Overview

The day before Christmas in a squalid tenement room shared by young sisters Nell and Bess, their brother Tom, and their 18-year-old sister Anne the younger children gather all their pennies and give them to Anne so she can buy Christmas presents for them. Anne looks at their meager savings with a sad smile, letting the coins trickle through her fingers onto the table, knowing the few pennies will not be enough to buy presents.