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-   -   At a cattle market. (https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/showthread.php?t=307027)

  • Jan 22, 2009, 02:40 AM
    ROLCAM
    At a cattle market.
    AT A CATTLE MARKET.

    Three countrymen met at a cattle market. "Look here," said Hodge to
    Jakes, "I'll give you six of my pigs for one of your horses, and then
    you'll have twice as many animals here as I've got." "If that's your
    way of doing business," said Durrant to Hodge, "I'll give you fourteen
    of my sheep for a horse, and then you'll have three times as many
    animals as I." "Well, I'll go better than that," said Jakes to Durrant;
    "I'll give you four cows for a horse, and then you'll have six times as
    many animals as I've got here."

    No doubt this was a very primitive way of bartering animals, but it is
    An interesting little puzzle to discover just how many animals Jakes,
    Hodge, and Durrant must have taken to the cattle market.
  • Jan 23, 2009, 11:58 PM
    shatriya
    Between Hodge and Jakes,
    Consider that Hodge has x animals and Jakes has y animals,
    So the equation will be 2 * (x-5) = y+5
    that is, 2x - 15 = y ----------> equation 1

    Between Durrant and Hodge,
    Consider that Durrant has z animals,
    So the equation will be 3 * (z-13) = x+13
    that is, 3z - 52 = x ----------> equation 2

    Between Jakes and Durrant,
    So the equation will be 6 * (y-3) = z+3
    that is, 6y - 21 = z ----------> equation 3

    Solving the 3 equations we'll get,
    x = 11
    y = 7
    z = 21

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