Oz 12: The Tin Woodman of Oz by L. Frank Baum
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good fortune had_not spoiled her or rendered her at all vain . she was just the same brave and true and adventurous child as before she lived in a royal palace and became the chum of_the fairy Ozma .

in_the room in_which_the two sat -- which_was one of Ozma's private suite of apartments -- hung the famous magic picture . this_was the source of constant interest to little Dorothy . one had but to stand before it and wish to_see what any person was doing, and at once ascene would flash upon_the magic canvas which showed exactly where that person was, and like our own moving pictures would reproduce the actions of_that person as long as_you cared to watch them . so today, when Dorothy tired of her embroidery, she drew the curtains from before_the magic picture and wished to_see what her friend button bright was doing . button bright, she saw, was playing ball with Ojo, the Munchkin boy, so Dorothy next wished to_see what her aunt Em was doing . the picture showed aunt Em quietly engaged in darning socks for uncle Henry, so Dorothy wished to_see what her old friend the tin woodman was doing .

the tin woodman was then just leaving his tin castle in_the company of_the Scarecrow and Woot the wanderer . Dorothy had never seen this boy before, so she wondered who he_was . also she was curious to_know where the three were going, for she noticed Woot's knapsack and guessed they had started on a long journey . she asked Ozma about_it, but Ozma did_not know

that afternoon Dorothy again saw the travelers in_the magic picture, but they were merely tramping through_the country and Dorothy was not much interested in_them .a couple of days later, however, the girl, being again with Ozma, wished to_see her friends, the Scarecrow and_the tin woodman in_the magic picture, and on_this occasion found them in_the great castle of Mrs Yoop, the Giantess, who was at_the_time about to transform them . both Dorothy and Ozma now became greatly interested and watched the transformations with indignation and horror .

" what a wicked Giantess ! " exclaimed Dorothy .

" yes," answered Ozma, " she_must be punished for_this cruelty to our friends, and to_the poor boy who_is with_them ."

after_this they followed the adventure of_the little brown bear and_the tin owl and_the green monkey with breathless interest, and were delighted when_they escaped from Mrs Yoop . they_did_not know, then, who the canary was, but realized it must_be the transformation of some person of consequence, whom the Giantess had also enchanted .

when, finally, the day came when_the adventurers headed south into_the Munchkin country, Dorothy asked anxiously:

" can't something be_done for_them, Ozma ? can't you change 'em back into their own shapes ? they've suffered enough from_these dreadful transformations, seems to_me ."

"I've been studying ways to help them, ever_since they were transformed," replied Ozma ." Mrs Yoop is now the only yookoohoo in my dominions, and_the yookoohoo magic is very peculiar and hard for others to understand, yet I_am resolved to make_the attempt to break these enchantments . I_may not succeed, but I_shall do_the best I_can . from_the directions our friends are taking, I believe they_are going to_pass by Jinjur's ranch, so if_we start now we_may meet them there . would you like to_go with me, Dorothy ? "

" of_course," answered the little girl; "I wouldn't miss it for anything ."

" then order the red wagon," said Ozma of Oz, " and we_will start at once ."

Dorothy ran to_do as she was bid, while Ozma went to her magic room to_make ready the things she believed she_would need . in half an hour the red wagon stood before_the grand entrance of_the palace, and before it_was hitched the wooden sawhorse, which_was Ozma's favorite steed .

this sawhorse, while made of wood, was very_much alive and could travel swiftly and without tiring . to_keep the ends of_his wooden legs from wearing down short, Ozma had shod the sawhorse with plates of pure gold . his harness was studded with brilliant emeralds and other jewels and so, while he himself was not at all handsome, his outfit made a splendid appearance .

since_the sawhorse could understand her spoken words, Ozma used no reins to guide him . she merely told him where to_go . when she came from_the palace with Dorothy, they both climbed into_the red wagon and then the little dog, Toto, ran up and asked:

" are_you going to leave me behind, Dorothy ? " Dorothy looked at Ozma, who smiled in return and said:

"Toto may go with_us, if_you_wish him to ."

so Dorothy lifted the little dog into_the wagon, for, while he_could run fast, he_could_not keep up with_the speed of_the wonderful sawhorse .

away they went, over hills and through meadows, covering the ground with astonishing speed . it_is_not surprising, therefore, that_the red wagon arrived before Jinjur's house just as_that energetic young lady had finished scrubbing the green monkey and was about to lead him to_the caramel patch .

chapter Thirteen

the restoration

the tin owl gave ahoot of delight when he_saw the red wagon draw up before Jinjur's house, and_the brown bear grunted and growled with glee and trotted toward Ozma as fast as he_could wobble . as for_the canary, it flew swiftly to Dorothy's shoulder and perched there, saying in her ear:

" thank goodness you_have come to our rescue ! "

" but who_are you ? " asked Dorothy

"Don't you_know ? " returned the canary .

" no; for_the first time we noticed you in_the magic picture, you were just a bird, as_you_are now . but we've guessed that_the giant woman had transformed you, as she did the others ."

" yes; I'm polychrome, the rainbow's daughter," announced the canary .

" goodness me ! " cried Dorothy ." how dreadful ."

" well, I make a rather pretty bird, i_think," returned polychrome, " but of_course I'm anxious to resume my own shape and get back upon my rainbow ."

"Ozma will help_you, I'm sure," said Dorothy ." how does it feel, Scarecrow, to_be a bear ? " she asked, addressing her old friend .

"I don't like it," declared the Scarecrow bear ." this brutal form is quite beneath the dignity of a wholesome straw man ."

" and think of me," said the owl, perching upon_the dashboard of_the red wagon with much noisy clattering of_his tin feathers ."Don't I look horrid, Dorothy, with eyes several sizes too big for_my body, and so weak that I ought to wear spectacles ? "

" well," said Dorothy critically, as she looked him over, " you're nothing to brag of, I_must confess . but Ozma will soon fix you up again ."

the green monkey had hung back, bashful at meeting two lovely girls while in_the form of a beast; but Jinjur now took his hand and led him forward while she introduced him to Ozma, and Woot managed to_make a low bow, not really ungraceful, before her girlish majesty, the ruler of Oz .

" you_have all been forced to endure a sad experience," said Ozma, " and so I_am anxious to_do all in my power to break Mrs Yoop's enchantments . but first tell me how you happened to stray into that lonely valley where Yoop castle stands ."

between_them they related the object of_their journey, the Scarecrow bear telling of_the tin woodman's resolve to_find Nimmie Amee and marry her, as a just reward for her loyalty to him .Woot told of_their adventures with_the Loons of Loonville, and_the tin owl described the manner in_which they had_been captured and transformed by_the Giantess . then polychrome related her story, and when all had_been told, and Dorothy had several_times reproved Toto for growling at_the tin owl, Ozma remained thoughtful for a while, pondering upon what she had heard . finally she looked up, and with one of her delightful smiles, said to_the anxious group:

" I_am not sure my magic will_be_able to restore every_one of you, because your transformations are of_such a strange and unusual character . indeed, Mrs Yoop was quite justified in believing no power could alter her enchantments . however, I_am_sure I_can restore the Scarecrow to_his original shape . he_was stuffed with straw from_the beginning, and even the yookoohoo magic could_not alter that . the Giantess was merely able to_make a bear's shape of a man's shape, but the bear is stuffed with straw, just as_the man was . so I_feel confident I_can make a man of_the bear again ."

"Hurrah ! " cried the brown bear, and tried clumsily to dance a jig of delight .

" as for_the tin woodman, his case is much the same," resumed Ozma, still smiling ." the power of_the Giantess could_not make him anything but a tin creature, whatever shape she transformed him into, so it_will_not_be impossible to restore him to_his manly form .Anyhow, I_shall test my magic at once, and_see if_it_will do what I_have promised ."

she drew from her bosom a small silver wand and, making passes with_the wand over the head of_the bear, she succeeded in_the brief space of a moment in breaking his enchantment . the original Scarecrow of Oz again stood before them, well stuffed with straw and with_his features nicely painted upon_the bag which formed his head .

the Scarecrow was greatly delighted, as_you_may suppose, and he strutted proudly around while the powerful fairy, Ozma of Oz, broke the enchantment that had transformed the tin woodman and made a tin owl into a tin man again .

" now, then," chirped the canary, eagerly; "I'm next, Ozma ! "

" but your case is different," replied Ozma, no longer smiling but wearing a grave expression on her sweet face ." I_shall_have to experiment on you, polychrome, and I_may fail in all my attempts ."

she then tried two_or_three different methods of magic, hoping one_of_them would succeed in breaking polychrome's enchantment, but still the rainbow's daughter remained a canary- bird . finally, however, she experimented in another way . she transformed the canary into a dove, and then transformed the dove into a speckled Hen, and then changed the speckled Hen into a rabbit, and then the rabbit into a fawn . and at_the last, after mixing several powders and sprinkling them upon_the fawn, the yookoohoo enchantment was suddenly broken and before them stood one_of_the daintiest and loveliest creatures in any fairyland in_the_world . polychrome was as sweet and merry in disposition as she was beautiful, and when she danced and capered around in delight, her beautiful hair floated around her like a golden mist and her many-hued raiment, as soft as cobwebs, reminded one of drifting clouds in a summer sky .

Woot was so awed by_the entrancing sight of_this exquisite sky fairy that he quite forgot his own sad plight until be noticed Ozma gazing upon him with an intent expression that denoted sympathy and sorrow . Dorothy whispered in her friend's ear, but the ruler of Oz shook her head sadly .

Jinjur, noticing this and understanding Ozma's looks, took the paw of_the green monkey in her own hand and patted it softly .

" never mind," she said to him ." you_are a very beautiful color, and a monkey can climb better than a boy and do alot of other things no boy can ever do ."

" what's the matter ? " asked Woot, asinking feeling at his heart ." is Ozma's magic all used up ? "

Ozma herself answered him .

" your form of enchantment, my poor boy," she said pityingly, " is different from_that of_the others . indeed, it_is a form that_is impossible to alter by any magic known to fairies or yookoohoos . the wicked Giantess was well aware, when she gave_you the form of a green monkey, that_the green monkey must exist in_the land of Oz for all future time ."

Woot drew a long sigh .

" well, that's pretty hard luck," he_said bravely, " but if_it can't be helped I_must endure it; that's all .I don't like being a monkey, but what's the use of kicking against my fate ? "

they were all very sorry for him, and Dorothy anxiously asked Ozma:

"Couldn't Glinda save him ? "

" no," was_the reply ."Glinda's power in trans- formations is no greater than my own . before I left my palace I went to my magic room and studied Woot's case very carefully . I_found that no power can do away with_the green monkey . he might transfer, or exchange his form with some other person, it_is true; but the green monkey we_cannot get rid of by any magic arts known to science ."

" but -- see here," said the Scarecrow, who had listened intently to_this explanation, " why_not put the monkey's form on some one else ? "

" who_would agree to make_the change ? " asked Ozma ." if by force we caused anyone else to_become a green monkey, we_would_be as cruel and wicked as Mrs Yoop . and what good would an exchange do ? " she continued ." suppose, for instance, we worked the enchantment, and made Toto into a green monkey . at_the same moment Woot would become a little dog ."

" leave me out of your magic, please," said Toto, with a reproachful growl ."I wouldn't become a green monkey for anything ."

" and I wouldn't become a dog," said Woot ."A green monkey is much better than a dog, it seems to_me ."

" that_is only a matter of opinion," answered Toto .

" now, here's another idea," said the Scarecrow ." my brains are working finely today, you_must admit . why_not transform Toto into Woot the wanderer, and then have them exchange forms ? the dog would become a green monkey and_the monkey would_have his own natural shape again ."

" to_be_sure ! " cried Jinjur ."

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