Molly said, “May I get on the rocking-horse?” And Polly said, “May I ride in that funny little carriage?” The little old woman said in an old squeaky voice, “No time to play, no time to play; Call again another day!” Then she showed them a room full of caps and coats and all kinds of clothing, and she said with a wave of her hand, “Careless children lost them all! Come now, help me count and sort out the clothes.” Then Molly and Polly went to work to sort the caps. There were red caps, and blue caps, and yellow caps, and all kinds of caps. Then they went to work and sorted the neckties, and they worked all day, and still there were more caps and more neckties than you ever dreamed of. The room they were in led into a hall and the hall, too, was full of lost things. Suddenly Molly and Polly wanted to go home. They stopped work and said, “We want to go home right away!” The little old woman clapped her hands and said, “You are lost, you belong to me, Ha! ha! ha! he! he! he!” Then the little old woman went down the hall and locked the door and left Molly and Polly alone. “How shall we ever get home?” they said. Then they heard a voice say, “Through the tree-trunk, come with me; Only find the magic key!” They looked around, and sure enough, right in the middle of the room was a tree-trunk! Its roots came down to the floor. In the lower part of the tree-trunk there was a door and the door was locked. “Where shall we look for the magic key?” asked Molly and Polly. And the tree fairy said, “The magic key will open the door; It never has been found before.” Then Molly and Polly looked all over the room, you may be sure. They looked under the piles of clothing and they looked under the furniture. Just then a canary began to sing, “Give me, please, some food and drink; I can help you then to think!” Now Molly saw a little pitcher of water on the window sill, and Polly saw a little package of birdseed on a chair; so they gave the canary some food and drink. As they peeped into the bird-cage, they saw on the floor of the cage a tiny key! The key was tied with blue ribbon. “Oh, the key! the key!” they cried, but the Tree Fairy said, “Softly, softly, for you see, You must gently turn the key!” Then Molly and Polly went to the tree-trunk on tiptoe, and they put the key in the lock. Click! went the lock, and the door opened. There stood the Tree Fairy all dressed in red and yellow! The Tree Fairy was so little he could sit in Polly’s hand. The Fairy called, “There is room, the tree is wide, Quickly, quickly jump inside.” And it was well that Molly and Polly lost no time, for just as they had gotten inside the tree the little old woman came back. Up, up, up the tree they went. The Fairy held the key. “I will let you out by and by, if you grant me a wish,” said the Fairy.