Can You Solve It? The Cyclists’ Feast

English mathematician Henry Ernest Dudeney wrote logic puzzles and mathematical games for several newspapers and magazines, later collected into books. This poem is from Amusements in Mathematics, published by Thomas Nelson and Sons, 1917.

The numbers are simple enough that younger students can solve it by the guess-and-check method. Older students or adults may want to set up a quadratic equation.

Historical Note: In the British currency of the time, there were 12 pennies to a shilling and 20 shillings to a pound (which was also called a sovereign).

The Cyclists’ Feast

’Twas last Bank Holiday, so I’ve been told,
Some cyclists rode abroad in glorious weather.
Resting at noon within a tavern old,
They all agreed to have a feast together.

“Put it all in one bill, mine host,” they said,
“For everyone an equal share will pay.”
The bill was promptly on the table laid,
And four pounds was the reckoning that day.

But, sad to state, when they prepared to square,
’Twas found that two had sneaked outside and fled.
So, for two shillings more than his due share
Each honest friend who had remained was bled.

They settled later with those rogues, no doubt.
How many were they when they first set out?

Did You Solve It?

One fun thing about math is that you really don’t need the answer book. You can always check the math for yourself: Does your answer make sense? Does it fit the story?

Would you like to write a math poem puzzle of your own? I’d love to hear it!