XIMENES CROSSWORD No. 110

LEVIGATE

1.  Maj P. S. Baines (W11): Smooth passage after a vile storm (anag. of vile + gate).

2.  D. P. M. Michael (Newport): Even an American general carries a six-shooter! (even, vb.; VI gat, in (Robert E.) Lee).

3.  J. H. Jones (Salford): Shiny? Powder well or get a veil to hide it (anag. of get a veil; 2 mngs., adj. & vb.).

H.C.

G. Bowness (N3): Sheeny, with or without the entrance, (to 149, Chatham Street?) (2 mngs.; Sheeny (offensive) = Jew = Levi; levigate = e.g. sheeny adj; ref. song, ‘Solomon Levi’).

D. H. Clayton (Aberdeen): It’s not rough—we should see the French port just after six (le (Fr.) VI gate).

J. A. Flood (Leyton): Polish Ambassador who possesses letters of introduction to Austrian Capital (Vi(enna) in legate).

A. B. Gardner (N13): Grind exceeding small, and clearly give returns, though slow about it (give (rev.) in late; “Mills of God …”, proverb; Longfellow).

D. L. Gregory (Birmingham): Solomon added a final passage to complete a polished performance (Levi, gate: ref. Solomon Levi).

S. Haycraft (Beckenham): Six-shooter (common U.S.A. model) found in shelter—no fingerprints, of course! (VI gat in lee; cryptic ref.).

L. W. Jenkinson (Bristol): Tribal chief leads ancient goat to be polished off (Tribe of Levi, goat³).

T. W. Melluish (SE24): Polish ambassador’s trapped opening letters from Vilna (Vi in legate; ref. Vilna ghetto library).

R. O’Donoghue (Westcliff): Return among the dead and turn to dust (i.e give back in late).

R. Postill (Jersey): Gad, your fellow’s got a wicket whilst the shine’s on! (Levi, gate; God; wicket gate).

A. E. Smith (Farnham Royal): Polish Jew leads disturbed days in Germany (Levi + anag. of Tage (Ger.)).

F. R. Standfast (Cirencester): A son of Jacob comes to the door to tell us what sort of man his father was (Levi, gate; Genesis 27.11, “Jacob … smooth skin”).

L. C. Wright (Selby): Fine ground, but the wicket takes a vile spin (anag. of vile + gate).

COMMENTS.—271 correct, many solutions being spoilt by one astonishing mistake—“Gemini” + “doiley” for GEMINY + DOYLEY. It was astonishing—at least to me—because it involved defiance of not one but two clues! “Sir Arthur” spelt his name DOYLE, and MINY means “rich in mines”; nor was there any suggestion of sound rather than spelling in either clue. Even if MINY is unfamiliar, nothing could be more explicit than “Look at Sir Arthur.” Incidentally, Chambers does not give the spelling “doiley,” but I did not rely on this alone at a time when some solvers might be away from their regular books. Alas! they seem sometimes to be fated to trip themselves up, however hard I try to prevent them! There were other scattered mistakes, but none occurring in more than three or four solutions and few in more than one.
 
I thought there were rather fewer good clues than usual submitted this time—hence the small number of H.C.s and also a shortish list of runners-up:—E. S. Ainley, D. Ambler, C. Allen Baker, E. F. Clayton, J. L. Crosby, J. H. Dingwall, T. C. Fitzpatrick, Maj A. H. Giles, D. Hawson, G. G. Lawrance, Mrs E. A. Mallett, E. L. Mellersh, D. G. C. Mockridge, A. C. Norfolk, E. R. Prentice, H. Rainger, D. G. Randall, A. Robins, Mrs E. Shackleton, J. A. Stafford, E. B. Stevens, Mrs A. L. Stevenson, R. G. Tate, L. E. Thomas, D. L. Tuckett, Miss C. Wallis.