"Where's my Magic Belt?" cried Ozma, clapping her small hands frantically. "Jellia, fetch my Magic Belt!" Ozma, with this belt, meant to transport as many of the company as possible to Mudge. But before the little serving maid returned, Notta himself had accomplished that very thing. Glancing around hurriedly, he began touching everyone who looked as if he might prove useful in a battle. Sir Hokus vanished first, for Notta was very much impressed by the Knight's warlike appearance, then the Tin Woodman, because his ax looked so sharp, then Tik Tok, because he was so solid and dependable, then Glinda because she was a sorceress and the Wizard because he was also versed in magic, then Dorothy, because she was crying and Bob because Notta could not bear to leave him behind and then Snorer, because he had proven himself so faithful. Ozma, who had forgotten about the magic verse, was startled almost out of her senses by these sudden disappearances. She put up her scepter to object, but Notta ran forward and touched her too and she was gone with the others. "Help!" wailed Scraps, tumbling out of the window, and the rest of the company began backing into corners. But the clown, now satisfied with his army of invasion, seized the yellow hand of the Scarecrow and repeated his verse for the last time: "Udge! Budge! Come to Mudge! Udgers Budgers, We are Mudgers!" In a flash they were in Mudge--every single person the clown had touched. And the sight that met their eyes was simply terrifying. Chapter 20 The Cowardly Lion's Peril To understand how the Cowardly Lion made the journey to Mudge in one day instead of three, we must go back to the afternoon he started down the mountain with the Stone Man of Oz. Crunch, as he tramped along beside the Cowardly Lion, was thinking harder than in all the stone ages of his hard life. The Wizard Wam had given him brains of a sort, and though they had not been used before the events of the afternoon had brought them quite suddenly into action. The mountain where Crunch had stood for so many centuries, while quite near the Emerald City, was never visited by anyone, so that the Stone Man knew very little of life as it was lived in Oz. Notta's suggestions had aroused his curiosity, and for the Cowardly Lion he was developing a great fondness. As the afternoon progressed the Cowardly Lion grew positively embarrassed by his terms of endearment. "You are the handsomest creature in Oz," insisted Crunch over and over, "and if you were only of stone you would be more beautiful still." "Very still," rumbled the Cowardly Lion, putting back his ears. "Though I suppose," he added thoughtfully, "a stone lion is never afraid." To change the subject he began telling Crunch about his cowardice, and how he had started out originally to find himself some courage. "Would it make you happy to be afraid of nothing?" asked the Stone Man in his grinding voice.