OJO IS FORGIVEN
CHAP. 18
The next morning the Soldier with the Green Whiskers went to the prisonand took Ojo away to the royal palace, where he was summoned to appearbefore the girl Ruler for judgment. Again the soldier put upon the boythe jeweled handcuffs and white prisoner's robe with the peaked top andholes for the eyes. Ojo was so ashamed, both of his disgrace and thefault he had committed, that he was glad to be covered up in this way,so that people could not see him or know who he was. He followed theSoldier with the Green Whiskers very willingly, anxious that his fatemight be decided as soon as possible.
The inhabitants of the Emerald City were polite people and never jeeredat the unfortunate; but it was so long since they had seen a prisonerthat they cast many curious looks toward the boy and many of themhurried away to the royal palace to be present during the trial.
When Ojo was escorted into the great Throne Room of the palace he foundhundreds of people assembled there. In the magnificent emerald throne,which sparkled with countless jewels, sat Ozma of Oz in her Robe ofState, which was embroidered with emeralds and pearls. On her right, buta little lower, was Dorothy, and on her left the Scarecrow. Still lower,but nearly in front of Ozma, sat the wonderful Wizard of Oz and on asmall table beside him was the golden vase from Dorothy's room, intowhich Scraps had dropped the stolen clover.
At Ozma's feet crouched two enormous beasts, each the largest and mostpowerful of its kind. Although these beasts were quite free, no onepresent was alarmed by them; for the Cowardly Lion and the Hungry Tigerwere well known and respected in the Emerald City and they alwaysguarded the Ruler when she held high court in the Throne Room. There wasstill another beast present, but this one Dorothy held in her arms, forit was her constant companion, the little dog Toto. Toto knew theCowardly Lion and the Hungry Tiger and often played and romped withthem, for they were good friends.
Seated on ivory chairs before Ozma, with a clear space between them andthe throne, were many of the nobility of the Emerald City, lords andladies in beautiful costumes, and officials of the kingdom in the royaluniforms of Oz. Behind these courtiers were others of less importance,filling the great hall to the very doors.
At the same moment that the Soldier with the Green Whiskers arrived withOjo, the Shaggy Man entered from a side door, escorting the PatchworkGirl, the Woozy and the Glass Cat. All these came to the vacant spacebefore the throne and stood facing the Ruler.
"Hullo, Ojo," said Scraps; "how are you?"
"All right," he replied; but the scene awed the boy and his voicetrembled a little with fear. Nothing could awe the Patchwork Girl, andalthough the Woozy was somewhat uneasy in these splendid surroundingsthe Glass Cat was delighted with the sumptuousness of the court and theimpressiveness of the occasion--pretty big words but quite expressive.
At a sign from Ozma the soldier removed Ojo's white robe and the boystood face to face with the girl who was to decide his punishment. Hesaw at a glance how lovely and sweet she was, and his heart gave a boundof joy, for he hoped she would be merciful.
Ozma sat looking at the prisoner a long time. Then she said gently:
"One of the Laws of Oz forbids anyone to pick a six-leaved clover. Youare accused of having broken this Law, even after you had been warnednot to do so."
"_I demand that you set this poor Munchkin Boy free_"]
Ojo hung his head and while he hesitated how to reply the Patchwork Girlstepped forward and spoke for him.
"All this fuss is about nothing at all," she said, facing Ozmaunabashed. "You can't prove he picked the six-leaved clover, so you'veno right to accuse him of it. Search him, if you like, but you won'tfind the clover; look in his basket and you'll find it's not there. Hehasn't got it, so I demand that you set this poor Munchkin boy free."
The people of Oz listened to this defiance in amazement and wondered atthe queer Patchwork Girl who dared talk so boldly to their Ruler. ButOzma sat silent and motionless and it was the little Wizard who answeredScraps.
"So the clover hasn't been picked, eh?" he said. "I think it has. Ithink the boy hid it in his basket, and then gave the basket to you. Ialso think you dropped the clover into this vase, which stood inPrincess Dorothy's room, hoping to get rid of it so it would not provethe boy guilty. You're a stranger here, Miss Patches, and so you don'tknow that nothing can be hidden from our powerful Ruler's MagicPicture--nor from the watchful eyes of the humble Wizard of Oz. Look,all of you!" With these words he waved his hands toward the vase on thetable, which Scraps now noticed for the first time.
From the mouth of the vase a plant sprouted, slowly growing before theireyes until it became a beautiful bush, and on the topmost branchappeared the six-leaved clover which Ojo had unfortunately picked.
The Patchwork Girl looked at the clover and said: "Oh, so you've foundit. Very well; prove he picked it, if you can."
Ozma turned to Ojo.
"Did you pick the six-leaved clover?" she asked.
"Yes," he replied. "I knew it was against the Law, but I wanted to saveUnc Nunkie and I was afraid if I asked your consent to pick it you wouldrefuse me."
"What caused you to think that?" asked the Ruler.
"Why, it seemed to me a foolish law, unjust and unreasonable. Even now Ican see no harm in picking a six-leaved clover. And I--I had not seenthe Emerald City, then, nor you, and I thought a girl who would makesuch a silly Law would not be likely to help anyone in trouble."
Ozma regarded him musingly, her chin resting upon her hand; but she wasnot angry. On the contrary she smiled a little at her thoughts and thengrew sober again.
"I suppose a good many laws seem foolish to those people who do notunderstand them," she said; "but no law is ever made without somepurpose, and that purpose is usually to protect all the people and guardtheir welfare. As you are a stranger, I will explain this Law which toyou seems so foolish. Years ago there were many Witches and Magicians inthe Land of Oz, and one of the things they often used in making theirmagic charms and transformations was a six-leaved clover. These Witchesand Magicians caused so much trouble among my people, often using theirpowers for evil rather than good, that I decided to forbid anyone topractice magic or sorcery except Glinda the Good and her assistant, theWizard of Oz, both of whom I can trust to use their arts only to benefitmy people and to make them happier. Since I issued that Law the Land ofOz has been far more peaceful and quiet; but I learned that some of theWitches and Magicians were still practicing magic on the sly and usingthe six-leaved clovers to make their potions and charms. Therefore Imade another Law forbidding anyone from plucking a six-leaved clover orfrom gathering other plants and herbs which the Witches boil in theirkettles to work magic with. That has almost put an end to wicked sorceryin our land, so you see the Law was not a foolish one, but wise andjust; and, in any event, it is wrong to disobey a Law."
Ojo knew she was right and felt greatly mortified to realize he hadacted and spoken so ridiculously. But he raised his head and looked Ozmain the face, saying:
"I am sorry I have acted wrongly and broken your Law. I did it to saveUnc Nunkie, and thought I would not be found out. But I am guilty ofthis act and whatever punishment you think I deserve I will sufferwillingly."
Ozma smiled more brightly, then, and nodded graciously.
"You are forgiven," she said. "For, although you have committed aserious fault, you are now penitent and I think you have been punishedenough. Soldier, release Ojo the Lucky and--"
"I beg your pardon; I'm Ojo the _Un_lucky," said the boy.
"At this moment you are lucky," said she. "Release him, Soldier, and lethim go free."
The people were glad to hear Ozma's decree and murmured their approval.As the royal audience was now over, they began to leave the Throne Roomand soon there were none remaining except Ojo and his friends and Ozmaand her favorites.
The girl Ruler now asked Ojo to sit down and tell her all his story,which he did, beginning at the time he had left his home in the forestand ending with his arrival at t
he Emerald City and his arrest. Ozmalistened attentively and was thoughtful for some moments after the boyhad finished speaking. Then she said:
"The Crooked Magician was wrong to make the Glass Cat and the PatchworkGirl, for it was against the Law. And if he had not unlawfully kept thebottle of Liquid of Petrifaction standing on his shelf, the accident tohis wife Margolotte and to Unc Nunkie could not have occurred. I canunderstand, however, that Ojo, who loves his uncle, will be unhappyunless he can save him. Also I feel it is wrong to leave those twovictims standing as marble statues, when they ought to be alive. So Ipropose we allow Dr. Pipt to make the magic charm which will save them,and that we assist Ojo to find the things he is seeking. What do youthink, Wizard?"
"That is perhaps the best thing to do," replied the Wizard. "But afterthe Crooked Magician has restored those poor people to life you musttake away his magic powers."
"I will," promised Ozma.
"Now tell me, please, what magic things must you find?" continued theWizard, addressing Ojo.
"The three hairs from the Woozy's tail I have," said the boy. "That is,I have the Woozy, and the hairs are in his tail. The six-leaved cloverI--I--"
"You may take it and keep it," said Ozma. "That will not be breaking theLaw, for it is already picked, and the crime of picking it is forgiven."
"Thank you!" cried Ojo gratefully. Then he continued: "The next thing Imust find is a gill of water from a dark well."
The Wizard shook his head. "That," said he, "will be a hard task, but ifyou travel far enough you may discover it."
"I am willing to travel for years, if it will save Unc Nunkie," declaredOjo, earnestly.
"Then you'd better begin your journey at once," advised the Wizard.
Dorothy had been listening with interest to this conversation. Now sheturned to Ozma and asked: "May I go with Ojo, to help him?"
"Would you like to?" returned Ozma.
"Yes. I know Oz pretty well, but Ojo doesn't know it at all. I'm sorryfor his uncle and poor Margolotte and I'd like to help save them. May Igo?"
"If you wish to," replied Ozma.
"If Dorothy goes, then I must go to take care of her," said theScarecrow, decidedly. "A dark well can only be discovered in someout-of-the-way place, and there may be dangers there."
"You have my permission to accompany Dorothy," said Ozma. "And while youare gone I will take care of the Patchwork Girl."
"I'll take care of myself," announced Scraps, "for I'm going with theScarecrow and Dorothy. I promised Ojo to help him find the things hewants and I'll stick to my promise."
"Very well," replied Ozma. "But I see no need for Ojo to take the GlassCat and the Woozy."
"I prefer to remain here," said the cat. "I've nearly been nicked half adozen times, already, and if they're going into dangers it's best for meto keep away from them."
"Let Jellia Jamb keep her till Ojo returns," suggested Dorothy. "Wewon't need to take the Woozy, either, but he ought to be saved becauseof the three hairs in his tail."
"Better take me along," said the Woozy. "My eyes can flash fire, youknow, and I can growl--a little."
"I'm sure you'll be safer here," Ozma decided, and the Woozy made nofurther objection to the plan.
After consulting together they decided that Ojo and his party shouldleave the very next day to search for the gill of water from a darkwell, so they now separated to make preparations for the journey.
Ozma gave the Munchkin boy a room in the palace for that night and theafternoon he passed with Dorothy--getting acquainted, as she said--andreceiving advice from the Shaggy Man as to where they must go. TheShaggy Man had wandered in many parts of Oz, and so had Dorothy, forthat matter, yet neither of them knew where a dark well was to be found.
"If such a thing is anywhere in the settled parts of Oz," said Dorothy,"we'd prob'ly have heard of it long ago. If it's in the wild parts ofthe country, no one there would need a dark well. P'raps there isn'tsuch a thing."
"Oh, there must be!" returned Ojo, positively; "or else the recipe ofDr. Pipt wouldn't call for it."
"That's true," agreed Dorothy; "and, if it's anywhere in the Land of Oz,we're bound to find it."
"Well, we're bound to _search_ for it, anyhow," said the Scarecrow. "Asfor finding it, we must trust to luck."
"Don't do that," begged Ojo, earnestly. "I'm called Ojo the Unlucky, youknow."
The Patchwork Girl of Oz Page 19
