Oz 21: The Gnome King of Oz by Ruth Plumly Thompson
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look up . then Peter, rubbing the sand and dust from_his eyes, raised his head and stared fearfully out to sea . what he_saw made him blink with astonishment . the sea had turned itself upside down and on top of_the waves, and almost touching Ruggedo's island, lay a long gleaming stretch of sea bottom .

crystal caverns and sea grottos, coral walls and castles glittered and shimmered in_the last rays of_the setting sun and, rushing toward the edges of_the strange morass was every sort of sea creature Peter ever had imagined . giant fish wallowed desperately toward the sides and hurled themselves back into_the water .Peter rubbed his eyes again to_be_sure he_was not dreaming and, as a golden haired mermaid plunged boldly from_the window of a coral castle, he_made a grab for Ruggedo . but Ruggedo was already on_his crooked little legs .

" come on ! come on ! " wheezed the old gnome king frantically ." can't you_see it's a way off the island ? "

in adaze, Peter ran after him and jumped across the small stretch of water separating their island from_the mysterious sea country . it extended as far ahead as they_could see .

" hurry ! hurry ! " urged Ruggedo, stumbling over slippery rocks and pausing every few_moments to disentangle himself from_the oozy arms of some clutching sea plant ." it may go straight to_the shores of Ev ! " panted the gnome, giving no attention to_the frightful sea monsters who were rushing past him in an effort to fling themselves back into_the water ." come on ! come on ! "

Shuddering a little, as he collided with an octopus, Peter came . now they were wading knee deep in green slime, with lobsters, crabs, turtles, jiggers and jelly fish squirming and wiggling uncomfortably against their legs .

Peter wanted to stop at_the first coral castle, but Ruggedo ran scornfully past . an old Merman, sitting sadly on_the top step, reminded Peter of_his grandfather . he_wanted to stop and sympathize with_the old gentleman, but fearing to_be left alone in so scaresome and strange a country, he hurried after_the gnome king . then Peter saw that which made all else fade from_his mind . it was_the battered hulk of an old ship, resting against the side of a green sea cavern . it_was overgrown with sea moss and barnacles, but the name, in raised letters of pure gold, was still visible .

"Blunderoo ! " breathed Peter softly . then snatching at Ruggedo's coat-tails forced him to stop .

" let's go aboard ! " puffed Peter ."I'll bet we'll find all sorts of useful things .Oh Jimminee ! look ! it's a pirate ship ! "

Peter pointed to_the gold skull and cross bones below the ship's name, his voice trembling with eagerness . even Ruggedo's eyes began to snap and sparkle with excitement .

" that_would mean treasure chests," muttered the old gnome greedily . there_was a rusty chain ladder hanging over the ship's side and, seizing the lowest rung, Peter swung himself up and in less_than no time had reached the ship's deck . how long it had lain at_the bottom of_the sea was hard to_say, but the planks were water soaked and rotten and everything was crumbling with rust and decay . as_the gnome king dropped down beside Peter, a thunderous explosion shook the boards beneath their feet .

" another one ! " roared Ruggedo, clapping his hands over his ears .

" another what ? " shouted Peter, who was not quite_sure what had happened in_the first place .

" sea quake ! " quavered the gnome, cowering back against the ship's cabin . and Ruggedo was right . for a moment longer the strange stretch of sea bed quivered on_the surface of_the waves . then, with a splash, grind and rumble, it went crashing back to_the bottom and_the hungry waves of_the Nonestic ocean tossed and tumbled over the place where it had_been .

now the same terrific shock that hurled the sea land back to_the depths of_the ocean dislodged the crumbling old pirate wreck and hurled it high into_the air . with ashattering smack it smote the churning waters, rocked violently backward and forward, finally righting itself .

" well, I'll be scuppered ! " Letting go of_the ring in_the cabin door to_which he had clung during the whole excitement, Ruggedo slid down to asitting position on_the deck .Peter, with one arm hooked about_the ship's railing, was so surprised to_find himself alive that he_did_not speak for several moments .

" well ! " he coughed finally, " at_least we_have a boat ! "

" if_we hadn't come aboard we'd have_been at_the bottom of_the sea by_this_time," shuddered Ruggedo, as Peter sank down beside him ."I believe you've brought me good luck, boy, and when I reach my kingdom I'll make you general of all my armies ."

" thanks," murmured Peter, smiling faintly, " but I'll have to_be getting back to Philadelphia . my grandfather will_be worried, besides I'm captain of_our baseball team and there's a big game on soon .

" would you rather be captain of abaseball team than an army ? " asked Ruggedo, staring at_the little boy in real amazement . he didn't know just what abaseball team was, but felt that_it could_not compare with_his army of gnomes .

" of_course," answered Peter, in a matter of fact voice, " but if_we're going to_get anywhere we'll have to steer the ship ." the sun had sunk down into_the sea by_this_time and it_was growing darker and darker .Stepping carefully along the rail, for_the ship was still plunging and pitching terribly, Peter made a careful survey . but the rudder was gone, the masts crumbled to mere stumps and not a vestige of_the sails remained .

" we'll have to drift," called Peter resignedly . scarcely hearing him, the old gnome nodded . already a hundred plans were skimming through his wicked little head-plans to reinstate himself as metal monarch, revenge himself upon Ozma and Dorothy and destroy once and for all the emerald city of Oz . the tides of_the Nonestic ocean were very strong, and he_felt that sooner or later they_would_be carried to_the shores of Ev, under the surface of_which lay his own vast dominions . directly across the deadly desert from Ev, lay Oz, and when he reached his own kingdom some means of crossing the desert would_have to_be devised .

while Ruggedo was planning all this, Peter was busily exploring the ship . he_would_have liked to descend into_the hold of_the pirate vessel, but it_was already too dark to venture down, and as he_was very hungry, he began to look around for something to eat .Fortunately the decks were still full of wiggling sea creatures that had failed to_get back in_the water after_the sea quake .Peter threw most of_them overboard, keeping only three tiny fish for_his dinner . these he killed, cleaned and scaled with_his pocket knife and, borrowing Ruggedo's pipe which quite miraculously had stayed lit, kindled a small fire in an iron pot and broiled them most satisfactorily .

Ruggedo refused to share Peter's dinner, crunching up instead a handful of pebbles he had in_his pocket . as_the moon rose the sea grew calmer and, riding up and down the silvered waves, the strange ship mates sat conversing together . delighted to_be off the lonely island, impressed by Peter's enterprise and spirit, Ruggedo had grown almost friendly . he listened quite pleasantly, while Peter told how the balloon bird had carried him off and then in_his turn related a bit of_his own history . he first explained to_the little boy how Dorothy had captured his magic belt, which seemed to_be his most treasured possession, and how she had given it to Ozma .Pulling away at his pipe, he spoke of_his many efforts to recover his property, but always, it seemed, through no fault of_his own, he had_been defeated . after his last attempt he related how Ozma had banished him to_the lonely island where Peter had found him .

" well, why bother with_the belt ? " asked Peter, a little sleepily, as_the gnome paused to knock the ashes from_his pipe ." if_you_have all the riches you say you_have, and_are ruler over five hundred thousand gnomes, why do you_need this belt ? "

" because it_is my most magic possession," explained Ruggedo impatiently ." with_the magic belt one can change people into any shape or form whatsoever and transport them where one desires . and don't you_see that so_long as Ozma has_this belt, I_am in her power ? "

"I suppose so," yawned Peter, but he couldn't help reflecting, from what he had read of Ozma and what he already knew of Ruggedo, that_the magic belt was far safer with_the little fairy ruler of Oz .

" why did Dorothy take it from_you in_the first place ? " he inquired drowsily .

" just because i_wanted to transform her and a few of_those useless Oz people into ornaments for_my palace," complained Ruggedo in a grieved voice .

"Oh ! " murmured Peter and, chuckling a little to himself, curled into a more comfortable position . the deck was hard and wet, but Peter, thinking over the strange events of_the day, did_not even notice . up_to now, he had believed in_the usual things of life, like grandfathers, school, baseball, circuses, vaca-tions in summer, plenty of friends and fun . to suddenly be confronted by balloon birds, gnomes, fairy kingdoms and sea quakes was terribly confusing .Peter tried his best to figure it all out but, lulled by_the motion of_the ship and_the monotonous drone of Ruggedo's voice, he finally fell into a deep slumber .

chapter 6

Ruggedo Discovers pirate's treasure

when Peter awakened, the sun was already high in_the heavens and_the sea aglittering, dancing expanse of blue .Stretching his arms joyously, Peter bounded to_his feet, not even minding the little stiffness he_felt from_his long sleep on deck . the ship was rolling along comfortably with_the current, and Ruggedo was nowhere in sight .Tiptoeing over to_the cabin, Peter peered in_the window, but he_was not there .

" he's gone below, I guess," decided Peter, and started down the broken ladder that led into_the ship's hold . the port holes, stil1 overgrown with moss and sea weed, let in only a dim, green light but, even so, Peter could_see that_the walls were hung with rusty swords and muskets, while all about_the Sides stood old iron sea chests and boxes and rotting sacks, spilling out their gleaming contents of gold MD silver coins . before_the largest sea chest, crouched the old gnome king . he_was crooning happily to himself and running his fingers through_the sparkling jewels that filled the chest to_the very top .

" well ! " exclaimed Peter, pausing with both hands on_his hips, " this_is a find ! " " I_found it first ! I_found it first ! " babbled Ruggedo ." they're mine, Peter, all mine ! you_may_have the gold pieces," he finished jealously . disgusted with_the greedy old gnome, Peter shrugged his shoulders . the gold pieces seemed more desirable anyway .Giving no further attention to Ruggedo, he sank down before one_of_the bulging sacks and began planning what he_should do with_his treasure . first, he_would build a splendid club house for_the team, with hot and cold showers, and next he_would buy himself and_the gang motorcycles, ponies and canoes ! his grandfather should_have a new automobile and twenty-five pair of specs, so he'd always have one pair handy . after_that-Clasping his knees and fixing his eyes dreamily upon_the beamed ceiling, Peter fell into such pleasant reveries that_it_was nearly 10 o'clock before he so_much as thought of breakfast . then he suddenly realized he_was dreadfully thirsty and went hurrying up the ladder in search of water and provisions ." I_hope there_are some left," muttered Peter anxiously, " something in tins or bottles that_the salt water hasn't got into ."

the cabin was a mass of wreckage but opening from_that was a small narrow pantry that had evidently been the ship's galley . the shelves had rotted and fallen to_the floor . sand and shells sifted back and forth with_the motion of_the boat, but in_the darkest corner Peter found a heap of casks and tins .Seizing one_of_the square boxes and a cask, Peter raced out on deck and after some trouble managed to uncork the strangely shaped vessel .

Ah ! water ! Sparkling, cold and clear ! Peter almost emptied the cask, then, knocking open a box with a piece of wreckage, he_found it full of hard, salty ship's biscuits .Smiling to_think how long this breakfast had_been waiting for him, Peter ate heartily, for when_you_are hungry even a stale biscuit tastes delicious . satisfied at last, he_took the biscuits and cask below .

without even a" thank_you," Ruggedo gulped down the water and gobbled up the biscuits, which were hard enough to suit even him . then, wiping his mouth upon his ragged sleeve, he fell to fingering the pirate's jewels again, bending as lovingly over the sea chest as a mother bends over a cradle . after several unsuccessful attempts to draw Ruggedo into a conversation, Peter gave up and went poking around the great dim interior to_see what else he_could find .Shreds that were once the pirates' coats clung to_the nails on_the wall and below one_of_these nails Peter picked up a small metal bound book . water had blurred all the first pages but, carrying it up_to_the light, Peter found the last page quite legible . it was_the pirate chief's diary and, thrilled to_his last bone, Peter pored over the pirate's final entry .

"I, Polacky, the plunderer," said the thin, angular writing, " did this day capture the island of Ashangabad, taking from_the islanders ten chests of gold, three bags of silver, the crown and jewels of state, together with_the magic casket of Soob, the sorcerer . the treasure will I divide, but the magic appliances hold for_myself in_case of mutiny or capture ."

as he read, Peter could almost see the swaggering old pirate chief and_his men swarming over the strangely named and defense- less little island . there were some further remarks about_the winds and tides, but what interested Peter was_the magic casket ." I_do wonder what he_did with it ? " mused the little boy ." maybe there_might_be some magic in_it that_would take me back to Philadelphia ." Deciding to_say nothing of_his discovery to Ruggedo, Peter went below and began asystematic search, poking behind the great chests and bags and tapping on_the dank walls for secret cupboards or hollow boards . he had completely circled the treasure room without any

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