Jumbo 835

Author   petebiddlecombePosted on Categories Jumbo Cryptic
Solving time: 30:35 – roughly a jumbo par, as they seem to take about three times as long as cryptics. Some very ingenious clues here, so straight on to the explanations.

Across
1 B(A,R(oo)M,AN – a easy but nicely done all-in-one starts us off
4 RI(DIN)G,CROP – the def. is “whip up”, with up=on a horse. As “up” can therefore indicate “riding”, and “whip” could be the def., the wordplay takes some finding if you see the answer with the help of checking letters.
14 COCHIN,(m)EAL – Cochin = chicken, which was new for me
15 I,N.(ORGAN,I CALL)Y.
16 W(H,ART)ON – Edith Wharton is the writer, probably best known for The Age of Innocence
18 NO S(W)EAT – “no seat” = “reason why commuter stands”
19 REDUCTIO AD ABSURDUM = (odd dim bureaucrat, us)*
24 S(TO)IC – TO is the repeated passage of TOrTOise, and SIC=thus=”as”
26 OPER(A,H)AT(ion)
30 F,RAGMEN=totters,TAR,Y
32 COURT TENNIS = (instruct one)* – N Amer version of “real tennis”, hence the reference to Boston, which is also the card game from which Solo Whist evolved, if the surface didn’t work for you.
35 UNDER A CLOUD – 2 defs, “cats and dogs” = rain.
37 (g)OL(f) COURSE
40 (w)EASEL – note that “abandoning” can be used both ways – this clue might also have been “Wife abandoning deceitful person for artist’s support”
44 FERMAT’S LAST THEOREM = (tester of maths realm)* – lovely all-in-one describing the struggle over several centuries to prove it.
47 BUT,CHER(i,sh)
52 BRASENOSE – hidden backwards in “disputes one’s arbitrating”
55 POLY,P.S. – how long before we have to tell young solvers what a polytechnic was?
 
Down
1 BACK=support (vb.),WARDS=children looked after by guardians
2 ROCK AND ROLL – Sisyphus is a figure from Gk myth, condemned for some reason to spend the rest of his days rolling a rock up a hill, used by Albert Camus inb a book title. I was distracted for a while by HILL and BALL as candidates for the four-letter words
3 AS I,AT(t)IC
6 IDIOT SAVANT = (avoids taint)* – here’s an example
8 RE(GIS)TRY
10 L(O,C)UST – all-in-one again
11 SALVER,e.g.,IN A – Salve Regina is a Marian antiphon – don’t know where I dug this answer out from, as I’ve never sung it, and my vague idea that there might be a tune of the same name in Anlglican hymn books isn’t supported by the English Hymnal or Hymns Ancient & Modern.
12 TRYST – solved without wordplay understanding. It’s a fiendish hidden word – put the answers to 8 and 24 together and TRYST is hidden in the result. Ditto with 8 and 34 – hence “between 8:24 and 8:34”. Ten minutes did seem a bit short for a tryst.
13 REINVIGORATING = (inertia, over,G=good)*
20 APE,RIENT=inert*
23 GRE(e)N,ACHE
25 CONS,TRUE – Cons. = conservative is in COED
28 LANDMASS – another exotic wordplay – “where one shortly finds Baton Rouge, Bismarck, and Boston” – after toying briefly with “Barobibo”, I realised these are all state capitals – of Louisiana, North Dakota, and Massachusetts – i.e. LA,ND,MASS
31 MOR(t)ALITY,PLAY
33 UNCL(e),UTTERED
34 STILT WALKER = (skater will)*,T
35 UP.HOLSTER,ER
36 OBSERVATORY = (star over boy) – nicely done surface meaning about the Magi.
41 (s)LI(m),(f)ITL(y),(m)ESS(y)
42 EMER(y)=”cut short abrasive”,GENT
45 ELG(a)R,ECO=green
47 B(IS)ON – on = game = willing to participate

11 comments on “Jumbo 835”

  1. Some of the clue numbers are out of step. The only reason I noticed is because I’ve been waiting for an explanation of 12d? The answer you’ve given for 8d should be 10d. I haven’t checked the rest.

    PS: I got nowhere near understanding 12d until I read this blog – thanks.

  2. I was solving this in bed and my wife wanted to put the light out. I only had 12 and 55 to go but I could not think of any words that fitted the checked letter pattern. She glanced over my shoulder and said Tryst and Polyps, without even reading the clues. I have appointed her as my consultant on words containing Y as a vowel. Thanks to Peter though for explaining the wordplay for Tryst. That did keep me awake.

    Peter’s comments about timing are interesting. Jumbos, having 60 answers, are just about twice the length of the dailies. Intuitively, I would expect them to take less than twice as long as the more answers you get the easier the remaining clues become. Peter, on the other hand, is suggesting that difficulty increases exponentially with size.

    1. For speed solving, it seems to work out that way, if only because it takes longer to find answers in the grid and clues for particular grid entries. (Bigger grid/list to deal with, and a size that you only get to try once a week.)
  3. How about 20D? I find the clue’s “‘s” unwarranted or misplaced. “Copy’s unfortunately inert” doesn’t seem to clue APERIENT (drug)”.
    1. Setters are fond of ‘s because it not only indicates a possessive it can also be short for is, has or us. In this case I read the clue as “Drug copy has unfortunatly inert” meaning stick the inert anagram on the end of ape.
      1. I was abou to correct you on “us”, but then saw that COED offers: is, has, us, and does. I can’t think of a real-life example for either of the last two. Any offers?
  4. OK. Thanks lennyco! I don’t naturally think of “‘s” as “has”; that’s quite uncommon is the U.S. But I should have realized it. Now that you’ve pointed it out, I have no problem with it. [But will I remember the lesson learned?]
    1. Unless you see the answer straightaway, it’s worth thinking “possessive, is or has?” every time you see an apostrophe in a clue.
      1. (Pete,) I suppose I will remember that. Neither I nor a couple of puzzling mathematician colleagues could come up with an example in American English using “‘s” for “has” in the possessive sense. But I wouldn’t think twice if I heard “She’s a fine set of sails on ‘er” from the character of an old-time British seafarer.

        Later tonight I’ll settle down with tomorrow’s Times Jumbo and the NYT’s Saturday puzzle … my favorites after the Atlantic and Harper’s monthlies. I find the Jumbos very consistent in their level of difficulty (a level that suits me).

  5. Did not get SALVE REGINA, so a jumbo non completus. Enjoyed this, though, did most of it over brunch and next to a table of people getting perverse enjoyment out of watching me solve. I hope they enjoyed the entertainment and find something of their own to talk about next time.

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