章节正文
Whiskers, not in a stern voice but rather in a
friendly tone.
They halted before he spoke and stood looking at
him.
"Good evening, Colonel," said the Shaggy
Man. "What's the news since I left? Anything
important?"
"Billina has hatched out thirteen new chickens,"
replied the Soldier with the Green Whiskers, "and
they're the cutest little fluffy yellow balls you
ever saw. The Yellow Hen is mighty proud of those
children, I can tell you."
"She has a right to be," agreed the Shaggy
Man. "Let me see; that's about seven thousand
chicks she has hatched out; isn't it, General?"
"That, at least," was the reply. "You will have
to visit Billina and congratulate her."
"It will give me pleasure to do that," said the
Shaggy Man. "But you will observe that I have
brought some strangers home with me. I am
going to take them to see Dorothy."
"One moment, please," said the soldier, barring
their way as they started to enter the gate. "I am
on duty, and I have orders to execute. Is anyone
in your party named Ojo the Unlucky?"
"Why, that's me!" cried Ojo, astonished at
hearing his name on the lips of a stranger.
The Soldier with the Green Whiskers nodded. "I
thought so," said he, "and I am sorry to announce
that it is my painful duty to arrest you."
"Arrest me!" exclaimed the boy. "What for?"
"I haven't looked to see," answered the soldier.
Then he drew a paper from his breast pocket and
glanced at it. "Oh, yes; you are to be arrested
for willfully breaking one of the Laws of Oz."
"Breaking a law!" said Scraps. "Nonsense,
Soldier; you're joking."
"Not this time," returned the soldier, with a
sigh. "My dear child what are you, a rummage sale
or a guess-me quick?--in me you be hold the Body
Guard of our gracious Ruler, Princess Ozma, as
well as the Royal Army of Oz and the Police Force
of the Emerald City."
"And only one man!" exclaimed the Patchwork Girl.
"Only one, and plenty enough. In my official
positions I've had nothing to do for a good many
years--so long that I began to fear I was
absolutely useless--until today. An hour ago I was
called to the presence of her Highness, Ozma of
Oz, and told to arrest a boy named Ojo the
Unlucky, who was journeying from the Munchkin
Country to the Emerald City and would arrive in a
short time. This command so astonished me that I
nearly fainted, for it is the first time anyone
has merited arrest since I can remember. You are
rightly named Ojo the Unlucky. my poor boy, since
you have broken a Law of Oz.
"But you are wrong," said Scraps. "Ozma is
wrong--you are all wrong--for Ojo has broken no
Law."
"Then he will soon be free again," replied the
Soldier with the Green Whiskers. "Anyone accused
of crime is given a fair trial by our Ruler and
has every chance to prove his innocence. But just
now Ozma's orders must be obeyed."
With this he took from his pocket a pair of
handcuffs made of gold and set with rubies and
diamonds, and these he snapped over Ojo's wrists.
Chapter Fifteen
Ozma's Prisoner
The boy was so bewildered by this calamity that he
made no resistance at all. He knew very well he
was guilty, but it surprised him that Ozma also
knew it. He wondered how she had found out so soon
that he had picked the six-leaved clover. He
handed his basket to Scraps and said:
"Keep that, until I get out of prison. If I
never get out, take it to the Crooked Magician, to
whom it belongs."
The Shaggy Man had been gazing earnestly in the
boy's face, uncertain whether to defend him or
not; but something he read in Ojo's expression
made him draw back and refuse to interfere to save
him. The Shaggy Man was greatly surprised and
grieved, but he knew that Ozma never made mistakes
and so Ojo must really have broken the Law of Oz.
The Soldier with the Green Whiskers now led them
all through the gate and into a little room built
in the wall. Here sat a jolly little man, richly
dressed in green and having around his neck a
heavy gold chain to which a number of great golden
keys were attached. This was the Guardian of the
Gate and at the moment they entered his room he
was playing a tune upon a mouth-organ.
"Listen!" he said, holding up his hand for
silence. "I've just composed a tune called 'The
Speckled Alligator.' It's in patch-time, which is
much superior to rag-time, and I've composed it in
honor of the Patchwork Girl, who has just
arrived."
"How did you know I had arrived?" asked Scraps,
much interested.
"It's my business to know who's coming, for I'm
the Guardian of the Gate. Keep quiet while I play
you 'The Speckled Alligator.'"
It wasn't a very bad tune, nor a very good one,
but all listened respectfully while he shut his
eyes and swayed his head from side to side and
blew the notes from the little instrument. When it
was all over the Soldier with the Green Whiskers
said:
"Guardian, I have here a prisoner."
"Good gracious! A prisoner?" cried the little
man, jumping up from his chair. "Which one? Not
the Shaggy Man?"
"No; this boy."
"Ah; I hope his fault is as small as himself,"
said the Guardian of the Gate. "But what can he
have done, and what made him do it?"
"Can't say," replied the soldier. "All I know
is that he has broken the Law."
"But no one ever does that!"
"Then he must be innocent, and soon will be
released. I hope you are right, Guardian. Just now
I am ordered to take him to prison. Get me a
prisoner's robe from your Official Wardrobe."
The Guardian unlocked a closet and took
from it a white robe, which the soldier threw
over Ojo. It covered him from head to foot, but
had two holes just in front of his eyes, so he
could see where to go. In this attire the boy
presented a very quaint appearance.
As the Guardian unlocked a gate leading
from his room into the streets of the Emerald
City, the Shaggy Man said to Scraps:
"I think I shall take you directly to Dorothy,
as the Scarecrow advised, and the Glass Cat
and the Woozy may come with us. Ojo must
go to prison with the Soldier with the Green
Whiskers, but he will he well treated and you
need not worry about him."
"What will they do with him?" asked Scraps.
"That I cannot tell. Since I came to the Land of
Oz no one has ever been arrested or imprisoned--
until Ojo broke the Law."
"Seems to me that girl Ruler of yours is making
a big fuss over nothing," remarked Scraps, tossing
her yarn hair out of her eyes with a jerk of her
patched head. "I don't know what Ojo has done, but
it couldn't be anything very, bad, for you and I
were with him all the time."
The Shaggy Man made no reply to this speech and
presently the Patchwork Girl forgot all about Ojo
in her admiration of the wonderful city she had
entered.
They soon separated from the Munchkin boy, who
was led by the Soldier with the Green Whiskers
down a side street toward the prison. Ojo felt
very miserable and greatly ashamed of himself, but
he was beginning to grow angry because he was
treated in such a disgraceful manner. Instead of
entering the splendid Emerald City as a
respectable traveler who was entitled to a
welcome and to hospitality, he was being brought
in as a criminal, handcuffed and in a robe that
told all he met of his deep disgrace.
Ojo was by nature gentle and affectionate and if
he had disobeyed the Law of Oz it was to restore
his dear Unc Nunkie to life. His fault was more
thoughtless than wicked, but that did not alter
the fact that he had committed a fault. At first
he had felt sorrow and remorse, but the more he
thought about the unjusttreatment he had
received--unjust merely because he considered it
so--the more he resented his arrest, blaming Ozma
for making foolish laws and then punishing folks
who broke them. Only a six-leaved clover! A tiny
green plant growing neglected and trampled under
foot. What harm could there be in picking it? Ojo
began to think Ozma must be a very bad and
oppressive Ruler for such a lovely fairyland as
Oz. The Shaggy Man said the people loved her; but
how could they?
The little Munchkin boy was so busy thinking
these things--which many guilty prisoners have
thought before him--that he scarcely noticed all
the splendor of the city streets through which
they passed. Whenever they met any of the happy,
smiling people, the boy turned his head away in
shame, although none knew who was beneath the
robe.
By and by they reached a house built just beside
the great city wall, but in a quiet, retired
place. It was a pretty house, neatly painted and
with many windows. Before it was a garden filled
with blooming flowers. The Soldier with the Green
Whiskers led Ojo up the gravel path to the front
door, on which he knocked.
A woman opened the door and, seeing Ojo
in his white robe, exclaimed:
"Goodness me! A prisoner at last. But what a
friendly tone.
They halted before he spoke and stood looking at
him.
"Good evening, Colonel," said the Shaggy
Man. "What's the news since I left? Anything
important?"
"Billina has hatched out thirteen new chickens,"
replied the Soldier with the Green Whiskers, "and
they're the cutest little fluffy yellow balls you
ever saw. The Yellow Hen is mighty proud of those
children, I can tell you."
"She has a right to be," agreed the Shaggy
Man. "Let me see; that's about seven thousand
chicks she has hatched out; isn't it, General?"
"That, at least," was the reply. "You will have
to visit Billina and congratulate her."
"It will give me pleasure to do that," said the
Shaggy Man. "But you will observe that I have
brought some strangers home with me. I am
going to take them to see Dorothy."
"One moment, please," said the soldier, barring
their way as they started to enter the gate. "I am
on duty, and I have orders to execute. Is anyone
in your party named Ojo the Unlucky?"
"Why, that's me!" cried Ojo, astonished at
hearing his name on the lips of a stranger.
The Soldier with the Green Whiskers nodded. "I
thought so," said he, "and I am sorry to announce
that it is my painful duty to arrest you."
"Arrest me!" exclaimed the boy. "What for?"
"I haven't looked to see," answered the soldier.
Then he drew a paper from his breast pocket and
glanced at it. "Oh, yes; you are to be arrested
for willfully breaking one of the Laws of Oz."
"Breaking a law!" said Scraps. "Nonsense,
Soldier; you're joking."
"Not this time," returned the soldier, with a
sigh. "My dear child what are you, a rummage sale
or a guess-me quick?--in me you be hold the Body
Guard of our gracious Ruler, Princess Ozma, as
well as the Royal Army of Oz and the Police Force
of the Emerald City."
"And only one man!" exclaimed the Patchwork Girl.
"Only one, and plenty enough. In my official
positions I've had nothing to do for a good many
years--so long that I began to fear I was
absolutely useless--until today. An hour ago I was
called to the presence of her Highness, Ozma of
Oz, and told to arrest a boy named Ojo the
Unlucky, who was journeying from the Munchkin
Country to the Emerald City and would arrive in a
short time. This command so astonished me that I
nearly fainted, for it is the first time anyone
has merited arrest since I can remember. You are
rightly named Ojo the Unlucky. my poor boy, since
you have broken a Law of Oz.
"But you are wrong," said Scraps. "Ozma is
wrong--you are all wrong--for Ojo has broken no
Law."
"Then he will soon be free again," replied the
Soldier with the Green Whiskers. "Anyone accused
of crime is given a fair trial by our Ruler and
has every chance to prove his innocence. But just
now Ozma's orders must be obeyed."
With this he took from his pocket a pair of
handcuffs made of gold and set with rubies and
diamonds, and these he snapped over Ojo's wrists.
Chapter Fifteen
Ozma's Prisoner
The boy was so bewildered by this calamity that he
made no resistance at all. He knew very well he
was guilty, but it surprised him that Ozma also
knew it. He wondered how she had found out so soon
that he had picked the six-leaved clover. He
handed his basket to Scraps and said:
"Keep that, until I get out of prison. If I
never get out, take it to the Crooked Magician, to
whom it belongs."
The Shaggy Man had been gazing earnestly in the
boy's face, uncertain whether to defend him or
not; but something he read in Ojo's expression
made him draw back and refuse to interfere to save
him. The Shaggy Man was greatly surprised and
grieved, but he knew that Ozma never made mistakes
and so Ojo must really have broken the Law of Oz.
The Soldier with the Green Whiskers now led them
all through the gate and into a little room built
in the wall. Here sat a jolly little man, richly
dressed in green and having around his neck a
heavy gold chain to which a number of great golden
keys were attached. This was the Guardian of the
Gate and at the moment they entered his room he
was playing a tune upon a mouth-organ.
"Listen!" he said, holding up his hand for
silence. "I've just composed a tune called 'The
Speckled Alligator.' It's in patch-time, which is
much superior to rag-time, and I've composed it in
honor of the Patchwork Girl, who has just
arrived."
"How did you know I had arrived?" asked Scraps,
much interested.
"It's my business to know who's coming, for I'm
the Guardian of the Gate. Keep quiet while I play
you 'The Speckled Alligator.'"
It wasn't a very bad tune, nor a very good one,
but all listened respectfully while he shut his
eyes and swayed his head from side to side and
blew the notes from the little instrument. When it
was all over the Soldier with the Green Whiskers
said:
"Guardian, I have here a prisoner."
"Good gracious! A prisoner?" cried the little
man, jumping up from his chair. "Which one? Not
the Shaggy Man?"
"No; this boy."
"Ah; I hope his fault is as small as himself,"
said the Guardian of the Gate. "But what can he
have done, and what made him do it?"
"Can't say," replied the soldier. "All I know
is that he has broken the Law."
"But no one ever does that!"
"Then he must be innocent, and soon will be
released. I hope you are right, Guardian. Just now
I am ordered to take him to prison. Get me a
prisoner's robe from your Official Wardrobe."
The Guardian unlocked a closet and took
from it a white robe, which the soldier threw
over Ojo. It covered him from head to foot, but
had two holes just in front of his eyes, so he
could see where to go. In this attire the boy
presented a very quaint appearance.
As the Guardian unlocked a gate leading
from his room into the streets of the Emerald
City, the Shaggy Man said to Scraps:
"I think I shall take you directly to Dorothy,
as the Scarecrow advised, and the Glass Cat
and the Woozy may come with us. Ojo must
go to prison with the Soldier with the Green
Whiskers, but he will he well treated and you
need not worry about him."
"What will they do with him?" asked Scraps.
"That I cannot tell. Since I came to the Land of
Oz no one has ever been arrested or imprisoned--
until Ojo broke the Law."
"Seems to me that girl Ruler of yours is making
a big fuss over nothing," remarked Scraps, tossing
her yarn hair out of her eyes with a jerk of her
patched head. "I don't know what Ojo has done, but
it couldn't be anything very, bad, for you and I
were with him all the time."
The Shaggy Man made no reply to this speech and
presently the Patchwork Girl forgot all about Ojo
in her admiration of the wonderful city she had
entered.
They soon separated from the Munchkin boy, who
was led by the Soldier with the Green Whiskers
down a side street toward the prison. Ojo felt
very miserable and greatly ashamed of himself, but
he was beginning to grow angry because he was
treated in such a disgraceful manner. Instead of
entering the splendid Emerald City as a
respectable traveler who was entitled to a
welcome and to hospitality, he was being brought
in as a criminal, handcuffed and in a robe that
told all he met of his deep disgrace.
Ojo was by nature gentle and affectionate and if
he had disobeyed the Law of Oz it was to restore
his dear Unc Nunkie to life. His fault was more
thoughtless than wicked, but that did not alter
the fact that he had committed a fault. At first
he had felt sorrow and remorse, but the more he
thought about the unjusttreatment he had
received--unjust merely because he considered it
so--the more he resented his arrest, blaming Ozma
for making foolish laws and then punishing folks
who broke them. Only a six-leaved clover! A tiny
green plant growing neglected and trampled under
foot. What harm could there be in picking it? Ojo
began to think Ozma must be a very bad and
oppressive Ruler for such a lovely fairyland as
Oz. The Shaggy Man said the people loved her; but
how could they?
The little Munchkin boy was so busy thinking
these things--which many guilty prisoners have
thought before him--that he scarcely noticed all
the splendor of the city streets through which
they passed. Whenever they met any of the happy,
smiling people, the boy turned his head away in
shame, although none knew who was beneath the
robe.
By and by they reached a house built just beside
the great city wall, but in a quiet, retired
place. It was a pretty house, neatly painted and
with many windows. Before it was a garden filled
with blooming flowers. The Soldier with the Green
Whiskers led Ojo up the gravel path to the front
door, on which he knocked.
A woman opened the door and, seeing Ojo
in his white robe, exclaimed:
"Goodness me! A prisoner at last. But what a
- execute [´eksikju:t]
vt.执行；表演；演奏 (初中英语单词) - arrest [ə´rest] vt.逮捕 n.逮捕；停止 (初中英语单词)
- gracious [´greiʃəs] a.和蔼可亲的；任慈的 (初中英语单词)
- princess [,prin´ses] n.公主；王妃；亲王夫人 (初中英语单词)
- resistance [ri´zistəns] n.抵抗；抵制；耐力 (初中英语单词)
- guilty [´gilti] a.有罪的；心虚的 (初中英语单词)
- uncertain [ʌn´sə:tn] a.不定的；不可靠的 (初中英语单词)
- interfere [,intə´fiə] vi.干涉；妨碍；打扰 (初中英语单词)
- instrument [´instrumənt] n.仪器；手段；乐器 (初中英语单词)
- innocent [´inəsənt] a.无罪的；单纯的 (初中英语单词)
- closet [´klɔzit] n.橱；私室；盥洗室 (初中英语单词)
- admiration [,ædmə´reiʃən] n.赞赏，钦佩 (初中英语单词)
- miserable [´mizərəbəl] a.悲惨的；可怜的 (初中英语单词)
- ashamed [ə´ʃeimd] a.惭愧；不好意思 (初中英语单词)
- beginning [bi´giniŋ] n.开始，开端；起源 (初中英语单词)
- criminal [´kriminəl] a.犯罪的 n.罪犯 (初中英语单词)
- wicked [´wikid] a.邪恶的；不道德的 (初中英语单词)
- treatment [´tri:tmənt] n.待遇；对待；治疗 (初中英语单词)
- splendor [´splendə] n.壮丽 =splendour (初中英语单词)
- whenever [wen´evə] conj.&ad.无论何时 (初中英语单词)
- mighty [´maiti] a.强有力的 ad.很 (高中英语单词)
- congratulate [kən´grætjuleit] vt.祝贺 (高中英语单词)
- painful [´peinfəl] a.痛(苦)的；费力的 (高中英语单词)
- highness [´hainis] n.高，高贵，高尚 (高中英语单词)
- innocence [´inəsəns] n.无罪；天真 (高中英语单词)
- clover [´kləuvə] n.三叶草 (高中英语单词)
- crooked [´krukid] a.弯曲的；畸形的 (高中英语单词)
- magician [mə´dʒiʃən] n.魔法师；妖道；术士 (高中英语单词)
- earnestly [´ə:nistli] ad.认真地；急切地 (高中英语单词)
- guardian [´gɑ:diən] n.监护人；保护人 (高中英语单词)
- attire [ə´taiə] vt.装饰；穿 n.衣服 (高中英语单词)
- quaint [kweint] a.离奇的；奇妙的 (高中英语单词)
- hospitality [,hɔspi´tæliti] n.好客，殷勤 (高中英语单词)
- affectionate [ə´fekʃənit] a.亲爱的 (高中英语单词)
- gravel [´grævəl] n.砾石 vt.铺砾石 (高中英语单词)
- seeing [si:iŋ] see的现在分词 n.视觉 (高中英语单词)
- emerald [´emərəld] n.纯绿宝石；翠绿色 (英语四级单词)
- unlucky [ʌn´lʌki] a.倒霉的，不幸的 (英语四级单词)
- calamity [kə´læmiti] n.灾害，大灾难 (英语四级单词)
- shaggy [´ʃægi] a.蓬乱的；多粗毛的 (英语四级单词)
- composed [kəm´pəuzd] a.镇静自若的 (英语四级单词)
- respectfully [ris´pektfuli] ad.恭敬地 (英语四级单词)
- remorse [ri´mɔ:s] n.懊悔；自责；同情 (英语四级单词)
- unjust [ʌn´dʒʌst] a.不公平(正)的 (英语四级单词)
- fairyland [´fɛərilænd] n.仙境，奇境 (英语四级单词)
- blooming [´blu:miŋ] a.正开花的；妙龄的 (英语四级单词)
- fluffy [´flʌfi] a.绒毛似的 (英语六级单词)
- holding [´həuldiŋ] n.保持，固定，存储 (英语六级单词)
- disgraceful [dis´greisful] a.可耻的；不光彩的 (英语六级单词)
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章节正文
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