"What curious animal is that which is eating the grass on my lawn?"
enquired the man's voice.

"That's Jim," said the girl. "He's a horse."

"What is he good for?" was the next question.

"He draws the buggy you see fastened to him, and we ride in the buggy
instead of walking," she explained.

"Can he fight?" asked the man's voice.

"No! he can kick pretty hard with his heels, and bite a little; but
Jim can't 'zactly fight," she replied.

"Then the bears will get him," said one of the children's voices.

"Bears!" exclaimed Dorothy. "Are these bears here?"

"That is the one evil of our country," answered the invisible man.
"Many large and fierce bears roam in the Valley of Voe, and when they
can catch any of us they eat us up; but as they cannot see us, we
seldom get caught."

"Are the bears invis'ble, too?" asked the girl.

"Yes; for they eat of the dama-fruit, as we all do, and that keeps
them from being seen by any eye, whether human or animal."

"Does the dama-fruit grow on a low bush, and look something like a