d to all my grandmothers since the beginning of
time. It is, I believe, the very oldest thing in all the Yip
Country--or was while it was there--and," she added, dropping her voice
to an awed whisper, "it has magic powers!"

"In what way?" inquired the Frogman, seeming to be surprised at this
statement.

"Whoever has owned that dishpan has been a good cook, for one thing. No
one else is able to make such good cookies as I have cooked, as you and
all the Yips know. Yet the very morning after my dishpan was stolen, I
tried to make a batch of cookies and they burned up in the oven! I
made another batch that proved too tough to eat, and I was so ashamed
of them that I buried them in the ground. Even the third batch of
cookies, which I brought with me in my basket, were pretty poor stuff
and no better than any woman could make who does not own my
diamond-studded gold dishpan. In fact, my good Frogman, Cayke the
Cookie Cook will never be able to cook good cookies again until her
magic dishpan is restored to her."

"In that case," said the Frogman with a sigh, "I suppose we must manage
to find it."

CHAPTER 5

OZMA'S FRIENDS ARE PERPLEXED

"Really," said Dorothy, looking solemn, "this is very s'prising. We
can't even find a shadow of Ozma anywhere in the Em'rald City, and
wherever she's gone, she's taken her Magic Picture with her." She was
standing in the courtyard of the palace with Betsy and Trot, while
Scraps, the Patchwork Girl, danced around the group, her hair flying in
the wind.

"P'raps," said Scraps, still dancing, "someone has stolen Ozma."

"Oh, they'd never dare do that!" exclaimed tiny Trot.

"And stolen the Magic Picture, too, so the thing can't tell where she
is," added the Patchwork Girl.

"That's nonsense," said Dorothy. "Why, ev'ryone loves Ozma. There
isn't a person in the Land of Oz who would steal a single thing she
owns."

"Huh!" replied the Patchwork Girl. "You don't know ev'ry person in the
Land of Oz."

"Why don't I?"

"It's a big country," said Scraps. "There are cracks and corners in it
that even Ozma doesn't know of."

"The Patchwork Girl's just daffy," declared Betsy.

"No, she's right about that," replied Dorothy thoughtfully. "There are
lots of queer people in this fairyland who never come near Ozma or the
Em'rald City. I've seen some of 'em myself, girls. But I haven't seen
all, of course, and there MIGHT be some wicked persons left in Oz yet,
though