XIMENES CROSSWORD No. 898

POCHARD

1.  J. F. N. Wedge (Carshalton): I dive, in case there is a fish! (char in pod).

2.  E. J. Rackham (Totton): The fish in the case happens to be a bird! (char in pod).

3.  C. Allen Baker (Milnathort): Fowl, no doubt? Better try fish, too, just in case… (but surely not good red herring!) (char in pod).

V.H.C.

R. B. Adcock (SE12): Kind of loom in which ball of thread travels backwards to fullest extent (cop (rev.) + hard; loom = loon²).

T. Anderson (Folkestone): I take a dive and appear with fish in belly (char in pod).

F. D. H. Atkinson (Claygate): Belly full of fish—fond of a low dive—and poker—that’s me! (char in pod; poker, s.v. pochard).

Mrs K. Bissett (Jersey): Is a duck a duck and a fish? There must be a bit of Printer’s Devilry about! (0 char in P. D.).

Mrs W. A. Clegg (Weston-super-Mare): Duck, or you’ll have to do an odd job or two in school (char in pod).

P. R. Clemow (W5): Flat-foot in retreat by waterside bank. That could be me (cop (rev.) + hard, noun).

P. M. Coombs (Burgess Hill): Being pretty wet, if not actually fish-faced, you should get the bird daily in school (char in pod; being, noun).

N. C. Dexter (Market Harborough): Hull? Labour in—its poll takes a steep dive (char in pod; ref. cup replay on polling day).

J. A. Fincken (Bexley): This bird ain’t a fish—except in a certain school (char in pod).

F. D. Gardiner (Halifax): Close goes after returning catch, for a duck (cop (rev.) + hard, advb.; ref. Brian C.).

R. R. Greenfield (Uxbridge): One of the divers fish inhabiting a shell (char in pod).

R. E. Kimmons (Kettering): One of the divers fish in a shoal (char in pod).

A. Lawrie (Cheltenham): It has (and sounds like!) one of those beaks fine for foraging (‘poacher ‘; one pron).

J. H. C. Leach (NW3): Just see me dive for fish in a shoal! (char in pod).

L. F. Leason (Liverpool): Dippy red-head gets daily hiding in school (char in pod).

Mrs B. Lewis (E. Molesey): Strike a chord with the gentle character in Peter Pan, Smee (anag. incl. p; smee = pochard).

C. J. Morse (SW10): Bird that might be clued as fish if included among a number of aquatic creatures like whales! (char in pod).

D. J. Short (SE10): I take a dip, returning with fish inside (char in dop (rev.), & lit.; dop = dip).

E. B. Sterens (Morden): You’ll find him daily in the swimming school—a natural born diver (char in pod).

H.C.

Miss V. K. Abrahams, R. Abrey, D. B. J. Ambler, C. Anderson, W. G. Arnott, Mrs P. C. Barclay, Mrs D. Barker, A. J. Barnard, J. W. Bates, P. F. Bauchop, R. T. Baxter, E. A. Beaulah, T. E. Bell, E. C. Bingham, J. C. Brash, Rev C. M. Broun, E. J. Burge, Mrs M. P. Craine, A. E. Crow, A. L. Dennis, F. E. Dixon, J. H. Eyre, G. E. Fallows, D. R. Forster, J. M. Gerard, K. Gibson, J. Gill, S. Goldie, P. S. Haynes, N. L. Hindley, A. L. Jeffery, C. Jones, Capt G. Langham, M. A. Lassman, A. F. Lerrigo, H. Lyon, Dr T. J. R. Maguire, Mrs E. McFee, Mrs L. A. Mendez, C. G. Millin, W. L. Miron, T. J. Moorey, P. H. Morgan, V. R. S. Mott, M. Newman, Flt Lt L. W. G. Oxley, N. O’Neill, Miss M. J. Patrick, E. G. Phillips, R. Postill, G. H. Ravenor, T. E. Sanders, Dr W. I. D. Scott, A. H. Seville, W. K. M. Slimmings, Miss E. M. Smith, L. H. Stewart, J. B. Sweeting, J. W. Taylor, H. S. Tribe, B. J. Wain, Mrs M. P. Webber, C. E. Williams.
 

COMMENTS:—Just under 300 entries, hardly any mistakes. I expect the number of entries was much reduced by my absurd blunder. I simply didn’t look it up: I must, I think, have been thinking of pilchard, as one or two solvers suggested. I was touched by the faith in my infallibility of those who imagined it was a “poisson d’avril”! The date wasn’t quite right, and it would have been a rather feeble idea—though not, perhaps, as feeble as the mind of the perpetrator of the mistake. I’m no more infallible than anyone else, though I have never committed this particular blunder before, and I sincerely hope I never shall again. The comment I liked best of all came from a competitor who wrote “How human! All is forgiven.” Several competitors made good use of the blunder in their clues: I particularly liked the neatness and brevity of the first two prizewinners, whom I found hard to separate.
 
No more for now, except to tell you that the publication of my book on crosswords—I almost ought to withdraw it after this effort !—has been deferred till late in June.