AZED CROSSWORD 53

ALEXANDERS

1.  H. W. Massingham: A worthy original ingredient of salads? (Alexander + s, & lit.; Nine Worthies).

2.  P. M. Newey: Herb flirts with Alex instead of Phil (philanders with alex for phil).

3.  E. A. Beaulah: I used to follow the tarts of Paris! (2 mngs.; ref. Alexander or Paris of Troy).

VHC

C. Allen Baker: This is a draw in green salad if topped, with dressing (X in anag. less g, & lit.).

E. J. Bushell: Served as celery for real-life Robinson C. (Alexander S.; ref. A. Selkirk).

C. O. Butcher: Whose jazz combo is best in song and improvisation for the sticks (2 mngs.; ref. A. Ragtime Band; celery sticks).

E. Chalkley: Brief derivation in one dictionary answer is ‘Black herb vegetable’ (der. in a lex. ans.).

N. C. Dexter: Unusual name ex salad recipe could provide (anag. incl. E.(?), n., r, & lit.).

Mrs S. Hewitt: Picked for ex-salad dinner – excuse the noise when it’s chewed up (anag. less din).

Mrs N. Jarman: Once it came to the crunch, one was enough for Rommel (2 mngs.; ref. Gen. Sir Harold A.).

J. R. Kirby: Nowadays it’s an unknown quantity – no beginner in green salad mixing includes it (x in anag. less g).

D. P. Laurie: I might have been in the soup as the law and the Crown closed in (lex and ER in as).

Mrs C. Leach: If you wanna change from Rex an’ Slade, this band had syncopated rhythm (anag.; ref. pop groups, A. Ragtime Band).

L. F. Leason: Relaxes after ordering sandwiches and the old veg (and in anag.).

Mrs B. Lewis: Some talk of my singular form – I’m blooming flat on top (2 mngs.; ref. song The British Grenadiers: ‘Some talk of Alexander…’).

C. J. Morse: Dig that arrangement for sax learned in Berlin band! (anag.; ref. Irving B.: A. Ragtime Band).

R. A. Mostyn: A country plant once eaten like celery (A + ex in land ers).

F. E. Newlove: Just an old veg to us, a royal feast for Thais (2 mngs.; ref. Dryden, ‘A.’s Feast’).

D. A. Nicholls: It’s Brew Ten, and the last word in beers: builds great men? That’s something to chew on perhaps (ale X and (be)ers, 2 defs.).

F. R. Palmer: Erstwhile extra vegetable served after last part of meal ((me)al + ex and ers; and n.).

Miss M. J. Patrick: Kex and lex are confusingly similar at first (anag. + s).

M. L. Perkins: I’m akin to hemlock, perhaps, a drink unsuitable for children and a bitter plant (ale X and ers).

T. C. Perks: Unknown quantity in green salad, once lopped and chopped (X in anag. less g).

W. K. M. Slimmings: Sandy, you may infer, is one of a carrot-topped family (Alexander (dimin.)+ ’s).

F. B. Stubbs: Stale salad relaxes and goes flabby (anag.).

HC

R. Abrey, T. Anderson, R. W. F. Archer, Mrs A. Baker, M. J. Balfour, J. C. Barnes, J. W. Bates, T. E. Bell, Brig R. V. M. Benn, Mrs K. Bissett, Mrs A. Boyes, Rev C. M. Broun, A. J. Bulman, E. J. Burge, R. S. Caffyn, A. R. Chandler, A. L. Dennis, D. M. Duckworth, A. J. Duncum, J. A. Fincken, J. S. Fowlie, S. Goldie, D. Hawson, D. J. Hennings, E. M. Hornby, E. G. Illingworth, L. W. Jenkinson, G. Johnstone, B. K. Kelly, Dr P. D. King, Capt G. Langham, A. Lawrie, P. W. W. Leach, P. Leather, D. F. Manley, D. P. M. Michael, E. J. Miller, C. G. Millin, D. S. Nagle, J. Nicholson, R. O’Donoghue, Dr R. J. Palmer, S. L. Paton, W. H. Pegram, H. L. Rhodes, E. R. Riddle, D. S. Robertson, L. G. D. Sanders, T. E. Sanders, R. Skerry, G. A. Tomlinson, Mrs M. P. Webber, N. E. Wheatley, D. L. Winn, S. E. Woods.
 

COMMENTS
About 400 entries, no mistakes. Not such an easy word to clue as might at first appear. As expected there was a fair number of ragtimers but only a few managed to contrive clues which were both neat and not immediately obvious. I do suggest that when composing clues you put yourselves into the solver’s shoes and imagine how he would regard your clue. I find this a salutary exercise as a safeguard against both ridiculously easy clues and more especially those which are so complicated or contrived as to be virtually unsolvable. There is of course no norm or yard-stick by which one may measure the difficulty of clues (I get letters berating me for being too easy or too difficult in roughly equal proportions) but I dare say a referendum on complexity would produce a fair measure of agreement among solvers. As a single indication of what I mean, the longer a clue gets the more complex and therefore the less acceptable it becomes. Ximenes always strove to limit himself to one line of type or approximately 55 characters per clue and whereas this is sometimes impossible to achieve it is a precept I strongly recommend. All three prize-winners this month are neat, short and by no means obvious.
 
They are also interesting and/or witty. I make the point because this month produced far less unsoundness than usual so that judging the competition became much more a business of assessing style than anything else. (The commonest fault was vagueness of definition, e.g. ‘old celery’ for ALEXANDERS, which to be accurate it wasn’t.) Faced with upwards of three hundred perfectly sound clues one has in the end to reject a large number for no other reason than that they are fairly pedestrian. All other things being equal (soundness, accuracy, subtlety etc.) if you can make me smile your clue has a very good chance of honourable mention.
 
Apologies for the homily. I’m not as grumpy as I seem to sound!