Oz 21: The Gnome King of Oz by Ruth Plumly Thompson
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beautifully and dancing soap bubbles formed and floated over the waves . at any_other time Peter would_have liked to stop and admire the view but, fearing pursuit, they all ran along as fast as they_could .Cliffs of soap stone rose steeply in places and there seemed no way to cross the lake nor to escape from_the slippery clutches of_the sultan of suds . finally rounding a large cliff, they came to an abandoned soap building . white soap bricks were lying about in orderly piles and stacked against the building itself were several huge slabs of soap, evidently intended for doors .Picking up one_of_the soap bricks, Peter hurled it into_the lake and, as it floated jauntily off, threw his cap into_the air .

" I_have it ! " cried Peter gaily ." this soap floats . we'll drag one_of_the big pieces down to_the edge of_the lake and float across .

it_was hard work, for_the slab they chose was both thick and heavy, but at last, after much pulling, tugging, grunting and pushing, they managed to launch their queer raft .Peter and grumpy carried Scraps out so she_would not get wet again, then, climbing carefully aboard themselves, sat down on_the slippery surface .Peter had sensibly brought along a long bar of green soap and, using this as a pole, he pushed the raft out into_the current .

" good-bye to suds ! " yelled Scraps, as_they slipped smoothly over the blue waters of_the lake, " good-bye to soap and water, too, Shampoozle, you're a sham-shampooh ! "

chapter 12

friend Oztrich Offers to help

they were half way across the sudsy lake before any of_the suds themselves appeared . then a whole company of_them rushed down to_the shore .Peter waved his cap cheerfully and, redoubling his efforts with_the soap bar, pushed their raft toward the opposite bank .

"I'm afraid we've wasted alot of_time," puffed Peter, as_the raft slid in toward the beach .

" never mind," grinned Scraps, " we've something new to_talk about .I'm glad we met the suds, Peter ."

"Humph ! " sniffed grumpy, balancing himself carefully ."I'm glad they met us . now they'll have something new to_talk about, something worth while ." Peter chuckled a little at_this and, seizing scrap's hands, helped her to rise, for little waves were rippling aboard and he_did_not want the patchwork girl to fade or shrink . but without any accidents or spills the raft washed up on_the beach and_they all jumped off .

" do_you_think you still know which direction to_take ? " asked Peter anxiously ." which direction to_take, which direction to_take, I lost my direction out there in_the lake ! we'll have to start on and just trust to good luck; what kind of a desert is_this we_have struck ? "

Throwing up her arms, Scraps looked around in dismay .

"A wilderness ! " quavered the little bear, sitting down resignedly on a tree stump .Shading his eyes, Peter stared off in_the distance . as far as he could_see, there_was nothing but a barren stretch of desert, with here and there a tree or jagged rock .

" let's start toward that tall pine," suggested Peter, pulling his cap down hard over his left eye and waving toward a pine tree just visible on_the sky line ." if_we keep walking we're bound to_come out somewhere, but I'm afraid we'll never catch up with Ruggedo now .

" maybe he's lost, too," said grumpy, ambling along beside Scraps on all fours .

" yes, but he has a magic cloak to help him," sighed Peter, " and all we_have is an emerald we don't know how to work ."

" which tree are we walking toward ? " asked Scraps, blinking her suspender button eyes rapidly ."I don't see any pine tree now, Peter ."

" neither do I," growled grumpy, rising up on_his hind legs, and neither did Peter when he looked again . as he strained his eyes for a glimpse of_the missing tree, all the stumps and stones around them began to_change places as naturally as_if it were quite the usual thing to_do, while the sand beneath their feet began to slip and slide uncomfortably .

"Wouldn't this make your hair curl ? " Breathing hard, grumpy edged closed to Scraps . as he_did, a whole cluster of bushes jumped up and, seizing branches, danced madly about_the three travellers .

" here we go ' round the mulberry bush- mulberry bush- mulberry bush ! " chanted Scraps, putting her hands up_to her eyes .

" you mean, here they go ' round us ! " mumbled Peter dizzily ." stop ! stop ! go away, I never saw anything so silly ."

the bushes, however, went gaily on with their dance, but when_they had circled around the travellers at_least a hundred times, they seemed to tire of_the sport and all of_them skipped off together .

" this makes me cross, growled grumpy, scowling terribly .

" well, it makes me cross- eyed," acknowledged Scraps, starting forward uncertainly ." look out for_that tree, Peter, it's going to trip you if_it can .I'll tell you, let's shut our eyes and run ! " Trying to walk straight ahead with trees, rocks and bushes jumping about like colts they_did begin to run . but a young tree, dropping across their path, soon put a stop to_that and_they all fell sprawling together .Rubbing his knees, Peter sat up .

" wish we had Kuma's hand to guide us through_this place," muttered the little boy, brushing his hand wearily across his forehead .

" what we_need is blinkers," sniffed grumpy ."Hello, I_see something that hasn't moved for a whole minute ."

" where ? " Peter and Scraps spoke in_the same breath .Swallowing hard, grumpy waved his paw toward a great feathery bush, with three main branches . without a word they kept their eyes fixed upon it for several minutes . then Peter, jumping up determinedly and giving no heed to_the skipping stones and slipping sands, ran straight for_the bush . as fast as they_could, grumpy and_the patchwork girl followed him . it_was quite a distance and Scraps was tripped up several_times on_the way, but at last they stood before_the only stationary object in_that whole whirling wilder-ness .

"Feathers ! " gasped Peter, pushing back his cap .

" and it's alive," cautioned grumpy, moving back a few steps ." see, it has feet ."

" it looks like- it may_be why-, it_is ! " Rushing forward, Scraps tapped the strange creature smartly on_the leg .Peter had supposed it had three legs and no head, but at_the sandy soil and, rearing its long neck, an Oztrich looked at them inquiringly . now an Oztrich, I don't mind telling you, is quite like an ostrich, except that_it has green feathers and blue eyes .

" well ? " hissed the oztrich, looking sadly from one to_the other ." where do_you_think you're going ? "

" that's what we_want to_know," cried Scraps, for Peter was too surprised to_speak ." where are we going, how do we get there and what_is your_name ? "

" my name is Ozwold," answered the great bird gently ." how do_you feel ? "

" dizzy ! " groaned grumpy weakly ." bewildered," sighed Scraps, jumping aside to let three rocks roll by .

" i_thought so ." the Oztrich shook its head in a satisfied manner ." this_is aBewilderness, you_know . bury your heads like I_do," he advised calmly .

" but we_want to_go to_the emerald city," put in Peter, " and if_we bury our heads we'd smother .Couldn't you carry us to_the emerald city on_your back ? " he asked daringly .

"Oh, Ozzy, if_you only would ! " Clasping her hands, Scraps rolled her suspender button eyes pleadingly at_the huge bird .

" who'd take care of_my child ? " objected the Oztrich, blinking its eyes very fast and indicating with its bill an enormous egg lying beside it in_the sand .

" haven't you a wife ? " asked Peter in surprise .

" she's gone home to visit her mother," explained the Oztrich in an embarrassed tone ." I_must stay here till the egg hatches ."

"Couldn't we take it with_us ? " proposed Peter eagerly ." think how proud you'd be to_have your child hatch out in_the capital ! "

"Ozma would give it ahatchday present, too," added Scraps coaxingly .

" if_you stay here, a rock will probably rush by and break it to pieces . it's a wonder to_me it hasn't been broken long_ago," sniffed grumpy, leaning over to touch the egg with_his paw .

" great moguls ! I never thought of_that ! " Shifting from one foot to_the other, the oztrich looked nervously down at his child ." if_you carry my egg i_will go away from here," he murmured in a troubled voice ." might as_well go to_the emerald city .I've always wanted to_see the capital . just wait though, till I get my bearings ! " Burying his head in_the sand again, the oztrich stood perfectly motionless for nearly ten minutes .Fidgeting with impatience and dodging trees and rocks as best they_could, Peter and_his companions waited anxiously for_the head to reappear . it came up so suddenly, when it did come, that grumpy fell over backward .

"Don't speak," warned Ozwold in a tense voice ."Don't speak or I'm lost . climb up and we'll start at once ! "

Scraps, taking arunning jump, landed safely on_the oztrich's back . then Peter carefully handed up the egg and, boosted by_the little bear, took his place behind Scraps . grumpy himself climbed aloft with no difficulty and before_they were fairly settled the oztrich began pounding across the Bewilderness . it missed all the trees and rocks very cleverly and, as it travelled nearly a mile a minute, conversation was out_of_the_question .Scraps, for greater security, wound her long arms about its neck, Peter had his arms ' round scrap's waist, the egg balanced carefully in_his lap and grumpy, blinking and gasping, bounced up and down behind Peter .

" I_hope it knows where it's going," thought Peter, as_the wind whistled through his hair and_the desert sand stung his cheeks and eyelids . for almost a half hour the oztrich rushed along like an express, then changing its gait began to travel more slowly . they had come to_the end of_the Bewilderness by now and Peter was relieved to_see again the yellow farms and fields of_the Winkies .

"I've thought of something ! " exclaimed Peter, leaning forward to whisper in_the patchwork girl's ear ." if Ruggedo is afraid of hen's eggs wouldn't an oztrich egg frighten him much more ? "

"Hurrah ! Hurray, well i_should say ! " Squirming round, Scraps looked delightedly at_the huge egg in Peter's lap ." as_soon_as you_see Ruggedo, throw it at his head," advised Scraps, in an excited whisper .

" but I promised to_keep it safe for_the oztrich," objected Peter uneasily, " and I_can't break my promise, can I ? "

" you'd be breaking the egg, not your promise," said Scraps earnestly ." besides, Ozma's more important than an oztrich egg ."

"I'll threaten to throw it," decided Peter ." anyway, we'll wait till we come to_the emerald city .Hello, what's this ? " Looming up ahead was a high yellow wall . with a snort of displeasure, the oztrich came to a halt .

" do you_see any gate ? " he wheezed, curling his long neck around at Peter .

" I_see something over there to_the right," answered the little boy, " but are_you sure this_is a safe place to_go through ? "

" no," admitted the Oztrich hoarsely, " but unless we go through, how are we to_go on to_the emerald city ? "

"I'll open the gate," volunteered Scraps, slipping easily to_the ground .Running over to_the right, Scraps soon found the hollowed out space Peter had noticed, but instead of a gate, an upright piano was wedged into_the opening .Scraps tried to_see over the top, but it_was too tall . then she tried to shove it aside, but it_was too heavy . so shrugging her shoulders and tossing back her yarn, Scraps sat down at_the piano and started to play the grand march of Oz, which she had_been practicing faithfully on Dorothy's piano back at_the palace . at_the first chord, the piano, as_if moved on an invisible hinge, fell backwards and Scraps, taken entirely by surprise, jumped over the top . the oztrich was not slow to_follow and he had barely jumped over the fallen piano before it snapped back into its upright position, shutting them into_the queerest city Peter had yet seen .

chapter 13

tune town Sings the Wanderers onward

" now how did this happen ! " Sitting exactly where she had fallen, Scraps folded her arms dramatically .

"Opening chords ! " boomed a deep voice, and out from a niche in_the wall sprang a handsome person in a bandmaster's uniform ." the gates of tune town are locked with piano keys," he explained graciously, " so when_you struck the opening chords, of_course you fell in ."

" very_good," murmured Ozwold ." but now that we_are in, how do we get out ? "

" out of tune ? " exclaimed the bandmaster in a shocked voice ."Don't get out of tune, I beg of you, besides it's against the law . may I call your attention to our principle laws here ? "

Raising his baton he pointed to a large poster on_the wall and much to_his astonishment, Peter read: " no talking allowed, sing ! no walking permitted, dance ! "

" but you're talking," said Peter, shifting the oztrich egg from one knee to_the other .

"Ah, but this_is_the intermission . in a moment the music will begin and you_must keep time, keep step and keep moving . we_do everything to music here . quick now, which would you rather do, sing and dance or play in_the band ? that bear ought_to_be in_the band, he has such bandy legs ! would you care to_be in_the band, creature ? "

grumpy slid down from_the oztrich and shook his head bashfully ." let's stick together," he rumbled under his breath to Peter ." tell him we're a quartet ."

" this_is very awk," sighed Ozwold, who always clipped off his words when he_was annoyed ." I_am a bird but I_cannot sing a single note ."

" then keep quiet and dance," advised the bandmaster .

" but look here ! " put in Peter impatiently ." we don't want to sing and dance, we just want to_go through your town . we're in an awful hurry and haven't time to_be in a show ."

" say 'Ah ! ' " commanded the bandmaster, giving no attention to Peter's remarks .Striking atuning fork on arailing before him, he waited expectantly for_them to_begin .Raising one eyebrow Peter looked at Scraps and as Scraps, jumping to her feet, winked her suspender button eyes,

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