reflection in it; "but now I've forgotten all such
foolish things as magic. Swans are lovelier than girls,
especially when they're sprinkled with diamonds. Don't
you think so?" And she gracefully swam away, without
seeming to care whether they answered or not.

Ervic and his companions were in despair. They saw
plainly that Coo-ee-oh could not or would not help
them. The former Queen had no further thought for her
island, her people, or her wonderful magic; she was
only intent on admiring her own beauty.

"Truly," said Ervic, in a gloomy voice, "the
Flatheads have conquered us!"

* * * * * * * *

Some of these events had been witnessed by Ozma
and Dorothy and Lady Aurex, who had left the house
and gone close to the glass of the dome, in order to see
what was going on. Many of the Skeezers had also
crowded against the dome, wondering what would
happen next. Although their vision was to an extent
blurred by the water and the necessity of looking
upward at an angle, they had observed the main points
of the drama enacted above. They saw Queen Coo-
ee-oh's submarine come to the surface and open; they
saw the Queen standing erect to throw her magic rope;
they saw her sudden transformation into a Diamond
Swan, and a cry of amazement went up from the