登陆注册
15474200000008

第8章 Chapter Five Ozma$$$$$s Friends Are Perplexed(1)

"Really," said Dorothy, looking solemn, this is very s'prising. We can't find even a shadow of Ozma anywhere in the Em'rald City; and, wherever she's gone, she's taken her Magic Picture with her."She was standing in the courtyard of the palace with Betsy and Trot, while Scraps, the Patchwork Girl, Danced around the group, her hair flying in the wind.

"P'raps," said Scraps, still dancing, "someone has stolen Ozma.""Oh, they'd never dare do that!" exclaimed tiny Trot.

"And stolen the Magic Picture, too, so the thing can't tell where she is," added the Patchwork Girl.

"That's nonsense," said Dorothy. "Why, ev'ryone loves Ozma. There isn't a person in the Land of Oz who would steal a single thing she owns.""Huh!" replied the Patchwork Girl. "You don't know ev'ry person in the Land of Oz.""Why don't I?"

"It's a big country," said Scraps. "There are cracks and corners in it that even Ozma doesn't know of.""The Patchwork Girl's just daffy," declared Betsy.

"No; she's right about that," replied Dorothy thoughtfully. "There are lots of queer people in this fairyland who never come near Ozma or the Em'rald City.

I've seen some of 'em myself, girls; but I haven't seen all, of course, and there might be some wicked persons left in Oz, yet, though I think the wicked witches have all been destroyed."Just then the Wooden Sawhorse dashed into the courtyard with the Wizard of Oz on his back.

"Have you found Ozma?" cried the Wizard when the Sawhorse stopped beside them.

"Not yet," said Dorothy. "Doesn't Glinda know where she is?""No. Glinda's Book of Records and all her magic instruments are gone. Someone must have stolen them.""Goodness me!" exclaimed Dorothy, in alarm. "This is the biggest steal I ever heard of. Who do you think did it, Wizard?""I've no idea," he answered. "But I have come to get my own bag of magic tools and carry them to Glinda. She is so much more powerful than I that she may be able to discover the truth by means of my magic, quicker and better than I could myself.""Hurry, then," said Dorothy, "for we're all getting terr'bly worried."The Wizard rushed away to his rooms but presently came back with a long, sad face.

"It's gone!" he said.

"What's gone?" asked Scraps.

"My black bag of magic tools. Someone must have stolen it!"They looked at one another in amazement.

"This thing is getting desperate," continued the Wizard. "All the magic that belongs to Ozma, or to Glinda, or to me, has been stolen.""Do you suppose Ozma could have taken them, herself, for some purpose?" asked Betsy.

"No, indeed," declared the Wizard. "I suspect some enemy has stolen Ozma and, for fear we would follow and recapture her, has taken all our magic away from us.""How dreadful!" cried Dorothy. "The idea of anyone wanting to injure our dear Ozma! Can't we do anything to find her, Wizard?""I'll ask Glinda. I must go straight back to her and tell her that my magic tools have also disappeared. The good Sorceress will be greatly shocked, I know."With this he jumped upon the back of the Sawhorse again and the quaint steed, which never tired, dashed away at fall speed.

The three girls were very much disturbed in mind.

Even the Patchwork Girl was more quiet than usual and seemed to realize that a great calamity had overtaken them all. Ozma was a fairy of considerable power and all the creatures in Oz, as well as the three mortal girls from the outside world, looked upon her as their protector and friend. The idea of their beautiful girl Ruler's being overpowered by an enemy and dragged from her splendid palace a captive was too astonishing for them to comprehend, at first. Yet what other explanation of the mystery could there be?

"Ozma wouldn't go away willingly, without letting us know about it," asserted Dorothy; "and she wouldn't steal Glinda's Great Book of Records, or the Wizard's magic, 'cause she could get them any time, just asking for 'em. I'm sure some wicked person has done all this.""Someone in the Land of Oz?" asked Trot.

"Of course. No one could get across the Deadly Desert, you know, and no one but an Oz person could know about the Magic Picture and the Book of Records and the Wizard's magic, or where they were kept, and so be able to steal the whole outfit before we could stop 'em. It must be someone who lives in the Land of Oz.""But who-who-who?" asked Scraps. "That's the question. Who?""If we knew," replied Dorothy, severely, "we wouldn't be standing here, doing nothing."Just then two boys entered the courtyard and approached the group of girls. One boy was dressed in the fantastic Munchkin costume -- a blue jacket and knickerbockers, blue leather shoes and a blue hat with a high peak and tiny silver bells dangling from its rim -- and this was Ojo the Lucky, who had once come from the Munchkin Country of Oz and now lived in the Emerald City. The other boy was an American, from Philadelphia, and had lately found his way to Oz in the company of Trot and Cap'n Bill. His name was Button-Bright; that is, everyone called him by that name, and knew no other.

同类推荐
  • 形意拳十法

    形意拳十法

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 本草经解

    本草经解

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 易数钩深图

    易数钩深图

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 陔余丛考

    陔余丛考

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 诗经

    诗经

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
热门推荐
  • 优婆塞戒经

    优婆塞戒经

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 仙实录

    仙实录

    十年前,在泰缅地区工作,由于自小崇尚佛教,所以拜访过那边很多庙宇,偶然中,在缅钦邦隆格朗山附近的一个寺庙中看到一些残破的汉文书籍,多是佛经手抄本,字迹大多模糊难辨,其中有一本像是个人修行的日记,其内容与佛教毫无牵扯,更像是一个修道之人的心得。之后几年,利用闲暇几乎走遍泰缅寺庙古迹,并查阅大量资料,竟然发现我们熟知的历史并不准确,真相渐近,又是那么的惊世骇俗。。。。。。-----详情请见:番外-仙实录之源头
  • 红色英勇勋章

    红色英勇勋章

    本故事的主人公是一个青年,他在美国内战中入伍,希望成为一名英雄。但由于初次参加战斗,他的内心也怀着恐惧和各种复杂心理。因此战斗打响时他被吓得当了逃兵,脱离军团。待战斗结束后他又返回去,一路见到部队死伤的残酷场面。他感到内疚,深怕自己的胆怯行为被战友们发现。后来他在逃跑途中偶然被一名士兵打伤头部,回到自己连队便谎称自己在火线作战时受了伤。伙伴见到他头上的伤口——红色英勇勋章——都称赞他是个英雄。他不敢说出真情,内心感到羞愧。经过内心的激烈冲突和斗争,他决心要勇敢地参加作战,成为一名真正的男子汉。他英勇杀敌,最后成了一名受到大家赞赏的英雄。
  • 虚无大帝之圣君

    虚无大帝之圣君

    天尊大陆,玄气为尊,九脉之气,十元始胎,八荒之丹,踏涅盘,握生死,化身虚无之境。大陆四大域:紫灵域,暗星域,九霄域,南天域,东玄域。
  • 冷冽的女子

    冷冽的女子

    雪凌心因为在二十一世纪被男友欺骗所以发誓再也不相信爱情,可最后冷殇晨的介入让她改变了,最后他们会怎么样呢?敬请期待
  • 中国烟草改革与发展问题

    中国烟草改革与发展问题

    本书收录的相关理论性文章有:论加入WTO后我国烟草专卖制度的完善,烟草行业企业竞争力因素分析,青少年吸烟问题及控烟策略等。
  • 冷情王爷无良妻:宠妃倾国色

    冷情王爷无良妻:宠妃倾国色

    她的穿越,是阴谋还是天意?一场因她的到来而开始谋划了十年的阴谋渐渐拉开序幕。离谷印丢,江湖乱,朝堂动。当现实摆脱一切美好的想象时,她至始至终都是别人最美丽的误会……当她从单纯的小萝莉变成黑暗中的魔鬼时,他又再次出现。他放弃江山,只为与她携手天涯;她却公然逃跑,不做皇家妇。如若你做不到弱水三千,只取一瓢,那就请放手……
  • 夜半鬼谈会

    夜半鬼谈会

    当夜幕降临家家户户都已关门闭户的时候在山中的墓地里有这样一群野鬼聚在一起讲故事故事的名字叫做夜半鬼谈会
  • 丹师史记

    丹师史记

    一个不知道从哪来的婴儿,被村里一对夫妇养大,送到大城里当一名书童,而从一次差一点丢掉性命后,开始学习凡俗的武功,剑法,每一样都深入精髓,天赋异禀的少年不甘只在凡人国度下生活,一步一步走向修真之路。
  • 生存字典

    生存字典

    千万年来,人类一直在探寻死亡后的世界,距今36年前,一群考古学家在沙漠中发现了一座诡异的真楼兰古城,由此慢慢揭开了在人界隐藏了十几亿年的历史。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。六界的起源。。。。。。。。。。。。史前的文明。。。。。。。。。。。。传说的真相。。。。。。。。。。。。拿着这本生存字典,跟随孤儿罗云的视角一起去探寻死后世界的奥秘。。。。。。。。