Waterbury Democrat., 1901-11-08
HOW HE FIGURED IT OUT.
Remarkable Mathematical Feat of a Man Who HadcBeen to Club Dinner

Man Who HadeBeen to CluD Oinner.
 II went to a club dinner the other night" said the man who lives in Harlem, and had an adventure when got home which shows the advantage of having scientific mind. You see I live in an apartment house, whose ele- vator stops at 1 80 q. n. Well. on this night I reached the house an hour or so after the time of the last trip.
 First there was the front door to get open, but with the aid of my night key 1 accomplished this in less than half an hour Then I sat down before the locked elevator door and tried to reason out the situation. Half nh hour more and the thing was as plain as day If 1 wanted to get to my apartment on the fourth floor that night I'd have to walk! I rested a while and then started upstairs. Of course, the halls and stairways were all alike, so l would have to count each flight to know when I was at my own door.
 "sOne flight l reflected. Two flights Then when I vas half way up a flight I suddenly realized that wasn't sure whether I was still on the
 
 got to it or whether 1 was on the third flight and was waiting to count it when l reached the end of it. Of course there was only one thing to do, and did it. went down to the front hall again and after another rest started upstairs again.
 '.One flight, two flights It was all right this time. I was doing finely. But hold on! I was just six steps up | flight. Was I counting flights at the beginning or at the end of them? Of course. I ought to have made a definite rule on that second trip and stuck to it. l did the next best thing and went back to the front hall for another start. This time, I said to myself, would count every flight as I struck it. Tn that way I would know just where I was at every step of my jour ney, and all possibility of miscount would be eliminated
 "'One flight, I said as I put my foot on the first step. Two flights I said flight What a beautiful thing is method. thought. There I was tam gled up in regular quagmire of stair flights on those first two trips, and here 1 was mounting upward with the ease and precision of an automobile with cyclometer Not only is meth cd beautiful thing, but when it is based on science. Just then Ipaused in my upward career
 T was conscious of a growing and unpleasant impression that I had passed the beginnings of at least two. perhaps three or four flights of stairs in my rapt consideration of the beau ties of method especially scientific method. I turned and went slowly down to the front, q somewhat sadden- ed. but determined man.
 I won't weary you with the ac- counts of my further attempts to make the fourth floor of that six-story house. nor of the elaborate systems I devised to make sure of my counting. I tried it four or five times more and every time I failed on account of some un- foreseen flaw in my system and finally found myself ,, panting and perspiring on the settle in the front hall thought it over carefully but could see no hope, at my present rate. of any thing but climbing up and down those ghastly stairs until was q feeble gray-bearded old man. The picture was SO sad that I got out my handker- chief and wept q little while. Then I set to thinking again, sternly. I would at least see my wife and chiI- dren again.
 "One point was as clear as mud. Tn all my trips over those stairs I had always been sure of my count up to and including two flights. It was only when l tried to mount beyond the sec ond that I plunged into dark mathe- nautical abyss. I stated this over to myself several times so there could not be any dark corners in the idea to be overlooked 1 thought some more After that 1 smiled. It's a great thing to have a scientific mind It was too easy. I was in my own bed and asleep inside of 15 minutes. You couldn't guess ill q thousand years l started upstairs again. Oh, no, didn't count every flight. simply went up. One fight-two flights three flights -I didn't know which was which and I didn't care By and by I came to the roof. It was q six-story house, as I said before. And you re- member that also said I was sure of my count as far as and including two flights? Well, I counted down two nights. went in and craWled into bed''