New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1852-12-25
"My dear was Bob's mild answer, Christ

Days." said Mrs. Cratchit, "n not for his Long
life to him A merry Christmas and happy
new year he'll be very merry and very happy,
| have no doubt"
The children drank the toast after her. 1t
was the first Of their proceedings which had no
heartiness in it. Tiny Tim drank it last Of all,
but he didn't care two pence for it. Scrooge
was the Ogre of the family. The mention of his
name cast a 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 the Baleful being done with. Bob
Cratchit told them how he had situation in
his eye for Master Peter, which would bring in,
it obtained, full FIVE and -sixpence weekly. The
two young Cratchits laughed tremendously at
the idea OF Feter's being man of business; and
Peter himself looked thoughtfully at the fire
from between his collars, as if he were delibera-
ting what particularinvestment he should favor
when he came into the receipt of that bewilder-
ing income. Martha, who was poor appren-
tice at milliner's, then told them what kind of
work she had to do, and how many hours she
worked at a stretch, and how she meant to lie
abed tomorrow morning for good long rest,
Tomorrow being holiday she passed at home.
Also how she had seen a countess and lord
some days before, and how the lord was much
about as tall as Peter at which Peter pulled
seen his head if you had been there. All this
time the chesnuts and the jug went round and
round and, by and by, they had song, about
lost child travelling in the snow, from Tiny
Tim, who had q plaintive little voice, and sang
it very we'll indeed.
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 water
proof; their clothes were scanty; and Peter
might have known, and very likely did, the in.
side Of pawnbroker's But they were happy,
grateful, pleased with one another, and content
ed with the time; and when they faded, and
looked happier yet in the bright sprinklings of
the Spirits torch at parting, Scrooge had his
eye upon them, and especially on Tiny Tim,
until the last
By this time it was getting dark, and snow
ing pretty heavily; and Scrooge and the Spirit
went along the streets, the brightness of the
roaring fires in kitchens, parlors, and all sorts
of rooms, was wonderful Here, the Pickering
of the blaze showed preparations for cozy din
ner, with hot plates baking through and through
before the fire, and deep red curtains, ready to
be drawn, to shut out cold and darkness. There,
all the children of the house were running out
into the snow to meet their marries sisters,
brothers, cousins, uncles, aunts, and be the first
to greet them. Here, again, were shadows on
the window blind of guests assembling; and
there group of handsome girls, all hooded and
fur booted, and all ohattering at once, tripped
lightly Oft to some near neighbours house,
where, wo upon the single man who saw them
enter-arttul witches: we'll they knew tin &
glow!
But if you had judged from the numbers of
people on their way to friendly gatherings, you
might have thought that no one was at home to
give them friendly welcome when they got there,
instead Of every house expecting company, and
piling up its fires half chimney high Blessings
on it, how the Ghost exulted! How it barred its
breadth of breast, and opened its capacious
palm, and tioated on, outpouring, with gene
rous hand, its bright and harmless mirth on ev-
erything within its reach The very lamplght-
er, who ran on before, dotting the dusky street
with specks of light, and who was dressed to
spend the evening somewhere laughed out loud
ly as the Spirit passed though little kenned
the lamp-lighter that he had any company but
Christmas
And now, without a word of warning from the
Ghost, they stood upon bleak and desert moor,
where monstrous masses of rude stone were cast
about, as though it were the burial-place of gil
ants; and water spread itself wheresoever it
listed or would have done so, but for the frost
that held it prisoner; and nothing grew but
moss and furze, and coarse, rank grass. Down
In the West the setting sun had left q streak of
tery red, which glared upon the desolation for
an instant, like sullen eye, and frowning low
er, lower, lower yet, was lost in the thick gloom
of darkest night
''What is this }" asked Scrooge.
GA place where miners live, who labor in the
bowels of the earth," said the Spirit '' But
they know me. See! 20
light shone from the window of hut, and
swiftly they advanced towards it. Passing
through the wall of mud and stone, they found
a cheerful company assembled round a glowing
hre An old, old man and woman, with their
children and their children's children, and ano-
Their generation beyond that, all decked out gaily
IN their holiday attire. The old man, in voice
that seldom arose above the bowling of the wind
upon the barren waste, was singing them
Christmas song, 1t had been very old song
when he was boy; and from time to time they
all Joined in the chorus So surely as they
raised their voices, the old man got quite blithe
and loud; and so surely as they stopped, his
vigor sank agein
The Spirit did not tarry here, but babe
Scrooge hold his robe, and passing on above the
moor, sped-whither. Not to sea To sea To
Serooges horror, looking back, he saw the last
OF the land trightful range of rocks, behind
them; and his ears were deatened by the thun-
dering of water, as it rolled, and roared, and
ragged among the dreadful caverns it had worn,
and tiercely tried to undermine the earth.
Built upon dismal reef of sunken rocks, some
league or 80 from the shore, on which the waters
chafed and dashed, the wild year through there
stood solitary lighthouse. Great heaps of sea-
weed chung to its base, and storm birds-born
Of the wind one might suppose, as sea-weed of
the water--rose and fell about it, like the waves
they skinned,
But even here, two men who watched the
light had made u fire, that through the loophole
in the thick stone wall shed out a ray of bright
ness on the awful sea. Joining their horny
hands over the rough table at which they sat,
they wished each other Merry Christmas in
their can of grog, and one of them the elder,
too, with his face damaged and SCARED with
hard weather, as the fgure-head of all old ship
might be: struck up sturdy song that was like
a Gale in itself
Again the Ghost sped on, above the black and
heaVlng sea-on, on-until, being far away, as
he told serooge, from any shore, they lighted on
a ship. They stood beside the helmsman ut the
wheel, the lookout in the bow, the officers who
had the watch; dark, ghostly figures in their
several stations; but every man among them
lummed Christmas tune or had Christmas
thought, or spoke below his breath to his COM
canton of some bygone Christmas Day, with
hopes belonging to it. And every
nan on board, waking OF sleeping, good or bad,
lad had kinder word for another on that day
han on any day in the year; and had shared to
ome extent in the festivities; and had remem-
oered those he cared for at a distance, and had
Known that they delighted to remember him.
1t was great surprise to Scrooge, while |
lstenlng to the moaning of the wind, and think
ng what 3 solemn thing it was to move on
through the lonely darkness over an unknown
ThpsH he rpara I