d a pleasant voice saying:

"Why are you crying, little boys?"

They looked up, and there in the moonlight, by their bed, was the
dearest little old lady. She was dressed all in grey, from the peak of
her little pointed hat to her little, buckled shoes. She held a black
cane much taller than her little self. Her hair fell about her ears in
tiny, grey corkscrew curls; and they bobbed about as she moved. Her eyes
were black and bright--as bright as--well, as that lovely, white light
in the fire. And her cheeks were as red as an apple.

"Why are you crying, little boys?" she asked again, in a lovely, low,
little voice.

"Because we are tired and sore and hungry and cold; and we are all alone
in the world; and we don't know how to laugh any more. We should so like
to laugh again."

"Why, that's easy," she said, "it's just like this," and she laughed a
little, joyous, musical laugh. "Try!" she commanded.

They tried, but their laughing boxes were very rusty and they made
horrid sounds.

"Well," she said, "I advise you to pack up, and go away, as soon as you
can, to the Land of Laughter. You'll soon learn there, I can tell you."

"Is there such a land?" they asked doubtfully.

"To be sure there is," she answered, the least bit sharply.

"We never heard of it," they said.

"Well, I'm sure there must be plenty of things you never heard about,"
she said just the "leastest" bit more sharply. "In a moment you'll be
telling me the flowers don't talk together, and the birds."

"We never heard of such a thing," they said in surprise, their eyes like
saucers.

"There!" she said, bobbing her little curls. "What did I tell you. You
have much to learn."

"How do you get to the Land of Laughter?" they asked.

"You go out of the eastern gate of the town, just as the sun is rising;
and you take the highway there, and follow it; and if you go with it
long enough, it will bring you to the gate of the Land of Laughter. It
is a long, long way from here; and it will take you many days."

The words had scarcely left her mouth when, lo! the little lady
disappeared, and where she had stood was the white square of
moonlight--nothing else.

And without more ado these two little boys put their arms round each
other, and fell fast asleep. And in the grey, just before daybreak, they
awoke and dressed; and putting on their little ragged caps and mittens,
for it was a wintry day, they stole out of the house, and made for the
eastern