To thoroughly grasp the idea, the instruction should be carefully followed with scissors and paper in hand.
The Mysterious Remainder. A mother of several children amused them frequently by the following simple puzzle. It was a never-failing source of entertainment and a delightful mystery. She never told the secret. Had she done so, much of the charm would have been lost.
“Think of a number.”
Perhaps some one would think of four.
“Double it.”
The child thought, but did not say eight.
Perhaps she would say, “Add six to it.”
“Divide it by two.”
“Take away the first number you thought of and the remainder will be three.”