The Forest Monster of Oz Read online

  CHAPTER 2

  ELEPHANT'S DAY

  "Elephant?" asked Tweaty, a yellow canary who was looking up at thelarge gray beast.

  "Yes?" asked the elephant, who was drinking a tall glass of chocolatemilk with his trunk.

  "I was just thinking about the new Queen of Oz," said the bird solemnly."Do you think she'll last? I mean, I really thought that the WonderfulWizard of Oz himself would rule over the Land forever. Then I placed myconfidence in His Majesty the Scarecrow. Now, out of the blue, we've gotthis little girl who is probably younger than most eggs, and we aresupposed to give her our neverending support?"

  "Why in the world not?" the pachyderm drawled as he indolently stretchedhimself. "Nibbles and I agree that, though she is very young, PrincessOzma shows a lot of promise as Oz's new leader. Give the child a chance.She's only been a Queen for a week or so!"

  "Absolutely, Tweaty!" Nibbles agreed. "And so many rulers have beenyouthful. Remember the old story about King Tut? He was just a littleboy."

  Few persons guessed that Nibbles, Elephant and Tweaty were old friends,so unlike were they in appearance and disposition. Tweaty was delicate,clean and could sing for hours on end without repeating a tune. He tookpride in his appearance and always made sure that his refulgent featherswere clean. Nibbles, on the other hand, was a mouse. He was often founddigging in the trash that was sometimes left by careless campers orburrowing in other animals' nests. His fur was not what most would deemtidy, but he was amiable and companionable. Elephant, by far thelargest of the three, was less colorful. He liked the other animals, andhe ofttimes wanted to help the smaller creatures as best he could, buthis immense size and bulk generally made him feel more like a nuisancethan a help. In spite of legends that would have us all believe thatelephants are afraid of mice, he found that most of his favoriteplaymates were among the smaller creatures of Oz. He enjoyed fellowshipwith mice, as well as with rabbits and hedgehogs. He had befriendedNibbles at a young age, and it had been Nibbles who had introduced himto Tweaty.

  The three friends were enjoying a relaxing afternoon in a remote regionof the Munchkin Country known as the Lunechien Forest. It was a time oftransition in the Land of Oz. The child Queen, Ozma of Oz, had just beennamed Ruler over the land. This news had met with mixed reactions. ManyOzites maintained that only the Wonderful Wizard could rule the land.Others favored the amiable Scarecrow. But all admitted that, even thougha tiny little girl, Ozma was a unique leader. She had already proventhat. She had not only created and brought to life a pumpkin-headed mannamed Jack, a wooden Sawhorse, and a wobbly monstrosity with the head ofa Gump, but had also gone forth with these unlikely companions and savedthe Land of Oz from a terrible fate.

  Elephant, drinking chocolate milk.]

  "But she's a little girl!" said the bird. "She's a child! Childrenshould be allowed to enjoy their childhoods. This kid should learn toplay jacks or skip a rope. She should have some nice paper dolls todress up. She should have nice toys. She is too young to be a Queen. Lether live a happy life for a while before you go throwing all thatresponsibility on her. She's only a baby, for crying out loud!"

  "She is a cute little thing, though," Elephant remarked, half tohimself.

  "Cute?" Tweaty demanded in surprise. "That is hardly a reason to electsomeone leader. Especially over such a vast country as Oz. Maybe if Ozwere a little dinky insignificant country like America or Kansas, itwould be okay. But Oz is so much bigger than those places. Elephant,don't you think that adorable infant deserves a childhood to enjoybefore getting schlepped into Queenhood unprepared?"

  Before Elephant could reply, an unexpected occurrence drove all idlethoughts from his mind. It all happened in an instant.

  From the ends of the earth to the top of the sky, an unearthly roarissued forth. It was as blood-curdling as a scream, yet as sinister as ared dragon's growl.

  Then, before the horrified trio, a gigantic spider loomed before them.It looked as if it were hungry, and it was so uncannily big that itcould easily have devoured all three of them in an instant! It mighthave, too, had it not been distracted by the sight of a small yellow catwhich was darting by. It took the feline in its massive claws and raisedher to its mouth.