ten o'clock
before
`` I do n't believe Santa Claus ever had such a thing before , '' said Dr. Carr . `` He 's a very dirty old gentleman , then , '' observed Aunt Izzie , grimly . The desk and sled were too big to go into any stocking , so they were wrapped in paper and hung beneath the other things . It was ten o'clock before all was done , and Papa and Aunt Izzie went away . Katy lay a long time watching the queer shapes of the stocking-legs as they dangled in the firelight . Then she fell asleep . It seemed only a minute , before something touched her and woke her up .