The Oz Series
Chapter 13
Part of the Dorothy's Journey to the Wizard and Back to Kansas arc.
What happens
The Cowardly Lion is pleased to learn the Wicked Witch was melted by a bucket of water, and Dorothy unlocks his prison gate to free him. Together they enter the castle, where Dorothy calls all the yellow Winkies together and tells them they are no longer slaves. The Winkies rejoice, having been forced to work hard for years under the Witch's cruelty, and keep the day as a holiday of feasting and dancing ever after. The Lion wishes the Scarecrow and Tin Woodman were with them, and when Dorothy asks whether they could be rescued, the Winkies agree to help her. Dorothy chooses the most capable-looking Winkies, and they travel a day and part of the next to the rocky plain where the Tin Woodman lies battered and bent, his axe blade rusted and handle broken. The Winkies carry him back to the Yellow Castle, Dorothy shedding tears and the Lion looking sober.
Dorothy asks whether any Winkies are tinsmiths, and several skilled ones come with their tools. She asks them to straighten the dents, bend the Woodman back into shape, and solder his broken parts. The tinsmiths work for three days and four nights, hammering, twisting, bending, soldering, and polishing until the Woodman is restored to his old form with joints working as well as ever, though he bears several patches, which the unvain Woodman does not mind. He weeps tears of joy when he thanks Dorothy, who carefully wipes each tear so his joints will not rust. To rescue the Scarecrow, Dorothy and the Winkies walk a day and part of the next to the tall smooth tree where the Winged Monkeys tossed his clothes. A Winkie goldsmith has fitted the Woodman's axe with a solid gold handle and polished its blade, so the Woodman chops the tree down, the Scarecrow's clothes fall out, and they are carried back and restuffed with clean straw, restoring the Scarecrow as good as ever.
Reunited, the group spends a few happy days at the Yellow Castle, but Dorothy resolves they must return to Oz to claim his promise: the Woodman his heart, the Scarecrow his brains, the Lion his courage, and Dorothy her return to Kansas. They decide to leave the next day and bid the Winkies good-bye. The Winkies, fond of the Tin Woodman, beg him to stay and rule over the Yellow Land of the West, but finding the travelers determined, they give gifts: golden collars for Toto and the Lion, a diamond-studded bracelet for Dorothy, a gold-headed walking stick for the Scarecrow, and a jeweled silver oil-can inlaid with gold for the Tin Woodman. Filling her basket with food at the Witch's cupboard, Dorothy finds the Golden Cap, tries it on, finds it fits, and decides to wear it though she knows nothing of its charm. The travelers set out for the Emerald City as the Winkies give three cheers.
Who is in play
- Dorothy
- Cowardly Lion
- Tin Woodman
- Scarecrow
- Dorothy's Traveling Party
- Golden Cap
- Winged Monkeys
- Aunt Em
- City of Emeralds
- Kansas
- Oz
- Toto
- the Witch's castle
- Wicked Witch of the West
- Winkies