The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-06-10
The Prisoners of the Queen

troublesome to me in the future I shall
order you all to be destroyed. That
Is. all except the boy, who belongs to
old Mombi and must be restored to
her keeping. The rest Of you are not
human, and therefore 1t will not be
Horse and the Pumpkinhead's body I
will have chopped up for kindling wood,
and the pumpkin shall be made into
tarts. The Scarecrow will do nicely
to start a bonfire, and the tip man can
be cut into small pieces and fed to the
goats. AS for this immense Woggle-
Bug"
Highly Magnified, II you please"
interrupted the insect.
II think / will ask the cook to make
green turtle soup of you" continued
the Queen, reflectively.
The Woggle-Bug ~shuddered.
"Or, If that won't do, we might use
| you for a Hungarian goulash, stewed
and highly spiced," she added, cruelty.
This program of determination was
so terrible that the prisoners looked
upon one another In a panic Of fear.
The Soarecrow alone did not give way
to despair. He stood quietly before
the Queen and his brow wal wrinkled
in deep thought as ne strove to find
some means to escape.
While thus engaged he felt the straw
within his breast move gently, At once
his expression changed from sadness 10
Joy, and raising his hand he quickly
unbuttoned the front of his jacket.
This action did not pass unnotjeed by
the crowd of girls clustering about him
but none of them suspected what he
was doing until a tiny gray mouse
leaped from his bosom to the floor and
scampered away between the feet of
the Army of Revolt. Another mouse
quickly followed; then another and an
other, In rapid succession. And sud.
denly such a scream of terror went up
from the Army that 1t might easily
have filled the stoutest heart with ION.
sternation. The flight that ensued
turned to a stampede, n the STAN =
pede to a panic.
For while the startled mice rushed
wildly about the room the Scarecrow
had only time to note a whirl of skirts
and a ~twinkling of feet as the girls
disappeared from the palaoe-pushins
and crowdlng one another In their mad
efforts to escape,
The Queen, at the first alarm, stood
up on the cushions of the throne and
began to dance frantically upon hei
tiptoes. Then a mouse ran up thu
cushions, and with a terrified leap pool
Jinjur shot clear over the head of thu
Scarecrow and escaped through al
arehway-never pausing In her wild
career until she had reached the city
gates.
SO, In less time than I can explain
the throne room was deserted by al
5 save the Scarecrow and his friends
and the Woggle-Bug heaved a deel
sigh Of relief as he exclaimed:
THANK goodness. we are saved
For a time, yes,' answered the Til
woodman. But the enemy win sool
return, | fear"
Let us bar all the entrances to tn
palace said the scarecrow, Then "
J shall have time to think what is hes
to be done"
. So all except Jack Pumpkinhead, VIII
was still tied fast to the Saw-Horst
ran to the various entrances OF tn
: royal palace and closed the heav
: doors. boiling and locking them sc
I curely, Then, knowing hat the Arm
of Revolt could not batter down III
\ barriers in several days. the adven
. turers gathered once more In the throh
room for a council of war.
{ Next story; The Scarecrow Take
Time to Think In which the adven
G turers realize that they must eseap
q from their palace fortress to save I'll
d md the Woggle hug from starvation
G Such An escape seems almost lmpos
sible. however, for Jiniur's army sur
e rounds the palace. Then the Scare
d crow determines to think u a wa,
9 Does he succeed? Read and find gu
The next installment tells,
I copyright ny Ia Frank Baum for In
Z George Matthew Adams SeFvieS. } 4