Within the depths of the mountains which bordered the Valley of Mo to
the east lived a Wicked Wizard in a cavern of rubies. It was many, many
feet below the surface of the earth and cut off entirely from the rest
of the world, save for one passage which led through dangerous caves
and tunnels to the top of the highest mountain. So that, in order to
get out of his cavern, the Wizard was obliged to come to this mountain
top, and from there descend to the outside world.
The Wizard lived all alone; but he did not mind that, for his thoughts
were always on his books and studies, and he seldom showed himself on
the surface of the earth. But when he did go out every one laughed at
him; for this powerful magician was no taller than my knee, and was
very old and wrinkled, so that he looked comical indeed beside an
ordinary man.
The Wizard was nearly as sensitive as he was wicked, and was sorry he
had not grown as big as other people; so the laughter that always
greeted him made him angry.
At last he determined to find some magical compound that would make him
grow bigger. He shut himself up in his cave and searched diligently
amongst his books until, finally, he found a formula recommended by
some dead and gone magician as sure to make any one grow a foot each
day so long as the dose was taken. Most of the ingredients were quite
easy to procure, being such as spiders' livers, kerosene oil and the
teeth of canary birds, mixed together in a boiling caldron. But the
last item of the recipe was so unusual that it made the Wizard scratch
his head in perplexity.
It was the big toe of a young and beautiful princess.
The Wizard thought on the matter for three days, but nowhere could he
think of a young and beautiful princess who would willingly part with
her big toe--even that he might grow to be as big as he wished.
Then, as such a thing was not to be come by honestly, the Wicked Wizard
resolved to steal it. So he went through all the caves and passages
until he came to the mountain-top. Standing on the point of a rock he
placed one hand on his chin and the other on the back of his neck, and
then recited the following magical incantation:
"I wish to go
To steal the big toe
Of a princess I know,
In order to grow
Quite big. And so
_I'll change, to a crow!"_
No sooner had he spoken the words than he changed into a Black Crow,
and flew away into the Valley of Mo, where he hid himself in a tall
tree that grew near the King's palace.
That morning, as the Princess Truella was lying late in bed, with one
of her dainty pink feet sticking out from under the covers, in through
the window fluttered a Black Crow, which picked off her big toe and
immediately flew away with it.
The Princess awoke with a scream and was horrified to find her
beautiful foot ruined by the loss of her biggest toe. When the King and
Queen and the Princes and Princesses, having heard her outcry, came
running in to see what was the matter, they were each and all very
indignant at the theft.
But, search as they might, nowhere could they find the audacious Black
Crow, nor the Princess' big toe, and the whole court was in despair.
Finally Timtom, who was now a Prince, suggested that Truella seek
assistance from the kind sorceress Maetta, who had helped him out of
his own difficulties. The Princess thought well of this idea, and
determined to undertake a journey to the castle.
She whistled for her favorite Stork, and soon the great bird came to
her side. It was pure white, and of an extraordinary size. When the
Stork had been saddled the Princess kissed her father and mother good
by and seated herself on the bird's back, when it instantly rose into
the air and flew away toward the castle of Maetta.
Traveling in this pleasant way, high in the air, the Princess crossed
the River of Needles and the deep gulf and the dangerous wood, and at
last was set down safe at the castle gates.
Maetta welcomed the pretty Princess very cordially and, on being told
of her misfortune, at once agreed to assist her. So the sorceress
consulted her Oracle, which told her truly anything she wanted to know,
and then said to the Princess:
"Your toe is in the possession of the Wicked Wizard who lives in the
ruby cave under the mountains. In order to recover it you must go
yourself to seek it; but I warn you that the Wizard will put every
obstacle in your path to prevent your finding the toe and taking it
from him."
"Oh, dear!" exclaimed Truella, "I am afraid I shall never be able to
get my toe from such a horrid man."
"Have courage, and trust in me," returned Maetta, "for I believe my
powers are stronger than his. I shall now furnish you the weapons you
must use to overcome him. Here is a magic umbrella, and in this basket
which you must carry on your arm, you will find a lump of putty, an
iron ball, a mirror, a package of chewing-gum and a magic veil, all of
which will be very useful. Here, also, is a winged dagger, with which
you must protect yourself if the Wizard attempts to harm you. With
these enchanted weapons and a brave heart I believe you will succeed.
So kiss me, my child, and start on your journey."
Truella thanked the kind sorceress, and mounting the saddle of her
Stork flew away toward the high mountain in which dwelt the Wicked
Wizard.
But the naughty man, by means of his black magic, saw her coming, and
sent such a fierce wind to blow against her that it prevented the Stork
from making any headway through the air. Therefore, in spite of his
huge wings and remarkable strength, the brave bird was unable to get an
inch nearer the mountain.
When Truella saw this she put up the umbrella and held it in front of
the Stork; whereupon, being shielded from the wind, he flew easily to
the mountain.
The Princess now dismounted and, looking into the hole at the top of
the mountain, discovered a flight of stairs leading downward.
Taking her basket on her arm, as she had been directed, Truella walked
boldly down the steps until she came to a door. But then she shrank
back in affright, for before the door was coiled a great serpent, not
quite a mile long and fully as large around as a stick of wood. The
girl knew she must manage in some way to overcome this terrible
creature, so when the serpent opened its mouth and raised its head to
bite her, she reached within the basket, and finding the lump of putty,
threw it quickly into the serpent's mouth. The creature snapped its
jaws together so suddenly that its teeth stuck fast in the putty, and
this made it so furious that it wriggled around until it had tied
itself into a hard knot, and could wriggle no longer.
Seeing there was no further danger, the Princess passed the door and
entered a large cave, which was but dimly lighted. While she paused to
allow her eyes to become accustomed to the darkness, so she might see
her way, a faint rustling sound reached her ears, and a moment later
there came toward her a hideous old woman, lean and bent, with wrinkled
face and piercing black eyes. She had only one tooth, but that was of
enormous size, being nearly as large as the tusk of an elephant; and it
curved out of her mouth and down under her chin, where it ended in a
very sharp point. Her finger-nails were a foot long, and they, also,
were very sharp and strong.
"What are you doing here?" asked the old woman, in a harsh voice, while
she moved her horrible fingers, as if about to scratch out Truella's
eyes.
"I came to see the Wizard," said the Princess, calmly, "and if you will
allow me to pass I shall give you, in return for the favor, some
delicious chewing-gum."
"Chewing-gum!" croaked the old woman, "what is that?"
"It is a dainty of which all ladies are very fond," replied Truella,
taking the packet from her basket. "This is it."
The old woman hesitated a moment, and then said:
"Well, I'll try the chewing-gum and see what it is like; there will be
plenty of time to scratch out your eyes afterwards."
She placed the gum in her mouth and tried to chew it, but when she shut
her jaws together the great tusk went straight through her neck and
came out at the back. The old hag gave a scream and put up her hands to
pull out the tusk again, but so great was her excitement that in her
haste she scratched out both her own eyes, and could no longer see
where the Princess was standing.
So Truella ran through the cave and came to, a door, on which she
knocked. Instantly it flew open, and before her she saw another cave,
this time brightly lighted, but filled with knives and daggers, which
were flying about in every direction. To enter this cave was
impossible, for the Princess saw she would immediately be pierced by
dozens of the sharp daggers. So she hesitated for a time, not knowing
how to proceed; but, chancing to remember her basket, she took from it
the iron ball, which she tossed into the center of the Cave of Daggers.
At once the dangerous weapons began to strike against the ball, and as
soon as they touched it they were broken and fell to the floor. In a
short time every one of the knives and daggers had been spoiled by
contact with the iron ball, and Truella passed safely through the cave
and came to another long stairway leading downward. At the bottom of
this she reached the third cave, and came upon a horrible monster.
It had the body of a zebra, the legs of a rhinoceros, the neck of a
giraffe, the head of a bull dog, and three corrugated tails. This
monster at once began to growl and run toward her, showing its terrible
teeth and lashing its three tails. The Princess snatched the mirror
from her basket and, as the creature came near her, she held the
glittering surface before its eyes. It gave one look into the mirror
and fell lifeless at her feet, being frightened to death by its own
reflection in the mirror.
Truella now walked through several more caves and descended a long
flight of stairs, which brought her to another door, on which was a
sign that read:
"A. WIZARD, Esq.,
Office hours:
From 10:45 until
a quarter to 11."
The Princess, knowing that she had now reached the den of the Wizard
who had stolen her big toe, knocked boldly on the door.
"Come in!" called a voice.
Truella obeyed, and found herself in a large cave, the walls of which
were lined with rubies. In each of the four corners were big electric
lights, and these, shining upon the rubies, filled the cave with a deep
red glow. The Wizard himself sat at his desk in one of the corners, and
when the Princess entered he looked up and exclaimed:
"What! Is it you? Really, I did not expect to see you. How did you
manage to pass the guards I placed within the caves and passageways to
prevent your coming here?"
"Oh, that was not difficult," answered Truella, "for you must know I am
protected by a power stronger than your own."
The Wizard was much annoyed at this reply, for he knew it was true, and
that only by cunning could he hope to oppose the pretty Princess.
Still, he was resolved not to give up the big toe unless obliged to,
for it was necessary to complete the magic compound.
"What do you want?" he asked, after a moment's thought.
"I want the toe you stole from me while I was asleep."
The Wizard knew it was useless to deny the theft, so he replied:
"Very well; take a chair, and I will see if I can find it."
But Truella feared the little man was deceiving her; so when he turned
his back she took the magic veil from her basket and threw it over her
head. Immediately it began unfolding until it covered her completely,
from head to foot.
The Wizard walked over to a cupboard, which he opened; and, while
pretending to search for the toe, he suddenly turned on a big faucet
that was concealed under a shelf. At once the thunder rolled, the
lightning flashed, and from the arched ceiling of the cavern drops of
fire began to fall, coming thicker and thicker until a perfect shower
of burning drops filled the room.
These fell hissing upon Truella's veil, but could not penetrate it, for
they all bounded off and were scattered upon the rocky floor, where
they soon burned themselves out. Seeing this the Wizard gave a sigh of
disappointment and turned off the faucet, when the fire-drops ceased to
fall.
"Please excuse this little interruption," he said, as if he had not
been the cause of it himself. "I'll find the toe in a few minutes. I
must have mislaid it somewhere."
But Truella suspected he was up to more mischief, and was on her guard.
She saw him stealthily press a button, and in the same instant a deep
gulf opened in the floor of the cave, half way between the Princess and
the Wizard.
Truella did not know what this meant, at first, unless it was to
prevent her getting across the room to where her toe was; but soon she
noticed that the gulf was moving toward her, slowly, but steadily; and,
as it extended across the cave from wall to wall, it would in time be
sure to reach the spot where she stood, when she would, of course, fall
into it.
When she saw her danger the Princess became frightened, and tried to
escape through the door by which she had entered; but to her dismay she
found it locked. Then she turned to look at the Wizard. The little man
had perched himself upon a high stool, and was carelessly swinging his
feet and laughing with glee at Truella's awful peril. He thought that
at last he had certainly found a way to destroy her. The poor Princess
again looked into the gulf, which was gradually getting nearer and
nearer; and she shuddered at its vast depths.
A cold wind began to sweep up from the abyss, and she heard mocking
laughter and savage growls from below, as if evil spirits were eagerly
waiting to seize her.
Just as she was giving way to despair, and the gulf had crept very
close to her feet, Truella thought of her winged dagger. She drew it
from her bosom and, pointing it toward her enemy, said:
"Save me from the Wizard's art--
Fly until you reach his heart.
Foil his power and set me free,
This is my command to thee!"
In a flash the dagger flew from her hand and struck the Wizard full on
his breast. With a loud cry he fell forward into the gulf, which in the
same instant closed up with a crash. Then, when the rocks about her had
ceased trembling from the shock, the door swung open, leaving the
Princess at liberty to go where she pleased.
She now searched the Wizard's cupboard until she found her toe, which
had been safely hidden in a little ivory box. Truella stopped only long
enough to put on her toe, and then she ran through the caves and up the
stairways until she reached the top of the mountain again.
There she found her Stork patiently awaiting her and, having seated
herself on its back, she rode safely and triumphantly back to her
father's palace.
The King and Queen were delighted when she recounted to them the
success of her adventure, but they shuddered when they learned of the
fearful dangers their sweet little daughter had encountered.
"It seems to me," said the good Queen, "that a big toe is scarcely
worth all the trouble you have had in recovering it."
"Perhaps not," replied the Princess, thoughtfully; "but a big toe is
very handy to have when you wish to dance; and, after all, I succeeded
in destroying the Wicked Wizard, which surely repays me for the trials
I have been forced to undergo."
_The Tenth Surprise_