dorothy decided to accept ozma's invitation to return with her to the land of oz. there was no greater chance of her getting home from ev than from oz, and the little girl was anxious to see once more the country where she had encountered such wonderful adventures. by this time uncle henry would have reached australia in his ship, and had probably given her up for lost; so he couldn't worry any more than he did if she stayed away from him a while longer. so she would go to oz.
they bade good-bye to the people of ev, and the king promised ozma that he would ever be grateful to her and render the land of oz any service that might lie within his power.
and then they approached the edge of the dangerous desert, and ozma threw down the magic carpet, which at once unrolled far enough for all of them to walk upon it without being crowded.
tiktok, claiming to be dorothy's faithful follower because he belonged to her, had been permitted to join the party, and before they started the girl wound up his machinery as far as possible, and the copper man stepped off as briskly as any one of them.
ozma also invited billina to visit the land of oz, and the yellow hen was glad enough to go where new sights and scenes awaited her.
they began the trip across the desert early in the morning, and as they stopped only long enough for billina to lay her daily egg, before sunset they espied the green slopes and wooded hills of the beautiful land of oz. they entered it in the munchkin territory, and the king of the munchkins met them at the border and welcomed ozma with great respect, being very pleased by her safe return. for ozma of oz ruled the king of the munchkins, the king of the winkies, the king of the quadlings and the king of the gillikins just as those kings ruled their own people; and this supreme ruler of the land of oz lived in a great town of her own, called the emerald city, which was in the exact center of the four kingdoms of the land of oz.
the munchkin king entertained them at his palace that night, and in the morning they set out for the emerald city, travelling over a road of yellow brick that led straight to the jewel-studded gates. everywhere the people turned out to greet their beloved ozma, and to hail joyfully the scarecrow, the tin woodman and the cowardly lion, who were popular favorites. dorothy, too, remembered some of the people, who had befriended her on the occasion of her first visit to oz, and they were well pleased to see the little kansas girl again, and showered her with compliments and good wishes.
at one place, where they stopped to refresh themselves, ozma accepted a bowl of milk from the hands of a pretty dairy-maid. then she looked at the girl more closely, and exclaimed:
"why, it's jinjur--isn't it!"
"yes, your highness," was the reply, as jinjur dropped a low curtsy. and dorothy looked wonderingly at this lively appearing person, who had once assembled an army of women and driven the scarecrow from the throne of the emerald city, and even fought a battle with the powerful army of glinda the sorceress.
"i've married a man who owns nine cows," said jinjur to ozma, "and now i am happy and contented and willing to lead a quiet life and mind my own business."
"where is your husband?" asked ozma.
"he is in the house, nursing a black eye," replied jinjur, calmly. "the foolish man would insist upon milking the red cow when i wanted him to milk the white one; but he will know better next time, i am sure."
then the party moved on again, and after crossing a broad river on a ferry and passing many fine farm houses that were dome shaped and painted a pretty green color, they came in sight of a large building that was covered with flags and bunting.
"i don't remember that building," said dorothy. "what is it?"
"that is the college of art and athletic perfection," replied ozma. "i had it built quite recently, and the woggle-bug is its president. it keeps him busy, and the young men who attend the college are no worse off than they were before. you see, in this country are a number of youths who do not like to work, and the college is an excellent place for them."
and now they came in sight of the emerald city, and the people flocked out to greet their lovely ruler. there were several bands and many officers and officials of the realm, and a crowd of citizens in their holiday attire.
thus the beautiful ozma was escorted by a brilliant procession to her royal city, and so great was the cheering that she was obliged to constantly bow to the right and left to acknowledge the greetings of her subjects.
that evening there was a grand reception in the royal palace, attended by the most important persons of oz, and jack pumpkinhead, who was a little overripe but still active, read an address congratulating ozma of oz upon the success of her generous mission to rescue the royal family of a neighboring kingdom.
then magnificent gold medals set with precious stones were presented to each of the twenty-six officers; and the tin woodman was given a new axe studded with diamonds; and the scarecrow received a silver jar of complexion powder. dorothy was presented with a pretty coronet and made a princess of oz, and tiktok received two bracelets set with eight rows of very clear and sparkling emeralds.
afterward they sat down to a splendid feast, and ozma put dorothy at her right and billina at her left, where the hen sat upon a golden roost and ate from a jeweled platter. then were placed the scarecrow, the tin woodman and tiktok, with baskets of lovely flowers before them, because they did not require food. the twenty-six officers were at the lower end of the table, and the lion and the tiger also had seats, and were served on golden platters, that held a half a bushel at one time.
the wealthiest and most important citizens of the emerald city were proud to wait upon these famous adventurers, and they were assisted by a sprightly little maid named jellia jamb, whom the scarecrow pinched upon her rosy cheeks and seemed to know very well.
during the feast ozma grew thoughtful, and suddenly she asked:
"where is the private?"
"oh, he is sweeping out the barracks," replied one of the generals, who was busy eating a leg of a turkey. "but i have ordered him a dish of bread and molasses to eat when his work is done."
"let him be sent for," said the girl ruler.
while they waited for this command to be obeyed, she enquired:
"have we any other privates in the armies?"
"oh, yes," replied the tin woodman, "i believe there are three, altogether."
the private now entered, saluting his officers and the royal ozma very respectfully.
"what is your name, my man?" asked the girl.
"omby amby," answered the private.
"then, omby amby," said she, "i promote you to be captain general of all the armies of my kingdom, and especially to be commander of my body guard at the royal palace."
"it is very expensive to hold so many offices," said the private, hesitating. "i have no money with which to buy uniforms."
"you shall be supplied from the royal treasury," said ozma.
then the private was given a seat at the table, where the other officers welcomed him cordially, and the feasting and merriment were resumed.
suddenly jellia jamb exclaimed:
"there is nothing more to eat! the hungry tiger has consumed everything!"
"but that is not the worst of it," declared the tiger, mournfully. "somewhere or somehow, i've actually lost my appetite!"
