XIMENES CROSSWORD No. 703

SCAPEMENT

1.  W. H. Pegram (Enfield): I’m very close to the verge: a false step can put me in! (me in anag.; verge of clock).

2.  F. E. Newlove (SE9): What keeps both hunter and hunted going? (2 mngs.; hunter watch).

3.  S. Barnett (Glasgow): Vacillating Prime Minister can‘t see a way out of difficulties (anag. incl. PM).

H.C.

A. R. Chandler (Shinfield): First stages of acid pollution in root casing follow sweet-eating in infancy, causing teeth to break away in time (s + a, p in cement).

S. Goldie (Enfield): You will take ten paces, Monsieur—agitated? Yes, I see the seconds are on time with the revolvers! (anag. incl. M).

S. B. Green (NW10): Quiet old uncle in short coat allows only moderate advance for timepiece (p eme in scant).

Mrs E. McFee (Rhos-on-Sea): Do I let the teeth go in a turnip? Yes—Mac‘s neep, mashed, suits me to a T (anag. plus T; turnip (old sl.) = watch).

T. W. Melluish (SE24): The seconds require this arrangement, Monsieur, ten paces each way (Both considerably shaken!) (anag. + anag. incl. M).

D. P. M. Michael (Newport): In short, little physical exercise attracts me, but I’m certainly not long in the tooth! (PE me in scant).

P. H. Morgan (Torquay): An outburst—viz. chaps in a huff (sc. + men in a pet).

C. J. Morse (SW10): Chronometric device could expose a hundred Piltdown types hidden in half-jest (C apemen in (je)st; ref. Oakley’s fluorine test).

R. Postill (Jersey): Another tooth gone! It happens regularly to me, a Special Constable, with chaps in a temper (SC + men in a pet).

Mrs J. Robertson (W5): De temps en temps ça change (anag. & lit.).

A. Robins (Manchester): Pa’s cement mixer makes a tooth come out at each vibration (anag.).

T. L. Strange (Colwyn Bay): My union job in the works helps to drive the hands twenty-four hours a day! (P.S. A cement works!) (anag.; work (vb. intrans) = to be agitated).

Miss D. W. Taylor (Worthing): Old Uncle, surrounded by miscellaneous pants &c., second hand clocks, and the like, won’t give tick when I’m broke—barbarous! (eme in anag.; uncle = pawnbroker, barbarous = ungrammatical).

RUNNERS-UP

Lt Col P. S. Baines, C. Allen Baker, E. A. Beaulah, Capt A. S. Birt, R. Brain, Rev C. M. Broun, C. O. Butcher, Cdr H. H. L. Dickson, W. Eite, C. E. Gates, E. Gomersall, F. G. Illingworth, V. Jennings, A. H. Jones, L. Joyce, Miss J. S. Lumsden, W. L. Miron, M. Newman, E. G. Phillips, Maj J. N. Purdon, W. Rodgers, T. E. Sanders, R. E. Scraton, W. K. M. Slimmings, R. J. Steel, F. T. Walton, C. E. Williams.
 

COMMENTS:—210 entries, 165 correct: the 4-letter words, and especially REND, caused a good deal of difficulty. The definition part of the clue to REND, “Renders this”—i.e. renders rend—follows the normal convention that “this" may stand for the required word: it is certainly elusive in its extreme simplicity, but I don’t think its fairness can be questioned.
 
There were varied reactions to my remarks about difficulty in the last slip. Many said they were glad to hear that others too had found recent puzzles harder: some said they welcomed this toughness and besought me not to become easier, others made no further comment, very few said they wanted the puzzles easier. What of those who didn’t, or couldn’t enter? It is hard to know just what to do for the best. Perhaps I shall try to follow, the advice of one who wrote “Why not leave some as difficult as possible and make some a bit easier?”
 
Some excellent clues were sent in, but I thought the general standard a little below average. One clue especially calls for comment, Mrs. Robertson’s. This involves a point which often crops up in “& lit.” clues. Read in its entirety as a definition, the clue is perfect—From time to time this changes. But when one reads it for the anagram, the words “De temps” are left stranded, contributing nothing useful: they form no idiomatic phrase and simply mean “of time”, which is meaningless. This really invalidates the clue; but I can’t withhold an H.C. from such a neat and brilliant effort, which would be a clear prize winner without this weakness. Many anagram clues involving cement were, I think, weakened by leaving too many letters in the right order: the one I liked best gets an H.C. The same weakness applied to several users of space-men. In short, I don’t think it was a very easy word to treat successfully: all the more credit to those who did succeed.