The yellow hen, stepping high and with an air of vast importance,walked slowly over the rich velvet carpets of the splendid palace,examining everything she met with her sharp little eyes.

Billina had a right to feel important; for she alone shared the NomeKing's secret and knew how to tell the objects that weretransformations from those that had never been alive. She was verysure that her guesses would be correct, but before she began to makethem she was curious to behold all the magnificence of thisunderground palace, which was perhaps one of the most splendid andbeautiful places in any fairyland.

As she went through the rooms she counted the purple ornaments; andalthough some were small and hidden in queer places, Billina spiedthem all, and found the entire ten scattered about the various rooms.The green ornaments she did not bother to count, for she thought shecould find them all when the time came.

Finally, having made a survey of the entire palace and enjoyed itssplendor, the yellow hen returned to one of the rooms where she hadnoticed a large purple footstool. She placed a claw upon this andsaid "Ev," and at once the footstool vanished and a lovely lady, talland slender and most beautifully robed, stood before her.

The lady's eyes were round with astonishment for a moment, for shecould not remember her transformation, nor imagine what had restoredher to life.

"Good morning, ma'am," said Billina, in her sharp voice. "You'relooking quite well, considering your age."

"Who speaks?" demanded the Queen of Ev, drawing herself up proudly.

"Why, my name's Bill, by rights," answered the hen, who was nowperched upon the back of a chair; "although Dorothy has put scollopson it and made it Billina. But the name doesn't matter. I've savedyou from the Nome King, and you are a slave no longer."

"Then I thank you for the gracious favor," said the Queen, with agraceful courtesy. "But, my children--tell me, I beg of you--whereare my children?" and she clasped her hands in anxious entreaty.

"Don't worry," advised Billina, pecking at a tiny bug that wascrawling over the chair back. "Just at present they are out ofmischief and perfectly safe, for they can't even wiggle."

"What mean you, O kindly stranger?" asked the Queen, striving torepress her anxiety.

"They're enchanted," said Billina, "just as you have been--all, thatis, except the little fellow Dorothy picked out. And the chances arethat they have been good boys and girls for some time, because theycouldn't help it."

"Oh, my poor darlings!" cried the Queen, with a sob of anguish.

"Not at all," returned the hen. "Don't let their condition make youunhappy, ma'am, because I'll soon have them crowding 'round to botherand worry you as naturally as ever. Come with me, if you please, andI'll show you how pretty they look."

She flew down from her perch and walked into the next room, the Queenfollowing. As she passed a low table a small green grasshopper caughther eye, and instantly Billina pounced upon it and snapped it up inher sharp bill. For grasshoppers are a favorite food with hens, andthey usually must be caught quickly, before they can hop away. Itmight easily have been the end of Ozma of Oz, had she been a realgrasshopper instead of an emerald one. But Billina found thegrasshopper hard and lifeless, and suspecting it was not good to eatshe quickly dropped it instead of letting it slide down her throat.

"I might have known better," she muttered to herself, "for where thereis no grass there can be no live grasshoppers. This is probably oneof the King's transformations."

A moment later she approached one of the purple ornaments, and whilethe Queen watched her curiously the hen broke the Nome King'senchantment and a sweet-faced girl, whose golden hair fell in a cloudover her shoulders, stood beside them.

"Evanna!" cried the Queen, "my own Evanna!" and she clasped the girlto her bosom and covered her face with kisses.

"That's all right," said Billina, contentedly. "Am I a good guesser,Mr. Nome King? Well, I guess!"

Then she disenchanted another girl, whom the Queen addressed asEvrose, and afterwards a boy named Evardo, who was older than hisbrother Evring. Indeed, the yellow hen kept the good Queen exclaimingand embracing for some time, until five Princesses and four Princes,all looking very much alike except for the difference in size, stoodin a row beside their happy mother.

The Princesses were named, Evanna, Evrose, Evella, Evirene and Evedna,while the Princes were Evrob, Evington, Evardo and Evroland. Of theseEvardo was the eldest and would inherit his father's throne and becrowned King of Ev when he returned to his own country. He was agrave and quiet youth, and would doubtless rule his people wisely andwith justice.

Billina, having restored all of the royal family of Ev to their properforms, now began to select the green ornaments which were thetransformations of the people of Oz. She had little trouble infinding these, and before long all the twenty-six officers, as well asthe private, were gathered around the yellow hen, joyfullycongratulating her upon their release. The thirty-seven people whowere now alive in the rooms of the palace knew very well that theyowed their freedom to the cleverness of the yellow hen, and they wereearnest in thanking her for saving them from the magic of the Nome King.

"Now," said Billina, "I must find Ozma. She is sure to be here,somewhere, and of course she is green, being from Oz. So look around,you stupid soldiers, and help me in my search."

For a while, however, they could discover nothing more that was green.But the Queen, who had kissed all her nine children once more andcould now find time to take an interest in what was going on, said tothe hen:

"Mayhap, my gentle friend, it is the grasshopper whom you seek."

"Of course it's the grasshopper!" exclaimed Billina. "I declare, I'mnearly as stupid as these brave soldiers. Wait here for me, and I'llgo back and get it."

So she went into the room where she had seen the grasshopper, andpresently Ozma of Oz, as lovely and dainty as ever, entered andapproached the Queen of Ev, greeting her as one high born princessgreets another.

"But where are my friends, the Scarecrow and the Tin Woodman?" askedthe girl Ruler, when these courtesies had been exchanged.

"I'll hunt them up," replied Billina. "The Scarecrow is solid gold,and so is Tiktok; but I don't exactly know what the Tin Woodman is,because the Nome King said he had been transformed into something funny."

Ozma eagerly assisted the hen in her quest, and soon the Scarecrow andthe machine man, being ornaments of shining gold, were discovered andrestored to their accustomed forms. But, search as they might, in noplace could they find a funny ornament that might be thetransformation of the Tin Woodman.

"Only one thing can be done," said Ozma, at last, "and that is toreturn to the Nome King and oblige him to tell us what has become ofour friend."

"Perhaps he won't," suggested Billina.

"He must," returned Ozma, firmly. "The King has not treated ushonestly, for under the mask of fairness and good nature he entrappedus all, and we would have been forever enchanted had not our wise andclever friend, the yellow hen, found a way to save us."

"The King is a villain," declared the Scarecrow.

"His laugh is worse than another man's frown," said the private, witha shudder.

"I thought he was hon-est, but I was mis-tak-en," remarked Tiktok."My thoughts are us-u-al-ly cor-rect, but it is Smith & Tin-ker'sfault if they some-times go wrong or do not work prop-er-ly."

"Smith & Tinker made a very good job of you," said Ozma, kindly. "Ido not think they should be blamed if you are not quite perfect."

"Thank you," replied Tiktok.

"Then," said Billina, in her brisk little voice, "let us all go backto the Nome King, and see what he has to say for himself."

So they started for the entrance, Ozma going first, with the Queen andher train of little Princes and Princesses following. Then cameTiktok, and the Scarecrow with Billina perched upon his straw-stuffedshoulder. The twenty-seven officers and the private brought up the rear.

As they reached the hall the doors flew open before them; but thenthey all stopped and stared into the domed cavern with faces ofastonishment and dismay. For the room was filled with the mail-cladwarriors of the Nome King, rank after rank standing in orderly array.The electric lights upon their brows gleamed brightly, theirbattle-axes were poised as if to strike down their foes; yet theyremained motionless as statues, awaiting the word of command.

And in the center of this terrible army sat the little King upon histhrone of rock. But he neither smiled nor laughed. Instead, his facewas distorted with rage, and most dreadful to behold.