"I'm a Cowardly Lion," roared the big beast huskily, "so don't frighten me, for if you do I'll pound you to pebbles."
"I don't believe he could do it," creaked the Stone Man, turning to Notta. "Do you?"
"Well, he's a terrible fighter," admitted the clown, with a reassuring wink at Bob, "but let's not talk of such disagreeable things. Since you were kind enough to catch us perhaps you will tell us who you are."
"Crunch is my name," answered the Stone Man, picking up a rock and crumbling it to powder in his hand.
"I think we'd better be going," quavered Snorer tremulously. "We're late as it is." Nick had no desire to fall into the Stone Man's clutches.
"Don't go," begged Crunch. "I haven't talked to anyone since I was excavated."
"How long ago was that?" asked Notta, scratching his ear.
"Oh, several ages ago," replied the Stone Man carelessly. "But I'm much older than that, for I was hacked out by a primitive Oz man to decorate his cave. But a landslide caved in the cave and I was buried for several centuries."
"Who dug you up," roared the Cowardly Lion, "and how is it you are alive?"
"A wizard named Wam dug me up," explained Crunch in his scratchy voice, "and brought me to life with a shaker of magic powder. I tried to thank him, but he ran away before I could catch him, so I've stood around ever since trying to find out what one does with a life."
"Great Grandfathers!" choked the clown. "Fancy being alive for centuries and not knowing what to do. Why, there are hundreds of things to interest you, especially in a magic country like Oz. You could travel, and help other folks not so strong as yourself. You could offer your services to the Queen, or even build a city!"
"Could I?" gasped Crunch. He stared off into space as if he saw himself doing all these things, and the idea was almost too amazing to believe. Then, bringing his stone heels together with a click, he announced determinedly, "I'll do it! I'll travel, I'll help people, I'll see the Queen and build a city!"
"Hurrah!" cried Notta. "That's the way to talk. And since we are traveling, why not join us?" Crunch, he decided, might prove useful in a battle.
"Can I walk beside him?" asked the Stone Man, pointing at the Cowardly Lion.
"If you're steady on your pins," rumbled the Cowardly Lion, "and promise not to fall on me."
"Where does the Queen of this country live?" asked Crunch, after he had promised not to fall on the Cowardly Lion.
"In the Emerald City," piped up Bob, who had been listening to the Stone Man's conversation with deep interest.
"Oh, that must be over there," said Crunch, waving toward the east, "for often at night, when I've climbed Stone Mountain, I've seen bright green lights twinkling in the darkness."
"Why, of course it is," roared the Cowardly Lion in great excitement, "though why you have never gone over to find out I cannot imagine!"
"That's because you were never a stone man," sighed Crunch solemnly.
"Then we'll soon see Dorothy and the Scarecrow!" cried Bob, clapping his hands. "Come on, let's go to the Emerald City right away."
Nick flew off to the top of the mountain to investigate for himself.
"You forget Mustafa's enchantment," sighed Notta, pointing sadly to the rope that still bound him to the Cowardly Lion. "I daresay if we took a step toward the Emerald City, Mustafa would ring us up again."
"Who is Mustafa and why has he enchanted you?" demanded Crunch, rubbing his stone forehead noisily. Notta explained as much of their story as he thought the Stone Man would understand, and when he had finished Crunch gave a little spring that almost knocked them from the ledge.
"Why, it is as clear as cobbles," he roared, bringing down his fist upon a rock and splintering it to fragments. "You are weaker than I and, as I have fully determined to help someone, let me help you. Where is this Mustafa of Mudge? Take me to him and I will pound him to powder and disperse him to the winds."
Before Notta could answer Nick came flying back to assure them that he had really seen the Emerald City from the mountain top and that it lay scarcely a half day's journey away.
"Then it seems to me," said Notta, who had been doing some quick thinking, "that the time has come for us to separate. Bob, Nick and I will hasten to this Emerald City and appeal to Ozma, Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz. Meanwhile the Cowardly Lion can start toward Mudge and thus Mustafa's ring will not betray us. But before he reaches there we will have found a way to help him."
"And I will go with the Cowardly Lion," declared Crunch promptly, "for I would rather help him than any one else."
"Hurrah!" cried Bob Up, and so it was all decided. Then Notta sat on the Cowardly Lion's back and he sprang down from the ledge. Next Snorer flew down with Bob, and the clown untied the rope that tied him to the lion. Immediately he and Bob turned blue, but when the Cowardly Lion took a few steps south, the blue quickly faded out. Notta was so relieved to be free that he turned six somersaults, stood on his head, and ran several paces on his hands, while Bob and Nick shouted with glee.
"Crush and crumble me!" rasped the Stone Man, eying the clown in alarm, "is that the way men get about nowdays? The men I watched in the stone age never did that and I simply could not manage it, you know."
"Don't try," begged Notta, and Nick hastened to assure him that most men walked in the usual fashion—one foot before the other.
"Mudge should be exactly southwest from here, so come on, old Cave Man, let's be moving. Together we'll conquer the whole tribe of Mudgers," said the lion.
"You won't have to," cried Notta, giving the Cowardly Lion an affectionate hug, "if this Wizard of Oz is as clever as he's said to be."
Crunch waited impatiently while Nick and Bob bade the Cowardly Lion good-bye. Having stood around for seven centuries, he could not bear to waste another second, and when the Cowardly Lion at last declared himself ready to go he tramped off joyfully, each step shaking the ground like a small earthquake and enveloping the poor lion in a cloud of dust.
"Good-bye!" called Bob Up shrilly, as they turned into a narrow rocky path and disappeared behind a small mountain.
"Good-bye!" roared the Cowardly Lion, bravely waving his tail in farewell.
So much had happened since their flight from Un that Notta had forgotten all about the time of day, but when he started up the mountain, he grew so faint, he had to sit down on a rock. Bob, too, looked pale and weary, and every few hops Nick would close his eyes and indulge in a tremulous snore.
"Great Elephants!" puffed Notta at last, squinting up at the sun. "It must be nearly five o'clock and we've had nothing to eat since morning. Have you still got those eggs, Bob Up?"
Bob felt hurriedly in his blouse and, with a triumphant smile, produced the eggs they had picked from the travelers' tree. They were somewhat squashed, but when the shells had been removed they tasted delicious to the famished travelers. Washed down with some water from a little spring, the food renewed their strength and courage for the journey ahead.
"I hope nothing happens to the Cowardly Lion," said Bob, as they started up the mountain again, "for I love him."
"So do I," croaked the Snorer, who was flying a little ahead, "and I shall miss him very much when we go to America to make our fortune. But, of course I could not leavethatbeautiful person." He rolled his eyes proudly at Notta, and the clown quite unconsciously sighed. Life in a circus would seem terribly tame after this marvelous trip through Oz.
"We ought to be home to-morrow, if everything works out," he remarked soberly, with an anxious glance at Bob. At the word "home" the little boy shivered slightly, for home to him meant a great, dreary institution where little boys whom nobody wanted were grudgingly sheltered and eternally shaken. In his heart he hoped the magic of this Wizard of Oz would not be strong enough to send them back. Notta was wondering to himself whether the managers of the home would trust a little boy's future to a clown and resolving darkly that, if they wouldn't, he'd take him anyhow. But he said nothing of this to Bob Up, and presently broke into such a comical song Bob forgot all about going back. This was the song:
"A goblin's ears are very long,A goblin's nose goes wabble,But what I'd really like to knowIs what makes goblins gobble?"Perhaps they gobble 'cause they're imps—And dreadfully imp-olite!Pshaw, all they do is squabble hobble,Gobble through the night!"
"A goblin's ears are very long,A goblin's nose goes wabble,But what I'd really like to knowIs what makes goblins gobble?
"A goblin's ears are very long,
A goblin's nose goes wabble,
But what I'd really like to know
Is what makes goblins gobble?
"Perhaps they gobble 'cause they're imps—And dreadfully imp-olite!Pshaw, all they do is squabble hobble,Gobble through the night!"
"Perhaps they gobble 'cause they're imps—
And dreadfully imp-olite!
Pshaw, all they do is squabble hobble,
Gobble through the night!"
"Speaking of night," chuckled Snorer, balancing on the branch of a low tree, "we'll probably have to spend it in that forest below, for it would hardly be safe to travel in the dark and it'll be dark by the time we're down this mountain."
"Well," laughed Notta, "it wouldn't be the first time Bob and I have slept in a forest, and your snores ought to scare off any wild animals."
"That's so," sighed Nick, adjusting his nose, and quite satisfied he flew on ahead. The path was rough and uneven and, though Notta and Bob frequently slipped and slid, in another hour they were safely down the mountain. It was dusk as they stepped into the strange forest, and Bob fancied the trees were peering down at him kindly. They were so tired Notta paused under an immense maple tree and Nick leaned up against the trunk and fell instantly to snoring and stamping, while Notta began gathering branches and leaves for beds. The clown spread his old lion disguise over Bob's pile and the little boy, stretching out comfortably, gazed up at the first star twinkling merrily in the evening sky and thought how strange his narrow bed at the home would seem after this. The wind sighed in the tree tops with a gentle and soothing sound, and even Nick's snoring seemed comforting and pleasant to Bob Up.
"Bob," said Notta, as he dropped down beside him, "this is the friendliest forest I was ever in."
Bob nodded, and at this a little rustle went rippling through the forest as if the trees had actually heard him, and in the same instant each tree quietly opened its trunk and drew forth a fiddle. Before Notta and Bob had recovered from their surprise a wave of music swept through the wood, now soft, now loud, but more entrancing than any they had ever heard. And the trees, swaying and bending in the dim starlight, plied their bows with more skill than any orchestra in the mortal world. For Bob and Notta, you see, had come to the Fiddlestick Forest of Oz.
Notta's Last Disguise
Of all his adventures, Bob remembered this strange concert longest. The fairylike music, that even made the Moon bend down to listen, the drumlike accompaniment of Nick's snores and the misty faces of the trees themselves, bending down in the dim starlight, all added to the enchantment. Bob could not remember falling asleep, for all through his dreams marched the music of the fiddles—but he must have slept, for opening his eyes suddenly, he found the sun out and shining merrily. He looked around to ask Notta whether he had dreamed about the fiddles or really heard them, but Notta was nowhere to be seen. Nick, too, had vanished.
Rather alarmed, Bob jumped up. As he did so a large green leaf with white lines traced on it fluttered to the ground.
"You may use the Fiddlebow Boat," said the leaf and, looking up, Bob fancied the big tree was smiling at him. So he made a stiff little bow and, holding fast to the leaf, started off uneasily to find his friends. The sound of water rippling over stones took him to the left, for he was terribly thirsty and in a few seconds he had come out on a rapid little stream. The water was so clear Bob could see the white stones gleaming on the bottom. Throwing himself down, he took a long, satisfying drink. When he straightened up he was astonished to see a boat tied to a slim birch that leaned far out over the water's edge.
"Why, this must be the Fiddlebow Boat," cried the little boy, hastening over to examine it. It was of a smooth and satiny garnet, and exactly the shape of a huge, hollowed-out fiddle. It rode gaily at the end of its pink line, and this discovery only made Bob more anxious than ever to find the clown. Calling first Notta and then Nick, he ran back to the big tree, and just as he reached it was horrified to see a witch bending over the pile of leaves he had slept on. With a shrill scream Bob turned to flee but the witch came bounding and hobbling after, calling to him in pleading tones not to run away. But the more the witch called, the faster Bob ran, and he might have been running yet, had he not tripped over the roots of a tree and fallen headlong. In an instant the black hands of his pursuer jerked him to his feet.
"Bob! Bob!" cried the witch remorsefully, "don't you know me? Bob, it's Notta—only old Notta!"
"Notta?" gasped Bob, for he was entirely out of breath and trembling like a leaf.
"There! There!" coaxed the clown. "It's only one of my disguises." As Bob continued to regard him with disfavor, he explained hurriedly, "You see we're going to this Emerald City, Bob Up, where every other person is more or less magic. Now, what attention would they pay to a silly clown? Why, they might not even listen to me. But if I pretend to be a powerful witch, Princess Ozma and the Wizard of Oz, whom we've been hearing so much about, will hasten to do what I say."
"You'll frighten them," said Bob stubbornly, but Notta shook his head.
"People in fairy cities aren't frightened as easily as little boys," he chuckled knowingly. "And just look what I've found you for breakfast!"
In Bob's cap he had gathered nuts and berries of every kind, and Bob, seeing Notta was determined to go to the Emerald City as a witch, said nothing more but began to eat hungrily. After a hearty breakfast, Nick came flapping back and was so startled by the clown's disguise that his nose fell off the hook with a crash. But Notta soon reassured him and, as Bob was tingling with impatience to show them the boat, they finished the berries in great haste.
"This is the friendliest forest I ever was in," repeated the clown, viewing Bob's discovery with delight. "This will take us out faster than we could walk and it's much safer than the Flyaboutabus. Now then, all aboard for the Emerald City!"
Gathering up his witch skirts, Notta leaped into the Fiddlebow Boat and, seizing the long oar, pushed it in close to the bank. Snorer alighted on the end, and Bob settled himself cozily among the cushions. Merrily the boat went dancing down the stream, propelled by Notta's strong arm. The only thing that marred Bob's pleasure was the thought of Notta's disguise. But he determined to tell Dorothy, or the first person they met, that the clown was not a witch, but the jolliest fellow in the world. Somewhat comforted by this thought, Bob gave himself up to pure enjoyment.
Notta and Bob Up on their way to the Emerald City, in the Fiddlebow Boat.
Notta and Bob Up on their way to the Emerald City, in the Fiddlebow Boat.
Notta and Bob Up on their way to the Emerald City, in the Fiddlebow Boat.
"Did you hear the fiddles last night?" asked the little boy presently.
"Bob," sighed Notta, "I did, and never heard any like it in the whole of my travels."
"It must have been my snoring you heard," said Nick, preening his feathers busily, for he wished to appear at his best in the Emerald City. Notta laughed uproariously at this and almost upset the boat. They all felt light-hearted and gay, and Bob was no more like the solemn little orphan who had fallen into Mudge than Nick's snoring was like the music in the Fiddlestick Forest.
"I wonder if there are any other boys and girls in the Emerald City besides Dorothy?" asked Bob, after a little pause. "And I wonder if Dorothy ever heard of Un or Doorways?"
"You'll have plenty to tell this little girl from Kansas, eh, Bob Up?" smiled the clown, and Snorer, after adjusting his nose, related all that he knew of the Emerald City, which unfortunately wasn't much, as very little news of the capital ever came to Un.
"I hope the Cowardly Lion is having as pleasant a journey as this," said Notta, as they skimmed along under the branches of the trees, "and I hope Crunch is behaving himself properly."
"I should think he'd be a hard person to get along with," chirped Nick, giving the clown a nudge so he would be sure to see the joke.
"Because he's made of stone, you mean?" replied Notta. "Well, trust the Cowardly Lion to manage him. Hello! Looks as if we were out of the woods."
A turn of the rapid little stream had brought them into a broad meadow and the Fiddlebow Boat stopped of its own accord.
"Guess this is as far as it goes," puffed the clown, after vainly endeavoring to push it forward with the oar. So he guided it to the bank and they all hopped out.
"But it doesn't seem right to leave it here," observed Notta, scratching his ear anxiously. No sooner had he spoken than a tall tree near the edge of the water leaned down, seized the boat in its branches, and passed it along to the next tree, and in a second it was being tossed lightly from tree to tree, much to the amazement of Notta and Bob.
With wonders happening every moment, you would expect them to be used to it, but each time they were newly astonished. When the last trace of the magic boat disappeared, they struck out across the meadow, for already over the top of a little hill they could see the sparkling green towers of the Emerald City of Oz.
Nick, hopping sidewise, paused every few minutes to see that his curly nose was safely on its hook. Notta began rehearsing long speeches he meant to make to the lovely little ruler of Oz, while Bob skipped between the two, nearly bursting with excitement. On the other side of the meadow they came to the yellow brick road mentioned by Mustafa. From the windows of the little green cottages scattered here and there, the inhabitants looked at them curiously, and several of the quaintly dressed town folk whom they met on the road, at sight of a witch, took immediately to their heels. But without waiting to explain themselves or talk to anyone, the three hurried on to the gates of the Emerald City itself.
Bob gazed with round-eyed delight, Nick began to snort with surprise, and Notta, who had seen in the course of his travels every great city on two continents, was struck dumb with amazement, for the capital city of Oz outshone them all in beauty and magnificence. Its streets of green marble sparkled with emeralds, and the palace, rising majestically from its flowering gardens, shone with splendor in the bright morning sunshine. The Guardian of the Gate was breakfasting in his cottage, and Nick flew over the bars and, turning the emerald key, quietly admitted Bob and Notta.
"Let us proceed to the main tent," puffed the clown a bit nervously, for he felt ill at ease among so much magnificence. He had forgotten every word of his speech and, with a sigh, resolved to stick to his old rules—disguise, politeness, joke and run. "Though I see no reason why we should have to run," he muttered uneasily, settling his witch hat a bit more firmly.
It was still rather early and the gardens were deserted, but all at once Bob, who was a bit ahead of the others, spied a little girl in pink, sitting on the edge of a fountain, reading.
"It's Dorothy!" cried Bob, waving excitedly. "She looks just like a picture in the lion book! Come on!" Immediately Snorer spread his wings and flung himself into the air. Notta grasped his black cloak and catching Bob's hand started on a run for the fountain.
The flapping of Nick's wings made Dorothy look up. With a little scream she jumped to her feet, for any little girl, even though sheisa Princess of Oz, cannot help being afraid of witches.
"Help!" cried Dorothy, turning to run. But just then she caught sight of a gold bucket that always stood beside the fountain, and she remembered an experience she had had long ago with the wicked witch of the West. Water had melted one witch—why not another? Seizing the bucket, she filled it hastily at the fountain and, just as the witch, strange bird and little boy reached her, she flung its contents over the witch's head.
"Oh! Oh!" screamed Snorer. "You have insulted the most beautiful person in Oz."
Notta, taken completely by surprise, could do nothing but choke and splutter.
"Wait!" panted Bob, for Dorothy was refilling the bucket. But he was too late and down splashed another bucket on Notta's head, carrying away his hat and drenching his black wig. Unable to speak, Notta began to wave his arms, and this was anything but reassuring to Dorothy. Snatching a little silver whistle that hung on a ribbon on her neck, she blew on it shrilly. The next instant running feet could be heard on all the garden paths and in a twinkling Bob and Notta were surrounded.
"What is it?" boomed Sir Hokus of Pokes, Dorothy's Knight Errant. He brought his mailed fist heavily down upon Notta's witch shoulder. The Soldier with the Green Whiskers, not to be outdone, grasped Bob Up and Tik Tok leaned over stiffly and seized Snorer by the neck. More and more people kept arriving, and though Bob tried his best to make himself heard, in the general confusion his voice was drowned out, and in disgrace they were marched to the palace.
Ozma was having a quiet game of checkers with the Scarecrow and looked up in amazement as the company burst into the throne room.
"A witch!" shrilled the Patchwork Girl, dancing madly at the head of the procession,
"A witch, a witch,As black as pitch,Has come to steal your throneAnd sich!"
"A witch, a witch,As black as pitch,Has come to steal your throneAnd sich!"
"A witch, a witch,
As black as pitch,
Has come to steal your throne
And sich!"
"If they would only stop screaming," thought poor Bob, looking anxiously at the lovely little figure of Ozma of Oz. Just then they did, for Ozma, glancing in surprise and displeasure at the witch, raised her scepter for silence.
In the Emerald City
"Who found this witch?" asked Ozma anxiously, for witches of any sort distressed the kind little fairy ruler.
"Who found witch?" repeated Scraps, waving her cotton arms wildly; but at a reproving nod from the Scarecrow she subsided. Before Dorothy could answer, Tik Tok's machinery ran down and his iron hold on Nick's neck relaxed, much to his relief.
"Villains!" squalled Snorer, flapping into the air. "This is a fine way to receive friends. I've a mind to pull out your beard," he screamed angrily, beating his wings in the face of the Soldier with the Green Whiskers.
"Run, Bob," he cried, as the terrified soldier let go of the little orphan. Everyone was so surprised at Snorer's sudden outbreak and his unusual appearance that they simply gasped. But Notta, realizing what a bad impression they were making, called pleadingly for Snorer to take his claws out of the soldier's whiskers, and as Bob Up added his voice to Notta's, Snorer let go and retired sulkily to the top of a golden cabinet. "They're worse than Uns," he muttered, stamping his foot.
"I think there is no harm in the boy," whispered the Scarecrow to Ozma, for he noticed that Bob made no attempt to escape.
"Why do you travel in the company of a witch?" asked Ozma rather sternly.
"He's not a witch!" cried Bob Up miserably. "He's Notta!"
"Not a witch?" puzzled Ozma, wrinkling up her brows.
All the celebrities stared suspiciously at their prisoner, but as Sir Hokus had him firmly by one arm and the Tin Woodman by the other, Notta could not remove his disguise.
"The boy has spoken the truth," quavered the clown. "If these gentlemen will let me go for a moment I will prove that I am not a witch."
"Don't let go," advised the Scarecrow, wrinkling his cotton forehead, "for she may bewitch us. Have little Dorothy tell her story." So, while Bob fumed with impatience and Notta groaned at the delay, Dorothy told how they had come flying toward her in the garden.
"But if it had been a witch, wouldn't she have melted when you threw the water on her?" asked Trot, who had listened so far in silence. She liked the looks of this little boy and felt that some mistake had been made.
"Call the Wizard of Oz!" cried Jack Pumpkinhead. This was such a reasonable suggestion Bob wondered how a pumpkinhead could have thought of it. As there seemed no way of convincing these interesting folks that the clown was not a witch, Bob gave it up for the moment and began examining them with close attention.
Tik Tok simply fascinated the little boy, and he immediately decided that, next to Notta, he had never seen anyone more jolly than the Scarecrow. Even the Knight, now that he had his visor up, no longer alarmed Bob Up. And when the Comfortable Camel thrust his long neck in through one of the windows to inquire what was the matter Bob burst out laughing in spite of himself. Right here the little, bald Wizard of Oz came bouncing into the throne room, a small black grip clutched in one hand.
The little, bald Wizard of Oz came bouncing into the throne room
The little, bald Wizard of Oz came bouncing into the throne room
The little, bald Wizard of Oz came bouncing into the throne room
"If this person is a witch," sighed Ozma, after the Scarecrow had related all that had happened, "she must be destroyed. Can you discover by your magic whether or not it is a witch?"
"Certainly," said the sprightly little wizard, laying out his tools in a businesslike manner. Snorer flew down from the cabinet in alarm.
"Will it hurt?" he cawed uneasily.
"If she is not a witch she has nothing to fear," replied the Wizard, eying Snorer with amazement.
The Wizard, sending for a tumbler, first mixed a pink and green powder together and then added a drop of red liquid that immediately set the powder to sizzling. When it bubbled to the top he flung the contents of the tumbler directly in the witch's face. Sir Hokus and the Tin Woodman ducked and Notta spluttered, but the fiery liquid trickled harmlessly off his nose.
"It isnota witch!" smiled the Wizard of Oz, turning to Ozma.
"Then why do you pretend to be?" asked the little Queen. Her voice, though still stern, sounded very much relieved. Taking heart, Notta begged his two captors to release him. This they did, and the clown hastily tore off his wig and stepped out of the black cloak.
"Why, it's a clown!" cried Dorothy in delight.
"I told you he wasn't a witch," shrilled Bob Up, wriggling away from the Soldier with the Green Whiskers and rushing over to Notta Bit More.
"Well, bless my heart!" cried the Wizard of Oz, bounding down the steps of the throne two at a time. "Thisisa surprise. Sir, let me embrace you!" And as Notta made no objection he gave him several good hugs. "I used to work in a circus myself," beamed the little wizard, "and I tell you a clown is a sight that makes me homesick!"
"As to that," said Notta with a little bow to Ozma, "this country surpasses any circus I was ever in!"
"Can you do funny tricks?" asked Dorothy.
"He can somersault, cartwheel, stand on his head, walk on his hands and he knows lots of songs—don't you, Notta?" cried Bob, dancing with excitement.
"So do I," shrilled Scraps jealously, "and if he thinks I cannot stand on my head, let him watch." Sir Hokus of Pokes restrained the reckless girl, and Ozma, tapping on the arm of her throne for order, begged Notta to explain his presence in the Emerald City and his reason for coming as a witch.
"We are sorry to have treated you so rudely," said Ozma gravely, "but we must blame your costume for that."
"Certainly," said Scraps, shaking her cotton finger at Notta. "If you come as a witch you must expect to be treated every witch way." Notta looked rather embarrassed as he explained his rules of disguise, politeness, joke and run.
"I always seem to choose the wrong disguise," sighed the clown.
"Don't you think it is better to be natural?" asked the Scarecrow in his jolly voice. "Especially when you are naturally so nice?" Notta was quite flustered at this charming speech.
"First be nice and then be natural. How's that for a rule?" cried Scraps brilliantly, and they were all so relieved that the clown had turned out so well they laughed heartily.
"Ver-ry good," ticked Tik Tok, whom somebody had wound up. "I am natu-ral-ly bright be-cause I am nat-u-ral-ly cop-per!"
"Well, after this," said Notta, when the merriment had subsided, "after this, I will be myself, for I guess it is better to be yourself even if youarea clown."
"But how did you reach Oz? Who is this little boy? And do introduce us to your feathered friend," begged the Scarecrow, who had been glancing curiously from one to the other.
"This," said Notta, drawing Bob close to him, "is Bob Up, an orphan from Philadelphia, and the bravest and best little boy in America."
"Hello, orphan!" cried Scraps genially:
"Orphan, orphan, howdedo,You love me and I'll love you!First you're here, then gone again,Do come orphan on again!"
"Orphan, orphan, howdedo,You love me and I'll love you!First you're here, then gone again,Do come orphan on again!"
"Orphan, orphan, howdedo,
You love me and I'll love you!
First you're here, then gone again,
Do come orphan on again!"
A stern "hush" from the Knight silenced her, and Notta introduced Nickadoodle from Un. Nick immediately took the floor, and carefully demonstrated his telephone nose, which he explained had been invented by Uncle Billy. So, everyone, including the Scarecrow, came down and shook him gravely by the claw. Then, as they were all anxious to hear what had brought the three travelers to the Emerald City, they grouped themselves about the throne and Notta started to tell the history of his amazing three days in Oz.
But just as he was explaining in a spirited manner their flight to Mudge, a bustle in the great hall without interrupted the story, and a breathless footman came rushing in to announce the arrival of Glinda, the Good Sorceress, who ruled over the Quadling country of Oz.
"Something must have happened!" cried Ozma, jumping up in distress.
"Don't be so previous, my dear," begged the Scarecrow, himself falling down the steps of the throne to show how collected he was. But at that instant Glinda herself swept into the throne room. Twelve little maidens in lovely red dresses held up her long train and Bob Up, looking at Glinda's beautiful face and lovely flame-colored robes, thought he had never seen a more radiant fairy. The courtiers and celebrities hastily made way for Glinda.
Hurrying up to Ozma the sorceress asked anxiously, "Whereis the Cowardly Lion? Has anyone seen the Cowardly Lion?"
Now, strangely enough, no one in the palace had missed their big chum, but at Glinda's words they all began shaking their heads and looking uneasily at one another.
"Why, I haven't seen him for two days," cried Dorothy, with a worried little frown.
"We have!" cried Bob Up, forgetting for a moment he was in the presence of royalty. "We saw him yesterday."
"What's happened?" cried Notta. "I see now we never should have left him."
"Why, doyouknow the Cowardly Lion?" asked Ozma in surprise, for Notta had not yet come to their meeting, nor even told them of Mustafa's determination to add the Cowardly Lion to his collection.
So, as quickly as he could, and without stopping to describe Doorways or Un, the clown told his story.
"Ah," sighed Glinda, as he finished, "that explains the entry in the Magic Record Book. Hurry up, my friends. Some of us must go instantly to Mudge."
"What did the records say?" asked Dorothy, and all the celebrities looked frightened and anxious, for the Cowardly Lion was a great favorite. The Magic Record Book is one of the treasures of Oz. It tells, just as they happen, all the events in that marvelous country and in every other country.
"It said," began Glinda in her soft voice, "that the Cowardly Lion is in grave danger, and unless help comes before noon he will be destroyed."
"Wha—aat?" shrilled Notta in horrified tones, while Sir Hokus of Pokes began sharpening his dagger on his leg and the Scarecrow fell on his nose from the very shock of the thing.
"Where's my Magic Belt?" cried Ozma, clapping her small hands frantically. "Jellia, fetch my Magic Belt!" Ozma, with this belt, meant to transport as many of the company as possible to Mudge.
But before the little serving maid returned, Notta himself had accomplished that very thing. Glancing around hurriedly, he began touching everyone who looked as if he might prove useful in a battle. Sir Hokus vanished first, for Notta was very much impressed by the Knight's warlike appearance, then the Tin Woodman, because his ax looked so sharp, then Tik Tok, because he was so solid and dependable, then Glinda because she was a sorceress and the Wizard because he was also versed in magic, then Dorothy, because she was crying and Bob because Notta could not bear to leave him behind and then Snorer, because he had proven himself so faithful.
Ozma, who had forgotten about the magic verse, was startled almost out of her senses by these sudden disappearances. She put up her scepter to object, but Notta ran forward and touched her too and she was gone with the others.
"Help!" wailed Scraps, tumbling out of the window, and the rest of the company began backing into corners. But the clown, now satisfied with his army of invasion, seized the yellow hand of the Scarecrow and repeated his verse for the last time:
"Udge! Budge!Come to Mudge!Udgers Budgers,We are Mudgers!"
"Udge! Budge!Come to Mudge!Udgers Budgers,We are Mudgers!"
"Udge! Budge!
Come to Mudge!
Udgers Budgers,
We are Mudgers!"
In a flash they were in Mudge—every single person the clown had touched. And the sight that met their eyes was simply terrifying.
The Cowardly Lion's Peril
To understand how the Cowardly Lion made the journey to Mudge in one day instead of three, we must go back to the afternoon he started down the mountain with the Stone Man of Oz. Crunch, as he tramped along beside the Cowardly Lion, was thinking harder than in all the stone ages of his hard life. The Wizard Wam had given him brains of a sort, and though they had not been used before the events of the afternoon had brought them quite suddenly into action.
The mountain where Crunch had stood for so many centuries, while quite near the Emerald City, was never visited by anyone, so that the Stone Man knew very little of life as it was lived in Oz. Notta's suggestions had aroused his curiosity, and for the Cowardly Lion he was developing a great fondness. As the afternoon progressed the Cowardly Lion grew positively embarrassed by his terms of endearment.
"You are the handsomest creature in Oz," insisted Crunch over and over, "and if you were only of stone you would be more beautiful still."
"Very still," rumbled the Cowardly Lion, putting back his ears. "Though I suppose," he added thoughtfully, "a stone lion is never afraid." To change the subject he began telling Crunch about his cowardice, and how he had started out originally to find himself some courage.
"Would it make you happy to be afraid of nothing?" asked the Stone Man in his grinding voice.
"Perfectly happy," sighed the Cowardly Lion, "for though I fight when danger threatens, I suffer terribly from a desire to run away."
"Then if you had no desire to run away you would be perfectly happy?" asked Crunch, with a stamp that threw the Cowardly Lion off his feet. "Why, I can easily fix that!"
"Do you mean to say you could give me courage?" roared the Cowardly Lion, stopping perfectly still in his tracks.
"I know a trick to fix you so that you will never again be afraid," answered the Stone Man, rolling his eyes from side to side. "That is one thing I can do."
"Who taught you magic?" rumbled the Cowardly Lion suspiciously.
"No one," grated Crunch, "but this hard little secret was in the brains Wam wished into my block head. Shall I change you now?"
The Cowardly Lion sat down and scratched his ear with his hind leg. He had lived long enough in a magic country to believe anything possible, but somehow this huge, craggy giant filled him with misgivings.
"I'd like to think about this a little longer, if you don't mind," he answered cautiously. "Tell me more about it, can't you?"
Crunch shook his head solemnly. "If I told you it wouldn't work. Better let me change you, old fellow."
"No," wheezed the Cowardly Lion uneasily, "I think I'll wait a bit, I tell you," he added, brightening up, "let's not try it until this little Mudge affair is over. It isn't quite right to think of ourselves when my good friend Notta is in danger. Help me first and change me afterward."
"All right," agreed the Stone Man, starting stolidly forward, but several times the Cowardly Lion, glancing up unexpectedly, caught him moving his stiff lips and looking at him with such a stony glare that it sent a shiver of terror down his spine.
"Now, see here," roared the lion, planting himself determinedly in Crunch's path. "You must promise me not to try that trick till I'm ready. I've been frightened all my life and I don't wish to be frightened into a courageous lion without knowing it."
"Oh, all right," grumbled the Stone Man again, "but I don't see any sense in all this delay. What if your friends do turn blue? It won't hurt them, and why should you put yourself in the clutches of this wicked old Mudger?"
"That is my affair," roared the Cowardly Lion, shocked at Crunch's unfeeling words. "I suppose a person entirely composed of stone cannot help being hard and unsympathetic," he reflected to himself. Aloud he called, "Come along, let's hurry," and hurry they did as fast as their legs would carry them.
A Munchkin farmer, whose cottage they passed just at dusk, gave the Cowardly Lion a hearty dinner, but he shook his head doubtfully at Crunch, who had propped himself up against a barn while the lion ate.
"He'll break something," whispered the farmer nervously. "He's too heavy to be walking about. What's he doing alive anyway? Has Ozma seen him? Or the Scarecrow? Here, here!" he called angrily, as the barn began to creak and lean to one side, "you'll have to lean against something else!"
"I'll stand right here, and nothing will budge me," grumbled Crunch disagreeably. At this the Cowardly Lion swallowed the rest of his dinner at one gulp and started to run down the road. He knew that the Stone Man would follow him and he did not want the poor farmer's barn demolished.
"I thought you were going to help people," he roared reproachfully, as Crunch overtook him.
"No, I've changed my mind," announced Crunch with a terrible grin, "I'm only going to help you." The Cowardly Lion started to lecture the Stone Man, but, as he paid not the slightest attention, he finally gave it up and trotted along in silence. He was growing wearier every minute, and finally on the edge of a little wood he stopped altogether. Night was coming on, and after the flights and excitement of the past two days the Cowardly Lion felt he must snatch a little rest.
"Crunch, old rock, will you keep watch while I get a little sleep?" he yawned. The Stone Man nodded impassively. He had watched men sleep in the long ago stone age and, though he could not see any use in this strange custom, he concluded it was another tiresome habit of these creatures not brought to life by magic.
With a long sigh, for he sadly missed his jolly companions, the Cowardly Lion stretched himself out under a tree and almost instantly fell into a heavy slumber. For a time the Stone Man stood perfectly still. Then he began to mutter crossly to himself. The idea of waiting until they reached Mudge to try his trick was not pleasing to the stony fellow, for after the change, though he had been careful not to say so, the Cowardly Lion would be absolutely in his power. And, with the Cowardly Lion, he meant to return to his lonely mountain and stand happily ever afterward.