Open and Shut

pearson shutter puzzle

A poser by Cyril Pearson, puzzle editor for the London Evening Standard at the turn of the 20th century:

Upon the shutters of a barber’s shop the legend above was painted in bold letters. One evening about 8:30, when it was blowing great guns, quite a crowd gathered round the window, and seemed to be enjoying some excellent joke. What was amusing them when the shutter blew open?

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