Chapter Twenty Three
The Pearl Kingdom
It was unfortunate that the famous Scarecrow--the most popular personin all Oz, next to Ozma--was absent at the time of the banquet, for hehappened just then to be making one of his trips through the country;but the Scarecrow had a chance later to meet Rinkitink and Inga and theKing and Queen of Pingaree and Prince Bobo, for the party remainedseveral weeks at the Emerald City, where they were royally entertained,and where both the gentle Queen Garee and the noble King Kitticutrecovered much of their good spirits and composure and tried to forgettheir dreadful experiences.
At last, however, the King and Queen desired to return to their ownPingaree, as they longed to be with their people again and see how wellthey had rebuilt their homes. Inga also was anxious to return, althoughhe had been very happy in Oz, and King Rinkitink, who was happyanywhere except at Gilgad, decided to go with his former friends toPingaree. As for prince Bobo, he had become so greatly attached to KingRinkitink that he was loth to leave him.
On a certain day they all bade good-bye to Ozma and Dorothy and Glindaand the Wizard and all their good friends in Oz, and were driven in theRed Wagon to the edge of the Deadly Desert, which they crossed safelyon the Magic Carpet. They then made their way across the Nome Kingdomand the Wheeler Country, where no one molested them, to the shores ofthe Nonestic Ocean. There they found the boat with the silver liningstill lying undisturbed on the beach.
There were no important adventures during the trip and on their arrivalat the pearl kingdom they were amazed at the beautiful appearance ofthe island they had left in ruins. All the houses of the people hadbeen rebuilt and were prettier than before, with green lawns beforethem and flower gardens in the back yards. The marble towers of KingKitticut's new palace were very striking and impressive, while thepalace itself proved far more magnificent than it had been before thewarriors from Regos destroyed it.
Nikobob had been very active and skillful in directing all this work,and he had also built a pretty cottage for himself, not far from theKing's palace, and there Inga found Zella, who was living very happyand contented in her new home. Not only had Nikobob accomplished allthis in a comparatively brief space of time, but he had started thepearl fisheries again and when King Kitticut returned to Pingaree hefound a quantity of fine pearls already in the royal treasury.
So pleased was Kitticut with the good judgment, industry and honesty ofthe former charcoal-burner of Regos, that he made Nikobob his Lord HighChamberlain and put him in charge of the pearl fisheries and all thebusiness matters of the island kingdom.
They all settled down very comfortably in the new palace and the Queengathered her maids about her once more and set them to workembroidering new draperies for the royal throne. Inga placed the threeMagic Pearls in their silken bag and again deposited them in the secretcavity under the tiled flooring of the banquet hall, where they couldbe quickly secured if danger ever threatened the now prosperous island.
King Rinkitink occupied a royal guest chamber built especially for hisuse and seemed in no hurry to leave his friends in Pingaree. The fatlittle King had to walk wherever he went and so missed Bilbil more andmore; but he seldom walked far and he was so fond of Prince BoBo thathe never regretted Bilbil's disenchantment.
Indeed, the jolly monarch was welcome to remain forever in Pingaree, ifhe wished to, for his merry disposition set smiles on the faces of allhis friends and made everyone near him as jolly as he was himself. WhenKing Kitticut was not too busy with affairs of state he loved to joinhis guest and listen to his brother monarch's songs and stories. For hefound Rinkitink to be, with all his careless disposition, a shrewdphilosopher, and in talking over their adventures one day the King ofGilgad said:
"The beauty of life is its sudden changes. No one knows what is goingto happen next, and so we are constantly being surprised andentertained. The many ups and downs should not discourage us, for if weare down, we know that a change is coming and we will go up again;while those who are up are almost certain to go down. My grandfatherhad a song which well expresses this and if you will listen I will singit."
"Of course I will listen to your song," returned Kitticut, "for itwould be impolite not to."
So Rinkitink sang his grandfather's song:
"A mighty King once ruled the land-- But now he's baking pies. A pauper, on the other hand, Is ruling, strong and wise.
A tiger once in jungles raged-- But now he's in a zoo; A lion, captive-born and caged, Now roams the forest through.
A man once slapped a poor boy's pate And made him weep and wail. The boy became a magistrate And put the man in jail.
A sunny day succeeds the night; It's summer--then it snows! Right oft goes wrong and wrong comes right, As ev'ry wise man knows."
Chapter Twenty-Four
The Captive King
One morning, just as the royal party was finishing breakfast, a servantcame running to say that a great fleet of boats was approaching theisland from the south. King Kitticut sprang up at once, in great alarm,for he had much cause to fear strange boats. The others quicklyfollowed him to the shore to see what invasion might be coming uponthem.
Inga was there with the first, and Nikobob and Zella soon joined thewatchers. And presently, while all were gazing eagerly at theapproaching fleet, King Rinkitink suddenly cried out:
"Get your pearls, Prince Inga--get them quick!"
"Are these our enemies, then?" asked the boy, looking with surpriseupon the fat little King, who had begun to tremble violently.
"They are my people of Gilgad!" answered Rinkitink, wiping a tear fromhis eye. "I recognize my royal standards flying from the boats. So,please, dear Inga, get out your pearls to protect me!"
"What can you fear at the hands of your own subjects?" asked Kitticut,astonished.
But before his frightened guest could answer the question Prince Bobo,who was standing beside his friend, gave an amused laugh and said:
"You are caught at last, dear Rinkitink. Your people will take you homeagain and oblige you to reign as King."
Rinkitink groaned aloud and clasped his hands together with a gestureof despair, an attitude so comical that the others could scarcelyforbear laughing.
But now the boats were landing upon the beach. They were fifty innumber, beautifully decorated and upholstered and rowed by men clad inthe gay uniforms of the King of Gilgad. One splendid boat had a throneof gold in the center, over which was draped the King's royal robe ofpurple velvet, embroidered with gold buttercups.
Rinkitink shuddered when he saw this throne; but now a tall man,handsomely dressed, approached and knelt upon the grass before hisKing, while all the other occupants of the boats shouted joyfully andwaved their plumed hats in the air.
"Thanks to our good fortune," said the man who kneeled, "we have foundYour Majesty at last!"
"Pinkerbloo," answered Rinkitink sternly, "I must have you hanged, forthus finding me against my will."
"You think so now, Your Majesty, but you will never do it," returnedPinkerbloo, rising and kissing the King's hand.
"Why won't I?" asked Rinkitink.
"Because you are much too tender-hearted, Your Majesty."
"It may be--it may be," agreed Rinkitink, sadly. "It is one of mygreatest failings. But what chance brought you here, my LordPinkerbloo?"
"We have searched for you everywhere, sire, and all the people ofGilgad have been in despair since you so mysteriously disappeared. Wecould not appoint a new King, because we did not know but that youstill lived; so we set out to find you, dead or alive. After visitingmany islands of the Nonestic Ocean we at last thought of Pingaree, fromwhere come the precious pearls; and now our faithful quest has beenrewarded."
"And what now?" asked Rinkitink.
"Now, Your Majesty, you must come home with us, like a good and dutifulKing, and rule over your people," declared the man in a firm voice.
"I will not."
"But you must--begging Your Maj
esty's pardon for the contradiction."
"Kitticut," cried poor Rinkitink, "you must save me from being capturedby these, my subjects. What! must I return to Gilgad and be forced toreign in splendid state when I much prefer to eat and sleep and sing inmy own quiet way? They will make me sit in a throne three hours a dayand listen to dry and tedious affairs of state; and I must stand up forhours at the court receptions, till I get corns on my heels; andforever must I listen to tiresome speeches and endless petitions andcomplaints!"
"But someone must do this, Your Majesty," said Pinkerbloo respectfully,"and since you were born to be our King you cannot escape your duty."
"'Tis a horrid fate!" moaned Rinkitink. "I would die willingly, ratherthan be a King--if it did not hurt so terribly to die."
"You will find it much more comfortable to reign than to die, althoughI fully appreciate Your Majesty's difficult position and am truly sorryfor you," said Pinkerbloo.
King Kitticut had listened to this conversation thoughtfully, so now hesaid to his friend:
"The man is right, dear Rinkitink. It is your duty to reign, since fatehas made you a King, and I see no honorable escape for you. I shallgrieve to lose your companionship, but I feel the separation cannot beavoided."
Rinkitink sighed.
"Then," said he, turning to Lord Pinkerbloo, "in three days I willdepart with you for Gilgad; but during those three days I propose tofeast and make merry with my good friend King Kitticut."
Then all the people of Gilgad shouted with delight and eagerlyscrambled ashore to take their part in the festival.
Those three days were long remembered in Pingaree, for never--beforenor since--has such feasting and jollity been known upon that island.Rinkitink made the most of his time and everyone laughed and sang withhim by day and by night.
Then, at last, the hour of parting arrived and the King of Gilgad andRuler of the Dominion of Rinkitink was escorted by a grand processionto his boat and seated upon his golden throne. The rowers of the fiftyboats paused, with their glittering oars pointed into the air likegigantic uplifted sabres, while the people of Pingaree--men, women andchildren--stood upon the shore shouting a royal farewell to the jollyKing.
Then came a sudden hush, while Rinkitink stood up and, with a bow tothose assembled to witness his departure, sang the following song,which he had just composed for the occasion.
"Farewell, dear Isle of Pingaree-- The fairest land in all the sea! No living mortals, kings or churls, Would scorn to wear thy precious pearls.
"King Kitticut, 'tis with regret I'm forced to say farewell; and yet Abroad no longer can I roam When fifty boats would drag me home.
"Good-bye, my Prince of Pingaree; A noble King some time you'll be And long and wisely may you reign And never face a foe again!"
They cheered him from the shore; they cheered him from the boats; andthen all the oars of the fifty boats swept downward with a singlemotion and dipped their blades into the purple-hued waters of theNonestic Ocean.
As the boats shot swiftly over the ripples of the sea Rinkitink turnedto Prince Bobo, who had decided not to desert his former master and hispresent friend, and asked anxiously:
"How did you like that song, Bilbil--I mean Bobo? Is it a masterpiece,do you think?"
And Bobo replied with a smile:
"Like all your songs, dear Rinkitink, the sentiment far excels thepoetry."
The Wonderful Oz Books
by L. Frank Baum
1 The Wizard of Oz 2 The Land of Oz 3 Ozma of Oz 4 Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz 5 The Road to Oz 6 The Emerald City of Oz 7 The Patchwork Girl of Oz 8 Tik-Tok of Oz 9 The Scarecrow of Oz 10 Rinkitink in Oz 11 The Lost Princess of Oz 12 The Tin Woodman of Oz 13 The Magic of Oz 14 Glinda of Oz
Rinkitink in Oz Page 23