AZED CROSSWORD 552

NOURICE-FEE

1.  N. C. Dexter: Tip for effective cure if one’s ill (anag. incl. e, & lit.).

2.  N. O’Neill: ‘Our Nice Improved Fairy Soap For That Tender Loving Care!’ (anag. + fée; soap = money).

3.  A. D. Scott: The outcome of delicate cuddling of us by charge? (our in nice + fee, & lit.).

VHC

C. Allen Baker: Nightingale’s due … cue for one to get camouflaged with evening about to close in (anag. in den (rev.); Florence N.).

Dr J. K. Aronson: Florence’s due? I supply missing Lsd (anag. less Lsd, & lit.; F. Nightingale; supply adv.).

M. Barley: Terms of the nurse – no cure if not settled? (anag. incl. e e; terms = ends).

Mrs K. Bissett: Entitlement for one involved in possible cure – in charge of N.H.S. Hospital beds maybe (I in anag. in no fee, & lit.).

E. J. Burge: Giving treatment to cure one (with NHS provision) – that has been nurse’s reward (anag. incl. I in no fee).

A. Gargan: Disgraceful! E.E.C. ruin of English milk price (anag. + E).

Mrs S. Hewitt: What Sairey Gamp deserved? Nothing, if cure bungled – in want endlessly (0 + anag. all in nee(d); ref. M. Chuzzlewit).

A. H. Jones: ‘E’en for écu I worked’: very old COHSE member’s claim? (anag.).

F. P. N. Lake: What’ll benefit tender skin, all but worked away with the hard water we have? Fairy! ((ski)n our ice fée).

M. D. Laws: Old English cure’s fine, for treatment (anag. incl. OE, & lit.; fine = fee).

M. A. Macdonald-Cooper: Sou finally for time in refection contrived at end of nipple? (anag. with u for t + e, & lit.).

D. F. Manley: Modern —— being unsettled leaves more in need of cure (comp. anag. & lit.; ref. nurses’ pay dispute).

S. M. Mansell: First indications of early industrial unrest enforce revised pay for nursing services (anag. incl. e i u; ref. nurses’ pay dispute).

J. J. Moore: Fierce one, swinging wildly, catches middle of stump: this is still bedevilling Fowler (u in anag.; ref. nurses’ pay dispute, Norman F., Health Sec., and Graham F.).

C. J. Morse: After negative vote, original freeze ends with fairy money for health service (no + ur-ice + fée; ref. nurses’ pay dispute).

F. Moss: Fierce struggles with NUPE, losing power and gaining nothing. Is this what nurses claim? (0 in anag. less P; ref. nurses’ pay dispute and union).

R. A. Mostyn: This is no cure, I feel left out, feverish – what I’d give for Miss Nightingale (anag. less l; Florence N.).

B. A. Pike: Wanting L.s.d., Florence’s due one, when working (anag. incl. I less Lsd, & lit.; F. Nightingale).

D. R. Robinson: Charge made by full-breasted neighbour’s wife, possibly. That’s our fence getting broken! (anag. incl. i.e.).

B. Roe: After working, this LSD is due Florence, perhaps (comp. anag. & lit.; F. Nightingale).

W. K. M. Slimmings: ’Twas this L.s.d. that made up Florence’s due, was it? (comp. anag. & lit.; F. Nightingale).

Dr E. Young: L.s.d. that might have been due Florence is (comp. anag. & lit.; F. Nightingale).

HC

R. Abrey, J. C. Barnes, E. W. Burton, C. J. & M. P. Butler, R. S. Caffyn, P. R. Clemow, Mrs M. P. Craine, Mrs J. M. Critchley, D. A. Crossland, C. M. Edmunds, C. E. Faulkner-King, Dr I. S. Fletcher, F. D. Gardiner, N. W. Harris, P. F. Henderson, G. B. Higgins, J. P. H. Hirst, C. H. Hudson, J. F. Jones, G. Leversha, J. D. Lockett, R. K. Lumsdon, L. May, C. G. Millin, J. J. Murtha, D. S. Nagle, R. F. Naish, F. R. Palmer, R. J. Palmer, W. H. Pegram, D. Price Jones, R. F. Ray, E. R. Riddle, H. R. Sanders, L. G. D. Sanders, T. E. Sanders, W. J. M. Scotland, C. I. Semeonoff, R. A. Sladden, B. D. Smith, T. A. J. Spencer, B. Stuart, F. B. Stubbs, J. G. Stubbs, W. H. Thorne, D. H. Tompsett, A. Turner, P. J. Wexler, D. O. Williams, M. G. Williams, W. Woodruff.
 

COMMENTS
Just under 400 entries, very few mistakes. TETES and MIASM appear to have given a certain amount of trouble, though I can’t really see why. The former (‘Poll for Thatcher? See two of them arranged here (at least)’) was intended to suggest, misleadingly, opinion polls, but referred in fact to the PM’s famous sculptured coiffure; the latter (‘How disapproving mou’ looks, when pursed – with this under nose?’) was simply AS ‘pursed’ inside MIM (qv.) – not too far – fetched, surely?
 
The clue-word was a tricky one. Everyone was agreed on that. I had intended a topical reference for once of course, expecting the pay dispute involving nurses to be still continuing (the puzzle having been compiled at least 4 months before its appearance in print). But its structure and assembly of letters imposed limitations on the number of ways in which it could be imaginatively clued. If 1 had taken a rigid position on its obsoleteness (last quotation in the OED circa 1750), insisting that this be indicated in clues, most of the good entries would have been rejected (including all those Nightingales!), so I didn’t, though such borderline decisions are always difficult. A number of careful competitors insisted that the word can only really apply to a wet-nurse in view of its etymology. On the evidence of OED (my ultimate authority always) this is not so. The wider meaning of nurse (not simply that of ‘nourisher’) had coloured its usage long before it fell from view (sadly, I think there is no other simple word that has replaced it in common use. Too long for the headline writers of today, I dare say.)
 
Enough for now. I’m pushed for time this month. On the next slip I’ll try to give more comments on unsuccessful clues – it’s some time since I last did this. Finally, reactions to my advance notification of forthcoming specials are on balance adverse. Most prefer not to know. So let it be.