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

bullets in his toy, wooden cannon, and Mirabell wheeled her Lamb to
a safe place.

Arnold was just going to shoot his cannon and pretend to have the
tin guns of the Soldiers go bang-bang when, all at once, a shower of
hard, dried beans fell on the porch. Some struck the Soldiers, some
hit the Red Cross Doll, and some pattered on Mirabell and Arnold.

"Oh, some one is shooting bean bullets at us!" cried the little
girl. "This is a bean battle! Are your Tin Soldiers shooting bean
bullets, Arnold?"



CHAPTER V

THE CAPTAIN AND THE LAMB


For a few seconds Arnold did not know what to answer. One of the
hard, dried beans had struck him on the nose, and, while it did not
hurt very much, it made his eyes water and he could not see what was
happening.

But the beans kept on falling about the porch, and one struck a Tin
Soldier and knocked him over. This Soldier was a very small chap. He
was, in fact, the drummer boy.

"But who is shooting the beans at us?" cried Mirabell, as she lay
down on the porch behind her Lamb on Wheels.

"I don't know who is pegging beans at us," said Arnold, looking
around and out toward the street. "It isn't my Soldiers, for their
tin guns can only make believe shoot."

Just then some shouts were heard and more beans came rattling across
the porch, some, once more, hitting the Lamb, Arnold, and the Tin
Soldiers.

"Oh, look, Arnold!" suddenly called his sister. "I see who is doing
it!"

"Who?" he asked.

"A lot of rough boys! Look! They, have bean-blowers!"

As she spoke more shouts sounded and more beans came flying swiftly
over the porch.

"Shoot the Tin Soldiers! Shoot the Tin Soldiers!" cried the rough