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CHAPTER III.

DETERMINATION OF SEATS

Mah Jong is generally played by four persons. In the beginning the four players each take a seat at random. The table for playing must be square and covered with cloth having enough thickness to prevent noise.

Among the accessories of Mah Jong there are four small round discs made of bone. These have the letters of the four directions-East, South, West and North. If there are no discs, one of each of the four Wind tiles, contained in the Set, are placed upside down on the table. Then, arbitrarily, one of the players casts two dice (they also, are accessories), and counts, to the right, the number indicated by the spots on the dice, starting with himself. The seat, designated by the spots on the dice, is temporarily named the East seat.

Next, the person, in the assumed East position, throws the dice and the one, indicated by the spots, picks up the right end tile from the four reversely placed tiles (the one who made the row deciding which is the right end). Then the one who sits on the right, picks up the adjoining tile and the next does likewise.

Thus, the four players pick up the four tiles and their seats are decided by the letters on the tiles - namely, the one who picked up the East tile sits in the temporary East seat, and the one who picked up the South tile sits in the South seat and so on. In this case, the four directions are in reverse to the natural directions.