Oz 11: The Lost Princess of Oz by L. Frank Baum
Section [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20]
."

the addition of_the woozy and_the cowardly lion to_the party gave Betsy bobbin an idea, and she ran to_the marble stables at_the rear of_the palace and brought out her mule, Hank by name . perhaps no mule you ever saw was so lean and bony and altogether plain looking as_this Hank, but Betsy loved him dearly because he_was faithful and steady and not nearly so stupid as most mules are considered to_be .Betsy had a saddle for Hank, and he declared she_would ride on_his back, an arrangement approved by_the wizard because it left only four of_the party to ride on_the seats of_the red wagon-- Dorothy and button- bright and trot and himself .

an old sailor man who had one wooden leg came to_see them off and suggested that_they put a supply of food and blankets in_the red wagon inasmuch as_they were uncertain how long they_would_be gone . this sailor man was called Cap'n bill . he_was a former friend and comrade of trot and had encountered many adventures in company with_the little girl . i_think he_was sorry he_could_not go with her on_this trip, but Glinda the sorceress had asked Cap'n bill to remain in_the emerald city and take charge of_the royal palace while everyone else was away, and_the one-legged sailor had agreed to_do_so .

they loaded the back end of_the red wagon with everything they thought they_might need, and then they formed a procession and marched from_the palace through_the emerald city to_the great gates of_the wall that surrounded this beautiful capital of_the land of Oz .Crowds of citizens lined the streets to_see them pass and to cheer them and wish them success, for all were grieved over Ozma's loss and anxious that she be found again . first came the cowardly lion, then the patchwork girl riding upon_the woozy, then Betsy bobbin on her mule Hank, and finally the sawhorse drawing the red wagon, in_which were seated the wizard and Dorothy and button- bright and trot . no one was obliged to drive the sawhorse, so there were no reins to_his harness; one had only to_tell him which_way to_go, fast or slow, and he understood perfectly .

it_was about_this_time that a shaggy little black dog who had_been lying asleep in Dorothy's room in_the palace woke up and discovered he_was lonesome . everything seemed very still throughout_the great building, and Toto-- that was_the little dog's name-- missed the customary chatter of_the three girls . he never paid much attention to what_was going on around him, and although he_could speak, he seldom said anything, so the little dog did_not know about Ozma's loss or that everyone had gone in search of her . but he liked to_be with people, and especially with_his own mistress, Dorothy, and having yawned and stretched himself and found the door of_the room ajar, he trotted out into_the corridor and went down the stately marble stairs to_the hall of_the palace, where he met Jellia Jamb .

" where's Dorothy ? " asked Toto .

." she's gone to_the Winkie country," answered the maid .

" when ? "

"A little while ago," replied Jellia .

Toto turned and trotted out into_the palace garden and down the long driveway until he_came to_the streets of_the emerald city . here he paused to listen, and hearing sounds of cheering, he ran swiftly along until he_came in sight of_the red wagon and_the woozy and_the lion and_the mule and all the others . being a wise little dog, he decided not to show himself to Dorothy just then, lest he be sent back home, but he never lost sight of_the party of travelers, all of whom were so eager to_get ahead that_they never thought to look behind them . when_they came to_the gates in_the city wall, the guardian of_the Gates came out to throw wide the golden portals and let them pass through .

" did any strange person come in or out_of_the city on_the night before last when Ozma was stolen ? " asked Dorothy .

" no indeed, princess," answered the guardian of_the Gates .

" of_course not," said the wizard ." anyone clever enough to steal all the things we_have lost would_not mind the barrier of a wall like this in_the least . i_think the thief must_have flown through_the air, for otherwise he_could_not have stolen from Ozma's royal palace and Glinda's faraway castle in_the same night . moreover, as there_are no airships in Oz and no way for airships from_the outside world to_get into_this country, I believe the thief must_have flown from place to_place by_means of magic arts which neither Glinda nor I understand ."

on they went, and before_the gates closed behind them, Toto managed to dodge through them . the country surrounding the emerald city was thickly settled, and for a while our friends rode over nicely paved roads which wound through a fertile country dotted with beautiful houses, all built in_the quaint Oz fashion . in_the course of a few hours, however, they had left the tilled fields and entered the country of_the Winkies, which occupies a quarter of all the territory in_the land of Oz but is_not so_well known as many_other parts of Ozma's fairyland . long before night the travelers had crossed the Winkie river near to_the Scarecrow's Tower ( which_was now vacant) and had entered the Rolling prairie where few people live . they asked everyone they met for news of Ozma, but none in_this district had seen her or even knew that she had_been stolen . and by nightfall they had passed all the farmhouses and were obliged to stop and ask for shelter at_the hut of a lonely shepherd . when_they halted, Toto was not far behind . the little dog halted, too, and stealing softly around the party, he hid himself behind the hut .

the shepherd was a kindly old man and treated the travelers with much courtesy . he slept out of doors that night, giving up his hut to_the three girls, who_made their beds on_the floor with_the blankets they had brought in_the red wagon . the wizard and button- bright also slept out of doors, and so did the cowardly lion and Hank the mule . but Scraps and_the sawhorse did_not sleep at all, and_the woozy could stay awake for a month at_a_time if he_wished to, so these three sat in a little group by_themselves and talked together all through_the night .

in_the darkness, the cowardly lion felt a shaggy little form nestling beside his own, and he_said sleepily, " where did you come from, Toto ? "

" from home," said the dog ." if_you roll over, roll the other way so you won't smash me ."

"Does Dorothy know you_are here ? " asked the lion .

"I believe not," admitted Toto, and he added a little anxiously, " do_you_think, friend lion, we_are now far enough from_the emerald city for_me to risk showing myself, or will Dorothy send me back because I wasn't invited ? "

" only Dorothy can answer that question," said the lion ." for_my part, Toto, I consider this affair none of_my business, so you_must act as you_think best ." then the huge beast went to sleep again, and Toto snuggled closer to_the warm, hairy body and also slept . he_was a wise little dog in_his way, and didn't intend to worry when there_was something much better to_do .

in_the morning the wizard built a fire, over which the girls cooked a very_good breakfast . suddenly Dorothy discovered Toto sitting quietly before_the fire, and_the little girl exclaimed, " goodness me, Toto ! where did you come from ? "

" from_the place you cruelly left me," replied the dog in a reproachful tone .

"I forgot all about you," admitted Dorothy, " and if I hadn't, I'd prob'ly left you with Jellia Jamb, seeing this isn't a pleasure trip but stric'ly business . but now that you're here, Toto, I s' pose you'll have to stay with_us, unless you'd rather go back again . we_may get ourselves into trouble before we're done, Toto ."

" never mind that," said Toto, wagging his tail ."I'm hungry, Dorothy ."

"Breakfas'll soon be ready, and then you_shall_have your share," promised his little mistress, who was really glad_to_have her dog with her . she and Toto had traveled together before, and she knew he_was a good and faithful comrade .

when_the food was cooked and served, the girls invited the old shepherd to join them in_the morning meal . he willingly consented, and while they ate he_said to_them, " you_are now about to_pass through a very dangerous country, unless you turn to_the north or to_the south to escape its perils ."

" in_that case," said the cowardly lion, " let_us turn, by all means, for I dread to_face dangers of any sort ."

" what's the matter with_the country ahead of us ? " inquired Dorothy .

" beyond this Rolling prairie," explained the shepherd, " are the merry- go- round Mountains, set close together and surrounded by deep gulfs so_that no one is able to_get past them . beyond the merry- go- round Mountains it_is said the thistle-Eaters and_the Herkus live ."

" what_are they like ? " demanded Dorothy .

" no one knows, for no one has ever passed the merry- go- round Mountains," was_the reply, " but it_is said that_the thistle-Eaters hitch dragons to_their chariots and_that the Herkus are waited upon by giants whom they_have conquered and made their slaves ."

" who says all that ? " asked Betsy .

" it_is common report," declared the shepherd ." everyone believes it ."

"I don't see how they know," remarked little trot, " if no one has_been there ."

" perhaps the birds who fly over that country brought the news," suggested Betsy .

" if_you escaped those dangers," continued the shepherd, " you_might encounter others still more serious before_you came to_the next branch of_the Winkie river . it_is true that beyond that river there lies a fine country inhabited by good people, and if_you reached there, you_would_have no further trouble . it_is between here and_the west branch of_the Winkie river that all dangers lie, for that_is_the unknown territory that_is inhabited by terrible, lawless people ."

" it may_be, and it may not be," said the wizard ." we_shall know when we get there ."

" well," persisted the shepherd, " in a fairy country such as ours, every undiscovered place is likely to harbor wicked creatures . if_they were_not wicked, they_would discover themselves and by coming among us submit to Ozma's rule and be good and considerate, as are all the Oz people whom we_know ."

" that argument," stated the little wizard, "convinces me that_it_is our duty to_go straight to_those unknown places, however dangerous they_may_be, for_it is surely some cruel and wicked person who has stolen our Ozma, and we_know it would_be folly to search among good people for_the culprit .Ozma may not be hidden in_the secret places of_the Winkie country, it_is true, but it_is our duty to travel to every spot, however dangerous, where our beloved ruler is likely to_be imprisoned ."

" you're right about_that," said button- bright approvingly ."Dangers don't hurt us . only things that happen ever hurt anyone, and a danger is a thing that might happen and might_not happen, and sometimes don't amount to shucks .

I vote we go ahead and take our chances ."

they were all of_the same opinion, so they packed up and said goodbye to_the friendly shepherd and proceeded on their way .

chapter 7

the merry- go- round MOUNTAINS

the Rolling prairie was not difficult to travel over, although it_was all uphill and downhill, so for a while they made good progress . not even a shepherd was to_be met with now, and_the farther they advanced the more dreary the landscape became . at noon they stopped for a" picnic luncheon," as Betsy called it, and then they again resumed their journey . all the animals were swift and tireless, and even the cowardly lion and_the mule found they_could keep up with_the pace of_the woozy and_the sawhorse .

it was_the middle of_the afternoon when first they came in sight of a cluster of low mountains . these were cone- shaped, rising from broad bases to sharp peaks at_the tops . from a distance the mountains appeared indistinct and seemed rather small-- more like hills than mountains-- but as_the travelers drew nearer, they noted a most unusual circumstance: the hills were all whirling around, some in one direction and some the opposite way .

"I guess these are the merry- go- round Mountains, all right," said Dorothy .

" they_must_be," said the wizard .

" they go ' round, sure enough," agreed trot, " but they don't seem very merry ."

there were several rows of_these mountains, extending both to_the right and to_the left for miles and miles . how_many rows there_might_be none could tell, but between_the first row of peaks could_be seen other peaks, all steadily whirling around one_way or another .Continuing to ride nearer, our friends watched these hills attentively, until at last, coming close up, they discovered there_was a deep but narrow gulf around the edge of each mountain, and_that the mountains were set so close together that_the outer gulf was continuous and barred farther advance . at_the edge of_the gulf they all dismounted and peered over into its depths . there_was no telling where the bottom was, if indeed there_was any bottom at all . from where they stood it seemed as if_the mountains had_been set in one great hole in_the ground, just close enough together so they_would not touch, and_that each mountain was supported by a rocky column beneath

Section [1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20]