While Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson sit comfortably by their fireplace on the evening of December 24th of 1894, Dr. Watson's memory of previous Christmas Eves draws forth an unexpected response from his companion. Holmes, normally very reticent to speak about his early life, meditatively recalls a particular incident that happened on the same date in his own past: that when he was a very young man, before ever meeting Watson, he had occasion to meet and to be of great service to none other than a very old Ebeneezer Scrooge.