Surely, there could not possibly be enough accommodations in King’s Lynn for everyone who goes to London for the season to then go on to King’s Lynn. I realize you may have been stating an exaggeration in order to make a related point: that more people visit King’s Lynn this time of year than they do in the spring. A more precise explanation would lend greater clarity to the recipient, who, in this case, is me.
I understand King’s Lynn to be a bit less temperate a climate than Ipswich. The summers here are very pleasant, and though the winters are cold, we do not get a great deal of snow.
You had mentioned over lunch at Howard House that the school you currently teach in is not the first school that employed you. What was your first school? Do you like this one better than that one?
What digit is the most frequent between the numbers 1 and 1,000?
Regards,
Mr. D. Penhale
August 1, 1822
Dear Duncan,
Before this position in Lynn, I taught at an all girl’s school in Northampton called St. Mary’s Female Seminary. It is the same school I had attended for several years as a student; they offered me a teaching position when I completed my education. I enjoyed my time there and was able to move into the position of advanced mathematics teacher when the former teacher retired. Unfortunately, two years ago, a local clergyman took over as headmaster, and he felt that subjects like mathematics and any language other than French were unnecessary. He stated that those topics did not improve the student’s abilities to be good wives and mothers. To avoid being imprecise with my language, I will say rather boldly here that I found that decision disheartening.
The Latin teacher at St. Mary’s, Sophie Baxter, and I were both fortunate to find positions with Cordon Academy here in King’s Lynn. I have liked it here, though there are fewer students than at St. Mary’s due to its more remote location. I teach two advanced courses, and the rest of my classes are basic math for the younger students. There are not many girl’s schools that offer any advanced subjects, however, so I am grateful to have found a position here.
Many of my students are the daughters of industrialists and successful merchants rather than of nobility. The father of one of my students believes that by 1840, there will be rail lines crisscrossing England and that one will be able to travel from York to London in a matter of hours instead of days. Can you even imagine? Surely in a world of such advancement, women will finally be acknowledged as being as intelligent as men and have equal opportunity to gain the education necessary to participate in the technologies of our age. I like to believe that I am even now educating future engineers who will continue to build our country. It is a nice thought.
To answer your puzzle—1 is the most common digit between 1 and 1,000. I had actually learned this one in school many years ago. You must send me more of a challenge!
I hope you will not be disappointed that mine is not a riddle: What does x need to be for this following balanced equation to be true?
–4(x + 5) = 3x – 11x – 8
Warm regards,
Hazel
September 5, 1822
Dear Cousin Hazel,
Your letter was very interesting, especially regarding your opinion of women’s overall intelligence. I am unsure if women are as smart as men, and I could give you examples of research that would claim to prove that they are not, but in the consideration of your belief, I realized that all my research comes from men. Women have few opportunities to prove themselves as capable as men, and therefore patriarchal tradition can essentially make whatever claim it likes without refutation. There is the example of Theano, Pythagoras’s wife, who was herself an exceptional mathematician and is credited with the continued teaching of his system after his death, which proves the potential for a woman to be as intelligent as a man. Sadly, Theano is the only such woman in mathematical history I have ever encountered.
You are the only woman with a mathematical mind that I have ever met, but then I have not met many women. It would take significant study and experimentation to prove men and women equally capable of advanced learning, but without opportunity to prove equal intellectual ability by educating equal numbers of girls and boys, we again end with circular logic that cannot be entirely trusted. It is a fascinating topic of consideration.
I am also intrigued by your information regarding the railroad as I have followed the development of the locomotive since Trevithick’s first completed engine. I have read that there will be steam engines running as soon as 1825. I am eager to see if these predictions come to pass. I do not like to travel even by carriage, and I find the idea of rail travel quite uncomfortable, never mind my respect for the feat of its invention. I have only ever traveled to Bury St. Edmunds, where I attended a school I despised, and to East Ashlam upon Uncle Elliott’s invitation to Howard House. I prefer to stay in Ipswich where everything I need is within walking distance.
The answer to your variable equation is 3.
Here is my puzzle:
The day before yesterday Matilda was 25.
The next year Matilda will be 28.
This is true only one day in a year.
What day is Matilda’s birthday ?
(Originally this riddle used the name “Matthew,” but in light of my consideration of the equal representation of women, I chose to change the name to a female variation.)
Sincerely,
Mr. D. Penhale
December 2, 1822
Dear Duncan,
Can you believe we have been writing for nearly eight months? When I received your first letter I had not considered there would be a second, yet our correspondence has become something I look forward to.
Will you be going to Howard House for the Christmas holiday? I will be there for a full fortnight and expect some of my other cousins will be in attendance. I am oddly anxious about that as I have not met them before. Have you heard that both Cousin Peter and Cousin Timothy—they are our late uncle Theodore Mayfield’s sons—have married in recent months? And Uncle Elliott too! That is even more ridiculous than my ridiculous nerves. I do hope you will come. I will have much more faith in there being good conversation if you are there.
Now, as for the new junior clerk you mentioned in your last letter, it sounds to me that his hire is nothing short of nepotism in the very literal way if one puts Mr. Cromley in the position of “Pope” of this company and Mr. Ludwig in the position of “nephew” given privileges, though I do not believe Mr. Ludwig is an illegitimate son masquerading as a nephew—I digress. Suffice it to say, I am sorry that it has been so frustrating to you. Have you talked to Mr. Perkins? You have spoken highly of him in the past. Perhaps he would intervene.
Here is the puzzle: What mathematical symbol can be placed between 5 and 9 to get a number greater than 5 and smaller than 9?