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CHAPTER 4 - DOROTHY'S LONELY BREAKFAST

Dorothy, who occupied one of the coziest apartments in Ozma's palace,

wakened the morning after the party with a feeling of great uneasiness. At

breakfast, the Scarecrow was missing. Although he, the Tin Woodman and

Scraps did not require food, they always livened up the table with their

conversation. Ordinarily Dorothy would have thought nothing of the

Scarecrow's absence, but she could not forget his distressed expression

when Professor Wogglebug had so rudely remarked on his family tree. The

Professor himself had left before breakfast, and everybody but Dorothy had

forgotten all about the Royal Book of Oz.

Already many of Ozma's guests who did not live in the palace were preparing

to depart, but Dorothy could not get over her feeling of uneasiness. The

Scarecrow was her very best friend, and it was not like him to go without

saying goodbye. So she hunted through the gardens and in every room of

the palace and questioned all the servants. Unfortunately, Jellia Jamb, who

was the only one who had seen the Scarecrow go, was with her mistress.

Ozma always breakfasted alone and spent the morning over state matters.

Knowing how busy she was, Dorothy did not like to disturb her. Betsy

Bobbin and Trot, real little girls like Dorothy, also lived in the Fairy palace,

and Ozma was a great chum for them. But the Kingdom of Oz had to be

governed in between times, and they all knew that unless Ozma had the

mornings to herself, she could not play with them in the afternoons. So

Dorothy searched by herself.

"Perhaps I didn't look hard enough," thought the little girl, and searched the

palace all over again.

"Don't worry," advised the Tin Woodman, who was playing checkers with

Scraps. "He's probably gone home."

"He is a man of brains; why worry

Because he's left us in a hurry?"

chuckled Scraps with a careless wave of her hand, and Dorothy, laughing in

spite of herself, ran out to have another look in the garden.

"That is just what he has done, and if I hurry, I may overtake him. Anyway, I

believe I'll go and pay him a visit," thought Dorothy.

Trot and Betsy Bobbin were swinging in one of the royal hammocks, and

when Dorothy invited them to go along, they explained that they were going

The Royal Book of Oz