36 THE BEAR WHO PLAYED SOLDIER

Once a man had a tame bear which he took from place to place. The bear could march and play ball and dance.

Children came to see the man and his tame bear. They gave money to see the bear dance.

The bear was so big and black that he looked very fierce. But he really was kind and gentle.

One night the man went to an inn to eat his supper. He thought that the bear was tied fast to a tree outside.

The inn-keeper had three little boys. The oldest was six years old, the next was four, and the baby was two.

The little boys were upstairs playing soldier. Each one had a gun, and the oldest boy had a drum. They marched round and round. The oldest boy beat the drum. They were having a fine time.

Then they heard a noise—tramp, tramp! tramp, tramp! tramp, tramp! Someone was coming upstairs. Who was it? The door opened, and the big black bear came in.

The children were so frightened that they hid in corners of the room. The big bear went to each one. He snuffed at them, but he did not hurt them.

By and by the children came out of the corners and said,“This is only a big black dog.”

They began to pat the bear, and then he lay down, and the baby climbed on him.

Soon the oldest boy got his drum again and began to beat it—rat-a-tat-tat! rat-a-tat-tat! rat-a-tat-too!

The bear got up on his hind legs and began to dance. “The big dog wants to play soldier, ”said the children, “Let us play.”

So the children got their guns. The bear wanted a gun, too, so they gave him one. He knew how to hold it just right.

Then the children began to march around the room with the bear. Left, right! left, right! Rat-a-tat-tat! rat-a-tat-too!

Just then the mother of the children came in and saw the big bear. Oh, how frightened she was! She called for help, and the bear's master came running up the stairs.

“Do not be afraid of my bear, ”he said, “He is tame and will not hurt the children.”Then he led the bear away.

“We like to play soldier with the big dog, ”said the baby, “Let him come again.”

(Hans Christian Andersen)

Word list

tame: trained, not wild

inn: a place similar to a hotel

tramp: to step loudly

snuffed: smelled loudly

You Practice

A) Answer the following questions.

1) What was unusual about the bear in this story?

2) What are some animals that are tame?

3) How do you think the man in the story earned money?

4) What were the little boys doing?

5) Why do you think the bear went upstairs?

6) Why did the children finally come out of the corners?

B) What comes first? Use the numbers 1-5 to put these sets in order.

1) _____ third _____ then ______ first _____ finally ______ fourth

2) _____ 8:00 AM _____ 2:00 PM _____ 8:00 PM

_____ 12:00 _____ 2:00 AM

3) _____ eat lunch _____ wake up _____ go to bed

______ brush teeth _____ do homework

C) True or false? Read these sentences carefully. Write true or false for each one.

1) _____ The bear attacked the children.

2) _____ The children played with the bear.

3) _____ The bear's owner thought the bear was tied up outside.

4) _____ The mother was afraid of the bear.

5) _____ The youngest boy had a drum.