"It does, indeed," said Dorothy. "Please tell us who you are."
"I'm Hip Hopper—Hip Hopper, the Champion."
"Champion what?" she asked in surprise.
"Champion wrestler. I'm a very strong man, and that ferocious animal which you are so kindly holding is the first living thing that has ever conquered me."
"And you are a Hopper?" she continued.
"Yes. My people live in a great city not far from here. Would you like to visit it?"
"I'm not sure," she said with hesitation. "Have you any dark wells in your city?"
"I think not. We have wells, you know, but they're all well lighted, and a well lighted well cannot well be a dark well. But there may be such a thing as a very dark well in the Horner Country, which is a black spot on the face of the earth."
"Where is the Horner Country?" Ojo inquired.
"The other side of the mountain. There's a fence between the Hopper Country and the Horner Country, and a gate in the fence; but you can't pass through just now, because we are at war with the Horners."