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Updated: June 28, 2025
"No," replied the machine; "he is on-ly made to pound the road, and has no think-ing or speak-ing at-tach-ment. But he pounds ve-ry well, I think." "Too well," observed the Scarecrow. "He is keeping us from going farther. Is there no way to stop his machinery?" "On-ly the Nome King, who has the key, can do that," answered Tiktok. "Then," said Dorothy, anxiously, "what shall we do?"
"I am Dorothy Gale, of Kansas," replied the child; "and this gentleman is a machine named Tiktok, and the yellow hen is my friend Billina." The little servant bowed and withdrew, going through several passages and mounting two marble stairways before she came to the apartments occupied by her mistress.
Tiktok lived in the Land of Oz, and although he was an active and important person, he was made entirely of metal. Machinery within him, something like the works of a clock, made him move; other machinery made him talk; still other machinery made him think. Although so cleverly constructed, the Clockwork Man was far from perfect.
You are scratch-ing my pol-ish." "Oh, excuse me!" he replied, hastily drawing back. "Are you alive?" "No," said Tiktok, "I am on-ly a ma-chine. But I can think and speak and act, when I am pro-per-ly wound up. Just now my ac-tion is run down, and Dor-o-thy has the key to it." "That's all right," replied the Scarecrow. "Dorothy will soon be free, and then she'll attend to your works.
But the Princess Langwidere, who is a niece of our late King Evoldo, lives in a part of the royal palace and takes as much money out of the royal treasury as she can spend. The Princess Langwidere is not exactly a ruler, you see, because she doesn't rule; but she is the nearest approach to a ruler we have at present." "I do not re-mem-ber her," said Tiktok. "What does she look like?"
"Try en-treat-y," said Tiktok to Ozma. "If he will not come at your re-quest, then the Nome King may list-en to your plead-ing." Ozma looked around her proudly. "Do you wish your ruler to plead with this wicked Nome King?" she asked. "Shall Ozma of Oz humble herself to a creature who lives in an underground kingdom?"
But the sound of a voice coming from what he thought a mere vision was too much for the Nome King's shaken nerves. He gave a yell of fear and rushed from the room. Tiktok followed, so the King bolted through the corridors on a swift run and bumped against Kaliko, who was returning with a tray of things to eat.
The soldiers afterward tried to lift Tiktok, but they found the machine so solid and heavy that they could not stir it. So they left him standing in the center of the drawing-room. "People will think I have a new statue," said Langwidere, "so it won't matter in the least, and Nanda can keep him well polished."
Then the Tin Woodman embraced her very gently, for he knew his tin arms might hurt her if he squeezed too roughly. These greetings having been exchanged, Dorothy took the key to Tiktok from her pocket and wound up the machine man's action, so that he could bow properly when introduced to the rest of the company.
"The ir-on gi-ant is a fine fel-low," said Tiktok, "and works as stead-i-ly as a clock. He was made for the Nome King by Smith & Tin-ker, who made me, and his du-ty is to keep folks from find-ing the un-der-ground pal-ace. Is he not a great work of art?" "Can he think, and speak, as you do?" asked Ozma, regarding the giant with wondering eyes.
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