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fellows. This last juggler now touched the red ball, which fell apart,
being hollow, and the five rabbits who had disappeared in the air
scrambled out of the hollow ball.
Next they all clung together and rolled swiftly upon the floor. When they
came to a stop only one fat rabbit juggler was seen, the others seeming to
be inside him. This one leaped lightly into the air and when he came
down he exploded and separated into the original six. Then four of them
rolled themselves into round balls and the other two tossed them around
and played ball with them.
These were but a few of the tricks the rabbit jugglers performed, and they
were so skillful that all the nobility and even the King applauded as
loudly as did Dorothy.
"
I suppose there are no rabbit jugglers in all the world to compare with
these," remarked the King. "And since I may not have the Whiskers
Friskers or my Bodyguard, you might ask Glinda to let me take away just
two or three of these jugglers. Will you?"
"
I'll ask her," replied Dorothy, doubtfully.
"
Thank you," said the King; "thank you very much. And now you shall
listen to the Winsome Waggish Warblers, who have often cheered me in
my moments of anguish."
The Winsome Waggish Warblers proved to be a quartette of rabbit
singers, two gentlemen and two lady rabbits. The gentlemen Warblers
wore full-dress swallow-tailed suits of white satin, with pearls for
buttons, while the lady Warblers were gowned in white satin dresses with
long trails.
The first song they sang began in this way:
"
When a rabbit gets a habit
Of living in a city And wearing clothes
and furbelows And jewels rare and pretty, He scorns the Bun who
has to run And burrow in the ground And pities those whose
watchful foes Are man and gun and hound."
Dorothy looked at the King when she heard this song and noticed that
he seemed disturbed and ill at ease.
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