"This is slow work," said the Wizard, "but it will get us to the city after a while.""The city is a good half mile away, yet," announced Button-Bright.
"And this is awful hard work for the Wizard," added Trot.
"Why couldn't the Lion ride on the Woozy's back?"asked Dorothy. "It's a big, flat back, and the Woozy's mighty strong. Perhaps the Lion wouldn't fall off.""You may try it, if you like," said the Woozy to the Lion. "I can take you to the city in a jiffy and then come back for Hank.""I'm -- I'm afraid," said the Cowardly Lion. He was twice as big as the Woozy.
"Try it," pleaded Dorothy.
"And take a tumble among the thistles?" asked the Lion reproachfully. But when the Woozy came close to him the big beast suddenly bounded upon its back and managed to balance himself there, although forced to hold his four legs so close together that he was in danger of toppling over. The great weight of the monster Lion did not seem to affect the Woozy, who called to his rider: "Hold on tight!" and ran swiftly over the thistles toward the city.
The others stood on the blankets and watched the strange sight anxiously. Of course the Lion couldn't "hold on tight" because there was nothing to hold to, and he swayed from side to side as if likely to fall off any moment. Still, he managed to stick to the Woozy's back until they were close to the walls of the city, when he leaped to the ground. Next moment the Woozy came dashing back at full speed.
"There's a little strip of ground next to the wall where there are no thistles," he told them, when he had reached the adventurers once more. "Now, then, friend Hank, see if you can ride as well as the Lion did.""Take the others first," proposed the Mule. So the Sawhorse and the Woozy made a couple of trips over the thistles to the city walls and carried all the people in safety, Dorothy holding little Toto in her arms. The travelers then sat in a group on a little hillock, just outside the wall, and looked at the great blocks of gray stone and waited for the Woozy to bring Hank to them. The Mule was very awkward and his legs trembled so badly that more than once they thought he would tumble off, but finally he reached them in safety and the entire party was now reunited. More than that, they had reached the city that had eluded them for so long and in so strange a manner.
"The gates must be around the other side," said the Wizard. "Let us follow the curve of the wall until we reach an opening in it.""Which way?" asked Dorothy.
"We must guess at that," he replied. "Suppose we go to the left? One direction is as good as another."They formed in marching order and went around the city wall to the left. It wasn't a big city, as I have said, but to go way around it, outside the high wall, was quite a walk, as they became aware. But around it our adventurers went, without finding any sign of a gateway or other opening. When they had returned to the little mound from which they had started, they dismounted from the animals and again seated themselves on the grassy mound.
"It's mighty queer, isn't it?" asked Button-Bright.
"There must be some way for the people to get out and in,' declared Dorothy. "Do you s'pose they have flying machines, Wizard?""No," he replied, "for in that case they would be flying all over the Land of Oz, and we know they have not done that. Flying machines are unknown here. Ithink it more likely that the people use ladders to get over the walls.""It would be an awful climb, over that high stone wall," said Betsy.
"Stone, is it?" cried Scraps, who was again dancing wildly around, for she never tired and could never keep still for long.
"Course it's stone," answered Betsy scornfully.
"Can't you see?"
"Yes," said Scraps, going closer, "I can see the wall, but I can't feel it." And then, with her arms outstretched, she did a very queer thing. She walked right into the wall and disappeared.
"For goodness sake!" cried Dorothy amazed, as indeed they all were.
