A puzzle from Lewis Carroll:
A king wishes to dismiss his wise men, but he must obey an old law that says there must always be:
Seven blind of both eyes,
Ten blind of one eye,
Five that see with both eyes,
Nine that see with one eye.
How many wise men must he keep?
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Carroll’s answer:
Five seeing, and seven blind
Give us twelve, in all, we find;
But all of these, ’tis very plain,
Come into account again.
For take notice, it may be true,
That those blind of one eye are blind for two;
And consider contrariwise,
That to see with your eye you may have your eyes;
So setting one against the other —
For a mathematician no great bother —
And working the sum, you will understand
That sixteen wise men now trouble the land.
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