Oz 12: The Tin Woodman of Oz by L. Frank Baum
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he_was standing straight as ever, because his leg was as shapely and strong as it had_been before his accident .

the tin woodman had watched polychrome with much interest, and he now said:

" please take_the dent out of_my side, Poly, for I_am more crippled than was_the soldier ."

so the rainbow's daughter touched his side lightly and sang:

" here's a dent by accident; such a thing was never meant . fairy Powers, so wondrous great, make our dear tin woodman straight ! "

" good ! " cried the emperor, again standing erect and strutting around to show his fine figure ." your fairy magic may not be_able to accomplish all things, sweet polychrome, but it works splendidly on tin . thank_you very_much ."

" the hay -- the hay ! " pleaded the Scarecrow's head .

"Oh, yes; the hay," said Woot ." what_are you waiting for, captain Fyter ? "

at once the tin soldier set to work cutting hay with_his sword and in_a_few_minutes there_was quite enough with_which to stuff the Scarecrow's body .Woot and polychrome did this and it_was no easy task because the hay packed together more than straw and as_they had little experience in_such work their job, when completed, left the Scarecrow's arms and legs rather bunchy . also there_was a hump on_his back which made Woot laugh and say it reminded him of a camel, but it was_the best they_could do and when_the head was fastened on to_the body they asked the Scarecrow how he_felt .

"A little heavy, and not quite natural," he cheerfully replied; " but I'll get along somehow until we reach a straw- stack .Don't laugh at me, please, because I'm a little ashamed of myself and I don't want to regret a good action ."

they started at once in_the direction of mount munch, and as_the Scarecrow proved very clumsy in_his movements, Woot took one of_his arms and_the tin woodman the other and so helped their friend to walk in a straight line .

and_the rainbow's daughter, as before, danced ahead of_them and behind them and all around them, and_they never minded her odd ways, because to_them she was like a ray of sunshine .

chapter Twenty

over night

the land of_the Munchkins is full of surprises, as our travelers had already learned, and although mount munch was constantly growing larger as_they advanced toward it, they knew it_was still a long way off and were_not certain, by any means, that_they had escaped all danger or encountered their last adventure .

the plain was broad, and as far as_the eye could_see, there seemed to_be a level stretch of country between_them and_the mountain, but toward evening they came upon a hollow, in_which stood a tiny blue Munchkin dwelling with a garden around it and fields of grain filling in all the rest of_the hollow .

they_did_not discover this place until they came close to_the edge of it, and_they were astonished at_the sight that greeted them because they had imagined that_this part of_the plain had no inhabitants .

" it's a very_small house," Woot declared ."I wonder who lives there ? "

" the way to_find out is to knock on_the door and ask," replied the tin woodman ." perhaps it_is_the home of Nimmie Amee ."

" is she a dwarf ? " asked the boy .

" no, indeed; Nimmie Amee is a full sized woman ."

" then I'm sure she couldn't live in_that little house," said Woot .

" let's go down," suggested the Scarecrow ."I'm almost sure I_can_see a straw- stack in_the back yard ."

they descended the hollow, which_was rather steep at_the sides, and soon came to_the house, which_was indeed rather small .Woot knocked upon a door that was not much higher than his waist, but got no reply . he knocked again, but not a sound was heard .

" smoke is coming out_of_the chimney," announced polychrome, who was dancing lightly through_the garden, where cabbages and beets and turnips and_the like were growing finely

" then someone surely lives here," said Woot, and knocked again .

now a window at_the side of_the house opened and a queer head appeared . it_was white and hairy and had a long snout and little round eyes . the ears were hidden by a blue sunbonnet tied under the chin .

"Oh; it's a Pig ! " exclaimed Woot .

" pardon me; I_am Mrs Squealina Swyne, wife of professor Grunter Swyne, and this_is our home," said the one in_the window ." what do_you_want ? "

" what sort of a professor is your husband ? " inquired the tin woodman curiously .

" he_is professor of cabbage culture and corn perfection . he_is very famous in_his own family, and would_be the wonder of_the world if he went abroad," said Mrs Swyne in a voice that was half proud and half irritable ." I_must also inform you intruders that_the professor is a dangerous individual, for he files his teeth every morning until they_are sharp as needles . if_you_are butchers, you'd better run away and avoid trouble ."

" we_are_not butchers," the tin woodman assured her .

" then what_are you doing with_that axe ? and why has_the other tin man a sword ? "

" they_are the only weapons we_have to defend our friends from their enemies," explained the emperor of_the Winkies, and Woot added:

" do_not be afraid of us, Mrs Swyne, for we_are harmless travelers . the tin men and_the Scarecrow never eat anything and polychrome feasts only on dewdrops . as for_me, I'm rather hungry, but there_is plenty of food in your garden to satisfy me ."

professor Swyne now joined his wife at_the window, looking rather scared in_spite of_the boy's assuring speech . he wore a blue Munchkin hat, with pointed crown and broad brim, and big spectacles covered his eyes . he peeked around from behind his wife and after looking hard at_the strangers, he_said:

" my wisdom assures me that you_are merely travelers, as_you say, and not butchers .Butchers have reason to_be afraid of me, but you_are safe . we_cannot invite you in, for you_are too big for_our house, but the boy who eats is welcome to all the carrots and turnips he_wants . make yourselves at home in_the garden and stay all night, if_you like; but in_the morning you_must go away, for we_are quiet people and do_not care for company ."

" may I_have some of your straw ? " asked the Scarecrow .

" help yourself," replied professor Swyne .

" for pigs, they're quite respectable," remarked Woot, as_they all went toward the straw- stack .

"I'm glad they didn't invite us in," said captain Fyter ." I_hope I'm not too particular about_my associates, but I draw the line at pigs ."

the Scarecrow was glad to_be rid of_his hay, for during the long walk it had sagged down and made him fat and squatty and more bumpy than at first .

"I'm not specially proud," he_said, " but I love a manly figure, such as only straw stuffing can create .I've not felt like myself since that hungry Hip-po ate my last straw ."

polychrome and Woot set to work removing the hay and then they selected the finest straw, crisp and golden, and with it stuffed the Scarecrow anew . he certainly looked better after_the operation, and he_was so pleased at being reformed that he tried to dance a little jig, and almost succeeded .

" I_shall sleep under the straw- stack tonight," Woot decided, after he had eaten some_of_the vegetables from_the garden, and in_fact he slept very_well, with_the two tin men and_the Scarecrow sitting silently beside him and polychrome away somewhere in_the moonlight dancing her fairy dances .

at daybreak the tin woodman and_the tin soldier took occasion to polish their bodies and oil their joints, for both were exceedingly careful of_their personal appearance . they had forgotten the quarrel due to_their accidental bumping of one another in_the invisible country, and being now good friends the tin woodman polished the tin soldier's back for him and then the tin soldier polished the tin woodman's back .

for breakfast the wanderer ate crisp lettuce and radishes, and_the rainbow's daughter, who had now returned to her friends, sipped the dewdrops that had formed on_the petals of_the wild-flowers .

as_they passed the little house to renew their journey, Woot called out:

" good-bye, Mr and Mrs Swyne ! "

the window opened and_the two pigs looked out .

"A pleasant journey," said the professor .

" have_you any children ? " asked the Scarecrow, who was a great friend of children .

" we_have nine," answered the professor; " but they_do_not live with_us, for when_they were tiny piglets the wizard of Oz came here and offered to care for_them and to educate them . so we let him have our nine tiny piglets, for he's a good wizard and can_be relied upon to_keep his promises ."

" I_know the Nine tiny Piglets," said the tin woodman .

" so do I," said the Scarecrow ." they still live in_the emerald city, and_the wizard takes good care of_them and teaches them to_do all sorts of tricks ."

" did they ever grow up ? " inquired Mrs Squealina Swyne, in an anxious voice .

" no," answered the Scarecrow; " like all other children in_the land of Oz, they_will always remain children, and in_the case of_the tiny piglets that_is a good thing, because they would_not_be nearly so cute and cunning if_they were bigger ."

" but are they happy ? " asked Mrs Swyne .

" everyone in_the emerald city is happy," said the tin woodman ." they_can't help it ."

then the travelers said good-bye, and climbed the side of_the basin that was toward mount munch .

chapter Twenty- one

polychrome's magic

on this_morning, which ought_to_be the last of_this important journey, our friends started away as bright and cheery as could_be, and Woot whistled a merry tune so_that polychrome could dance to_the music .

on reaching the top of_the hill, the plain spread out before them in all its beauty of blue grasses and wildflowers, and mount munch seemed much nearer than it had the previous evening . they trudged on at a brisk pace, and by noon the mountain was so close that they_could admire its appearance . its slopes were partly clothed with pretty evergreens, and its foot-hills were tufted with a slender waving bluegrass that had a tassel on_the end of every blade . and, for_the first time, they perceived, near the foot of_the mountain, acharming house, not of great size but neatly painted and with many flowers surrounding it and vines climbing over the doors and windows .

it_was toward this solitary house that_our travelers now directed their steps, thinking to inquire of_the people who lived there where Nimmie Amee might_be found .

there were no paths, but the way was quite open and clear, and_they were drawing near to_the dwelling when Woot the wanderer, who was then in_the lead of_the little party, halted with_such an abrupt jerk that he stumbled over backward and lay flat on_his back in_the meadow . the Scarecrow stopped to look at_the boy .

" why did you do_that ? " he asked in surprise .

Woot sat up and gazed around him in amazement .

"I -- I don't know ! " he replied .

the two tin men, arm in arm, started to_pass them when both halted and tumbled, with a great clatter, into a heap beside Woot . polychrome, laughing at_the absurd sight, came dancing up and she, also, came to a sudden stop, but managed to save herself from falling .

everyone of_them was much astonished, and_the Scarecrow said with a puzzled look:

"I don't see anything ."

" nor I," said Woot; " but something hit me, just the same ."

" some invisible person struck me a heavy blow," declared the tin woodman, struggling to separate himself from_the tin soldier, whose legs and arms were mixed with_his own .

"I'm not sure it_was a person," said polychrome, looking more grave than usual ." it seems to_me that I merely ran into some hard substance which barred my way . in_order to_make sure of_this, let me try another place ."

she ran back a way and then with much caution advanced in a different place, but when she reached a position on a line with_the others she halted, her arms outstretched before her .

" I_can feel something hard - something smooth as glass," she said, " but I'm sure it_is_not glass ."

" let me try," suggested Woot, getting up; but when he tried to_go forward, he discovered the same barrier that polychrome had encountered .

" no," he_said, " it isn't glass . but what_is it ? "

" air," replied a small voice beside him ." solid air; that's all ."

they all looked downward and found a sky- blue rabbit had stuck his head out of a burrow in_the ground . the rabbit's eyes were a deeper blue than his fur, and_the pretty creature seemed friendly and unafraid .

" air ! " exclaimed Woot, staring in astonishment into_the rabbit's blue eyes; " whoever heard of air so solid that one cannot push it aside ? "

" you_can't push this air aside," declared the rabbit, " for_it was_made hard by powerful sorcery, and it forms a wall that_is intended to_keep people from getting to_that house yonder ."

"Oh; it's a wall, is_it ? " said the tin woodman .

" yes, it_is really a wall," answered the rabbit, " and it_is fully six feet thick ."

" how high is_it ? " inquired captain Fyter, the tin soldier .

"Oh, ever so high; perhaps a mile," said the rabbit .

"Couldn't we go around it ? " asked Woot .

" of_course, for_the wall is a circle," explained the rabbit ." in_the center of_the circle stands the house, so you_may walk around the wall of solid air, but you_can't get to_the house ."

" who

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