The Tin Woodman wanted to know, first of all, where Dorothy had found the Patchwork7 Girl, so between them the visitors told the story of how Scraps was made, as well as the accident to Margolotte and Unc Nunkie and how Ojo had set out upon a journey to procure8 the things needed for the Crooked9 Magician's magic charm. Then Dorothy told of their adventures in the Quadling Country and how at last they succeeded in getting the water from a dark well.
While the little girl was relating these adventures the Tin Woodman sat in an easy chair listening with intense interest, while the others sat grouped around him. Ojo, however, had kept his eyes fixed10 upon the body of the tin Emperor, and now he noticed that under the joint2 of his left knee a tiny drop of oil was forming. He watched this drop of oil with a fast-beating heart, and feeling in his pocket brought out a tiny vial of crystal, which he held secreted11 in his hand.
Presently the Tin Woodman changed his position, and at once Ojo, to the astonishment12 of all, dropped to the floor and held his crystal vial under the Emperor's knee joint. Just then the drop of oil fell, and the boy caught it in his bottle and immediately corked13 it tight. Then, with a red face and embarrassed manner, he rose to confront the others.
"What in the world were you doing?" asked the Tin Woodman.
"I caught a drop of oil that fell from your knee-joint," confessed Ojo.
"A drop of oil!" exclaimed the Tin Woodman. "Dear me, how careless my valet must have been in oiling me this morning. I'm afraid I shall have to scold the fellow, for I can't be dropping oil wherever I go."
"Never mind," said Dorothy. "Ojo seems glad to have the oil, for some reason."
"Yes," declared the Munchkin boy, "I am glad. For one of the things the Crooked Magician sent me to get was a drop of oil from a live man's body. I had no idea, at first, that there was such a thing; but it's now safe in the little crystal vial."
"You are very welcome to it, indeed," said the Tin Woodman. "Have you now secured all the things you were in search of?"
"Not quite all," answered Ojo. "There were five things I had to get, and I have found four of them. I have the three hairs in the tip of a Woozy's tail, a six-leaved clover, a gill of water from a dark well and a drop of oil from a live man's body. The last thing is the easiest of all to get, and I'm sure that my dear Unc Nunkie—and good Margolotte, as well—will soon be restored to life."
The Munchkin boy said this with much pride and pleasure.
"Good!" exclaimed the Tin Woodman; "I congratulate you. But what is the fifth and last thing you need, in order to complete the magic charm?"
"The left wing of a yellow butterfly," said Ojo. "In this yellow country, and with your kind assistance, that ought to be very easy to find."
"Surely you are joking!" he said.
"No," replied Ojo, much surprised; "I am in earnest."
"But do you think for a moment that I would permit you, or anyone else, to pull the left wing from a yellow butterfly?" demanded the Tin Woodman sternly.
"Why not, sir?"
"Why not? You ask me why not? It would be cruel—one of the most cruel and heartless deeds I ever heard of," asserted the Tin Woodman. "The butterflies are among the prettiest of all created things, and they are very sensitive to pain. To tear a wing from one would cause it exquisite15 torture and it would soon die in great agony. I would not permit such a wicked deed under any circumstances!"
Ojo was astounded16 at hearing this. Dorothy, too, looked grave and disconcerted, but she knew in her heart that the Tin Woodman was right. The Scarecrow nodded his head in approval of his friend's speech, so it was evident that he agreed with the Emperor's decision. Scraps looked from one to another in perplexity.
"Who cares for a butterfly?" she asked.
"Don't you?" inquired the Tin Woodman.
"Not the snap of a finger, for I have no heart," said the Patchwork Girl. "But I want to help Ojo, who is my friend, to rescue the uncle whom he loves, and I'd kill a dozen useless butterflies to enable him to do that."
The Tin Woodman sighed regretfully.
"You have kind instincts," he said, "and with a heart you would indeed be a fine creature. I cannot blame you for your heartless remark, as you cannot understand the feelings of those who possess hearts. I, for instance, have a very neat and responsive heart which the wonderful Wizard of Oz once gave me, and so I shall never—never—never permit a poor yellow butterfly to be tortured by anyone."
"The yellow country of the Winkies," said Ojo sadly, "is the only place in Oz where a yellow butterfly can be found."
"I'm glad of that," said the Tin Woodman. "As I rule the Winkie Country, I can protect my butterflies."
"Then he must remain a marble statue forever," declared the Tin Emperor, firmly.
Ojo wiped his eyes, for he could not hold back the tears.
"I'll tell you what to do," said Scraps. "We'll take a whole yellow butterfly, alive and well, to the Crooked Magician, and let him pull the left wing off."
"No, you won't," said the Tin Woodman. "You can't have one of my dear little butterflies to treat in that way."
"Then what in the world shall we do?" asked Dorothy.
They all became silent and thoughtful. No one spoke18 for a long time. Then the Tin Woodman suddenly roused himself and said:
"We must all go back to the Emerald City and ask Ozma's advice. She's a wise little girl, our Ruler, and she may find a way to help Ojo save his Unc Nunkie."
So the following morning the party started on the journey to the Emerald City, which they reached in due time without any important adventure. It was a sad journey for Ojo, for without the wing of the yellow butterfly he saw no way to save Unc Nunkie—unless he waited six years for the Crooked Magician to make a new lot of the Powder of Life. The boy was utterly19 discouraged, and as he walked along he groaned20 aloud.
"Is anything hurting you?" inquired the Tin Woodman in a kindly21 tone, for the Emperor was with the party.
"I'm Ojo the Unlucky," replied the boy. "I might have known I would fail in anything I tried to do."
"Why are you Ojo the Unlucky?" asked the tin man.
"Because I was born on a Friday."
"Friday is not unlucky," declared the Emperor. "It's just one of seven days. Do you suppose all the world becomes unlucky one-seventh of the time?"
"It was the thirteenth day of the month," said Ojo.
"Thirteen! Ah, that is indeed a lucky number," replied the Tin Woodman. "All my good luck seems to happen on the thirteenth. I suppose most people never notice the good luck that comes to them with the number 13, and yet if the least bit of bad luck falls on that day, they blame it to the number, and not to the proper cause."
"Thirteen's my lucky number, too," remarked the Scarecrow.
"And mine," said Scraps. "I've just thirteen patches on my head."
"But," continued Ojo, "I'm left-handed."
"Many of our greatest men are that way," asserted the Emperor. "To be left-handed is usually to be two-handed; the right-handed people are usually one-handed."
"How lucky!" cried the Tin Woodman. "If it were on the end of your nose it might be unlucky, but under your arm it is luckily out of the way."
"For all those reasons," said the Munchkin boy, "I have been called Ojo the Unlucky."
"Then we must turn over a new leaf and call you henceforth Ojo the Lucky," declared the tin man. "Every reason you have given is absurd. But I have noticed that those who continually dread23 ill luck and fear it will overtake them, have no time to take advantage of any good fortune that comes their way. Make up your mind to be Ojo the Lucky."
"How can I?" asked the boy, "when all my attempts to save my dear uncle have failed?"
"Never give up, Ojo," advised Dorothy. "No one ever knows what's going to happen next."
Ojo did not reply, but he was so dejected that even their arrival at the Emerald City failed to interest him.
The people joyfully24 cheered the appearance of the Tin Woodman, the Scarecrow and Dorothy, who were all three general favorites, and on entering the royal palace word came to them from Ozma that she would at once grant them an audience.
Dorothy told the girl Ruler how successful they had been in their quest until they came to the item of the yellow butterfly, which the Tin Woodman positively25 refused to sacrifice to the magic potion.
"He is quite right," said Ozma, who did not seem a bit surprised. "Had Ojo told me that one of the things he sought was the wing of a yellow butterfly I would have informed him, before he started out, that he could never secure it. Then you would have been saved the troubles and annoyances26 of your long journey."
"I didn't mind the journey at all," said Dorothy; "it was fun."
"As it has turned out," remarked Ojo, "I can never get the things the Crooked Magician sent me for; and so, unless I wait the six years for him to make the Powder of Life, Unc Nunkie cannot be saved."
Ozma smiled.
"Dr. Pipt will make no more Powder of Life, I promise you," said she. "I have sent for him and had him brought to this palace, where he now is, and his four kettles have been destroyed and his book of recipes burned up. I have also had brought here the marble statues of your uncle and of Margolotte, which are standing27 in the next room."
They were all greatly astonished at this announcement.
"Oh, let me see Unc Nunkie! Let me see him at once, please!" cried Ojo eagerly.
"Wait a moment," replied Ozma, "for I have something more to say. Nothing that happens in the Land of Oz escapes the notice of our wise Sorceress, Glinda the Good. She knew all about the magic-making of Dr. Pipt, and how he had brought the Glass Cat and the Patchwork Girl to life, and the accident to Unc Nunkie and Margolotte, and of Ojo's quest and his journey with Dorothy. Glinda also knew that Ojo would fail to find all the things he sought, so she sent for our Wizard and instructed him what to do. Something is going to happen in this palace, presently, and that 'something' will, I am sure, please you all. And now," continued the girl Ruler, rising from her chair, "you may follow me into the next room."
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1
joints
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| 接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语） | |
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joint
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| adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合 | |
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courteous
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| adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的 | |
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scraps
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| 油渣 | |
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ushered
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| v.引，领，陪同( usher的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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parlor
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| n.店铺，营业室；会客室，客厅 | |
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patchwork
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| n.混杂物；拼缝物 | |
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procure
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| vt.获得，取得，促成；vi.拉皮条 | |
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crooked
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| adj.弯曲的；不诚实的，狡猾的，不正当的 | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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secreted
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| v.（尤指动物或植物器官）分泌( secrete的过去式和过去分词 )；隐匿，隐藏 | |
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astonishment
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| n.惊奇，惊异 | |
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corked
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| adj.带木塞气味的，塞着瓶塞的v.用瓶塞塞住( cork的过去式 ) | |
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amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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astounded
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| v.使震惊(astound的过去式和过去分词)；愕然；愕；惊讶 | |
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miserably
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| adv.痛苦地；悲惨地；糟糕地；极度地 | |
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spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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utterly
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| adv.完全地，绝对地 | |
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groaned
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| v.呻吟( groan的过去式和过去分词 )；发牢骚；抱怨；受苦 | |
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kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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wart
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| n.疣，肉赘；瑕疵 | |
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dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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joyfully
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| adv. 喜悦地, 高兴地 | |
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positively
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| adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实 | |
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annoyances
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| n.恼怒( annoyance的名词复数 )；烦恼；打扰；使人烦恼的事 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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