15. How Dorothy Happened to Get Lost

The Emerald City of Oz

by L. Frank Baum

It was a beautiful evening, so they drew their camp chairs in a
circle before one of the tents and began to tell stories to amuse
themselves and pass away the time before they went to bed.

Pretty soon a zebra was seen coming out of the forest, and he
trotted straight up to them and said politely:

"Good evening, people."

The zebra was a sleek little animal and had a slender head, a
stubby mane and a paint-brush tail--very like a donkey's. His neatly
shaped white body was covered with regular bars of dark brown, and
his hoofs were delicate as those of a deer.

"Good evening, friend Zebra," said Omby Amby, in reply to the
creature's greeting. "Can we do anything for you?"

"Yes," answered the zebra. "I should like you to settle a
dispute that has long been a bother to me, as to whether there is
more water or land in the world."

"Who are you disputing with?" asked the Wizard.

"With a soft-shell crab," said the zebra. "He lives in a pool
where I go to drink every day, and he is a very impertinent crab, I
assure you. I have told him many times that the land is much greater
in extent than the water, but he will not be convinced. Even this
very evening, when I told him he was an insignificant creature who
lived in a small pool, he asserted that the water was greater and
more important than the land. So, seeing your camp, I decided to ask
you to settle the dispute for once and all, that I may not be further
annoyed by this ignorant crab."

When they had listened to this explanation Dorothy inquired:

"Where is the soft-shell crab?"

"Not far away," replied the zebra. "If you will agree to judge
between us I will run and get him."

"Run along, then," said the little girl.

So the animal pranced into the forest and soon came trotting
back to them. When he drew near they found a soft-shell crab
clinging fast to the stiff hair of the zebra's head, where it held on
by one claw.

"Now then, Mr. Crab," said the zebra, "here are the people I
told you about; and they know more than you do, who lives in a pool,
and more than I do, who lives in a forest. For they have been
travelers all over the world, and know every part of it."

"There is more of the world than Oz," declared the crab, in a
stubborn voice.

"That is true," said Dorothy; "but I used to live in Kansas, in
the United States, and I've been to California and to Australia and
so has Uncle Henry."

"For my part," added the Shaggy Man, "I've been to Mexico and
Boston and many other foreign countries."

"And I," said the Wizard, "have been to Europe and Ireland."

"So you see," continued the zebra, addressing the crab, "here
are people of real consequence, who know what they are talking
about."

"Then they know there's more water in the world than there is
land," asserted the crab, in a shrill, petulant voice.

"They know you are wrong to make such an absurd statement, and
they will probably think you are a lobster instead of a crab,"
retorted the animal.

At this taunt the crab reached out its other claw and seized the
zebra's ear, and the creature gave a cry of pain and began prancing
up and down, trying to shake off the crab, which clung fast.

"Stop pinching!" cried the zebra. "You promised not to pinch if
I would carry you here!"

"And you promised to treat me respectfully," said the crab,
letting go the ear.

"Well, haven't I?" demanded the zebra.

"No; you called me a lobster," said the crab.

"Ladies and gentlemen," continued the zebra, "please pardon my
poor friend, because he is ignorant and stupid, and does not
understand. Also the pinch of his claw is very annoying. So pray
tell him that the world contains more land than water, and when he
has heard your judgment I will carry him back and dump him into his
pool, where I hope he will be more modest in the future."

"But we cannot tell him that," said Dorothy, gravely, "because
it would not be true."

"What!" exclaimed the zebra, in astonishment; "do I hear you
aright?"

"The soft-shell crab is correct," declared the Wizard. "There
is considerably more water than there is land in the world."

"Impossible!" protested the zebra. "Why, I can run for days
upon the land, and find but little water."

"Did you ever see an ocean?" asked Dorothy.

"Never," admitted the zebra. "There is no such thing as an
ocean in the Land of Oz."

"Well, there are several oceans in the world," said Dorothy,
"and people sail in ships upon these oceans for weeks and weeks, and
never see a bit of land at all. And the joggerfys will tell you that
all the oceans put together are bigger than all the land put
together."

At this the crab began laughing in queer chuckles that reminded
Dorothy of the way Billina sometimes cackled.

"Now will you give up, Mr. Zebra?" it cried, jeeringly; "now
will you give up?"

The zebra seemed much humbled.

"Of course I cannot read geographys," he said.

"You could take one of the Wizard's School Pills," suggested
Billina, "and that would make you learned and wise without
studying."

The crab began laughing again, which so provoked the zebra that
he tried to shake the little creature off. This resulted in more
ear-pinching, and finally Dorothy told them that if they could not
behave they must go back to the forest.

"I'm sorry I asked you to decide this question," said the zebra,
crossly. "So long as neither of us could prove we were right we
quite enjoyed the dispute; but now I can never drink at that pool
again without the soft-shell crab laughing at me. So I must find
another drinking place."

"Do! Do, you ignoramus!" shouted the crab, as loudly as his
little voice would carry. "Rile some other pool with your clumsy
hoofs, and let your betters alone after this!"

Then the zebra trotted back to the forest, bearing the crab with
him, and disappeared amid the gloom of the trees. And as it was now
getting dark the travelers said good night to one another and went to
bed.

Dorothy awoke just as the light was beginning to get strong next
morning, and not caring to sleep any later she quietly got out of
bed, dressed herself, and left the tent where Aunt Em was yet
peacefully slumbering.

Outside she noticed Billina busily pecking around to secure bugs
or other food for breakfast, but none of the men in the other tent
seemed awake. So the little girl decided to take a walk in the woods
and try to discover some path or road that they might follow when
they again started upon their journey.

She had reached the edge of the forest when the Yellow Hen came
fluttering along and asked where she was going.

"Just to take a walk, Billina; and maybe I'll find some path,"
said Dorothy.

"Then I'll go along," decided Billina, and scarcely had she
spoken when Toto ran up and joined them.

Toto and the Yellow Hen had become quite friendly by this time,
although at first they did not get along well together. Billina had
been rather suspicious of dogs, and Toto had had an idea that it was
every dog's duty to chase a hen on sight. But Dorothy had talked to
them and scolded them for not being agreeable to one another until
they grew better acquainted and became friends.

I won't say they loved each other dearly, but at least they had
stopped quarreling and now managed to get on together very well.

The day was growing lighter every minute and driving the black
shadows out of the forest; so Dorothy found it very pleasant walking
under the trees. She went some distance in one direction, but not
finding a path, presently turned in a different direction. There was
no path here, either, although she advanced quite a way into the
forest, winding here and there among the trees and peering through
the bushes in an endeavor to find some beaten track.

"I think we'd better go back," suggested the Yellow Hen, after a
time. "The people will all be up by this time and breakfast will be
ready."

"Very well," agreed Dorothy. "Let's see--the camp must be over
this way."

She had probably made a mistake about that, for after they had
gone far enough to have reached the camp they still found themselves
in the thick of the woods. So the little girl stopped short and
looked around her, and Toto glanced up into her face with his bright
little eyes and wagged his tail as if he knew something was wrong.
He couldn't tell much about direction himself, because he had spent
his time prowling among the bushes and running here and there; nor
had Billina paid much attention to where they were going, being
interested in picking bugs from the moss as they passed along. The
Yellow Hen now turned one eye up toward the little girl and asked:

"Have you forgotten where the camp is, Dorothy?"

"Yes," she admitted; "have you, Billina?"

"I didn't try to remember," returned Billina. "I'd no idea you
would get lost, Dorothy."

"It's the thing we don't expect, Billina, that usually happens,"
observed the girl, thoughtfully. "But it's no use standing here.
Let's go in that direction," pointing a finger at random. "It may be
we'll get out of the forest over there."

So on they went again, but this way the trees were closer
together, and the vines were so tangled that often they tripped
Dorothy up.

Suddenly a voice cried sharply:

"Halt!"

At first, Dorothy could see nothing, although she looked around
very carefully. But Billina exclaimed:

"Well, I declare!"

"What is it?" asked the little girl: for Toto began barking at
something, and following his gaze she discovered what it was.

A row of spoons had surrounded the three, and these spoons stood
straight up on their handles and carried swords and muskets. Their
faces were outlined in the polished bowls and they looked very stern
and severe.

Dorothy laughed at the queer things.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"We're the Spoon Brigade," said one.

"In the service of his Majesty King Kleaver," said another.

"And you are our prisoners," said a third.

Dorothy sat down on an old stump and looked at them, her eyes
twinkling with amusement.

"What would happen," she inquired, "if I should set my dog on
your Brigade?"

"He would die," replied one of the spoons, sharply. "One shot
from our deadly muskets would kill him, big as he is."

"Don't risk it, Dorothy," advised the Yellow Hen. "Remember
this is a fairy country, yet none of us three happens to be a
fairy."

Dorothy grew sober at this.

"P'raps you're right, Billina," she answered. "But how funny it
is, to be captured by a lot of spoons!"

"I do not see anything very funny about it," declared a spoon.
"We're the regular military brigade of the kingdom."

"What kingdom?" she asked.

"Utensia," said he.

"I never heard of it before," asserted Dorothy. Then she added
thoughtfully, "I don't believe Ozma ever heard of Utensia, either.
Tell me, are you not subjects of Ozma of Oz?"

"We have never heard of her," retorted a spoon. "We are
subjects of King Kleaver, and obey only his orders, which are to
bring all prisoners to him as soon as they are captured. So step
lively, my girl, and march with us, or we may be tempted to cut off a
few of your toes with our swords."

This threat made Dorothy laugh again. She did not believe she
was in any danger; but here was a new and interesting adventure, so
she was willing to be taken to Utensia that she might see what King
Kleaver's kingdom was like.