Helen_, Mother, I do wish you would call me Helen. Bumble is such a
silly name."

"I know it, my dear," said Mrs. Barlow, placidly, "and I do mean to, but
you see I forget."

"I forget it, too," said Patty. "But I'll try to call you Helen if you
want me to. What time does Uncle Ted come home, Aunt Grace?"

"Oh, about five o'clock, or perhaps six; and sometimes he gets here at
four. I never know what time he's coming home."

"It isn't only that," said Bob; "in fact, father usually comes home about
the same time. But our clocks are all so different that it depends on
which room mother is in, as to what time she thinks it is."

"That's so," said Helen. "We have eleven clocks in this house, Patty, and
every one of them is always wrong. Still, it's convenient in a way; if
you want to go anywhere at a certain time, no matter what time you start,
you can always find at least one clock that's about where you want it to
be."

"I'm sure I don't see why the clocks don't keep the right time," said
Mrs. Barlow. "A man comes every Saturday on purpose to wind and set them
all."

"We fool with them," confessed Bob. "You see, Patty, we all like to get
up late, and we set our clocks back every night, so that we can do it
with a good grace."

"Yes," said Helen, "and then if we want each other to go anywhere through
the day,--on time, you know,--we go around the house, and set all the
clocks forward. That's the only possible way to make anybody hurry up."

Patty laughed. The whole conversation was so characteristic of the
Barlows as she remembered them, and she wondered how they could enjoy
living in such a careless way.

But they were an especially happy family, and most hospitable and
entertaining. Patty thoroughly enjoyed her afternoon, although they did
nothing in particular for her entertainment. But Aunt Grace was very fond
of her motherless niece, and the twins just adored Patty.

At five o'clock tea was served, and though the appointments were not at
all like Mrs. Allen's carefully equipped service, yet it was an hour of
comfortable enjoyment. Uncle Ted came home, and he was so merry and full
of jokes, that he made them all laugh. Two or three casual callers
dropped in, and Patty thought again, as she sometimes did, that perhaps
she liked her Barlow cousins best of all.

Dinner, not entirely to Patty's surprise, showed some of the same
characteristics as luncheon had done. The salad course was lacking,
because the ma