In Stave Three of A Christmas Carol,
Scrooge witnesses with the Spirit of Christmas Present the goings-on in the Cratchit
home as the family prepares for their holiday dinner. A loving family, the children are
excited when their father arrives; all the other members attend to Tiny Tim; Bob, his
father, carries him to the wash-house where he can hear the pudding "singing." Upon
their return, Mrs. Cratchit asks solicitously, "And how did little Tim
behave?"
When the table is finally set and the goose placed
upon it, all exclaim in delight at what they have rather than complaining about what
little they possess and how they want for much. Tiny Tim sits next to his father who
holds his "withered hand" as though he would keep him from leaving. After they wish
each other a Merry Christmas, Bob Crachit makes a toast to Mr. Scrooge, "the Founder of
the Feast!" In reaction to this toast, his wife
remarks,
"The
Founder of the Feast indeed!....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."
But, Bob mildly reminds
her, "My dear,...Christmas Day." So Mrs. Crachit acquiesces, telling her husband, "I'll
drink his health for your sake and the Day's..."
As they
eat, the parents and children all converse together and two of the older children talk
of what they have earned, displaying their sense of familial obligation. Dickens
describes them:
They were not a handsome family; they were not
well dress; their shoes were far from being water-proof;.....But, they were happy,
grateful, pleased with one another, and contented with the
time....
Although they are
poor, the Crachits are rich in love. This Scrooge observes and then realizes why the
Spirit has brought him to their home.
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