Oh, let me get off your back!" whispered the Clown to the Elephant.
"They must never see me up here. It isn't allowed!"

But he was too late! Before he could slide off the Stuffed Elephant,
Archie, Elsie and the other children came running into the room!

"Oh! Oh! Oh!" they cried, as they saw the Calico Clown on the back of
the Stuffed Elephant.

CHAPTER V

IN THE BARN

Hearing the shouts of the children as they hurried back into the room
where the Christmas tree stood, Archie's mother came to see what the
matter was.

"Oh, Mother!" exclaimed Archie. "Look! The Clown is riding on my
Elephant's back! Isn't he funny?"

"He looks very odd!" said Mrs. Dunn. "Who put him up there? Did you lift
Sidney's Calico Clown to your Stuffed Elephant's back, Archie?"

"Oh, no, Mother!" Archie answered. "It wasn't I."

"Nor I," said Elsie.

"And I didn't, either," said the other children in turn.

"Well," said Mrs. Dunn, looking from one to the other, "of course the
Clown couldn't have gotten up on the Elephant's back by himself, and of
course the Elephant couldn't have lifted him there with his trunk.
Though I know a live clown could jump on a live elephant's back, and a
live elephant could lift a live clown up in his trunk. But these are
only toys. They must be moved about."

"Well, I didn't put the Clown there," said Archie again.

"Nor I!" echoed the other children.

And while this talk was going on the Elephant, the Clown, and the other
Christmas toys were very much worried lest their part in the fun be
found out. Of course we know how the Clown got on the Elephant's back,
but Mrs. Dunn did not, nor did the children. They didn't know that the
toys had the power to make believe come to life when no one was watching
them.

"If they had only stayed out of the room a little longer, I would have
had a chance to slip down off the Elephant's back, and all would be
well," thought the Calico Clown. "But, coming in so quickly, they caught
me! I hope they never find out about our having fun when they are out of
the room, or they'll never leave us toys alone."

"How do you s'pose that Clown got on my Elephant?" asked Archie of his
mother, a little later.

"I think some of you children must have put him there, and forgotten
about it," said Mrs. Dunn.

"No! No!" the children cried.

"Well, then Nip must have been playing with the Clown and just dropped
him on the Elephant's back," said Mrs. Dunn. Nip was Archie's