XIMENES CROSSWORD No. 82

CURARE

1.  F. L. Constable (Diss): Not to be taken; but a sovereign remedy used externally (a R in cure).

2.  Rev E. B. Peel (Bournemouth): Ill-bred fellow with cauliflower ear! Sounds made for ’Arrow; must not be Eton! (cur + anag. of ear; poison arrow; ‘eaten’).

3.  A. R. McInroy (Edinburgh): The Guiana Killer can be relied on to produce knock-out blows, after being pasted on points! (cryptic def.; blowpipes; ref. boxer Cliff Anderson (v. Al Phillips, Mar/Jul 1947)).

H.C.

P. E. Bugge (S. Shields): Toxin: remedy—radium injection (Ra in cure).

Mrs F. Castle-Knight (SE20): Copper seldom seen on point duty in South America? (Cu rare).

Rev B. Chapman (Wisbech): It paralyses the old-fashioned Vicar when the King drops in for tea! (R for t in curate; ‘tea’).

C. B. Daish (Swindon): A good tip for a blow-out—on points (cryptic def.; blowpipe).

L. Dixon (Westcliff): This will kill you! Father has had a radium injection and lost his accent (Ra in curé without accent).

T. C. Fitzpatrick (Glasgow): Method of tipping favoured by South American barbers! (cryptic def.; barb = dart).

J. P. Lee (Cheadle Hulme): Poison the dog. It has canker of the ear (cur + anag. of ear).

Mrs B. A. Mallett (Lowestoft): Arrow was what I tipped for that race in America—and the dog nearly beat the hare! (cur + (h)are).

D. P. M. Michael (Newport): Scientific copper runs up against uncommon poison (Cu rare).

G. M. Neighbour (Aylesbury): At the point of death (due to the short ration in medicine) (ra. in cure).

P. M. Newey (Reading): For darts this copper tip and superior tail give deadly aim (Cu rare).

R. C. Payn (Irvine): If you treat this poison carelessly, your end is in sight (i.e. curare less care = (yo)ur).

H. Rainger (SW6): Poison: remedy, a little radium taken internally (Ra in cure).

T. W. Rigg (Leeds): You are beset with care? This will put an end to your troubles! (U R (‘you are’) in care).

W. O. Robertson (Marlow): Poison—just right for the curate’s tea (r for t in curate; ‘tea’).

G. W. Robinson (NW10): The curate was poisoned by injection of a liquid after a dental extraction (r for t in curate; liquid and dental consonants).

Miss D. W. Taylor (Sidcup): Speeding on the Dart causes fatality (cryptic def.; ref. River Dart).

W. H. Thorne (Jersey): S. American vine product, usually on points, for immediate despatch (cryptic def.; ref. points system of rationing).

E. Ward (Sale): Product of a South American vine which nobody wanted when it was on points (cryptic def.; ref. points system of rationing, being withdrawn in 1948).

L. C. Wright (Selby): Means to finish the game with one dart. Take care—you are after 100! (U R (‘you are’) after c of care).

Comments—270 correct and a moderate number of mistakes. The clue to TRUSTS worried some solvers and admittedly it was below HC standard! The idea was that one who buys a pup is too trustful, while one who puts a lump (of sugar) on a dog’s nose says “Trust!” and trusts him not to eat it. We aren’t proud of it, though!
 
Many thanks for several notes about the use of “for” in clues: most people seem to think it a harmless practice.
 
Some runners-up:—E. S. Ainley, D. Ambler, K. W. Andrews, C. Allen Baker, G. R. Booth, A. E. Brookes, Miss E. C. Chapman, F. A. Clark, D. L. Clements, R. A. W. Cohen, C. Davies, J. E. Evans, Mrs N. Fisher, A. R. Fraser, Mrs D. Fuller, C. E. Gates, I. C. Gilchrist, S. B. Green, Mrs B. P. Hall, D. Hawson, AC1 P. D. Johnson, C. Koop, A. F. Lerrigo, J. P. Lloyd, R. Macleod, T. W. Melluish, Mrs J. Morris, F. E. Newlove, A. E. North, P. H. Rowley, T. E. Sanders, W. K. M. Slimmings, A. H. Taylor, T. R. Tear, L. E. Thomas, E. H. L. Whitestone, E. H. Williams, J. S. Young.
 
A word about judge’s decisions: Solvers rarely record disagreement—sometimes they even say they agree! But two criticisms this week may well be quoted—not pour encourager les autres, but in case others have felt like writing in the same strain. Both writers are, we believe, enthusiastic solvers and friendly critics.
 
One says—“I thought mine of last time … was worthy of a mention. (Then follows an explanation of it: actually it had been fully understood) … What was wrong?” The answer is that nothing was wrong with it; but the point to remember is that nothing was wrong with a great many other clues, too! Those mentioned are not the only clues with nothing wrong with them: they are those which the judge considers the best.
 
The second says—“I think Major Baines’s clever clue well worthy of a prize, and much more like a real clue than some of the letter-juggling nonsense you occasionally decorate!... You might give more marks for genuine clue-value.” Now I am awarding prizes and mentions for clues; and someone thinks I don’t give enough marks for “clue-value”! What does he think I give marks for? If by “clue-value” he means solubility, I can assure him that I rule out what I think would be unfair to solvers. His own clues—always ingenious—sometimes suffer in this way! Again, the clever clue he mentions—and it was clever—contained a long multiple-anagram; if the critic dislikes letter-juggling, why does he champion this super-jugglement? I don’t know what to make of it!
 
To sum up, I can but choose the clues I think best; they won’t always be the ones that you individually think best.