Oz 02: The Marvelous Land of Oz by L. Frank Baum
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the saw- horse, in a surprised voice, as it rolled its eyes upward to look at_the boy .

" of_course it does," answered tip .

" and a hole in_the ground means to stop, also, doesn't it ? " continued the horse .

" to_be_sure; unless you step over it," said tip .

" what a strange place this_is," the creature exclaimed, as_if amazed ." what am I doing here, anyway ? "

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" do keep those LEGS still ."

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" why, I've brought you to life," answered the boy " but it won't hurt you any, if_you mind me and do as I tell you ."

" then i_will do as_you tell me," replied the saw- horse, humbly ." but what happened to_me, a moment ago ? I don't seem_to_be just right, someway ."

" you're upside down," explained tip ." but just keep those legs still a minute and I'll set you right side up again ."

" how_many sides have I ? " asked the creature, wonderingly .

" several," said tip, briefly ." but do keep those legs still ."

the saw- horse now became quiet, and held its legs rigid; so_that tip, after several efforts, was able to roll him over and set him upright .

"Ah, I seem all right now," said the queer animal, with a sigh .

" one of your ears is broken," tip announced, after a careful examination ."I'll have to_make a new one ."

then he led the saw- horse back to where jack was vainly struggling to regain his feet, and after assisting the Pumpkinhead to stand upright tip whittled out a new ear and fastened it to_the horse's head .

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" now," said he, addressing his steed, " pay attention to what I'm going to_tell you .'Whoa ! ' means to stop; ' get- up ! ' means to walk forward; ' trot ! ' means to_go as fast as_you_can . understand ? "

"I believe I_do," returned the horse .

" very_good . we_are all going on a journey to_the emerald city, to_see his majesty, the Scarecrow; and jack Pumpkinhead is going to ride on_your back, so he won't wear out his joints ."

"I don't mind," said the saw- horse ." anything that suits you suits me ."

then tip assisted jack to_get upon_the horse .

" hold on tight," he cautioned, " or you_may fall off and crack your pumpkin head ."

" that_would_be horrible ! " said jack, with a shudder ." what shall I hold on to ? "

" why, hold on to_his ears," replied tip, after a moment's hesitation .

"Don't do_that ! " remonstrated the saw- horse; " for then I_can't hear ."

that seemed reasonable, so tip tried to_think of something else .

"I'll fix it ! " said he, at_length . he went into_the wood and cut a short length of limb from a young, stout tree . one end of_this he sharpened to a point, and then he dug a hole in_the back of

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"DOES it hurt ? " asked the boy

56 the saw- horse, just behind its head . next he brought a piece of rock from_the road and hammered the post firmly into_the animal's back .

" stop ! stop ! " shouted the horse; " you're jarring me terribly ."

"Does it hurt ? " asked the boy .

" not exactly hurt," answered the animal; " but it makes me quite nervous to_be jarred ."

" well, it's all over now" said tip, encouragingly ." now, jack, be_sure to hold fast to_this post and then you_can't fall off and get smashed ."

so jack held on tight, and tip said to_the horse:

" get up ."

the obedient creature at once walked forward, rocking from side to side as he raised his feet from_the ground .

tip walked beside the saw- horse, quite content with_this addition to_their party . presently he began to whistle .

" what does that sound mean ? " asked the horse .

"Don't pay any attention to_it," said tip ."I'm just whistling, and_that only means I'm pretty well satisfied ."

"I'd whistle myself, if I_could push my lips together," remarked jack ." I_fear, dear father, that in some respects I_am sadly lacking ."

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after journeying on for some distance the narrow path they were following turned into a broad roadway, paved with yellow brick . by_the side of_the road tip noticed a sign- post that read:

"NINE MILES to_the emerald city ."

but it_was now growing dark, so he decided to camp for_the night by_the roadside and to resume the journey next morning by daybreak . he led the saw- horse to agrassy mound upon_which grew several bushy trees, and carefully assisted the Pumpkinhead to alight .

" i_think I'll lay you upon_the ground, overnight," said the boy ." you_will_be safer that way ."

" how about me ? " asked the saw- horse .

" it won't hurt you to stand," replied tip; " and, as_you_can't sleep, you_may as_well watch out and_see that no one comes near to disturb us ."

then the boy stretched himself upon_the grass beside the Pumpkinhead, and being greatly wearied by_the journey was soon fast asleep .

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59 jack Pumpkinhead's ride to_the emerald city

at daybreak tip was awakened by_the Pumpkinhead . he rubbed the sleep from_his eyes, bathed in a little brook, and then ate a portion of_his bread and cheese .Having thus prepared for a new day the boy said:

" let_us start at once .Nine miles is quite a distance, but we ought to reach the emerald city by noon if no accidents happen ." so the Pumpkinhead was again perched upon_the back of_the saw- horse and_the journey was resumed .

tip noticed that_the purple tint of_the grass and trees had now faded to a dull lavender, and before long this lavender appeared to_take on a greenish tinge that gradually brightened as_they drew nearer to_the great city where the Scarecrow ruled .

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the little party had traveled but a short two miles upon their way when_the road of yellow brick was parted by a broad and swift river . tip was puzzled how to cross over; but after a time he discovered a man in a ferry- boat approaching from_the other side of_the stream .

when_the man reached the bank tip asked:

" will_you row us to_the other side ? "

" yes, if_you_have money," returned the ferryman, whose face looked cross and disagreeable .

" but I_have no money," said tip .

" none at all ? " inquired the man .

" none at all," answered the boy .

" then I'll not break my back rowing you over," said the ferryman, decidedly .

" what a nice man ! " remarked the Pumpkinhead, smilingly .

the ferryman stared at him, but made no reply . tip was trying to_think, for it_was a great disappointment to him to_find his journey so suddenly brought to an end .

" I_must certainly get to_the emerald city," he_said to_the boatman; " but how can I cross the river if_you_do_not take me ? "

the man laughed, and it_was not a nice laugh .

" that wooden horse will float," said he; " and

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you_can ride him across . as for_the pumpkinheaded loon who accompanies you, let him sink or swim it won't matter greatly which ."

"Don't worry about me," said jack, smiling pleasantly upon_the crabbed ferryman; "I'm sure I ought to float beautifully ."

tip thought the experiment was worth making, and_the saw- horse, who did_not know what danger meant, offered no objections whatever . so the boy led it down into_the water and climbed upon its back . jack also waded in up to_his knees and

62 grasped the tail of_the horse so_that he might keep his pumpkin head above the water .

" now," said tip, instructing the saw- horse, " if_you wiggle your legs you_will probably swim; and if_you swim we_shall probably reach the other side ."

the saw- horse at once began to wiggle its legs, which acted as oars and moved the adventurers slowly across the river to_the opposite side . so successful was_the trip that presently they were climbing, wet and dripping, up the grassy bank .

tip's trouser-legs and shoes were thoroughly soaked; but the saw- horse had floated so perfectly that from_his knees up the boy was entirely dry . as for_the Pumpkinhead, every stitch of_his gorgeous clothing dripped water .

" the sun will soon dry us," said tip " and, anyhow, we_are now safely across, in_spite of_the ferryman, and can continue our journey .

"I didn't mind swimming, at all," remarked the horse .

" nor did I," added jack .

they soon regained the road of yellow brick, which proved to_be a continuation of_the road they had left on_the other side, and then tip once more mounted the Pumpkinhead upon_the back of_the saw- horse .

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" if_you ride fast," said he, " the wind will help to dry your clothing . i_will hold on to_the horse's tail and run after you . in_this_way we all will become dry in a very short time ."

" then the horse must step lively," said jack .

"I'll do my best," returned the saw- horse, cheerfully .

tip grasped the end of_the branch that served as tail to_the saw- horse, and called loudly: " get- up ! "

the horse started at a good pace, and tip followed behind . then he decided they_could go faster, so he shouted: " trot ! "

now, the saw- horse remembered that_this word was_the command to_go as fast as he_could; so he began rocking along the road at a tremendous pace,

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64 and tip had hard work -- running faster than he ever had before in_his life -- to_keep his feet .

soon he_was out of breath, and although he_wanted to_call "Whoa ! " to_the horse, he_found he_could_not get the word out of_his throat . then the end of_the tail he_was clutching, being nothing more than a dead branch, suddenly broke away, and_the next minute the boy was rolling in_the dust of_the road, while the horse and its pumpkin- headed rider dashed on and quickly disappeared in_the distance .

by_the_time tip had picked himself up and cleared the dust from_his throat so he could_say "Whoa ! " there_was no further need of saying it, for_the horse was long since out of sight .

so he_did the only sensible thing he_could do . he sat down and took a good rest, and afterward began walking along the road .

" some_time i_will surely overtake them," he reflected; " for_the road will end at_the gates of_the emerald city, and_they can go no further than that ."

meantime jack was holding fast to_the post and_the saw- horse was tearing along the road like a racer . neither of_them knew tip was left behind, for_the Pumpkinhead did_not look around and_the saw- horse couldn't .

as he rode, jack noticed that_the grass and trees

65 had become a bright emerald- green in color, so he guessed they were nearing the emerald city even before_the tall spires and domes came into sight .

at_length a high wall of green stone, studded thick with emeralds, loomed up before them; and fearing the saw- horse would_not know enough to stop and so might smash them both against this wall, jack ventured to cry "Whoa ! " as loud as he_could .

so suddenly did the horse obey that had it not been for_his post jack would_have_been pitched off head foremost, and_his beautiful face ruined .

" that was a fast ride, dear father ! " he exclaimed; and then, hearing no reply, he turned around and discovered for_the first time that tip was not there .

this apparent desertion puzzled the Pumpkinhead, and made him uneasy . and while he_was wondering what had become of_the boy, and what he ought to_do next under such trying circumstances, the gateway in_the green wall opened and a man came out .

this man was short and round, with a fat face that seemed remarkably good- natured . he_was clothed all in green and wore a high, peaked green hat upon his head and green spectacles over his eyes .Bowing before_the Pumpkinhead he_said:

" I_am the guardian of_the Gates of_the emerald

66 city . may I inquire who you_are, and what_is your business ? "

" my name is jack Pumpkinhead," returned the other, smilingly; " but as_to my business, I haven't the least idea in_the_world what it_is ."

the guardian of_the Gates looked surprised, and shook his head as_if dissatisfied with_the reply .

" what_are you, a man or a pumpkin ? " he asked, politely .

" both, if_you please," answered jack .

" and this wooden horse -- is_it alive ? " questioned the guardian .

the horse rolled one knotty eye upward and winked at jack . then it gave a prance and brought one leg down on_the guardian's toes .

"Ouch ! " cried the man; "I'm sorry I asked that question . but the answer is most convincing . have_you any errand, sir, in_the emerald city ? "

" it seems to_me that I_have," replied the Pumpkinhead, seriously; " but I_cannot think what it_is . my father knows all about_it, but he_is_not here ."

" this_is a strange affair very strange ! " declared the guardian ." but you seem harmless .Folks do_not smile so delightfully when_they mean mischief ."

" as for_that," said jack, " I_cannot help my smile, for_it is carved on my face with a jack- knife ."

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" well, come with me into my room," resumed the guardian, " and i_will_see what can_be_done for_you ."

so jack rode the saw- horse through_the gateway into a little room built into_the

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