jmc

Let the price of a pen be $x$ and the price of a pencil be $y$, in cents. We can use the following system of equations to represent the information given: $$\begin{array}{rl}4x+3y& =224,\\ 2x+5y& =154.\end{array}$$We can subtract the first equation from twice the second equation to obtain $7y=84$, so $y=12$. Therefore, the cost of a pencil is $\boxed{12}$ cents.