THE ABBOT'S PUZZLE.
(
Money Puzzles)
The first English puzzlist whose name has come down to us was a
Yorkshireman--no other than Alcuin, Abbot of Canterbury (A.D. 735-804).
Here is a little puzzle from his works, which is at least interesting on
account of its antiquity. "If 100 bushels of corn were distributed among
100 people in such a manner that each man received three bushels, each
woman two, and each child half a bushel, how many men, women, and
children were there?"
Now, there are six different correct answers, if we exclude a case where
there would be no women. But let us say that there were just five times
as many women as men, then what is the correct solution?
Answer:
The only answer is that there were 5 men, 25 women, and 70 children.
There were thus 100 persons in all, 5 times as many women as men, and as
the men would together receive 15 bushels, the women 50 bushels, and the
children 35 bushels, exactly 100 bushels would be distributed.
