The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-08-23
lpheW%{y,Qerful St! Stores 2 81. <dIOZ2k
THE GIRL IN THE CHICKEN COOP.

THE GIRL IN THE CHICKEN COOP.
The wind blew hard and joggled the
water of the ocean, sending ripples
across its surface. Then the wind
pushed the edges of the ripples until
they became waves, and showed the
waves around until they became bill
lows. The pillows rolled dressdfully
high; higher even than the tops of
houses. Some\ of them. indeed. rolled
as high as the tops OF tall trees, and
seemed like mountains; and the CULTS
between the great pillows were like
deep valleys.
All this mad dashing and splashing
OF the waters of the big ocean. which
the mischievous wind caused without
any good reason whatever, resulted in
terrible storm. and storm on the
ocean is liable to cut many queer
FRANKS and do a lot of damage.
At the time the wind began to blow,
ship was sailing far out upon the
waters. When the waves began to
tumble and toss and to grow bigger
and bigger the ship rolled up and
down, and tipped sidewise-first one
way and then the other-and was
jostled around so roughly that even
the sailor-men had TO hold fast to the
ropes and ratings to keep themselves
II OAh OSlIlB swept away by the WIND
or pitched headlong into the sea.
And the clouds were SO thick in the
sky that the sunlight couldn't get
thru them; SO that the day grew dark
as night, which added to the terrors
of the storm.
The captain of the ship was not
afraid, because he had seen storms
before, and had sailed his ship thru
them in safety; but he knew that his
passengers would be in danger if they
tried to stay on deck, so he put them
all into the cabin and told them to
stay there until after the storm was
over, and to keep brave hearts and not
be scared, and all would be well with
them.
Now, among these passengers was
little Kansas girl named Dorothy
Gale, who was going with her Uncle
Henry to Australia, to visit some rela-
tives they had never before seen. I'm
Gle Henry, you must know. was not
very well, because he had been work
ing so hard on his Kansas farm that
his health had given way and left him
weak and nervous. So he left Aunt
EN- at home to watch after the hired
men and to take care of the farm,
while he Travelled far away. to Aus
tralia to visit his cousins and have a
good rest.
Dorothy was eager to go with him
on this journey, and Uncle Henry
thought she would be good company
and help cheer him up; so he de-
| cided to take her along. The little
girl was quite an experienced traveller,
for she had once been carried by a
cyclone as far away from home as
the marvellous Land of OF, and she
had met with a good many adventures
in that strange country before she
managed to get back to. Kansas again.
So she wasn't easily frightened, and
when the wind began to howl and
whistle, and the waves began to tum-
BILE and toss. our little girl didn't mind
the uproar the least bit.
"Of course Wen have to stay in the
cabin she said to Uncle Henry and
the other passengers, land keep as
quiet as possible until the storm is
over. For the captain says II we go
on deck we may be blown overheard"
No one wanted to risk such an acct
dent as that. you may be sure; so all
the passengers stayed huddled up in
the dark cabin. listening to the Shrek
ing of the storm and the creaking of
the masts and rigging and trying to
keep from humping iQto one another
when the ship tipped sidewise.
Dorothy had almost fallen asleep