Sunday, September 23, 2012

THE WILY CHIEF

The following account of conditions on a remote South Sea isle comes from a usually unreliable source. It seems that the M'gmb race inhabiting this isle is ruled over by a wily chief who has a passion for erecting monuments to himself. To do this work he hires men at 5 bmgs per day. But the race is not noted for industriousness, and the chief fines each man 7 bmgs for each working day when he loafs or is absent. Knowing his fellow M'gmbs well, the chief has chosen the rates so that each M'gmb just breaks even in every month of 24 working days. Thus the chief never has to pay out a single bmg. The question arises, how many days does a M'gmb work per month?

Puzzle Answer

Answer:

The M'gmb works 14 days per month, earning 70 bmgs. But he loafs on the other 10 days, and is docked just 70 bmgs.

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