“And be sure to keep well back from the edge of the counter,” went on the Bold Tin Soldier. “I don’t want any of you falling off when the guns are fired.”
“Oh dear me! has any one a bit of cotton?” asked a Rag Doll, who sat next to a picture book.
“Cotton? Why do you want cotton?” asked the Calico Clown.
“Didn’t you hear what the Bold Tin Soldier said?” asked the Rag Doll. “He spoke about guns going to be shot off, and I can’t bear loud noises. If I can find some cotton I am going to stuff it into my ears so I won’t be made deaf.”
The Box-Jack and the Jumping Jack stood side by side as cousins ought; the Candy Rabbit found a place near the Noah’s Ark; the Monkey on a Stick found a place as near the parade grounds as the Bold Captain would let him come; and the Calico Clown moved over close to the Rag Doll.
“If the guns should, by accident, shoot too loudly,” said the Clown. “I will hold my hands over your ears, Miss Rag Doll.”
“That is very kind of you,” she answered with a smile. “But please do not bang your cymbals, as they make almost as much noise as the soldiers’ guns.”
“I’ll be careful,” promised the Calico Clown, who wore a gay suit of many colors, one leg being red and the other yellow, while his shirt was spotted, speckled and striped. On the end of each arm was a round disk of brass. These were called “cymbals,” and when any one pressed on the Clown’s chest he moved his arms and banged his cymbals together with a clanging sound.
“Attention!” called the Bold Tin Soldier again, and at this word of command the other Tin Soldiers in the box with their Captain stood up and began to move into line, each one carrying his gun over his shoulder.
As I have told you in my other books, the toys could pretend to come to life and move about after dark, when no one was in the store to see them. The toys could also move about by themselves in the day time, if no human eyes watched them. But as there was nearly always some one–either clerk or customer–in the store during the day, the toys seldom had a chance to do as they pleased during daylight hours. So most of their fun took place after dark, as was happening now.