ey did not need to have Caddy
know; it staid in a little pearl of a room full of the brightest
thoughts of Caddy's mind, and whenever these thoughts began to stir
about and say, "I wonder," away the little key would fly, and open some
new delightful secret to Caddy. There are thousands and thousands of
children who have keys of this sort; but, oh! there's such a difference
in the keys and in the secrets that they find! Caddy's key was one of
the very best, and even while she was noticing that the clock ticked so
loud, her little key had turned itself in the very centre of the wheels,
and the clock whispered, close in her ear, "Caddy, little Caddy, shall
I--tick-a-tock--talk to you?"

Caddy was not at all surprised or bashful with the clock, but asked,
quickly, "Were you ever at a party?"

"Hundreds of them," said the clock. "Tiresome things, parties are."

"Guess you don't get any supper, perhaps," said Caddy, with a queer
little smile.

"Guess _you_ are hungry, perhaps," laughed the clock, with a dozen
little sharp ticks all together. "Now, you dear little Caddy, I'm a
clock of a very good family. As far back as I can remember--and that's a
very long time--there has never been a clock in my family which did not
keep perfect time, and tell the truth exactly to a second every time it
spoke, and I know how a little girl who is invited to a party ought to
be treated, so I invite you now, Caddy Podkins, to _my_ party."

"What! a really, truly clock party?" exclaimed Caddy, and in the same
moment the big clock had swung its long pendulum wire around her waist,
and lifted Caddy as if she were a feather, whirled her so fast that
Caddy saw nothing at all, and then set her down very gently in a room
whose floor was shaped like the flat side of a wheel, and the edges of
the floor were notched just like the edges of the wheels in a clock. The
walls of the room were like brass that has been rubbed very bright, and
were covered with net-work of fine curling wire. In the middle of the
room was a long table, set with wheel-shaped plates, which were heaped
with large sweet raisins and nut meats, fresh flaky biscuits, and there
were the most delicious fruits, so ripe you could see through to the
seeds and stones in their cores. Over the table hung a chandelier,
shaped like a pendulum, which gave a soft yellow light. The big clock
stood at the head of the table, tapping her forehead with her long
minute-finger. She smiled at Caddy's