When the adventurers reassembled
upon the roof it was found that
a remarkably queer assortment
of articles had been selected
by the various
members of the party. No one seemed to have a very clear idea of what was
required, but all had brought something.
The Woggle-Bug had taken from
its position over the mantle-piece
in the great hallway the head
of a Gump, which was adorned
with wide-spreading antlers;
and this, with great care and
greater difficulty, the insect
had carried up the stairs to
the roof. This Gump resembled
an Elk's head, only the nose
turned upward in a saucy manner
and there were whiskers upon
its chin, like those of a billy-goat.
Why the Woggle-Bug selected this
article he could not have explained,
except that it had aroused his
curiosity.
Tip, with the aid of the Saw-Horse,
had brought a large, upholstered
sofa to the roof. It was an oldfashioned
piece of furniture, with high
back and ends, and it was so
heavy that even by resting the
greatest weight upon the back
of the Saw-Horse, the boy found
himself out of breath when at
last the clumsy sofa was dumped
upon the roof.
The Pumpkinhead had brought
a broom, which was the first
thing he saw. The Scarecrow arrived
with a coil of clothes-lines
and ropes which he had taken
from the courtyard, and in his
trip up the stairs he had become
so entangled in the loose ends
of the ropes that both he and
his burden tumbled in a heap
upon the roof and might have
rolled off if Tip had not rescued
him.
The Tin Woodman appeared last.
He also had been to the courtyard,
where he had cut four great,
spreading leaves from a huge
palm-tree that was the pride
of all the inhabitants of the
Emerald City.
"My dear Nick!" exclaimed the
Scarecrow, seeing what his friend
had done; "you have been guilty
of the greatest crime any person
can commit in the Emerald City.
If I remember rightly, the penalty
for chopping leaves from the
royal palm-tree is to be killed
seven times and afterward imprisoned
for life."
"It cannot be helped now" answered
the Tin Woodman, throwing down
the big leaves upon the roof. "But
it may be one more reason why
it is necessary for us to escape.
And now let us see what you have
found for me to work with."
Many were the doubtful looks
cast upon the heap of miscellaneous
material that now cluttered the
roof, and finally the Scarecrow
shook his head and remarked:
"Well,
if friend Nick
can manufacture,
from this mess of rubbish, a
Thing that will fly through the
air and carry us to safety, then
I will acknowledge him to be
a better mechanic than I suspected."
But the Tin Woodman seemed
at first by no means sure of
his powers, and only after polishing
his forehead vigorously with
the chamois-leather did he resolve
to undertake the task.
"The first thing required for
the machine," said he, "is a
body big enough to carry the
entire party. This sofa is the
biggest thing we have, and might
be used for a body. But, should
the machine ever tip sideways,
we would all slide off and fall
to the ground."
"Why not use two sofas?" asked
Tip. "There's another one just
like this down stairs."
"That is a very sensible suggestion," exclaimed
the Tin Woodman. "You must fetch
the other sofa at once."
So Tip and the Saw-Horse managed,
with much labor, to get the second
sofa to the roof; and when the
two were placed together, edge
to edge, the backs and ends formed
a protecting rampart all around
the seats.
"Excellent!" cried the Scarecrow. "We
can ride within this snug nest
quite at our ease."
The two sofas were now bound
firmly together with ropes and
clothes-lines, and then Nick
Chopper fastened the Gump's head
to one end.
"That will show which is the
front end of the Thing," said
he, greatly pleased with the
idea." And, really, if you examine
it critically, the Gump looks
very well as a figure-head. These
great palm-leaves, for which
I have endangered my life seven
times, must serve us as wings."
"Are they strong enough?" asked
the boy.
"They are as strong as anything
we can get," answered the Woodman; "and
although they are not in proportion
to the Thing's body, we are not
in a position to be very particular."
So he fastened the palm-leaves
to the sofas, two on each side.
Said the Woggle-Bug, with considerable
admiration:
"The
Thing is now
complete, and
only needs
to be brought
to life."
"Stop a moment!" exclaimed
Jack." Are you not going to use
my broom?"
"What for?" asked
the Scarecrow.
"Why, it can be fastened to
the back end for a tail," answered
the Pumpkinhead. "Surely you
would not call the Thing complete
without a tail."
"Hm!" said the Tin Woodman, "I
do not see the use of a tail.
We are not trying to copy a beast,
or a fish, or a bird. All we
ask of the Thing is to carry
us through the air.
"Perhaps, after the Thing is
brought to life, it can use a
tail to steer with," suggested
the Scarecrow. "For if it flies
through the air it will not be
unlike a bird, and I've noticed
that all birds have tails, which
they use for a rudder while flying."
"Very well," answered Nick, "the
broom shall be used for a tail," and
he fastened it firmly to the
back end of the sofa body.
Tip took the pepper-box from
his pocket.
"The Thing looks very big," said
he, anxiously; "and I am not
sure there is enough powder left
to bring all of it to life. But
I'll make it go as far as possible."
"Put most on the wings," said
Nick Chopper; "for they must
be made as strong as possible."
"And don't forget the head!" exclaimed
the Woggle-Bug.
"Or the tail!" added
Jack Pumpkinhead.
"Do be quiet," said Tip, nervously; "you
must give me a chance to work
the magic charm in the proper
manner."
Very carefully he began sprinkling
the Thing with the precious powder.
Each of the four wings was first
lightly covered with a layer.
then the sofas were sprinkled,
and the broom given a slight
coating.
"The head! The head! Don't,
I beg of you, forget the head!" cried
the Woggle-Bug, excitedly.
"There's only a little of the
powder left," announced Tip,
looking within the box." And
it seems to me it is more important
to bring the legs of the sofas
to life than the head."
"Not so," decided the Scarecrow. "Every
thing must have a head to direct
it; and since this creature is
to fly, and not walk, it is really
unimportant whether its legs
are alive or not."
So Tip abided by this decision
and sprinkled the Gump's head
with the remainder of the powder.
"Now" said he, "keep
silence while
I work the,
charm!"
Having heard old Mombi pronounce
the magic words, and having also
succeeded in bringing the Saw-Horse
to life, Tip did not hesitate
an instant in speaking the three
cabalistic words, each accompanied
by the peculiar gesture of the
hands.
It was a grave and impressive
ceremony.
As he finished the incantation
the Thing shuddered throughout
its huge bulk, the Gump gave
the screeching cry that is familiar
to those animals, and then the
four wings began flopping furiously.
Tip managed to grasp a chimney,
else he would have been blown
off the roof by the terrible
breeze raised by the wings. The
Scarecrow, being light in weight,
was caught up bodily and borne
through the air until Tip luckily
seized him by one leg and held
him fast. The Woggle-Bug lay
flat upon the roof and so escaped
harm, and the Tin Woodman, whose
weight of tin anchored him firmly,
threw both arms around Jack Pumpkinhead
and managed to save him. The
Saw-Horse toppled over upon his
back and lay with his legs waving
helplessly above him.
And now, while all were struggling
to recover themselves, the Thing
rose slowly from the roof and
mounted into the air.
"Here! Come back!" cried Tip,
in a frightened voice, as he
clung to the chimney with one
hand and the Scarecrow with the
other. "Come back at once, I
command you!"
It was now that the wisdom
of the Scarecrow, in bringing
the head of the Thing to life
instead of the legs, was proved
beyond a doubt. For the Gump,
already high in the air, turned
its head at Tip's command and
gradually circled around until
it could view the roof of the
palace.
"Come back!" shouted
the boy, again.
And the Gump obeyed, slowly
and gracefully waving its four
wings in the air until the Thing
had settled once more upon the
roof and become still.
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