Oz 11: The Lost Princess of Oz by L. Frank Baum
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nor can the creatures understand a word I_say to_them . every time I meet one_of_them, I_am reminded of_my former cruelty, and it makes me very unhappy ."

" really," said Cayke, "I'm sorry for_you, although the tin woodman is_not to blame for punishing you ."

" what_is he mumbling about ? " asked the Frogman .

" he_is talking to_me, but you don't understand him," she replied . and then she told him of_the ferryman's punishment and afterward explained to_the ferryman that_they wanted to stay all night with_him and be fed . he_gave them some fruit and bread, which_was the only sort of food he had, and he allowed Cayke to sleep in a room of_his cottage . but the Frogman he refused to admit to_his house, saying that_the frog's presence made him miserable and unhappy . at no time would he directly at_the Frogman, or even toward him, fearing he_would shed tears if he_did so; so the big frog slept on_the riverbank where he_could hear little frogs croaking in_the river all the night through . but that did_not keep him awake; it merely soothed him to slumber, for he realized how_much superior he_was to_them .

just as_the sun was rising on a new day, the ferryman rowed the two travelers across the river--keeping his back to_the Frogman all the way-- and then Cayke thanked him and bade him goodbye and_the ferryman rowed home again .

on_this side of_the river, there were no paths at all, so it_was evident they had reached a part of_the country little frequented by travelers . there_was amarsh at_the south of_them, sandhills at_the north, and a growth of scrubby underbrush leading toward a forest at_the east . so the east was really the least difficult way to_go, and_that direction was_the one they had determined to_follow .

now the Frogman, although he wore green patent- leather shoes with ruby buttons, had very large and flat feet, and when he tramped through_the scrub, his weight crushed down the underbrush and made a path for Cayke to_follow him . therefore they soon reached the forest, where the tall trees were set far apart but were so leafy that_they shaded all the spaces between_them with their branches ." there_are no bushes here," said Cayke, much pleased, " so we_can now travel faster and with more comfort ."

chapter 15

the big lavender bear

it_was a pleasant place to wander, and_the two travelers were proceeding at a brisk pace when suddenly a voice shouted, " halt ! "

they looked around in surprise, seeing at first no one at all . then from behind a tree there stepped a brown, fuzzy bear whose head came about as high as Cayke's waist-- and Cayke was a small woman . the bear was chubby as_well as fuzzy; his body was even puffy, while his legs and arms seemed jointed at_the knees and elbows and fastened to_his body by pins or rivets . his ears were round in shape and stuck out in a comical way, while his round, black eyes were bright and sparkling as beads . over his shoulder the little brown bear bore a gun with a tin barrel . the barrel had a Cork in_the end of it, and a string was attached to_the Cork and to_the handle of_the gun . both the Frogman and Cayke gazed hard at_this curious bear, standing silent for some_time . but finally the Frogman recovered from_his surprise and remarked, " it seems to_me that you_are stuffed with sawdust and ought not to_be alive ."

" that's all you_know about_it," answered the little brown bear in asqueaky voice ." I_am stuffed with a very_good quality of curled hair, and my skin is_the best plush that was ever made . as for_my being alive, that_is my own affair and cannot concern you at all, except that_it gives me the privilege to_say you_are my prisoners ."

"Prisoners ! why do_you speak such nonsense ? " the Frogman angrily ." do_you_think we_are afraid of a toy bear with a toy gun ? "

" you ought_to_be," was_the confident reply, " for I_am merely the sentry guarding the way to bear center, which_is a city containing hundreds of_my race, who_are ruled by a very powerful sorcerer known as_the lavender bear . he ought_to_be a purple color, you_know, seeing he_is a king, but he's only light lavender, which_is, of_course, second cousin to royal purple . so unless you come with me peaceably as my prisoners, I_shall fire my gun and bring a hundred bears of all sizes and colors to capture you ."

" why do_you wish to capture us ? " inquired the Frogman, who had listened to_his speech with much astonishment .

"I don't wish to, as a matter of fact," replied the little brown bear, " but it_is my duty to, because you_are now trespassing on_the domain of_his majesty, the king of bear center . also, i_will admit that things are rather quiet in_our city just now, and_the excitement of your capture, followed by your trial and execution, should afford us much entertainment ."

" we defy you ! " said the Frogman .

"Oh no, don't do_that," pleaded Cayke, speaking to her companion ." he_says his king is a sorcerer, so perhaps it_is he or one of_his bears who ventured to steal my jeweled dishpan . let_us go to_the city of_the Bears and discover if_my dishpan is_there ."

" I_must now register one more charge against you," remarked the little brown bear with evident satisfaction ." you_have just accused us of stealing, and_that is such a dreadful thing to_say that I_am quite_sure our noble king will command you to_be executed ."

" but how could you execute us ? " inquired the Cookie Cook .

"I've no idea . but our king is a wonderful inventor, and there_is no_doubt he_can find a proper way to destroy you . so tell me, are_you going to struggle, or will_you go peaceably to meet your doom ? "

it_was all so ridiculous that Cayke laughed aloud, and even the Frogman's wide mouth curled in a smile . neither was a bit afraid to_go to_the bear city, and it seemed to both that there_was a possibility they_might discover the missing dishpan . so the Frogman said, " lead the way, little bear, and we_will follow without a struggle ."

" that's very sensible of you, very sensible indeed," declared the brown bear ." so for- ward, march ! " and with_the command he turned around and began to waddle along a path that led between_the trees .

Cayke and_the Frogman, as_they followed their conductor, could scarce forbear laughing at his stiff, awkward manner of walking, and although he moved his stuffy legs fast, his steps were so short that_they had to_go slowly in_order not to run into him . but after a time they reached a large, circular space in_the center of_the forest, which_was clear of any stumps or underbrush . the ground was covered by a soft, gray moss, pleasant to tread upon . all the trees surrounding this space seemed to_be hollow and had round holes in their trunks, set a little way above the ground, but otherwise there_was nothing unusual about_the place and nothing, in_the opinion of_the prisoners, to indicate a settlement . but the little brown bear said in a proud and impressive voice ( although it still squeaked), " this_is_the wonderful city known to fame as bear center ! "

" but there_are no houses, there_are no bears living here at all ! " exclaimed Cayke .

"Oh indeed ! " retorted their captor, and raising his gun he pulled the trigger . the Cork flew out_of_the tin barrel with a loud " pop ! " and at once from every hole in every tree within view of_the clearing appeared the head of a bear . they were of many colors and of many sizes, but all were made in_the same manner as_the bear who had met and captured them .

at first a chorus of growls arose, and then a sharp voice cried, " what has happened, corporal waddle ? "

"Captives, your majesty ! " answered the brown bear ."Intruders upon our domain and slanderers of_our good name ."

"Ah, that's important," answered the voice .

then from out the hollow trees tumbled a whole regiment of stuffed bears, some carrying tin swords, some popguns and others long spears with gay ribbons tied to_the handles . there were hundreds of_them, altogether, and_they quietly formed a circle around the Frogman and_the Cookie Cook, but kept at a distance and left a large space for_the prisoners to stand in . presently, this circle parted, and into_the center of it stalked a huge toy bear of a lovely lavender color . he walked upon his hind legs, as did all the others, and on_his head he wore a tin crown set with diamonds and amethysts, while in one paw he carried a short wand of some glittering metal that resembled silver but wasn't .

" his majesty the king ! " corporal waddle, and all the bears bowed low . some bowed so low that_they lost their balance and toppled over, but they soon scrambled up again, and_the lavender king squatted on_his haunches before_the prisoners and gazed at them steadily with_his bright, pink eyes .

chapter 16

the little pink bear

" one person and one freak," said the big lavender bear when he had carefully examined the strangers .

" I_am sorry to hear you call poor Cayke the Cookie Cook a freak," remonstrated the Frogman .

" she is_the person," asserted the king ." unless I_am mistaken, it_is you who_are the freak ."

the Frogman was silent, for he_could_not truthfully deny it .

" why have_you dared intrude in my forest ? " demanded demanded the bear king .

" we didn't know it_was your forest," said Cayke, " and we_are on_our way to_the far east, where the emerald city is ."

"Ah, it's a long way from here to_the emerald city," remarked the king ." it_is so_far away, indeed, that no bear among us has even been there . but what errand requires you to travel such a distance ? "

" someone has stolen my diamond- studded gold dishpan," explained Cayke, " and as I_cannot_be happy without it, I_have decided to search the world over until I_find it again . the Frogman, who_is very learned and wonderfully wise, has_come with me to_give_me his assistance .Isn't it kind of him ? "

the king looked at_the Frogman .

" what makes you so wonderfully wise ? " he asked .

"I'm not," was_the candid reply ." the Cookie Cook and some others in_the Yip country think because I_am a big frog and talk and act like a man that I_must_be very wise . I_have learned more than a frog usually knows, it_is true, but I_am not yet so wise as I_hope to_become at some future time ."

the king nodded, and when he_did so, something squeaked in_his chest ." did your majesty speak ? " asked Cayke .

" not just then," answered the lavender bear, seeming to_be somewhat embarrassed ." I_am so built, you_must know, that when anything pushes against my chest, as my chin accidentally did just then, I make that silly noise . in_this city it isn't considered good manners to notice . but I like your Frogman .

he_is honest and truthful, which_is more than can_be said of many others . as for your late lamented dishpan, I'll show it to_you ." with_this he waved three times the metal wand which he held in_his paw, and instantly there appeared upon_the ground midway between_the king and Cayke a big, round pan made of beaten gold . around the top edge was a row of small diamonds; around the center of_the pan was another row of larger diamonds; and at_the bottom was a row of exceedingly large and brilliant diamonds . in_fact, they all sparkled magnificently, and_the pan was so big and broad that_it took alot of diamonds to_go around it three times .

Cayke stared so hard that her eyes seemed about to pop out of her head ."O-o-o-h ! " she exclaimed, drawing a deep breath of delight .

" is_this your dishpan ? " inquired the king .

" it_is, it_is ! " cried the Cookie Cook, and rushing forward, she fell on her knees and threw her arms around the precious pan . but her arms came together without meeting any resistance at all .Cayke tried to seize the edge, but found nothing to grasp . the pan was surely there, she thought, for she_could see it plainly; but it_was not solid; she_could_not feel it at all . with a moan of astonishment and despair, she raised her head to look at_the bear king, who was watching her actions curiously . then she turned to_the pan again, only to_find it had completely disappeared .

" poor creature ! " murmured the king pityingly ." you_must_have thought, for_the moment, that you had actually recovered your dishpan . but what you saw was merely the image of it, conjured up by_means of_my magic . it_is a pretty dishpan, indeed, though rather big and awkward to handle . I_hope_you_will some day find it ."

Cayke was grievously disappointed . she began to cry, wiping her eyes on her apron . the king turned to_the throng of toy bears surrounding him and asked, " has any of you ever seen this golden dishpan before ? "

" no," they answered in a chorus .

the king seemed to reflect . presently he inquired, " where is_the little pink bear ? "

" at home, your majesty," was_the reply .

" fetch him here," commanded the king .

several of_the bears waddled over to one_of_the trees and pulled from its hollow a tiny pink bear, smaller than any of_the others .a big,

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