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"No one must injure one of our friends in our presence," growled the |
Lion; and Zeb ran to Jim and whispered that unless he controlled his |
temper in the future he would probably be torn to pieces. |
Then the Tin Woodman cut a straight and strong limb from a tree with his |
gleaming axe and made a new leg and a new ear for the Sawhorse; and when |
they had been securely fastened in place Princess Ozma took the coronet |
from her own head and placed it upon that of the winner of the race. |
Said she: |
"My friend, I reward you for your swiftness by proclaiming you Prince of |
Horses, whether of wood or of flesh; and hereafter all other horses--in |
the Land of Oz, at least--must be considered imitations, and you the |
real Champion of your race." |
There was more applause at this, and then Ozma had the jewelled saddle |
replaced upon the Sawhorse and herself rode the victor back to the city |
at the head of the grand procession. |
"I ought to be a fairy," grumbled Jim, as he slowly drew the buggy home; |
"for to be just an ordinary horse in a fairy country is to be of no |
account whatever. It's no place for us, Zeb." |
"It's lucky we got here, though," said the boy; and Jim thought of the |
dark cave, and agreed with him. |
[Illustration] |
CHAPTER 18. |
THE TRIAL OF EUREKA THE KITTEN |
Several days of festivity and merry-making followed, for such old |
friends did not often meet and there was much to be told and talked over |
between them, and many amusements to be enjoyed in this delightful |
country. |
Ozma was happy to have Dorothy beside her, for girls of her own age with |
whom it was proper for the Princess to associate were very few, and |
often the youthful Ruler of Oz was lonely for lack of companionship. |
It was the third morning after Dorothy's arrival, and she was sitting |
with Ozma and their friends in a reception room, talking over old times, |
when the Princess said to her maid: |
"Please go to my boudoir, Jellia, and get the white piglet I left on the |
dressing-table. I want to play with it." |
Jellia at once departed on the errand, and she was gone so long that |
they had almost forgotten her mission when the green robed maiden |
returned with a troubled face. |
"The piglet is not there, your Highness," said she. |
"Not there!" exclaimed Ozma. "Are you sure?" |
"I have hunted in every part of the room," the maid replied. |
"Was not the door closed?" asked the Princess. |
"Yes, your Highness; I am sure it was; for when I opened it Dorothy's |
white kitten crept out and ran up the stairs." |
Hearing this, Dorothy and the Wizard exchanged startled glances, for |
they remembered how often Eureka had longed to eat a piglet. The little |
girl jumped up at once. |
"Come, Ozma," she said, anxiously; "let us go ourselves to search for |
the piglet." |
So the two went to the dressing-room of the Princess and searched |
carefully in every corner and among the vases and baskets and ornaments |
that stood about the pretty boudoir. But not a trace could they find of |
the tiny creature they sought. |
Dorothy was nearly weeping, by this time, while Ozma was angry and |
indignant. When they returned to the others the Princess said: |
"There is little doubt that my pretty piglet has been eaten by that |
horrid kitten, and if that is true the offender must be punished." |
"I don't b'lieve Eureka would do such a dreadful thing!" cried Dorothy, |
much distressed. "Go and get my kitten, please, Jellia, and we'll hear |
what she has to say about it." |
The green maiden hastened away, but presently returned and said: |
"The kitten will not come. She threatened to scratch my eyes out if I |
touched her." |
"Where is she?" asked Dorothy. |
"Under the bed in your own room," was the reply. |
So Dorothy ran to her room and found the kitten under the bed. |
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