When the Wizard awoke the
six colored suns were shining
down upon the Land of the Mangaboos
just as they had done ever
since his arrival. The little
man, having had a good sleep,
felt rested and refreshed,
and looking through the glass
partition of the room he saw
Zeb sitting up on his bench
and yawning. So the Wizard
went in to him.
"Zeb," said he, "my
balloon
is of no further use in this
strange country, so I may as
well leave it on the square
where it fell. But in the basket-car
are some things I would like
to keep with me. I wish you
would go and fetch my satchel,
two lanterns, and a can of
kerosene oil that is under
the seat. There is nothing
else that I care about."
So the boy went willingly
upon the errand, and by the
time he had returned Dorothy
was awake. Then the three held
a counsel to decide what they
should do next, but could think
of no way to better their condition.
"I don't like these veg'table
people," said the little girl. "They're
cold and flabby, like cabbages,
in spite of their prettiness."
"I agree with you. It is
because there is no warm blood
in them," remarked the Wizard.
"And they have no hearts;
so they can't love anyone--not
even themselves," declared
the boy.
"The Princess is lovely to
look at," continued Dorothy,
thoughtfully; "but I don't
care much for her, after all.
If there was any other place
to go, I'd like to go there."
"But IS there any other place?" asked
the Wizard.
"I don't know," she
answered.
Just then they heard the
big voice of Jim the cab-horse
calling to them, and going
to the doorway leading to the
dome they found the Princess
and a throng of her people
had entered the House of the
Sorcerer.
So they went down to greet
the beautiful vegetable lady,
who said to them:
"I
have been
talking
with my
advisors
about you
meat
people, and we have decided
that you do not belong in the
Land of the Mangaboos and must
not remain here."
"How can we go away?" asked
Dorothy.
"Oh, you cannot go away,
of course; so you must be destroyed," was
the answer.
"In what way?" enquired
the Wizard.
"We shall throw you three
people into the Garden of the
Twining Vines," said the Princess, "and
they will soon crush you and
devour your bodies to make
themselves grow bigger. The
animals you have with you we
will drive to the mountains
and put into the Black Pit.
Then our country will be rid
of all its unwelcome visitors."
"But you are in need of a
Sorcerer," said the Wizard, "and
not one of those growing is
yet ripe enough to pick. I
am greater than any thorn-covered
sorcerer that every grew in
your garden. Why destroy me?"
"It is true we need a Sorcerer," acknowledged
the Princess, "but I am informed
that one of our own will be
ready to pick in a few days,
to take the place of Gwig,
whom you cut in two before
it was time for him to be planted.
Let us see your arts, and the
sorceries you are able to perform.
Then I will decide whether
to destroy you with the others
or not."
At this the Wizard made a
bow to the people and repeated
his trick of producing the
nine tiny piglets and making
them disappear again. He did
it very cleverly, indeed, and
the Princess looked at the
strange piglets as if she were
as truly astonished as any
vegetable person could be.
But afterward she said:
"I
have heard
of this
wonderful
magic. But it accomplishes
nothing of value. What else
can you do?"
The Wizard tried to think.
Then he jointed together the
blades of his sword and balanced
it very skillfully upon the
end of his nose. But even that
did not satisfy the Princess.
Just then his eye fell upon
the lanterns and the can of
kerosene oil which Zeb had
brought from the car of his
balloon, and he got a clever
idea from those commonplace
things.
"Your Highness," said he, "I
will now proceed to prove my
magic by creating two suns
that you have never seen before;
also I will exhibit a Destroyer
much more dreadful that your
Clinging Vines."
So he placed Dorothy upon
one side of him and the boy
upon the other and set a lantern
upon each of their heads.
"Don't laugh," he whispered
to them, "or you will spoil
the effect of my magic."
Then, with much dignity and
a look of vast importance upon
his wrinkled face, the Wizard
got out his match-box and lighted
the two lanterns. The glare
they made was very small when
compared with the radiance
of the six great colored suns;
but still they gleamed steadily
and clearly. The Mangaboos
were much impressed because
they had never before seen
any light that did not come
directly from their suns.
Next the Wizard poured a
pool of oil from the can upon
the glass floor, where it covered
quite a broad surface. When
he lighted the oil a hundred
tongues of flame shot up, and
the effect was really imposing.
"Now, Princess," exclaimed
the Wizard, "those of your
advisors who wished to throw
us into the Garden of Clinging
Vines must step within this
circle of light. If they advised
you well, and were in the right,
they will not be injured in
any way. But if any advised
you wrongly, the light will
wither him."
The advisors of the Princess
did not like this test; but
she commanded them to step
into the flame and one by one
they did so, and were scorched
so badly that the air was soon
filled with an odor like that
of baked potatoes. Some of
the Mangaboos fell down and
had to be dragged from the
fire, and all were so withered
that it would be necessary
to plant them at once.
"Sir," said the Princess
to the Wizard, "you are greater
than any Sorcerer we have ever
known. As it is evident that
my people have advised me wrongly,
I will not cast you three people
into the dreadful Garden of
the Clinging Vines; but your
animals must be driven into
the Black Pit in the mountain,
for my subjects cannot bear
to have them around."
The Wizard was so pleased
to have saved the two children
and himself that he said nothing
against this decree; but when
the Princess had gone both
Jim and Eureka protested they
did not want to go to the Black
Pit, and Dorothy promised she
would do all that she could
to save them from such a fate.
For two or three days after
this--if we call days the periods
between sleep, there being
no night to divide the hours
into days--our friends were
not disturbed in any way. They
were even permitted to occupy
the House of the Sorcerer in
peace, as if it had been their
own, and to wander in the gardens
in search of food.
Once they came near to the
enclosed Garden of the Clinging
Vines, and walking high into
the air looked down upon it
with much interest. They saw
a mass of tough green vines
all matted together and writhing
and twisting around like a
nest of great snakes. Everything
the vines touched they crushed,
and our adventurers were indeed
thankful to have escaped being
cast among them.
Whenever the Wizard went
to sleep he would take the
nine tiny piglets from his
pocket and let them run around
on the floor of his room to
amuse themselves and get some
exercise; and one time they
found his glass door ajar and
wandered into the hall and
then into the bottom part of
the great dome, walking through
the air as easily as Eureka
could. They knew the kitten,
by this time, so they scampered
over to where she lay beside
Jim and commenced to frisk
and play with her.
The cab-horse, who never
slept long at a time, sat upon
his haunches and watched the
tiny piglets and the kitten
with much approval.
"Don't be rough!" he
would call
out, if
Eureka
knocked
over one of the round, fat
piglets with her paw; but the
pigs never minded, and enjoyed
the sport very greatly.
Suddenly they looked up to
find the room filled with the
silent, solemn-eyed Mangaboos.
Each of the vegetable folks
bore a branch covered with
sharp thorns, which was thrust
defiantly toward the horse,
the kitten and the piglets.
"Here--stop this foolishness!" Jim
roared, angrily; but after
being pricked once or twice
he got upon his four legs and
kept out of the way of the
thorns.
The Mangaboos surrounded
them in solid ranks, but left
an opening to the doorway of
the hall; so the animals slowly
retreated until they were driven
from the room and out upon
the street. Here were more
of the vegetable people with
thorns,and silently they urged
the now frightened creatures
down the street. Jim had to
be careful not to step upon
the tiny piglets, who scampered
under his feet grunting and
squealing, while Eureka, snarling
and biting at the thorns pushed
toward her, also tried to protect
the pretty little things from
injury. Slowly but steadily
the heartless Mangaboos drove
them on, until they had passed
through the city and the gardens
and come to the broad plains
leading to the mountain.
"What does all this mean,
anyhow?" asked the horse, jumping
to escape a thorn.
"Why, they are driving us
toward the Black Pit, into
which they threatened to cast
us," replied the kitten. "If
I were as big as you are, Jim,
I'd fight these miserable turnip-roots!"
"What would you do?" enquired
Jim.
"I'd
kick out
with those
long legs and iron-shod hoofs."
"All right," said the horse; "I'll
do it."
An instant later he suddenly
backed toward the crowd of
Mangaboos and kicked out his
hind legs as hard as he could.
A dozen of them smashed together
and tumbled to the ground,
and seeing his success Jim
kicked again and again, charging
into the vegetable crowd, knocking
them in all directions and
sending the others scattering
to escape his iron heels. Eureka
helped him by flying into the
faces of the enemy and scratching
and biting furiously, and the
kitten ruined so many vegetable
complexions that the Mangaboos
feared her as much as they
did the horse.
But the foes were too many
to be repulsed for long. They
tired Jim and Eureka out, and
although the field of battle
was thickly covered with mashed
and disabled Mangaboos, our
animal friends had to give
up at last and allow themselves
to be driven to the mountain.
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