Ernst Eduard Kummer (1810–1893), a German algebraist, was rather poor at arithmetic. Whenever he had occasion to do simple arithmetic in class, he would get his students to help him. Once he had to find 7 x 9.
"Seven times nine," he began, "Seven times nine is er -- ah --- ah -- seven times nine is. . . ."
"Sixty-one," a student suggested. Kummer wrote 61 on the board.
"Sir," said another student, "it should be sixty-nine."
"Come, come, gentlemen, it can't be both," Kummer exclaimed. "It must be one or the other."
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