_How_ UNCLE HENRY GOT INTO TROUBLE
CHAPTER TWO
Dorothy Gale lived on a farm in Kansas, with her Aunt Em and her UncleHenry. It was not a big farm, nor a very good one, because sometimes therain did not come when the crops needed it, and then everything witheredand dried up. Once a cyclone had carried away Uncle Henry's house, sothat he was obliged to build another; and as he was a poor man he had tomortgage his farm to get the money to pay for the new house. Then hishealth became bad and he was too feeble to work. The doctor ordered himto take a sea voyage and he went to Australia and took Dorothy with him.That cost a lot of money, too.
Uncle Henry grew poorer every year, and the crops raised on the farmonly bought food for the family. Therefore the mortgage could not bepaid. At last the banker who had loaned him the money said that if hedid not pay on a certain day, his farm would be taken away from him.
This worried Uncle Henry a good deal, for without the farm he would haveno way to earn a living. He was a good man, and worked in the fields ashard as he could; and Aunt Em did all the housework, with Dorothy'shelp. Yet they did not seem to get along.
This little girl, Dorothy, was like dozens of little girls you know. Shewas loving and usually sweet-tempered, and had a round rosy face andearnest eyes. Life was a serious thing to Dorothy, and a wonderfulthing, too, for she had encountered more strange adventures in her shortlife than many other girls of her age.
Aunt Em once said she thought the fairies must have marked Dorothy ather birth, because she had wandered into strange places and had alwaysbeen protected by some unseen power. As for Uncle Henry, he thought hislittle niece merely a dreamer, as her dead mother had been, for he couldnot quite believe all the curious stories Dorothy told them of the Landof Oz, which she had several times visited. He did not think that shetried to deceive her uncle and aunt, but he imagined that she haddreamed all of those astonishing adventures, and that the dreams hadbeen so real to her that she had come to believe them true.
Whatever the explanation might be, it was certain that Dorothy had beenabsent from her Kansas home for several long periods, alwaysdisappearing unexpectedly, yet always coming back safe and sound, withamazing tales of where she had been and the unusual people she had met.Her uncle and aunt listened to her stories eagerly and in spite of theirdoubts began to feel that the little girl had gained a lot of experienceand wisdom that were unaccountable in this age, when fairies aresupposed no longer to exist.
Most of Dorothy's stories were about the Land of Oz, with its beautifulEmerald City and a lovely girl Ruler named Ozma, who was the mostfaithful friend of the little Kansas girl. When Dorothy told about theriches of this fairy country Uncle Henry would sigh, for he knew that asingle one of the great emeralds that were so common there would pay allhis debts and leave his farm free. But Dorothy never brought any jewelshome with her, so their poverty became greater every year.
When the banker told Uncle Henry that he must pay the money in thirtydays or leave the farm, the poor man was in despair, as he knew he couldnot possibly get the money. So he told his wife, Aunt Em, of histrouble, and she first cried a little and then said that they must bebrave and do the best they could, and go away somewhere and try to earnan honest living. But they were getting old and feeble and she fearedthat they could not take care of Dorothy as well as they had formerlydone. Probably the little girl would also be obliged to go to work.
They did not tell their niece the sad news for several days, not wishingto make her unhappy; but one morning the little girl found Aunt Emsoftly crying while Uncle Henry tried to comfort her. Then Dorothy askedthem to tell her what was the matter.
"We must give up the farm, my dear," replied her uncle, sadly, "andwander away into the world to work for our living."
The girl listened quite seriously, for she had not known before howdesperately poor they were.
"We don't mind for ourselves," said her aunt, stroking the little girl'shead tenderly; "but we love you as if you were our own child, and we areheart-broken to think that you must also endure poverty, and work for aliving before you have grown big and strong."
"What could I do to earn money?" asked Dorothy.
"You might do housework for some one, dear, you are so handy; or perhapsyou could be a nurse-maid to little children. I'm sure I don't knowexactly what you _can_ do to earn money, but if your uncle and I areable to support you we will do it willingly, and send you to school. Wefear, though, that we shall have much trouble in earning a living forourselves. No one wants to employ old people who are broken down inhealth, as we are."
Dorothy smiled.
"Wouldn't it be funny," she said, "for me to do housework in Kansas,when I'm a Princess in the Land of Oz?"
"A Princess!" they both exclaimed, astonished.
"Yes; Ozma made me a Princess some time ago, and she has often begged meto come and live always in the Emerald City," said the child.
Her uncle and aunt looked at each other in amazement. Then the man said:
"Do you suppose you could manage to return to your fairyland, my dear?"
"Oh, yes," replied Dorothy; "I could do that easily."
"How?" asked Aunt Em.
"Ozma sees me every day at four o'clock, in her Magic Picture. She cansee me wherever I am, no matter what I am doing. And at that time, if Imake a certain secret sign, she will send for me by means of the MagicBelt, which I once captured from the Nome King. Then, in the wink of aneye, I shall be with Ozma in her palace."
The elder people remained silent for some time after Dorothy had spoken.Finally Aunt Em said, with another sigh of regret:
"If that is the case, Dorothy, perhaps you'd better go and live in theEmerald City. It will break our hearts to lose you from our lives, butyou will be so much better off with your fairy friends that it seemswisest and best for you to go."
"I'm not so sure about that," remarked Uncle Henry, shaking his grayhead doubtfully. "These things all seem real to Dorothy, I know; but I'mafraid our little girl won't find her fairyland just what she hasdreamed it to be. It would make me very unhappy to think that she waswandering among strangers who might be unkind to her."
Dorothy laughed merrily at this speech, and then she became very soberagain, for she could see how all this trouble was worrying her aunt anduncle, and knew that unless she found a way to help them their futurelives would be quite miserable and unhappy. She knew that she _could_help them. She had thought of a way already. Yet she did not tell themat once what it was, because she must ask Ozma's consent before shewould be able to carry out her plans.
So she only said:
"If you will promise not to worry a bit about me, I'll go to the Land ofOz this very afternoon. And I'll make a promise, too; that you shallboth see me again before the day comes when you must leave this farm."
"The day isn't far away, now," her uncle sadly replied. "I did not tellyou of our trouble until I was obliged to, dear Dorothy, so the eviltime is near at hand. But if you are quite sure your fairy friends willgive you a home, it will be best for you to go to them, as your auntsays."
That was why Dorothy went to her little room in the attic thatafternoon, taking with her a small dog named Toto. The dog had curlyblack hair and big brown eyes and loved Dorothy very dearly.
The child had kissed her uncle and aunt affectionately before she wentupstairs, and now she looked around her little room rather wistfully,gazing at the simple trinkets and worn calico and gingham dresses, as ifthey were old friends. She was tempted at first to make a bundle ofthem, yet she knew very well that they would be of no use to her in herfuture life.
She sat down upon a broken-backed chair--the only one the roomcontained--and holding Toto in her arms waited patiently until the clockstruck four.
Then she made the secret signal that had been agreed upon between herand Ozma.
Uncle Henry and Aunt Em waited downstairs. They were uneasy and a gooddeal excited, for this is a practical humdrum world, and it seemed tothem quite impossible
that their little niece could vanish from her homeand travel instantly to fairyland.
So they watched the stairs, which seemed to be the only way that Dorothycould get out of the farmhouse, and they watched them a long time. Theyheard the clock strike four, but there was no sound from above.
Half-past four came, and now they were too impatient to wait any longer.Softly they crept up the stairs to the door of the little girl's room.
"Dorothy! Dorothy!" they called.
There was no answer.
They opened the door and looked in.
The room was empty.
The Emerald City of Oz Page 3