AZED CROSSWORD 1113

EMPLASTRUM

1.  R. J. Hooper: Mutton and rump with salt in caper and mustard dressing, perhaps (em + anag.; ref. mustard plaster).

2.  C. R. Gumbrell: Possibly Romans put me, imbued with spot of liniment, on cut (l in anag. less on, & lit.).

3.  R. J. Palmer: Mule’s male part is out of order – when used for covering it’s sterile (anag. incl. m).

VHC

D. Appleton: Recipe: steam plum duff – or it could be put on to boil (anag. incl. r).

C. J. Brougham: Spread me splat on eruption (pus should come out) (anag. + rum(pus), & lit.).

Dr J. Burscough: Trammels wound up (anag. & lit.).

R. V. Dearden: This could have ample mustard spread around except for the edges (anag. less a, d, & lit.).

N. C. Dexter: Covering where boot’s made me rump bruised? (last in anag., & lit.).

S. Goldie: Trammels up wound (anag. & lit.).

P. F. Henderson: Lump’s treatment without external protective cover? Not so (anag. less tent, & lit.).

J. C. Leyland: Relief for wound up metals firm? Could be one if amalgamated (comp. anag.).

G. Loder: Bob Palmer and Jam play guitars for Band Aid (anag. less r + strum; bob = dock).

Mrs J. Mackie: It’s most unlikely to be included in fixed premium, given one’s wanting protective cover (last in anag. less I).

D. F. Manley: It may provide ’orrible smell after master has tumbled with pail emptying (anag. incl. p(ai)l + ’um, & lit.; ref. Jack & Jill).

P. W. Marlow: Slap me, when injured, on part of body? That’s about right! (anag. + r in tum, & lit.).

C. J. Morse: Application to check corn sample damaged by blast after cropping (anag. + trum(p)).

R. S. Morse: Measure formerly put on eruption emitting pus? (em plast rum(pus), & lit.).

R. Phillips: Trammels up wound? (anag. & lit.).

Mrs I. G. Smith: Marple must unravel what’s wrapped round wounded body (anag.).

P. L. Stone: Remedy for damaged cells – put slammer in order! (anag.; ref. Wymott jail riot).

Ms J. Ward: Quintet at centre of exemplary endeavour to play for Band-aid? ((ex)empla(ry) strum).

A. J. Wardrop: What might be changed to trammel pus? (anag. & lit.).

R. J. Whale: This does trammel pus! (anag. & lit.).

HC

C. J. Anderson, J. Baines, M. Barley, M. J. Bath, E. A. Beaulah, J. R. Beresford, Ms F. A. Blanchard, B. W. Brook, E. J. Burge, C. J. & M. P. Butler, D. Buxton, E. Chalkley, C. A. Clarke, M. Coates, M. D. Cockram, B. Cozens, G. Cuthbert, A. L. Dennis, M. Earle, V. Edkins, M. G. Elliott, P. S. Elliott, R. A. England, C. J. Feetenby, Dr I. S. Fletcher, H. Freeman, P. D. Gaffey, G. Gargan, G. A. Gerrard, G. I. L. Grafton, J. E. Green, R. R. Greenfield, J. Grimes, J. F. Grimshaw, R. Hesketh, A. Hodgson, A. Hynd, F. G. Illingworth, A. F. Ireland, Mrs D. B. Jenkinson, M. Jones, R. E. Kimmons, F. P. N. Lake, J. W. Leonard, A. Logan, E. Looby, R. K. Lumsdon, H. W. Massingham, P. J. McWeeny, H. Meltzer, J. R. C. Michie, C. G. Millin, T. J. Moorey, I. Morgan, R. A. Mostyn, J. A. O’Farrell, C. Pearson, G. Perry, Dr T. G. Powell, M. E. J. Richardson, D. Riley, W. Rodgers, M. Sanderson, N. G. Shippobotham, B. Smith, G. R. E. Spark, Ms M. Stokes, R. C. Teuton, D. H. Tompsett, J. R. Tozer, Ms B. J. Widger, D. Williamson, W. Woodruff.
 

COMMENTS
473 entries for what seems to have been a fairly straightforward puzzle. A handful had NITRIDE for NITRILE (‘ride’ being roughly synonymous with ‘rile’ in the sense of ‘needle’), but I’m not sure that nitrides are necessarily cyanides, as nitriles are. EMPLASTRUM was a nice word to clue, producing a lot of variety, but quite hard to be really original with. Many produced anagrams which included ‘plaster’: I found these uninspired since EMPLASTRUM is the Latin word from which PLASTER is derived. ‘Trammels up’ was an altogether cleverer anagram, especially with ‘wound’ waiting to complete the ‘& lit.’ formula. Interestingly, Mr Brook just failed to reach the VHCs with this clue: ‘It trammels up wound’, with the explanation that ‘wound’ is to be read as the past participle of ‘wind’. This leaves ‘it’ floating in syntactic limbo, it seems to me. A more acceptable reading of the clue’s grammar would be to take ‘wound’ as third person plural of the present tense of ‘wind’, the subject being ‘trammels up’ (plural permissible because it is a two-word phrase). ‘It’ is now the object of the verb, the whole clue reading as a sort of poetic inversion of normal word order. This is slightly forced (hence only HC) but a more convincing explanation of how the clue can work.
 
We have another new design for the puzzle, as you’ll have seen by now, in keeping with the facelift the paper as a whole has received. I hope you like it. I certainly find the magazine more dignified than it was (and therefore, dare I say, a more fitting home for the AZ puzzle). It means, I think, that any chance of our moving to one of the newspaper sections (which would I know be popular with some) can be discounted for the foreseeable future. I’ve learnt not to make long-term predictions. Please also note the Observer’s new address.