Tik-Tok of Oz Page 8

  CHAPTER 6

  Shaggy Seeks his Stray Brother

  This sudden arrival was a queer looking man, dressed all in garmentsso shaggy that Betsy at first thought he must be some animal. But thestranger ended his fall in a sitting position and then the girl saw itwas really a man. He held an apple in his hand, which he had evidentlybeen eating when he fell, and so little was he jarred or flustered by theaccident that he continued to munch this apple as he calmly looked aroundhim.

  "Good gracious!" exclaimed Betsy, approaching him. "Who _are_ you, andwhere did you come from?"

  "Me? Oh, I'm Shaggy Man," said he, taking another bite of the apple."Just dropped in for a short call. Excuse my seeming haste."

  "Why, I s'pose you couldn't help the haste," said Betsy.

  "No. I climbed an apple tree, outside; branch gave way and--here I am."

  As he spoke the Shaggy Man finished his apple, gave the core to Hank--whoate it greedily--and then stood up to bow politely to Betsy and the Roses.

  The Royal Gardener had been frightened nearly into fits by the crash ofglass and the fall of the shaggy stranger into the bower of Roses, butnow he peeped out from behind a bush and cried in his squeaky voice:

  "You're breaking the Law! You're breaking the Law!"

  Shaggy stared at him solemnly.

  "Is the glass the Law in this country?" he asked.

  "Breaking the glass is breaking the Law," squeaked the Gardener, angrily."Also, to intrude in any part of the Rose Kingdom is breaking the Law."

  "How do you know?" asked Shaggy.

  "Why, it's printed in a book," said the Gardener, coming forward andtaking a small book from his pocket. "Page thirteen. Here it is: 'Ifany stranger enters the Rose Kingdom he shall at once be condemnedby the Ruler and put to death.' So you see, strangers," he continuedtriumphantly, "it's death for you all and your time has come!"

  But just here Hank interposed. He had been stealthily backing toward theRoyal Gardener, whom he disliked, and now the mule's heels shot out andstruck the little man in the middle. He doubled up like the letter "U"and flew out of the door so swiftly--never touching the ground--that hewas gone before Betsy had time to wink.

  But the mule's attack frightened the girl.

  "Come," she whispered, approaching the Shaggy Man and taking his hand;"let's go somewhere else. They'll surely kill us if we stay here!"

  "Don't worry, my dear," replied Shaggy, patting the child's head. "I'mnot afraid of anything, so long as I have the Love Magnet."

  "The Love Magnet! Why, what is that?" asked Betsy.

  "It's a charming little enchantment that wins the heart of everyone wholooks upon it," was the reply. "The Love Magnet used to hang over thegateway to the Emerald City, in the Land of Oz; but when I started onthis journey our beloved Ruler, Ozma of Oz, allowed me to take it withme."

  "Oh!" cried Betsy, staring hard at him; "are you really from thewonderful Land of Oz?"

  "Yes. Ever been there, my dear?"

  "No; but I've heard about it. And do you know Princess Ozma?"

  "Very well indeed."

  "And--and Princess Dorothy?"

  "Dorothy's an old chum of mine," declared Shaggy.

  "Dear me!" exclaimed Betsy. "And why did you ever leave such a beautifulland as Oz?"

  "On an errand," said Shaggy, looking sad and solemn. "I'm trying to findmy dear little brother."

  "Oh! Is he lost?" questioned Betsy, feeling very sorry for the poor man.

  "Been lost these ten years," replied Shaggy, taking out a handkerchiefand wiping a tear from his eye. "I didn't know it until lately, when Isaw it recorded in the magic Record Book of the Sorceress Glinda, in theLand of Oz. So now I'm trying to find him."

  "Where was he lost?" asked the girl sympathetically.

  "Back in Colorado, where I used to live before I went to Oz. Brother wasa miner, and dug gold out of a mine. One day he went into his mine andnever came out. They searched for him, but he was not there. Disappearedentirely," Shaggy ended miserably.

  "For goodness sake! What do you s'pose became of him?" she asked.

  "There is only one explanation," replied Shaggy, taking another applefrom his pocket and eating it to relieve his misery. "The Nome Kingprobably got him."

  "The Nome King! Who is he?"

  "Why, he's sometimes called the Metal Monarch, and his name is Ruggedo.Lives in some underground cavern. Claims to own all the metals hidden inthe earth. Don't ask me why."

  "Why?"

  "'Cause I don't know. But this Ruggedo gets wild with anger if anyonedigs gold out of the earth, and my private opinion is that he capturedbrother and carried him off to his underground kingdom. No--don't ask mewhy. I see you're dying to ask me why. But I don't know."

  "But--dear me!--in that case you will never find your lost brother!"exclaimed the girl.

  "Maybe not; but it's my duty to try," answered Shaggy. "I've wandered sofar without finding him, but that only proves he is not where I've beenlooking. What I seek now is the hidden passage to the underground cavernof the terrible Metal Monarch."

  "Well," said Betsy doubtfully, "it strikes me that if you ever manage toget there the Metal Monarch will make you, too, his prisoner."

  "Nonsense!" answered Shaggy, carelessly. "You mustn't forget the LoveMagnet."

  "What about it?" she asked.

  "When the fierce Metal Monarch sees the Love Magnet, he will love medearly and do anything I ask."

  "It must be wonderful," said Betsy, with awe.

  "It is," the man assured her. "Shall I show it to you?"

  "Oh, do!" she cried; so Shaggy searched in his shaggy pocket and drew outa small silver magnet, shaped like a horseshoe.

  The moment Betsy saw it she began to like the Shaggy Man better thanbefore. Hank also saw the Magnet and crept up to Shaggy to rub his headlovingly against the man's knee.

  But they were interrupted by the Royal Gardener, who stuck his head intothe greenhouse and shouted angrily:

  "You are all condemned to death! Your only chance to escape is to leavehere instantly."

  This startled little Betsy, but the Shaggy Man merely waved the Magnettoward the Gardener, who, seeing it, rushed forward and threw himself atShaggy's feet, murmuring in honeyed words:

  "Oh, you lovely, lovely man! How fond I am of you! Every shag and bobtailthat decorates you is dear to me--all I have is yours! But for goodness'sake get out of here before you die the death."

  "I'm not going to die," declared Shaggy Man.

  "You must. It's the Law," exclaimed the Gardener, beginning to weep realtears. "It breaks my heart to tell you this bad news, but the Law saysthat all strangers must be condemned by the Ruler to die the death."

  "No Ruler has condemned us yet," said Betsy.

  "Of course not," added Shaggy. "We haven't even seen the Ruler of theRose Kingdom."

  "Well, to tell the truth," said the Gardener, in a perplexed tone ofvoice, "we haven't any real Ruler, just now. You see, all our Rulers growon bushes in the Royal Gardens, and the last one we had got mildewed andwithered before his time. So we had to plant him, and at this time thereis no one growing on the Royal Bushes who is ripe enough to pick."

  "How do you know?" asked Betsy.

  "Why, I'm the Royal Gardener. Plenty of royalties are growing, I admit;but just now they are all green. Until one ripens, I am supposed to rulethe Rose Kingdom myself, and see that its Laws are obeyed. Therefore,much as I love you, Shaggy, I must put you to death."

  "Wait a minute," pleaded Betsy. "I'd like to see those Royal Gardensbefore I die."

  "So would I," added Shaggy Man. "Take us there, Gardener."

  "Oh, I can't do that," objected the Gardener. But Shaggy again showed himthe Love Magnet and after one glance at it the Gardener could no longerresist.

  He led Shaggy, Betsy and Hank to the end of the great greenhouse andcarefully unlocked a small door. Passing through this they came into thesplendid Royal Garden of the Ro
se Kingdom.

  It was all surrounded by a tall hedge and within the enclosure grewseveral enormous rosebushes having thick green leaves of the texture ofvelvet. Upon these bushes grew the members of the Royal Family of theRose Kingdom--men, women and children in all stages of maturity. They allseemed to have a light green hue, as if unripe or not fully developed,their flesh and clothing being alike green. They stood perfectly lifelessupon their branches, which swayed softly in the breeze, and theirwide-open eyes stared straight ahead, unseeing and unintelligent.

  While examining these curious growing people, Betsy passed behind a bigcentral bush and at once uttered an exclamation of surprise and pleasure.For there, blooming in perfect color and shape, stood a Royal Princess,whose beauty was amazing.

  "Why, she's ripe!" cried Betsy, pushing aside some of the broad leaves toobserve her more clearly.

  "Well, perhaps so," admitted the Gardener, who had come to the girl'sside; "but she's a girl, and so we can't use her for a Ruler."

  "No, indeed!" came a chorus of soft voices, and looking around Betsydiscovered that all the Roses had followed them from the greenhouse andwere now grouped before the entrance.

  "You see," explained the Gardener, "the subjects of Rose Kingdom don'twant a girl Ruler. They want a King."

  "A King! We want a King!" repeated the chorus of Roses.

  "Isn't she Royal?" inquired Shaggy, admiring the lovely Princess.

  "Of course, for she grows on a Royal Bush. This Princess is named Ozga,as she is a distant cousin of Ozma of Oz; and, were she but a man, wewould joyfully hail her as our Ruler."

  The Gardener then turned away to talk with his Roses and Betsy whisperedto her companion: "Let's pick her, Shaggy."

  "All right," said he. "If she's royal, she has the right to rule thisKingdom, and if we pick her she will surely protect us and prevent ourbeing hurt, or driven away."

  So Betsy and Shaggy each took an arm of the beautiful Rose Princess and alittle twist of her feet set her free of the branch upon which she grew.Very gracefully she stepped down from the bush to the ground, where shebowed low to Betsy and Shaggy and said in a delightfully sweet voice: "Ithank you."

  But at the sound of these words the Gardener and the Roses turned anddiscovered that the Princess had been picked, and was now alive. Overevery face flashed an expression of resentment and anger, and one of theRoses cried aloud:

  "Audacious mortals! What have you done?"

  "Picked a Princess for you, that's all," replied Betsy, cheerfully.

  "But we won't have her! We want a King!" exclaimed a Jacque Rose, andanother added with a voice of scorn: "No girl shall rule over us!"

  The newly-picked Princess looked from one to another of her rebellioussubjects in astonishment. A grieved look came over her exquisite features.

  "Have I no welcome here, pretty subjects?" she asked gently. "Have I notcome from my Royal Bush to be your Ruler?"

  "You were picked by mortals, without our consent," replied the Moss Rose,coldly; "so we refuse to allow you to rule us."

  "Turn her out, Gardener, with the others!" cried the Tea Rose.

  "Just a second, please!" called Shaggy, taking the Love Magnet from hispocket. "I guess this will win their love, Princess. Here--take it inyour hand and let the roses see it."

  Princess Ozga took the Magnet and held it poised before the eyes of hersubjects; but the Roses regarded it with calm disdain.

  "Why, what's the matter?" demanded Shaggy in surprise. "The Magnet neverfailed to work before!"

  "I know," said Betsy, nodding her head wisely. "These Roses have nohearts."

  "That's it," agreed the Gardener. "They're pretty, and sweet, and alive;but still they are Roses. Their stems have thorns, but no hearts."

  The Princess sighed and handed the Magnet to the Shaggy Man.

  "What shall I do?" she asked sorrowfully.

  "Turn her out, Gardener, with the others!" commanded the Roses. "We willhave no Ruler until a man-rose--a King--is ripe enough to pick."

  "Very well," said the Gardener meekly. "You must excuse me, my dearShaggy, for opposing your wishes, but you and the others, including Ozga,must get out of Rose Kingdom immediately, if not before."

  "Don't you love me, Gardy?" asked Shaggy, carelessly displaying theMagnet.

  "I do. I dote on thee!" answered the Gardener earnestly; "but no true manwill neglect his duty for the sake of love. My duty is to drive you out,so--out you go!"

  With this he seized a garden fork and began jabbing it at the strangers,in order to force them to leave. Hank the mule was not afraid of the forkand when he got his heels near to the Gardener the man fell back to avoida kick.

  But now the Roses crowded around the outcasts and it was soon discoveredthat beneath their draperies of green leaves were many sharp thorns whichwere more dangerous than Hank's heels. Neither Betsy nor Ozga nor Shaggynor the mule cared to brave those thorns and when they pressed away fromthem they found themselves slowly driven through the garden door intothe greenhouse. From there they were forced out at the entrance and sothrough the territory of the flower-strewn Rose Kingdom, which was not ofvery great extent.

  The Rose Princess was sobbing bitterly; Betsy was indignant and angry;Hank uttered defiant "Hee-haws" and the Shaggy Man whistled softly tohimself.

  The boundary of the Rose Kingdom was a deep gulf, but there was adrawbridge in one place and this the Royal Gardener let down until theoutcasts had passed over it. Then he drew it up again and returned withhis Roses to the greenhouse, leaving the four queerly assorted comradesto wander into the bleak and unknown country that lay beyond.

  "I don't mind, much," remarked Shaggy, as he led the way over the stony,barren ground. "I've got to search for my long-lost little brother,anyhow, so it won't matter where I go."

  "Hank and I will help you find your brother," said Betsy in her mostcheerful voice. "I'm so far away from home now that I don't s'pose I'llever find my way back; and, to tell the truth, it's more fun travelingaround and having adventures than sticking at home. Don't you think so,Hank?"

  "Hee-haw!" said Hank, and the Shaggy Man thanked them both.

  "For my part," said Princess Ozga of Roseland, with a gentle sigh, "Imust remain forever exiled from my Kingdom. So I, too, will be glad tohelp the Shaggy Man find his lost brother."

  "That's very kind of you, ma'am," said Shaggy. "But unless I can find theunderground cavern of Ruggedo,[A] the Metal Monarch, I shall never findpoor brother."

  [Footnote A: This King was formerly named "Roquat," but after he drank ofthe "Waters of Oblivion" he forgot his own name and had to take another.]

  "Doesn't anyone know where it is?" inquired Betsy.

  "_Some_ one must know, of course," was Shaggy's reply. "But we are notthe ones. The only way to succeed is for us to keep going until we find aperson who can direct us to Ruggedo's cavern."

  "We may find it ourselves, without any help," suggested Betsy. "Whoknows?"

  "No one knows that, except the person who's writing this story," saidShaggy. "But we won't find anything--not even supper--unless we travelon. Here's a path. Let's take it and see where it leads to."