"You see," explained the Glass Cat, "that Magic Isle where Trot and
Cap'n Bill are stuck is also in this Gillikin Country--over at the east
side of it, and it's no farther to go across-lots from here than it is
from here to the Emerald City. So we'll save time by cutting across
the mountains."
"Are you sure you know the way?" asked Dorothy.
"I know all the Land of Oz better than any other living creature knows
it," asserted the Glass Cat.
"Go ahead, then, and guide us," said the Wizard. "We've left our poor
friends helpless too long already, and the sooner we rescue them the
happier they'll be."
"Are you sure you can get 'em out of their fix?" the little girl
inquired.
"I've no doubt of it," the Wizard assured her. "But I can't tell what
sort of magic I must use until I get to the place and discover just how
they are enchanted."
"I've heard of that Magic Isle where the Wonderful Flower grows,"
remarked the Cowardly Lion. "Long ago, when I used to live in the
forests, the beasts told stories about the Isle and how the Magic
Flower was placed there to entrap strangers--men or beasts."
"Is the Flower really wonderful?" questioned Dorothy.
"I have heard it is the most beautiful plant in the world," answered
the Lion. "I have never seen it myself, but friendly beasts have told
me that they have stood on the shore of the river and looked across at
the plant in the gold flower-pot and seen hundreds of flowers, of all
sorts and sizes, blossom upon it in quick succession. It is said that
if one picks the flowers while they are in bloom they will remain
perfect for a long time, but if they are not picked they soon disappear
and are replaced by other flowers. That, in my opinion, make the Magic
Plant the most wonderful in existence."
"But these are only stories," said the girl. "Has any of your friends
ever picked a flower from the wonderful plant?"
"No," admitted the Cowardly Lion, "for if any living thing ventures
upon the Magic Isle, where the golden flower-pot stands, that man or
beast takes root in the soil and cannot get away again."
"What happens to them, then?" asked Dorothy.
"They grow smaller, hour by hour and day by day, and finally disappear
entirely."
"Then," said the girl anxiously, "we must hurry up, or Cap'n Bill an'
Trot will get too small to be comf'table."
They were proceeding at a rapid pace during this conversation, for the
Hungry Tiger and the Cowardly Lion were obliged to move swiftly in
order to keep pace with the Glass Cat. After leaving the Forest of
Gugu they crossed a mountain range, and then a broad plain, after which
they reached another forest, much smaller than that where Gugu ruled.
"The Magic Isle is in this forest," said the Glass Cat, "but the river
is at the other side of the forest. There is no path through the
trees, but if we keep going east, we will find the river, and then it
will be easy to find the Magic Isle."
"Have you ever traveled this way before?" inquired the Wizard.
"Not exactly," admitted the Cat, "but I know we shall reach the river
if we go east through the forest."
"Lead on, then," said the Wizard.
The Glass Cat started away, and at first it was easy to pass between
the trees; but before long the underbrush and vines became thick and
tangled, and after pushing their way through these obstacles for a
time, our travelers came to a place where even the Glass Cat could not
push through.
"We'd better go back and find a path," suggested the Hungry Tiger.
"I'm s'prised at you," said Dorothy, eyeing the Glass Cat severely.
"I'm surprised, myself," replied the Cat. "But it's a long way around
the forest to where the river enters it, and I thought we could save
time by going straight through."
"No one can blame you," said the Wizard, "and I think, instead of
turning back, I can make a path that will allow us to proceed."
He opened his black bag and after searching among his magic tools drew
out a small axe, made of some metal so highly polished that it
glittered brightly even in the dark forest. The Wizard laid the little
axe on the ground and said in a commanding voice:
"Chop, Little Axe, chop clean and true;
A path for our feet you must quickly hew.
Chop till this tangle of jungle is passed;
Chop to the east, Little Axe--chop fast!"
Then the little axe began to move and flashed its bright blade right
and left, clearing a way through vine and brush and scattering the
tangled barrier so quickly that the Lion and the Tiger, carrying
Dorothy and the Wizard and the cage of monkeys on their backs, were
able to stride through the forest at a fast walk. The brush seemed to
melt away before them and the little axe chopped so fast that their
eyes only saw a twinkling of the blade. Then, suddenly, the forest was
open again, and the little axe, having obeyed its orders, lay still
upon the ground.
The Wizard picked up the magic axe and after carefully wiping it with
his silk handkerchief put it away in his black bag. Then they went on
and in a short time reached the river.
"Let me see," said the Glass Cat, looking up and down the stream, "I
think we are below the Magic Isle; so we must go up the stream until we
come to it."
So up the stream they traveled, walking comfortably on the river bank,
and after a while the water broadened and a sharp bend appeared in the
river, hiding all below from their view. They walked briskly along,
however, and had nearly reached the bend when a voice cried warningly:
"Look out!"