“Perhaps we can get the things out of the machine drawer!” Henny suggested.

“Yes,” cried Susan, “let’s all go get the things out of the machine drawer!  Come on, everybody!”

And Susan, although she had only a cracked head, ran out the nursery door followed by all the rest of the dolls.

Even the tiny little penny dolls clicked their china heels upon the floor as they followed the rest, and Raggedy Andy, carrying his loose arm, thumped along in the rear.

Raggedy Andy had not lived in the house as long as the others; so he did not know the way to the room in which the machine stood.

After much climbing and pulling, the needle and thread and thimble were taken from the drawer, and all raced back again to the nursery.

Uncle Clem took off Raggedy Andy’s waist, and the other dolls all sat around watching while Raggedy Ann sewed the arm on again.

Raggedy Ann had only taken two stitches when she began laughing so hard she had to quit.  Of course when Raggedy Ann laughed, all the other dolls laughed too, for laughter, like yawning, is very catching.

“I was just thinking!” said Raggedy Ann.  “Remember, ’way, ’way back, a long, long time ago, I sewed this arm on once before?” she asked Raggedy Andy.

“I do remember, now that you mention it,” said Raggedy Andy, “but I can not remember how the arm came off!”

“Tell us about it!” all the dolls cried.

“Let’s see!” Raggedy Ann began.  “Your Mistress left you over at our house one night, and after everyone had gone to bed, we went up into the attic!”

“Oh, yes!  I do remember now!” Raggedy Andy laughed.  “We played with the large whirligig!”

“Yes,” Raggedy Ann said.  “The large spinning wheel.  We held on to the wheel and went round and round!  And when we were having the most fun, your feet got fastened between the wheel and the rod which held the wheel in position and there you hung, head down!”

“I remember, you were working the pedal and I was sailing around very fast,” said Raggedy Andy, “and all of a sudden the wheel stopped!”

“We would have laughed at the time,” Raggedy Ann explained to the other dolls, “but you see it was quite serious.”

“My mistress had put us both to bed for the night, and if she had discovered us ’way up in the attic, she would have wondered how in the world we got there!  So there was nothing to do but get Raggedy Andy out of the tangle!”

“But you pulled me out all right!” Raggedy Andy laughed.

“Yes, I pulled and I pulled until I pulled one of Raggedy Andy’s arms off,” Raggedy Ann said.  “And then I pulled and pulled until finally his feet came out of the wheel and we both tumbled to the floor!”

“Then we ran downstairs as fast as we could and climbed into bed, didn’t we!” Raggedy Andy laughed.

[Illustration:  Raggedy Ann sewing]

“Yes, we did!” Raggedy Ann replied.  “And when we jumped into bed, we remembered that we had left Raggedy Andy’s arm lying up on the attic floor, so we had to run back up there and get it!  Remember, Raggedy Andy?”