Chapter-10
For three days, Dorothy did not hear from Oz. This made her very sad and worried. The Scarecrow was very happy with his new brains and told everyone about the wonderful thoughts he had. The Tinman could feel his heart rattling around in his chest when he walked. He told Dorothy that in only a few days he had discovered how to be tender and kind. The lion declared that he wasn’t afraid of anything on earth, and that he would gladly face an army of men or a dozen fierce beasts.
Each one had his wish granted except for Dorothy, who wanted more than ever to return to Kansas.
After four days, Oz sent for Dorothy. When she entered the Throne Room, he said pleasantly, “Sit down, my dear. I think I have found a way to get you out of this country.”
“And back to Kansas?” she asked.
“Well, I am not sure about Kansas, since I am not really sure where it is. But the first thing to do is to cross the desert, and then it should be easy to find your way home. And there is only one way to cross the desert. I have been thinking the matter over, and I believe I can make a balloon which will carry you over the desert.
“How do you make a balloon?” asked Dorothy.
“A balloon,” said Oz, “is made of silk, which is coated with glue to keep the gas in it. There is plenty of silk in this city but there is no gas to fill the balloon so that it may float.”
“If it won’t float,” said Dorothy, “it cannot help us cross the desert.”
“True,” answered Oz, “But there is another way to make it float. We can fill it with hot air. Of course, hot air is not so good as gas, for if the air should get cold the balloon will come down in the desert, and will be lost.”
“We!” cried Dorothy, “Are you going with me?”
“Yes, of course,” said Oz. “I am tired of being such a fake. I don’t want my people to discover that I am not a Wizard at all. I’d much rather go back to Kansas with you and be in the circus again.”
So Dorothy and Oz cut the strips of silk and sewed them neatly together. When they finished this, Oz sent one of his soldiers to search for a large clothes basket. He tied the basket to the bottom of the balloon with many ropes. He explained to Dorothy that they would ride in the basket.
When the balloon was finally finished, Oz sent word to his people that he was going to make a visit to a great brother Wizard who lived in the clouds. The news spread through the city, and everyone came to see the wonderful sight.
Oz ordered the balloon carried out in front of the palace, and the people looked at it with curiosity. The Tinman chopped a big pile of wood and then made a fire of it. Oz held the bottom of the balloon over the fire so that the hot air rising from it might be caught inside. Soon the balloon swelled out and rose into the air, until finally the basket just touched the ground.
Then Oz got into the basket and said to all the people, “I am going away for a while. During the time that I have gone the Scarecrow will rule over you. I command you to obey him as you would obey me.”
By this time, the balloon was tugging at the rope that held it to the ground. Since the air inside was hot, it was much lighter in weight than the air outside the balloon. The balloon was beginning to rise into the sky.
“Hurry up, Dorothy!” cried the Wizard, “or the balloon will fly away.”
“I can’t find Toto anywhere,” answered Dorothy. Toto had run into the crowd to bark at a kitten. When Dorothy finally found him, she picked him up and ran towards the balloon.
She was only a few steps away, and Oz was holding out his hands to help her into the basket, when the ropes went crack. The balloon rose into the air without her.
“Come back!” shouted Dorothy.
But it was too late. Oz was already riding in the basket, rising farther and farther into the sky.
And that was the last any of them saw of Oz. No one ever knew if he reached Omaha safely, but everyone remembered him lovingly, and they were very sad to see him go.
