Chapters 1-4 Summary

Lee Chong's small, crowded grocery, open from dawn until the last vagrant goes to sleep, largely runs on credit. Lee is prosperous, respected, and bounces back from business errors. He stations himself behind the cigar counter and in front of the liquor shelves, his fingers drumming and eyes watchful. One evening he contemplates a business deal he had consummated earlier with Horace Abbeville, one of his debtors. To clear himself and his children, Abbeville signs over a building storing fishmeal. If the cannery expands, the lot will be valuable. Abbeville walks home with dignity and shoots himself. While Abbeville is being embalmed, his two wives mourn. Lee, wishing he could have prevented the tragedy, underwrites the funeral and sends groceries to the bereaved. Storing groceries in the distant building would only invite thievery.

Lee's quandary is settled by Mack, the leader...