Tuesday 16 July 2013

No 10826, Tuesday 16 Jul 2013, Incognito

 Nice one from Incognito. Plenty of Tarts today as well.
ACROSS
7   Small version of a big car (4) LIMO [CD]
8   Incubus left us at Oregon and got an egg heater (9) INCUBATOR {INCUBus}{AT}{OR}
10 Stag party for a person yet to kick the butt (6) SMOKER [DD]
11 Over everything else like Abou Ben Adhem’s name (5,3) ABOVE ALL [CD]
     ........And lo! Ben Adhem's name led all the rest.
12 “Gratis: as in no bucks,” he exclaimed (8) BUCKSHEE [T]
14 Boggy ground where French gold is hidden in Massachusetts (6) MORASS {M{OR}ASS}
16 Dire areas mad artists find themselves in, like the Gibraltar or Sunda (7) STRAITS*
18 Deceiving dexterity at sledge time (7) SLEIGHT {SLEIGH}{T}
21 She embraced pet, resulting in injury (6) SCATHE {S{CAT}HE}
23 lcy uncle travels to get transport (8) UNICYCLE*
25 Best quality upper-cut (3-5) TOP-NOTCH {TOP}-{NOTCH}
27 Tormented ailing Indian antelope (6) NILGAI*
29 Strikes, with the foot, a trollop, to start a motorbike (9) KICKSTART {KICKS}{TART}
     Hardly see these being used nowadays after intro of electric starters.
30 Invoice from li’l William (4) BILL [DD]
DOWN
1   Get off a princess’s horse (8) DISMOUNT {DI'S}{MOUNT}
2   Cut an animal’s tail in the witness box (4) DOCK [DD]
3   Harris comes back with an address (6) SIRRAH<=
4   Frozen water gets older in cold periods (3,4) ICE AGES {ICE} {AGES}
5   Odd type of blood that Psycho Bates, when not finished, left (8) ABNORMAL {AB}{NORMAn}{L}
6   Nasty eye problem is not visible, at first glance (4) STYE [T]
9   What a king does with a scale? (5) RULES [CD]
13 Snake god found in a collection of tools (5) KRAIT {K{RA}IT}
15 Wet weather when Yankee followed gunners in (5) RAINY {RA}{IN}{Y}
17 Dissertaton about treaties (8) TREATISE*
19 One time popular pieces of baggage said to contain everything small (8) HOLDALLS {HOLD}{ALL}{S} Standard item in an armymans belongings! Couldn't find an image of it on the net.
20 Forsythe P.Jones, as better known to fans, is prison chief (7) JUGHEAD {JUG}{HEAD}
22 Dagger’s partner in espionage modified a lock (5) CLOAK*
24 Energise Neyveli coal without starting to burn (6) IGNITE lIGNITE
26 Narrow part of a fennec knee (4) NECK [T]
28 Ear lug found in eyebolts returned (4) LOBE [T<=]


58 comments:

  1. Deepak

    You're right!

    Once when I searched for a pic of the hold-all as I knew it, I couldn't find one.

    The pics that showed up on top left me cold.

    Personally I have not used any hold-all. But in the Fifties this was a a standard item in the family's luggage as my father was transferred from one IAF station to another.

    The hold-all is usually of khaki colour. When opened and spread, it is long. At either narrow end there is a compartment that is open and into which you stuff things. On the sides there are flaps that are drawn over the mattress, sheets, or clothes that you have spread out on the area between the above-mentioned compartments.

    When the stuffing is over, you roll the hold-all from one end. Then you fasten it with belts that are attached to the outside.

    Deepak: How many marks out of 10 will you give me for the description?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bingo you get 100% marks. What you forgot was the leather piece which connected the two straps and was used as a handle for carrying it. I still have a couple of them lying at home. The army nowadays however issues inflatable sleeping bags instead of the holdall which we got. Once upon a time I had four of them, one each inherited from my father and father-in-law and two of my own.

      Delete
    2. It aslo served as a nice soft seat (provided you didn't pack any hard material viz. books in the two ends), in stations where you did not find benches to sit. Carried one to college as it involved a long journey by train.

      Delete
    3. In the army we are given a slew of items at commission (I will list them below) a new set would be re-issued once in 7 years. Nowadays cash in lieu of the items is permitted.
      The items as far as I can remember are

      Canvas Holdall,
      Canvas bucket,
      Canvas washbasin with a foldable wooden stand (later aluminium basin),
      Canvas camp-cot which had to be assembled onto a foldable wooden frame (later made with metal tubes),
      Canvas kit bag,
      Foldable camp stool

      Delete
    4. Col Sir,

      I understand a canvas pouch, popularly known as "House wife", containing utility items such as multipurpose knife, spoon, fork etc.also was a 'seven - year' issue. Is that so ? Could you please clarify.

      Delete
    5. Sebu,

      Not as far as I know of. The "House wife" was a pouch containing needle, thread, butttons etc and it is not issued.

      Delete
  2. "Buckshee" - or "buchsheesh" - is a term that I remember from those times. We lived in places such as Begumpet where this term would be more common than in any south Indian AFunit. Maybe it was used in Jalahalli too but I might have been too young to take note of it.

    Incog - Full marks to you - but alas no bucks - to you to have noticed that term in the word.

    It is a convention that a standard 15x has just one telescopic clue. Two may be accepted. Anything more than two - no-no, you should know.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am curious wrt to the 2 telescopic clues restriction. Is it because hidden clues are usually easy to spot ?

      Delete
    2. That's right! A "hidden" clue is rarely hidden cleverly.

      In the early days this type was known as 'hidden'. But now it is referred to as telescopic clue.

      Another term, if you want to sound uppity, is en clair. A French term.

      Delete
  3. Incog

    Full marks - but alas no bucks - to you to have noted the term in "bucksheesh".

    However, by convention, a standard 15x crossword has just one telescopic clue. At times, two are permitted. Anything more than two might be frowned upon.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If Incog were a pre-Euro German, he would still get some bucks when you gave him marks.

      Delete
  4. 2D : Where has the animal gone with its tail !?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 2D : CUT=DOCk=WITNESS BOX. I don't get what the animal is doing here with its tail cut !?

      Delete
    2. 2 Cut // an animal’s tail // in the witness box (4) DOCK [DD]

      It is a triple definition.

      Delete
    3. Yes it is, but does the clue sound plausible?

      Delete
    4. My Thanks to both Sandhya and Raghunath

      Delete
    5. Cut an animal’s tail in the witness box (4)

      I see it only as a DD: cut an animal's tail/witness box

      Of course, the part of an animal's tail that has been docked is known as 'dock'.

      Qn: Can a DD or an MD have extraneous words - like "in the" here? I don't think so but I am ready to stand corrected.

      What do solvers think?

      Delete
    6. As per thefreedic it is a TD: 1. The solid or fleshy part of an animal's tail.
      2. To clip short or cut off (an animal's tail, for example).3. enclosed space in a court of law.

      Use of extraneous words might depend on the clue.

      Delete
    7. Wonder what animal's tail has to do with the witness box?

      Delete
    8. Raghunath @ 11:36

      For confirming it's a triple definition ! Of course, I'd a second look into the dictionary and learnt "Dock" means fleshy part of an animal's tail

      Delete
    9. The prosecutor called the vet to the witness box. The vet had brought a cat along with him. He proceeded to "cut the animal's tail in the witness box" while the entire of jury watched spellbound.

      Raghunath sounds reasonable ?

      Delete
    10. "while the entire of jury watched spellbound." should have been "while the entire jury watched spellbound."

      Delete
  5. TH's weekly column 'Know your English' is very educative.

    I did not know that the expression ‘on talking terms’ used very commonly is an Indianism.

    ‘Speaking terms’ is the correct expression used by native speakers of English.

    {When two people are not on speaking terms, they are not on friendly terms; they do not talk to each other. }

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Never do I miss this column and the tag line at the bottom !

      Delete
  6. Re: Begumpet.

    CV probably meant Hyderabad as it is in this city, as is Jalahalli in Bangalore. Heard a lot of railwaymen say they are going to Secunderabad, though geographically they might have been living in Hyderabad. For railwaymen Sec'bad is the HQ and is their world as cantts were CVs world in his younger days.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I had MINI and NICK :( for 7A and 2 D

    ReplyDelete
  8. I mentioned 'Begumpet' because that is where I thought the AF station in Sec'bad/Hyd'bad is located.

    Our quarters were in a village called Benachetty. A hilly, rocky area. To reach our own house we had to go up a high gradient. Right opposite were rocks. My father named the house as Rocklands.

    Another place name often heard was Bolarum.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Another one was Hakimpet

      Delete
    2. And Dundigal

      Delete
    3. And Hyderabad is an illustration that there is a small bit of good in every bad. Hyderabad has Hyder(good)a ...

      Delete
    4. Your clue's not fair as it doesn't have the homophone ind. As its Hyder gud a

      Delete
    5. Infact there is plenty of good as Hyd is full of ...gudas.

      Delete
    6. For every Hyderbada there is a hyder guda ?

      Delete
  9. NICK

    (tr) to chip or cut
    2. (tr) Slang chiefly Brit
    a. to steal
    b. to take into legal custody; arrest
    3. (intr; often foll by off) Informal to move or depart rapidly
    4. (Individual Sports & Recreations / Horse Training, Riding & Manège) to divide and reset (certain of the tail muscles of a horse) to give the tail a high carriage

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. But Nick is not a witness box.

      Delete
    2. Nick is where a person ends up sometimes after (and sometimes even before) the people in the witness box do their bit.

      Delete
  10. 24 Energise // Neyveli coal without starting // to burn (6) IGNITE (-l)IGNITE

    This also seems to be a multiple definition.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Rather a "defn" "wordplay" "defn" kind of clue. Wonder which category of clues this one fits in

      Delete
    2. 16a would also fit that format, if there was a "say" at the end

      Delete
  11. Hi Everyone !

    Some clarifications:

    Regarding 2D: CV has given my intended anno. It was meant to be DD with the 'cut an animal's tail' as one definition for DOCK. I wanted to be amply clear what was being cut, though animal lovers might cavil. May I assure them that no animals were harmed in the making of this clue. Regarding plausibility, it might be improbable, but it is certainly possible to cut an animal's tail in the witness box. CV's point regarding superfluous words is well taken.

    I also take note that telescopic clues should not exceed 2.

    Request friends to give another look at the annotation for 24d.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Col. Saheb,

    14A : MORASS : Link to Web Site, when clicked gives Psycho Bates info.

    ReplyDelete
  13. hi
    14A-whats French gold? Didn't get the anno
    3D-new word of the day:)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Though Gold in French is OR, it's accepted to use without 'French' in CWs.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Hi Usha,
    'Or' is the French word for gold.

    ReplyDelete
  16. thank you
    .I thought gold was Au?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Au is short for Aurum, Latin for gold. But since 'French' was mentioned, it was OR.

      Delete
  17. 2 down Cut an 'animal's tail' in the witness box DOCK

    I understood it as 'Cut = Curtail
    curtail cur(dog) plus tail and hence "animal tail"

    ReplyDelete
  18. MUKUNDBALA: Karbala !! Why address me as :Avargale:? Any way, Miss Anandi Nolan wasn't a cover girle !!

    CV: Bachshee(s) : Isn't this a hindi word? Probably from Baksh-na to excuse and Aasheesh , to bless or grant or even aaseervaad?

    Is Ooper in Hindi also from Upper in English?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Avargale(Tamil),Garu(Telugu)and Jee(Hindi), am sure U know what these words mean to other person !! I felt like using that word, may be to let U know that I know a little bit of Tamil as well ! Believe me, I use my dictionary, also to learn many new words that crop up in your comments. My vocabulary is increasing day by day. Thanks !

      Delete
  19. A picture of a genuine old styled holdall is available here: http://www.awm.gov.au/collection/REL31751/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Unknown,

      Thanks, but that is not what I was lookng for and as described by Chaturvasi @ 8:46 above

      Delete

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