d appeared.
It was white and hairy and had a long snout and little round eyes. The
ears were hidden by a blue sunbonnet tied under the chin.

"Oh; it's a pig!" exclaimed Woot.

"Pardon me; I am Mrs. Squealina Swyne, wife of Professor Grunter Swyne,
and this is our home," said the one in the window. "What do you want?"

"What sort of a Professor is your husband?" inquired the Tin Woodman
curiously.

"He is Professor of Cabbage Culture and Corn Perfection. He is very
famous in his own family, and would be the wonder of the world if he
went abroad," said Mrs. Swyne in a voice that was half proud and half
irritable. "I must also inform you intruders that the Professor is a
dangerous individual, for he files his teeth every morning until they
are sharp as needles. If you are butchers, you'd better run away and
avoid trouble."

"We are not butchers," the Tin Woodman assured her.

"Then what are you doing with that axe? And why has the other tin man
a sword?"

"They are the only weapons we have to defend our friends from their
enemies," explained the Emperor of the Winkies, and Woot added:

"Do not be afraid of us, Mrs. Swyne, for we are harmless travelers. The
tin men and the Scarecrow never eat anything and Polychrome feasts only
on dewdrops. As for me, I'm rather hungry, but there is plenty of food
in your garden to satisfy me."

Professor Swyne now joined his wife at the window, looking rather
scared in spite of the boy's assuring speech. He wore a blue Munchkin
hat, with pointed crown and broad brim, and big spectacles covered his
eyes. He peeked around from behind his wife and after looking hard at
the strangers, he said:

"My wisdom assures me that you are merely travelers, as you say, and
not butchers. Butchers have reason to be afraid of me, but you are
safe. We cannot invite you in, for you are too big for our house, but
the boy who eats is welcome to all the carrots and turnips he wants.
Make yourselves at home in the garden and stay all night, if you like;
but in the morning you must go away, for we are quiet people and do not
care for company."

"May I have some of your straw?" asked the Scarecrow.

"Help yourself," replied Professor Swyne.

"For pigs, they're quite respectable," remarked Woot, as they all went
toward the straw-stack.

"I'm glad they didn't invite us in," said Captain Fyter. "I hope I'm
not too particular about my associates, but I draw the line at pigs."

The Scarecrow was gl