STAVE III: THE SECOND OF THE THREE SPIRITS

Scrooge went into the next room. It was his own room, but it looked very different. Green holly, mistletoe and ivy covered the walls and the ceiling. It looked like a little forest. The green leaves shone in the light. A huge fire was burning in the fireplace. In Scrooge's time, and in Marley's time, this room never had a fire like this.

On the floor was a mountain of Christmas food. There were turkeys and geese and big pieces of meat. There were sausages, pies and puddings. There were oysters, chestnuts, red apples, oranges and pears. There were huge cakes and big bowls of hot drinks. The food made a kind of throne, like a king's seat. The room was full of its warm, sweet smell.

A very big, happy Ghost sat on top of the food. He was kind, and he was wonderful to see. In his hand he held up a bright, burning torch. Its light shone on Scrooge at the door.

"Come in!" said the Ghost. "Come in and know me better, man!"

Scrooge came in slowly and quietly and stood in front of the Spirit. He was not the hard, angry Scrooge from before. The Spirit's eyes were clear and kind, but Scrooge did not want to look into them.

"I am the Ghost of Christmas Present," said the Spirit. "I am the Christmas of today. Look at me!"

Scrooge looked at him. The Spirit wore a simple long green coat. Its edges were white and soft. The coat was open at the front, and his chest was bare. His feet were bare too. He had long brown hair, and he wore a circle of holly on his head. His face was open and friendly. His eyes were bright, and his voice was happy. At his side there was an old place for a sword. But there was no sword in it.

"You've never seen anyone like me before!" said the Spirit.

"Never," said Scrooge.

"Have you never met my older brothers? There was one for every Christmas before me."

"I don't think I have," said Scrooge. "I'm afraid I haven't. Do you have many brothers, Spirit?"

"More than 1,800," said the Ghost.

"That's a very big family!" said Scrooge quietly. "It must cost a lot of money to feed them all!"

The Ghost of Christmas Present stood up.

"Spirit," said Scrooge, "take me where you want. Last night I went with a Spirit, and I learned a lesson. It's helping me now. Tonight, if you have something to teach me, I want to learn it."

"Touch my coat!"

Scrooge held the coat tightly.

At once the room disappeared. The holly, the food, the fire and the night all went away. Now they stood in the city streets on Christmas morning. It was very cold. People were cleaning the snow from the roofs of their houses and from the paths. They pushed it down with a rough but happy noise. Snow fell from the roofs into the street, and the boys loved it. Some people threw snowballs at each other and laughed.

The sky was dark and grey. The snow on the streets was dirty and black. There was no reason to be happy in the weather. But everyone was cheerful. People called to each other from the roofs, and they laughed and joked.

The shops were full and bright. The fruit shops had big round baskets of nuts. There were piles of pears and apples, and long bunches of grapes. There were baskets of onions too. Everything looked delicious.

The grocers' shops smelled of tea and coffee. There was sugar, and there were boxes of dried fruit and sweets. The customers were all in a hurry. They bumped into each other at the door with their baskets. Some left their shopping in the shop and ran back for it. They made lots of mistakes like this, but they were all in a very good mood.

Soon the church bells began to ring. People walked to church in their best clothes, with happy faces. At the same time, many poor people came out of the small streets. Poor families had no big ovens at home. So they carried their dinners to the bakers' shops, and the bakers cooked the dinners for them.

The Spirit was very interested in these poor people. He stood in a baker's door with Scrooge next to him. When people walked past with their dinners, he lifted the covers. Then he shook some sweet incense from his torch over their food. It was a very unusual torch. Once or twice, some men walked into each other with their dinners and started to argue. Then the Spirit shook a few drops of water from the torch on them. At once they were friendly again. "It's wrong to fight on Christmas Day," they said. And that was true!

After a time the bells stopped, and the bakers closed their doors. The dinners were cooking. The heat from each baker's oven came up into the street. The snow above it turned to water. The street looked like it was cooking too.

"Is there something special in the drops from your torch?" asked Scrooge.

"Yes. They give my own special flavor to the food."

"Does it help every dinner today?" asked Scrooge.

"It helps every dinner that people give with kindness," said the Spirit. "And it helps a poor dinner most."

"Why a poor dinner most?" asked Scrooge.

"Because it needs it most."

The Ghost was very big, but he could easily stand under a low roof. Nobody could see him or Scrooge. Then the Ghost took Scrooge to a small house in the city. It was the home of Scrooge's clerk, Bob Cratchit. Bob earned only fifteen shillings a week. Shillings were English money, and this was very little. His house had only four rooms. At the door the Ghost stopped and smiled. Then he shook some drops from his torch over the house, to wish it well.

Inside, Mrs. Cratchit was getting ready for dinner. She wore an old dress, with some new pieces of bright cloth on it. They were cheap, but they looked nice. Her daughter Belinda helped her put the cloth on the table. Belinda had some on her dress too. Their son Peter was cooking the potatoes. He was wearing his father's best shirt for Christmas. The neck of the shirt was much too big for him, but he was very proud of it.

Then two smaller Cratchits ran in, a boy and a girl. They were shouting with excitement. "We were outside the baker's shop," they said. "We smelled the goose, and we knew it was ours!" They danced around the table.

"Where's your father?" asked Mrs. Cratchit. "And your brother, Tiny Tim? And where's Martha? Last Christmas she was here at this time."

"Here's Martha, Mother!" said a girl at the door. It was Martha, the oldest daughter.

"Here's Martha, Mother!" shouted the two small Cratchits. "We've got a big goose, Martha!"

"Oh, my dear, you're so late!" said Mrs. Cratchit. She kissed Martha many times and helped her take off her hat.

"We had a lot of work last night," said Martha. "We had to finish it this morning, Mother."

"Well, you're here now," said Mrs. Cratchit. "Sit down by the fire, my dear, and get warm."

"No, no! Father's coming," cried the two small Cratchits. "Hide, Martha, hide!"

So Martha hid, and her father came home from church. He had Tiny Tim on his shoulder. Tiny Tim had a little crutch to help him walk, and he had metal on his legs.

"Why, where's our Martha?" asked Bob. He looked around.

"She isn't coming," said Mrs. Cratchit.

"Not coming!" said Bob. His face became very sad. "Not coming on Christmas Day!"

Martha did not like to see him sad, even for a joke. So she ran out from behind the door and hugged him.

"How did little Tim behave?" asked Mrs. Cratchit.

"As good as gold," said Bob, "and even better. He was a very good boy. He thinks a lot when he sits alone. He thinks the strangest things. On the way home he told me something. He hoped the people in church saw him, because he can't walk well. On Christmas Day, it's good for them to remember Jesus. He helped people who could not walk or could not see."

Bob's voice shook when he said this. It shook more when he said, "Tiny Tim is getting stronger and healthier."

Tiny Tim went to the kitchen with his brother and sister. Soon they heard his little stick on the floor again. He came back and sat on his small chair by the fire. Bob made a hot drink with lemons in it. He put it near the fire to keep warm.

Then everyone helped with the dinner. Peter and the two small Cratchits went to get the goose from the baker's. Mrs. Cratchit made a hot sauce for the meat. Peter got the potatoes ready. Belinda made the apple sauce, and Martha warmed the plates. Bob put Tiny Tim next to him at the table.

At last everyone sat down, and they said a prayer. Mrs. Cratchit took a long knife and cut into the goose. Everyone cheered. Even Tiny Tim hit the table with his knife and cried, "Hurrah!"

There was never a goose like it. It was small and cheap. But with the apple sauce and the potatoes, it was enough for the whole family. There was even a little left at the end.

Then Belinda changed the plates. Mrs. Cratchit left the room alone to bring in the Christmas pudding, a special sweet dish. She was too nervous to have anyone watch her. Maybe it wasn't cooked! Maybe it broke!