In the Land of the Munchkins
Dorothy jumped down from her bed and ran to the door.
When she opened it, she gave a cry of surprise.
She was not looking at the gray prairie anymore. The
house was in a beautiful country that was covered with green
grass and tall trees. There were flowers of every color in the
grass and the trees were full of delicious fruit. Birds sang and
there was a little stream of clear water.
"How different this country is from Kansas!" Dorothy
cried. "I have never seen such a beautiful place. Where am I ?
And how did I get here?"
At that moment, Dorothy saw some people coming
towards her. The people were small, but they were not
children. The three men had beards and the woman's h a i r
was white.
They were all very strangely dressed. They wore blue hats
that were tall and pointed. The men were all dressed in blue,
but the little woman was dressed in white. She walked
towards Dorothy and bowed15.
"Welcome to the Land of the Munchkins," t h e woman
said. "Thank you for killing the Wicked16 Witch of the East.
You must be a witch too. You have killed the Wicked Witch
with your magic17 and now we are free. Thank you."
Dorothy was very surprised. She had no magic and she
had never killed anyone in her life.
"You have made a mistake," Dorothy replied. "I am a girl,
not a witch. I have not killed anyone."
"Well, then your house killed her. It fell on top of her,"
said the woman with a laugh. "Look, you can see the legs of
the Wicked Witch sticking out from under the house. You
can see her Silver Shoes."
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"Oh, dear," Dorothy said, looking down at the witch's
legs and the beautiful Silver Shoes on her feet. "What can I
do?"
"Nothing," the little woman said. "The Wicked Witch of
the East is dead. I am the Good Witch of the North, my
dear. I am the Munchkins' friend and now yours too."
Dorothy was very surprised.
"I thought that all witches were wicked," she said slowly.
"No, that's not true," the Good Witch of the North
replied. "There were four witches in the Land of Oz—two
were good and two were bad. But now, thanks to you, there is
only one wicked witch—the Wicked Witch of the West.
There is a wizard too. He is the Great Wizard of Oz and he
lives in the Emerald City."
"I am a girl and I live in Kansas with my aunt and uncle,"
Dorothy replied. "Well, I used to live with them," she went
on sadly. "I was carried here by the cyclone and now I want to
get back to Kansas. Can you help me?"
The Good Witch shook her head.
"There is a desert18 all around the Land of Oz," she said.
"No one can cross it. You will have to stay with us, my dear."
Dorothy began to cry.
"This is a beautiful country," she said. "But Kansas is my
home. Uncle Henry and Aunt Em are there and they will be
worried about me. Home is always the best place to be. Please
help me to go home."
The girl went on crying and the Munchkins began to cry
too, because they felt sorry for her. The Good Witch of the
North thought for a moment.
"You must go to the Emerald City," she said after a while.
"The Great Wizard of Oz lives there. Ask him to help you."
"How do I get to the Emerald City? Is it a long way? Will
you come with me?" Dorothy asked.
"You must follow the yellow brick road," the Good Witch
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