Chapter III.
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How Dorothy Saved the ScarecrowWHEN DOROTHY WAS left alone she began to feel hungry. So she went to the cupboard and cut herself some bread, which she spread with butter. She gave some to Toto, and taking a pail from the shelf she carried it down to the little brook and filled it with clear, sparkling water. Toto rao the trees and began to bark at the birds sitting there. Dorothy went to get him, and saw such delicious fruit hanging from the brahat she gathered some of it, finding it just what she wao help out her breakfast.
Then she went back to the house, and having helped herself and Toto to a good drink of the cool, clear water, she set about making ready for the jouro the City of Emeralds.
Dorothy had only oher dress, but that happeo be and was hanging on a peg beside her bed. It was ging- ham, with checks of white and blue; and although the blue was somewhat faded with many washings, it was still a pretty frock. The girl washed herself carefully, dressed herself in the gingham, and tied her pink sunbo on her head. She took a little basket and filled it with bread from the cupboard, laying a white cloth over the top. Then she looked down at her feet and noticed how old and worn her shoes were.
"They surely will never do for a long jouroto," she said. And Toto looked up into her face with his little black eyes and wagged his tail to show he knew what she meant.
At that moment Dorothy saw lying oable the silver shoes that had beloo the Witch<var>９９lｉb.</var> of the East.
"I wonder if they will fit me," she said to Toto. "They would be just the thing to take a long walk in, for they could not wear out.”
She took off her old leather shoes and tried on the silver ones, which fitted her as well as if they had been made for her.
Finally she picked up her basket.
"e along, Toto," she said. "We will go to the Emerald City and ask the Great Oz how to get back to Kansas again.”
She closed the door, locked it, and put the key carefully in the pocket of her dress. And so, with Toto trotting along soberly behind her, she started on her journey.
There were several roads near by, but it did not take her long to find the one paved with yellow bricks. Within a short time she was walking briskly toward the Emerald City, her silver shoes tinkling merrily on the hard, yellow road-bed.
The sun shone bright and the birds sang sweetly, and Dorothy did not feel nearly so bad as you might think a little girl would who had been suddenly whisked away from her own try a down in the midst of a strange land.
She was surprised, as she walked along, to see how pretty the try was about her. There were fe the sides of the road, painted a dainty blue color, and beyond them were fields of grain aables in abundance. Evidently the Muns were good farmers and able to raise large crops. On a while she would pass a house, and the people came out to look at her and bow low as she went by; for ev- eryone knew she had been the means of destroying the Wicked Witd setting them free from bohe houses of the Muns were odd-looking dwellings, for each was round, with a big dome for a roof. All were painted blue, for in this try of the East blue was the favorite color.
Toward evening, when Dorothy was tired with her long walk and began to wonder where she should pass the night, she came to a house rather larger than the rest. On the green lawn before it many men and women were dang. Five little fiddlers played as loudly as possible, and the people were laughing and singing, while a big table near by was loaded with delicious fruits and nuts, pies and cakes, and many ood things to eat.
The people greeted Dorothy kindly, and invited her to sup- per and to pass the night with them; for this was the home of one of the richest Muns in the land, and his friends were gathered with him to celebrate their freedom from the bondage of the Wicked Witch.
Dorothy ate a hearty supper and was waited upon by the rich Mun himself, whose name was Boq. The upon a settee and watched the people dance.
When Boq saw her silver shoes he said, "You must be a great sorceress.”
"Why?" asked the girl.
"Because you wear silver shoes and have killed the Wicked Witch. Besides, you have white in your frock, and only witches and sorceresses wear white.”
"My dress is blue and white checked," said Dorothy, smoothing out the wrinkles in it.
"It is kind of you to wear that," said Boq. "Blue is the color of the Muns, and white is the witch color. So we know you are a friendly witch.”
Dorothy did not know what to say to this, for all the people seemed to think her a witch, and she knew very well she was only an ordinary little girl who had e by the ce of a cye into a strange land.
When she had tired watg the dang, Boq led her into the house, where he gave her a room with a pretty bed in it.
The sheets were made of blue cloth, and Dorothy slept soundly iill m, with Toto curled up on the blue rug beside her.
She ate a hearty breakfast, and watched a wee Mun baby, who played with Toto and pulled his tail and crowed and laughed in a way that greatly amused Dorothy. Toto was a fine curiosity to all the people, for they had never seen a dog before.
"How far is it to the Emerald City?" the girl asked.
"I do not know," answered Boq gravely, "for I have never been there. It is better for people to keep away from Oz, uhey have business with him. But it is a long way to the Emerald City, and it will take you many days. The try here is rid pleasant, but you must pass through rough and dangerous places before you reach the end of your journey.”
This worried Dorothy a little, but she khat only the Great Oz could help her get to Kansas again, so she bravely resolved not to turn back.
She bade her friends good-bye, and again started along the road of yellow brick. When she had gone several miles she thought she would stop to rest, and so climbed to the top of the fence beside the road and sat down. There was a great field beyond the fence, and not far away she saw a Scare- crow, placed 9９ｌiｂ?high on a pole to keep the birds from the ripe .
Dorothy leaned her upon her hand and gazed thought- fully at the Scarecrow. Its head was a small sack stuffed with straw, with eyes, nose, and mouth painted on it to represent a face. An old, pointed blue hat, that had beloo some Mun, erched on his head, and the rest of the figure was a blue suit of clothes, worn and faded, which had also been stuffed with straw. On the feet were some old boots with blue tops, such as every man wore in this try, and the fig- ure was raised above the stalks of by means of the pole stuck up its back.
While Dorothy was looking early into the queer, painted face of the Scarecrow, she was surprised to see one of the eyes slowly wink at her. She thought she must have been mistaken at first, for none of the scarecrows in Kansas ever wink; but presently the figure s head to her in a friendly way. Then she climbed down from the fend walked up to it, while Toto ran around the pole and barked.
"Good day," said the Scarecrow, in a rather husky voice.
"Did you speak?" asked the girl, in wonder.
"Certainly," answered the Scarecrow. "How do you do?”
"Im pretty well, thank you," replied Dorothy politely.
"How do you do?”
"Im not feeling well," said the Scarecrow, with a smile, "for it is very tedious being perched up here night and day to scare away crows.”
"t you get down?" asked Dorothy.
"No, for this pole is stuck up my back. If you will please take away the pole I shall be greatly obliged to you.”
Dorothy reached up both arms and <dfn>9９ｌib?</dfn>lifted the figure off the pole, for, being stuffed with straw, it was quite light.
"Thank you very much," said the Scarecrow, when he had bee down on the ground. "I feel like a new man.”
Dorothy uzzled at this, for it sounded queer to hear a stuffed man speak, and to see him bow and walk along beside her.
"Who are you?" asked the Scarecrow when he had stretched himself and yawned. "And where are you going?”
"My name is Dorothy," said the girl, "and I am going to the Emerald City, to ask the Great Oz to send me back to Kansas.”
"Where is the Emerald City?" he inquired. "And who is Oz?”
"Why, dont you know?" she returned, in surprise.
"No, indeed. I dont know anything. You see, I am stuffed, so I have no brains at all," he answered sadly.
"Oh," said Dorothy, "Im awfully sorry for you.”
"Do you think," he asked, "if I go to the Emerald City with you, that Oz would give me some brains?”
"I ot tell," she returned, "but you may e with me, if you like. If Oz will not give you any brains you will be no worse off than you are now.”
"That is true," said the Scarecrow. "You see," he tinued fidentially, "I dont mind my legs and arms and body be- ing stuffed, because I ot get hurt. If areads on my toes or sticks a pin into me, it doesnt matter, for I t feel it.
But I do not eople to call me a fool, and if my head stays stuffed with straw instead of with brains, as yours is, how am I ever to know anything?”
"I uand how you feel," said the little girl, who was truly sorry for him. "If you will e with me Ill ask Oz to do all he for you.”
"Thank you," he answered gratefully.
They walked back to the road. Dorothy helped him over the fence, and they started along the path of yellow brick for the Emerald City.
Toto did not like this addition to the party at first. He smelled around the stuffed man as if he suspected there might be a of rats iraw, aen growled in an un- friendly way at the Scarecrow.
"Dont mind Toto," said Dorothy to her new friend. "He never bites.”
"Oh, Im not afraid," replied the Scarecrow. "He t hurt the straw. Do let me carry that basket for you. I shall not mind it, for I t get tired. Ill tell you a secret," he tinued, as he walked along. "There is only ohing in the world I am afraid of.”
"What is that?" asked Dorothy; "the Mun farmer who made you?”
"No," answered the Scarecrow; "its a lighted match.”
L. Frank Baum
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