"bldtn10" - читать интересную книгу автора (Hope Laura Lee)

Back and forth across the table the boy moved his two companies of
Tin Soldiers. Sometimes he would make believe one side was winning
the battle, and again he would let the other side seem to win.

The Captain and his men had little to say about it, for they could
not move by themselves nor talk when Arnold was looking at them. And
when he and his men were being moved back by the boy, and losing the
pretend battle to the Sergeant and his men, the Captain sighed and
said:

"Oh, if we could only do as we pleased! Then I'd show this boy how a
real Tin Soldier can fight!"

But of course the Captain could not do that. He had to be content to
let Arnold move him about. And the boy had fun with his company of
Tin Soldiers.

He fought several battles with them, but at last, like all boys, he
wanted to do something else. He was just wondering what he could do
when the door opened, and Mirabell came in dragging behind her a
rather large, woolly Lamb on Wheels.

"Come on out on the porch and play with me!" begged Mirabell of her
brother. "It is nice out there, and you can bring your Soldiers with
you."

"Yes, so I can," said Arnold. "I'll do it. Wait until I get the
little wooden cannon that shoots paper bullets. I'll put that in the
war."

"And I'll get my little Wooden Doll and pretend she is a Red Cross
Nurse," said Mirabell.

Together the children ran from the room, leaving the Tin Soldiers on
the table and the Lamb on Wheels on the floor.

"Well, of all things!" bleated the Lamb, when she saw the Bold Tin
Soldier. "Just fancy seeing you again! When did you get here?"

"I just arrived," answered the Captain, for, there being no one in
the room then, he and the Lamb could talk and move by themselves.

"I'm so glad you are here," went on the woolly pet "Tell me all that
has happened at the store since I was taken away. Is the Candy
Rabbit there yet? And the Monkey on a Stick and the Calico Clown?
Are they all there?"

"Yes. But the Clown had a sad accident just before I came away,"
said the Captain.