SAT Words from Literature - A Christmas Carol

Start a new list. You will therefore permit me to repeat, emphatically , that Marley was as dead as a door-nail. But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, Scrooge: The city clocks had only just gone three, but it was quite dark already -- it had not been light all day -- and candles were flaring in the windows of the neighboring offices, like ruddy smears upon the palpable brown air. It was the voice of Scrooge's nephew, who came upon him so quickly that this was the first intimation he had of his approach.

If I could work my will,' said Scrooge indignantly, 'every idiot who goes about with 'Merry Christmas' on his lips, should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart. Becoming immediately sensible of the impropriety , he poked the fire, and extinguished the last frail spark forever.

But I have made the trial in homage to Christmas, and I'll keep my Christmas humor to the last. Scrooge resumed his labors with an improved opinion of himself, and in a more facetious temper than was usual with him. Meanwhile the fog and darkness thickened so, that people ran about with flaring links, proffering their services to go before horses in carriages, and conduct them on their way. With an ill-will Scrooge dismounted from his stool, and tacitly admitted the fact to the expectant clerk in the Tank, who instantly snuffed his candle out, and put on his hat.

Scrooge took his melancholy dinner in his usual melancholy tavern; and having read all the newspapers, and beguiled the rest of the evening with his banker's-book, went home to bed. It was with great astonishment, and with a strange, inexplicable dread, that as he looked, he saw this bell begin to swing. Though he looked the phantom through and through, and saw it standing before him; though he felt the chilling influence of its death-cold eyes; and marked the very texture of the folded kerchief bound about its head and chin, which wrapper he had not observed before; he was still incredulous , and fought against his senses.

Scrooge was not much in the habit of cracking jokes, nor did he feel, in his heart, by any means waggish then. The truth is, that he tried to be smart, as a means of distracting his own attention, and keeping down his terror; for the spectre's voice disturbed the very marrow in his bones.

A Christmas Carol Stave I - Vocabulary List : www.newyorkethnicfood.com

There was something very awful, too, in the spectre's being provided with an infernal atmosphere of its own. The Ghost, on hearing this, set up another cry, and clanked its chain so hideously in the dead silence of the night, that the Ward would have been justified in indicting it for a nuisance. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance , and benevolence, were, all, my business.

Not so much in obedience, as in surprise and fear: And being, from the emotion he had undergone, or the fatigues of the day, or his glimpse of the Invisible World, or the dull conversation of the Ghost, or the lateness of the hour, much in need of repose ; went straight to bed, without undressing, and fell asleep upon the instant.

He resolved to lie awake until the hour was passed; and, considering that he could no more go to sleep than go to Heaven, this was, perhaps, the wisest resolution in his power. The curtains of his bed were drawn aside; and Scrooge, starting up into a half-recumbent attitude, found himself face to face with the unearthly visitor who drew them: For as its belt sparkled and glittered now in one part and now in another, and what was light one instant, at another time was dark, so the figure itself fluctuated in its distinctness: Scrooge reverently disclaimed all intention to offend or any knowledge of having wilfully bonneted the Spirit at any period of his life.

Scrooge expressed himself much obliged, but could not help thinking that a night of unbroken rest would have been more conducive to that end. They left the high-road, by a well-remembered lane, and soon approached a mansion of dull red brick, with a little weathercock-surmounted cupola, on the roof, and a bell hanging in it.

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For, the people who were shovelling away on the housetops were jovial and full of glee; calling out to one another from the parapets, and now and then exchanging a facetious snowball—better-natured missile far than many a wordy jest—laughing heartily if it went right and not less heartily if it went wrong. And being, from the emotion he had undergone, or the fatigues of the day, or his glimpse of the Invisible World, or the dull conversation of the Ghost, or the lateness of the hour, much in need of repose; went straight to bed, without undressing, and fell asleep upon the instant.

Thinking too hard or dealing with too many emotions can cause fatigue as well. It was not angry or ferocious , but looked at Scrooge as Marley used to look: The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance , and benevolence, were, all, my business. The cold within him froze his old features, nipped his pointed nose, shrivelled his cheek, stiffened his gait ; made his eyes red, his thin lips blue; and spoke out shrewdly in his grating voice.

The ancient tower of a church, whose gruff old bell was always peeping slily down at Scrooge out of a Gothic window in the wall, became invisible, and struck the hours and quarters in the clouds, with tremulous vibrations afterwards as if its teeth were chattering in its frozen head up there. The cold within him froze his old features, nipped his pointed nose, shrivelled his cheek, stiffened his gait; made his eyes red, his thin lips blue; and spoke out shrewdly in his grating voice.

The yard was so dark that even Scrooge, who knew its every stone, was fain to grope with his hands. They were in another scene and place; a room, not very large or handsome , but full of comfort. The air was filled with phantoms, wandering hither and thither in restless haste , and moaning as they went. He spoke before the hour bell sounded, which it now did with a deep, dull, hollow , melancholy One. It was not in impenetrable shadow as the other objects in the yard were, but had a dismal light about it, like a bad lobster in a dark cellar.

Becoming immediately sensible of the impropriety , he poked the fire, and extinguished the last frail spark for ever. I might have been inclined , myself, to regard a coffin-nail as the deadest piece of ironmongery in the trade. Though he looked the phantom through and through, and saw it standing before him; though he felt the chilling influence of its death-cold eyes; and marked the very texture of the folded kerchief bound about its head and chin, which wrapper he had not observed before; he was still incredulous , and fought against his senses.

The Ghost, on hearing this, set up another cry, and clanked its chain so hideously in the dead silence of the night, that the Ward would have been justified in indicting it for a nuisance. It was with great astonishment, and with a strange, inexplicable dread, that as he looked, he saw this bell begin to swing. Marley in his pigtail, usual waistcoat, tights and boots; the tassels on the latter bristling, like his pigtail, and his coat-skirts, and the hair upon his head.

It was long, and wound about him like a tail; and it was made for Scrooge observed it closely of cash-boxes, keys, padlocks, ledgers , deeds, and heavy purses wrought in steel. And now, without a word of warning from the Ghost, they stood upon a bleak and desert moor, where monstrous masses of rude stone were cast about, as though it were the burial-place of giants; 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.

That, and its livid colour, made it horrible; but its horror seemed to be in spite of the face and beyond its control, rather than a part of its own expression.

A Christmas Carol Stave I

It wore a tunic of the purest white; and round its waist was bound a lustrous belt, the sheen of which was beautiful. Though he looked the phantom through and through, and saw it standing before him; though he felt the chilling influence of its death-cold eyes; and marked the very texture of the folded kerchief bound about its head and chin, which wrapper he had not observed before; he was still incredulous, and fought against his senses. The water-plug being left in solitude, its overflowings sullenly congealed, and turned to misanthropic ice.

The fog and frost so hung about the black old gateway of the house, that it seemed as if the Genius of the Weather sat in mournful meditation on the threshold. The city clocks had only just gone three, but it was quite dark already—it had not been light all day—and candles were flaring in the windows of the neighbouring offices, like ruddy smears upon the palpable brown air.

The more he thought, the more perplexed he was; and the more he endeavoured not to think, the more he thought. The fog came pouring in at every chink and keyhole, and was so dense without, that although the court was of the narrowest, the houses opposite were mere phantoms.

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As Scrooge looked fixedly at this phenomenon , it was a knocker again. Pondering on what the Ghost had said, he did so now, but without lifting up his eyes, or getting off his knees. He touched the spring of his repeater, to correct this most preposterous clock. But if you were free to-day, to-morrow, yesterday, can even I believe that you would choose a dowerless girl—you who, in your very confidence with her, weigh everything by Gain: The fireplace was an old one, built by some Dutch merchant long ago, and paved all round with quaint Dutch tiles, designed to illustrate the Scriptures. He had just enough recollection of the face to desire to do that.

The curtains of his bed were drawn aside; and Scrooge, starting up into a half- recumbent attitude, found himself face to face with the unearthly visitor who drew them: The register of his burial was signed by the clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner. We choose this time, because it is a time, of all others, when Want is keenly felt, and Abundance rejoices.

This must be distinctly understood, or nothing wonderful can come of the story I am going to relate. But he put his hand upon the key he had relinquished , turned it sturdily, walked in, and lighted his candle. And being, from the emotion he had undergone, or the fatigues of the day, or his glimpse of the Invisible World, or the dull conversation of the Ghost, or the lateness of the hour, much in need of repose ; went straight to bed, without undressing, and fell asleep upon the instant.

He resolved to lie awake until the hour was passed; and, considering that he could no more go to sleep than go to Heaven, this was perhaps the wisest resolution in his power. The air was filled with phantoms, wandering hither and thither in restless haste, and moaning as they went. Scrooge resumed his labours with an improved opinion of himself, and in a more facetious temper than was usual with him.

And when old Fezziwig and Mrs. My spirit never walked beyond our counting-house—mark me! It was not alone that the scales descending on the counter made a merry sound, or that the twine and roller parted company so briskly, or that the canisters were rattled up and down like juggling tricks, or even that the blended scents of tea and coffee were so grateful to the nose, or even that the raisins were so plentiful and rare, the almonds so extremely white, the sticks of cinnamon so long and straight, the other spices so delicious, the candied fruits so caked and spotted with molten sug.

Thus secured against surprise, he took off his cravat; put on his dressing-gown and slippers, and his nightcap; and sat down before the fire to take his gruel. The water-plug being left in solitude , its overflowings sullenly congealed, and turned to misanthropic ice. It was not angry or ferocious, but looked at Scrooge as Marley used to look: When used in the phrase "in spite of", it means to go against the rest of the sentence, just as someone might want to go against someone else and see them suffer. Really, for a man who had been out of practice for so many years, it was a splendid laugh, a most illustrious laugh.

With an ill-will Scrooge dismounted from his stool, and tacitly admitted the fact to the expectant clerk in the Tank, who instantly snuffed his candle out, and put on his hat. He doesn't say anything, but in getting up from his desk, his clerk knows that it's time to go. You may talk vaguely about driving a coach-and-six up a good old flight of stairs, or through a bad young Act of Parliament; but I mean to say you might have got a hearse up that staircase, and taken it broadwise, with the splinter-bar towards the wall and the door towards the balustrades: