Oz 21: The Gnome King of Oz by Ruth Plumly Thompson
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for even this, however .Throwing down the club, Kuma's arm jerked first one and then the other into_the air, carrying them by turns to_the very edge of_the little kingdom .

in a small maple grove, several miles from patch, they stopped to rest .Peter still had hold of Kuma's hand and would_have liked to_keep it longer, but gently disengaging itself, it patted him kindly on_the shoulder, shook hands with Scraps and was gone . this_time it left no note and regretfully they watched it soar over the tree tops and disappear from view .

" well," gasped Peter, leaning back against a tree, " we're out of patch and where do we go now, Scraps ? " " south by east, and if I'm right, we'll reach the capital tonight ! " answered the patchwork girl cheerfully .

"Oh, I_hope we_do," puffed Peter, taking a long breath ." come on, let's start, I'm rested ."

" do_you realize_that the kingdom of patch will go to pieces in four days without you ? " grunted the little bear, pattering along beside Scraps .

" let it ! " cried Scraps, recklessly turning acartwheel ."I'll not be queen and work all day, I'm the patchwork girl of Oz, hurray ! "

chapter 11

Scraps meets sultan of suds

WALKING slowly at first, and then more briskly, Peter and_his companions hurried on in_the direction Scraps had pointed out . grumpy was very helpful, for whenever they were in doubt, the little bear would climb a tree and, after looking all around, would guide them to_the best and widest of_the roads that ran hither and thither through_the pleasant land of_the Winkies . after his last climb, grumpy had reported a village ahead and, quite cheerfully, they trudged along under the banana trees that edged the roadway .

" even if Ruggedo has reached the emerald city," remarked Scraps, waving to aWinkie farmer at work in_the fields, " we'll find some way to capture him . our wizard is very clever, boys . perhaps he has captured him already ! "

" but with_the magic cloak, Ruggedo will_be invisible," answered Peter gravely, " all but the patch, and no one will know that he is_there . I_hope he's still in Zamagoochie . do_you_think Ozma will_be_able to send me back to Philadelphia, Scraps ? "

" of_course ! " chuckled the patchwork girl, skipping at_the mere mention of_the little queen ."Ozma can do anything ."

" well, I_hope she sends me back in_time for_the game," sighed Peter ." it's only three days off and I'm pitcher . and i_wish I_could take grumpy back for a mascot . would you like to_be our mascot, grumpy ? "

" it doesn't sound safe," mumbled grumpy, wiggling his nose very fast ." what_is a mascot, Peter ? "

"Oh, a kind of pet to bring one luck," explained the little boy ." you_could come to all the games and_have all the cake and peanuts you_wanted ." grumpy considered the matter for a few_moments, then, dropping on all fours, shook his head .

"I belong to Scraps," he announced, looking up admiringly at_the patchwork girl ."I'm her pet . besides, I'll never leave Oz ."

" why_not ? " asked Peter in surprise .

"Oh, because-" Rearing up on_his hind legs, grumpy waved his paw solemnly ." in your country, Peter, I_could only be a bear, but in Oz, I'm a bear and a person, too . that's why it's more fun to_be an animal in Oz than a person . look at me," he exclaimed compla-cently ." I_can do everything a boy can do and everything a bear can do, so, of_course, I_have twice_as_much fun ! can_you do_this, for instance ? " Drawing himself up into a ball, grumpy started rolling down agrassy slope at_the side of_the road .

"Ho ! Ho ! " laughed Scraps, running after grumpy, " he has you there, Peter ."

" yes, but we shouldn't have turned off the road," objected Peter, hurrying after_the patch- work girl ." stop ! Scraps, stop ! "

from a gentle slope, the hillside dropped suddenly downward and now none_of_them could stop . faster and faster rolled grumpy, faster and faster ran Scraps and Peter, catching at trees and bushes to_keep from falling . instead of grass, the ground beneath their feet grew smooth and slippery as ice and from an incline the hill turned to a regular mountain side . it reminded Peter of_the time he had tried skiing and, after several frantic attempts to_keep his balance, he fell flat on_his face and finished the slide on_his stomach .Scraps, too, after a few wild spins and flourishes, sat down hard and, in a state of breathless surprise, they reached the foot of_the mountain . grumpy had travelled most of_the way on_his ear and was growling terribly in_his own language . he_was covered with a fine yellow powder and, as Scraps and Peter slid past, he began to lick his fur furiously . but one taste was enough .

" soap ! " coughed the little bear, wrinkling up his nose ." yellow soap, too ! "

" no wonder it_was so slippery," said Peter slowly ." now how are we going to climb up again ? "

" we're not ! " announced Scraps, rising to her feet with great difficulty ." might as_well try to walk up a looking glass . why, what funny trees ! "

" they're rubber," announced grumpy, giving himself a shake, " and every branch is a spray .

"A bath spray," marveled Peter, staring up at_the snakelike mass of tubes overhead . they had landed directly under one_of_the rubber trees and, as Peter spoke, from every spray a perfect shower of warm water sprinkled down upon them . covered with soap from their slide down the mountain, they were soon in a fine lather, especially the little bear . when_they tried to dash out from under the rubber tree, they immediately slipped and fell, for_the ground was green soap and even more slippery than soap mountain .Spluttering with surprise and shock, they finally crawled on their hands and knees out_of_the tree's range .

" water ! " groaned Scraps dolefully ." water makes my spirits sink, it's very bad for_me, i_think, I_know I'll fade, perhaps I'll shrink ."

"Don't shrink," begged Peter in alarm ." shake yourself, old girl ." Balancing herself with difficulty, the patchwork girl began shaking herself vigorously and wringing out her skirts, while Peter, rubbing the soap from_his own eyes, saw that_they were in a strange and amazing village, where everything was soap . the houses were built of small, square cakes and_the walks laid out in large blocks of green soap . Turkish towel trees edged all the avenues and, stepping cautiously to_the nearest one, Peter picked a towel and wiped his dripping face . grumpy soon followed his example . then both went to help Scraps, who was feeling both damp and discouraged . they were fanning her briskly with dry towels, when a procession of villagers came skating down the main street .

" so_that's how they manage it," whistled Peter, taking a few skating steps himself to_see how it was_done .

" more soap ? " grumbled grumpy ." let's run ! "

" no, let's wait and_see what they_have to_say," whispered Peter .

the villagers were quite close by_this_time and Peter was amazed to_see that_they also were entirely made of soap . they wore turbans and robes of Turkish toweling and, with their arms tucked comfortably in their flowing sleeves, came skating toward the travellers . some_of_them were pink, some green, some white and others violet, and_they were all about_the size of ten- year- old children .

"Hello ! " said Peter politely, as_the first soapman came to an abrupt stop before him ." how do_you do ? " " as I please, mostly," retorted the soapman shortly, " but I'm afraid you won't do at all . who cut you out, anyway ? "

"Oh, fall down ! " advised grumpy, picking up his towel and beginning to fan Scraps again ." fall down, why don't you ? "

" who_are you ? " sniffed the patchwork girl, wringing her hands . they were still full of water .

" we_are suds," answered the villager proudly ." but we_will_have to_take you to_the sultan . are_you hard or soft ? " he asked, turning again to Peter .

" hard ! " cried the little boy, stamping his foot defiantly . he regretted this action almost immediately, for_his heel, slipping on_the soap sidewalk, threw him down on_the back of_his head . at_this the suds simply bubbled over with amusement and scorn . then one Sud seized him by_the left arm, another by_the right, and started skating down the street . looking over his shoulder, he_saw that Scraps and grumpy were being treated in_the same sudden fashion . but soon he grew so interested in_his surroundings that he almost forgot his indignation . the cottages of smooth green and pink soap were really charming . the gardens were full of soap- bubble bushes and vines and_the bubbles, with their shining colors, sparkled and shimmered in_the sunshine .Fountains of perfume filled the air with fragrance and, besides the Turkish towel and rubber trees, there were bushes covered with snowy powder puffs . as_they reached the stately green soap palace it began to snow and, catching one_of_the flakes on_the back of_his hand, Peter discovered it_was a soap flake .Hurrying them through_the soap stone gates, the suds pounded upon_the castle door . it_was immediately opened by a tar soap slave in a yellow robe and turban .

" take these interlopers to Shampoozle," said the Sud who had first spoken to Peter .

"Whoozle ? " gasped the patchwork girl, shaking the soap flakes from her hair . no one deigned to answer her question, but at_the Sud's command two more slaves appeared and, bowing out the villagers, closed the castle door .

" follow me, interlopers," said the slave and, skimming expertly over the polished soap floor, he started down the royal hallway .

"I suppose we_might as_well," giggled Peter and, taking grumpy's paw, began sliding after_the slave . the two other slaves slid gravely behind and, as_they reached two royal purple soap doors, the first slave threw up his arm and cried impressively:

" give three salaams for_the sultan of suds ! " and, jerking open the door, he fell flat upon his nose . it_was so unexpected that Peter and grumpy lost their balance and salaamed in_spite of themselves, but the patchwork girl slid defiantly up_to_the throne itself .

"I don't give three slams for anyone ! " announced Scraps, snapping her fingers under Shampoozle's nose ." show us the way out of here ."

" what ! " snorted the sultan, rising shakily from_his throne ." you refuse to salaam ? Caka ! Bara ! " he clapped his hands sharply ." salaam her ! " at his command, the two slaves behind Scraps seized her arms and, forcing her downward, touched her cotton nose to_the floor three times .

while Scraps was still choking and spluttering with rage, Peter and grumpy regained their footing and stared curiously at Shampoozle . he_was sitting on an ivory soap throne with red sponge cushions . he_seemed to_be made of green soap and_his towel turban was twice as high as_the turbans of_the other suds .

" that_will teach you how to treat a sultan," sniffed Shampoozle, shaking a finger severely at_the patchwork girl .

" sultan ! " cried Scraps, giving Caka and Bara each a push ." you're not a sultan, you're an Insultan ."

Shampoozle's eyes grew round with displeasure and Peter and grumpy had some difficulty to conceal their mirth .

" there, there ! " said the sultan testily, "don't be impertinent . kindly answer my questions, so I_can put you in your proper places . what kind of soap are you_made of, hard or soft, laundry or tub- are_you floaters or sinkers ? "

" we're not soap at all," declared Peter indignantly ." i_should think-"

"Tut ! Tut ! " interrupted Shampoozle loftily, " I_am thinking .Don't talk so fast, we'll soon make good soap of you . why, we_can make soap of anything, even rubbish," he finished proudly ."Caka ! Bara ! just see how they lather ."

before Peter or the others had time to object, the two slaves, with three wet sponges, were rubbing vigorously at their cheeks .

" no lather at all," sighed Shampoozie in evident disappointment . never mind, I'll use you somehow . that creature," he pointed contemptuously at grumpy, " that creature, flattened out and rolled down, will make an excellent bath mat . the rag girl can_be ripped up into wash cloths and_the boy boiled down to soap fat ."

" bath mat ! " roared the little bear, putting back his ears ." why, you_can't make a bath mat out of me .Don't you_know I'm a pet ? you'd better not touch Scraps either, she's a queen and Peter's a pitcher ! "

" pause ! " commanded the sultan, extending his arm wearily .

"I'll pause and claw you ! " threatened grumpy, doubling up his furry fists ." we're on_our way to_the emerald city to save the queen and you daren't stop us ! " while grumpy was saying, or rather growling all this, Peter had noticed an open window at_the back of_the throne room .Signaling to Scraps, he pushed aside the soap slaves and, seizing grumpy's paw, made a grand slide for freedom .Scraps reached the window first and recklessly jumped . then Peter and grumpy, without one look, jumped down after her .Fortunately, Scraps landed first so that_the little bear and_the little boy had something soft to_fall upon . the drop from_the window was nearly thirty feet and_they looked around rather breathlessly .

" did we hurt you ? " asked Peter, hopping up quickly and pulling grumpy to_his feet .

" no ! " puffed the patchwork girl, raising her head experimentally, " but I_feel rather flat . shake me up, boys, and then we'd better run . so grumpy took one of her arms and Peter the other and_they shook with all their might . scrap's cotton stuffing was still damp from_the rubber tree's shower and her face had a wrinkled and rough- dry look but, quite cheerfully, she patted herself into shape . they had fallen on a flat gray beach and, leaning down to examine the soil, Peter discovered it_was sand soap . without stopping to discover anything more, they started to run along the shore of a deep blue lake . as_the waves broke on_the shore, they frothed and foamed beautifully

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