stood her ground and said, reproachfully:
"Why, how now? Would you shoot a poor, defenceless girl?"
"No," replied the soldier; "for my gun isn't loaded."
"Not loaded?"
"No; for fear of accidents. And I've forgotten where I hid the powder
and shot to load it with. But if you'll wait a short time I'll try to
hunt them up."
"Don't trouble yourself," said Jinjur, cheerfully. Then she turned to
her Army and cried:
"Girls, the gun isn't loaded!"
"Hooray," shrieked the rebels, delighted at this good news, and they
proceeded to rush upon the Soldier with the Green Whiskers in such a
crowd that it was a wonder they didn't stick the knitting-needles into
one another.
But the Royal Army of Oz was too much afraid of women to meet the
onslaught. He simply turned about and ran with all his might through
the gate and toward the royal palace, while General Jinjur and her mob
flocked into the unprotected City.
In this way was the Emerald City captured without a drop of blood being
spilled. The Army of Revolt had become an Army of Conquerors!
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration:
The Scarecrow
Plans an escape
]
Tip slipped away from the girls and followed swiftly after the
Soldier with the Green Whiskers. The invading army entered the City
more slowly, for they stopped to dig emeralds out of the walls and
paving-stones with the points of their knitting-needles. So the Soldier
and the boy reached the palace before the news had spread that the City
was conquered.
The Scarecrow and Jack Pumpkinhead were still playing at quoits in
the courtyard when the game was interrupted by the abrupt entrance of
the Royal Army of Oz, who came flying in without his hat or gun, his
clothes in sad disarray and his long beard floating a yard behind him
as he ran.
"Tally one for me," said the Scarecrow, calmly. "What's wrong, my man?"
he added, addressing the Soldier.
"Oh! your Majesty--your Majesty! The City is conquered!" gasped the
Royal Army, who was all out of breath.
"This is quite sudden," said the Scarecrow. "But please go and bar all
the doors and windows of the palace, while I show this Pumpkinhead how
to throw a quoit."
The Soldier hastened to do this, while Tip, who had arrived at his
heels, remained in the courtyard to look at the Scarecrow with
wondering eyes.
His Majesty continued to throw the quoits as coolly as if no danger
threatened his throne, but the Pumpkinhead, having caught sight of Tip,
ambled toward the boy as fast as his wooden legs would go.
"Good afternoon, noble parent!" he cried, delightedly. "I'm glad to see
you are here. That terrible Saw-Horse ran away with me."
"I suspected it," said Tip. "Did you get hurt? Are you cracked at all?"
"No, I arrived safely," answered Jack, "and his Majesty has been very
kind indeed to me."
At this moment the Soldier with the Green Whiskers returned, and the
Scarecrow asked:
"By the way, who has conquered me?"
"A regiment of girls, gathered from the four corners of the Land of
Oz," replied the Soldier, still pale with fear.
"But where was my Standing Army at the time?" inquired his Majesty,
looking at the Soldier, gravely.
"Your Standing Army was running," answered the fellow, honestly; "for
no man could face the terrible weapons of the invaders."
"Well," said the Scarecrow, after a moment's thought, "I don't mind
much the loss of my throne, for it's a tiresome job to rule over the
Emerald City. And this crown is so heavy that it makes my head ache.
But I hope the Conquerors have no intention of injuring me, just
because I happen to be the King."
"I heard them say," remarked Tip, with some hesitation, "that
they intend to make a rag carpet of your outside and stuff their
sofa-cushions with your inside."
"Then I am really in danger," declared his Majesty, positively, "and it
will be wise for me to consider a means to escape."
"Where can you go?" asked Jack Pumpkinhead.
"Why, to my friend the Tin Woodman, who rules over the Winkies, and
calls himself their Emperor," was the answer. "I am sure he will
protect me."
[Illustration]
Tip was looking out of the window.
"The palace is surrounded by the enemy," said he. "It is too late to
escape. They would soon tear you to pieces."
The Scarecrow sighed.
"In an emergency," he announced, "it is always a good thing to pause
and reflect. Please excuse me while I pause and reflect."
"But we also are in danger," said the Pumpkinhead, anxiously. "If any
of these girls understand cooking, my end is not far off!"
"Nonsense!" exclaimed the Scarecrow; "they're too busy to cook, even if
they know how!"
"But should I remain here a prisoner for any length of time," protested
Jack, "I'm liable to spoil."
"Ah! then you would not be fit to associate with," returned the
Scarecrow. "The matter is more serious than I suspected."
"You," said the Pumpkinhead, gloomily, "are liable to live for many
years. My life is necessarily short. So I must take advantage of the
few days that remain to me."
"There, there! Don't worry," answered the Scarecrow, soothingly; "if
you'll keep quiet long enough for me to think, I'll try to find some
way for us all to escape."
So the others waited in patient silence while the Scarecrow walked to
a corner and stood with his face to the wall for a good five minutes.
At the end of that time he faced them with a more cheerful expression
upon his painted face.
"Where is the Saw-Horse you rode here?" he asked the Pumpkinhead.
"Why, I said he was a jewel, and so your man locked him up in the royal
treasury," said Jack.
"It was the only place I could think of, your Majesty," added the
Soldier, fearing he had made a blunder.
"It pleases me very much," said the Scarecrow. "Has the animal been
fed?"
"Oh, yes; I gave him a heaping peck of sawdust."
"Excellent!" cried the Scarecrow. "Bring the horse here at once."
The Soldier hastened away, and presently they heard the clattering
of the horse's wooden legs upon the pavement as he was led into the
courtyard.
His Majesty regarded the steed critically.
"He doesn't seem especially graceful," he remarked, musingly; "but I
suppose he can run?"
"He can, indeed," said Tip, gazing upon the Saw-Horse admiringly.
"Then, bearing us upon his back, he must make a dash through the ranks
of the rebels and carry us to my friend the Tin Woodman," announced the
Scarecrow.
"He can't carry four!" objected Tip.
"No, but he may be induced to carry three," said his Majesty. "I shall
therefore leave my Royal Army behind. For, from the ease with which he
was conquered, I have little confidence in his powers."
"Still, he can run," declared Tip, laughing.
"I expected this blow," said the Soldier, sulkily; "but I can bear it.
I shall disguise myself by cutting off my lovely green whiskers. And,
after all, it is no more dangerous to face those reckless girls than to
ride this fiery, untamed wooden horse!"
"Perhaps you are right," observed his Majesty. "But, for my part, not
being a soldier, I am fond of danger. Now, my boy, you must mount
first. And please sit as close to the horse's neck as possible."
Tip climbed quickly to his place, and the Soldier and the Scarecrow
managed to hoist the Pumpkinhead to a seat just behind him. There
remained so little space for the King that he was liable to fall off as
soon as the horse started.
"Fetch a clothesline," said the King to his Army, "and tie us all
together. Then if one falls off we will all fall off."
And while the Soldier was gone for the clothesline his Majesty
continued, "it is well for me to be careful, for my very existence is
in danger."
"I have to be as careful as you do," said Jack.
"Not exactly," replied the Scarecrow; "for if anything happened to me,
that would be the end of me. But if anything happened to you, they
could use you for seed."
The Soldier now returned with a long line and tied all three firmly
together, also lashing them to the body of the Saw-Horse; so there
seemed little danger of their tumbling off.
"Now throw open the gates," commanded the Scarecrow, "and we will make
a dash to liberty or to death."
The courtyard in which they were standing was located in the center of
the great palace, which surrounded it on all sides. But in one place a
passage led to an outer gateway, which the Soldier had barred by order
of his sovereign. It was through this gateway his Majesty proposed to
escape, and the Royal Army now led the Saw-Horse along the passage and
unbarred the gate, which swung backward with a loud crash.
"Now," said Tip to the horse, "you must save us all. Run as fast as you
can for the gate of the City, and don't let anything stop you."
"All right!" answered the Saw-Horse, gruffly, and dashed away so
suddenly that Tip had to gasp for breath and hold firmly to the post
he had driven into the creature's neck.
[Illustration: "WE WILL MAKE A DASH TO LIBERTY OR TO DEATH."]
Several of the girls, who stood outside guarding the palace, were
knocked over by the Saw-Horse's mad rush. Others ran screaming out of
the way, and only one or two jabbed their knitting-needles frantically
at the escaping prisoners. Tip got one small prick in his left arm,
which smarted for an hour afterward; but the needles had no effect upon
the Scarecrow or Jack Pumpkinhead, who never even suspected they were
being prodded.
As for the Saw-Horse, he made a wonderful record, upsetting a fruit
cart, overturning several meek looking men, and finally bowling over
the new Guardian of the Gate--a fussy little fat woman appointed by
General Jinjur.
Nor did the impetuous charger stop then. Once outside the walls of the
Emerald City he dashed along the road to the West with fast and violent
leaps that shook the breath out of the boy and filled the Scarecrow
with wonder.
Jack had ridden at this mad rate once before, so he devoted every
effort to holding, with both hands, his pumpkin head upon its
stick, enduring meantime the dreadful jolting with the courage of a
philosopher.
[Illustration: THE WOODEN STEED GAVE ONE FINAL LEAP.]
"Slow him up! Slow him up!" shouted the Scarecrow. "My straw is all
shaking down into my legs."
But Tip had no breath to speak, so the Saw-Horse continued his wild
career unchecked and with unabated speed.
Presently they came to the banks of a wide river, and without a pause
the wooden steed gave one final leap and launched them all in mid-air.
A second later they were rolling, splashing and bobbing about in the
water, the horse struggling frantically to find a rest for its feet
and its riders being first plunged beneath the rapid current and then
floating upon the surface like corks.
[Illustration]
[Illustration:
The Journey to the
Tin Woodman
]
Tip was well soaked and dripping water from every angle of his body;
but he managed to lean forward and shout in the ear of the Saw-Horse:
"Keep still, you fool! Keep still!"
The horse at once ceased struggling and floated calmly upon the
surface, its wooden body being as buoyant as a raft.
"What does that word 'fool' mean?" enquired the horse.
"It is a term of reproach," answered Tip, somewhat ashamed of the
expression. "I only use it when I am angry."
"Then it pleases me to be able to call you a fool, in return," said the
horse. "For I did not make the river, nor put it in our way; so only a
term of reproach is fit for one who becomes angry with me for falling
into the water."
"That is quite evident," replied Tip; "so I will acknowledge myself in
the wrong." Then he called out to the Pumpkinhead: "are you all right,
Jack?"
There was no reply. So the boy called to the King: "are you all right,
your majesty?"
The Scarecrow groaned.
"I'm all wrong, somehow," he said, in a weak voice. "How very wet this
water is!"
Tip was bound so tightly by the cord that he could not turn his head to
look at his companions; so he said to the Saw-Horse:
"Paddle with your legs toward the shore."
The horse obeyed, and although their progress was slow they finally
reached the opposite river bank at a place where it was low enough to
enable the creature to scramble upon dry land.
With some difficulty the boy managed to get his knife out of his pocket
and cut the cords that bound the riders to one another and to the
wooden horse. He heard the Scarecrow fall to the ground with a mushy
sound, and then he himself quickly dismounted and looked at his friend
Jack.
The wooden body, with its gorgeous clothing, still sat upright upon
the horse's back; but the pumpkin head was gone, and only the sharpened
stick that served for a neck was visible. As for the Scarecrow, the
straw in his body had shaken down with the jolting and packed itself
into his legs and the lower part of his body--which appeared very plump
and round while his upper half seemed like an empty sack. Upon his head
the Scarecrow still wore the heavy crown, which had been sewed on to
prevent his losing it; but the head was now so damp and limp that the
weight of the gold and jewels sagged forward and crushed the painted
face into a mass of wrinkles that made him look exactly like a Japanese
pug dog.
Tip would have laughed--had he not been so anxious about his man Jack.
But the Scarecrow, however damaged, was all there, while the pumpkin
head that was so necessary to Jack's existence was missing; so the boy
seized a long pole that fortunately lay near at hand and anxiously
turned again toward the river.
Far out upon the waters he sighted the golden hue of the pumpkin, which
gently bobbed up and down with the motion of the waves. At that moment
it was quite out of Tip's reach, but after a time it floated nearer
and still nearer until the boy was able to reach it with his pole
and draw it to the shore. Then he brought it to the top of the bank,
carefully wiped the water from its pumpkin face with his handkerchief,
and ran with it to Jack and replaced the head upon the man's neck.
[Illustration: TIP RESCUES JACK'S PUMPKIN HEAD.]
"Dear me!" were Jack's first words. "What a dreadful experience! I
wonder if water is liable to spoil pumpkins?"
Tip did not think a reply was necessary, for he knew that the Scarecrow
also stood in need of his help. So he carefully removed the straw from
the King's body and legs, and spread it out in the sun to dry. The wet
clothing he hung over the body of the Saw-Horse.
"If water spoils pumpkins," observed Jack, with a deep sigh, "then my
days are numbered."
"I've never noticed that water spoils pumpkins," returned Tip; "unless
the water happens to be boiling. If your head isn't cracked, my friend,
you must be in fairly good condition."
"Oh, my head isn't cracked in the least," declared Jack, more
cheerfully.
"Then don't worry," retorted the boy. "Care once killed a cat."
"Then," said Jack, seriously, "I am very glad indeed that I am not a
cat."
The sun was fast drying their clothing, and Tip stirred up his
Majesty's straw so that the warm rays might absorb the moisture and
make it as crisp and dry as ever. When this had been accomplished he
stuffed the Scarecrow into symmetrical shape and smoothed out his face
so that he wore his usual gay and charming expression.
"Thank you very much," said the monarch, brightly, as he walked about
and found himself to be well balanced. "There are several distinct
advantages in being a Scarecrow. For if one has friends near at hand to
repair damages, nothing very serious can happen to you."
"I wonder if hot sunshine is liable to crack pumpkins," said Jack, with
an anxious ring in his voice.
"Not at all--not at all!" replied the Scarecrow, gaily. "All you
need fear, my boy, is old age. When your golden youth has decayed we
shall quickly part company--but you needn't look forward to it; we'll
discover the fact ourselves, and notify you. But come! Let us resume
our journey. I am anxious to greet my friend the Tin Woodman."
So they remounted the Saw-Horse, Tip holding to the post, the
Pumpkinhead clinging to Tip, and the Scarecrow with both arms around
the wooden form of Jack.
[Illustration: TIP STUFFS THE SCARECROW WITH DRY STRAW.]
"Go slowly, for now there is no danger of pursuit," said Tip to his
steed.
"All right!" responded the creature, in a voice rather gruff.
"Aren't you a little hoarse?" asked the Pumpkinhead, politely.
The Saw-Horse gave an angry prance and rolled one knotty eye backward
toward Tip.
"See here," he growled, "can't you protect me from insult?"
"To be sure!" answered Tip, soothingly. "I am sure Jack meant no harm.
And it will not do for us to quarrel, you know; we must all remain good
friends."
"I'll have nothing more to do with that Pumpkinhead," declared the
Saw-Horse, viciously; "he loses his head too easily to suit me."
There seemed no fitting reply to this speech, so for a time they rode
along in silence.
After a while the Scarecrow remarked:
"This reminds me of old times. It was upon this grassy knoll that I
once saved Dorothy from the Stinging Bees of the Wicked Witch of the
West."
"Do Stinging Bees injure pumpkins?" asked Jack, glancing around
fearfully.
"They are all dead, so it doesn't matter," replied the Scarecrow. "And
here is where Nick Chopper destroyed the Wicked Witch's Grey Wolves."
"Who was Nick Chopper?" asked Tip.
"That is the name of my friend the Tin Woodman," answered his Majesty.
"And here is where the Winged Monkeys captured and bound us, and flew
away with little Dorothy," he continued, after they had traveled a
little way farther.
"Do Winged Monkeys ever eat pumpkins?" asked Jack, with a shiver of
fear.
"I do not know; but you have little cause to worry, for the Winged
Monkeys are now the slaves of Glinda the Good, who owns the Golden Cap
that commands their services," said the Scarecrow, reflectively.
Then the stuffed monarch became lost in thought, recalling the days
of past adventures. And the Saw-Horse rocked and rolled over the
flower-strewn fields and carried its riders swiftly upon their way.
* * * * *
Twilight fell, bye and bye, and then the dark shadows of night. So Tip
stopped the horse and they all proceeded to dismount.
"I'm tired out," said the boy, yawning wearily; "and the grass is soft
and cool. Let us lie down here and sleep until morning."
"I can't sleep," said Jack.
"I never do," said the Scarecrow.
"I do not even know what sleep is," said the Saw-Horse.
"Still, we must have consideration for this poor boy, who is made of
flesh and blood and bone, and gets tired," suggested the Scarecrow,
in his usual thoughtful manner. "I remember it was the same way with
little Dorothy. We always had to sit through the night while she slept."
"I'm sorry," said Tip, meekly, "but I can't help it. And I'm dreadfully
hungry, too!"
"Here is a new danger!" remarked Jack, gloomily. "I hope you are not
fond of eating pumpkins."
"Not unless they're stewed and made into pies," answered the boy,
laughing. "So have no fears of me, friend Jack."
"What a coward that Pumpkinhead is!" said the Saw-Horse, scornfully.
"You might be a coward yourself, if you knew you were liable to spoil!"
retorted Jack, angrily.
"There!--there!" interrupted the Scarecrow; "don't let us quarrel.
We all have our weaknesses, dear friends; so we must strive to be
considerate of one another. And since this poor boy is hungry and has
nothing whatever to eat, let us all remain quiet and allow him to
sleep; for it is said that in sleep a mortal may forget even hunger."
"Thank you!" exclaimed Tip, gratefully. "Your Majesty is fully as good
as you are wise--and that is saying a good deal!"
He then stretched himself upon the grass and, using the stuffed form of
the Scarecrow for a pillow, was presently fast asleep.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration:
A Nickel-Plated Emperor
]
Tip awoke soon after dawn, but the Scarecrow had already risen and
plucked, with his clumsy fingers, a double-handful of ripe berries from
some bushes near by. These the boy ate greedily, finding them an ample
breakfast, and afterward the little party resumed its journey.
After an hour's ride they reached the summit of a hill from whence
they espied the City of the Winkies and noted the tall domes of the
Emperor's palace rising from the clusters of more modest dwellings.
The Scarecrow became greatly animated at this sight, and exclaimed:
"How delighted I shall be to see my old friend the Tin Woodman again! I
hope that he rules his people more successfully than I have ruled mine!"
"Is the Tin Woodman the Emperor of the Winkies?" asked the horse.
"Yes, indeed. They invited him to rule over them soon after the Wicked
Witch was destroyed; and as Nick Chopper has the best heart in all the
world I am sure he has proved an excellent and able emperor."
"I thought that 'Emperor' was the title of a person who rules an
empire," said Tip, "and the Country of the Winkies is only a Kingdom."
"Don't mention that to the Tin Woodman!" exclaimed the Scarecrow,
earnestly. "You would hurt his feelings terribly. He is a proud man,
as he has every reason to be, and it pleases him to be termed Emperor
rather than King."
"I'm sure it makes no difference to me," replied the boy.
The Saw-Horse now ambled forward at a pace so fast that its riders
had hard work to stick upon its back; so there was little further
conversation until they drew up beside the palace steps.
An aged Winkie, dressed in a uniform of silver cloth, came forward to
assist them to alight. Said the Scarecrow to this personage:
"Show us at once to your master, the Emperor."
The man looked from one to another of the party in an embarrassed way,
and finally answered:
"I fear I must ask you to wait for a time. The Emperor is not receiving
this morning."
"How is that?" enquired the Scarecrow, anxiously. "I hope nothing has
happened to him."
"Oh, no; nothing serious," returned the man. "But this is his Majesty's
day for being polished, and just now his august presence is thickly
smeared with putz-pomade."
"Oh, I see!" cried the Scarecrow, greatly reassured. "My friend was
ever inclined to be a dandy, and I suppose he is now more proud than
ever of his personal appearance."
"He is, indeed," said the man, with a polite bow. "Our mighty Emperor
has lately caused himself to be nickel-plated."
"Good Gracious!" the Scarecrow exclaimed at hearing this. "If his wit
bears the same polish, how sparkling it must be! But show us in--I'm
sure the Emperor will receive us, even in his present state."
"The Emperor's state is always magnificent," said the man. "But I will
venture to tell him of your arrival, and will receive his commands
concerning you."
So the party followed the servant into a splendid ante-room, and the
Saw-Horse ambled awkwardly after them, having no knowledge that a horse
might be expected to remain outside.
The travelers were at first somewhat awed by their surroundings, and
even the Scarecrow seemed impressed as he examined the rich hangings
of silver cloth caught up into knots and fastened with tiny silver
axes. Upon a handsome center-table stood a large silver oil-can,
richly engraved with scenes from the past adventures of the Tin
Woodman, Dorothy, the Cowardly Lion and the Scarecrow: the lines of the
engraving being traced upon the silver in yellow gold. On the walls
hung several portraits, that of the Scarecrow seeming to be the most
prominent and carefully executed, while a large painting of the famous
Wizard of Oz, in the act of presenting the Tin Woodman with a heart,
covered almost one entire end of the room.
While the visitors gazed at these things in silent admiration they
suddenly heard a loud voice in the next room exclaim:
"Well! well! well! What a great surprise!"
And then the door burst open and Nick Chopper rushed into their midst
and caught the Scarecrow in a close and loving embrace that creased him
into many folds and wrinkles.
"My dear old friend! My noble comrade!" cried the Tin Woodman,
joyfully; "how delighted I am to meet you once again!"
[Illustration: CAUGHT THE SCARECROW IN A CLOSE AND LOVING EMBRACE.]
And then he released the Scarecrow and held him at arms' length while
he surveyed the beloved, painted features.
But, alas! the face of the Scarecrow and many portions of his body bore
great blotches of putz-pomade; for the Tin Woodman, in his eagerness to
welcome his friend, had quite forgotten the condition of his toilet and
had rubbed the thick coating of paste from his own body to that of his
comrade.
"Dear me!" said the Scarecrow, dolefully. "What a mess I'm in!"