“Now I’ll have some fun with my Soldiers!” cried the boy, whose name was Arnold.
The paper was taken off, the box was opened, and once more the Bold Tin Soldier and his men saw the light of day. They looked about them curiously.
The Captain and his men saw that they were in a pleasant, sunny room. The box, which might have been called their “barracks,” was on a table, and, bending over it, was the boy, Arnold.
“Forward–March!” called Arnold, and one by one he took the Tin Soldiers out of the box and set them in rows on the table, with the Captain at the head of his men. That is the proper place for a Captain, you know.
Of course if Arnold had not been there, and if no other human eyes had been looking at the Tin Soldiers, they could have marched out of the box by themselves. But, as it was, Arnold had to lift them out. He did not know, of course, that his toys, and all other toys, have the power of pretending they are alive at certain times.
As Arnold was standing his Soldiers in rows on the table, the door of the room opened and a little girl came in.
“Oh, Arnold! what did you get?” she asked. “Oh, aren’t they nice!”
“These are my new Soldiers, Mirabell,” said the boy. “Daddy took me to the store and I bought them with some of my pocket money. But Daddy gave me a dollar, too. Want to see my Soldiers fight?” asked Arnold, as he stood the Corporal and the Sergeant where they could help the Captain take charge of the men.
“Oh, no, Arnold! I don’t want to see any soldiers fight! They might shoot me!” cried the little girl, pretending to shiver.
“Nope! They won’t shoot anybody!” said Arnold. “They have only make-believe guns, and I’ll only make-believe shoot ’em. I yell ’Bang! Bang!’ and that’s all the shooting there is. Now watch, Mirabell.”