Mr. Martin and his oldest son, Baxter, held the black box securely on the stool until Mr. Summers had
stirred the papers thoroughly with his hand. Because so much of the ritual had been forgotten or
discarded, Mr. Summers had been successful in having slips of paper substituted for the chips of wood
that had been used for generations. Chips of wood, Mr. Summers had argued. had been all very well
when the village was tiny, but now that the population was more than three hundred and likely to keep on
growing, it was necessary to use something that would fit more easily into he black box. The night before
the lottery, Mr. Summers and Mr. Graves made up the slips of paper and put them in the box, and it was
then taken to the safe of Mr. Summers' coal company and locked up until Mr. Summers was ready to take
it to the square next morning. The rest of the year, the box was put way, sometimes one place, sometimes
another; it had spent one year in Mr. Graves's barn and another year underfoot in the post office. and
sometimes it was set on a shelf in the Martin grocery and left there.
Mr. Martin and his oldest son, Baxter, held the black box securely on the stool until Mr. Summers hadstirred the papers thoroughly with his hand. Because so much of the ritual had been forgotten ordiscarded, Mr. Summers had been successful in having slips of paper substituted for the chips of woodthat had been used for generations. Chips of wood, Mr. Summers had argued. had been all very wellwhen the village was tiny, but now that the population was more than three hundred and likely to keep ongrowing, it was necessary to use something that would fit more easily into he black box. The night beforethe lottery, Mr. Summers and Mr. Graves made up the slips of paper and put them in the box, and it wasthen taken to the safe of Mr. Summers' coal company and locked up until Mr. Summers was ready to takeit to the square next morning. The rest of the year, the box was put way, sometimes one place, sometimesanother; it had spent one year in Mr. Graves's barn and another year underfoot in the post office. andsometimes it was set on a shelf in the Martin grocery and left there.
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