AZED CROSSWORD 454

CHRISTMAS BOX

1.  M. D. Laws: I may be full of seasonal largesse – being ‘Brahms’ it’s barmy getting in to steer (anag. in cox; ‘Brahms and Liszt’, rhyming slang).

2.  R. Dean: Carsmiths out on strike for holiday bonus (anag. + box).

3.  C. J. & M. P. Butler: Cram this somehow with tip of thumb into stockings? (anag. + b in sox, & lit.).

VHC (extra prizes)

H. J. Bradbury: Child before small tree holds its arms out for this (anag. in ch. box, & lit.).

R. S. Caffyn: Chocolates, said to contain assorted centres of whisky (Drambuie), Marsala etc.? (anag. of is mb rsa t, all in ‘chox’, & lit.).

Mrs M. J. Cansfield: Somehow its charms strike a note (if you’re lucky) of seasonal appreciation (anag. + box).

C. A. Clarke: Manipulating tax, rich boss could provide this losing only a little bit of money (anag. incl. m, & lit.).

Mrs M. P. Craine: Do its charms (with a capital C) strike a seasonal note? (anag. + box; do = put in order).

P. Drummond: In present chart, ‘miss’ strangely precedes ‘hit’ (anag. + box).

R. A. England: Cram this merrily with tips of silver because of Xmas (anag. + s b o X, & lit.).

P. D. Gaffey: Lay about birth, Mary’s first, with ox and ass present (anag. incl. c., M).

F. D. Gardiner: Charm boss with a kiss – it might produce this (anag. incl. X, & lit.).

J. E. Green: Present cash supply predicament besets Mrs T (one for turning?) (anag. incl. I in anag. + box; supply adv.).

J. F. Grimshaw: Child stirs uneasily when mother creeps in to head of bed with neat collection of presents (ch. + ma in anag. + b + ox).

B. Hancock: Faces of small children lit up with mirth seeing tree that holds gifts (anag. incl. s c + as box; lit up = drunk).

E. M. Holroyd: Its charm’s set off on a tree (anag. + box, & lit.).

C. H. Hudson: Yearly present rich boss with a thousand tax free! (anag. incl. M).

R. Jacks: Critic starts – B. Rix has most farcical seasonal presentation (C + anag.; ref. Brian R., farceur).

G. Johnstone: Giving it boss with charm got festive kiss (anag. + X, & lit.).

G. G. Lawrance: Special festival presentation: Variety with Mr Sachs – it can be seen on television (anag. + box; ref. Andrew S., presenter of ‘The Good Old Days’).

D. P. M. Michael: Festive season’s present, but its charm’s distorted on the telly (anag. + box).

J. D. Moore: Is present cabinet schism bar to revelling at No. 10? (anag. + X).

C. J. & R. S. Morse: Chartism’s revolutionary case was unlikely to be granted by Scrooge (anag. + box).

F. R. Palmer: What’s given when, with year virtually gone, Mary, the crib, ox and ass are displayed (comp. anag. & lit.; virtually = loosely).

T. E. Sanders: Possibly its charms will get a guy a kiss (anag. + bo + X, & lit.).

T. R. Theakston: Present it with charm and cross boss unwinds (anag. incl. X).

D. C. Williamson: Might swimming cobs ram sixth such present? (anag. & lit.; ref. ‘seven swans a-swimming’).

HC

Dr J. K. Aronson, M. Barnes, J. Beasley, E. A. Beaulah, Mrs A. Boyes, R. Brain, Rev C. M. Broun, E. J. Burge, G. H. Clarke, A. E. Crow, W. Davies, N. C. Dexter, Dr I. S. Fletcher, J. D. Foster, O. H. Frazer, A. L. Freeman, P. Freeman, S. Goldie, J. J. Goulstone, J. Grainge, G. Gregory, G. S. Halse, A. H. Harker, P. F. Henderson, V. G. Henderson, E. M. Hornby, L. W. Jenkinson, V. Jennings, J. F. Jones, A. Lawrie, P. W. W. Leach, C. Loving, L. K. Maltby, D. F. Manley, Dr A. C. McBride, Rev M. R. Metcalf, C. G. Millin, J. J. Moore, T. J. Moorey, D. S. Nagle, N. O’Neill, R. J. Palmer, M. L. Perkins, J. T. Price, D. Purdon, C. Quin, C. P. Rea, D. R. Robinson, J. H. Russell, W. J. M. Scotland, Dr W. I. D. Scott, D. P. Shenkin, T. Simm, Mrs I. G. Smith, A. J. Sobey, F. Stevens, M. J. Suckling, J. B. Sweeting, D. H. Tompsett, I. Torbe, A. P. Vincent, Mrs J. M. Waldren, M. H. E. Watson, J. Webster, Mrs J. W. Welford, W. D. Wigley, M. G. Wilson, E. G. Wren, L. C. Wright, Dr E. Young.
 

COMMENTS
By a strange coincidence there were exactly 454 entries (cf. number of puzzle), though a fair number of them contained one or more mistakes. The cause of the problem was of course Denry Machin. The commonest error was naturally Henry (though other guesses included Penry, Kenry, Tenry and even Genry) but this made it virtually impossible to account for the unchecked letters and produce plausible variations on PUDDING. Those who stuck in DISH and HASH as the variations (pretty feeble, wouldn’t you say?) and didn’t bother to check the unches against IN BURST LARYNX must surely now agree that this was a careless oversight. Those who did and concluded that I had slipped up should perhaps have thought a little harder before reaching that conclusion. Infallible I may not be but it was precisely because Arnold Bennett’s book is not now widely read (or is it?) that I gave you the extra help I did, and you may be sure that I checked the letters with particular care accordingly. What perhaps I might have done was give you the HAND, DASH variations in that order instead of in normal clue order, but I wonder how many of those who went wrong at this point can honestly say that this would have made a difference. It was perhaps extra-misleading if legitimately so, and I regret it.
 
The puzzle as a whole seems to have been of the right order of difficulty and amusement value for the Christmas season. Though it may disappoint the real wolves to hear I do not set out on such occasions to produce a puzzle which will cause much more mental torture than usual, but rather to provide an entertainment which may hold its own among all the others available to the Christmas holidaymaker. I was gratified therefore by the large number of contented comments this one provoked, and shall keep my stinkers for other, more suitable times.
 
CHRISTMAS BOX was obviously not that easy to clue effectively (though that cannot have been the reason for the handful who wilfully chose CHRISTMAS CARD or CHRISTMAS PUDDING to clue). Mr Dean’s was certainly the neatest (though see my comments in last month’s slip about neologisms), but Mr Laws just pipped him for perky humour, despite its questionable grammar. Though Chambers doesn’t specifically say so I feel sure that Christmas boxes nowadays are usually those monetary offerings made gratefully or otherwise by householders to public service employees such as milkmen, postmen or dustmen. Whether this still happens on Boxing Day itself I doubt, as such services are quite reasonably suspended on that day.
 
A very happy new year to all Azed solvers, and again my thanks for all the generous good wishes I have received. I hope that the new format and the new prizes meet with general approval. I’m quite pleased, on the whole.