"What a queer man," remarked the Munchkin boy, when the party had resumed its journey.
"And so nice and polite," added Scraps, bobbing her Lead."I think he is the handsomest man I've seen since I came to life.""Handsome is as handsome does," quoted the Shaggy Man; "but we must admit that no living scarecrow is handsomer.The chief merit of my friend is that he is a great thinker, and in Oz it is considered good policy to follow his advice.""I didn't notice any brains in his head,"observed the Glass Cat.
"You can't see 'em work, but they're there, all right," declared the Shaggy Man."I hadn't much confidence in his brains myself, when first I came to Oz, for a humbug Wizard gave them to him; but Iwas soon convinced that the Scarecrow is really wise; and, unless his brains make him so, such wisdom is unaccountable.""Is the Wizard of Oz a humbug?" asked Ojo.
"Not now.He was once, but he has reformed and now assists Glinda the Good, who is the Royal Sorceress of Oz and the only one licensed to practice magic or sorcery.Glinda has taught our old Wizard a good many clever things, so he is no longer a humbug."They walked a little while in silence and then Ojo said:
"If Ozma forbids the Crooked Magician to restore Unc Nunkie to life, what shall I do?"The Shaggy Man shook his head.
"In that case you can't do anything," he said.
"But don't be discouraged yet.We will go to Princess Dorothy and tell her your troubles, and then we will let her talk to Ozma.Dorothy has the kindest little heart in the world, and she has been through so many troubles herself that she is sure to sympathize with you.""Is Dorothy the little girl who came here from Kansas?" asked the boy.
"Yes.In Kansas she was Dorothy Gale.I used to know her there, and she brought me to the Land of Oz.But now Ozma has made her a Princess, and Dorothy's Aunt Em and Uncle Henry are here, too."Here the Shaggy Man uttered a long sigh, and then he continued: "It's a queer country, this Land of Oz; but I like it, nevertheless.""What is queer about it?" asked Scraps.
"You, for instance," said he.
"Did you see no girls as beautiful as I am in your own country?" she inquired.
"None with the same gorgeous, variegated beauty," he confessed."In America a girl stuffed with cotton wouldn't be alive, nor would anyone think of making a girl out of a patchwork quilt.""What a queer country America must be!" she exclaimed in great surprise."The Scarecrow, whom you say is wise, told me I am the most beautiful creature he has ever seen.""I know; and perhaps you are-from a scarecrow point of view," replied the Shaggy Man; but why he smiled as he said it Scraps could not imagine.
As they drew nearer to the Emerald City the travelers were filled with admiration for the splendid scenery they beheld.Handsome houses stood on both sides of the road and each had a green lawn before it as well as a pretty flower garden.
"In another hour," said the Shaggy Man, "we shall come in sight of the walls of the Royal City."He was walking ahead, with Scraps, and behind them came the Woozy and the Glass Cat.Ojo had lagged behind, for in spite of the warnings he had received the boy's eyes were fastened on the clover that bordered the road of yellow bricks andhe was eager to discover if such a thing as a six-leaved clover really existed.
Suddenly he stopped short and bent over to examine the ground more closely.Yes; here at last was a clover with six spreading leaves.He counted them carefully, to make sure.In an instant his heart leaped with joy, for this was one of the important things he had come for--one of the things that would restore dear Unc Nunkie to life.
He glanced ahead and saw that none of his companions was looking back.Neither were any other people about, for it was midway between two houses.The temptation was too strong to be resisted.
"I might search for weeks and weeks, and never find another six-leaved clover," he told himself, and quickly plucking the stem from the plant he placed the prized clover in his basket, covering it with the other things he carried there.Then, trying to look as if nothing had happened, he hurried forward and overtook his comrades.
The Emerald City, which is the most splendid as well as the most beautiful city in any fairyland, is surrounded by a high, thick wall of green marble, polished smooth and set with glistening emeralds.There are four gates, one facing the Munchkin Country, one facing the Country of the Winkies, one facing the Country of the Quadlings and one facing the Country of the Gillikins.The Emerald City lies directly in the center of these four important countries of Oz.The gates had bars of pure gold, and on either side of each gateway were built high towers, from which floated gay banners.Other towers were set at distances along the walls, which were broad enough for four people to walk abreast upon.
This enclosure, all green and gold and glittering with precious gems, was indeed a wonderful sight to greet our travelers, who first observed it from the top of a little hill; but beyond the wall was the vast city it surrounded, and hundreds of jeweled spires, domes and minarets, flaunting flags and banners, reared their crests far above the towers of the gateways.
In the center of the city our friends could see the tops of many magnificent trees, some nearly as tall as the spires of the buildings, and the Shaggy Man told them that these trees were in the royal gardens of Princess Ozma.
They stood a long time on the hilltop, feasting their eyes on the splendor of the Emerald City.
