The Magic of Oz

underneath the floor?

Kiki got a chisel and pried up the board, but found nothing under it.

He was just about to replace the board when it slipped from his hand and

turned over, and he saw something written on the underside of it. The light

was rather dim, so he took the board to the window and examined it, and

found that the writing described exactly how to pronounce the magic word

Pyrzqxgl, which would transform anyone into anything instantly, and back

again when the word was repeated.

Now, at first, Kiki Aru didn't realize what a wonderful secret he had

discovered; but he thought it might be of use to him and so he took a piece

of paper and made on it an exact copy of the instructions for pronouncing

Pyrzqxgl. Then he folded the paper and put it in his pocket, and replaced

the board in the floor so that no one would suspect it had been removed.

After this Kiki went into the garden and sitting beneath a tree made a

careful study of the paper. He had always wanted to get away from Mount

Munch and visit the big world--especially the Land of Oz--and the idea

now came to him that if he could transform himself into a bird, he could

fly to any place he wished to go and fly back again whenever he cared to.

It was necessary, however, to learn by heart the way to pronounce the

magic word, because a bird would have no way to carry a paper with it,

and Kiki would be unable to resume his proper shape if he forgot the word

or its pronunciation.

So he studied it a long time, repeating it a hundred times in his mind

until he was sure he would not forget it. But to make safety doubly sure he

placed the paper in a tin box in a neglected part of the garden and covered

the box with small stones.

By this time it was getting late in the day and Kiki wished to attempt

his first transformation before his parents returned from the festival. So he

stood on the front porch of his home and said:

I want to become a big, strong bird, like a hawk--Pyrzqxgl!" He

pronounced it the right way, so in a flash he felt that he was completely

changed in form. He flapped his wings, hopped to the porch railing and

said: "Caw-oo! Caw-oo!"