THE EGG PUZZLE.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1936, 5 September 1888, Page 3

THE EGG PUZZLE.

E. H. 0. Clark, Barrhlll, writeß :— Id your oolumna a fortnight back you introduced an egg problem. Here is /another* It may serve as a " qaad," It ! yon will accept it aa Buch : — >l A woman took eggs to market. At| [ house No. 1 Bhe left half of the number j she had, and half an egg besldea ; at No. 2 she left half the remainder and half an egg besides ; at house No. 3 she Bold half her present remainder and half an egg besides ; at house No. 4 she sold half of what Bhe then had left and half an egg besides. She thon had none left. Query —How many eggs hud she at first. Perhaps some of our mathematical geniuaes who have failed ao dismally over th- " ban and a half" problem may be able to work this one out. " Meroutlo " m the Auoklaud "Herald" has eveu taken up the egg problem and haa the following to aay of It:-— Tbat awful puzzle koown as " Chicago's teai?er" has now obtained a firm foothold In Nevr Zealand, thanks to the spiteful and malloloas, although lavish, action of the Wellington '• Presa " In offering a 53 prize for its solution. It is hardly necessary to remind readers that this aggravating riddle runs as follows :— lf a hen and a-half lay an egg and a-half In a day and a-half, how many eggs will b!x hena lay m seven days? It is a simple little matter, but the 11 Presß " hua not yet received a oorreot answer, although it haa published columns of wrong ones, which have been forwarded by competitors for the prfze. A correspondent "H.R.P.," of Monnt Eden, sends me 42 as the oorreot answer ; but this, as well as 24, which was given a few days ago, Is Incorrect aocordlng to the •• Presa. " The puzzle editor of the •'Press" however, is not the only Individual who i 3 aDxloua to fill the Lunatic Asylum, for a fiend, who signs himself " Snooks," writes to •» Mercutio " asking for a bolutlon of the following :—"lf a fiah's haad be five feet long, hia tall the length of his head and half hla body, and his body the length of his head and tail together, what would be the length of the fish ?" Luckily for the sanity of readers, this problem admits of simple solution by the most elementary algebra. "Meroutio" worked it out m a few minuteß, and he leaves his readers to do the same. ' • Hans " writes m a contemporary :— Mein frau und me haf great argument ofer dot egg puzzle. She says dot six henß vill lay twenty-four egge, und dot I was afoo(. Veil, maybe perhaps. I vas, but mein Katrina (She goeß mit der High School) tells me: "If a hen und a half lays an egg und a half m a day und a half, or four eggs and two-thirds m a veek ; e>x henp, therefore, vill lay twentyeight eggs m a veek ;or six hens lay on ' an average four eggs a day, making 1 twenty-eight eggs as the resultant,,' ; Mein frau she says ye both are fools. Bhe haf kept fowlß a long time, and nef«r ' some more times haf she eeen a hen lay le?s dan von egg. Now, I haf far mein , Sunday breakfast two eggßj the rest of the , eggs goes to market. Veil, mein frau she t tells me dot der vas six hens dot vas ( loying every oter day, und I could haf all 3 dey layed en Saturday for mein breakfast, s Dot vas goor, dinks I, if I got fcur 1 eggs on Su.day for mein breakfast, i We started last Saturday, 8 p.m Sunday, s none; Monday, 8 a.m , cix eggs ; Taee- < day, 8 p.m., six eggs ; Wednesday, none * (couldn't find the average) ; Thursday, 8 a m., six egga ; Friday, 8 p.m., six eggs ; Saturday (dot waa to-day), 12 o'clock fon * eggs ; oni if doee hens don't lay dem four eggs— byjimniiny, dot High School girl vill get a resultant dot vill be twothirdß on the average from her deceived fader. A correspondent writes :— " I think you will find the following a correct one, and worked out ao as to be easily under- c stood : If lit hens lay l£ eggs iv l^days, I 1 hen will l»y 1 ogtj m l£ days ; 6 hens will lay 6 eggs m H days ; or, 6 hens will lay between them 4 aggs per day, which, multiplied by the number of days (7), will give the required answer — viz., 28 > egga. The only pnzz'ing part of the question is that people are npt to j think that it will take a longer time for l£ hens to lay 1£ eggs than for 1 hen to lay 1 egg ; whereas it takes precisely the 5 same time, according to the question, . whether there la 1 hen, 1£ hens, or §0 henß, to lay eaoh an eeg " Cabbage Tree, Waterton, says :—I think the answer to the egg puzzle is 6 henß will lay 36 eggs m 7 days. Toby says :— •' If 1£ hens lay 1£ eggs In \\ days 1 hen will lay 1 ngg m\\ days ; t I nen will lay 4 eggs In 6 days ; 6 hena will lay 24 ee:gs In 7 days ; 6 hens will lay 30 eggs lv "i\ days."