Oz 09: The Scarecrow of Oz by L. Frank Baum
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brown, curly hair . button- bright looked down on_the young man and said:

" who cares, anyhow ? "

" I_do ! " cried the young man, interrupting his sobs to roll over, face upward, that he might see who had spoken ."I care, for_my heart is broken ! "

" can't you get another one ? " asked the little boy .

"I don't want another ! " wailed the young man .

by_this_time trot and Cap'n bill arrived at_the spot and_the girl leaned over and said in a sympathetic voice:

" tell us your troubles and perhaps we_may help_you ."

the youth sat up, then, and bowed politely .Afterward he got upon his feet, but still kept wringing his hands as he tried to choke down his sobs . trot thought he_was very brave to control such awful agony so_well .

" my name is Pon," he began ."I'm the gardener's boy ."

" then the gardener of_the king is your father, I suppose," said trot .

" not my father, but my master," was_the reply

"I do_the work and_the gardener gives the orders . and it_was not my fault, in_the least, that_the princess Gloria fell in love with me ."

" did she, really ? " asked the little girl .

"I don't see why," remarked button- bright, staring at_the youth .

" and who_may the princess Gloria be ? " inquired Cap'n bill .

" she is_the niece of king Krewl, who_is her guardian . the princess lives in_the castle and is_the loveliest and sweetest maiden in all Jinxland . she_is fond of flowers and used to walk in_the gardens with her attendants . at such times, if i_was working at my tasks, I used to cast down my eyes as Gloria passed me; but one day I glanced up and found her gazing at me with a very tender look in her eyes . the next_day she dismissed her attendants and, coming to my side, began to_talk with me . she said I had touched her heart as no other young man had ever done .I kissed her hand . just then the king came around a bend in_the walk . he struck me with_his fist and kicked me with_his foot . then he seized the arm of_the princess and rudely dragged her into_the castle ."

"Wasn't he awful ! " gasped trot indignantly .

" he_is a very abrupt king," said Pon, " so it was_the least I_could expect . up_to that_time I had_not thought of loving princess Gloria, but realizing it would_be impolite not to return her love, I_did so . we met at evening, now_and_then, and she told me the king wanted her to marry a rich courtier named Googly-Goo, who_is old enough to_be Gloria's father . she has refused Googly-Goo thirty-nine times, but he still persists and has brought many rich presents to bribe the king . on_that account king Krewl has commanded his niece to marry the old man, but the princess has assured me, time and again, that she will wed only me . this_morning we happened to meet in_the grape arbor and as i_was respectfully saluting the cheek of_the princess, two of_the king's guards seized me and beat me terribly before_the very eyes of Gloria, whom the king himself held back so she_could_not interfere ."

" why, this king must_be a monster ! " cried trot .

" he_is far worse than that," said Pon, mournfully .

" but, see here," interrupted Cap'n bill, who had listened carefully to Pon ." this king may not be so_much to blame, after all .Kings are proud folks, because they're so high an' mighty, an' it isn't reasonable for a royal princess to marry a common gardener's boy ."

" it isn't right," declared button- bright ."A princess should marry a prince ."

"I'm not a common gardener's boy," protested Pon ." if I had my rights i_would_be the king instead of Krewl . as_it_is, I'm a prince, and as royal as any man in Jinxland ."

" how does that come ? " asked Cap'n bill .

" my father used to_be the king and Krewl was his prime minister . but one day while out hunting, king Phearse -- that was my father's name -- had a quarrel with Krewl and tapped him gently on_the nose with_the knuckles of_his closed hand . this so provoked the wicked Krewl that he tripped my father backward, so_that he fell into a deep pond . at once Krewl threw in a mass of heavy stones, which so weighted down my poor father that his body could_not rise again to_the surface . it_is impossible to kill anyone in_this land, as perhaps you_know, but when my father was pressed down into_the mud at_the bottom of_the deep pool and_the stones held him so he_could never escape, he_was of no more use to himself or the world than if he had died .Knowing this, Krewl proclaimed himself king, taking possession of_the royal castle and driving all my father's people out . i_was a small boy, then, but when I grew up I became a gardener . I_have served king Krewl without his knowing that I_am the son of_the same king Phearse whom he so cruelly made away with ."

" my, but that's aterr'bly exciting story ! " said trot, drawing a long breath ." but tell us, Pon, who was Gloria's father ? "

"Oh, he was_the king before my father," replied Pon ." father was prime minister for king Kynd, who was Gloria's father . she was only a baby when king Kynd fell into_the great gulf that lies just this side of_the mountains -- the same mountains that separate Jinxland from_the rest of_the land of Oz . it_is said the great gulf has no bottom; but, however that_may_be, king Kynd has never been seen again and my father became king in_his place ."

"Seems to_me," said trot, " that if Gloria had her rights she_would be queen of Jinxland ."

" well, her father was a king," admitted Pon, " and so was my father; so we_are of equal rank, although she's a great lady and I'm a humble gardener's boy . I_can't see why we should_not marry if we_want to except that king Krewl won't let_us ."

" it's a sort of mixed- up mess, taken altogether," remarked Cap'n bill ." but we_are on_our way to visit king Krewl, and if_we get a chance, young man, we'll put in a good word for_you ."

" do, please ! " begged Pon .

" was_it the flogging you got that broke your heart ? " inquired button- bright .

" why, it helped to break it, of_course," said Pon .

"I'd get it fixed up, if I were you," advised the boy, tossing a pebble at a chipmunk in a tree ." you ought to_give Gloria just as good a heart as she gives you ."

" that's common sense," agreed Cap'n bill . so they left the gardener's boy standing beside the path, and resumed their journey toward the castle .

chapter Eleven

the wicked king and Googly-Goo

when our friends approached the great doorway of_the castle they found it guarded by several soldiers dressed in splendid uniforms . they were armed with swords and lances .Cap'n bill walked straight up to_them and asked:

"Does the king happen to_be at home ? "

" his magnificent and glorious majesty, king Krewl, is at present inhabiting his royal castle," was_the stiff reply .

" then I guess we'll go in an' say how-d' ye- do," continued Cap'n bill, attempting to enter the doorway . but a soldier barred his way with a lance .

" who_are you, what_are your names, and where do_you come from ? " demanded the soldier .

" you wouldn't know if_we told you," returned the sailor, "seein' as_we're strangers in a strange land ."

"Oh, if_you_are strangers you_will_be permitted to enter," said the soldier, lowering his lance ." his majesty is very fond of strangers ."

" do many strangers come here ? " asked trot .

" you_are the first that ever came to our country," said the man ." but his majesty has often said that if strangers ever arrived in Jinxland he_would see that_they had a very exciting time ."

Cap'n bill scratched his chin thoughtfully . he wasn't very favorably impressed by_this last remark . but he decided that as_there_was no way of escape from Jinxland it would_be wise to confront the king boldly and try to win his favor . so they entered the castle, escorted by one_of_the soldiers .

it_was certainly a fine castle, with many large rooms, all beautifully furnished . the passages were winding and handsomely decorated, and after following several of_these the soldier led them into an open court that occupied the very center of_the huge building . it_was surrounded on every side by high turreted walls, and contained beds of flowers, fountains and walks of many colored marbles which were matched together in quaint designs . in an open space near the middle of_the court they saw a group of courtiers and their ladies, who surrounded a lean man who wore upon his head a jeweled crown . his face was hard and sullen and through_the slits of_his half- closed eyelids the eyes glowed like coals of fire . he_was dressed in brilliant satins and velvets and was seated in a golden throne- chair .

this personage was king Krewl, and as_soon_as Cap'n bill saw him the old sailor knew at once that he_was not going to like the king of Jinxland .

"Hello ! who's here ? " said his majesty, with a deep scowl .

"Strangers, sire," answered the soldier, bowing so low that his forehead touched the marble tiles .

"Strangers, eh ? well, well; what an unexpected visit ! advance, strangers, and give an account of yourselves ."

the king's voice was as harsh as his features . trot shuddered a little but Cap'n bill calmly replied:

" there ain't much for_us to_say, 'cept as_we've arrived to look over your country an' see how we like it .Judgin' from_the way you speak, you don't know who we_are, or you'd be jumpin' up_to shake hands an' offer us seats .Kings usually treat us pretty well, in_the great big outside world where we come from, but in_this little kingdom -- which don't amount to much, anyhow -- folks don't seem to 'a' got much culchure ."

the king listened with amazement to_this bold speech, first with a frown and then gazing at_the two children and_the old sailor with evident curiosity . the courtiers were dumb with fear, for no one had ever dared speak in_such_a_manner to_their self- willed, cruel king before . his majesty, however, was somewhat frightened, for cruel people are always cowards, and he feared these mysterious strangers might possess magic powers that_would destroy him unless he treated them well . so he commanded his people to_give the new arrivals seats, and_they obeyed with trembling haste .

after being seated, Cap'n bill lighted his pipe and began puffing smoke from_it, a sight so strange to_them that_it filled them all with wonder . presently the king asked:

" how did you penetrate to_this hidden country ? did you cross the desert or the mountains ? "

" desert," answered Cap'n bill, as if_the task were too easy to_be worth talking about .

" indeed ! no one has ever been able to do_that before," said the king .

" well, it's easy enough, if_you_know how," asserted Cap'n bill, so carelessly that_it greatly impressed his hearers . the king shifted in_his throne uneasily . he_was more afraid of_these strangers than before .

" do_you intend to stay long in Jinxland ? " was his next anxious question .

"Depends on how we like it," said Cap'n bill ." just now I_might suggest to your majesty to order some rooms got ready for_us in your dinky little castle here . and a royal banquet, with some fried onions an' pickled tripe, would set easy on_our stomicks an' make us a bit happier than we_are now ."

" your wishes shall be attended to," said king Krewl, but his eyes flashed from between their slits in a wicked way that made trot hope the food wouldn't be poisoned . at_the king's command several of_his attendants hastened away to_give the proper orders to_the castle servants and no sooner were they gone than a skinny old man entered the courtyard and bowed before_the king .

this disagreeable person was dressed in rich velvets, with many furbelows and laces . he_was covered with golden chains, finely wrought rings and jeweled ornaments . he walked with mincing steps and glared at all the courtiers as_if he considered himself far superior to any or all of_them .

" well, well, your majesty; what news -- what news ? " he demanded, in a shrill, cracked voice .

the king gave him a surly look .

" no news, lord Googly-Goo, except that strangers have arrived," he_said .

Googly-Goo cast a contemptuous glance at Cap'n bill and a disdainful one at trot and button- bright . then he_said:

"Strangers do_not interest me, your majesty . but the princess Gloria is very interesting -- very interesting, indeed ! what does she say, sire ? will she marry me ? "

" ask her," retorted the king .

" I_have, many_times; and every time she has refused ."

" well ? " said the king harshly .

" well," said Googly-Goo in a jaunty tone, "a bird that_can sing, and won't sing, must_be made to sing ."

"Huh ! " sneered the king ." that's easy, with a bird; but a girl is harder to manage ."

" still," persisted Googly-Goo, " we_must overcome difficulties . the chief trouble is_that Gloria fancies she loves that miserable gardener's boy, Pon . suppose we throw Pon into_the great gulf, your majesty ? "

" it would do_you no good," returned the king ." she_would still love him ."

" too bad, too bad ! " sighed Googly-Goo ." I_have laid aside more than a bushel of precious gems -- each worth a king's ransom -- to_present to your majesty on_the

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