ge adventure. Down into a valley
between the waves the coop swept her, and when she climbed another
crest the ship looked like a toy boat, it was such a long way off.
Soon it had entirely disappeared in the gloom, and then Dorothy gave a
sigh of regret at parting with Uncle Henry and began to wonder what was
going to happen to her next.

Just now she was tossing on the bosom of a big ocean, with nothing to
keep her afloat but a miserable wooden hen-coop that had a plank bottom
and slatted sides, through which the water constantly splashed and
wetted her through to the skin! And there was nothing to eat when she
became hungry--as she was sure to do before long--and no fresh water to
drink and no dry clothes to put on.

"Well, I declare!" she exclaimed, with a laugh. "You're in a pretty
fix, Dorothy Gale, I can tell you! and I haven't the least idea how
you're going to get out of it!"

As if to add to her troubles the night was now creeping on, and the
gray clouds overhead changed to inky blackness. But the wind, as if
satisfied at last with its mischievous pranks, stopped blowing this
ocean and hurried away to another part of the world to blow something
else; so that the waves, not being joggled any more, began to quiet
down and behave themselves.

It was lucky for Dorothy, I think, that the storm subsided; otherwise,
brave though she was, I fear she might have perished. Many children,
in her place, would have wept and given way to despair; but because
Dorothy had encountered so many adventures and come safely through them
it did not occur to her at this time to be especially afraid. She was
wet and uncomfortable, it is true; but, after sighing that one sigh I
told you of, she managed to recall some of her customary cheerfulness
and decided to patiently await whatever her fate might be.

By and by the black clouds rolled away and showed a blue sky overhead,
with a silver moon shining sweetly in the middle of it and little stars
winking merrily at Dorothy when she looked their way. The coop did not
toss around any more, but rode the waves more gently--almost like a
cradle rocking--so that the floor upon which Dorothy stood was no
longer swept by water coming through the slats. Seeing this, and being
quite exhausted by the excitement of the past few hours, the little
girl decided that sleep would be the best thing to restore her strength
and the easiest way in which she could pass the time. The floor was
dam