The Forest Monster of Oz

he cast of the giant footprint when the owls flew in with the news. Ozma was astounded that such a beast could live in her domain without her being

domain. Why, even Ozma herself was in danger. The owls quickly informed her that the beast's first goal was to capture Elephant in order to gain the super strength that would enable him to attack the Cowardly Lion.

One has to live a long time and learn by trial and error before one can truly be considered wise. Of course, some people never learn. They make the same mistakes over an

"I recently came upon some unusual creatures t

ll ears, and fell silent

pear to be very fragile. But when they open their mouths they are a most ferocious sight to

intercepted Hootsey'

teresting, but they don't so

with razor-sharp teeth and they can rip any animal to shreds in two seconds. When a pack o

describing Saber-

me of these creatures

eir bodies up at night brighter than a hundred glow worms. The second is when they open their mouths and ex

t Bulbs!" everyone

d see if they would be willing to take on the monster. The little group was so engrossed in mulling this over that they did not notice a new visitor in their midst. It was Tweaty who first noticed him and nudged Nibbles in the ribs. Nibbles looked up to observe the strangest-looking little chap that he had ever set eyes on. He was a so

I didn't want to interrupt. However, since I now have your undivided attention, I feel duty-bound to con

d Hootsey. "It is my considered opinion

everyone said, n

north and we were hoping that Queen Ozma could use her good offices and apply her diplomatic powers of persuasion to encourage t

rmal declaration of hostilities?" ask

ould be for me to read this copy of a recent speech our President gave to our parliamentary congress."

us treaties and sense of common decency! They have caused great distress among our border residents by not only building new residential dwellings right smack up against the border, but have blatantly crossed the border in ever increasing numbers and brazenly thumbed their ridiculously small noses at Sniffer citizens who were unfortunate enough to cross their paths. They have also been observed taking soil samples from our rich bottom land. The reasons fo

to the point of panic, but I shall no

Five Hundredth and Eighteenth Parliamentary Congress of the Sni

oma that permeates our bodies, but which mainly radiates from the area of our feet. As you know, our olfactory senses are virtually nonexistent, but we are aware of a slight essence of this aroma which we find most pleasing. Unfortunately for others who might stray across our borders, the smell overpowers them in seconds, rendering any potential invader helpless. Now, as a result of the factors I have just presented to you, we find your bottom land by our northern

inc

nt (Past, Present and F

people have such big noses that their sense

their predicament. However, the situation with the Stinkfoots and the Sniffers is diverting us from ou

Light Bulbs before we can do anything. In the meantime, the President of the Sniffer Nat

if that monster attack

n his giant web and

reaching up to pat Elephant's trunk.

s back. Then he walked down to the stream and took a long drink. As they returned to join the group, Hootsey wa

thinking because smoke is coming out of your ears." Of course she had a twin

laring at Lisa, "before I was so rudely interrupted! There is great diversity in Oz. I mean, there are so many different kinds of people, yet for the most part we all get along

can see immediately that you hav

d?" enquired Hootsey with a hint of cyni

usy trying to think of wise things to say," interrupte

bles was being a "smart alec" or

ch way through the rocks. The sides of the passageway are quite sheer. If you were looking down from above, it would just seem like a chasm because you cannot see the path at the bottom. Besides, the road disappears in places

it?" Elephant asked

ieved in sharing their bounty with one another, and this they did frequently with great ceremony. Then one fateful day, the first group of yellow chilepeppers arrived from a foreign shore. At first there was a mutual understanding between the newcomers and the indigenous people. The red chilepeppers were very helpful in assisting the newcomers to adapt to their new surroundings. In return, they were given trinkets that sparkled, such as colored glass beads, hand mirrors and such, the like of which they'd never set eyes on before. The red chilepeppers were an innocent people, really quite primitive compared to the sophisticated so-called civilized newcomers who, incidentally, were very quick to take advantage of the childlike trust the r

e yellow chilepeppers are just rotten dogs! How could they treat their f

e who they considered 'different,'" answered Ozma

, given it thanks for its bounty and replenished it when they took from it. Yet the yellow chilepeppers considered them primitive and savage. And that's still not all! The green chilepeppers went on to tell me about the treatment that they received at the hands of the yellow chilepeppers. It seems that they

bbles, who had been ve

't sell

t only sold the people they captured as slaves, but they went back again and again to capture more green chilepe

d never allow even an unkind remark to pass between them if I were their leader. And I would hav

o fight among themselves and, to this day, some yellow chilepeppers still do not consider the green chilepeppers to be equal in status to themselves-and can be quite discriminating in their treatment of them. That is, when they can get away with it. They even confine them e

rland sounds like a horrible place to live

pperland really wanted to, they could live in Peace and Love and Harmony alongside e

r his fellows, there are probably several who cannot generate those feelings within themselves. So I predict that the unfortunate state of affairs in that dark land w

in the land where Dorothy comes from are much too in

hat the land where Dorothy came from had had a similar history. In fact, even as I write these words, there are people in the mortal lands who have lost their

from a little book given to me by a dear friend. I was reminded of this poem when Tweaty spoke of the difficulties the green

re me in the

ck, but O my

angel is the

k, as if bere

ught me unde

wn before the h

on her lap a

to the East,

sing sun: there

ight, and gives

trees and beasts

morning, joy

ut on Earth a

arn to bear th

bodies and thi

ud, and like

uls have learned

vanish, we shal

from the grove,

lden tent like

mother say,

y to the litt

k, and he from w

tent of God li

from the heat '

oy upon our

tand and stroke

m, and he will

he last line, tears were st

with a tailfeather, "...and so very sad that it will take so long for True Love to exist between a

u can be sure that that mean-spirited old spider-monster was not letting any grass grow under his feet. Even now he was no doubt growing

htly. "Elephant, why don't we all ride on you, and

ant answered, pick

Elephant's head. Elephant then lowered his trunk to al

lew everyone off his back. He then proceeded to waddle down the road making trumping sounds that sounded suspiciously l

n the

r chi

aints go m

t to be in

ints go mar

Sniffer and Sti