Toby had received a gift from a soldier friend of a Turkish cap and six Turkish water pipes. Toby had little use for these objects, although he appreciated the gesture of the giving of the presents.

One day while improvising "field pieces," which readers may assume are some type of miniature canons Corporal Trim and Toby made, Trim decides to put the water pipes to good use. He figures out that if he ties the six field pieces together with waxed strings of silk and then connects the water pipes to one another as well as to the miniature canons, he can, all by himself, fire the six weapons simultaneously.

After working on this project all night, Trim is quite satisfied with himself as well as anxious to get up the next morning to try out the new apparatus. Trim means to wait for Toby to come out to the field before he experiments with his newly conceived idea; he merely wants to see if the apparatus works.

So he begins tinkering with the trigger mechanism. Before he can stop himself, however, Trim sets off all six field pieces. Just as this is happening, Toby is walking across his yard toward the field. He sees the weaponry go off and cannot believe that Trim would begin a battle without him or without orders from him.

The narrator does not express Toby's exact reaction to this experience, just that Trim is very lucky that this is not the day that Toby writes his will. This is a reference to an earlier chapter in which Toby declared that he has written a will leaving all his worldly goods to Trim.

A short while after this incident, there is a lull in the wars in Europe. This break in action causes Toby to become somewhat depressed. Adding to his woes is his brother, Mr. Shandy, who insinuates that Toby is wrong for finding so much pleasure in his daily exercises of mock battle. Mr. Shandy finds it pathetic that Toby is saddened when there are no real battles reported.

The narrator states that Toby was not known for being eloquent. That gift belonged to Mr. Shandy. However, there were moments when Toby spoke very clearly and elegantly, putting forth an argument that was very pleasing as well as persuasive. One of these moments happens after Mr. Shandy has hurt Toby's feelings, criticizing the pleasure Toby finds in war.

Toby begins his argument by recognizing that if anyone in the world knows him, it is his brother. Mr. Shandy knows all of Toby's weaknesses and vices, Toby says, as well as all his passions and understanding.

However, knowing this confuses Toby even more when his brother accuses him of being frivolous and unsympathetic to the victims of war. Toby then reminds his brother that his feelings about bloodshed and death caused by battles being fought are well recorded. Toby points out how he cried in school when they studied the Greek wars. Toby then asks his brother if this is a sign of someone who is unsympathetic?

Toby concludes his argument by stating that there are two sides to war. One is the tragedy of loss of life, but the other is the bravery and honor of soldiers who fight for liberty.