The Valley of Clowns is the first valley of Merryland. It is level and sunny, with many broad-leafed trees. The soft grass is dotted with bright flowers, and roads criss-cross the valley. Instead of houses the clowns live inside raised platforms, padded and covered with bright silks and patterned velvets.
All the inhabitants are clowns with fancifully painted faces and a variety of costumes, and all are entertaining tumblers, jugglers, or singers. Flippityflop, the Prince of Clowns, rules the first valley under the gracious favor of the Queen of Merryland.
Everything done in this Valley is foolish. When Dot and Tot visited, they were offered foolish things to eat, like fried goldfish, boiled buttercups, pickled shoelaces, scrambled eggshells, and fried buttons. The clowns enjoy drinking green paint or red mucilage. They find water to be quite wet, suggesting that after a drink of it, sawdust be eaten to absorb the dampness.
The Valley of Clowns is the home of all true clowns. They are trained very carefully, and every year one is selected to go into the world to entertain children. He climbs to the edge of the Valley, and rolls down the other side where he travels until he finds a circus to join. There are imitation clowns in the world, who do not come from the Valley of Clowns, but those often fail to amuse their audiences. Real clowns are sure to make you laugh. (Dot and Tot of Merryland)