Glinda of Oz: In Which Are Related the Exciting Experiences of Princess Ozma of Oz, and Dorothy, in Their Hazardous Journey to the Home of the Flatheads, and to the Magic Isle of the Skeezers, and How They Were Rescued from Dire Peril by the Sorcery of Glinda the GoodBaum, L. Frank (Lyman Frank)
Science
Glinda of Oz: In Which Are Related the Exciting Experiences of Princess Ozma of Oz, and Dorothy, in Their Hazardous Journey to the Home of the Flatheads, and to the Magic Isle of the Skeezers, and How They Were Rescued from Dire Peril by the Sorcery of Glinda the Good
Baum, L. Frank (Lyman Frank)
Adventure and adventurers -- Juvenile fiction; Animals, Mythical -- Juvenile fiction; Courage -- Juvenile fiction; Fantasy literature; Gale, Dorothy (Fictitious character) -- Juvenile fiction; Good and evil -- Juvenile fiction; Magic -- Juvenile fiction; Oz (Imaginary place) -- Juvenile fiction; Tri
"Of course," was the answer. "Everybody here is a dictator of
something or other. They're all office holders. That's what keeps them
contented. But I'm the Supreme Dictator of all, and I'm elected once
a year. This is a democracy, you know, where the people are allowed to
vote for their rulers. A good many others would like to be Supreme
Dictator, but as I made a law that I am always to count the votes
myself, I am always elected."
"What is your name?" asked Ozma.
"I am called the Su-dic, which is short for Supreme Dictator. I sent
that man away because the moment you mentioned Ozma of Oz, and the
Emerald City, I knew who you are. I suppose I'm the only Flathead that
ever heard of you, but that's because I have more brains than the
rest."
Dorothy was staring hard at the Su-dic.
"I don't see how you can have any brains at all," she remarked,
"because the part of your head is gone where brains are kept."
"I don't blame you for thinking that," he said. "Once the Flatheads
had no brains because, as you say, there is no upper part to their
heads, to hold brains. But long, long ago a band of fairies flew over
this country and made it all a fairyland, and when they came to the
Flatheads the fairies were sorry to find them all very stupid and
quite unable to think. So, as there was no good place in their bodies
in which to put brains the Fairy Queen gave each one of us a nice can
of brains to carry in his pocket and that made us just as intelligent
as other people. See," he continued, "here is one of the cans of
brains the fairies gave us." He took from a pocket a bright tin can
having a pretty red label on it which said: "Flathead Concentrated
Brains, Extra Quality."
"And does every Flathead have the same kind of brains?" asked Dorothy.
"Yes, they're all alike. Here's another can." From another pocket he
produced a second can of brains.
"Did the fairies give you a double supply?" inquired Dorothy.
"No, but one of the Flatheads thought he wanted to be the Su-dic and
tried to get my people to rebel against me, so I punished him by
taking away his brains. One day my wife scolded me severely, so I took
away her can of brains. She didn't like that and went out and robbed
several women of _their_ brains. Then I made a law that if anyone
stole another's brains, or even tried to borrow them, he would forfeit
his own brains to the Su-dic. So each one is content with his own
canned brains and my wife and I are the only ones on the mountain with
more than one can. I have three cans and that makes me very clever--so
clever that I'm a good Sorcerer, if I do say it myself. My poor wife
had four cans of brains and became a remarkable witch, but alas! that
was before those terrible enemies, the Skeezers, transformed her into
a Golden Pig."
"Good gracious!" cried Dorothy; "is your wife really a Golden Pig?"
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