The
shaggy man stood in the great
hall, his shaggy hat in his
hands, wondering what would
become of him. He had never
been a guest in a fine palace
before; perhaps he had never
been a guest anywhere. In the
big, cold, outside world people
did not invite shaggy men to
their homes, and this shaggy
man of ours had slept more
in hay-lofts and stables than
in comfortable rooms. When
the others left the great hall
he eyed the splendidly dressed
servants of the Princess Ozma
as if he expected to be ordered
out; but one of them bowed
before him as respectfully
as if he had been a prince,
and said:
"Permit
me, sir,
to conduct
you to your apartments."
The shaggy man drew a long
breath and took courage.
"Very well," he answered. "I'm
ready."
Through the big hall they
went, up the grand staircase
carpeted thick with velvet,
and so along a wide corridor
to a carved doorway. Here the
servant paused, and opening
the door said with polite deference:
"Be
good enough
to enter,
sir, and make yourself at home
in the rooms our Royal Ozma
has ordered prepared for you.
Whatever you see is for you
to use and enjoy, as if your
own. The Princess dines at
seven, and I shall be here
in time to lead you to the
drawing-room, where you will
be privileged to meet the lovely
Ruler of Oz. Is there any command,
in the meantime, with which
you desire to honor me?"
"No," said the shaggy man; "but
I'm much obliged."
He entered the room and shut
the door, and for a time stood
in bewilderment, admiring the
grandeur before him.
He had been given one of
the handsomest apartments in
the most magnificent palace
in the world, and you can not
wonder that his good fortune
astonished and awed him until
he grew used to his surroundings.
The furniture was upholstered
in cloth of gold, with the
royal crown embroidered upon
it in scarlet. The rug upon
the marble floor was so thick
and soft that he could not
hear the sound of his own footsteps,
and upon the walls were splendid
tapestries woven with scenes
from the Land of Oz. Books
and ornaments were scattered
about in profusion, and the
shaggy man thought he had never
seen so many pretty things
in one place before. In one
corner played a tinkling fountain
of perfumed water, and in another
was a table bearing a golden
tray loaded with freshly gathered
fruit, including several of
the red-cheeked apples that
the shaggy man loved.
At the farther end of this
charming room was an open doorway,
and he crossed over to find
himself in a bedroom containing
more comforts than the shaggy
man had ever before imagined.
The bedstead was of gold and
set with many brilliant diamonds,
and the coverlet had designs
of pearls and rubies sewed
upon it. At one side of the
bedroom was a dainty dressing-room
with closets containing a large
assortment of fresh clothing;
and beyond this was the bath--a
large room having a marble
pool big enough to swim in,
with white marble steps leading
down to the water. Around the
edge of the pool were set rows
of fine emeralds as large as
door-knobs, while the water
of the bath was clear as crystal.
For a time the shaggy man
gazed upon all this luxury
with silent amazement. Then
he decided, being wise in his
way, to take advantage of his
good fortune. He removed his
shaggy boots and his shaggy
clothing, and bathed in the
pool with rare enjoyment. After
he had dried himself with the
soft towels he went into the
dressing-room and took fresh
linen from the drawers and
put it on, finding that everything
fitted him exactly. He examined
the contents of the closets
and selected an elegant suit
of clothing. Strangely enough,
everything about it was shaggy,
although so new and beautiful,
and he sighed with contentment
to realize that he could now
be finely dressed and still
be the shaggy man. His coat
was of rose-colored velvet,
trimmed with shags and bobtails,
with buttons of blood-red rubies
and golden shags around the
edges. His vest was a shaggy
satin of a delicate cream color,
and his knee-breeches of rose
velvet trimmed like the coat.
Shaggy creamy stockings of
silk, and shaggy slippers of
rose leather with ruby buckles,
completed his costume, and
when he was thus attired the
shaggy man looked at himself
in a long mirror with great
admiration. On a table he found
a mother-of-pearl chest decorated
with delicate silver vines
and flowers of clustered rubies,
and on the cover was a silver
plate engraved with these words:
THE SHAGGY MAN: HIS BOX OF
ORNAMENTS
The chest was not locked,
so he opened it and was almost
dazzled by the brilliance of
the rich jewels it contained.
After admiring the pretty things,
he took out a fine golden watch
with a big chain, several handsome
finger-rings, and an ornament
of rubies to pin upon the breast
of his shaggy shirt-bosom.
Having carefully brushed his
hair and whiskers all the wrong
way to make them look as shaggy
as possible, the shaggy man
breathed a deep sigh of joy
and decided he was ready to
meet the Royal Princess as
soon as she sent for him. While
he waited he returned to the
beautiful sitting room and
ate several of the red-cheeked
apples to pass away the time.
Meanwhile, Dorothy had dressed
herself in a pretty gown of
soft grey embroidered with
silver, and put a blue-and-gold
suit of satin upon little Button-Bright,
who looked as sweet as a cherub
in it. Followed by the boy
and Toto--the dog with a new
green ribbon around his neck--she
hastened down to the splendid
drawing-room of the palace,
where, seated upon an exquisite
throne of carved malachite
and nestled amongst its green
satin cushions was the lovely
Princess Ozma, waiting eagerly
to welcome her friend.
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