The Lottery Ticket

The Lottery Ticket
An illustration The Lottery Ticket drawn by George Roux. It was also published in the United States under the title Ticket No. "9672".
AuthorJules Verne
Original titleUn Billet de loterie
TranslatorLaura E. Kendall
IllustratorGeorges Roux
LanguageFrench
SeriesThe Extraordinary Voyages #28
GenreAdventure novel
PublisherPierre-Jules Hetzel
Publication date
1886
Publication placeFrance
Published in English
1886
Preceded byMathias Sandorf 
Followed byRobur the Conqueror 
Note: Anton Chekhov (1860–1904) has also written a short story called The Lottery Ticket.

The Lottery Ticket (French: Un Billet de loterie, 1886) is an adventure novel written by Jules Verne. It was also published in the United States under the title Ticket No. "9672".

Publication history

  • 1886, US, New York: George Munro, published as Ticket No. "9672"
  • 1886, UK, London: Sampson Low, Marston, Searle, & Rivington.

Plot

The story is about a peaceful family living in Dal, Norway, Miss Hansen, a widow, and her children Hulda and Joel. They are running a hotel while Joel works as a guide for tourists exploring the area. Miss Hansen is always sad and evasive as if she is hiding some secret. Hulga is engaged with Ole, a sailor which has left for New Foundland and he is about to return in a few weeks but there are no news of him.

One day, a strange unpleasant old man named Sangoist, visits the Hotel while Joel is away and behaves aggresively, as if he owned the place. He stays for one night and then leaves without paying, as Miss Hansen disposes the bill on hearing of his name.

Joel and Hulda save a reckless visitor from a hiking tour, which turns out to be a professor and a parliament member named Sylvios Hogg and he becomes a friend of the family. He tries to find the whereabouts of Ole, eventually finding out that his ship has sunk and all that was left is a lottery ticket with the number 9672 which was found in a bottle with a letter for his fiancee.

The sad news of Ole's ship gone is published in the newspapers and people show an increasing interest in buying the lottery ticket, considering it lucky. Hulda rejects all proposals which, as the draw date approaches, raise to a significant amount. However Sangoist visits the hotel again and reveals his true identity: He is a usurer which bought a mortgage on the hotel after Miss Hansen was obliged to borrow money after investing in risky businesses left her bankrupt; that was the secret of her sad life. Hulda is forced to exchange the lottery ticket with Sangoist ultimate blackmailing offer, to release the hotel completely free of the mortgage.

The blackmailing story is heard all over Norway, especially in Christiania (now Oslo) and the people's attitude on the ticket is reversed; Despite Sangoist's efforts to sell it, no one wants to buy it anymore. Meanwhile the professor returns to the Hotel and learns about the blackmailing. He persuades Hulda and Joel to be present to the lottery draw in memory of Ole.

When the lottery drawing event date comes, the 9672 ticket wins the highest prize of 100.000 marks (about 1 million EUR today) in front of a suprised, enraged audience. While everyone is furiously awaiting for Sangoist to claim the money, Ole appears instead. It turned out that he was saved from the wreck and the professor found him, advising him to appear at the draw. The professor had bought the ticket from Sangoist which was at the time relieved because he couldn't sell it; now he is going crazy out of despair. Eventually Hulda marries Ole and everyone is happy.

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