More Surprises
CHAPTER 20
All that first day after the union of the two parties our friendsmarched steadily toward the wicker castle of Ugu the Shoemaker. Whennight came they camped in a little grove and passed a pleasant eveningtogether, although some of them were worried because Button-Bright wasstill lost.
"Perhaps," said Toto, as the animals lay grouped together for the night,"this Shoemaker who stole my growl, and who stole Ozma, has also stolenButton-Bright."
"How do you know that the Shoemaker stole your growl?" demanded theWoozy.
"He has stolen about everything else of value in Oz, hasn't he?" repliedthe dog.
"He has stolen everything he wants, perhaps," agreed the Lion; "but whatcould anyone want with your growl?"
"Well," said the dog, wagging his tail slowly, "my recollection is thatit was a wonderful growl, soft and low and--and--"
"And ragged at the edges," said the Sawhorse.
"So," continued Toto, "if that magician hadn't any growl of his own, hemight have wanted mine and stolen it."
"And, if he has, he will soon wish he hadn't," remarked the Mule. "Also,if he has stolen Button-Bright he will be sorry."
"Don't you like Button-Bright, then?" asked the Lion in surprise.
"It isn't a question of liking him," replied the Mule. "It's a questionof watching him and looking after him. Any boy who causes his friends somuch worry isn't worth having around. _I_ never get lost."
"If you did," said Toto, "no one would worry a bit. I thinkButton-Bright is a very lucky boy, because he always gets found."
"See here," said the Lion, "this chatter is keeping us all awake andto-morrow is likely to be a busy day. Go to sleep and forget yourquarrels."
"Friend Lion," retorted the dog, "if I hadn't lost my growl you wouldhear it now. I have as much right to talk as you have to sleep."
The Lion sighed.
"If only you had lost your voice, when you lost your growl," said he,"you would be a more agreeable companion."
But they quieted down, after that, and soon the entire camp was wrappedin slumber.
Next morning they made an early start but had hardly proceeded on theirway an hour when, on climbing a slight elevation, they beheld in thedistance a low mountain, on top of which stood Ugu's wicker castle. Itwas a good-sized building and rather pretty because the sides, roofs anddomes were all of wicker closely woven, as it is in fine baskets.
"I wonder if it is strong?" said Dorothy musingly, as she eyed the queercastle.
"I suppose it is, since a magician built it," answered the Wizard."With magic to protect it, even a paper castle might be as strong as ifmade of stone. This Ugu must be a man of ideas, because he does thingsin a different way from other people."
"Yes; no one else would steal our dear Ozma," sighed tiny Trot.
"I wonder if Ozma is there?" said Betsy, indicating the castle with anod of her head.
"Where else could she be?" asked Scraps.
"S'pose we ask the Pink Bear," suggested Dorothy.
That seemed a good idea, so they halted the procession and the Bear Kingheld the little Pink Bear on his lap and turned the crank in its sideand asked:
"Where is Ozma of Oz?"
And the little Pink Bear answered:
"She is in a hole in the ground, a half mile away, at your left."
"Good gracious!" cried Dorothy. "Then she is not in Ugu's castle atall."
"It is lucky we asked that question," said the Wizard; "for, if we canfind Ozma and rescue her, there will be no need for us to fight thatwicked and dangerous magician."
"Indeed!" said Cayke. "Then what about my dishpan?"
The Wizard looked puzzled at her tone of remonstrance, so she added:
"Didn't you people from the Emerald City promise that we would all sticktogether, and that you would help me to get my dishpan if I would helpyou to get your Ozma? And didn't I bring to you the little Pink Bear,which has told you where Ozma is hidden?"
"She's right," said Dorothy to the Wizard. "We must do as we agreed."
"Well, first of all, let us go and rescue Ozma," proposed the Wizard."Then our beloved Ruler may be able to advise us how to conquer Ugu theShoemaker."
So they turned to the left and marched for half a mile until they cameto a small but deep hole in the ground. At once all rushed to the brimto peer into the hole, but instead of finding there Princess Ozma of Oz,all that they saw was Button-Bright, who was lying asleep on the bottom.
Their cries soon wakened the boy, who sat up and rubbed his eyes. Whenhe recognized his friends he smiled sweetly, saying: "Found again!"
"Where is Ozma?" inquired Dorothy anxiously.
"I don't know," answered Button-Bright from the depths of the hole. "Igot lost, yesterday, as you may remember, and in the night, while I waswandering around in the moonlight, trying to find my way back to you, Isuddenly fell into this hole."
"And wasn't Ozma in it then?"
"There was no one in it but me, and I was sorry it wasn't entirelyempty. The sides are so steep I can't climb out, so there was nothing tobe done but sleep until someone found me. Thank you for coming. Ifyou'll please let down a rope I'll empty this hole in a hurry."
"How strange!" said Dorothy, greatly disappointed. "It's evident thePink Bear didn't tell us the truth."
"He never makes a mistake," declared the Lavender Bear King, in a tonethat showed his feelings were hurt. And then he turned the crank of thelittle Pink Bear again and asked: "Is this the hole that Ozma of Oz isin?"
"Yes," answered the Pink Bear.
"That settles it," said the King, positively. "Your Ozma is in this holein the ground."
"Don't be silly," returned Dorothy impatiently. "Even your beady eyescan see there is no one in the hole but Button-Bright."
"Perhaps Button-Bright is Ozma," suggested the King.
"And perhaps he isn't! Ozma is a girl, and Button-Bright is a boy."
"Your Pink Bear must be out of order," said the Wizard; "for, this timeat least, his machinery has caused him to make an untrue statement."
The Bear King was so angry at this remark that he turned away, holdingthe Pink Bear in his paws, and refused to discuss the matter in anyfurther way.
"At any rate," said the Frogman, "the Pink Bear has led us to your boyfriend and so enabled you to rescue him."
Scraps was leaning so far over the hole, trying to find Ozma in it, thatsuddenly she lost her balance and pitched in headforemost. She fell uponButton-Bright and tumbled him over, but he was not hurt by her softstuffed body and only laughed at the mishap. The Wizard buckled somestraps together and let one end of them down into the hole, and soonboth Scraps and the boy had climbed up and were standing safely besidethe others.
They looked once more for Ozma, but the hole was now absolutely vacant.It was a round hole, so from the top they could plainly see every partof it. Before they left the place Dorothy went to the Bear King andsaid:
"I'm sorry we couldn't believe what the little Pink Bear said, 'cause wedon't want to make you feel bad by doubting him. There must be amistake, somewhere, and we prob'ly don't understand just what the littlePink Bear means. Will you let me ask him one more question?"
The Lavender Bear King was a good-natured bear, considering how he wasmade and stuffed and jointed, so he accepted Dorothy's apology andturned the crank and allowed the little girl to question his wee PinkBear.
"Is Ozma _really_ in this hole?" asked Dorothy.
"No," said the little Pink Bear.
This surprised everybody. Even the Bear King was now puzzled by thecontradictory statements of his oracle.
"Where _is_ she?" asked the King.
"Here, among you," answered the little Pink Bear.
"Well," said Dorothy, "this beats me, entirely! I guess the little PinkBear has gone crazy."
"Perhaps," called Scraps, who was rapidly turning "cart-wheels" allaround the perplexed group, "Ozma is invisible."
"Of course!" cried
Betsy. "That would account for it."
"Well, I've noticed that people can speak, even when they've been madeinvisible," said the Wizard. And then he looked all around him and saidin a solemn voice: "Ozma, are you here?"
There was no reply. Dorothy asked the question, too, and so didButton-Bright and Trot and Betsy; but none received any reply at all.
"It's strange--it's terrible strange!" muttered Cayke the Cookie Cook."I was sure that the little Pink Bear always tells the truth."
"I still believe in his honesty," said the Frogman, and this tribute sopleased the Bear King that he gave these last speakers grateful looks,but still gazed sourly on the others.
"Come to think of it," remarked the Wizard, "Ozma couldn't be invisible,for she is a fairy and fairies cannot be made invisible against theirwill. Of course she could be imprisoned by the magician, or evenenchanted, or transformed, in spite of her fairy powers; but Ugu couldnot render her invisible by any magic at his command."
"I wonder if she's been transformed into Button-Bright?" said Dorothynervously. Then she looked steadily at the boy and asked: "Are you Ozma?Tell me truly!"
Button-Bright laughed.
"You're getting rattled, Dorothy," he replied. "Nothing ever enchants_me_. If I were Ozma, do you think I'd have tumbled into that hole?"
"Anyhow," said the Wizard, "Ozma would never try to deceive her friends,or prevent them from recognizing her, in whatever form she happened tobe. The puzzle is still a puzzle, so let us go on to the wicker castleand question the magician himself. Since it was he who stole our Ozma,Ugu is the one who must tell us where to find her."
The Lost Princess of Oz Page 21