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I thought so," she answered, greatly perplexed. "And I saw the gopher holes,

too, and the dead stump; but they're not here now. These roads are all

strange--and what a lot of them there are! Where do you suppose they all go

to?"

Roads," observed the shaggy man, "don't go anywhere. They stay in one

place, so folks can walk on them."

He put his hand in his side-pocket and drew out an apple--quick, before Toto

could bite him again. The little dog got his head out this time and said "Bow-

wow!" so loudly that it made Dorothy jump.

O, Toto!" she cried; "where did you come from?"

I brought him along," said the shaggy man.

What for?" she asked.

To guard these apples in my pocket, miss, so no one would steal them."

With one hand the shaggy man held the apple, which he began eating, while

with the other hand he pulled Toto out of his pocket and dropped him to the

ground. Of course Toto made for Dorothy at once, barking joyfully at his

release from the dark pocket. When the child had patted his head lovingly, he

sat down before her, his red tongue hanging out one side of his mouth, and

looked up into her face with his bright brown eyes, as if asking her what they

should do next.

Dorothy didn't know. She looked around her anxiously for some familiar

landmark; but everything was strange. Between the branches of the many

roads were green meadows and a few shrubs and trees, but she couldn't see

anywhere the farm-house from which she had just come, or anything she had

ever seen before--except the shaggy man and Toto. Besides this, she had

turned around and around so many times trying to find out where she was,

that now she couldn't even tell which direction the farm-house ought to be in;

and this began to worry her and make her feel anxious.

I'm 'fraid, Shaggy Man," she said, with a sigh, "that we're lost!"

That's nothing to be afraid of," he replied, throwing away the core of his apple

and beginning to eat another one. "Each of these roads must lead somewhere,

or it wouldn't be here. So what does it matter?"

I want to go home again," she said.

The Road to Oz