Henry Ernest Dudeney/Puzzles and Curious Problems/349 - Releasing the Stick

Puzzles and Curious Problems by Henry Ernest Dudeney: $349$

Releasing the Stick

Here is a puzzle that will often cause a good deal of bewilderment amongst your friends,

though it is not so generally known as it deserves to be.

I think it was invented by the late Sam Loyd, the American chess and puzzle genius.

It is simply a loop of string passed through one end of a stick as here shown, but not long enough to pass round the other end.

The puzzle is to suspend it in the manner shown from the top hole of a man's coat, and then get it free again.

Sources

• 1932: Henry Ernest Dudeney: Puzzles and Curious Problems ... (previous) ... (next): Unclassified Problems: $349$. -- Releasing the Stick
• 1968: Henry Ernest Dudeney: 536 Puzzles & Curious Problems ... (previous) ... (next): Unclassified Puzzles: $530$. Releasing the Stick