ction."

"That will please me ve-ry much," said the machine.

So she wound up Number Three, and at once the copper man in a somewhat
stiff and jerky fashion walked out of the rocky cavern, took off his
copper hat and bowed politely, and then kneeled before Dorothy. Said he:

"From this time forth I am your o-be-di-ent ser-vant. What-ev-er you
com-mand, that I will do will-ing-ly--if you keep me wound up."

"What is your name?" she asked.

"Tik-tok," he replied. "My for-mer mas-ter gave me that name be-cause my
clock-work al-ways ticks when it is wound up."

"I can hear it now," said the yellow hen.

"So can I," said Dorothy. And then she added, with some anxiety: "You
don't strike, do you?"

"No," answered Tiktok; "and there is no a-larm con-nec-ted with my
ma-chin-er-y. I can tell the time, though, by speak-ing, and as I nev-er
sleep I can wak-en you at an-y hour you wish to get up in the morn-ing."

"That's nice," said the little girl; "only I never wish to get up in the
morning."

"You can sleep until I lay my egg," said the yellow hen. "Then, when I
cackle, Tiktok will know it is time to waken you."

"Do you lay your egg very early?" asked Dorothy.

"About eight o'clock," said Billina. "And everybody ought to be up by
that time, I'm sure."

[Illustration]

Dorothy Opens the Dinner Pail

[Illustration]

"Now Tiktok," said Dorothy, "the first thing to be done is to find a way
for us to escape from these rocks. The Wheelers are down below, you
know, and threaten to kill us."

"There is no rea-son to be a-fraid of the Wheel-ers," said Tiktok, the
words coming more slowly than before.

"Why not?" she asked.

"Be-cause they are ag-g-g--gr-gr-r-r-"

He gave a sort of gurgle and stopped short, waving his hands frantically
until suddenly he became motionless, with one arm in the air and the
other held stiffly before him with all the copper fingers of the hand
spread out like a fan.

"Dear me!" said Dorothy, in a frightened tone. "What can the matter be?"

"He's run down, I suppose," said the hen, calmly. "You couldn't have
wound him up very tight."

"I didn't know how much to wind him," replied the girl; "but I'll try to
do better next time."

She ran around the copper man to take the key from the peg at the back
of his neck, but it was not there.

"It's gone!" cried Dorothy, in dismay.

"What's gone?" asked Billina.

"The key."

"It probably fell off when he made that low bow to