Baum, L Frank - Oz 04 - Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz

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Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz
A Faithful Record of Their Amazing Adventures
in an Underground World; and How with the
Aid of Their Friends Zeb Hugson, Eureka
the Kitten, and Jim the Cab-Horse,
They Finally Reached the
Wonderful Land
of Oz
by L. Frank Baum
"Royal Historian of Oz"
--To My Readers--
1. The Earthquake
2. The Glass City
3. The Arrival of the Wizard
4. The Vegetable Kingdom
5. Dorothy Picks the Princess
6. The Mangaboos Prove Dangerous
7. Into the Black Pit and Out Again
8. The Valley of Voices
9. They Fight the Invisible Bears
10. The Braided Man of Pyramid Mountain
11. They Meet the Wooden Gargoyles
12. A Wonderful Escape
13. The Den of the Dragonettes
14. Ozma Uses the Magic Belt
15. Old Friends are Reunited
16. Jim, the Cab-Horse
17. The Nine Tiny Piglets
18. The Trial of Eureka, the Kitten
19. The Wizard Performs Another Trick
20. Zeb Returns to the Ranch
To My Readers
It's no use; no use at all. The children won't let me stop telling
tales of the Land of Oz. I know lots of other stories, and I hope to
tell them, some time or another; but just now my loving tyrants won't
allow me. They cry: "Oz--Oz! more about Oz, Mr. Baum!" and what can I
do but obey their commands?
This is Our Book--mine and the children's. For they have flooded me
with thousands of suggestions in regard to it, and I have honestly
tried to adopt as many of these suggestions as could be fitted into
one story.
After the wonderful success of "Ozma of Oz" it is evident that Dorothy
has become a firm fixture in these Oz stories. The little ones all
love Dorothy, and as one of my small friends aptly states: "It isn't a
real Oz story without her." So here she is again, as sweet and gentle
and innocent as ever, I hope, and the heroine of another strange adventure.
There were many requests from my little correspondents for "more about
the Wizard." It seems the jolly old fellow made hosts of friends in
the first Oz book, in spite of the fact that he frankly acknowledged
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himself "a humbug." The children had heard how he mounted into the
sky in a balloon and they were all waiting for him to come down again.
So what could I do but tell "what happened to the Wizard afterward"?
You will find him in these pages, just the same humbug Wizard as before.
There was one thing the children demanded which I found it impossible
to do in this present book: they bade me introduce Toto, Dorothy's
little black dog, who has many friends among my readers. But you will
see, when you begin to read the story, that Toto was in Kansas while
Dorothy was in California, and so she had to start on her adventure
without him. In this book Dorothy had to take her kitten with her
instead of her dog; but in the next Oz book, if I am permitted to
write one, I intend to tell a good deal about Toto's further history.
Princess Ozma, whom I love as much as my readers do, is again
introduced in this story, and so are several of our old friends of Oz.
You will also become acquainted with Jim the Cab-Horse, the Nine Tiny
Piglets, and Eureka, the Kitten. I am sorry the kitten was not as
well behaved as she ought to have been; but perhaps she wasn't brought
up properly. Dorothy found her, you see, and who her parents were
nobody knows.
I believe, my dears, that I am the proudest story-teller that ever
lived. Many a time tears of pride and joy have stood in my eyes while
I read the tender, loving, appealing letters that came to me in almost
every mail from my little readers. To have pleased you, to have
interested you, to have won your friendship, and perhaps your love,
through my stories, is to my mind as great an achievement as to become
President of the United States. Indeed, I would much rather be your
story-teller, under these conditions, than to be the President. So
you have helped me to fulfill my life's ambition, and I am more
grateful to you, my dears, than I can express in words.
I try to answer every letter of my young correspondents; yet sometimes
there are so many letters that a little time must pass before you get
your answer. But be patient, friends, for the answer will surely
come, and by writing to me you more than repay me for the pleasant
task of preparing these books. Besides, I am proud to acknowledge
that the books are partly yours, for your suggestions often guide me in
telling the stories, and I am sure they would not be half so good
without your clever and thoughtful assistance.
L. FRANK BAUM
Coronado, 1908.
1. The Earthquake
The train from 'Frisco was very late. It should have arrived at
Hugson's Siding at midnight, but it was already five o'clock and the
gray dawn was breaking in the east when the little train slowly
rumbled up to the open shed that served for the station-house. As it
came to a stop the conductor called out in a loud voice:
"Hugson's Siding!"
At once a little girl rose from her seat and walked to the door of the
car, carrying a wicker suit-case in one hand and a round bird-cage
covered up with newspapers in the other, while a parasol was tucked
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under her arm. The conductor helped her off the car and then the
engineer started his train again, so that it puffed and groaned and
moved slowly away up the track. The reason he was so late was because
all through the night there were times when the solid earth shook and
trembled under him, and the engineer was afraid that at any moment the
rails might spread apart and an accident happen to his passengers. So
he moved the cars slowly and with caution.
The little girl stood still to watch until the train had disappeared
around a curve; then she turned to see where she was.
The shed at Hugson's Siding was bare save for an old wooden bench, and
did not look very inviting. As she peered through the soft gray light
not a house of any sort was visible near the station, nor was any
person in sight; but after a while the child discovered a horse and
buggy standing near a group of trees a short distance away. She
walked toward it and found the horse tied to a tree and standing
motionless, with its head hanging down almost to the ground. It was a
big horse, tall and bony, with long legs and large knees and feet.
She could count his ribs easily where they showed through the skin of
his body, and his head was long and seemed altogether too big for him,
as if it did not fit. His tail was short and scraggly, and his
harness had been broken in many places and fastened together again
with cords and bits of wire. The buggy seemed almost new, for it had
a shiny top and side curtains. Getting around in front, so that she
could look inside, the girl saw a boy curled up on the seat, fast asleep.
She set down the bird-cage and poked the boy with her parasol.
Presently he woke up, rose to a sitting position and rubbed
his eyes briskly.
"Hello!" he said, seeing her, "are you Dorothy Gale?"
"Yes," she answered, looking gravely at his tousled hair and blinking
gray eyes. "Have you come to take me to Hugson's Ranch?"
"Of course," he answered. "Train in?"
"I couldn't be here if it wasn't," she said.
He laughed at that, and his laugh was merry and frank. Jumping out of
the buggy he put Dorothy's suit-case under the seat and her bird-cage
on the floor in front.
"Canary-birds?" he asked.
"Oh no; it's just Eureka, my kitten. I thought that was the best way
to carry her."
The boy nodded.
"Eureka's a funny name for a cat," he remarked.
"I named my kitten that because I found it," she explained. "Uncle
Henry says 'Eureka' means 'I have found it.'"
"All right; hop in."
She climbed into the buggy and he followed her. Then the boy picked
up the reins, shook them, and said "Gid-dap!"
The horse did not stir. Dorothy thought he just wiggled one of his
drooping ears, but that was all.
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"Gid-dap!" called the boy, again.
The horse stood still.
"Perhaps," said Dorothy, "if you untied him, he would go."
The boy laughed cheerfully and jumped out.
"Guess I'm half asleep yet," he said, untying the horse. "But Jim
knows his business all right--don't you, Jim?" patting the long nose
of the animal.
Then he got into the buggy again and took the reins, and the horse at
once backed away from the tree, turned slowly around, and began to
trot down the sandy road which was just visible in the dim light.
"Thought that train would never come," observed the boy. "I've
waited at that station for five hours."
"We had a lot of earthquakes," said Dorothy. "Didn't you feel the
ground shake?"
"Yes; but we're used to such things in California," he replied. "They
don't scare us much."
"The conductor said it was the worst quake he ever knew."
"Did he? Then it must have happened while I was asleep,"
he said thoughtfully.
"How is Uncle Henry?" she enquired, after a pause during which the
horse continued to trot with long, regular strides.
"He's pretty well. He and Uncle Hugson have been having a fine visit."
"Is Mr. Hugson your uncle?" she asked.
"Yes. Uncle Bill Hugson married your Uncle Henry's wife's sister;
so we must be second cousins," said the boy, in an amused tone.
"I work for Uncle Bill on his ranch, and he pays me six dollars a month
and my board."
"Isn't that a great deal?" she asked, doubtfully.
"Why, it's a great deal for Uncle Hugson, but not for me. I'm a
splendid worker. I work as well as I sleep," he added, with a laugh.
"What is your name?" said Dorothy, thinking she liked the boy's manner
and the cheery tone of his voice.
"Not a very pretty one," he answered, as if a little ashamed. "My
whole name is Zebediah; but folks just call me 'Zeb.' You've been to
Australia, haven't you?"
"Yes; with Uncle Henry," she answered. "We got to San Francisco a
week ago, and Uncle Henry went right on to Hugson's Ranch for a visit
while I stayed a few days in the city with some friends we had met."
"How long will you be with us?" he asked.
"Only a day. Tomorrow Uncle Henry and I must start back for Kansas.
We've been away for a long time, you know, and so we're anxious to get
home again."
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The boy flicked the big, boney horse with his whip and looked
thoughtful. Then he started to say something to his little companion,
but before he could speak the buggy began to sway dangerously from side
to side and the earth seemed to rise up before them. Next minute
there was a roar and a sharp crash, and at her side Dorothy saw the
ground open in a wide crack and then come together again.
"Goodness!" she cried, grasping the iron rail of the seat.
"What was that?"
"That was an awful big quake," replied Zeb, with a white face. "It
almost got us that time, Dorothy."
The horse had stopped short, and stood firm as a rock. Zeb shook the
reins and urged him to go, but Jim was stubborn. Then the boy cracked
his whip and touched the animal's flanks with it, and after a low moan
of protest Jim stepped slowly along the road.
Neither the boy nor the girl spoke again for some minutes. There was
a breath of danger in the very air, and every few moments the earth
would shake violently. Jim's ears were standing erect upon his head
and every muscle of his big body was tense as he trotted toward home.
He was not going very fast, but on his flanks specks of foam began to
appear and at times he would tremble like a leaf.
The sky had grown darker again and the wind made queer sobbing sounds
as it swept over the valley.
Suddenly there was a rending, tearing sound, and the earth split into
another great crack just beneath the spot where the horse was
standing. With a wild neigh of terror the animal fell bodily into the
pit, drawing the buggy and its occupants after him.
Dorothy grabbed fast hold of the buggy top and the boy did the same.
The sudden rush into space confused them so that they could not think.
Blackness engulfed them on every side, and in breathless silence they
waited for the fall to end and crush them against jagged rocks or for
the earth to close in on them again and bury them forever in its
dreadful depths.
The horrible sensation of falling, the darkness and the terrifying
noises, proved more than Dorothy could endure and for a few moments
the little girl lost consciousness. Zeb, begin a boy, did not faint,
but he was badly frightened, and clung to the buggy seat with a tight
grip, expecting every moment would be his last.
2. The Glass City
When Dorothy recovered her senses they were still falling, but not so
fast. The top of the buggy caught the air like a parachute or an
umbrella filled with wind, and held them back so that they floated
downward with a gentle motion that was not so very disagreeable to
bear. The worst thing was their terror of reaching the bottom of this
great crack in the earth, and the natural fear that sudden death was
about to overtake them at any moment. Crash after crash echoed far
above their heads, as the earth came together where it had split, and
stones and chunks of clay rattled around them on every side. These
they could not see, but they could feel them pelting the buggy top,
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and Jim screamed almost like a human being when a stone overtook him
and struck his boney body. They did not really hurt the poor horse,
because everything was falling together; only the stones and rubbish
fell faster than the horse and buggy, which were held back by the
pressure of the air, so that the terrified animal was actually more
frightened than he was injured.
How long this state of things continued Dorothy could not even guess,
she was so greatly bewildered. But bye and bye, as she stared ahead
into the black chasm with a beating heart, she began to dimly see the
form of the horse Jim--his head up in the air, his ears erect and his
long legs sprawling in every direction as he tumbled through space.
Also, turning her head, she found that she could see the boy beside
her, who had until now remained as still and silent as she herself.
Dorothy sighed and commenced to breathe easier. She began to realize
that death was not in store for her, after all, but that she had merely
started upon another adventure, which promised to be just as queer and
unusual as were those she had before encountered.
With this thought in mind the girl took heart and leaned her head over
the side of the buggy to see where the strange light was coming from.
Far below her she found six great glowing balls suspended in the air.
The central and largest one was white, and reminded her of the sun.
Around it were arranged, like the five points of a star, the other
five brilliant balls; one being rose colored, one violet, one yellow,
one blue and one orange. This splendid group of colored suns sent
rays darting in every direction, and as the horse and buggy--with
Dorothy and Zeb--sank steadily downward and came nearer to the lights,
the rays began to take on all the delicate tintings of a rainbow,
growing more and more distinct every moment until all the space was
brilliantly illuminated.
Dorothy was too dazed to say much, but she watched one of Jim's big
ears turn to violet and the other to rose, and wondered that his tail
should be yellow and his body striped with blue and orange like the
stripes of a zebra. Then she looked at Zeb, whose face was blue and
whose hair was pink, and gave a little laugh that sounded a bit nervous.
"Isn't it funny?" she said.
The boy was startled and his eyes were big. Dorothy had a green
streak through the center of her face where the blue and yellow lights
came together, and her appearance seemed to add to his fright.
"I--I don't s-s-see any-thing funny--'bout it!" he stammered.
Just then the buggy tipped slowly over upon its side, the body of the
horse tipping also. But they continued to fall, all together, and the
boy and girl had no difficulty in remaining upon the seat, just as
they were before. Then they turned bottom side up, and continued to
roll slowly over until they were right side up again. During this
time Jim struggled frantically, all his legs kicking the air; but on
finding himself in his former position the horse said, in a relieved
tone of voice:
"Well, that's better!"
Dorothy and Zeb looked at one another in wonder.
"Can your horse talk?" she asked.
"Never knew him to, before," replied the boy.
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"Those were the first words I ever said," called out the horse, who
had overheard them, "and I can't explain why I happened to speak then.
This is a nice scrape you've got me into, isn't it?"
"As for that, we are in the same scrape ourselves," answered Dorothy,
cheerfully. "But never mind; something will happen pretty soon."
"Of course," growled the horse, "and then we shall be sorry it happened."
Zeb gave a shiver. All this was so terrible and unreal that he could
not understand it at all, and so had good reason to be afraid.
Swiftly they drew near to the flaming colored suns, and passed close
beside them. The light was then so bright that it dazzled their eyes,
and they covered their faces with their hands to escape being blinded.
There was no heat in the colored suns, however, and after they had
passed below them the top of the buggy shut out many of the piercing
rays so that the boy and girl could open their eyes again.
"We've got to come to the bottom some time," remarked Zeb, with a deep
sigh. "We can't keep falling forever, you know."
"Of course not," said Dorothy. "We are somewhere in the middle of the
earth, and the chances are we'll reach the other side of it before
long. But it's a big hollow, isn't it?"
"Awful big!" answered the boy.
"We're coming to something now," announced the horse.
At this they both put their heads over the side of the buggy and
looked down. Yes; there was land below them; and not so very far
away, either. But they were floating very, very slowly--so slowly
that it could no longer be called a fall--and the children had ample
time to take heart and look about them.
They saw a landscape with mountains and plains, lakes and rivers, very
like those upon the earth's surface; but all the scene was splendidly
colored by the variegated lights from the six suns. Here and there
were groups of houses that seemed made of clear glass, because they
sparkled so brightly.
"I'm sure we are in no danger," said Dorothy, in a sober voice. "We
are falling so slowly that we can't be dashed to pieces when we land,
and this country that we are coming to seems quite pretty."
"We'll never get home again, though!" declared Zeb, with a groan.
"Oh, I'm not so sure of that," replied the girl. "But don't let us
worry over such things, Zeb; we can't help ourselves just now, you
know, and I've always been told it's foolish to borrow trouble."
The boy became silent, having no reply to so sensible a speech, and
soon both were fully occupied in staring at the strange scenes spread
out below them. They seemed to be falling right into the middle of a
big city which had many tall buildings with glass domes and
sharp-pointed spires. These spires were like great spear-points,
and if they tumbled upon one of them they were likely to suffer
serious injury.
Jim the horse had seen these spires, also, and his ears stood straight
up with fear, while Dorothy and Zeb held their breaths in suspense.
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But no; they floated gently down upon a broad, flat roof, and came to
a stop at last.
When Jim felt something firm under his feet the poor beast's legs
trembled so much that he could hardly stand; but Zeb at once leaped
out of the buggy to the roof, and he was so awkward and hasty that he
kicked over Dorothy's bird-cage, which rolled out upon the roof so
that the bottom came off. At once a pink kitten crept out of the
upset cage, sat down upon the glass roof, and yawned and blinked its
round eyes.
"Oh," said Dorothy. "There's Eureka."
"First time I ever saw a pink cat," said Zeb.
"Eureka isn't pink; she's white. It's this queer light that gives her
that color."
"Where's my milk?" asked the kitten, looking up into Dorothy's face.
"I'm 'most starved to death."
"Oh, Eureka! Can you talk?"
"Talk! Am I talking? Good gracious, I believe I am. Isn't it
funny?" asked the kitten.
"It's all wrong." said Zeb, gravely. "Animals ought not to talk. But
even old Jim has been saying things since we had our accident."
"I can't see that it's wrong," remarked Jim, in his gruff tones. "At
least, it isn't as wrong as some other things. What's going to become
of us now?"
"I don't know," answered the boy, looking around him curiously.
The houses of the city were all made of glass, so clear and
transparent that one could look through the walls as easily as through
a window. Dorothy saw, underneath the roof on which she stood,
several rooms used for rest chambers, and even thought she could make
out a number of queer forms huddled into the corners of these rooms.
The roof beside them had a great hole smashed through it, and pieces
of glass were lying scattered in every direction. A nearby steeple
had been broken off short and the fragments lay heaped beside it.
Other buildings were cracked in places or had corners chipped off from
them; but they must have been very beautiful before these accidents
had happened to mar their perfection. The rainbow tints from the
colored suns fell upon the glass city softly and gave to the buildings
many delicate, shifting hues which were very pretty to see.
But not a sound had broken the stillness since the strangers had arrived,
except that of their own voices. They began to wonder if there were
no people to inhabit this magnificent city of the inner world.
Suddenly a man appeared through a hole in the roof next to the one
they were on and stepped into plain view. He was not a very large man,
but was well formed and had a beautiful face--calm and serene as the face
of a fine portrait. His clothing fitted his form snugly and was gorgeously
colored in brilliant shades of green, which varied as the sunbeams
touched them but was not wholly influenced by the solar rays.
The man had taken a step or two across the glass roof before he
noticed the presence of the strangers; but then he stopped abruptly.
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There was no expression of either fear or surprise upon his tranquil
face, yet he must have been both astonished and afraid; for after his
eyes had rested upon the ungainly form of the horse for a moment he
walked rapidly to the furthest edge of the roof, his head turned back
over his shoulder to gaze at the strange animal.
"Look out!" cried Dorothy, who noticed that the beautiful man did not
look where he was going; "be careful, or you'll fall off!"
But he paid no attention to her warning. He reached the edge of the
tall roof, stepped one foot out into the air, and walked into space as
calmly as if he were on firm ground.
The girl, greatly astonished, ran to lean over the edge of the roof,
and saw the man walking rapidly through the air toward the ground.
Soon he reached the street and disappeared through a glass doorway
into one of the glass buildings.
"How strange!" she exclaimed, drawing a long breath.
"Yes; but it's lots of fun, if it IS strange," remarked the small
voice of the kitten, and Dorothy turned to find her pet walking in the
air a foot or so away from the edge of the roof.
"Come back, Eureka!" she called, in distress, "you'll certainly be killed."
"I have nine lives," said the kitten, purring softly as it walked
around in a circle and then came back to the roof; "but I can't lose
even one of them by falling in this country, because I really couldn't
manage to fall if I wanted to."
"Does the air bear up your weight?" asked the girl.
"Of course; can't you see?" and again the kitten wandered into the air
and back to the edge of the roof.
"It's wonderful!" said Dorothy.
"Suppose we let Eureka go down to the street and get some one to help
us," suggested Zeb, who had been even more amazed than Dorothy at
these strange happenings.
"Perhaps we can walk on the air ourselves," replied the girl.
Zeb drew back with a shiver.
"I wouldn't dare try," he said.
"Maybe Jim will go," continued Dorothy, looking at the horse.
"And maybe he won't!" answered Jim. "I've tumbled through the air
long enough to make me contented on this roof."
"But we didn't tumble to the roof," said the girl; "by the time we
reached here we were floating very slowly, and I'm almost sure we
could float down to the street without getting hurt. Eureka walks on
the air all right."
"Eureka weights only about half a pound," replied the horse, in a
scornful tone, "while I weigh about half a ton."
"You don't weigh as much as you ought to, Jim," remarked the girl,
shaking her head as she looked at the animal. "You're dreadfully skinny."
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"Oh, well; I'm old," said the horse, hanging his head despondently,
"and I've had lots of trouble in my day, little one. For a good many years
I drew a public cab in Chicago, and that's enough to make anyone skinny."
"He eats enough to get fat, I'm sure," said the boy, gravely.
"Do I? Can you remember any breakfast that I've had today?" growled
Jim, as if he resented Zeb's speech.
"None of us has had breakfast," said the boy; "and in a time of danger
like this it's foolish to talk about eating."
"Nothing is more dangerous than being without food," declared the
horse, with a sniff at the rebuke of his young master; "and just at
present no one can tell whether there are any oats in this queer
country or not. If there are, they are liable to be glass oats!"
"Oh, no!" exclaimed Dorothy. "I can see plenty of nice gardens and
fields down below us, at the edge of this city. But I wish we could
find a way to get to the ground."
"Why don't you walk down?" asked Eureka. "I'm as hungry as the horse
is, and I want my milk."
"Will you try it, Zeb" asked the girl, turning to her companion.
Zeb hesitated. He was still pale and frightened, for this dreadful
adventure had upset him and made him nervous and worried. But he did
not wish the little girl to think him a coward, so he advanced slowly
to the edge of the roof.
Dorothy stretched out a hand to him and Zeb put one foot out and let it
rest in the air a little over the edge of the roof. It seemed firm
enough to walk upon, so he took courage and put out the other foot.
Dorothy kept hold of his hand and followed him, and soon they were
both walking through the air, with the kitten frisking beside them.
"Come on, Jim!" called the boy. "It's all right."
Jim had crept to the edge of the roof to look over, and being a
sensible horse and quite experienced, he made up his mind that he
could go where the others did. So, with a snort and a neigh and a
whisk of his short tail he trotted off the roof into the air and at
once began floating downward to the street. His great weight made him
fall faster than the children walked, and he passed them on the way
down; but when he came to the glass pavement he alighted upon it so
softly that he was not even jarred.
"Well, well!" said Dorothy, drawing a long breath, "What a strange
country this is."
People began to come out of the glass doors to look at the new
arrivals, and pretty soon quite a crowd had assembled. There were men
and women, but no children at all, and the folks were all beautifully
formed and attractively dressed and had wonderfully handsome faces.
There was not an ugly person in all the throng, yet Dorothy was not
especially pleased by the appearance of these people because their
features had no more expression than the faces of dolls. They did not
smile nor did they frown, or show either fear or surprise or curiosity
or friendliness. They simply started at the strangers, paying most
attention to Jim and Eureka, for they had never before seen either a
horse or a cat and the children bore an outward resemblance to themselves.
file:///F|/rah/L.%20Frank%20Baum/Baum,%20L%2...20Dorothy%20And%20The%20Wizard%20In%20Oz.txt (10 of 84) [5/22/03 1:10:45 AM]
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file:///F|/rah/L.%20Frank%20Baum/Baum,%20L%20Frank%20-%20Oz%2004%20-%20Dorothy%20And%20The%20Wizard%20In%20Oz.txtDorothyandtheWizardinOzAFaithfulRecordofTheirAmazingAdventuresinanUndergroundWorld;andHowwiththeAidofTheirFriendsZebHugson,EurekatheKitten,andJimtheCab-Horse,TheyFinallyReachedtheWonderf...

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