The Rattrap seller was a thief who don't have a house to live in. He steals money from people and that is how they survive daily. Once he was offered shelter by an old crofter but he ended up stealing money from him.
However, a change in his personality came when he was given respect by an old man and his daughter , Edla as he mistaked him for some other person. They offered him home to sleep in, food to eat and provided him with a gift on Christmas Eve. This causes a change in the rattrap seller who ended up giving her a gift of rattrap for her nice deeds. He even gave her a letter of thanks with stolen money inside the trap. Edla and his old father due to their kindness and good deeds has awakened the goodness inside the rattrap seller.