ey met saluted the Emperor with great
respect and wished him good luck on his journey. At night they stopped
at a house where they were well entertained and where Woot was given a
comfortable bed to sleep in.

"Were the Scarecrow and I alone," said the Tin Woodman, "we would
travel by night as well as by day; but with a meat person in our party,
we must halt at night to permit him to rest."

"Meat tires, after a day's travel," added the Scarecrow, "while straw
and tin never tire at all. Which proves," said he, "that we are
somewhat superior to people made in the common way."

Woot could not deny that he was tired, and he slept soundly until
morning, when he was given a good breakfast, smoking hot.

"You two miss a great deal by not eating," he said to his companions.

"It is true," responded the Scarecrow. "We miss suffering from hunger,
when food cannot be had, and we miss a stomachache, now and then."

As he said this, the Scarecrow glanced at the Tin Woodman, who nodded
his assent.

All that second day they traveled steadily, entertaining one another
the while with stories of adventures they had formerly met and
listening to the Scarecrow recite poetry. He had learned a great many
poems from Professor Wogglebug and loved to repeat them whenever
anybody would listen to him. Of course Woot and the Tin Woodman now
listened, because they could not do otherwise--unless they rudely ran
away from their stuffed comrade. One of the Scarecrow's recitations was
like this:

"What sound is so sweet
As the straw from the wheat
When it crunkles so tender and low?
It is yellow and bright,
So it gives me delight
To crunkle wherever I go.

"Sweet, fresh, golden Straw!
There is surely no flaw
In a stuffing so clean and compact.
It creaks when I walk,
And it thrills when I talk,
And its fragrance is fine, for a fact.
"To cut me don't hurt,

For I've no blood to squirt,
And I therefore can suffer no pain;
The straw that I use
Doesn't lump up or bruise,
Though it's pounded again and again!

"I know it is said
That my beautiful head
Has brains of mixed wheat-straw and bran,
But my thoughts are so good
I'd not change, if I could,
For the brains of a common meat man.

"Content with my lot,
I'm glad that I'm not
Like others I meet day by day;
If my insides get musty,
Or mussed-up, or dusty,
I get newly stuffed right