MENTAL NUTS -

Can You Crack 'em?


1. The Horse Question.

A man sold a horse for $90, bought him back for $80, and resold him for $100. What did he make on the transaction?


2. The Shoe Question.

A boy bought a pair of shoes for $4.00 and gave a $10.00 bill in payment. The shoemaker had a neighbor change the bill, and gave the boy his change. The boy left the town with the shoes and the $6.00. The neighbor returned the bill, saying it was a counterfeit, and the shoemaker had to give him good money for it. What was his loss?


3. The Beggar.

A beggar had a brother, the brother died and the man who died had no brother.


4. The Farmers and Their Corn.

Three farmers A,B, and C, met on their way to town. A had 50, B 30, and C 20 bushels of corn. They went to town and all sold their corn at the same prices, and, strange to relate, each one recieved the same amount of money for his corn. Why?


5. The Wine Casks.

Two men find in a cellar an eight-gallon cask full of wine, also an empty five-gallon and an empty three-gallon cask. They wish to measure out two lots of four gallons each. How can they do it?


6. Are They Similar? or

Which is the most? Six dozen dozen or half a dozen dozen? Be quick!


7. The Chain Question


A farmer brought five pieces of chain of three links each to a blacksmith, and asked the cost of making them into one piece of chain. The blacksmith replied, "I charge one cent to cut a link and one cent to weld a link." The farmer remarked that as it would require four cuts and four welds, the charge would be eight cents. "No," said the smith, "I figure it but six cents." How do you do it?


8. The Fox, Goose and Corn

A farmer moving has a fox. a goose, and a basket of corn. He comes to a river and the boat will only carry the farmer and one of his charges. Now, if he leaves the fox and the goose alone, the fox will eat the goose, and if he leaves the goose and the corn alone, the goose will eat the corn. How can he safely take them all over the river?


9. A Puzzle on the Checkerboard.

Place eight checkers on the checkerboard so that no two are in line horizontally, vertically or diagonally. Use white and black squares.


10. The Boy and the Ducks.

A boy, driving home some ducks, was asked how many he had. He replied, "When in line, there are two ducks ahead of a duck, two ducks behind a duck and a duck in the middle." How many ducks had he?


11. The Man and His Money.

A man went to town and at the first store he spent one-half of his money and one-half of a cent more. At the second store, he spent one-half of what he then had and one-half of a cent more. At the third store he spent one-half of what he then had and one-half of a cent more. At the fourth store he spent one-half of what he then had and one-half of a cent more and had nothing remaining. How much had he?


12. The Animal Question.

A man has one hundred dollars and buys one hundred animals. He pays ten dollars for cows, three dollars for hogs, and fifty cents for sheep. How many of each did he buy?


13. The Ship's Crew.

A ship at sea has a crew of thirty, fifteen men and fifteen women. They run short of provisions and must throw one-half of the crew overboard, so the other half can live to get ashore. They decide to stand in a circle, and, beginning with the captain, count off, and every ninth crew mwmber is to be thrown overboard, until one-half the crew is gone. How can they be stood so as to save the women?


14. A Puzzling Question.

What is the third and a half of a third and a half of ten?


15. The Old Ladies and Their Apples.

A gentleman travelling, notices at the depot two old ladies selling apples. They each have 30 apples, one sells two for one cent, the other sells three for one cent. He says, "Now, if I buy one cent's worth from each I would get five apples for the two cents, so why not put all the apples in one basket and sell five for two cents." "No," said the ladies, "we would lose by it. She sells two for one cent and will recieve for her 30 apples 15 cents. I sell three for one cent, and will recieve for my 30 apples 10 cents. Together we would recieve 25 cents for the 60 apples. But if we sold 60 apples, 5 for 2 cents, we would recieve only 24 cents, or a loss of one cent." Where does the loss come in?


16. The Man in Jail.

A man in jail was asked who it was who visired him, and replied, "Brothers and sisters have I none, but that man's father is my father's son."


17. A Curious Number.

To write six figues will denote.
And of their magic here I quote.
Can multiply by 1 2 3 4 5 or 6 - it's queer
But no new figures in results appear."


18.The percentage Questio.

I buy goods ninety per cent off and sell them at eighty and ten per cent off. What is the per cent profit?


19. The Lover's Grove.

I am required to plant a grove
To please the lady whom I love.
This ample grove to be composed
Of nineteen trees in nine straight rows;
Five trees in each row I must place,
Or I shall never see her face.


20.The Man and the Stores.

A man goes to a store and says, "Give me as much as I have and I will spend ten cents with you." It is done, and the man repeats the operation to a second, and a third store, and has no money remaining. What did he start with?


21.The Water Cask.

A cask has three faucets. The first can empty it in one hour, the second can empty it in two hours, the third can empty it in three hours. How long will it take all three, running at one time, to empty it?


22.The Hunter and the Squirrel.

A hunter sees a squirrel on the trunk of a tree, and tries to shoot it. As fast as he moves around to get a good shot, the squirrel moves around also, and always keeps the tree between himself and the hunter. Finally the hunter notices that he has walked all the way around the tree. Did he go around the squirrel?


23. Your Age and Mine.

If to my age your age combine,
The sum would reach to 99.
To half my age add 1 1/2 and see
Just what half your age will be.
Now half your age to half of mine
Would make 1/2 more than 49.
Your age and mine now I ask.
Pray, are you equal to the task?


24.The Frog in the Well.

A frog is at the bottom of a thirty foot well, and every time he jumps up three feet he falls back two. How many jumps will it require for the frog to get out?


25.The Heirs and the Sheep.

A man left nineteen sheep to three heirs. One to get one-half, one to get one-quarter, and one to get one-fifth. No sheep were to be killed, and all were to be dealt fairly with. How would you do it?


26. To tell the day of week born.

What day of the week was March 20, 1886?
1st  86, last two figures of date.
2nd  1/4 of 86  21 (don't use fractions)
3rd  day of month 20
4th  Ratio March   6 (see Table of Ratios)
5th  Total   133
6th  Divide by 7   19 and no remainder.
When no remainder, Saturday; 1 remains Sunday; 2 remains Monday, etc.
In leap years make ratio for January and February one less than in tables, and for the 20th century, add 5 before dividing by 7.
Table of Ratios
Jan 3 May 4 Sep 1
Feb 6 Jun 0 Oct 3
Mar 6 Jul 2 Nov 6
Apr 2 Aug 5 Dec 1


27. The Leaking Ship.

A ship at sea strikes a rock and knocks a hole in the bottom 9 x 16 inches. The ship's carpenter has a piece of board one foot square. How can he cut it into two pieces so that they will exactly fit the hole?


28. The Pulleys and the Weights.

In a mill there was a pulley, and a rope passed over it with a hundred pound weight at each end of the rope. A boy came and said one of the weights was wanted in another prt of the mill, but the man in charge said he could not spare it, as he had to have the two hundred pound weight on the pulley. The boy said it would be the same to take off a weight and tie that end of the rope to a ring in the floor. "Certainly not, " said the man." "I am sure it would," said the boy. Now, who was right?


29. The Farmer and His Horses.

A farmer goes to four country fairs with his drove of horses. He gives a horse to enter the fair, sells one-half of the remainder in the fair, and gives one horse to get out. He repeats the operation at each of the other fairs, and has but one horse to go home on. How many horses did he start out with?


30. How Many Dollars?

I am the father of seven married sons.
Beginning with my number one,
A gift of dollars I do bequest;
His wife to have one-ninth the rest.
And thus I carry out my aim.
Each son $1.00 more than son just named;
And for the wife's share each time
Divide the remainder by the figure 9.
And so it goes, as I said before,
Until there isn't anything more.
And now to set the question right,
I'll state each family received alike.