"
"I will do that gladly," returned the Queen. "Are you ready?"
The Tin Woodman looked at Tip.
"I'm rested," said the boy. "Let us start."
Then they resumed their journey, the little grey Queen of the Field Mice
running swiftly ahead and then pausing until the travelers drew near, when
away she would dart again.
Without this unerring guide the Scarecrow and his comrades might never have
gained the Emerald City; for many were the obstacles thrown in their way by
the arts of old Mombi. Yet not one of the obstacles really existed -- all
were cleverly contrived deceptions. For when they came to the banks of a
rushing river that threatened to bar their way the
165
little Queen kept steadily on, passing through the seeming flood in safety;
and our travelers followed her without encountering a single drop of water.
Again, a high wall of granite towered high above their heads and opposed
their advance. But the grey Field Mouse walked straight through it, and the
others did the same, the wall melting into mist as they passed it.
Afterward, when they had stopped for a moment to allow Tip to rest, they saw
forty roads branching off from their feet in forty different directions; and
soon these forty roads began whirling around like a mighty wheel, first in
one direction and then in the other, completely bewildering their vision.
But the Queen called for them to follow her and darted off in a straight
line; and when they had gone a few paces the whirling pathways vanished and
were seen no more.
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