History records that the blind poet Homer lost his reason in a vain endeavor to solve a riddle, and from his days until these present times much care and thought have been expended in the invention of puzzles both difficult and simple. It is the object of this chapter to present the reader with a few simple ones.
Two easy and yet fascinating puzzles can be worked with an ordinary checker-board.
1. The Traveling Checker
Place a checker upon a square near the center of the board, as in [Fig. 1]. In how few moves can you make it traverse every square in the board and return to its starting-point?
Fig. 1.—The traveling checker.
Fig. 2.—Joining the rings.
2. Another Checker Puzzle
Place sixteen men on a checker-board in such a manner that no three men shall be in a line, either horizontally or perpendicularly.