dog, a
great big fellow, but very kind and good, and especially fond of
children. He was called Nip because he used to playfully nip, or pretend
to bite, cats. He never really bit them, though.

"But Nip isn't here to take the Clown up in his mouth and put him on my
Elephant," Archie said.

"Oh, I guess your dog ran in here while you were out in the other room,
eating the cake and drinking the milk," Mrs. Dunn said. "Then Nip ran
out again, after dropping the Clown. Anyhow, we don't need to worry
about it. Go on with your Christmas fun."

This the children did. And having seen the Clown on the Elephant,
Dorothy wanted to have her Sawdust Doll ride in the same way. So the
Clown was lifted off and the Doll was lifted on.

"Oh, I'm having my wish! I'm having my wish!" joyfully thought the
Sawdust Doll to herself, as she was put on the Elephant's back, and
Archie pulled the big, stuffed animal about the room.

The Elephant, too, was glad to give his friend the Doll a ride on his
back as he had carried the Rolling Mouse and the other toys, though of
course he could not speak and tell her so, for there were children in
the room. The Doll, too, would have been glad to thank Mr. Elephant, but
it was not allowed.

So all the Stuffed Elephant could do was to swing his cloth trunk to and
fro, as Archie pulled him over the smooth floor, and all the Sawdust
Doll could do was to wave her arms a little.

The children thought it such fun to give the smaller toys rides on the
back of the big, Stuffed Elephant that they shouted and laughed with
glee, making a great deal of noise. And there was more noise when Dick,
who owned the White Rocking Horse, came over with his friend Herbert,
who had a toy Monkey on a Stick.

"Oh, my dear children! You are making so much noise!" called Mrs. Dunn,
entering the Christmas tree room. "Don't you want to go out in our big
barn to play?"

"Isn't it cold out in the barn?" asked Mirabell, as she looked from the
window and saw the snowflakes falling. "I wouldn't want my Lamb to
catch cold."

"It isn't cold in our barn," Archie answered. "It has steam heat, 'cause
my father doesn't want the horses to catch cold. And he doesn't want the
water in our automobile to freeze, either, so he has steam heat in our
barn."

"And it's warm and cozy," added Elsie. "Oh, out there we can have a lot
of fun!"

"Let's go out there then," said Joe. "My Donkey likes it in barns, I
guess."

"And so will my E