An old rhyme, and problem:
"If to my age, there added be,
  One half of it, and three times three,
Four score and seven my age will be.
How old am I, pray tell me ?” 

Options

A. 52 years
B. 50 years
C. 48 years
D. 54 years

Answer

To solve the problem step by step, we will first translate the rhyme into a mathematical equation.

### Step 1: Define the variable
Let the age be represented by \( x \).

### Step 2: Translate the rhyme into an equation
According to the rhyme:
- "If to my age, there added be" means we will add something to \( x \).
- "One half of it" means \( \frac{1}{2}x \).
- "Three times three" means \( 3 \times 3 = 9 \).
- "Four score and seven" means \( 4 \times 20 + 7 = 80 + 7 = 87 \).

Putting this all together, we can write the equation as:
\[ x + \frac{1}{2}x + 9 = 87 \]

### Step 3: Combine like terms
To combine \( x \) and \( \frac{1}{2}x \), we can express \( x \) as \( \frac{2}{2}x \):
\[ \frac{2}{2}x + \frac{1}{2}x + 9 = 87 \]
This simplifies to:
\[ \frac{3}{2}x + 9 = 87 \]

### Step 4: Isolate the variable term
Next, we subtract 9 from both sides:
\[ \frac{3}{2}x = 87 - 9 \]
\[ \frac{3}{2}x = 78 \]

### Step 5: Solve for \( x \)
To eliminate the fraction, multiply both sides by \( \frac{2}{3} \):
\[ x = 78 \times \frac{2}{3} \]
Calculating this gives:
\[ x = \frac{156}{3} = 52 \]

### Conclusion
Thus, the age is \( x = 52 \) years.