The delay caused by Scraps had prevented anyone from running to theshelves to secure the magic instruments so badly needed. Even Caykeneglected to get her diamond-studded dishpan because she was watchingthe Patchwork Girl. And now the magician had opened his trap door andappeared in his golden cage again, frowning angrily because hisprisoners had been able to turn their upside-down prison right sideup. "Which of you has dared defy my magic?" he shouted in a terriblevoice.

"It was I," answered Dorothy calmly.

"Then I shall destroy you, for you are only an Earth girl and nofairy," he said, and began to mumble some magic words.

Dorothy now realized that Ugu must be treated as an enemy, so sheadvanced toward the corner in which he sat, saying as she went, "I amnot afraid of you, Mr. Shoemaker, and I think you'll be sorry, prettysoon, that you're such a bad man. You can't destroy me, and I won'tdestroy you, but I'm going to punish you for your wickedness."

Ugu laughed, a laugh that was not nice to hear, and then he waved hishand. Dorothy was halfway across the room when suddenly a wall ofglass rose before her and stopped her progress. Through the glass shecould see the magician sneering at her because she was a weak littlegirl, and this provoked her. Although the glass wall obliged her tohalt, she instantly pressed both hands to her Magic Belt and cried ina loud voice, "Ugu the Shoemaker, by the magic virtues of the MagicBelt, I command you to become a dove!"

The magician instantly realized he was being enchanted, for he couldfeel his form changing. He struggled desperately against theenchantment, mumbling magic words and making magic passes with hishands. And in one way he succeeded in defeating Dorothy's purpose,for while his form soon changed to that of a gray dove, the dove wasof an enormous size, bigger even than Ugu had been as a man, and thisfeat he had been able to accomplish before his powers of magic whollydeserted him.

And the dove was not gentle, as doves usually are, forUgu was terribly enraged at the little girl's success. His books hadtold him nothing of the Nome King's Magic Belt, the Country of theNomes being outside the Land of Oz. He knew, however, that he waslikely to be conquered unless he made a fierce fight, so he spread hiswings and rose in the air and flew directly toward Dorothy. The Wallof Glass had disappeared the instant Ugu became transformed.

Dorothy had meant to command the Belt to transform the magician into aDove of Peace, but in her excitement she forgot to say more than"dove," and now Ugu was not a Dove of Peace by any means, but rather aspiteful Dove of War. His size made his sharp beak and claws verydangerous, but Dorothy was not afraid when he came darting toward herwith his talons outstretched and his sword-like beak open. She knewthe Magic Belt would protect its wearer from harm.

But the Frogman did not know that fact and became alarmed at thelittle girl's seeming danger. So he gave a sudden leap and leapedfull upon the back of the great dove. Then began a desperatestruggle. The dove was as strong as Ugu had been, and in size it wasconsiderably bigger than the Frogman. But the Frogman had eaten thezosozo, and it had made him fully as strong as Ugu the Dove. At thefirst leap he bore the dove to the floor, but the giant bird got freeand began to bite and claw the Frogman, beating him down with itsgreat wings whenever he attempted to rise. The thick, tough skin ofthe big frog was not easily damaged, but Dorothy feared for herchampion, and by again using the transformation power of the MagicBelt, she made the dove grow small until it was no larger than acanary bird. Ugu had not lost his knowledge of magic when he lost hisshape as a man, and he now realized it was hopeless to oppose thepower of the Magic Belt and knew that his only hope of escape lay ininstant action. So he quickly flew into the golden jeweled dishpan hehad stolen from Cayke the Cookie Cook, and as birds can talk as wellas beasts or men in the Fairyland of Oz, he muttered the magic wordthat was required and wished himself in the Country of the Quadlings,which was as far away from the wicker castle as he believed he couldget.

Our friends did not know, of course, what Ugu was about to do. Theysaw the dishpan tremble an instant and then disappear, the dovedisappearing with it, and although they waited expectantly for someminutes for the magician's return, Ugu did not come back again."Seems to me," said the Wizard in a cheerful voice, "that we haveconquered the wicked magician more quickly than we expected to."

"Don't say 'we.' Dorothy did it!" cried the Patchwork Girl, turningthree somersaults in succession and then walking around on her hands."Hurrah for Dorothy!"

"I thought you said you did not know how to use the magic of the NomeKing's Belt," said the Wizard to Dorothy.

"I didn't know at that time," she replied, "but afterward I rememberedhow the Nome King once used the Magic Belt to enchant people andtransform 'em into ornaments and all sorts of things, so I tried someenchantments in secret, and after a while I transformed the Sawhorseinto a potato masher and back again, and the Cowardly Lion into apussycat and back again, and then I knew the thing would work allright."

"When did you perform those enchantments?" asked the Wizard, muchsurprised.

"One night when all the rest of you were asleep but Scraps, and shehad gone chasing moonbeams."

"Well," remarked the Wizard, "your discovery has certainly saved us alot of trouble, and we must all thank the Frogman, too, for makingsuch a good fight. The dove's shape had Ugu's evil disposition insideit, and that made the monster bird dangerous."

The Frogman was looking sad because the bird's talons had torn hispretty clothes, but he bowed with much dignity at this well-deservedpraise. Cayke, however, had squatted on the floor and was sobbingbitterly. "My precious dishpan is gone!" she wailed. "Gone, just asI had found it again!"

"Never mind," said Trot, trying to comfort her, "it's sure to beSOMEWHERE, so we'll cert'nly run across it some day."

"Yes indeed," added Betsy, "now that we have Ozma's Magic Picture, wecan tell just where the Dove went with your dishpan. They allapproached the Magic Picture, and Dorothy wished it to show theenchanted form of Ugu the Shoemaker, wherever it might be. At oncethere appeared in the frame of the Picture a scene in the far QuadlingCountry, where the Dove was perched disconsolately on the limb of atree and the jeweled dishpan lay on the ground just underneath thelimb.

"But where is the place? How far or how near?" asked Cayke anxiously.

"The Book of Records will tell us that," answered the Wizard. So theylooked in the Great Book and read the following:

"Ugu the Magician, being transformed into a dove by Princess Dorothyof Oz, has used the magic of the golden dishpan to carry him instantlyto the northeast corner of the Quadling Country."

"Don't worry, Cayke, for theScarecrow and the Tin Woodman are in that part of the country lookingfor Ozma, and they'll surely find your dishpan."

"Good gracious!" exclaimed Button-Bright. "We've forgot all aboutOzma. Let's find out where the magician hid her."

Back to the Magic Picture they trooped, but when they wished to seeOzma wherever she might be hidden, only a round black spot appeared inthe center of the canvas. "I don't see how THAT can be Ozma!" saidDorothy, much puzzled.

"It seems to be the best the Magic Picture can do, however," said theWizard, no less surprised. "If it's an enchantment, looks as if themagician had transformed Ozma into a chunk of pitch."