz 14: Glinda of Oz by L. Frank Baum
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on_the white sands at_the bottom of_the lake were star- fish, lobsters, crabs and many shell fish of strange shapes and with shells of gorgeous hues . the water foliage was of brilliant colors and to Dorothy it resembled a splendid garden .

but the fishes were the most interesting of all . some were big and lazy, floating slowly along or lying at rest with just their fins waving . many with big round eyes looked full at_the girl as she watched them and Dorothy wondered if they_could hear her through_the glass if she spoke to_them . in Oz, where all the animals and birds can talk, many fishes are able to_talk also, but usually they_are more stupid than birds and animals because they_think slowly and haven't much to_talk about .

in_the lake of_the Skeezers the fish of smaller size were more active than_the big ones and darted quickly in and out among_the swaying weeds, as if_they had important business and were in a hurry . it_was among_the smaller varieties that Dorothy hoped to spy the gold and silver and bronze fishes . she had an idea the three would keep together, being companions now as_they were in their natural forms, but such a multitude of fishes constantly passed, the scene shifting every moment, that she was not sure she_would notice them even if_they appeared in view . her eyes couldn't look in all directions and_the fishes she sought might_be on_the other side of_the dome, or far away in_the lake .

"P'raps, because they were afraid of Coo-ee-oh, they've hid themselves somewhere, and don't know their enemy has_been transformed," she reflected .

she watched the fishes for_a_long_time, until she became hungry and went back to_the palace for lunch . but she was not discouraged .

" anything new, Ozma ? " she asked .

" no, dear . did you discover the three fishes ? "

" not yet . but there isn't anything better for_me to_do, Ozma, so I guess I'll go back and watch again ."

chapter Thirteen

the alarm bell

Glinda, the good, in her palace in_the Quadling country, had many things to occupy her mind, for not_only did she look after_the weaving and embroidery of her bevy of maids, and assist all those who came to her to implore her help -- beasts and birds as_well as people -- but she was a close student of_the arts of sorcery and spent much time in her magical laboratory, where she strove to_find a remedy for every evil and to perfect her skill in magic .

nevertheless, she did_not forget to look in_the great book of Records each_day to_see if any mention was_made of_the visit of Ozma and Dorothy to_the enchanted mountain of_the Flatheads and_the magic isle of_the Skeezers . the Records told her that Ozma had arrived at_the mountain, that she had escaped, with her companion, and gone to_the island of_the Skeezers, and_that queen Coo-ee-oh had submerged the island so that_it_was entirely under water . then came the statement that_the Flatheads had come to_the lake to poison the fishes and_that their supreme dictator had transformed queen Coo- ee-oh into a swan .

no other details were given in_the great book and so Glinda did_not know that since Coo-ee-oh had forgotten her magic none_of_the Skeezers knew how to raise the island to_the surface again . so Glinda was not worried about Ozma and Dorothy until one morning, while she sat with her maids, there came a sudden clang of_the great alarm bell . this_was so unusual that every maid gave a start and even the sorceress for a moment could_not think what the alarm meant .

then she remembered the ring she had given Dorothy when she left the palace to start on her venture . in giving the ring Glinda had warned the little girl not to use its magic powers unless she and Ozma were in real danger, but then she was to_turn it on her finger once to_the right and once to_the left and Glinda's alarm bell would ring .

so the sorceress now knew that danger threatened her beloved ruler and princess Dorothy, and she hurried to her magic room to seek information as_to what sort of danger it_was . the answer to her question was not very satisfactory, for it_was only: "Ozma and Dorothy are prisoners in_the great dome of_the isle of_the Skeezers, and_the dome is under the water of_the lake ."

"Hasn't Ozma the power to raise the island to_the surface ? " inquired Glinda .

" no," was_the reply, and_the record refused to_say more except that queen Coo-ee-oh, who alone could command the island to rise, had_been transformed by_the flathead Su-dic into a diamond swan .

then Glinda consulted the past records of_the Skeezers in_the great book . after diligent search she discovered that Coo-ee-oh was a powerful sorceress who had gained most of her power by treacherously transforming the Adepts of magic, who were visiting her, into three fishes -- gold, silver and bronze -- after which she had them cast into_the lake .

Glinda reflected earnestly on this_information and decided that someone must go to Ozma's assistance . while there_was no great need of haste, because Ozma and Dorothy could live in a submerged dome a long_time, it_was evident they_could_not get out until someone was able to raise the island .

the sorceress looked through all her recipes and books of sorcery, but could find no magic that_would raise a sunken island . such a thing had never before been required in sorcery . then Glinda made a little island, covered by a glass dome, and sunk it in a pond near her castle, and experimented in magical ways to bring it to_the surface . she made several such experiments, but all were failures . it seemed a simple thing to_do, yet she_could_not do_it .

nevertheless, the wise sorceress did_not despair of finding a way to liberate her friends . finally she concluded that_the best thing to_do was to_go to_the Skeezer country and examine the lake . while there she was more likely to discover a solution to_the problem that bothered her, and to work out a plan for_the rescue of Ozma and Dorothy .

so Glinda summoned her storks and her aerial chariot, and telling her maids she was going on a journey and might_not soon return, she entered the chariot and was carried swiftly to_the emerald city .

in princess Ozma's palace the Scarecrow was now acting as ruler of_the land of Oz . there wasn't much for him to_do, because all the affairs of state moved so smoothly, but he_was there in_case anything unforeseen should happen .

Glinda found the Scarecrow playing croquet with trot and Betsy bobbin, two little girls who lived at_the palace under Ozma's protection and were great friends of Dorothy and much loved by all the Oz people .

" something's happened ! " cried trot, as_the chariot of_the sorceress descended near them ."Glinda never comes here 'cept something's gone wrong ."

" I_hope no harm has_come to Ozma, or Dorothy," said Betsy anxiously, as_the lovely sorceress stepped down from her chariot .

Glinda approached the Scarecrow and told him of_the dilemma of Ozma and Dorothy and she added: " we_must save them, somehow, Scarecrow ."

" of_course," replied the Scarecrow, stumbling over a wicket and falling flat on_his painted face .

the girls picked him up and patted his straw stuffing into shape, and he continued, as_if nothing had occurred: " but you'll have to_tell me what to_do, for I never have raised a sunken island in all my life ."

" we_must_have a council of state as_soon_as_possible," proposed the sorceress ." please send messengers to summon all of Ozma's counsellors to_this palace . then we_can decide what_is best to_be_done ."

the Scarecrow lost no time in doing this .Fortunately most of_the royal counsellors were in_the emerald city or near to_it, so they all met in_the throne room of_the palace that same evening .

chapter Fourteen

Ozma's Counsellors

no ruler ever had such a queer assortment of advisers as_the princess Ozma had gathered about her throne . indeed, in no other country could such amazing people exist . but Ozma loved them for their peculiarities and could trust every_one_of_them .

first there_was the tin woodman . every bit of him was tin, brightly polished . all his joints were kept well oiled and moved smoothly . he carried agleaming axe to_prove he_was a woodman, but seldom had cause to use it because he lived in a magnificent tin castle in_the Winkie country of Oz and was_the emperor of all the Winkies . the tin woodman's name was nick chopper . he had a very_good mind, but his heart was not of much account, so he_was very careful to_do nothing unkind or to hurt anyone's feelings .

another counsellor was Scraps, the patchwork girl of Oz, who was_made of a gaudy patchwork quilt, cut into shape and stuffed with cotton . this patchwork girl was very intelligent, but so full of fun and mad pranks that alot of more stupid folks thought she_must be crazy .Scraps was jolly under all conditions, however grave they_might_be, but her laughter and good spirits were of value in cheering others and in her seemingly careless remarks much wisdom could often be found .

then there_was the shaggy man -- shaggy from head to foot, hair and whiskers, clothes and shoes -- but very kind and gentle and one of Ozma's most loyal supporters .

Tik-Tok was there, a copper man with machinery inside him, so cleverly constructed that he moved, spoke and thought by three separate clock-works .Tik-Tok was very reliable because he always did exactly what he_was wound up to_do, but his machinery was liable to run down at times and then he_was quite helpless until wound up again .

a different sort of person was jack Pumpkinhead, one of Ozma's oldest friends and her companion on many adventures . jack's body was very crude and awkward, being formed of limbs of trees of different sizes, jointed with wooden pegs . but it_was a substantial body and not likely to break or wear out, and when it_was dressed the clothes covered much of_its roughness . the head of jack Pumpkinhead was, as_you_have guessed, a ripe pumpkin, with_the eyes, nose and mouth carved upon one side . the pumpkin was stuck on jack's wooden neck and was liable to_get turned sidewise or backward and then he_would_have to straighten it with_his wooden hands .

the worst thing about_this sort of a head was_that it did_not keep well and was sure to spoil sooner or later . so jack's main business was to grow a field of fine pumpkins each year, and always before his old head spoiled he_would select a fresh pumpkin from_the field and carve the features on_it very neatly, and_have it ready to replace the old head whenever it became necessary . he didn't always carve it the same way, so his friends never knew exactly what sort of an expression they_would find on_his face . but there_was no mistaking him, because he was_the only pumpkin- headed man alive in_the land of Oz .

a one-legged sailor- man was a member of Ozma's council . his name was Cap'n bill and he had come to_the land of Oz with trot, and had_been made welcome on account of_his cleverness, honesty and good nature . he wore a wooden leg to replace the one he had lost and was a great friend of all the children in Oz because he_could whittle all sorts of toys out of wood with_his big jack- knife .

professor H .M .Wogglebug, T .E ., was another member of_the council . the "H .M ." meant highly Magnified, for_the professor was once a little bug, who became magnified to_the size of a man and always remained so . the "T .E ." meant that he_was thoroughly educated . he_was at_the head of princess Ozma's royal athletic college, and so that_the students would_not have to study and so lose much time that could_be devoted to athletic sports, such as football, baseball and_the like, professor Wogglebug had invented the famous educational Pills . if one_of_the college students took a geography Pill after breakfast, he_knew his geography lesson in an instant; if he_took aSpelling Pill he at once knew his spelling lesson, and an arithmetic Pill enabled the student to_do any kind of sum without having to_think about_it .

these useful pills made the college very popular and taught the boys and girls of Oz their lessons in_the easiest possible way . in_spite of_this, professor Wogglebug was not a favorite outside his college, for he_was very conceited and admired himself so_much and displayed his cleverness and learning so constantly, that no one cared to associate with_him .Ozma found him of value in her councils, nevertheless .

perhaps the most splendidly dressed of all those present was a great frog as large as a man, called the Frogman, who was noted for_his wise sayings . he had come to_the emerald city from_the Yip country of Oz and was a guest of honor . his long- tailed coat was of velvet, his vest of satin and_his trousers of finest silk . there were diamond buckles on_his shoes and he carried a gold- headed cane and a high silk hat . all of_the bright colors were represented in_his rich attire, so it tired one's eyes to look at him for long, until one became used to_his splendor .

the best farmer in all Oz was uncle Henry, who was Dorothy's own uncle, and who now lived near the emerald city with_his wife aunt Em . uncle Henry taught the Oz people how to grow the finest vegetables and fruits and grains and was of much use to Ozma in keeping the royal Storehouses well filled . he, too, was acounsellor .

the reason I mention the

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