irl would consider that a joke,"
grumbled Button-Bright.

And then the Lavender Bear King asked, "Would you like to see this
magical shoemaker?"

"Wouldn't he know it?" Dorothy inquired.

"No, I think not."

Then the King waved his metal wand and before them appeared a room in
the wicker castle of Ugu. On the wall of the room hung Ozma's Magic
Picture, and seated before it was the Magician. They could see the
Picture as well as he could, because it faced them, and in the Picture
was the hillside where they were not sitting, all their forms being
reproduced in miniature. And curiously enough, within the scene of the
Picture was the scene they were now beholding, so they knew that the
Magician was at this moment watching them in the Picture, and also that
he saw himself and the room he was in become visible to the people on
the hillside. Therefore he knew very well that they were watching him
while he was watching them.

In proof of this, Ugu sprang from his seat and turned a scowling face
in their direction; but now he could not see the travelers who were
seeking him, although they could still see him. His actions were so
distinct, indeed, that it seemed he was actually before them. "It is
only a ghost," said the Bear King. "It isn't real at all except that
it shows us Ugu just as he looks and tells us truly just what he is
doing."

"I don't see anything of my lost growl, though," said Toto as if to
himself.

Then the vision faded away, and they could see nothing but the grass
and trees and bushes around them.

CHAPTER 18

THE CONFERENCE

"Now then," said the Wizard, "let us talk this matter over and decide
what to do when we get to Ugu's wicker castle. There can be no doubt
that the Shoemaker is a powerful Magician, and his powers have been
increased a hundredfold since he secured the Great Book of Records, the
Magic Picture, all of Glinda's recipes for sorcery, and my own black
bag, which was full of tools of wizardry. The man who could rob us of
those things and the man with all their powers at his command is one
who may prove somewhat difficult to conquer, therefore we should plan
our actions well before we venture too near to his castle."

"I didn't see Ozma in the Magic Picture," said Trot. "What do you
suppose Ugu has done with her?"

"Couldn't the Little Pink Bear tell us what he did with Ozma?" asked
Button-Bright.

"To be sure," replied the Lavender King. "I'll ask him." So