The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

When Ojo entered the room he ran quickly tothe statue of Unc Nunkie and kissed the marbleface affectionately.

"I did my best, Unc," he said, with a sob, "butit was no use!"

Then he drew back and looked around the room,and the sight of the assembled company quiteamazed him.

Aside from the marble statues of Unc Nunkie andMargolotte, the Glass Cat was there, curled up ona rug; and the Woozy was there, sitting on itssquare hind legs and looking on the scene withsolemn interest; and there was the Shaggy Man, ina suit of shaggy pea-green satin, and at a tablesat the little Wizard, looking quite important andas if he knew much more than he cared to tell.

Last of all, Dr. Pipt was there, and theCrooked Magician sat humped up in a chair,seeming very dejected but keeping his eyes fixedon the lifeless form of his wife Margolotte,whom he fondly loved but whom he now fearedwas lost to him forever.

Ozma took a chair which Jellia Jamb wheeledforward for the Ruler, and back of her stood theScarecrow, the Tin Woodman and Dorothy, aswell as the Cowardly Lion and the HungryTiger. The Wizard now arose and made a lowbow to Ozma and another less deferent bow tothe assembled company.

"Ladies and gentlemen and beasts," he said,"I beg to announce that our Gracious Ruler haspermitted me to obey the commands of the greatSorceress, Glinda the Good, whose humble AssistantI am proud to be. We have discovered that theCrooked Magician has been indulging in his magicalarts contrary to Law, and therefore, by RoyalEdict, I hereby deprive him of all power to workmagic in the future. He is no longer a crookedmagician, but a simple Munchkin; he is no longereven crooked, but a man like other men.

As he pronounced these words the Wizardwaved his hand toward Dr. Pipt and instantlyevery crooked limb straightened out and becameperfect. The former magician, with a cry of joy,sprang to his feet, looked at himself in wonder,and then fell back in his chair and watched theWizard with fascinated interest.

"The Glass Cat, which Dr. Pipt lawlesslymade," continued the Wizard, "is a pretty cat,but its pink brains made it so conceited that itwas a disagreeable companion to everyone. Sothe other day I took away the pink brains andreplaced them with transparent ones, and nowthe Glass Cat is so modest and well behavedthat Ozma has decided to keep her in the palaceas a pet."

"I thank you," said the cat, in a soft voice.

"The Woozy has proved himself a good Woozy and afaithful friend," the Wizard went on, "so we willsend him to the Royal Menagerie, where he willhave good care and plenty to eat all his life."

"Much obliged," said the Woozy. "That beatsbeing fenced up in a lonely forest and starved."

"As for the Patchwork Girl," resumed the Wizard,"she is so remarkable in appearance, and so cleverand good tempered, that our Gracious Ruler intendsto preserve her carefully, as one of thecuriosities of the curious Land of Oz. Scraps maylive in the palace, or wherever she pleases, andbe nobody's servant but her own."

"That's all right," said Scraps.

"We have all been interested in Ojo," the littleWizard continued, "because his love for hisunfortunate uncle has led him bravely to face allsorts of dangers, in order that he might rescuehim. The Munchkin boy has a loyal and generousheart and has done his best to restore Unc Nunkieto life. He has failed, but there are others morepowerful than the Crooked Magician, and there aremore ways than Dr. Pipt knew of to destroy thecharm of the Liquid of Petrifaction. Glinda theGood has told me of one way, and you shall nowlearn how great is the knowledge and power of ourpeerless Sorceress."

As he said this the Wizard advanced to thestatue of Margolote and made a magic pass, atthe same time muttering a magic word thatnone could hear distinctly. At once the womanmoved, turned her head wonderingly this wayand that, to note all who stood before her, andseeing Dr. Pipt, ran forward and threw herselfinto her husband's outstretched arms.

Then the Wizard made the magic pass andspoke the magic word before the statue of UncNunkie. The old Munchkin immediately cameto life and with a low bow to the Wizard said:"Thanks."

But now Ojo rushed up and threw his armsjoyfully about his uncle, and the old manhugged his little nephew tenderly and strokedhis hair and wiped away the boy's tears with ahandkerchief, for Ojo was crying from purehappiness.

Ozma came forward to congratulate them.

"I have given to you, my dear Ojo and UncNunkie, a nice house just outside the walls ofthe Emerald City," she said, "and there youshall make your future home and be under myprotection."

"Didn't I say you were Ojo the Lucky?"asked the Tin Woodman, as everyone crowdedaround to shake Ojo's hand.

"Yes; and it is true!" replied Ojo, gratefully.

The Wonderful Oz Books by L. Frank Baum

THE WIZARD OF OZTHE LAND OF OZOZMA OF OZDOROTHY AND THE WIZARD IN OZTHE ROAD TO OZTHE EMERALD CITY OF OZTHE PATCHWORK GIRL OF OZTIK-TOK OF OZTHE SCARECROW OF OZRINKITINK IN OZTHE LOST PRINCESS OF OZTHE TIN WOODMAN OF OZTHE MAGIC OF OZGLINDA OF OZ

End of Project Gutenberg's Etext of The Patchwork Girl of Oz by Baum