Oz 19: The Lost King of Oz by Ruth Plumly Thompson
Section [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18]
shake him backward and forward ."A spy ! "

" now who's making a racket," demanded Pajuka triumphantly ." keep that up and you'll have the whole castle about our ears . besides, if he's a spy, where is his spy glass ? "

" idiot ! " hissed Mombi, but she lowered her voice and stopped shaking snip ." why, you're as simple as_you look," she muttered contemptuously .

" and you're as wicked," retorted the goose, staring sharply at snip ." let that boy alone or I'll honk my head off ." snip's ears were buzzing from_the shaking and he looked gratefully at Pajuka .

" do_you_think I'm going to let him carry his tales to Kinda jolly ? no sir ! into_the soup kettle with_him," puffed Mombi, rushing snip toward the stove . but at her first step, the white goose flung himself at her head with_such an outcry that she stopped at once .

" let the boy alone," panted Pajuka . then, seeing that_it_was useless to appeal to Mombi's goodness he began to appeal to her badness ." the king will reward you generously, if_you restore him to_the throne," began Pajuka craftily ." nothing is_to_be gained by_this quarreling . let_us put our heads together and find the king of Oz ."

still holding snip tightly by_the wrist, Mombi sank upon a crooked stool and, half closing her eyes, began to_think of_the bad old days before little Ozma was queen- the bad old days when witches had_been free to practice their arts and she herself was one_of_the_most powerful witches in_the land .

"I'll do_it ! " declared Mombi suddenly ." but how shall we_find him when I forget what I_have_done with_him ? "

"I'd know him anywhere," gulped Pajuka, two tears dropping off the end of_his bill ." haven't I been hunting him all these years ? "

" yes, but i_think he_is transformed," muttered Mombi uneasily ." if_the king is_not himself how do_you expect to recognize him ? "

"I'd know him in any shape," insisted the goose ." but try- try to remember . you turned Ozma to a boy and me to a goose . what did you_do with_the king ? "

so interested had the two become by_this_time, they had almost forgotten the presence of snip . but snip was listening with all his might, his ears fairly tingling with curiosity . the lad, like many another Gilliken boy, was perfectly familiar with_the history of Oz . for while they gathered buttons in_the wood, king Kinda had read them many a strange chapter from_the big purple history books .

snip knew that Oz was a great oblong kingdom divided into four parts with_the capital, a splendid emerald city, in_the exact center . the northern land was_the Gilliken country and Kimbaloo was but one_of_the many kingdoms in_that interesting section . the eastern part of Oz belonged to_the Winkies; the southern country was_the Quadling country; while the western lands belonged to_the Munchkins . snip knew the names of_the rulers of Oz as_well as_you_know the names of_the Presidents- perhaps even better- for as only a part of Oz history has_been written down there have_not_been so_many . the first ruler mentioned was_the famous wizard of Oz, who had flown to_the marvelous country in a balloon from Omaha . it was_the wizard who had built the famous emerald city, and who had given Ozma, the little girl ruler, into_the keeping of an old witch . this witch had already captured the king, Ozma's father, and very little was known about_the royal gentleman .

the wizard had ruled Oz for years . at last, desiring to return to America, he had made the Scarecrow emperor . this lively man of straw had held the throne until captured by an ambitious girl named Jinjur, and her army of girls . but Jinjur was only ruler for_a_few_days and was herself captured by Glinda, the good sorceress of_the south, to_whom the scarecrow had gone for help .Glinda, looking through her magic record books, had discovered that Ozma, who had_been deposed by_the wizard, was still in_the old witch's clutches . so Glinda had compelled her to restore Ozma to_the throne . the witch had transformed the little princess into a boy named tip, but was forced by Glinda to disenchant her and amid general rejoicing Ozma was proclaimed queen of Oz and had_been ruler ever_since, while the old witch had_been deprived of her magic powers and banished from_the emerald city forever .

the wizard of Oz had later returned and become one of Ozma's most trusted counselors, regretting exceedingly his part in giving her to_the witch . as snip listened, all of_these facts went scurrying through his head, and while professor Wogglebug in_his history had neglected to_put in_the witch's name, looking at_the dreadful old woman beside him, snip realized with a shudder that Mombi was_that witch .

it had_been generally supposed that_the king, Ozma's father, had_been utterly destroyed by Mombi's magic, but if what Pajuka said were true, the king in some shape or other was still alive and_the rightful ruler of Oz, while this faithful goose was his prime minister . snip longed to run to Kinda jolly with_the amazing news and to warn him against Mombi herself, but the old hag had him fast by_the wrist, so there_was nothing to_do but listen . even this_was becoming harder and harder, for Mombi and Pajuka had lowered their voices to a whisper . just as snip had determined to jerk away and make a run for_it, Mombi sprang to her feet .

" we'll start at once ! " she cried determinedly, and jerking off her cook's cap and without releasing her hold on snip, she snatched her peaked witch hat from a low cupboard and set it jauntily on_the side of her head . then, dragging snip with her, she began hobbling about_the kitchen, collecting pepper shakers, mustard boxes, spices, herbs and various other supplies from_the shelves . these she tossed quickly into a basket with a loaf of bread, a cold chicken and some cheese .

"C'mon ! " croaked the witch, motioning to Pajuka ."C'mon before anyone misses us .

" what about_the boy ? " asked the goose doubtfully .

" let him carry the basket," snapped the witch .

Thrusting the basket into snip's hands, Mombi gave him such a glare that_the poor lad's heart dropped into his boots . then, grabbing him by_the sleeve, she rushed him through_the door leading into_the kitchen garden .a high hedge surrounded the garden, so no one saw them go . the garden ran down to_the edge of agloomy forest . into_this forest plunged Mombi, Pajuka waddling and flying after her and poor snip, casting many longing glances over his shoulder at_the dear old castle of Kimbaloo where life had_been so carefree and so merry .

it_is one_thing to set out on a journey of adventures yourself, but to_be dragged away against your will by a wicked old witch is another pair of pickles entirely, and though snip was as brave as_the next fellow he_could_not keep back his tears at parting from Kinda jolly, Rosa merry and_his many gay comrades in_the button wood .

chapter 3

king Kinda jolly is sad

while all this_was happening in_the king's kitchen, Kinda jolly sat cheerfully on_his throne, talking to_his pretty little queen .

"Rosa, my dear," smiled Kinda, tugging at his silver whiskers, " guess what we're going to_have for dinner ."

Rosa merry, who was sewing a button on_the king's suspenders, paused with her needle in_the air .

" what does it begin with ? " asked Rosa curiously . the queen simply doted on a riddle .

" with aG," answered Kinda jolly, leaning down to pat Trippsy, his pet foot stool, Trippsy is_the only live footstool, i_think, I_have ever heard of . he followed Kinda wherever he went, which_was fortunate, for_the king's legs were so short that no matter how low the chair or bench, his feet never touched the floor . in some ways Trippsy was a more useful pet than a dog . he never chased cats, nor got into fights, nor barked, except a few shins, so_that Kinda jolly was awfully fond of him .

" is_it a goat ? " giggled Rosa merry, biting off her thread .

" goat ! " sputtered Kinda jolly ." i_should say not ! Trippsy, old boy, she says we're going to_have goat for dinner ." Trippsy, who had_been to market with_the king-Kinda being one of_those dear old fashioned fellows who do their own marketing- waved his tassel faintly to show that he appreciated the joke, while general Whiffenpuff, the king's body guard, and Hah Hoh, the town Laugher burst into loud roars of merriment .

" guess again," invited Kinda jolly, putting his finger tips together, and beaming on_his pretty wife .

"Grapes, glue, gum drops ? " ventured the queen, puckering up her forehead ." gravy, ginger, griddle cakes . I_know, it's griddle cakes ! "

"Grapes and glue and griddle cakes will give_us frightful stomach aches ! ginger, grapes and glue and gravy Oh, some kind doctor come and save ye ! "

that was_the best that Hah Hoh could think of, but they all laughed so loud that seven little button boys stuck their heads in_the window to_see what all the fun was about .

" well, do_you give it up ? " asked Kinda, after Rosa had made seven more merry guesses .

" yes," said the queen, shaking her head till the curls flew out in every direction ." what_is it ? "

"A goose ! " puffed Kinda jolly, settling back comfortably on_his throne ." the finest, fattest goose you ever saw in your life . cost me a thousand gold buttons," he finished, smacking his lips and winking at general Whiffenpuff . the general, who was fonder of eating than of anything else, began to pat his stomach absently and Trippsy, though far too well stuffed to require food, gave a skip of satisfaction that nearly upset the king .

" roast goose and apple sauce," mused Kinda, regaining his balance ."Yum-yum, Whiffen, old rascal, just step out to_the pantry, and_see how the dinner's progressing . it's high time our goose was cooked, and I for_one am hungry as ahippogriff ." they were still laughing at Hah Hoh's jokes, when Whiffenpuff returned, but one look at_the general sobered them at once .

" guess what we're going to_have for dinner ? " panted Whiffenpuff, very red in_the face from_his hurry .

" what ? " asked Rosa in surprise .

"Nuthin' " gulped the general dolefully ." the dinner's not going, it's gone ! our goose is hooked, tooked, crooked," finished Whiffen- puff, forgetting his grammar entirely .( of_course, we_have known this all along, but it_was a great shock to_the king .)

" gone ! " gasped Kinda jolly ." but where is Mombi ? "

" gone too ! "

" to where ? "

Whiffenpuff shook his head glumly and immediately Rosa merry, Kinda jolly and all the rest rushed into_the kitchen to_see for themselves how gone everything was . naturally enough they found neither Mombi nor Pajuka and, on_the whole, this_was most fortunate, for otherwise they_might have eaten the prime minister of Oz and swallowed with_him the whole of_this story .

" our dinner began with aG and now it's gone ! gone begins with aG . our dinner is gone with aG ! shall I laugh ? " asked Hah Hoh, beginning to tickle himself in_the ribs .

" i_should say not . why, this_is no laughing matter . no cook ! no goose ! no dinner ! Oh ! I'm so disappointed I_could cry ! " choked Kinda jolly, puffing out his cheeks .

"Don't do_that ! Don't do_that ! " begged Rosa merry, and tumbling off her high stool she sent a page flying for_the town Crier .I never told you there_was one, but Kimbaloo has a town Crier as_well as a town Laugher, for no one in_that merry kingdom ever thinks of shedding tears .

so before one could wink the town Crier came running in with a page, and when Whiffenpuff told him about_the lost dinner, the lost goose and_the lost cook, he simply burst into tears .

" how long shall I cry ? " he sobbed, looking around his handkerchief at Kinda jolly .

"Seven minutes for_the goose and th- three for Mombi," sniffed the king, biting his lip to_keep from crying himself . so the town Crier jerked out another hanky, and while all the rest stood around and looked solemn and Kinda held his watch, he wept eye after eye full of tears .

" do_you feel better ? " asked Rosa merry presently, patting Kinda's plump hand .

"A little, a little," acknowledged the king, " but do_you s' pose Mombi's gone for good ? "

" well, I trust so," sniffed the town Laugher, shrugging his shoulders, " but I'm afraid she has gone for bad, your majesty .a more evil appearing old wretch I've never seen in Oz, and perhaps we_are well rid of her . only a week ago I had a letter from asixteenth cousin of_mine in_the emerald city telling of a famous invisible cook who lived near her . why_not send for_this invisible cook your highness ? "

" that's what we've got now, isn't it ? " put in general Whiffenpuff, gloomily, but Kinda's eyes began to snap at_the town Laugher's suggestion .

" why an invisible cook would_be simply out of sight ! " cried the king, motioning for_the town Crier to cease his lamentations ." let_us send for her at once ! "

" and meanwhile I'll be cook," smiled Rosa merry, happy that everything was turning out so_well ." guess what we're going to_have for dinner ? "

" omelet ! " gulped the town Crier, wringing out his handkerchiefs in a business- like fashion and immediately the rest began to guess this and then that till they were all as jolly as possible . but right in_the midst of_the merriment, in came ten little button boys to report the disappearance of snip .

" snip gone," groaned Kinda jolly, clapping his hand to_his head and falling back against the flour barrel ."Oh ! this_is_the worst of all . why he's the brightest boy in Kimbaloo and_the best button picker I've got . cry ! cry some more, cry alot ! " wailed the poor king, shaking the town Crier by_the arm . so he_did, and_the town Laugher had to blow his nose hard, to_keep from crying himself, for snip was a great favorite in_the palace .

as_soon_as_the news got about, all the rest of_the Kimbles came tumbling into_the kitchen, and_the two hundred and forty nine little button boys began to hug Kinda jolly, and_the two hundred and fifty little flower girls began to hug Rosa merry .Trippsy, the pet foot stool, who loved snip almost

Section [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18]