FILE No.50Unsolved
On the night of October 16, the mansion lost power. At 9:05 p.m., a report came in that the jewel kept in the study was missing.
The butler described what he did right after the power went out.
"I lit two new candles at the same time. After that, until the loss was discovered, I did not put either one out, and I did not cut or replace them."
The officer in charge looked at a photo of the study and the product sheet for the candles that were used.
From the photo and the sheet, which statement is certainly true?
If you get stuck, open the hints one at a time, in order.
Compare the new state with the state in the photo.
If both burned for the same time, which would be longer?
Is the photo in that relationship?
From the photo and the sheet, which statement is certainly true?
Choose the answer closest to the truth.
The butler’s account contradicts the state in the photo
The answer is "The butler’s account contradicts the state in the photo."
According to the product sheet, new candles of both thicknesses are the same length, and the thick one burns out in four hours, the thin one in three. So the thick candle shortens more slowly.
If he had lit new candles at the same time and let them burn untouched, the thick one should be longer. In the photo, however, the thick one is shorter and the thin one is longer. That state cannot be reconciled with the butler’s account.
But we cannot tell why it happened. Whether they were lit at different times, one was put out along the way, or one was cut, we cannot say, and we cannot identify the thief either.
Seeing both candles burning, you assume the butler’s account is fine, and do not compare how thickness changes the burn rate with the lengths in the photo.
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