A man owned a fox A duck And a bag of corn One day he was on

A man owned a fox. A duck. And a bag of corn. One day he was on the bank of a river, where there was a boat only large enough for him to cross with one of his possessions. If he left the fox and duck alone. The fox would eat the duck. If he left the duck and the corn alone, the duck would eat the corn. How did he get safely across the river with all three of his possessions?

Solution

Cross with the duck, leaving the fox and the corn behind. These two wont eat each other! Leave the duck on the east bank, and return alone. Cross with the fox. Return to the west bank bringing the duck back with you - you don\'t want to leave it alone with the fox as fox can eat the duck. Leave the duck on the west bank again, and cross with the corn. Leave the fox and corn on the east bank, and return alone. Finally, pick up the duck, and cross back. You are now on the east bank, with the fox, duck and corn.