Ximenes Competition No. 153 Ximenes Slip | ◀ 152 | 154 ▶ | Other competitions
| No. | Date | Clue word | Clue type | Clues |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 153 | Nov 1950 | SAMISENS | normal | 19 |
| Award | Clue writer | Clue | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| First | S. B. Green | A flat be obtained from us if you want it without being broke by the expenditure! | mise in sans; flat = note |
| Second | F. E. Newlove | Gutlessness (or lack of pluck) makes us ineffective: all our players are yellow! | cryptic def.; i.e. gut strings, yellow-skinned |
| Third | Mrs L. Jarman | We make Japanese pling-plong racket, unsuitable for English ball | cryptic def.; cf. ping pong |
| HC | F. E. Chappell | These oriental instruments are hardly used “in masses” and seldom in “fugues and ops.” | anag.; ref. Mikado’s song |
| HC | J. C. Chavasse | Getting the wind up won’t evoke any response from these highly-strung Asiatics—but pluck will! | cryptic def. |
| HC | G. N. Collins | We are suppliers of oriental music. French buyers may write without enclosing a deposit | mise in sans (Fr.) |
| HC | F. L. Constable | Wanting to take in a present to the Superior, did the three little maids from school pluck these? | mise in sans; ref. The Mikado |
| HC | Mrs D. M. D’Eath | Friends in a way to our near allies, but Japanese are heard to be in touch with them | amis in sens (Fr.) |
| HC | M. G. Ellis | The string section for the “Mikado” is in the same new style | is in same + NS |
| HC | Mrs N. Fisher | The “It” girl held most of the men, but Bow wouldn’t touch our chords! | SA + (m)en in miss; ref. Clara Bow, film star |
| HC | Maj A. H. Giles | String ’em up! Get ’em by the neck! A sharp twist and the Japs may change their tune! | cryptic def. |
| HC | Dr D. S. M. Imrie | They’re good plucked ’uns to play without outside-half, injured | anag. of semi in sans |
| HC | C. Koop | Messina’s tremors shown by recording instruments in Tokyo | anag.; ref. Sicilian city destroyed by earthquake in 1908 |
| HC | G. M. Mercer | Yum-Yum thought these were Marine Parades—strange confusion for otherwise sane miss | anag.;. ref. The Mikado, Act I |
| HC | C. J. Morse | The Japanese enjoy their music without limiting expenditure | mise in sans |
| HC | Mrs M. G. Porter | Nips give them guts and they are consequently well plucked | cryptic def.; Nips (offensive) = Japanese; gut strings |
| HC | R. Postill | Cultivated in masses—and plucked with “The flowers that bloom in the Spring”? | anag.; ref. song in The Mikado |
| HC | Mrs E. Richards | These little men play with pluck | cryptic def.; Japanese thought of as small |
| HC | J. S. Young | They might go for a song if you know how to pull the strings—without involving expenditure | mise in sans |
Runners-Up in competition 153: