ndlord, turning to Ruggedo. "Have you
money?"

"I've something better," answered the old Nome, and taking a bag from
one of his pockets he poured from it upon the table a mass of
glittering gems--diamonds, rubies and emeralds.

The landlord was very polite to the strangers after that. He served
them an excellent supper, and while they ate it, the Hyup boy asked his
companion:

"Where did you get so many jewels?"

"Well, I'll tell you," answered the Nome. "When those Oz people took
my kingdom away from me--just because it was my kingdom and I wanted to
run it to suit myself--they said I could take as many precious stones
as I could carry. So I had a lot of pockets made in my clothes and
loaded them all up. Jewels are fine things to have with you when you
travel; you can trade them for anything."

"Are they better than gold pieces?" asked Kiki.

"The smallest of these jewels is worth a hundred gold pieces such as
you stole from the old man."

"Don't talk so loud," begged Kiki, uneasily. "Some one else might hear
what you are saying."

After supper they took a walk together, and the former Nome King said:

"Do you know the Shaggy Man, and the Scarecrow, and the Tin Woodman,
and Dorothy, and Ozma and all the other Oz people?"

"No," replied the boy, "I have never been away from Mount Munch until I
flew over the Deadly Desert the other day in the shape of a hawk."

"Then you've never seen the Emerald City of Oz?"

"Never."

"Well," said the Nome, "I knew all the Oz people, and you can guess I
do not love them. All during my wanderings I have brooded on how I can
be revenged on them. Now that I've met you I can see a way to conquer
the Land of Oz and be King there myself, which is better than being
King of the Nomes."

"How can you do that?" inquired Kiki Aru, wonderingly.

"Never mind how. In the first place, I'll make a bargain with you.
Tell me the secret of how to perform transformations and I will give
you a pocketful of jewels, the biggest and finest that I possess."

"No," said Kiki, who realized that to share his power with another
would be dangerous to himself.

"I'll give you TWO pocketsful of jewels," said the Nome.

"No," answered Kiki.

"I'll give you every jewel I possess."

"No, no, no!" said Kiki, who was beginning to be frightened.

"Then," said the Nome, with a wicked look at the boy, "I'll tell the
inn-keeper that you stole that gold piece and he will have you put in
pri