Puzzles in English

■山東  劉永科

Three travelers decide to stay in a hotel. They pay $30 to the manager and go to their room. The manager finds out that the room rate is $25 and gives $5 to the bellboy to return. On the way to the room the bellboy supposes that $5 would be difficult to share among three people so he puts $2 in his pocket and gives $1 to each person.　　

Now each person paid $10 and got back $1. So they paid $9 each, totaling $27.　　

The bellboy has $2, totaling $29.　　

Where is the remaining dollar?　　

A farmer buys a horse for $60. He sells it to his neighbor for $70. Then he discovers he could have made more money if he had sold it at a higher price. He borrows $10 from his wife, and buys the horse back for $80. He then sells it to another neighbor for $90. How much money did he make? Of course the money he made doesn’t include the ten dollars borrowed form his wife.

During the lunch hour at school, a group of five boys with the names of Jack, Thomas, William, Peter and Dan from Miss Jones’ class visited a nearby china shop. One of the five boys took a very beautiful vase without paying for it. When the boys were questioned by the school master, they made the following statements one by one:

1. Thomas: "Neither William nor I did it."

2. Jack: "It was Thomas or Peter."

3. Peter: "Both Thomas and Jack are lying."

4. Dan: "Peter's statement is not true; one of them is lying and the other is speaking the truth."

5. William: "What Dan said is wrong."

When Miss Jones was consulted, she said, "Three of these boys are always truthful, but everything that two of them say will be a lie." Supposing that Miss Jones is correct, who took the vase?

Answers:　　

(1) Each person paid $9, totaling $27. The manager has $25 and the bellboy $2. The bellboy's $2 should be added to the manager's $25 or subtracted from the travelers' $27, not added to the travelers' $27.　　

(2) The farmer made $20. He ended up with $90.The total he had was: $60 + $10 from his wife = $70.   $90 - $70 = $20 dollars profit.　　

(3) Peter took the vase.