Ebeneezer, as he is at the start of the book, is generally seen as the very spirit of the self-centred miser. The word 'Scrooge' has even come to mean that, since then (incidentally, the name of his clerk, Bob Cratchit, has been used to refer to Wall Street brokers).
However, I think I may have seen one plus point in Scrooge's personality, even originally. Look at Bob Cratchit - he's obviously quite good at his job. Why doesn't he seek another one, since this has nothing to recommend it? Now, this is only a theory-in-progress, and I may be wrong - but perhaps what Scrooge had going for him was the fact that he cared for money a lot more than social standing - and was therefore willing to accept a lower-class clerk for lower wages where other money lenders would not?
Turns out I was wrong - during the time period, the job market was extremely poor, and Bob Cratchit had a choice of Scrooge or starvation.
