Summary

The story is about a man, his wife, and their son who live in an affluent suburb where they are in the process of living “happily ever after” (1). They employed a maid and a gardener who the man’s mother, referred to throughout the story as the “wise old witch” (1) helped them to find. She warned them not to employ anyone from the street and to ensure their employees had always been recommended by someone else. They insured their home against all sorts of damage but could not insure against damage from riots.

The family was white and lived in an area where only other white people lived. The black people had to live elsewhere. The wife was concerned that the riots that were happening in the black neighborhoods might come to their suburb but the man said that the police would stop that...