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 country and set down in the midst of a
strange land.
She was surprised, as she walked along, to see how pretty the
country was about her. There were neat fences at the sides of the
road, painted a dainty blue color, and beyond them were fields of
grain and vegetables in abundance. Evidently the Munchkins were
good farmers and able to raise large crops. Once in a while she
would pass a house, and the people came out to look at her and bow
low as she went by; for everyone knew she had been the means of
destroying the Wicked Witch and setting them free from bondage. The
houses of the Munchkins were odd-looking dwellings, for each was
round, with a big dome for a roof. All were painted blue, for in
this country 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 dancing. 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 other good things to eat.
The people greeted Dorothy kindly, and invited her to supper and
to pass the night with them; for this was the home of one of the
richest Munchkins in the land, and his friends were gathered with
him to celebrate their freedom from the bondage of the Wicked
Witch.him to celebrate their freedom from the bondage of the Wicked
Witch.
Dorothy ate a hearty supper and was waited upon by the rich
Munchkin himself, whose name was Boq. Then she sat 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 Munchkins, 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 come by the chance of a cyclone into a
strange land.
When she had tired watching the dancing, 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 in them till
morning, with Toto curled up on the blue rug beside her.
She ate a hearty breakfast, and watched a wee Munchkin 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, unless they
have business with him. But it is a long way to the Emerald City,
and it will take you many days. The country here is rich and
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 knew that 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 roadto 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 cornfield beyond the
fence, and not far away she saw a Scarecrow, placed high on a pole
to keep the birds from the ripe corn.
Dorothy leaned her chin upon her hand and gazed thoughtfully 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 belonged to some Munchkin, was perched
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
country, and the figure was raised above the stalks of corn by
means of the pole stuck up its back.
While Dorothy was looking earnestly 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 nodded its head to her in a friendly way. Then she climbed
down from the fence and 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?"
"I'm pretty well, thank you," replied Dorothy politely. "How do
you do?"
"I'm 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."
"Can'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 lifted the figure off the pole,
for, being stuffed with straw, it was quite light.