Puff! A great cloud of smoke rolled
over the bed and completely hid him from view. When the
smoke rolled away, both Blinkie and the King saw that the
body of the stranger had quite disappeared, while in his
place, crouching in the middle of the bed, was a little
gray grasshopper.
One curious thing about this grasshopper was that the
last joint of its left leg was made of wood. Another
curious thing -- considering it was a grasshopper -- was
that it began talking, crying out in a tiny but sharp
voice:
"Here -- you people! What do you mean by treating me
so? Put me back where I belong, at once, or you'll be
sorry!"
The cruel King turned pale at hearing the grasshopper's
threats, but the Wicked Witch merely laughed in derision.
Then she raised her stick and aimed a vicious blow at the
grasshopper, but before the stick struck the bed the tiny
hopper made a marvelous jump -- marvelous, indeed, when
we consider that it had a wooden leg. It rose in the air
and sailed across the room and passed right through the
open window, where it disappeared from their view.
Pages:
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144