," thought he, "but she is too fine for
me. She lives in a castle, and I have only a box, which I have to share
with twenty-four. That is no house for her. But I will see whether I can
make her acquaintance." Then he lay down at full length behind a
snuff-box which was on the table. From there he could watch the trig
little lady who kept standing on one leg without losing her balance.
When evening came, the other tin soldiers were all put in their box, and
the people in the house went to bed. Then the playthings began to play,
first at "visiting," then at "war" and at "dancing." The tin soldiers
rattled in their box, for they would have liked to join in it, but they
could not get the cover off. The nutcracker turned somersaults, and the
pencil scrawled over the slate. There was such a racket that the
canary-bird woke up and began to sing, and that in verses. The only ones
that did not stir were the tin soldier and the little dancer. She stood
straight on tiptoe and stretched up both arms; he was just as steadfast
on his one leg. He did not take his eyes from her a moment.

Now it struck twelve, and bang! up went the cover of the snuff-box, but
it wasn't tobacco in it: no, but a little black Troll. It was a
trick box.

"Tin soldier!" said the Troll, "will you stare your eyes out?" But the
tin soldier made believe he did not hear. "You wait till morning!" said
the Troll.

When morning came, and the children got up, the tin soldier was put on
the window ledge; and whether it was the Troll, or a gust of wind, all
at once the window flew open and the tin soldier fell head first from
the third story. That was an awful fall. He stretched his leg straight
up, and stuck with his bayonet and cap right between the paving-stones.

The maid and the little boy came right down to hunt for him, but they
couldn't see him, though they came so near that they almost trod on him.
If the tin soldier had called "Here I am," they surely would have found
him; but since he was in uniform he did not think it proper to
call aloud.

Now it began to rain. The drops chased one another. It was a regular
shower. When that was over, two street boys came along.

"Hallo!" said one, "There's a tin soldier. He must be off and sail."

Then they made a boat out of a newspaper, put the tin soldier in it, and
made him sail down the gutter. Both boys ran beside it, and clapped
their hands. Preserve us! What waves there were in the gutter, and what
a curr