Puzzles

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• 536 Puzzles and Curious Problems

The clerks attached to the finn of Pilkins and Popinjay arranged that three of them would lunch together every day at a particular table so long as they could avoid the same three men sitting down twice together. The same number of clerks of Messrs. Radson, Robson, and Ross decided to do precisely the same, only with four men at a time instead of three. On working it out they found that Radson's staff could keep it up exactly three times as many
days as their neighbors. What is the least number of men there could have been in each staff?

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• 536 Puzzles and Curious Problems

The Crackhams made their first stop at Bugleminster, where they were to spend the night at a friend's house. This friend was to leave home at the same time and ride to London to put up at the Crackhams' house. They took the same route, and each car went at its own uniform speed. They kept a look-out for one another, and met forty miles from Bugleminster. George that evening worked out the following little puzzle: "I find that if, on our respective arrivals, we had each at once proceeded on the return, journey at the same speeds we should meet at forty-eight miles from London. If this were so, what is the distance from London to Bugleminster?

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