A Christmas Carol Chapter 3 | The Second of the Three Spirits (Part 4)
Then Bob proposed: "A Merry Christmas to us all, my dears.
God bless us!"
Which all the family re-echoed.
"God bless us every one!" said Tiny Tim, the last of all.
He sat very close to his father's side, upon his little stool. Bob held his withered little hand in his, as if he loved the child, and wished to keep him by his side, and dreaded that he might be taken from him.
Scrooge raised his head speedily, on hearing his own name.
"Mr. Scrooge," said Bob; "I'll give you Mr. Scrooge, the Founder of the Feast!"
"The Founder of the Feast indeed!" cried Mrs. Cratchit. "I wish I had him here I'd give him a piece of my mind to feast upon and I hope he'd have a good appetite for it."
"My dear," said Bob, "the children! Christmas day."
"It should be Christmas day, I am sure," said she, "on which one drinks to the health of such an odious, stingy, hard, unfeeling man as Mr. Scrooge. You know he is, Robert! Nobody knows it better than you do, poor fellow!"
"My dear," was Bob's mild answer, "Christmas day."
"I'll drink his health for your sake and the day's," said Mrs. Cratchit, "not for his."
The children drank the toast after her. Scrooge was disliked by the family. The mention of his name cast a dark shadow on the party, which was not dispelled for full five minutes. After it had passed away, they were ten times merrier than before, from the mere relief of Scrooge being done with. There was nothing of high mark in this. They were not a handsome family; they were not well dressed; their shoes were far from being waterproof; their clothes were scanty. But they were happy, grateful, pleased with one another, and content. And when they faded, and looked happier yet in the bright sprinklings of the Spirit's torch at parting, Scrooge had his eye upon them, and especially on Tiny Tim, until the last.
It was a great surprise to Scrooge, as this scene vanished, to hear a hearty laugh. It was a much greater surprise to Scrooge to recognize it as his own nephew's, and to find himself in a bright, dry, gleaming room, with the Spirit standing smiling by his side, and looking at that same nephew.
