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Chapter 21 · The Emerald City of Oz

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  This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
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  For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. The Emerald
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  City of Oz by L. Frank Baum, Chapter twenty one, How the
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  King changed his mind. Just then a rabbit band of nearly fifty pieces marched
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  in, playing upon golden instruments and dressed in neat uniforms. Following the band
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  came the nobility of Bunnybury, all richly dressed and hopping along on their rear
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  legs. Both the ladies and the gentlemen wore white gloves upon their paws,
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  with their rings on the outside of the gloves, as this seemed to be
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  the fashion here. Some of the lady rabbits carried lorgnettes, while many of
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  the gentlemen rabbits wore monocles in their left eyes. The courtiers and their ladies
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  paraded past the King, who introduced Princess Dorothy to each cup in a very
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  graceful manner. Then the company seated themselves in chairs and on sofas and looked
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  expectantly at their monarch. It is our royal duty as well as our royal
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  pleasure. He said, to provide fitting entertainment for our distinguished guest, we
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  will now present the Royal Band of Whiskered Friskers. As he spoke, the
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  musicians, who had arranged themselves in a corner, struck up a dance melody.
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  While into the room pranced the whiskered Friskers. They were eight pretty rabbits,
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  dressed only in gauzy purple skirts, fastened around their waists with diamond bands.
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  Their whiskers were colored a rich purple, but otherwise they were pure white.
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  After bowing before the King and Dorothy, the friskers began their pranks,
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  and these were so comical that Dorothy laughed with real enjoyment. They not only
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  danced together, whirling and gyrating around the room, but they leaped over one
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  another, stood upon their heads, and hopped and skipped here and there so
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  nimbly that it was hard work to keep track of them. Finally, they
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  all made double somersaults and turned handsprings out of the room. The nobility enthusiastically
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  applauded, and Dorothy applauded with them. They're fine, she said to the
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  King. Yes, the whiskered friskers are really very clever. He replied,
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  I shall hate to part with them when I go away, for they have
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  often amused me when I was very miserable. I wonder if you would ask
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  Glinda. No, it wouldn't do at all, declared Dorothy positively. There
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  wouldn't be room in your hole in the ground for so many rabbits, specially
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  when you get the lily chair and your clothes there. Don't think of such
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  a thing, your majesty, the king sighed. Then he stood up and
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  announced to the company, we will now behold a military drill by my picked
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  bodyguard of royal pikemen. Now the band played a march, and a company
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  of rabbit soldiers came in. They wore green and gold uniforms and marched very
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  stiffly, but in perfect time. Their spears or pikes had slender shafts of
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  polished silver with golden heads, and during the drill, they handled these weapons
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  with wonderful dexterity. I should think you'd feel pretty safe with such a fine
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  bodyguard, remarked Dorothy. I do, said the king. They protect me
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  from every harm. I suppose Glinda wouldn't know, interrupted the girl. I'm
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  sure she wouldn't. It's the king's own bodyguard, and when you are no
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  longer king, you can't have em. The king did not reply, but
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  he looked rather sorrowful for a time. When the soldiers had marched out,
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  he said to the company, the royal jugglers will now appear. Dorothy had
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  seen many jugglers in her lifetime, but never any so interesting as these.
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  There were six of them, dressed in black satin embroidered with queer symbols and
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  silver, a costume which contrasted strongly with their snow white fur. First they
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  pushed in a big red ball, and three of the rabbit jugglers stood upon
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  its top and made it roll. Then two of them caught up a third
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  and tossed him into the air, all vanishing until only the two were left.
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  Then one of these tossed the other upward and remained alone of all his
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  fellows. This last juggler now touched the red ball, which fell apart,
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  being hollow, and the five rabbits who had disappeared in the air scrambled out
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  of the hollow ball. Next, they all clung together and rolled swiftly upon
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  the floor. When they came to a stop, only one fat rabbit juggler
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  was seen the others seeming to be inside him. This one leaped lightly into
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  the air, and when he came down, he exploded and separated into the
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  original six. Then four of them rolled themselves into round balls, and the
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  other two tossed them around and played ball with them. These were but a
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  few of the tricks the rabbit jugglers performed, and they were so skillful that
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  all the nobility, and even the King applauded as loudly as did Dorothy.
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  I suppose there are no rabbit jugglers in all the world to compare with these,
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  remarked the King. And since I may not have the whiskered friskers or
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  my bodyguard, you might ask Glinda to let me take away just two or
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  three of these jugglers, will you, I'll ask her, replied Dorothy doubtfully.
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  Thank you, said the king. Thank you very much, And now
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  you shall listen to the winsome waggish warblers, who have often cheered me in
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  my moments of anguish. The winsome Waggish Warblers proved to be a quartette of
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  rabbit singers, two gentlemen and two lady rabbits. The gentlemen warblers wore full
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  dress swallow tailed suits of white satin with pearls for buttons, while the lady
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  warblers were gowned in white set and dresses with long trails. The first song
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  they sang began in this way. When a rabbit gets a habit of living
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  in a city and wearing clothes and furbelows and jewels rare and pretty, he
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  scorns the bun who has to run and burrow in the ground, and pities
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  those whose watchful foes are man and gun and hound. Dorothy looked at the
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  king when she heard this song, and noticed that he seemed disturbed and ill
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  at ease. I don't like that song, he said to the warblers.
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  Give us something jolly and rollicking. So they sang to a joyous, tinkling
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  melody as follows Bunny's gay delight to play in their fairy town secure. Every
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  frisker flirts his whisker at a pink eyed girl demure, every maid in silk
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  arrayed at her partner's shyly glances. Paws are grasped, waists are clasped as
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  they whirl in giddy dance. Then, together near the heather neath the moonlight,
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  soft they stroll. Each is very blithe and merry gamboling with laughter.
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  Droll life is fun to every one, guarded by our magic charm. For
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  to dangers, we are strangers, safe from any thought of harm, you
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  see, said Dorothy to the king when the song ended. The rabbits all
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  seem to like Bunnybury except you, and I guess you're the only one that
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  ever has cried or was unhappy and wanted to get back to your muddy hole
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  in the ground. His majesty seemed thoughtful, and while the servants passed around
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  glasses of nectar and plates of frosted cakes, their king was silent and a
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  bit nervous. When the refreshments had been enjoyed by all and the servants had
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  retired, Dorothy said, I must go now, for it's getting late and
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  I'm lost. I've got to find the wizard and Aunt em and Uncle Henry
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  and all the rest sometime before night comes, if I possibly can, won't
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  you stay with us, asked the king. You will be very welcome.
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  No, thank you, she replied, I must get back to my friends,
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  and I want to see Glinda just as soon as I can, you
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  know. So the King dismissed his court and said he would himself walk with
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  Dorothy to the gate. He did not weep nor groan any more, but
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  his long face was quite solemn, and his big ears hung dejectedly on each
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  side of it. He still wore his crown and his ermine, and walked
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  with a handsome gold headed cane. When they arrived at the room in the
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  wall, the little girl found Toto and Billina waiting for her very patiently.
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  They had been liberally fed by some of the attendants and were in no hurry
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  to leave such comfortable quarters. The keeper of the wicket was by this time
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  back in his old place, but he kept a safe distance from Toto.
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  Dorothy bade good bye to the king as they stood just inside the wall.
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  You've been good to me, she said, and I thank you ever so
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  much. As soon as possible, I'll see Glinda and ask her to put
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  another king in your place and send you back into the wild forest. And
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  I'll ask her to let you keep some of your clothes and the lily chair
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  and one or two jugglers to amuse you. I'm sure she will do it,
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  because she's so kind. She doesn't like anyone to be unhappy. Ahem,
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  said the king, looking rather downcast. I don't like to trouble you
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  with my misery, so you needn't see Glinda. Oh yes, I will,
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  she replied. It won't be any trouble at all. But my dear,
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  continued the King in an embarrassed way. I've been thinking the subject over
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  carefully, and I find there are a lot of pleasant things here in Bunnybury
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  that I would miss if I went away, so perhaps i'd better stay.
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  Dorothy laughed. Then she looked grave. It won't do for you to be
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  a king and a cry baby at the same time, she said. You've
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  been making all the other rabbits unhappy and discontented with your howls about being so
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  miserable, so I guess it's better to have another king. Oh no,
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  indeed, exclaimed the king earnestly. If you won't say anything to Glinda,
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  I'll promise to be merry and gay all the time and never cry or wail
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  again. Honor bright, she asked, on the royal word of a king,
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  I promise it, he answered, all right, said Dorothy. You'd
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  be a reg'lar lunatic to want to leave Bunnybury for a wild life in the
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  forest. And I'm sure any rabbit outside the city would be glad to take
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  your place. Forget it, my dear, forget all my foolishness, pleaded
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  the king earnestly. Hereafter, I'll try to enjoy myself and do my duty
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  by my subjects. So then she left him and entered through the little door
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  into the room and the wall, where she grew gradually bigger and bigger,
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  until she had resumed her natural size. The king keeper of the wicket let
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  them out into the forest and told Dorothy that she had been of great service
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  to Bunnybury because she had brought their dismal king to a realization of the pleasure
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  of ruling so beautiful a city. I shall start a petition to have your
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  statue erected beside Glinda's in the public square, said the keeper. I hope
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  you will come again some day and see it. Perhaps I will, she
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  replied. Then, followed by Toto and Billina, she walked away from the
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  high marble wall and started back along the narrow path toward the sign post.
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  End of chapter twenty one