L. Frank Baum_Oz 14 (2 page)

"That is what is puzzling me also, your Majesty," said the Sorceress.
"It may be dangerous for you to go into those strange countries, where
the people are possibly fierce and warlike."

"I am not afraid," said Ozma, with a smile.

"'Tisn't a question of being 'fraid," argued Dorothy. "Of course we
know you're a fairy, and can't be killed or hurt, and we know you've a
lot of magic of your own to help you. But, Ozma dear, in spite of all
this you've been in trouble before, on account of wicked enemies, and
it isn't right for the Ruler of all Oz to put herself in danger."

"Perhaps I shall be in no danger at all," returned Ozma, with a little
laugh. "You mustn't imagine danger, Dorothy, for one should only
imagine nice things, and we do not know that the Skeezers and Flatheads
are wicked people or my enemies. Perhaps they would be good and listen
to reason."

"Dorothy is right, your Majesty," asserted the Sorceress. "It is true
we know nothing of these faraway subjects, except that they intend to
fight one another, and have a certain amount of magic power at their
command. Such folks do not like to submit to interference and they are
more likely to resent your coming among them than to receive you kindly
and graciously, as is your due."

"If you had an army to take with you," added Dorothy, "it wouldn't be
so bad; but there isn't such a thing as an army in all Oz."

"I have one soldier," said Ozma.

"Yes, the soldier with the green whiskers; but he's dreadful 'fraid of
his gun and never loads it. I'm sure he'd run rather than fight. And
one soldier, even if he were brave, couldn't do much against two
hundred and one Flatheads and Skeezers."

"What then, my friends, would you suggest?" inquired Ozma.

"I advise you to send the Wizard of Oz to them, and let him inform them
that it is against the laws of Oz to fight, and that you command them
to settle their differences and become friends," proposed Glinda. "Let
the Wizard tell them they will be punished if they refuse to obey the
commands of the Princess of all the Land of Oz."

Ozma shook her head, to indicate that the advice was not to her
satisfaction.

"If they refuse, what then?" she asked. "I should be obliged to carry
out my threat and punish them, and that would be an unpleasant and
difficult thing to do. I am sure it would be better for me to go
peacefully, without an army and armed only with my authority as Ruler,
and plead with them to obey me. Then, if they prove obstinate I could
resort to other means to win their obedience."

"It's a ticklish thing, anyhow you look at it," sighed Dorothy. "I'm
sorry now that I noticed the Record in the Great Book."

"But can't you realize, my dear, that I must do my duty, now that I am
aware of this trouble?" asked Ozma. "I am fully determined to go at
once to the Magic Isle of the Skeezers and to the enchanted mountain of
the Flatheads, and prevent war and strife between their inhabitants.
The only question to decide is whether it is better for me to go alone,
or to assemble a party of my friends and loyal supporters to accompany
me."

"If you go I want to go, too," declared Dorothy. "Whatever happens it's
going to be fun—'cause all excitement is fun—and I wouldn't miss it
for the world!"

Neither Ozma nor Glinda paid any attention to this statement, for they
were gravely considering the serious aspect of this proposed adventure.

"There are plenty of friends who would like to go with you," said the
Sorceress, "but none of them would afford your Majesty any protection
in case you were in danger. You are yourself the most powerful fairy in
Oz, although both I and the Wizard have more varied arts of magic at
our command. However, you have one art that no other in all the world
can equal—the art of winning hearts and making people love to bow to
your gracious presence. For that reason I believe you can accomplish
more good alone than with a large number of subjects in your train."

"I believe that also," agreed the Princess. "I shall be quite able to
take care of myself, you know, but might not be able to protect others
so well. I do not look for opposition, however. I shall speak to these
people in kindly words and settle their dispute—whatever it may be—in
a just manner."

"Aren't you going to take me?" pleaded Dorothy. "You'll need some
companion, Ozma."

The Princess smiled upon her little friend.

"I see no reason why you should not accompany me," was her reply. "Two
girls are not very warlike and they will not suspect us of being on any
errand but a kindly and peaceful one. But, in order to prevent war and
strife between these angry peoples, we must go to them at once. Let us
return immediately to the Emerald City and prepare to start on our
journey early tomorrow morning."

Glinda was not quite satisfied with this plan, but could not think of
any better way to meet the problem. She knew that Ozma, with all her
gentleness and sweet disposition, was accustomed to abide by any
decision she had made and could not easily be turned from her purpose.
Moreover she could see no great danger to the fairy Ruler of Oz in the
undertaking, even though the unknown people she was to visit proved
obstinate. But Dorothy was not a fairy; she was a little girl who had
come from Kansas to live in the Land of Oz. Dorothy might encounter
dangers that to Ozma would be as nothing but to an "Earth child" would
be very serious.

The very fact that Dorothy lived in Oz, and had been made a Princess by
her friend Ozma, prevented her from being killed or suffering any great
bodily pain as long as she lived in that fairyland. She could not grow
big, either, and would always remain the same little girl who had come
to Oz, unless in some way she left that fairyland or was spirited away
from it. But Dorothy was a mortal, nevertheless, and might possibly be
destroyed, or hidden where none of her friends could ever find her. She
could, for instance be cut into pieces, and the pieces, while still
alive and free from pain, could be widely scattered; or she might be
buried deep underground or "destroyed" in other ways by evil magicians,
were she not properly protected. These facts Glinda was considering
while she paced with stately tread her marble hall.

Finally the good Sorceress paused and drew a ring from her finger,
handing it to Dorothy.

"Wear this ring constantly until your return," she said to the girl.
"If serious danger threatens you, turn the ring around on your finger
once to the right and another turn to the left. That will ring the
alarm bell in my palace and I will at once come to your rescue. But do
not use the ring unless you are actually in danger of destruction.
While you remain with Princess Ozma I believe she will be able to
protect you from all lesser ills."

"Thank you, Glinda," responded Dorothy gratefully, as she placed the
ring on her finger. "I'm going to wear my Magic Belt which I took from
the Nome King, too, so I guess I'll be safe from anything the Skeezers
and Flatheads try to do to me."

Ozma had many arrangements to make before she could leave her throne
and her palace in the Emerald City, even for a trip of a few days, so
she bade goodbye to Glinda and with Dorothy climbed into the Red Wagon.
A word to the wooden Sawhorse started that astonishing creature on the
return journey, and so swiftly did he run that Dorothy was unable to
talk or do anything but hold tight to her seat all the way back to the
Emerald City.

Residing in Ozma's palace at this time was a live Scarecrow, a most
remarkable and intelligent creature who had once ruled the Land of Oz
for a brief period and was much loved and respected by all the people.
Once a Munchkin farmer had stuffed an old suit of clothes with straw
and put stuffed boots on the feet and used a pair of stuffed cotton
gloves for hands. The head of the Scarecrow was a stuffed sack fastened
to the body, with eyes, nose, mouth and ears painted on the sack. When
a hat had been put on the head, the thing was a good imitation of a
man. The farmer placed the Scarecrow on a pole in his cornfield and it
came to life in a curious manner. Dorothy, who was passing by the
field, was hailed by the live Scarecrow and lifted him off his pole. He
then went with her to the Emerald City, where the Wizard of Oz gave him
some excellent brains, and the Scarecrow soon became an important
personage.

Ozma considered the Scarecrow one of her best friends and most loyal
subjects, so the morning after her visit to Glinda she asked him to
take her place as Ruler of the Land of Oz while she was absent on a
journey, and the Scarecrow at once consented without asking any
questions.

Ozma had warned Dorothy to keep their journey a secret and say nothing
to anyone about the Skeezers and Flatheads until their return, and
Dorothy promised to obey. She longed to tell her girl friends, tiny
Trot and Betsy Bobbin, of the adventure they were undertaking, but
refrained from saying a word on the subject although both these girls
lived with her in Ozma's palace.

Indeed, only Glinda the Sorceress knew they were going, until after
they had gone, and even the Sorceress didn't know what their errand
might be.

Princess Ozma took the Sawhorse and the Red Wagon, although she was not
sure there was a wagon road all the way to the Lake of the Skeezers.
The Land of Oz is a pretty big place, surrounded on all sides by a
Deadly Desert which it is impossible to cross, and the Skeezer Country,
according to the map, was in the farthest northwestern part of Oz,
bordering on the north desert. As the Emerald City was exactly in the
center of Oz, it was no small journey from there to the Skeezers.

Around the Emerald City the country is thickly settled in every
direction, but the farther away you get from the city the fewer people
there are, until those parts that border on the desert have small
populations. Also those faraway sections are little known to the Oz
people, except in the south, where Glinda lives and where Dorothy has
often wandered on trips of exploration.

The least known of all is the Gillikin Country, which harbors many
strange bands of people among its mountains and valleys and forests and
streams, and Ozma was now bound for the most distant part of the
Gillikin Country.

"I am really sorry," said Ozma to Dorothy, as they rode away in the Red
Wagon, "not to know more about the wonderful Land I rule. It is my duty
to be acquainted with every tribe of people and every strange and
hidden country in all Oz, but I am kept so busy at my palace making
laws and planning for the comforts of those who live near the Emerald
City, that I do not often find time to make long journeys."

"Well," replied Dorothy, "we'll prob'bly find out a lot on this trip,
and we'll learn all about the Skeezers and Flatheads, anyhow. Time
doesn't make much diff'rence in the Land of Oz, 'cause we don't grow
up, or get old, or become sick and die, as they do other places; so, if
we explore one place at a time, we'll by-an'-by know all about every
nook and corner in Oz."

Dorothy wore around her waist the Nome King's Magic Belt, which
protected her from harm, and the Magic Ring which Glinda had given her
was on her finger. Ozma had merely slipped a small silver wand into the
bosom of her gown, for fairies do not use chemicals and herbs and the
tools of wizards and sorcerers to perform their magic. The Silver Wand
was Ozma's one weapon of offense and defense and by its use she could
accomplish many things.

They had left the Emerald City just at sunrise and the Sawhorse
traveled very swiftly over the roads towards the north, but in a few
hours the wooden animal had to slacken his pace because the farm houses
had become few and far between and often there were no paths at all in
the direction they wished to follow. At such times they crossed the
fields, avoiding groups of trees and fording the streams and rivulets
whenever they came to them. But finally they reached a broad hillside
closely covered with scrubby brush, through which the wagon could not
pass.

"It will be difficult even for you and me to get through without
tearing our dresses," said Ozma, "so we must leave the Sawhorse and the
Wagon here until our return."

"That's all right," Dorothy replied, "I'm tired riding, anyhow. Do you
s'pose, Ozma, we're anywhere near the Skeezer Country?"

"I cannot tell, Dorothy dear, but I know we've been going in the right
direction, so we are sure to find it in time."

The scrubby brush was almost like a grove of small trees, for it
reached as high as the heads of the two girls, neither of whom was very
tall. They were obliged to thread their way in and out, until Dorothy
was afraid they would get lost, and finally they were halted by a
curious thing that barred their further progress. It was a huge web—as
if woven by gigantic spiders—and the delicate, lacy film was fastened
stoutly to the branches of the bushes and continued to the right and
left in the form of a half circle. The threads of this web were of a
brilliant purple color and woven into numerous artistic patterns, but
it reached from the ground to branches above the heads of the girls and
formed a sort of fence that hedged them in.

"It doesn't look very strong, though," said Dorothy. "I wonder if we
couldn't break through." She tried but found the web stronger than it
seemed. All her efforts could not break a single thread.

"We must go back, I think, and try to get around this peculiar web,"
Ozma decided.

So they turned to the right and, following the web found that it seemed
to spread in a regular circle. On and on they went until finally Ozma
said they had returned to the exact spot from which they had started.
"Here is a handkerchief you dropped when we were here before," she said
to Dorothy.

"In that case, they must have built the web behind us, after we walked
into the trap," exclaimed the little girl.