The others now came up, and the Tin Woodman greeted the Lion and theTiger cordially. Button-Bright yelled with fear when Dorothy firsttook his hand and led him toward the great beasts; but the girlinsisted they were kind and good, and so the boy mustered up courageenough to pat their heads; after they had spoken to him gently and hehad looked into their intelligent eyes his fear vanished entirelyand he was so delighted with the animals that he wanted to keep closeto them and stroke their soft fur every minute.

As for the shaggy man, he might have been afraid if he had met thebeasts alone, or in any other country, but so many were the marvels in;the Land of Oz that he was no longer easily surprised, and Dorothy'sfriendship for the Lion and Tiger was enough to assure him they weresafe companions. Toto barked at the Cowardly Lion in joyous greeting,for he knew the beast of old and loved him, and it was funny to seehow gently the Lion raised his huge paw to pat Toto's head. Thelittle dog smelled of the Tiger's nose, and the Tiger politely shookpaws with him; so they were quite likely to become firm friends.

Tik-tok and Billina knew the beasts well, so merely bade them good dayand asked after their healths and inquired about the Princess Ozma.

Now it was seen that the Cowardly Lion and the Hungry Tiger weredrawing behind them a splendid golden chariot, to which they wereharnessed by golden cords. The body of the chariot was decorated onthe outside with designs in clusters of sparkling emeralds, whileinside it was lined with a green and gold satin, and the cushions ofthe seats were of green plush embroidered in gold with a crown,underneath which was a monogram.

"Why, it's Ozma's own royal chariot!" exclaimed Dorothy.

"Yes," said the Cowardly Lion; "Ozma sent us to meet you here, forshe feared you would be weary with your long walk and she wished youto enter the City in a style becoming your exalted rank."

"What!" cried Polly, looking at Dorothy curiously. "Do you belong tothe nobility?"

"Just in Oz I do," said the child, "'cause Ozma made me a Princess,you know. But when I'm home in Kansas I'm only a country girl, andhave to help with the churning and wipe the dishes while Aunt Emwashes 'em. Do you have to help wash dishes on the rainbow, Polly?"

"No, dear," answered Polychrome, smiling.

"Well, I don't have to work any in Oz, either," said Dorothy. "It'skind of fun to be a Princess once in a while; don't you think so?"

"Dorothy and Polychrome and Button-Bright are all to ride in thechariot," said the Lion. "So get in, my dears, and be careful not tomar the gold or put your dusty feet on the embroidery."

Button-Bright was delighted to ride behind such a superb team, and hetold Dorothy it made him feel like an actor in a circus. As thestrides of the animals brought them nearer to the Emerald Cityevery one bowed respectfully to the children, as well as to the TinWoodman, Tik-tok, and the shaggy man, who were following behind.

The Yellow Hen had perched upon the back of the chariot, where shecould tell Dorothy more about her wonderful chickens as they rode.And so the grand chariot came finally to the high wall surrounding theCity, and paused before the magnificent jewel-studded gates.

These were opened by a cheerful-looking little man who wore greenspectacles over his eyes. Dorothy introduced him to her friends asthe Guardian of the Gates, and they noticed a big bunch of keyssuspended on the golden chain that hung around his neck. The chariotpassed through the outer gates into a fine arched chamber built inthe thick wall, and through the inner gates into the streets of theEmerald City.

Polychrome exclaimed in rapture at the wondrous beauty that met hereyes on every side as they rode through this stately and imposingCity, the equal of which has never been discovered, even in Fairyland.Button-Bright could only say "My!" so amazing was the sight; but hiseyes were wide open and he tried to look in every direction at thesame time, so as not to miss anything.

The shaggy man was fairly astounded at what he saw, for the gracefuland handsome buildings were covered with plates of gold and set withemeralds so splendid and valuable that in any other part of the worldany one of them would have been worth a fortune to its owner. Thesidewalks were superb marble slabs polished as smooth as glass, andthe curbs that separated the walks from the broad street were also setthick with clustered emeralds. There were many people on thesewalks--men, women and children--all dressed in handsome garments ofsilk or satin or velvet, with beautiful jewels. Better even thanthis: all seemed happy and contented, for their faces were smiling andfree from care, and music and laughter might be heard on every side.

"Don't they work at all?" asked the shaggy man.

"To be sure they work," replied the Tin Woodman; "this fair citycould not be built or cared for without labor, nor could the fruit andvegetables and other food be provided for the inhabitants to eat. Butno one works more than half his time, and the people of Oz enjoy theirlabors as much as they do their play."

"It's wonderful!" declared the shaggy man. "I do hope Ozma will letme live here."

The chariot, winding through many charming streets, paused before abuilding so vast and noble and elegant that even Button-Bright guessedat once that it was the Royal Palace. Its gardens and ample groundswere surrounded by a separate wall, not so high or thick as the wallaround the City, but more daintily designed and built all of greenmarble. The gates flew open as the chariot appeared before them, andthe Cowardly Lion and Hungry Tiger trotted up a jeweled driveway tothe front door of the palace and stopped short.

"Here we are!" said Dorothy, gaily, and helped Button-Bright from thechariot. Polychrome leaped out lightly after them, and they weregreeted by a crowd of gorgeously dressed servants who bowed low as thevisitors mounted the marble steps. At their head was a pretty littlemaid with dark hair and eyes, dressed all in green embroidered withsilver. Dorothy ran up to her with evident pleasure, and exclaimed:

"O, Jellia Jamb! I'm so glad to see you again. Where's Ozma?"

"In her room, your Highness," replied the little maid demurely, forthis was Ozma's favorite attendant. "She wishes you to come to her assoon as you have rested and changed your dress, Princess Dorothy. Andyou and your friends are to dine with her this evening."

"When is her birthday, Jellia?" asked the girl.

"Day after to-morrow, your Highness."

"And where's the Scarecrow?"

"He's gone into the Munchkin country to get some fresh straw to stuffhimself with, in honor of Ozma's celebration," replied the maid. "Hereturns to the Emerald City to-morrow, he said."

By this time, Tok-tok, the Tin Woodman, and the shaggy man had arrivedand the chariot had gone around to the back of the palace, Billinagoing with the Lion and Tiger to see her chickens after her absencefrom them. But Toto stayed close beside Dorothy.

"Come in, please," said Jellia Jamb; "it shall be our pleasant dutyto escort all of you to the rooms prepared for your use."

The shaggy man hesitated. Dorothy had never known him to be ashamedof his shaggy looks before, but now that he was surrounded by so muchmagnificence and splendor the shaggy man felt sadly out of place.

Dorothy assured him that all her friends were welcome at Ozma'spalace, so he carefully dusted his shaggy shoes with his shaggyhandkerchief and entered the grand hall after the others.

Tik-tok lived at the Royal Palace and the Tin Woodman always had thesame room whenever he visited Ozma, so these two went at once toremove the dust of the journey from their shining bodies. Dorothyalso had a pretty suite of rooms which she always occupied when in theEmerald City; but several servants walked ahead politely to show theway, although she was quite sure she could find the rooms herself.She took Button-Bright with her, because he seemed too small to beleft alone in such a big palace; but Jellia Jamb herself ushered thebeautiful Daughter of the Rainbow to her apartments, because it waseasy to see that Polychrome was used to splendid palaces and wastherefore entitled to especial attention.