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General => The Common Room => The Lighter Side => Topic started by: Josephine on Sunday 05 February 17 21:30 GMT (UK)
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Hi, All:
I thought you might enjoy this. It was published in the Pittsburgh Daily Gazette on Christmas Day 1872 (transcribed by me).
"A Genealogical Puzzle.
“A wedding there was and a dance there must be,
And who should be first? Thus all did agree –
First, grandsire and grandame should lead the dance down;
Two fathers, two mothers should step the same ground.
Two daughters stood up and danced with their sires
(The room was so warm they wanted no fires);
And also two sons, who danced with their mothers.
Two sisters there were, who danced with their brothers;
Two uncles vouchsafed with nieces to dance,
With nephews to jig it pleased two aunts.
Three husbands would dance with none but their wives
(As bent so to do for the rest of their lives).
The grand-daughter chose the jolly grandson.
And bride – she would dance with bridegroom or none.
A company choice! Their number to fix,
I told them all over, and found them but six!”
Regards,
Josephine
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Very good! Thanks for posting! ;)
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My pleasure!
:D
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I like that....thanks for posting.
Carol
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I thought folks might get a kick out of it, Carol!
:D
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Thanks for posting - I'm completely baffled by it and have wasted far too much of my morning thinking about it! ;D
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That's very good, I like it.
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I'm not smart enough for puzzles like this. I'm sure there's a perfectly reasonable explanation but I couldn't come to any solid conclusion without a severe dose of incest ::)
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but I couldn't come to any solid conclusion without a severe dose of incest ::)
;D ;D ;D ;D
they boggle my brain too.... ::) ;D ;D
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So.... I'm guessing the bride and groom must be cousins, twice over (i.e. their mothers are sisters and their fathers are brothers, or something like that)... but I've still got too many people ???
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LOL, I didn't even try to figure it out! I do not have a brain for this type of thing! And they didn't provide an answer, either, other than the last line.
:D
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When I got to 12 people I gave up as well!!! ::) ;D ;D
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Has anyone worked it out?
If so can they please post the answer in a tiny font so it doesn't spoil the game for people who want to have a go at solving it?
Heather
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Good news!
I've done some more digging and the newspaper printed a letter sent in by a reader who believed s/he had figured it out. It's a bit convoluted (of course!) but I'll transcribe it soon and include it here (should it be in a tiny font?). I don't know if the writer was right or not!
Regards,
Josephine
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THE ANSWER (or is it?)
The Pittsburgh Daily Gazette published the following, which was sent in by L.L. Book, of Sewickley, Pennsylvania.
I got dizzy just transcribing it and have no idea whatsoever if it is right or wrong.
Here goes:
"To the Editors of the Pittsburgh Gazette,
"Being a reader of your paper, and noticing your ‘Genealogical Puzzle,’ we took the pains to work it out. We submit to you the solution. Judge for yourself of its merits.
"Husband – (Mr. Jones.) Wife – (Mrs. Smith.)
Daughter – (Miss Hall.) Son – (Mr. Smith.)
Love – (Mr. Hall.) Daughter – (Miss Smith.)
"Mr. Jones, a widower, has a daughter who marries and afterwards becomes a widow, with a son whom we will name Mr. Hall. Mrs. Smith, widow, has a son whom we will name the immortal John Smith. He marries, and becomes a widower with a daughter, Miss Smith.
"By a former marriage of parents Mr. Jones and Mrs. Smith have become brother and sister. They afterwards marry each other and Mrs. Hall and Mr. Smith become sister and brother. The two latter marry each other and Mr. Hall and Miss Smith in their turn become brother and sister. Finally Mr. Hall and Miss Smith enter into the holy bonds of matrimony with each other, at the celebration of whose nuptials the dance takes place.
"Mr. Jones and Mrs. Smith each having a grandchild (Mr. Hall and Miss Smith), are grandparents, which satisfies ‘First, Grandsire and grandame should lead the dance down.’ Mr. Jones and Mr. Smith each being a father, and Mrs. Jones and Mrs. Hall each being a mother, dance together, which satisfies ‘Two fathers, two mothers, should step the same ground.’ Mrs. Hall and Miss Smith dance with their respective fathers, Mr. Jones and Mr. Smith, which satisfies ‘Two daughters stood up, and danced with their sires.’ Mr. Hall and Mr. Smith dance with their respective mothers, Mrs. Hall and Mrs. Smith, which satisfies, ‘And also two sons, who dance with their mothers.’ Mrs. Hall and Miss Smith, the two sisters, were not sisters of each other, but sisters of Mr. Smith and Mr. Hall respectively, by marriages which satisfies ‘Two sisters there were, and danced with their brothers.[ ’]
"The most difficult point is ‘Two uncles vouchsafed with nieces to dance’ and ‘with nephews to jig, two aunts it pleased.’ We will not write out the entire explanation, but leave our readers to think it out for themselves. Mr. Jones and Mr. Smith are uncles of Mr. Smith and Mr. Hall respectively; Mrs. Hall and Miss Smith are nieces of Mrs. Smith and Mr. Hall respectively. These uncles and nieces dancing together satisfies ‘Two uncles vouchsafed with nieces to dance.’ ‘With nephews to jig it pleased two aunts’ can be explained in a similar way.
"The three husbands, Mr. Jones, Mr. Smith, and Mr. Hall danced with their respective wives, Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Hall and Miss Smith, (now Mrs. Hall) which satisfies ‘Three husbands would dance with none but their wives.’ The granddaughter, Miss Smith (now Mrs. Hall), danced with the ‘jolly grandson.’ The bride, Miss Smith, danced with the bridegroom, Mr. Hall, which satisfies ‘And bride – she would dance with bridegroom or none.’"
Any thoughts, Rootschatters?
Regards,
Josephine
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Haha, that's boggled my mind even more :) I gave up at the third paragraph...
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LOL, I gave up with the people becoming siblings retroactively and then marrying each other anyway. At least I think that's what it said.
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Wow, no wonder it made you dizzy!!!!
That all but shorted out my brain :o ;D ;D ;D All sounds a little incestuous doesn't it ::) ;D ;D
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3sillydogs, it's a bit outrageous, isn't it, considering it was published in 1872!
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Here is one that I have long loved from 1827(http://). I hope I am allowed to post this cutting. If not, I will transcribe it.
Martin
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Goodness, Martin, that'll keep us puzzled for quite a while ;D
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Family historians didn't have so many ancestors to dig through in those days!! I must try it again myself.
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Sounds like 'Deliverance' country & no t much to do in the evenings ;D. No offence meant to Trowbridge folk.
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Good one, Martin! I hope some folks will take a crack at it (it's beyond my capabilities, LOL).
Regards,
Josephine
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I'm sure an event of this nature could have involved my family in the small Norfolk village I'm currently looking at :-[
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I'm sure an event of this nature could have involved my family in the small Norfolk village I'm currently looking at :-[
Not to worry, looks like it could have come from one branch of my family tree as well ::) ;D ;D
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Oh, I'm not really that worried... I look on it that I research one line, and get 2 free ;D