1
Initially Alex, Betty, and Charlie had a total of \(444\) peanuts. Charlie
had the most peanuts, and Alex had the least. The three numbers of
peanuts that each person had formed a geometric progression. Alex eats
\(5\) of his peanuts, Betty eats \(9\) of her peanuts, and Charlie eats \(25\)
of his peanuts. Now the three numbers of peanuts each person has forms
an arithmetic progression. Find the number of peanuts Alex had
initially.