Scrooge wakes to a neighborhood church bell ringing midnight. He is confused because it was well after midnight when he went to bed. He lies awake, listening to the bell chime the quarter hours. The hour strikes one. The bedcurtains by Scrooge’s head are pulled aside, and a light streams in on him, revealing the Ghost of Christmas Past.

The ghost is a diminutive spirit, both old and young, sometimes solid, sometimes wavering, and a light burns from his head like the flame of the candle. In his hand, he carries a conical cap like a candle snuffer. He announces to Scrooge that he is the Ghost of Christmas Past and bids Scrooge to come with him. Scrooge realizes that resisting is pointless, though he does protest when the ghost leads him toward the window. However, the ghost places his hand over Scrooge’s heart and leads him directly through the wall.

Scrooge finds himself on a wintry road near the school where he spent much of his childhood. The sights, sounds, and (particularly) the smells of the scene overwhelm him. The other boys are all on the way home for the holidays. Scrooge recognizes them and calls out to them, but the ghost explains that the boys are only shadows and cannot see or hear him.