Oz 02: The Marvelous Land of Oz by L. Frank Baum
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good five minutes . at_the end of_that_time he faced them with a more cheerful expression upon his painted face .

" where is_the saw- horse you rode here ? " he asked the Pumpkinhead .

" why, I_said he_was ajewel, and so your man locked him up in_the royal treasury," said jack .

" it was_the only place I_could think of your majesty," added the soldier, fearing he had made a blunder .

" it pleases me very_much," said the Scarecrow ." has_the animal been fed ? "

"Oh, yes; I_gave him aheaping peck of sawdust ."

" excellent ! " cried the Scarecrow ." bring the horse here at once ."

the soldier hastened away, and presently they heard the clattering of_the horse's wooden legs upon_the pavement as he_was led into_the courtyard .

his majesty regarded the steed critically ." he doesn't seem especially graceful ! " he remarked, musingly ." but I suppose he_can run ? "

" he_can, indeed," said tip, gazing upon_the saw- horse admiringly .

" then, bearing us upon his back, he_must make a dash through_the ranks of_the rebels and carry us to my friend the tin woodman," announced the Scarecrow .

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" he_can't carry four ! " objected tip .

" no, but he_may_be induced to carry three," said his majesty ." I_shall therefore leave my royal army behind . for, from_the ease with_which he_was conquered, I_have little confidence in_his powers ."

" still, he_can run," declared tip, laughing .

"I expected this blow" said the soldier, sulkily; " but I_can bear it . I_shall disguise myself by cutting off my lovely green whiskers . and, after all, it_is no more dangerous to_face those reckless girls than to ride this fiery, untamed wooden horse ! "

" perhaps you_are right," observed his majesty ." but, for_my part, not being a soldier, I_am fond of danger . now, my boy, you_must mount first . and please sit as close to_the horse's neck as possible ."

tip climbed quickly to_his place, and_the soldier and_the Scarecrow managed to hoist the Pumpkinhead to a seat just behind him . there remained so little space for_the king that he_was liable to_fall off as_soon_as_the horse started .

" fetch aclothesline," said the king to_his army, " and tie us all together . then if one falls off we_will all fall off ."

and while the soldier was gone for_the clothesline his majesty continued, " it_is well for_me to_be careful, for_my very existence is in danger ."

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" I_have to_be as careful as_you_do," said jack .

" not exactly," replied the Scarecrow ." for if anything happened to_me, that_would_be the end of me . but if anything happened to_you, they_could use you for seed ."

the soldier now returned with a long line and tied all three firmly together, also lashing them to_the body of_the saw- horse; so there seemed little danger of_their tumbling off .

" now throw open the gates," commanded the Scarecrow, " and we_will make a dash to liberty or to death ."

the courtyard in_which they were standing was located in_the center of_the great palace, which surrounded it on all sides . but in one place a passage led to an outer gateway, which the soldier had barred by order of_his sovereign . it_was through_this gateway his majesty proposed to escape, and_the royal army now led the saw- horse along the passage and unbarred the gate, which swung backward with a loud crash .

" now," said tip to_the horse, " you_must save us all . run as fast as_you_can for_the gate of_the city, and don't let anything stop you ."

" all right ! " answered the saw- horse, gruffly, and dashed away so suddenly that tip had to gasp

105 full page line- art drawing .

" we_will make a dash to liberty or to death ."

106 for breath and hold firmly to_the post he had driven into_the creature's neck .

several of_the girls, who stood outside guarding the palace, were knocked over by_the saw- horse's mad rush .Others ran screaming out_of_the way, and only one_or_two jabbed their knitting-needles frantically at_the escaping prisoners . tip got one small prick in_his left arm, which smarted for an hour afterward; but the needles had no effect upon_the Scarecrow or jack Pumpkinhead, who never even suspected they were being prodded .

as for_the saw- horse, he_made a wonderful record upsetting a fruit cart, overturning several meek looking men, and finally bowling over the new guardian of_the gate -- a fussy little fat woman appointed by general Jinjur .

nor did the impetuous charger stop then . once outside the walls of_the emerald city he dashed along the road to_the west with fast and violent leaps that shook the breath out_of_the boy and filled the Scarecrow with wonder .

jack had ridden at_this mad rate once before, so he devoted every effort to holding, with both hands, his pumpkin head upon its stick, enduring meantime the dreadful jolting with_the courage of a philosopher .

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the wooden STEED gave one final leap

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" slow him up ! slow him up ! " shouted the Scarecrow ." my straw is all shaking down into my legs ."

but tip had no breath to_speak, so the saw- horse continued his wild career unchecked and with unabated speed .

presently they came to_the banks of a wide river, and without a pause the wooden steed gave one final leap and launched them all in mid- air .

a second later they were rolling, splashing and bobbing about in_the water, the horse struggling frantically to_find a rest for its feet and its riders being first plunged beneath the rapid current and then floating upon_the surface like corks .

line- art Drawing

109 the journey to_the tin woodman

tip was well soaked and dripping water from every angle of_his body . but he managed to lean forward and shout in_the ear of_the saw- horse:

" keep still, you fool ! keep still ! "

the horse at once ceased struggling and floated calmly upon_the surface, its wooden body being as buoyant as a raft .

" what does that word ' fool' mean ? " enquired the horse .

" it_is a term of reproach," answered tip, somewhat ashamed of_the expression ."I only use it when I_am angry ."

" then it pleases me to_be_able to_call you a fool, in return," said the horse ." for I_did_not make

110 the river, nor put it in_our way; so only a term of, reproach is fit for_one who becomes angry with me for falling into_the water ."

" that_is quite evident," replied tip; " so i_will acknowledge myself in_the wrong ." then he_called out to_the Pumpkinhead: " are_you all right, jack ? "

there_was no reply . so the boy called to_the king " are_you all right, your majesty ? "

the Scarecrow groaned .

"I'm all wrong, somehow," he_said, in a weak voice ." how very wet this water is ! "

tip was bound so tightly by_the cord that he_could_not turn his head to look at his companions; so he_said to_the saw- horse:

" paddle with your legs toward the shore ."

the horse obeyed, and although their progress was slow they finally reached the opposite river bank at a place where it_was low enough to enable the creature to scramble upon dry land .

with some difficulty the boy managed to_get his knife out of_his pocket and cut the cords that bound the riders to one another and to_the wooden horse . he heard the Scarecrow fall to_the ground with a mushy sound, and then he himself quickly dismounted and looked at his friend jack .

the wooden body, with its gorgeous clothing,

111 still sat upright upon_the horse's back; but the pumpkin head was gone, and only the sharpened stick that served for a neck was visible . as for_the Scarecrow, the straw in_his body had shaken down with_the jolting and packed itself into his legs and_the lower part of_his body -- which appeared very plump and round while his upper half seemed like an empty sack . upon his head the Scarecrow still wore the heavy crown, which had_been sewed on to_prevent his losing it; but the head was now so damp and limp that_the weight of_the gold and jewels sagged forward and crushed the painted face into a mass of wrinkles that made him look exactly like a Japanese pug dog .

tip would_have laughed -- had he not been so anxious about his man jack . but the Scarecrow, however damaged, was all there, while the pumpkin head that was so necessary to jack's existence was missing; so the boy seized a long pole that fortunately lay near at hand and anxiously turned again toward the river .

far out upon_the waters he sighted the golden hue of_the pumpkin, which gently bobbed up and down with_the motion of_the waves . at_that moment it_was quite out of tip's reach, but after a time it floated nearer and still nearer until the boy

112 full page line- art drawing .

tip RESCUES jack'S pumpkin head

113 was able to reach it with_his pole and draw it to_the shore . then he brought it to_the top of_the bank, carefully wiped the water from its pumpkin face with_his handkerchief, and ran with it to jack and replaced the head upon_the man's neck .

" dear me ! " were jack's first words ." what a dreadful experience ! I wonder if water is liable to spoil pumpkins ? "

tip did_not think a reply was necessary, for he_knew that_the Scarecrow also stood in need of_his help . so he carefully removed the straw from_the king's body and legs, and spread it out in_the sun to dry . the wet clothing he hung over the body of_the saw- horse .

" if water spoils pumpkins," observed jack, with a deep sigh, " then my days are numbered ."

"I've never noticed that water spoils pumpkins," returned tip; " unless the water happens to_be boiling . if your head isn't cracked, my friend, you_must_be in fairly good condition ."

"Oh, my head isn't cracked in_the least," declared jack, more cheerfully .

" then don't worry," retorted the boy ." care once killed acat ."

" then," said jack, seriously, " I_am very_glad indeed that I_am not acat ."

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the sun was fast drying their clothing, and tip stirred up his majesty's straw so that_the warm rays might absorb the moisture and make it as crisp and dry as ever . when_this had_been accomplished he stuffed the Scarecrow into symmetrical shape and smoothed out his face so_that he wore his usual gay and charming expression .

" thank_you very_much," said the monarch, brightly, as he walked about and found himself to_be well balanced ." there_are several distinct advantages in being aScarecrow . for if one has friends near at hand to repair damages, nothing very serious can happen to_you ."

"I wonder if hot sunshine is liable to crack pumpkins," said jack, with an anxious ring in_his voice .

" not at all -- not at all ! " replied the Scarecrow, gaily ." all you_need fear, my boy, is old age . when your golden youth has decayed we_shall quickly part company -- but you needn't look forward to_it; we'll discover the fact ourselves, and notify you . but come ! let_us resume our journey . I_am anxious to greet my friend the tin woodman ."

so they remounted the saw- horse, tip holding to_the post, the Pumpkinhead clinging to tip, and_the Scarecrow with both arms around the wooden form of jack .

115 full page line- art drawing .

tip STUFFS the SCARECROW with dry straw .

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" go slowly, for now there_is no danger of pursuit," said tip to_his steed .

" all right ! " responded the creature, in a voice rather gruff .

"Aren't you a little hoarse ? " asked the Pumpkinhead politely .

the saw- horse gave an angry prance and rolled one knotty eye backward toward tip .

" see here," he growled, " can't you protect me from insult ? "

" to_be_sure ! " answered tip, soothingly ." I_am_sure jack meant no harm . and it_will_not do for_us to quarrel, you_know; we_must all remain good friends ."

"I'll have nothing more to_do with_that Pumpkinhead," declared the saw- horse, viciously ." he loses his head too easily to suit me ."

there seemed no fitting reply to_this speech, so for a time they rode along in silence .

after a while the Scarecrow remarked:

" this reminds me of old times . it_was upon_this grassy knoll that I once saved Dorothy from_the Stinging Bees of_the wicked witch of_the west ."

" do Stinging Bees injure pumpkins ? " asked jack, glancing around fearfully .

" they_are all dead, so it doesn't matter," replied

117 the Scarecrow ." and here_is where nick chopper destroyed the wicked witch's Grey wolves ."

" who was nick chopper ? " asked tip .

" that_is_the name of_my friend the tin woodman, answered his majesty . and here_is where the winged Monkeys captured and bound us, and flew away with little Dorothy," he continued, after they had traveled a little way farther .

" do winged Monkeys ever eat pumpkins ? " asked jack, with a shiver of fear .

" I_do_not know; but you_have little cause to, worry, for_the winged Monkeys are now the slaves of Glinda the good, who owns the golden Cap that commands their services," said the Scarecrow, reflectively .

then the stuffed monarch became lost in thought recalling the days of past adventures . and_the saw- horse rocked and rolled over the flower- strewn fields and carried its riders swiftly upon their way .

* * * * * * * * *

twilight fell, bye and bye, and then the dark shadows of night . so tip stopped the horse and_they all proceeded to dismount .

"I'm tired

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