L.Frank Baum. The marvelous land of Oz -
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restored me to activity. A horrible existence is this, but you must
remember it is the regular ordained existence of Woggle-Bugs, as well as
of many other tiny creatures that inhabit the earth.
"But Destiny had singled me out, humble though I was, for a grander
fate! One day I crawled near to a country school house, and my curiosity
being excited by the monotonous hum of the students within, I made bold to
enter and creep along a crack between two boards until I reached the far
end, where, in front of a hearth of glowing embers, sat the master at his
desk.
"No one noticed so small a creature as a Woggle-Bug, and when I found
that the hearth was even warmer and more comfortable than the sunshine, I
resolved to establish my future home beside it. So I found a charming nest
between two bricks and hid myself therein for many, many months.
"Professor Nowitall is, doubtless, the most famous scholar in the
land of Oz, and after a few days I began to listen to the lectures and
discourses he gave his pupils. Not one of them was more attentive than the
humble, unnoticed Woggle-Bug, and I acquired in this way a fund of
knowledge that I will myself confess is simply marvelous. That is why I
place 'T.E.' Thoroughly Educated upon my cards; for my greatest pride lies
in the fact that the world cannot produce another Woggle-Bug with a tenth
part of my own culture and erudition."
"I do not blame you," said the Scarecrow. "Education is a thing to be
proud of. I'm educated myself. The mess of brains given me by the Great
Wizard is considered by my friends to be unexcelled."
"Nevertheless," interrupted the Tin Woodman, "a good heart is, I
believe, much more desirable than education or brains."
"To me," said the Saw-Horse, "a good leg is more desirable than