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Berber horsemen
Ikani
01/24/01 at 05:15:24
Assalamu alaikum everyone :), My father has this old Maths riddles book at home and I just remembered one of my favourites. Can't remember the exact words, but it was something like: A Brit in some Arab country got bored one day and whilst relaxing in a desert oasis thought of a way to cheer himself up. He got 2 Berber horsemen and told them he wanted them to participate in a horse race to entertain him. The winner of the race would be given some pieces of gold as a reward. The catch was this: the winner of the race would be the one whose horse came last across the finish line. The agreed and soon, both of the horsemen were doing their best to hold their horses back inorder to come last in the race, but it seemed an impossible task to accomplish. They may as well have had them stay still and not move but even that didn't work. Frustrated, they confronted the Brit and complained bitterly to him for trying to make fools of them. He calmed them down and suggested something else to do. Same catch to the race. Soon the horsemen were racing at top speed towards the finish line and the Brit gave the gold pieces to the first one across the line. So, what exactly did he tell them to do?

Re: Berber horsemen
BrKhalid
01/24/01 at 06:08:26
Asalaamu Alaikum  :) I have absolutely no idea but aren't those Brits real scallywags at times :D I mean what kind of a line is "A Brit in some Arab country got bored one day and whilst relaxing in a desert oasis thought of a way to cheer himself up"? Too funny :)

Re: Berber horsemen2
Ikani
01/24/01 at 07:42:36
Wa alaikum salaam, Scallywags? No comment... 'fore some Brit finds me one day and goes "'Ey, what you got against scallywaggin', eh mate?". Did/have you get/gotten the answer to the riddle yet? Keep trying, it's quite easy (probably the easiest in that old book).

Re: Berber horsemen
Insaaf
01/24/01 at 09:51:14
Assalamu alaikum,  subhannAllah, this is so wierd, i havent posted anything in the longest time, but when i read this riddle, i couldnt resist :)  anyway, the answer is as follows:  the two men would have to switch horses, so that they are riding each other's horse.  then, they would race as fast as they could, so that the winner can cross the line, but in reality, if that person crosses over the finish line first, its really HIS horse that won, because it ended up being second. sorry if it sounds confusing, but I tried :) salamu alaikum soumaya

Re: Berber horsemen
jannah
01/24/01 at 10:14:59
wow insaaf you're smart!!!

Re: Berber horsemen
Insaaf
01/24/01 at 11:07:40
Assalamu alaikum,  Jazaki Allahu khairan jannah.  actually, when i was younger, i heard this before, brother Abdunnasser! :).. (you know him jannah) but i forgot it and so this one took me a while to figure out.  maybe we can try another one?? :)

Re: Berber horsemen
bhaloo
01/24/01 at 11:27:38
slm What's a scallywagg?

Re: Berber horsemen
BrKhalid
01/24/01 at 12:26:29
Asalaamu Alaikum  :) [quote]What's a scallywagg? [/quote] bhaloo I'm struggling to think of its American counterpart ??? [quote]"'Ey, what you got against scallywaggin', eh mate?".[/quote] Ikani ~ That's a mighty fine accent you have there :)

Re: Berber horsemen
se7en
01/24/01 at 13:59:56
insaaf you couldn't resist huh :) br. abdulnasser!  (he was our weekend school islam teacher back in the day)  I remember this joke he told us... there was this Muslim guy who trained his horse to respond to certain commands, like "subhanAllah" meant he should stop, "alhamdulillah" meant to go... I don't remember how the whole joke went, except at the end the man is at the edge of a cliff on the horse, and then he goes, "whew, alhamdulillah!" hehehe memories :)  good to see you posting insaaf :) wasalaam.

Re: Berber horsemen
Insaaf
01/24/01 at 21:42:55
Assalamu alaikum,  se7en, thats the joke, the part that made if funny was the fact that brother Abdunnaser couldnt tell it without bursting into laughter during it, that was the funniest.  subhannAllah, some memories will never be lost :)    anyway, isnt a scallywag a trickster, a conniving little sneak, like a weasle type of person? thats what i thought, no offense to Ikani :)

Re: Berber horsemen
Asim
01/25/01 at 00:19:04
Assalaamu alaikum, [quote]What's a scallywagg? bhaloo I'm struggling to think of its American counterpart ???[/quote] According to the Oxford English dictionary scallywag originated in America. Here is the complete listing :) Scallywag, Scallawag slang or colloq. (orig. U.S.).      1. A disreputable fellow; a good-for-nothing; a scapegrace, blackguard; in Trade Union slang, a man who will not work. Also attrib.  1848 BARTLETT Dict. Amer., Scalawag, a favorite epithet in western New York for a mean fellow; a scape-grace. 1855 HALIBURTON Nature I. 112 You good-for-nothing young scallowag. 1885 G. B. SHAW Let. 4 Sept. (1965) I. 138 Any socialist of the plentiful ‘scallawag’ type. 1893 LELAND Mem. II. 178 There are so many scallawags from the East come here, that we are obliged to be a little particular. 1891 Labour Commission Gloss., Scalliwags, an opprobrious term, equal to scamp or villain, applied to men who will not work. 1926 Glasgow Herald 10 Sept. 11 Go back to your scallywag union. 1957 Listener 17 Oct. 608/2 Voyez, that rather scallywag wanderer who was dismissed by Wedgwood.  2. An impostor or intriguer, esp. in politics; in U.S. Hist., a native white of the southern states who was willing to accept the reconstructionary measures. Also attrib.  1862 Charleston (S. Carolina) Mercury 9 Aug. 1/3 This invaluable class is composed..of ten parts of unadulterated Andy Johnson Union men, ten of good lord and good devil-ites, five of spuss and seventy-five of scallowags. 1864 SALA in Daily Tel. 27 Sept., The councilmen too often belong to the comprehensive genus ‘scallywag’. They have intrigued and speechified, and stumped their ward. 1867 Nation (N.Y.) 12 Dec. 470/1 The Macon News has to print in full the names of thirteen persons..described (as having ‘voted the Scalawag ticket’). 1879 TOURGEE Fool's Err. (1883) 111/25. 1885 Times (weekly ed.) 29 May 12 Our correspondent tells us that the new system [i.e. of Mental Healing] has not yet fallen into the hands of the ‘Scalawags’. 1886 Forum Apr. 128 Then came the absurd process called Reconstruction, with its swarm of leeches, carpet-baggers and Scalawags. 1888 J. BRYCE Amer. Commonwealth II. II. xliv. 164 A group of such ‘scallawag’ members..increase their legislative income.  3. U.S. A name for undersized or ill-conditioned cattle. (Perhaps the original use of the word.)  1854 New York Tribune (Cattle Rep.) 24 Oct. (Cent. Dict.), The number of miserable ‘scallawags’ is so great that..they tend to drag down all above themselves to their own level. 1868 Daily News 18 Sept., Wade Hampton explained the origin of the term..by saying that ‘scalawag’ was the name applied by drovers to lean and ill-favoured kine.  Hence scallywaggery, (a) roguery, (b) political opportunism; scallywagism = scallywaggery (a); scallywagging vbl. n., ppl. a.  1897 Daily News 9 Dec. 7/1 The stages of accumulating merit for the fighting man, as Lord Charles gives them, appear to be first robbing orchards, next hatred of a life at the desk, and finally scallywagism. Ibid., Robbing orchards and general scallywaggery is not within them [sc. disqualifications for military service]. 1911 H. S. HARRISON Queed iv. 45 The morning Post was an old paper... It had crucified carpet-baggism and scalawaggery upon a cross of burning adjective. 1915 W. J. LOCKE Jaffery xii. 158 He was fed up with scalliwagging all over the place. He wanted a season in town! 1962 Punch 9 May 735/1 Wilkes is worth writing about..for all his scallywaggery. 1977 Times 18 Aug. 6/1 Mr. Frank Johnson..has unimpeachable credentials as a civil rights defender. Governor George Wallace of Alabama once denounced him as ‘a scallywaggin', integratin', carpet-baggin' liar’.

Accent
Ikani
01/25/01 at 03:11:20
Assalamu alaikum, YOU GUYS POST FAST! YES, THE ANSWER'S THAT THEY SWITCHED HOSRES. Okay, so now who has another horse joke or riddle? Took a while to post this 'cos I'm still recovering from a bout with malaria. Like the accent BrKhalid? Thanks, I love learning accents (Scottish's the next target - Braw accent but givin' me some wee li'l problems. Ach well...).
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