Lyman Frank Baum

Rinkitink in Oz Lyman Frank Baum

If you have a map of the Land of Oz handy, you will find that the great Nonestic Oceanwashes the shores of the Kingdom of Rinkitink, between which and the Land of Oz lies a strip ofthe country of the Nome King and a Sandy Desert. The Kingdom of Rinkitink isn't very big andlies close to the ocean, all the houses and the King's palace being built near the shore. Thepeople live much upon the water, boating and fishing, and the wealth of Rinkitink is gainedfrom trading along the coast and with the islands nearest it. Four days' journey by boat to the north of Rinkitink is the Island of Pingaree, and as ourstory begins here I must tell you something about this island. At the north end of Pingaree, where it is widest, the land is a mile from shore to shore, but at the south end it is scarcely halfa mile broad; thus, although Pingaree is four miles long, from north to south, it cannot be calleda very big island. It is exceedingly pretty, however, and to the gulls who approach it from thesea it must resemble a huge green wedge lying upon the waters, for its grass and trees give itthe color of an emerald