But the truth was the drain had made him very slimy, and it was necessary for him to take a bath and sprinkle himself with a bit of his mother's violet water before he felt himself again. Everybody in the family thought he had been awfully good about the whole thing."
-- The Narrator (chapter 1 paragraph 4)

Importance: Here, the narrator reveals Stuart's gentlemanly principles for the first time. After going in the drain to find his mother's ring, Stuart does not complain. However, the narrator informs us the drain was "very slimy," and Stuart needed to recover afterwards. In effect, the reader learns that Stuart refused to complain, staying true to his gentlemanly ideas of helping without hesitation.

Instead of running upstairs and telling Mr. and Mrs. Little about the accident, Snowbell did a very curious thing. He glanced around to see if anybody was looking, then he leapt softly to the window sill, picked up...
-- The Narrator (chapter 1 paragraph 1)