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2. See cub maul ram dreadfully – a bit of an
urchin AMBULACRUM
(anag.) The
wordplay isn’t too difficult to work out, but the definition is terrific. The
ambulacrum is part of a sea-urchin’s feet.
3. They settle disputes when accepting cases ACAS (ca. in
as)
The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service
is better known by its initials than its full name.
13. Anglican community in fling – it’s
associated with St
Anthony T-CROSS (CR in toss) The T-cross or tau cross is one of the symbols
of St Anthony the
Great of Egypt. CR denotes the Anglican Community of
the Resurrection, founded in the 19th century.
14. Active teen exercised on one ETNEAN (anag.
+ an) ‘Active’ seemed a little
loose as a synonym for the solution, which refers to any attribute of Mt Etna, but it is probably
the most important one from a practical point of view, and it builds the clue’s
surface nicely.
16. Child I kept in to learn GEIT (I in get) The solution is found
under ‘get’ in Chambers as a Scots
variant of ‘git’, specifically as a derogatory reference to a child. Dr Watson
initially entered CION, a variant of ‘scion’ that also fits the wordplay (I in
con), but the checking letters quickly ruled it out.
22. Going back, Descartes inspires reverence –
I’m impatient for last chapter END-READER (dread in René, rev.) One of those things you maybe never knew
there was a word for, a reader who sneaks a peek at the ending of a book. Readers
picking up the works of René Descartes
might well be tempted to skip the middle bits.
30. Second string (from below) in settlement
pharaoh left unfinished PARAMESE (pa Ramese(s))
Several definitions may need
explanation here. The settlement is pa2 in Chambers, a Maori word.
One of the many Rameses of
ancient Egypt provides the rest of the charade. Chambers indicates that a paramese is the
string in a lyre above the middle one rather than the bottom.
33. Menial Japanese displays this skin disease?
TINEA (i.e. eta2 = T in EA) Solvers
could be excused for failing to completely explain the clue, which is ‘reverse
cryptic’, the solution being interpreted as wordplay. An eta is a Japanese of
the lowest social rank.
3. Err with maid getting knocked up? Did the
honest thing maybe
MARRIED (anag.) An amusing surface, though perhaps belonging
to earlier era.
7. Taxis for lawyers excessive RANK (2 mngs.) ‘Rank’ is a legal term
meaning excessive as an amount of money. In relation to fees, though, the equivalent
term is probably ‘the going rate’.
8. Outdated matrices you’ll find computer is
holding UTERI
(hidden) Regular
solvers of this sort of cryptic will possibly have come across ‘matrix’ before
as an obsolete name for the uterus.
18. Subject taking walk round eastern North America AMENABLE (E
NA in amble) Liable
or subject to is a less familiar meaning of the solution.
21. Mice run all over the place just the same
as before NUMERIC
(anag.) ‘Identical’
is given as an old meaning under ‘numeric’ in Chambers, though Dr Watson suspects it would only apply to
‘numerical’, which shares the same headword.
26. Scotch to impress? Father maybe refusing a second PRENT
(p(a)rent)
Impress here is used in the sense of print.
29. Showjumping obstacle?
One in the ring maybe missing first OXER ((b)oxer) The last word ironically went missing in the
online version of the puzzle, but it shouldn’t have caused too much difficulty.
Other solutions:
Across: 11. KATTI (TT in kai; see catty); 15. IRRITANT (I + rit in rant); 17.
TAJINE (anag.);
19. ORNAMENTS (men in anag.); 25. PAPISM (PA + is in PM); 28. AMAH (ma in a, h); 31. RHEXIS (hex in sir, rev.); 32. IBERIS (Iberi(an)s); 34. HILI ((Prince) (P)hili(p)); 35. STRINGENCY (anag.
less e).
Down: 1. FATIGUE PARTY
(fatigue + party); 2.
ACCREW (cr. in ace w); 4. UPSTARES (up +
E in stars); 5. LASAGNA (sag2
in lana); 6.
ANENT (hidden); 9. KINAESTHESIS (anag.); 12. TAUNT (n
in taut); 20. ADORING (ado + ring); 23. NASHI (ash in NI); 24. EASILY (anag.
in (th)ey); 27. MASON.