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.
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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."
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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.
Next chapter...
( In the Jackdaw's Nest)
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