[24.—A SHOPPING PERPLEXITY.—solution]
The first purchase amounted to 1s. 5¾d., the second to 1s. 11½d., and together they make 3s. 5¼d. Not one of these three amounts can be paid in fewer than six current coins of the realm.
As a ching-chang is worth twopence and four-fifteenths of a ching-chang, the remaining eleven-fifteenths of a ching-chang must be worth twopence. Therefore eleven ching-changs are worth exactly thirty pence, or half a crown. Now, the exchange must be made with seven round-holed coins and one square-holed coin. Thus it will be seen that 7 round-holed coins are worth seven-elevenths of 15 ching-changs, and 1 square-holed coin is worth one-eleventh of 16 ching-changs—that is, 77 rounds equal 105 ching-changs and 11 squares equal 16 ching-changs. Therefore 77 rounds added to 11 squares equal 121 ching-changs; or 7 rounds and 1 square equal 11 ching-changs, or its equivalent, half a crown. This is more simple in practice than it looks here.
[26.—THE JUNIOR CLERKS' PUZZLE.—solution]
Although Snoggs's reason for wishing to take his rise at £2, 10s. half-yearly did not concern our puzzle, the fact that he was duping his employer into paying him more than was intended did concern it. Many readers will be surprised to find that, although Moggs only received £350 in five years, the artful Snoggs actually obtained £362, 10s. in the same time. The rest is simplicity itself. It is evident that if Moggs saved £87, 10s. and Snoggs £181, 5s., the latter would be saving twice as great a proportion of his salary as the former (namely, one-half as against one-quarter), and the two sums added together make £268, 15s.