Merry’s BOOK OF PUZZLES.
1.
2.
3. Who prolongs his work to as great a length as possible, and still completes it in time?
4. Why are young ladies like arrows?
5. Why is a philanthropist like an old horse?
6. How can five persons divide five eggs, so that each man shall receive one, and still one remain in the dish?
7. How many soft-boiled eggs could the giant Goliah eat upon an empty stomach?
8. What fishes have their eyes nearest together?
9. Two fathers have each a square of land. One father divides his so as to reserve to himself one-fourth in the form of a square; thus—
The other father divides his so as to reserve to himself one-fourth in the form of a triangle; thus—
They each have four sons, and each divides the remainder among his sons in such a way that each son will share equally with his brother, and in similar shape. How were the two farms divided?
10.
11.
12. What is that which is often brought to table, often cut, but never eaten?
13.
My first is four-sixths of a step that is long,
My second is a person of state;
My whole is a thing that is known to be wrong,
And is a strong symptom of hate.
14. Why are your nose and chin always at variance?
15.
Without my first you can not stand,
My second beauteous fair command;
Together I attend your will,
And am your humble servant still.
16. Why ought a fisherman to be very wealthy?
17. Why is a man in debt like a misty morning?
18. Who was the first that bore arms?
19. There is a word of seven letters; the first two refers to man, the first three refers to woman, the first four signifies a great man, the seven a great woman.
20. I am a word of five letters. Take away my first and I am the name of what adorns the estate of many of the nobility of England. Take away my first and second, and I am the name of a place where all the world was once congregated. Take away my last, and I am the name of a beautiful mineral. Take away my two last, and I am the name of a fashionable place of resort. I am small in stature, but capable of doing a great deal of mischief, as I once did in London in the year 1666.
21. Spell eye-water four letters.
22. Why is swearing like an old coat?
23. Why is a thump like a hat?
24. Why is an inn like a burial-ground?
25.
26.
27. If a fender cost six dollars, what will a ton of coal come to?
28. What word is that to which if you add a syllable, it will make it shorter?
29.
My first is a very uncomfortable state,
In cold weather it mostly abounds.
My second’s an instrument formed of hard steel,
That will cause the stout foe to stagger and reel,
And when used, is a symptom of hate.
My whole is an author of greatest renown,
Whose fame to the last day of time will go down.
30. What is the longest and yet the shortest thing in the world; the swiftest and yet the slowest; the most divisible and the most extended; the least valued and the most regretted; without which nothing can be done; which devours every thing, however small, and yet gives life and spirits to every object, however great?
31.
My first is found in every house,
From wintry winds it guards.
My second is the highest found—
In every pack of cards.
My whole, a Scottish chief, is praised
By ballad, bard, and story,
Who for his country gave his life,
And, dying, fell with glory.
32. Why are handsome women like bread?
33. Why is an avaricious man like one with a short memory?
34. What river in Bavaria answers the question, Who is there?
35. Why is a man with wooden legs like one who has an even bargain?
36.
37.
38. Why is a parish bell like a good story?
39. What belongs to yourself, yet is used by others more than yourself?
40.
In camps about the centre I appear;
In smiling meadows seen throughout the year;
The silent angler views me in the streams,
And all must trace me in their morning dreams,
First in the mob conspicuous I stand,
Proud of the lead, and ever in command.
41. The head of a whale is six feet long; his tail is as long as his head and half his body, and his body is half of his whole length. How long is the whale?
42. A hundred stones are placed, in a straight line, a yard distant from each other. How many yards must a person walk, who undertakes to pick them up, and place them in a basket stationed one yard from the first stone?
43.
My first is a part of the day,
My last a conductor of light,
My whole to take measure of time,
Is useful by day and by night.
44. I am a word of three syllables, each of which is a word; my first is an article in common use; my second, an animal of uncommon intelligence; my third, though not an animal, is used in carrying burdens. My whole is a useful art.
45.
There was a man who was not born,
His father was not born before him,
He, did not live, he did not die,
And his epitaph is not o’er him.
46. Why is a nail, fast in the wall, like an old man?
47. Why does a miller wear a white hat?
48.
49.
50.
My first is a letter commanding to wed,
Or to lift your sole till it reaches your head;
Nothing worth as a whole, it is plain to all men
That divided in halves, it is equal to ten;
My second, though nothing, compared to the other,
Is worth more as a partner than its double-faced brother;
It moans and it sighs, and when joined to my first,
Pronounces the doom of the sinner accursed.
My third, you will find his whole value depends
On the worth and position of neighbors and friends,
And, when both the other two following fair,
Changes doom to desire, and a curse to a prayer.
My fourth, though it formeth no part of a hundred,
Shows where it can justly and evenly be sundered;
’Tis found in the elements everywhere present,
’Tis found in all seasons, unpleasant or pleasant,
’Tis the chief of all lands, and yet can not wait
On continent, hemisphere, empire, or state.
Though ne’er in Great Britain suspected to lower,
’Tis the heart of each quarter of that mighty power;
It always belonged to the animal race,
In the mineral kingdom they gave it a place,
And, being impartial, they could not deny,
The vegetable order its virtue to try;
And yet, since creation, it never was known
In beast, bird, or fish, root, branch, stem, or stone.
My whole you’ll find growing in pasture and barns,
Or grown in coats, carpets, warm blankets, and yarns,
In England, in Saxony, France, and old Wales,
And in sundry more places it always prevails.
Of quadrupedal origin—still it is known
In bipedal families oft to be shown;
But the strangest of all its strange forms, and conditions
Is seen in the covering of sage politicians.
51.
52.
53. What is that which is invisible, but never out of sight?
54. When is a boat like a knife?
55. What part of London is in France?
56. How many black beans will make five white ones?
57. Why is a dandy like a haunch of venison?
58. What kin is that child to its father who is not its father’s own son?
59. Why is a rose-bud like a promissory note?
60. What biblical name is there which expresses a father calling his son by name, and his son replying?
61. Why is an orange not like a church bell?
62. Why is the largest city in Ireland likely to be the largest city in the world?
63.
Three-fourths of a cross, and a circle complete,
An upright where two semicircles meet,
A rectangle triangle standing on feet,
Two semicircles, and a circle complete.
64. What smells most in a drug shop?
65. Why should doctors attend to window-sashes?
| 66. G. a. | p |
| A. |
67. What is that which every one can divide, but no one can see where it has been divided?
68. Spell hard water with three letters.
69. What letters of the alphabet come too late for supper?
70.
71.
72.
Pronounced as one letter, and written with three,
Two letters there are, and two only in me;
I’m double, I’m single, I’m black, blue, and gray,
I am read from both ends, and the same either way,
I am restless and wandering, steady and fixed,
And you know not one hour what I may be the next.
I melt, and I kindle—beseech, and defy,
I am watery and moist, I am fiery and dry.
I am scornful and scowling, compassionate, meek;
I am light, I am dark, I am strong, I am weak.
I’m piercing and clean, I am heavy and dull;
Expressive and languid, contracted and full.
I’m a globe and a mirror, a window, a door,
An index, an organ, and fifty things more.
I belong to all animals under the sun,
And to those who were long understood to have none.
My language is plain, though it can not be heard,
And I speak without even pronouncing a word.
Some call me a diamond—some say I am jet;
Others talk of my water, or how I am set.
I’m a borough in England, in Scotland a stream,
And an isle of the sea in the Irishman’s dream.
The earth without me would no loveliness wear,
And sun, moon, and stars at my wish disappear.
Yet so frail is my tenure, so brittle my joy,
That a speck gives me pain, and a drop can destroy.
73. What vessel is that which is always asking leave to move?
74. Translate the following into Latin—
42, 8 rocks, e e e e e e e e e e, 46. 2. 14. 8. 0.
75. How is it that you can work with an awl, but not with a forceps; while I can work with a forceps, and not with an awl?
76.
77.
Add, was the word the master gave to Dick,
Dick scratched his head, and looking rather thick,
Replied, “Hereafter it would make it stick.”
“Dick,” cried the master, “rudeness is a sin;
Behold the stocks, I’ll surely put you in.”
“That,” answered Dick, “won’t alter it a feather,
Hereafter it would make it hold together.”
“Dick,” said the man, “if you insult me so,
Your shoulders and my rod I’ll put in Co.”
“ ’Tis all the same,” said Dick, “my worthy master,
Hereafter it would make it stick the faster.”
78. Why is France like a skeleton?
79. Why is a woodman like a stage actor?
80. Why is the hour of noon on the dial-plate like a pair of spectacles?
81. Why is the best baker most in want of bread?
82.
Whether old Homer tippled wine or beer,
Julep or cider, history is not clear;
But plain it is—the bard, though wont to roam,
But for one liquid, never had left home.
83. Why is a coward like a mouse-trap?
84. Why is green grass like a mouse?
85. What two reasons why whispering in company is not proper?
86.
My first is found on the ocean wave,
In the spring, the pit, and the mine;
My second below earth’s surface you have,
Where seldom the sun can shine.
My whole your dinner-table must grace,
And seldom fails to obtain a place.
87. Why is a gooseberry pie like counterfeit money?
88.
89. Why does a fisherman blow his horn?
90. Why is there no danger of starving in a desert?
91.
Take half of the needle
By which sailors steer
Their ship through the water,
Be it cloudy or clear;
Do not really break it—
This of all things were worst—
But in your mind take it,
And this makes my first.
At thanksgiving or Christmas,
My second you see;
With care well compounded,
From grain, shrub, and tree.
My whole like some people
Who make great pretense,
Of words have a plenty,
But no great stock of sense.
92. How is it that Methuselah was the oldest man, when he died before his father?
93.
My first is a negative greatly in use,
By which people begin when they mean to refuse;
My second is Fashion, or so called in France,
But, like other whims, is the servant of chance.
An article always in use is my whole,
With texture and form under fashion’s control;
But, alas! not a thing can it see which goes by,
Although many have four sights, and all have one eye.
94. What is that which, supposing its greatest breadth to be four inches, length nine inches, and depth three inches, contains a solid foot?
95.
96.
My tongue is long, my breath is strong,
And yet I breed no strife;
My voice you hear both far and near,
And yet I have no life.
97. A waterman rows a given distance, a, and back again in b hours, and finds that he can row c miles with the current, for d miles against it. Required, the time of rowing down, the time of rowing up, the rate of current, and the rate of rowing.
98.
As I was beating on the far east grounds,
Up starts a hare before my two greyhounds;
The dogs, being light of foot, did fairly run,
To her fifteen rods, just twenty-one;
And the distance that she started up before,
Was six-and-ninety rods, just and no more;
Now, I would have you Merry boys declare
How far they ran, before they caught the hare.
99. Is it possible to put twelve pieces of money in six rows, and have four in a row?
100. A gentleman sent a servant with a present of nine ducks, with this direction—
“To Alderman Gobble, with ix. ducks.”
The servant took out three, and contrived it so that the direction corresponded with the number of the ducks. He neither erased nor altered a letter. How did he do it?
101.
Four letters form me quite complete,
As all who breathe do show;
Reversed, you’ll find I am the seat
Of infamy and woe.
Transposed, you’ll see I’m base and mean,
Again of Jewish race;
Transposed once more, I oft am seen
To hide a lovely face.
102.
103.
My first is the name to an article given
For ladies and dandies to put on their linen;
It comes from the forest, I’ve heard people say,
And is made from the skin of an animal gay.
My second is a fruit that comes from the South,
The juice of it is sour, and ’twill pucker your mouth;
’Tis found in candy shops all over the town,
And, stranger to say, it is almost round.
My whole is an article that is often seen
In the gardens and fields almost covered with green;
It is very sweet, and also pleasant to eat,
And in hot summer days affords a rich treat.
104. My first is half of what implies good-humor; my second makes sense of my first; my third sounds like the cry of a kitten; my fourth is a consonant and vowel combined; my fifth, with the addition of the initial of my third, would imply silence; and my whole is what many boys and girls prize highly.
105.
I am composed of twelve letters.
My 2, 8, 9, is a substance dug out of the earth.
“ 6, 11, 12, 8, is a numeral.
“ 4, 2, 3, is an ancient instrument of war.
“ 12, 8, 1, is a vessel used in former times.
“ 5, is a vowel.
“ 4, 7, 1, 9, is a hard substance.
“ 10, 9, is a pronoun.
My whole is now before you.
106. My first is appropriate, my second ’tis nine to one if you guess it. My whole elevates the sole above the earth.
107. Why is a conundrum like a monkey?
108. What do we all do when we first get into bed?
109.
110.
111. There is one word in the English language which is universally considered a preventive of harm; change a certain letter in it, and you make it an act of cruelty.
112.
My first may be fashioned of iron or wood,
And at window or door for safety is placed;
In village or town it does more harm than good,
Leading people their health, time, and money to waste.
My second’s a lady, bewitching and fair,
And for love of her people will labor and strive;
Will rise before dawn, and be wearied with care,
And pursue her with ardor as long as they live.
My whole is what ladies admire and approve,
The shopkeeper’s boast—the purchaser’s prize;
’Tis a ninepenny chintz—’tis a one-shilling glove—
It is something which makes people open their eyes.
113. At what distance must a body have fallen to acquire the velocity of 1,600 feet per second?
114. Of what trade is the sun in May?
115. Why is a small horse like a young musk-melon?
116.
My first must grace a legal deed,
With its companion, firm and red;
Its help in marriage, too, they need,
Before the blessing can be said.
My second half a hundred is,
If in the shortest way you spell;
You soon must guess me after this,
I may as well the secret tell.
My whole, by his celestial strains
Bears the rapt soul to worlds above;
The Great Creator’s power proclaims,
And tells of the Redeemer’s love.
117.
118.
119. My first is a boy’s nickname; my second is meant for defense; my third is a preposition; my fourth is one of the articles; my fifth is one of the United States. My whole is a large city in Europe.
120.
My first is stationed near your heart,
And serves to brace the mortal frame;
Of young and old it forms a part,
And to fair woman gives a name.
Who builds a ship must it employ,
To give it strength to stem the flood,
And Adam felt no real joy
Till in new form by him it stood.
My second may be long or short,
Or tight or loose, or wet or dry,
Of cotton, silk, or woolen wrought,
Of any texture, strength, or dye—
Be made of iron, gold, or steel,
Of love or hate, of good or ill,
May gently bind, or heavy feel,
May give support, or rudely kill.
My whole is formed by fashion, skill, and care,
And what few ladies from their dress can spare.
121. How long would a ball be falling, from the top of a tower that was 400 feet high, to the earth?
122. Why are chairs like men?
123. The foot of a ladder 60 feet long remaining in the same place, the top will just reach a window 40 feet high on one side of the street, and another 30 feet high on the other side. How wide is the street?
124. There is a pile of cannon-balls, the ground tier of which contains 289 balls, and the top tier one ball. Require the whole number of balls in a pile.
125.
126.
127.
What skillful housewife does not know
When, where to place my first?
When nicely done, it will not show;
Conspicuous, it is worst.
My second all the world must do,
Either with head or hand,
In different ways the same pursue,
On water, or on land.
My whole a picture is of life,
Varied with good or ill,
With bright or dull, with light or dark,
Arranged with art and skill.
128. What is that which will make you catch cold—cure the cold—and pay the doctor’s bill?
129. Why is a joke like a cocoa-nut?
130. When did Esau, the hairy man, lose his whiskers?
131. Why do postmasters deserve the execration of all true Americans?
132.
Just equal are my head and tail,
My middle slender as can be,
Whether I stand on head or heel,
’Tis all the same to you or me.
But if my head should be cut off,
The matter’s true, although ’tis strange,
My head and body, severed thus,
Immediately to nothing change.
133. If a loafer, smoking a cigar, sets fire to the brush on his upper lip, is it a case of spontaneous combustion?
134.
liv sin transgre procur damn
A ing er s ssion ed ation.
dy Redeem pa purchas salv
135.
136.
137.
What sailors dread.
138.
I.
Go wide o’er the world,
And everywhere seek me—
In earth, sea, or air,
Thou never shalt meet me!
Go wide o’er the world—
I always am there—
Wherever thou roamest,
In earth, sea, or air!
II.
Go speak to the woodland,
And question of me—
Oh ne’er shall thou find me,
With forest or tree!
Go, speak to the woodland,
I ever am there,
And live in its whispers,
Though lighter than air!
III.
Go, winnow the wave,
And seek for my breath—
Ah, ocean and river,
Reveal but my death!
Go, winnow the wave,
Tho’ with winter it shiver—
There—there shalt thou find me,
’Mid ocean and river!
IV.
In whirlwinds I revel,
Yet in zephyrs expire—
I flourish in warmth,
And I perish in fire!
The winter I cherish,
Yet each season I shun;
Half living in harvest,
In summer, undone!
V.
I come with the warlock—
I go with the ghoul—
I shriek with the wizard—
I hoot with the owl!
I ride on the hazel
Which witches have rent—
I fly on the wing
Which the eagle hath bent.
VI.
I come and I go—
Oft unseen and unsought;
I live but in words—
I perish in thought.
So to all and to each,
I bid you adieu;
Yet to all and to each,
I stay double with you!
139. Why is the boy that disturbs a hive like a true Christian?
140. What is that which has eyes and sees not, ears and hears not, nose and smells not, yet is often regarded as the beau-ideal of a human being?
141. Why is the elephant his own servant?
142. Which of the forest trees bears gain?
143. Who was the heaviest of mechanics?
144.
I’m a heavy drag—few things more slow.
Cut off my head, and give me a bow,
And swiftly through the air I go.
145. Why are two heads better than one?
146. Why is a cart-horse always in the wrong place?
147.
I follow the plough, and yet I never walk,
Have plenty of teeth, yet neither eat nor talk,
Am strongly barred, and yet I never close,
I scratch and break, but never deal in blows.
148. What is that which has many leaves, but no stem?
149. Why is the letter F like an incendiary?
150. Arithmetical Puzzle.—This consists of six slips of paper or card, on which are written numbers as expressed in the following columns—
| A | B | C | D | E | F | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 16 | 32 | |||||
| 3 | 3 | 5 | 9 | 17 | 33 | |||||
| 5 | 6 | 6 | 10 | 18 | 34 | |||||
| 7 | 7 | 7 | 11 | 19 | 35 | |||||
| 9 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 20 | 36 | |||||
| 11 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 21 | 37 | |||||
| 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 22 | 38 | |||||
| 15 | 15 | 15 | 15 | 23 | 39 | |||||
| 17 | 18 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 40 | |||||
| 19 | 19 | 21 | 25 | 25 | 41 | |||||
| 21 | 22 | 22 | 26 | 26 | 42 | |||||
| 23 | 23 | 23 | 27 | 27 | 43 | |||||
| 25 | 26 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 44 | |||||
| 27 | 27 | 29 | 29 | 29 | 45 | |||||
| 29 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 46 | |||||
| 31 | 31 | 31 | 31 | 31 | 47 | |||||
| 33 | 34 | 36 | 40 | 48 | 48 | |||||
| 35 | 35 | 37 | 41 | 49 | 49 | |||||
| 37 | 38 | 38 | 42 | 50 | 50 | |||||
| 39 | 39 | 39 | 43 | 51 | 51 | |||||
| 41 | 42 | 44 | 44 | 52 | 52 | |||||
| 43 | 43 | 45 | 45 | 53 | 53 | |||||
| 45 | 46 | 46 | 46 | 54 | 54 | |||||
| 47 | 47 | 47 | 47 | 55 | 55 | |||||
| 49 | 50 | 52 | 56 | 56 | 56 | |||||
| 51 | 51 | 53 | 57 | 57 | 57 | |||||
| 53 | 54 | 54 | 58 | 58 | 58 | |||||
| 55 | 55 | 55 | 59 | 59 | 59 | |||||
| 57 | 58 | 60 | 60 | 60 | 60 | |||||
| 59 | 59 | 61 | 61 | 61 | 61 | |||||
| 61 | 62 | 62 | 62 | 62 | 62 | |||||
| 63 | 63 | 63 | 63 | 63 | 63 |
The slips being thus prepared, a person is to think of any one of the numbers which they contain, and to give to the expounder of the question those slips in which the number thought of occurs. To discover this number, the expounder has nothing to do but to add together the numbers at the top of the columns put into his hand. Their sum will express the number thought of.
Example.—Thus, suppose we think of the number 14. We find that this number is in three of the slips, viz., those marked B, C, and D, which are therefore given to the expounder, who, on adding together 2, 4, and 8, obtains 14, the number thought of.
The trick may be varied in the following manner: Instead of giving to the expounder the slips containing the number thought of, these may be kept back, and those in which the number does not occur be given. In this case, the expounder must add together, as before, the numbers at the top of the columns, and subtract their sum from 63. The remainder will be the number thought of.
The slips containing the columns of numbers are usually marked with letters on the back, and not above the columns, as we have expressed them. This renders the deception more complete, as the expounder, knowing beforehand the number at the top of each column, has only to examine the letters at the back of the slips given him, when he performs the problem without looking at the numbers, and thus renders the trick more extraordinary.
151.
A pair of little quadrupeds,
Transpose them, and you’ll find
The lords of ocean, or the aids
For disciplining mind;
Or that which cheers the midnight hour,
Or gilds the flagstaff high;
Now test your transposition power,
And for the answer try.
152. When is a chair like a rich lady’s dress?
153. One p, one i, four a’s, two r’s, two s’s, two l’s—what do they make, and who has made a fortune by them?
154. What odd number will give, on being divided, a half clear of a fraction?
155.
I’m in the book, but not on any leaf;
I’m in the mouth, but not in lip or teeth;
I’m in the atmosphere, but never in the air;
I wait on every one, but never on a pair;
I am with you wherever you may go;
And every thing you do I’m sure to know;
Though when you did it I should not be there,
Yet when ’twas done, you’d find me in the chair.
156. What is the difference between Joan of Arc and Noah’s ark?
157.
I am composed of seventeen letters.
My 4, 6, 10, is what we all do.
“ 5, 8, 14, 11, is a great part of the body.
“ 1, 13, 9, 15, is the name of a fish.
“ 7, 16, 2, 10, is a part of speech.
“ 13, 8, 3, is the name of a fowl.
“ 6, 15, 14, is a girl’s name.
“ 17, 6, 10, 15, is very useful to vessels.
“ 13, 6, 12, is a personal pronoun.
My whole is what we may all expect if we live.
158. My first is an instrument, which, though small, has more power than any monarch on earth. It is the lover’s friend and the poet’s pride; yet has overthrown kingdoms, ruined reputations, set folks together by the ears, and caused more destruction than plagues, pestilence, or famine. My second, though not quite so mischievous, is very destructive when in improper hands, and my whole, though employed against my first, is deemed its friend and improver.