6. The Mangaboos Prove Dangerous

Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz

by L. Frank Baum

When the Wizard awoke the six colored suns were shining down upon
the Land of the Mangaboos just as they had done ever since his
arrival. The little man, having had a good sleep, felt rested and
refreshed, and looking through the glass partition of the room he saw
Zeb sitting up on his bench and yawning. So the Wizard went in to
him.

"Zeb," said he, "my balloon is of no further use in this strange
country, so I may as well leave it on the square where it fell. But
in the basket-car are some things I would like to keep with me. I
wish you would go and fetch my satchel, two lanterns, and a can of
kerosene oil that is under the seat. There is nothing else that I
care about."

So the boy went willingly upon the errand, and by the time he
had returned Dorothy was awake. Then the three held a counsel to
decide what they should do next, but could think of no way to better
their condition.

"I don't like these veg'table people," said the little girl.
"They're cold and flabby, like cabbages, in spite of their
prettiness."

"I agree with you. It is because there is no warm blood in
them," remarked the Wizard.

"And they have no hearts; so they can't love anyone--not even
themselves," declared the boy.

"The Princess is lovely to look at," continued Dorothy,
thoughtfully; "but I don't care much for her, after all. If there
was any other place to go, I'd like to go there."

"But is there any other place?" asked the Wizard.

"I don't know," she answered.

Just then they heard the big voice of Jim the cab-horse calling
to them, and going to the doorway leading to the dome they found the
Princess and a throng of her people had entered the House of the
Sorcerer.

So they went down to greet the beautiful vegetable lady, who
said to them:

"I have been talking with my advisors about you meat people, and
we have decided that you do not belong in the Land of the Mangaboos
and must not remain here."

"How can we go away?" asked Dorothy.

"Oh, you cannot go away, of course; so you must be destroyed,"
was the answer.

"In what way?" enquired the Wizard.

"We shall throw you three people into the Garden of the Twining
Vines," said the Princess, "and they will soon crush you and devour
your bodies to make themselves grow bigger. The animals you have
with you we will drive to the mountains and put into the Black Pit.
Then our country will be rid of all its unwelcome visitors."

"But you are in need of a Sorcerer," said the Wizard, "and not
one of those growing is yet ripe enough to pick. I am greater than
any thorn-covered sorcerer that every grew in your garden. Why
destroy me?"

"It is true we need a Sorcerer," acknowledged the Princess, "but
I am informed that one of our own will be ready to pick in a few
days, to take the place of Gwig, whom you cut in two before it was
time for him to be planted. Let us see your arts, and the sorceries
you are able to perform. Then I will decide whether to destroy you
with the others or not."

At this the Wizard made a bow to the people and repeated his
trick of producing the nine tiny piglets and making them disappear
again. He did it very cleverly, indeed, and the Princess looked at
the strange piglets as if she were as truly astonished as any
vegetable person could be. But afterward she said:

"I have heard of this wonderful magic. But it accomplishes
nothing of value. What else can you do?"

The Wizard tried to think. Then he jointed together the blades
of his sword and balanced it very skillfully upon the end of his
nose. But even that did not satisfy the Princess.

Just then his eye fell upon the lanterns and the can of kerosene
oil which Zeb had brought from the car of his balloon, and he got a
clever idea from those commonplace things.

"Your Highness," said he, "I will now proceed to prove my magic
by creating two suns that you have never seen before; also I will
exhibit a Destroyer much more dreadful that your Clinging Vines."

So he placed Dorothy upon one side of him and the boy upon the
other and set a lantern upon each of their heads.

"Don't laugh," he whispered to them, "or you will spoil the
effect of my magic."

Then, with much dignity and a look of vast importance upon his
wrinkled face, the Wizard got out his match-box and lighted the two
lanterns. The glare they made was very small when compared with the
radiance of the six great colored suns; but still they gleamed
steadily and clearly. The Mangaboos were much impressed because they
had never before seen any light that did not come directly from their
suns.

Next the Wizard poured a pool of oil from the can upon the glass
floor, where it covered quite a broad surface. When he lighted the
oil a hundred tongues of flame shot up, and the effect was really
imposing.

"Now, Princess," exclaimed the Wizard, "those of your advisors
who wished to throw us into the Garden of Clinging Vines must step
within this circle of light. If they advised you well, and were in
the right, they will not be injured in any way. But if any advised
you wrongly, the light will wither him."

The advisors of the Princess did not like this test; but she
commanded them to step into the flame and one by one they did so, and
were scorched so badly that the air was soon filled with an odor like
that of baked potatoes. Some of the Mangaboos fell down and had to
be dragged from the fire, and all were so withered that it would be
necessary to plant them at once.

"Sir," said the Princess to the Wizard, "you are greater than
any Sorcerer we have ever known. As it is evident that my people
have advised me wrongly, I will not cast you three people into the
dreadful Garden of the Clinging Vines; but your animals must be
driven into the Black Pit in the mountain, for my subjects cannot
bear to have them around."

The Wizard was so pleased to have saved the two children and
himself that he said nothing against this decree; but when the
Princess had gone both Jim and Eureka protested they did not want to
go to the Black Pit, and Dorothy promised she would do all that she
could to save them from such a fate.

For two or three days after this--if we call days the periods
between sleep, there being no night to divide the hours into
days--our friends were not disturbed in any way. They were even
permitted to occupy the House of the Sorcerer in peace, as if it had
been their own, and to wander in the gardens in search of food.

Once they came near to the enclosed Garden of the Clinging
Vines, and walking high into the air looked down upon it with much
interest. They saw a mass of tough green vines all matted together
and writhing and twisting around like a nest of great snakes.
Everything the vines touched they crushed, and our adventurers were
indeed thankful to have escaped being cast among them.

Whenever the Wizard went to sleep he would take the nine tiny
piglets from his pocket and let them run around on the floor of his
room to amuse themselves and get some exercise; and one time they
found his glass door ajar and wandered into the hall and then into
the bottom part of the great dome, walking through the air as easily
as Eureka could. They knew the kitten, by this time, so they
scampered over to where she lay beside Jim and commenced to frisk and
play with her.

The cab-horse, who never slept long at a time, sat upon his
haunches and watched the tiny piglets and the kitten with much
approval.

"Don't be rough!" he would call out, if Eureka knocked over one
of the round, fat piglets with her paw; but the pigs never minded,
and enjoyed the sport very greatly.

Suddenly they looked up to find the room filled with the silent,
solemn-eyed Mangaboos. Each of the vegetable folks bore a branch
covered with sharp thorns, which was thrust defiantly toward the
horse, the kitten and the piglets.

"Here--stop this foolishness!" Jim roared, angrily; but after
being pricked once or twice he got upon his four legs and kept out of
the way of the thorns.

The Mangaboos surrounded them in solid ranks, but left an
opening to the doorway of the hall; so the animals slowly retreated
until they were driven from the room and out upon the street. Here
were more of the vegetable people with thorns,and silently they urged
the now frightened creatures down the street. Jim had to be careful
not to step upon the tiny piglets, who scampered under his feet
grunting and squealing, while Eureka, snarling and biting at the
thorns pushed toward her, also tried to protect the pretty little
things from injury. Slowly but steadily the heartless Mangaboos
drove them on, until they had passed through the city and the gardens
and come to the broad plains leading to the mountain.

"What does all this mean, anyhow?" asked the horse, jumping to
escape a thorn.

"Why, they are driving us toward the Black Pit, into which they
threatened to cast us," replied the kitten. "If I were as big as you
are, Jim, I'd fight these miserable turnip-roots!"

"What would you do?" enquired Jim.

"I'd kick out with those long legs and iron-shod hoofs."

"All right," said the horse; "I'll do it."

An instant later he suddenly backed toward the crowd of
Mangaboos and kicked out his hind legs as hard as he could. A dozen
of them smashed together and tumbled to the ground, and seeing his
success Jim kicked again and again, charging into the vegetable
crowd, knocking them in all directions and sending the others
scattering to escape his iron heels. Eureka helped him by flying
into the faces of the enemy and scratching and biting furiously, and
the kitten ruined so many vegetable complexions that the Mangaboos
feared her as much as they did the horse.

But the foes were too many to be repulsed for long. They tired
Jim and Eureka out, and although the field of battle was thickly
covered with mashed and disabled Mangaboos, our animal friends had to
give up at last and allow themselves to be driven to the mountain.