Show g A Ari ri By i Charles r fr o lr Since Shakespeare no Englishman has supplied the world with as many notable parallels to ev every JY circumstance of life Ute as Charles Dickens In all aU his numerous works are characters who are as ren real today as the Uie c day they were created Among the most famous of thc these e char char- STAVE ONE Marleys Marley's Ghost Marley was dead Scrooge knew he was dead Of course ourse he did Scrooge and he were partners Scrooge was h his s sole executor executor executor ex ex- ex- ex his sole friend and sole mourner And even Scrooge was not so cut up by the sad event There is no doubt that Marley was dead This must be distinctly understood understood understood un un- un- un or nothing wonderful can come of the story I am going to re re- re- re late If we were not perfectly convinced convinced con con- vinced that Hamlets Hamlet's Father died before the play began there would be nothing more remarkable in his taking a stroll at night The firm was known as Scrooge and Marley Oh But he was a tight-fisted tight hand at the grindstone Scrooge I a squeezing squeezing squeezing ing wrenching grasping scraping clutching covetous old ld sinner shiner Once upon a time time time-on on Christmas Eve old Eve old Scrooge sat busy in his counting A merry Christmas uncle I Godsave God Godsave save you I cried a cheerful voice I Bah Bahl said Scrooge Humbug Christmas a humbug uncle said aid Scrooges Scrooge's nephew You dont don't mean that I am sure I I do said Scrooge Merry Christmas What right have you to 0 be merry Youre You're poor enough Come then returned the nephew neph- neph ew w gaily What right have you to tobe toie I Ibe be ie morose Youre You're rich enough I Scrooge having no better answer I ready on the spur of the moment said aid Bah I again and followed it up with Keep Christmas in your way vay and let me keep it in mine Keep it repeated Scrooges Scrooge's nephew But you dont don't keep it Let me leave it alone then said Scrooge uM Much ch good may it do you youl I There are many things from which I might have derived good by which I have not profited I dare daresay daresay daresay say returned the nephew Christmas Christ mas among the rest But I am sure I have always thought of Christmas Christmastime Christmastime s time when it has come round- round apart from the veneration due to its sacred name and origin if anything belonging to it can be apart from that that that-as as a good time a kind forgiving forgiving for- for giving iving charitable pleasant time the he only time I know of in the thelong thelong long ong calendar of the year when men and women seem by one consent to open their up shut-up hearts freely and to think of pe people below them themas as if they really were pas fellow to the grave and not another another another an an- other race of creatures bound on other journeys And therefore uncle uncle uncle un un- cle though it has never put a scrap of gold or silver in my pocket I believe that it has done me good and will do me good and I say God bless it Come Dine with us tomorrow Scrooge said he would see him him him- yes indeed he did He went the whole length of the expression But why cried Scrooges Scrooge's neph neph- ew Why Why U did you get married Because I fell in love Because you fell in love I growled Scrooge Good afternoon Nay uncle but you never came cameto cameto cameto to see me before that happened Why give it as a reason for not coming now Good afternoon said Scrooge I am sorry with all my heart to find you so resolute We have never had any quarrel to which I have been a party But I have made the trial in homage to Christmas and Ill I'll keep my Christmas humour to the last So A Merry Christmas His nephew stopped to bestow the greetings of the season on the clerk Theres another fellow muttered muttered muttered mut mut- Scrooge who overheard him my clerk with fifteen shillings a week and a w wife e and family talking talking talking talk talk- ing about a merry Christmas Two portly gentlemen came in At this festive season of the year Mr Scrooge said one gentleman it Uit is more than usually desirable that we should make some slight provision for the Poor and destitute Many thousands are in want of common common common com com- mon necessaries U Are there no prisons asked Scrooge Plenty of prisons And the Union workhouses demanded demanded demanded de de- de- de Scrooge Are they still in operation Under the impression that they scarcely furnish Christian cheer of mind or body to the multitude returned returned returned re re- re- re turned the gentleman a few of us are arc endeavouring to raise a fund to buy the Poor some meat and drink and means of warmth What shall I put you down for Nothing Scrooge replied I help to support the establishments I 1 have mentioned they cost enough and those who are badly off must go there Many cant can't go there and many would rather die If they would ather die said saia Scrooge they had better do it and decrease the surplus population Seeing it would be useless to pursue pursue pursue pur pur- sue their point the men withdrew At length the hour of shutting up the house counting-house arrived want all day tomorrow I suppose said Scrooge THE AUTHOR actors arc are old Scrooge and Tiny Tim In Christmas Carol The better part of two months were spent In the writing of this little story Dickens himself himsel referred to his Carol Carolas as the greatest success he has ever achieved This selection Is rare praise from rom a W ri U serVice ous writer whose works place him among the greatest of English writers The stories which he produced ed In such great numbers include such m masterpieces as Nicholas David Copperfield Pickwick Papers Bleak House and Great ta tation R r 1 1 f. f r 1 a Dr r 41 y 9 f y S T AL t L tc A r F US So o a Merry lerry Ch Christmas 5 Uncle I I I The clerk observed it was only once a yearA yearA yearA year A poor excuse for picking a aman's amans amans aman's amans aman's mans man's pocket said Scrooge Scrooge took his melancholy dinner dinner dinner din din- ner in his usual melancholy tavern and having read all the newspapers went home to bed Now it is a fact that there was nothing at all particular about the knocker on the door except that it was very large L Let t it also be borne in mind that Scrooge had not bestowed one thought on Marley Then let any man explain how it happened that Scrooge saw in the knocker not a knocker but Marleys Marley's Marleys Marley's Marley's Marleys Mar- Mar leys ley's face As Scrooge looked at this phenomenon enon it was a knocker again To say that he was not startled would be untrue But he put his hand upon the key he had relinquished relinquished relinquished relin relin- turned it sturdily He closed his door and locked himself in locked double-locked hi himself in which was not his custom and sat down before the fire to his gruel The fireplace was an old one paved all round with quaint Dutch tiles designed to illustrate the Scrip Scrip- tures There were Cains Cams and Abels Pharaohs' Pharaohs daughters Queens of Sheba Sheba She She- ba Apostles putting off to sea in but but- ter-boats ter hundreds of figures to attract attract attract at at- tract his thoughts and yet that face of Marley seven years dead came like the ancient Prophets Prophet's rod and swallowed up the whole Humbug I said Scrooge As he threw his head back in the chair his glance happened to rest upon a disused bell that hung inthe inthe in inthe the room It was with great astonishment astonishment astonishment aston aston- that as he looked he saw this bell begin to swing It was succeeded by a clanking noise deep down below as if some p person were dragging a heavy chain over the casks in the wine mer mer- chants chant's cellar Scrooge then remembered remembered remembered re re- re- re to have heard that ghosts in haunted houses were described as dragging chains It came on through the heavy door and passed into the room The same face Marleys Marley's was made of cash-boxes cash keys padlocks ledgers deeds and heavy purses wrought in steel You dont don't believe in me observed observed observed ob ob- ob- ob served the Ghost I dont don't said Scrooge Why do you doubt your senses Because said Scrooge a little thing affects them A slight disorder disorder disorder der of the stomach makes them cheats You may be an undigested bit of beef a blot of mustard a crumb of cheese a fragment of an underdone potato Theres There's more of I gravy than of grave about you At this the spirit raised a frightful fright fright- ful cry Scrooge held tight to his chair to save himself from falling in a swoon But how much greater was his horror when the phantom taking off the bandage round its head its lower jaw dropped down upon its breast Scrooge fell upon his knees Mercy J he said Dreadful apparition apparition apparition ap ap- ap- ap why do you trouble me me It is required of every man the Ghost returned that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his men fellow-men and if that spirit goes not forth in l life e it is condemned to do so after death It Itis Itis Itis is doomed to wander through the world world world-oh oh woe is me and me-and and witness what it cannot share but might have on earth and turned to happiness Again the spectre shook its chain You are fettered said Scrooge trembling Tell me why I wear the chain I forged in life replied the Ghost I made it link by link Is its pattern strange to you Scrooge trembled more and more Or would you know pursued the Ghost the weight and length of the strong coil you bear yourself yourself your your- self It was full as heavy and as long as this seven Christmas Eves ago You have laboured on it since It is a ponderous chain 1 Scrooge glanced about him on the floor in the expectation of finding himself surrounded by some f fifty ty or sixty fath fathoms ms of iron cable At this time of the rolling year the spectre said I 1 suffer most Why did I I walk through crowds of fellow-beings fellow with my eyes ayes turned down and never raise them to that blessed Star which led the Wise Vie Men Mento to a poor abode Were there no poor homes to fo which its light would have conducted me Scrooge was very much dismayed Hear me cried th the Ghost M My y time is nearly goneI gone I will said Scrooge But dont don't be hard upon me How it is that I appear before you in a shape that you can see I Imay Imay Imay may not tell I h have ve sat invisible beside you many and many a day I am here tonight to warn you that you have yet a chance and hope of oi escaping my fate You will wll be haunted haunted haunt haunt- ed by Three Spirits Scrooges Scrooge's col countenance fell Without their visits said the Ghost you cannot hope to shun the path I tread Expect the first tomorrow when the bell tolls One I ta take e em all at once and have it over hinted Scrooge Expect the second on the next night at the same hour The third upon the next night when the last stroke of Twelve has ceased to vi vi- brate Look to see me no more When it had said these words the spectre walked backward from him and at every step it took the window window window win win- dow raised itself a little After listening for a moment il it floated out upon the bleak night Scrooge closed the window and examined the door by which the Ghost had entered It was double- double locked as he had locked it and the bolts were undisturbed He tried to say Humbug but stopped at the first syllable I I I STAVE TWO The First of the Three Spirits When Scrooge awoke it was dark Church chimes struck twelve Why it isn't possible said Scrooge that I can have sl slept pt through a whole day and far into another night It isn't possible that thai anything has happened to the sun and this is twelve at noon He remembered on a sudden that the Ghost had warned him of a visitation visitation visitation vis vis- vis- vis when the bell tolled one Ding dong The hour itself said Scrooge triumphantly and nothing else He spoke before the hour bell sounded which it now did with a aI adeep adeep deep dull hollow melancholy One Light flashed up in the room upon the instant and the curtains of his bed were drawn The curtains of his bed were drawn aside I tell you by a hand Scrooge starting up into a half- half rec recumbent attitude found himself face to face with the unearthly visitor visitor visitor vis vis- vis- vis who drew them It was a strange figure like figure like a achild achild achild child yet not so like a child as like an old man Its hair was white as asif asif asif if with age and yet the face had not nota a wrinkle in it and the bloom was on the skin But the strangest thing about it il was that from the crown of its head there sprung a bright clear jet of light I am the Ghost of Christmas Past it said Long Past Pact P 1St inquired Scrooge observant of its dwarfish stature No Your past Scrooge then made bold to inquire inquire inquire in in- quire what business brought him Your welfare said the Ghost It put out its strong hand as it spoke and clasped him gently bythe bythe by bythe the arm Rise and walk with me U UThe The grasp though gentle as a womans woman's hand was not to be re re- re He rose but finding that the Spirit made towards the window clasped his robe in supplication I am a mortal Scrooge remonstrated remonstrated remon remon- and liable to fall TO BE DE CONTINUED I |