Rinkitink in Oz
Page 16
Chapter Sixteen
Nikobob Refuses a Crown
Almost the first persons that Zella saw when she landed from thesilver-lined boat at Regos were her father and mother. Nikobob and hiswife had been greatly worried when their little daughter failed toreturn from Coregos, so they had set out to discover what had become ofher. When they reached the City of Regos, that very morning, they wereastonished to hear news of all the strange events that had taken place;still, they found comfort when told that Zella had been seen in theboat of Prince Inga, which had gone to the north. Then, while theywondered what this could mean, the silver-lined boat appeared again,with their daughter in it, and they ran down to the shore to give her awelcome and many joyful kisses.
Inga invited the good people to the palace of King Gos, where heconferred with them, as well as with Rinkitink and Bilbil.
"Now that the King and Queen of Regos and Coregos have run away," hesaid, "there is no one to rule these islands. So it is my duty toappoint a new ruler, and as Nikobob, Zella's father, is an honest andworthy man, I shall make him the King of the Twin Islands."
"Me?" cried Nikobob, astounded by this speech. "I beg Your Highness, onmy bended knees, not to do so cruel a thing as to make me King!"
"Why not?" inquired Rinkitink. "I'm a King, and I know how it feels. Iassure you, good Nikobob, that I quite enjoy my high rank, although ajeweled crown is rather heavy to wear in hot weather."
"With you, noble sir, it is different," said Nikobob, "for you are farfrom your kingdom and its trials and worries and may do as you please.But to remain in Regos, as King over these fierce and unruly warriors,would be to live in constant anxiety and peril, and the chances arethat they would murder me within a month. As I have done no harm toanyone and have tried to be a good and upright man, I do not think thatI should be condemned to such a dreadful fate."
"Very well," replied Inga, "we will say no more about your being King.I merely wanted to make you rich and prosperous, as I had promisedZella."
"Please forget that promise," pleaded the charcoal-burner, earnestly;"I have been safe from molestation for many years, because I was poorand possessed nothing that anyone else could envy. But if you make merich and prosperous I shall at once become the prey of thieves andmarauders and probably will lose my life in the attempt to protect myfortune."
Inga looked at the man in surprise.
"What, then, can I do to please you?" he inquired.
"Nothing more than to allow me to go home to my poor cabin," saidNikobob.
"Perhaps," remarked King Rinkitink, "the charcoal-burner has morewisdom concealed in that hard head of his than we gave him credit for.But let us use that wisdom, for the present, to counsel us what to doin this emergency."
"What you call my wisdom," said Nikobob, "is merely common sense. Ihave noticed that some men become rich, and are scorned by some androbbed by others. Other men become famous, and are mocked at andderided by their fellows. But the poor and humble man who livesunnoticed and unknown escapes all these troubles and is the only onewho can appreciate the joy of living."
"If I had a hand, instead of a cloven hoof, I'd like to shake handswith you, Nikobob," said Bilbil the goat. "But the poor man must nothave a cruel master, or he is undone."
During the council they found, indeed, that the advice of thecharcoal-burner was both shrewd and sensible, and they profited much byhis words.
Inga gave Captain Buzzub the command of the warriors and made himpromise to keep his men quiet and orderly--if he could. Then the boyallowed all of King Gos's former slaves, except those who came fromPingaree, to choose what boats they required and to stock them withprovisions and row away to their own countries. When these haddeparted, with grateful thanks and many blessings showered upon the boyPrince who had set them free, Inga made preparations to send his ownpeople home, where they were told to rebuild their houses and thenerect a new royal palace. They were then to await patiently the comingof King Kitticut or Prince Inga.
"My greatest worry," said the boy to his friends, "is to know whom toappoint to take charge of this work of restoring Pingaree to its formercondition. My men are all pearl fishers, and although willing andhonest, have no talent for directing others how to work."
While the preparations for departure were being made, Nikobob offeredto direct the men of Pingaree, and did so in a very capable manner. Asthe island had been despoiled of all its valuable furniture anddraperies and rich cloths and paintings and statuary and the like, aswell as gold and silver and ornaments, Inga thought it no more thanjust that they be replaced by the spoilers. So he directed his peopleto search through the storehouses of King Gos and to regain all theirgoods and chattels that could be found. Also he instructed them to takeas much else as they required to make their new homes comfortable, sothat many boats were loaded full of goods that would enable the peopleto restore Pingaree to its former state of comfort.
For his father's new palace the boy plundered the palaces of both QueenCor and King Gos, sending enough wares away with his people to makeKing Kitticut's new residence as handsomely fitted and furnished as hadbeen the one which the ruthless invaders from Regos had destroyed.
It was a great fleet of boats that set out one bright, sunny morning onthe voyage to Pingaree, carrying all the men, women and children andall the goods for refitting their homes. As he saw the fleet depart,Prince Inga felt that he had already successfully accomplished a partof his mission, but he vowed he would never return to Pingaree inperson until he could take his father and mother there with him;unless, indeed, King Gos wickedly destroyed his beloved parents, inwhich case Inga would become the King of Pingaree and it would be hisduty to go to his people and rule over them.
It was while the last of the boats were preparing to sail for Pingareethat Nikobob, who had been of great service in getting them ready, cameto Inga in a thoughtful mood and said:
"Your Highness, my wife and my daughter Zella have been urging me toleave Regos and settle down in your island, in a new home. From whatyour people have told me, Pingaree is a better place to live thanRegos, and there are no cruel warriors or savage beasts there to keepone in constant fear for the safety of those he loves. Therefore, Ihave come to ask to go with my family in one of the boats."
Inga was much pleased with this proposal and not only granted Nikobobpermission to go to Pingaree to live, but instructed him to take withhim sufficient goods to furnish his new home in a comfortable manner.In addition to this, he appointed Nikobob general manager of thebuildings and of the pearl fisheries, until his father or he himselfarrived, and the people approved this order because they liked Nikoboband knew him to be just and honest.
Soon as the last boat of the great flotilla had disappeared from theview of those left at Regos, Inga and Rinkitink prepared to leave theisland themselves. The boy was anxious to overtake the boat of KingGos, if possible, and Rinkitink had no desire to remain in Regos.
Buzzub and the warriors stood silently on the shore and watched theblack boat with its silver lining depart, and I am sure they were asglad to be rid of their unwelcome visitors as Inga and Rinkitink andBilbil were to leave.
The boy asked the White Pearl what direction the boat of King Gos hadtaken and then he followed after it, rowing hard and steadily for eightdays without becoming at all weary. But, although the black boat movedvery swiftly, it failed to overtake the barge which was rowed by QueenCor's forty picked oarsmen.