AbdulHannanMujawar/ch_development · Datasets at Hugging Face

text stringlengths 0 83
make anybody nervous. He groaned, too, as if frightened, and the wings
creaked dreadfully because the Wizard had forgotten to oil them; but
they kept fairly good time with the wings of the buggy, so that they
made excellent progress from the start. The only thing that anyone could
complain of with justice was the fact that they wobbled first up and
then down, as if the road were rocky instead of being as smooth as the
air could make it.

The main point, however, was that they flew, and flew swiftly, if a bit
unevenly, toward the rock for which they had headed.

Some of the Gargoyles saw them, presently, and lost no time in
collecting a band to pursue the escaping prisoners; so that when Dorothy
happened to look back she saw them coming in a great cloud that almost
darkened the sky.

[Illustration]




CHAPTER 13.

THE DEN OF THE DRAGONETTES


Our friends had a good start and were able to maintain it, for with
their eight wings they could go just as fast as could the Gargoyles. All
the way to the great rock the wooden people followed them, and when Jim
finally alighted at the mouth of the cavern the pursuers were still some
distance away.

"But, I'm afraid they'll catch us yet," said Dorothy, greatly excited.

"No; we must stop them," declared the Wizard. "Quick Zeb, help me pull
off these wooden wings!"

They tore off the wings, for which they had no further use, and the
Wizard piled them in a heap just outside the entrance to the cavern.
Then he poured over them all the kerosene oil that was left in his
oil-can, and lighting a match set fire to the pile.

The flames leaped up at once and the bonfire began to smoke and roar and
crackle just as the great army of wooden Gargoyles arrived. The
creatures drew back at once, being filled with fear and horror; for such
a dreadful thing as a fire they had never before known in all the
history of their wooden land.

Inside the archway were several doors, leading to different rooms built
into the mountain, and Zeb and the Wizard lifted these wooden doors from
their hinges and tossed them all on the flames.

"That will prove a barrier for some time to come," said the little man,
smiling pleasantly all over his wrinkled face at the success of their
stratagem. "Perhaps the flames will set fire to all that miserable
wooden country, and if it does the loss will be very small and the
Gargoyles never will be missed. But come, my children; let us explore
the mountain and discover which way we must go in order to escape from
this cavern, which is getting to be almost as hot as a bake-oven."

To their disappointment there was within this mountain no regular flight
of steps by means of which they could mount to the earth's surface. A
sort of inclined tunnel led upward for a way, and they found the floor
of it both rough and steep. Then a sudden turn brought them to a narrow
gallery where the buggy could not pass. This delayed and bothered them
for a while, because they did not wish to leave the buggy behind them.
It carried their baggage and was useful to ride in wherever there were
good roads, and since it had accompanied them so far in their travels
they felt it their duty to preserve it. So Zeb and the Wizard set to
work and took off the wheels and the top, and then they put the buggy
edgewise, so it would take up the smallest space. In this position they
managed, with the aid of the patient cab-horse, to drag the vehicle
through the narrow part of the passage. It was not a great distance,
fortunately, and when the path grew broader they put the buggy together
again and proceeded more comfortably. But the road was nothing more than
a series of rifts or cracks in the mountain, and it went zig-zag in
every direction, slanting first up and then down until they were puzzled
as to whether they were any nearer to the top of the earth than when
they had started, hours before.

"Anyhow," said Dorothy, "we've 'scaped those awful Gurgles, and that's
_one_ comfort!"

[Illustration: "WHY IT'S A DRAGON!"]

"Probably the Gargoyles are still busy trying to put out the fire,"
returned the Wizard. "But even if they succeeded in doing that it
would be very difficult for them to fly amongst these rocks; so I am
sure we need fear them no longer."

Once in a while they would come to a deep crack in the floor, which made
the way quite dangerous; but there was still enough oil in the lanterns
to give them light, and the cracks were not so wide but that they were
able to jump over them. Sometimes they had to climb over heaps of loose
rock, where Jim could scarcely drag the buggy. At such times Dorothy,
Zeb and the Wizard all pushed behind, and lifted the wheels over the
roughest places; so they managed, by dint of hard work, to keep going.
But the little party was both weary and discouraged when at last, on
turning a sharp corner, the wanderers found themselves in a vast cave
arching high over their heads and having a smooth, level floor.

make anybody nervous. He groaned, too, as if frightened, and the wings

creaked dreadfully because the Wizard had forgotten to oil them; but

they kept fairly good time with the wings of the buggy, so that they

made excellent progress from the start. The only thing that anyone could

complain of with justice was the fact that they wobbled first up and

then down, as if the road were rocky instead of being as smooth as the

air could make it.

The main point, however, was that they flew, and flew swiftly, if a bit

unevenly, toward the rock for which they had headed.

Some of the Gargoyles saw them, presently, and lost no time in

collecting a band to pursue the escaping prisoners; so that when Dorothy

happened to look back she saw them coming in a great cloud that almost

darkened the sky.

[Illustration]

CHAPTER 13.

THE DEN OF THE DRAGONETTES

Our friends had a good start and were able to maintain it, for with

their eight wings they could go just as fast as could the Gargoyles. All

the way to the great rock the wooden people followed them, and when Jim

finally alighted at the mouth of the cavern the pursuers were still some

distance away.

"But, I'm afraid they'll catch us yet," said Dorothy, greatly excited.

"No; we must stop them," declared the Wizard. "Quick Zeb, help me pull

off these wooden wings!"

They tore off the wings, for which they had no further use, and the

Wizard piled them in a heap just outside the entrance to the cavern.

Then he poured over them all the kerosene oil that was left in his

oil-can, and lighting a match set fire to the pile.

The flames leaped up at once and the bonfire began to smoke and roar and

crackle just as the great army of wooden Gargoyles arrived. The

creatures drew back at once, being filled with fear and horror; for such

a dreadful thing as a fire they had never before known in all the

history of their wooden land.

Inside the archway were several doors, leading to different rooms built

into the mountain, and Zeb and the Wizard lifted these wooden doors from

their hinges and tossed them all on the flames.

"That will prove a barrier for some time to come," said the little man,

smiling pleasantly all over his wrinkled face at the success of their

stratagem. "Perhaps the flames will set fire to all that miserable

wooden country, and if it does the loss will be very small and the

Gargoyles never will be missed. But come, my children; let us explore

the mountain and discover which way we must go in order to escape from

this cavern, which is getting to be almost as hot as a bake-oven."

To their disappointment there was within this mountain no regular flight

of steps by means of which they could mount to the earth's surface. A

sort of inclined tunnel led upward for a way, and they found the floor

of it both rough and steep. Then a sudden turn brought them to a narrow

gallery where the buggy could not pass. This delayed and bothered them

for a while, because they did not wish to leave the buggy behind them.

It carried their baggage and was useful to ride in wherever there were

good roads, and since it had accompanied them so far in their travels

they felt it their duty to preserve it. So Zeb and the Wizard set to

work and took off the wheels and the top, and then they put the buggy

edgewise, so it would take up the smallest space. In this position they

managed, with the aid of the patient cab-horse, to drag the vehicle

through the narrow part of the passage. It was not a great distance,

fortunately, and when the path grew broader they put the buggy together

again and proceeded more comfortably. But the road was nothing more than

a series of rifts or cracks in the mountain, and it went zig-zag in

every direction, slanting first up and then down until they were puzzled

as to whether they were any nearer to the top of the earth than when

they had started, hours before.

"Anyhow," said Dorothy, "we've 'scaped those awful Gurgles, and that's

_one_ comfort!"

[Illustration: "WHY IT'S A DRAGON!"]

"Probably the Gargoyles are still busy trying to put out the fire,"

returned the Wizard. "But even if they succeeded in doing that it

would be very difficult for them to fly amongst these rocks; so I am

sure we need fear them no longer."

Once in a while they would come to a deep crack in the floor, which made

the way quite dangerous; but there was still enough oil in the lanterns

to give them light, and the cracks were not so wide but that they were

able to jump over them. Sometimes they had to climb over heaps of loose

rock, where Jim could scarcely drag the buggy. At such times Dorothy,

Zeb and the Wizard all pushed behind, and lifted the wheels over the

roughest places; so they managed, by dint of hard work, to keep going.

But the little party was both weary and discouraged when at last, on

turning a sharp corner, the wanderers found themselves in a vast cave

arching high over their heads and having a smooth, level floor.