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A Christmas Carolby Charles Dickens

Retold by Kieran McGovern

4.1: Tiny Tim`I am the Ghost of Christmas Present,' said the Spirit. `Look upon me.'

The ghost now takes Scrooge to his present life,

but forward to Christmas Day. They first visit the

Cratchit family home where Mrs Cratchit is

cooking Christmas dinner. Bob, and his very ill

son, Tiny Tim, have just arrived. His eldest

daughter is hiding from them for a joke.

2

Bob returns home

Tiny Tim had a little crutch, and had his limbs

supported by an iron frame.

`Why, where's our Martha.' cried Bob

Cratchit, looking round.

`Not coming,' said Mrs Cratchit.

`Not coming.' said Bob, with drop in his

high spirits. `On Christmas Day?'

Martha didn't like to disappoint her father,

even as a joke. She rushed out from behind the

closet door, and ran into his arms. The two

young Cratchits took Tiny Tim to see the

Christmas pudding.

`And how did little Tim behave. asked Mrs

Cratchit when Bob had hugged his daughter.

`As good as gold,' said Bob, with a tremble

in his voice. 'Tiny Tim is growing stronger.’

Before he could say another word, Tiny Tim

returned, his little crutch banging against the

floor. His brother and sister took him to his

stool before the fire.

3

Then the two young Cratchits went to fetch

the goose. They soon returned with the tiny

bird.

A special Christmas dinner

Mrs Cratchit made the gravy hissing hot.

Master Peter mashed the potatoes. Miss Belinda

sweetened the apple-sauce. Martha brought out

the plates.

The two young Cratchits set chairs for

everybody. Bob took Tiny Tim beside him in a

tiny corner at the table.

At last the dishes were ready, and they said

grace. There was then a breathless pause, as

Mrs Cratchit slowly pressed the carving-knife

into the breast. When she did there a murmur

of delight arose all round the table.

4

Even Tiny Tim beat on the table with the

handle of his knife, and feebly cried Hurrah.

‘There never was a goose like this one!’ said

Bob, as they ate every last crumb of the food

before them.

Pudding

Then it was time for Mrs Cratchit to serve the

Christmas Pudding.

‘Oh, what a wonderful pudding!’

Bob Cratchit said to his wife. ‘The

best you have ever made.’

‘I wasn’t sure about the amount of flour.’

‘No, it was exactly right!’

Everybody had something to say about it,

but nobody said or thought it was at all a small

pudding for a large family. Any Cratchit would

have blushed to hint at such a thing.

After dinner all the Cratchit family gathered

in a half-circle round the fire to try the punch.

Bob served it into their ‘glasses’: one of which

was a custard-cup without a handle. These held

the punch as well as golden goblets.

5

Bob served it out with beaming looks, while

the chestnuts on the fire cracked noisily. Then

Bob proposed a toast:

`A Merry Christmas to us all, my dears.

God bless us.'

‘God bless us!’ cried all the family.

`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. He

loved the child, and wished to keep him by his

side. He dreaded what the future might bring.

Will Tiny Tim live?

`Spirit,' said Scrooge, with an interest he had

never felt before, `tell me if Tiny Tim will live.'

`I see a vacant seat in the corner,' replied

the Ghost, `and a crutch without an owner. If

these shadows remain unaltered by the Future,

the child will die.'

`No, no,' said Scrooge. `Oh, no, kind Spirit.

say he will be spared.'

6

`If these shadows remain unaltered by the

Future,' returned the Ghost, `will find him here

But if he dies won’t that decrease the surplus

population?'

Scrooge hung his head with grief to hear

his own words quoted by the Spirit.

Mr Cratchit now proposed a final toast. ‘Mr

Scrooge.' said Bob;

`Mr, Scrooge indeed.' cried Mrs Cratchit, her

face going red. `I wish I had him here. I'd tell

him - ‘

`My dear,' said Bob, `Not in front of the

children.'

A hard, unfeeling man

`He is a hard, unfeeling man as Mr Scrooge.

You know he is, Robert. Nobody knows it better

than you do, poor fellow.'

`My dear,' said Bob. `It’s Christmas Day.'

`I'll drink his health for your sake,' said

Mrs Cratchit, `not for his. Long life to him. A

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. He'll

be very merry and very happy, I have no doubt.'

7

The children drank the toast after her. Tiny

Tim drank it last of all, but he didn't care

twopence for it.

Scrooge was the Monster of the family. The

mention of his name cast a dark shadow on the

party. But this passed and soon they were ten

times merrier than before.

Ghost now takes Scrooge to Fred’s house.

Glossary/Vocabulary

Beaming - producing light, like the sun

Crutch - a stick to help with walking

Dreaded - had great fear

Feebly - weakly, without strength

Blame - accuse somebody of something

Irresistible - compels you to do something

Murmur - speaking in low voices

Punch - special drink (see recipe here)

Toast - touch glasses in celebration

Tremble - a vibration, unsteady

Withered - badly damaged

A glossary, comprehension exercises, key quotes and other learning activities related to this text are here

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