An Italian workman wants a job, but the foreman won’t
hire him until he passes a little math test.
“Here’s your first question,” the foreman said.
“Without using numbers, represent the number 9.”
“Withouta numbers?” the Italian says, “Datsa easy.”
and he proceeds to draw three trees.
“What’s this?” the boss asks.
“Ave you gota no brain? Tree and tree and tree makes a
nine,” says the Italian.
“Fair enough,” says the boss. “Here’s your second
question. Use the same rules, but this time the number
is 99.”
The Italian stares into space for a while, then picks
up the picture that he has just drawn and makes a
smudge on each tree . “Ere you go.”
The boss scratches his head and says, “How on earth do
you get that to represent 99?”
“Eacha of da trees is a dirty now. So, it’s dirty
tree, and dirty tree, and dirty tree. Datsa a 99.”
The boss is getting worried that he’s going to
actually have to hire this Italian, so he says, "All
right, last question.
Same rules again, but represent the number 100."
The Italian stares into space some more, then he picks
up the picture again and makes a little mark at the
base
of each tree and says, “Ere you go. One hundred.”
The boss looks at the attempt. “You must be nuts if
you think that represents a hundred!”
The Italian leans forward and points to the marks at
the base of each tree and says,
"A little doga come along and sh!ta by eacha tree. So
now you gota dirty tree and a turd, dirty tree and a turd,
and dirty tree and a turd, data makea one hundred.
So, whenna I start?
