Correct Answer: 31,712 Toots

James L. Farley, 1942 class secretary and newsman on the staff of the Claremont (N. H.) Daily Eagle, recently held up the presses while The New York Times and the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin questioned his arithmetic. In a story picked up by the Associated Press, Farley had stated that the citizens of Claremont, thanks to their bitter protests leveled at the Boston and Maine for incessant whistlings of trains at town crossings, could count on 31,712 fewer toots in 1952 than had been heard in 1951. Both the Times and Bulletin figured this to be a few toots too many, and asked for an explanation.

Mr. Farley upheld his computations in the following spirited defense which appeared in the December 8 edition of TheNew York Times:

"Now, then. Under the old, or unfettered, train tooting, on weekdays there were three trains traversing five crossings two times each day and blowing their whistles four times for each spanning operation. That makes 120 toots a day. Right?

"On Sunday, old system, there was one train, five crossings, each twice, with four toots per crossing. For Sundays, we then get forty toots.

"For the new system, on weekdays, there will be three trains, only four crossings this time (no, they haven't ripped out one crossing—the trains don't have to toot at all at one of them now), each to be navigated twice, one toot per time. That makes twenty-four toots per weekday, new system.

"Sundays, new system (you still with us, TIMES? Bulletin?), one train, four crossings, twice each, one toot, equals eight toots per Sunday.

"Difference between the old system, weekdays (120 toots) and the new system (twenty-four toots), is ninety-six toots. Ninety-six less each weekday, that is. The Sunday difference—forty toots minus eight toots—is thirty-two toots.

"If you'll quickly multiply the 313 weekdays each year by the ninety-six less toots each weekday, you'll find you have 30,048 less weekday toots per year. The fifty-two Sundays of the year times the thirty-two less toots each Sabbath gives you 1,664 less Sunday toots per year. Adding the two together, 30,048 and 1,664, gives you our original figure of 31,712.

"There now, you understand?"

The Times conceded: "You're darn too tin'."