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"Elephant?" asked Tweaty, a yellow canary who was looking up at the large gray beast.

"Yes?" asked the elephant, who was drinking a tall glass of chocolate milk with his trunk.

"I was just thinking about the new Queen of Oz," said the bird solemnly. "Do you think she'll last? I mean, I really thought that the Wonderful Wizard of Oz himself would rule over the Land forever. Then I placed my confidence in His Majesty the Scarecrow. Now, out of the blue, we've got this little girl who is probably younger than most eggs, and we are supposed to give her our neverending support?"

"Why in the world not?" the pachyderm drawled as he indolently stretched
himself. "Nibbles and I agree that, though she is very young, Princess
Ozma shows a lot of promise as Oz's new leader. Give the child a chance.
She's only been a Queen for a week or so!"

"Absolutely, Tweaty!" Nibbles agreed. "And so many rulers have been youthful. Remember the old story about King Tut? He was just a little boy."

Few persons guessed that Nibbles, Elephant and Tweaty were old friends, so unlike were they in appearance and disposition. Tweaty was delicate, clean and could sing for hours on end without repeating a tune. He took pride in his appearance and always made sure that his refulgent feathers were clean. Nibbles, on the other hand, was a mouse. He was often found digging in the trash that was sometimes left by careless campers or burrowing in other animals' nests. His fur was not what most would deem tidy, but he was amiable and companionable. Elephant, by far the largest of the three, was less colorful. He liked the other animals, and he ofttimes wanted to help the smaller creatures as best he could, but his immense size and bulk generally made him feel more like a nuisance than a help. In spite of legends that would have us all believe that elephants are afraid of mice, he found that most of his favorite playmates were among the smaller creatures of Oz. He enjoyed fellowship with mice, as well as with rabbits and hedgehogs. He had befriended Nibbles at a young age, and it had been Nibbles who had introduced him to Tweaty.

The three friends were enjoying a relaxing afternoon in a remote region of the Munchkin Country known as the Lunechien Forest. It was a time of transition in the Land of Oz. The child Queen, Ozma of Oz, had just been named Ruler over the land. This news had met with mixed reactions. Many Ozites maintained that only the Wonderful Wizard could rule the land. Others favored the amiable Scarecrow. But all admitted that, even though a tiny little girl, Ozma was a unique leader. She had already proven that. She had not only created and brought to life a pumpkin-headed man named Jack, a wooden Sawhorse, and a wobbly monstrosity with the head of a Gump, but had also gone forth with these unlikely companions and saved the Land of Oz from a terrible fate.

[Illustration: Elephant, drinking chocolate milk.]

"But she's a little girl!" said the bird. "She's a child! Children should be allowed to enjoy their childhoods. This kid should learn to play jacks or skip a rope. She should have some nice paper dolls to dress up. She should have nice toys. She is too young to be a Queen. Let her live a happy life for a while before you go throwing all that responsibility on her. She's only a baby, for crying out loud!"

"She is a cute little thing, though," Elephant remarked, half to himself.

"Cute?" Tweaty demanded in surprise. "That is hardly a reason to elect someone leader. Especially over such a vast country as Oz. Maybe if Oz were a little dinky insignificant country like America or Kansas, it would be okay. But Oz is so much bigger than those places. Elephant, don't you think that adorable infant deserves a childhood to enjoy before getting schlepped into Queenhood unprepared?"

Before Elephant could reply, an unexpected occurrence drove all idle thoughts from his mind. It all happened in an instant.

From the ends of the earth to the top of the sky, an unearthly roar issued forth. It was as blood-curdling as a scream, yet as sinister as a red dragon's growl.

Then, before the horrified trio, a gigantic spider loomed before them. It looked as if it were hungry, and it was so uncannily big that it could easily have devoured all three of them in an instant! It might have, too, had it not been distracted by the sight of a small yellow cat which was darting by. It took the feline in its massive claws and raised her to its mouth.