The Mandarin's Puzzle.
The following puzzle has an added interest from the circumstance that a
correct solution of it secured for a certain young Chinaman the hand of
his charming bride. The wealthiest mandarin within a radius of a h...
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The Forsaken King.
Set up the position shown in the diagram. Then the condition of the
puzzle is--White to play and checkmate in six moves. Notwithstanding the
complexities, I will show how the manner of play may be condensed int...
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New Measuring Puzzle.
Here is a new poser in measuring liquids that will be found interesting.
A man has two ten-quart vessels full of wine, and a five-quart and a
four-quart measure. He wants to put exactly three quarts into each o...
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Puss In The Corner.
This variation of the last puzzle is also played by two persons. One
puts a counter on No. 6, and the other puts one on No. 55, and they play
alternately by removing the counter to any other number in a line. I...
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A Railway Puzzle.
Make a diagram, on a large sheet of paper, like the illustration, and
have three counters marked A, three marked B, and three marked C. It
will be seen that at the intersection of lines there are nine
stopping-...
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Average Speed.
In a recent motor ride it was found that we had gone at the rate of ten
miles an hour, but we did the return journey over the same route, owing
to the roads being more clear of traffic, at fifteen miles an hour...
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Buying Chestnuts.
Though the following little puzzle deals with the purchase of chestnuts,
it is not itself of the "chestnut" type. It is quite new. At first sight
it has certainly the appearance of being of the "nonsense puzzle...
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Mixing The Tea.
"Mrs. Spooner called this morning," said the honest grocer to his
assistant. "She wants twenty pounds of tea at 2s. 41/2d. per lb. Of
course we have a good 2s. 6d. tea, a slightly inferior at 2s. 3d., and a
che...
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The Dovetailed Block.
Here is a curious mechanical puzzle that was given to me some years ago,
but I cannot say who first invented it. It consists of two solid blocks
of wood securely dovetailed together. On the other two vertical s...
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The Queen's Tour.
The puzzle of making a complete tour of the chessboard with the queen in
the fewest possible moves (in which squares may be visited more than
once) was first given by the late Sam Loyd in his _Chess Strategy_. ...
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Three Men In A Boat.
A certain generous London manufacturer gives his workmen every year a
week's holiday at the seaside at his own expense. One year fifteen of
his men paid a visit to Herne Bay. On the morning of their departure
f...
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The Three Sheep.
A farmer had three sheep and an arrangement of sixteen pens, divided off
by hurdles in the manner indicated in the illustration. In how many
different ways could he place those sheep, each in a separate pen, so...
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Mamma's Age.
Tommy: "How old are you, mamma?"
Mamma: "Let me think, Tommy. Well, our three ages add up to exactly
seventy years."
Tommy: "That's a lot, isn't it? And how old are you, papa?"
Papa: "Just six times as old as y...
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A Question Of Definition.
"My property is exactly a mile square," said one landowner to another.
"Curiously enough, mine is a square mile," was the reply.
"Then there is no difference?"
Is this last statement correct?
...
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The Lockers Puzzle.
[Illustration:
A B C
================== ================== ==================
| +--+ +--+ +--+ | | +--+ +--+ +--+ | | +--+ +--+ +--+ |
| | | | |...
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Changing Places.
The above clock face indicates a little before 42 minutes past 4. The
hands will again point at exactly the same spots a little after 23
minutes past 8. In fact, the hands will have changed places. How many
tim...
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The Cyclists' Feast.
'Twas last Bank Holiday, so I've been told,
Some cyclists rode abroad in glorious weather.
Resting at noon within a tavern old,
They all agreed to have a feast together.
"Put it all in o...
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The Compasses Puzzle.
It is curious how an added condition or restriction will sometimes
convert an absurdly easy puzzle into an interesting and perhaps
difficult one. I remember buying in the street many years ago a little
mechanic...
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The Milkmaid Puzzle.
Here is a little pastoral puzzle that the reader may, at first sight, be
led into supposing is very profound, involving deep calculations. He may
even say that it is quite impossible to give any answer unless w...
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The Dissected Circle.
How many continuous strokes, without lifting your pencil from the paper,
do you require to draw the design shown in our illustration? Directly
you change the direction of your pencil it begins a new stroke. You...
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