I got through this one quite quickly, aided by a liberal use of solving aids once I’d worked out how the clue worked (always useful for anagrams of words that are new to me). Although I do not, setters seem to regard difficulty as a proxy for quality, so I’m wary of declaring a puzzle ‘easy’. Nevertheless, there were a number of ‘gifts’, such as 14ac. I’m always grateful when the puzzle is on the easier side when it’s my turn to blog, but in any case this was an enjoyable entertainment for the Sabbath.
At any rate, the pleasingly speedy and undisturbed progress of the grid fill gradually gave the extra letters, which spell out
JOHN SPARROW
John Hanbury Angus Sparrow, to give him his full and rather wonderful name, was, Wikipedia informs me, “an English academic, barrister, book-collector and Warden of All Souls College, Oxford from 1952-77”. That same indispensable resource records “[o]ne of his best known remarks”, viz
THAT INDEFATIGABLE AND UNSAVOURY ENGINE OF POLLUTION
which was his uncharitable description of THE DOG (the two-word phrase to be written below the grid). The quotation is written on NE diagonals in the grid, starting from the first T of 26ac’s THEFT, then the D of 44ac’s DHOL, the E of 58ac’s ESTYN, and so on.
Sparrow’s apparent dislike of our dear canine chums explains the title of the EV.
I liked the fact that the quotation was sufficiently well hidden not to hit you in the face, but that there was not this time (as there has been too frequently recently) an endgame that brought one to a crashing halt followed by much frustrated head-scratching.
So thank you to Chalicea.
Notation
(xxx) = definition
[xxx] = (anagram/homophone/container/etc.) indicator
XXX* = anagram
< = reversal
XXX = unused letter(s)
ITJARS = extra letter in subsidiary indication
| Across | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | THICKNESS | Stupidity of this south-western head (9) | stupidity: THICK (this south-western) NESS (head) | |
| 8 | LISLE | The French chasing their heraldic symbol in yarn (5) | yarn: LE (the French) [chasing] LIS (their heraldic symbol) | |
| 12 | ENTIA | Existences essentially diminished at start and finish (5) | existences: |
|
| 13 | EN BLOC | Wholesale disaster for noble Conservative (6, 2 words) | wholesale: [disaster for] NOBLE* C (Conservative) | |
| 14 | TIC | Spasm or uneven twitch (3) | spasm: [uneven] TwItCh | |
| 15 | TESLAS | Cuppas holding special litre units (6) | units: TEAS (cuppas) [holding] S (special) L (litre) | |
| J | 16 | AIRTS | It jars squalid Scottish quarters (5) | Scottish quarters: ITJARS* [squalid] |
| 17 | AGAS | Long story about Turkish commanders (4) | Turkish commanders: <SAGA (long story) [about] | |
| O | 19 | SINUATE | Soutane I redesigned, having waved margin (7) | having waved margin: SOUTANEI* [redesigned] |
| H | 23 | GIRT | Furnished saddle belly-band (4) | furnished: GIRTH (saddle belly-band) |
| 24 | RYAL | Old gold coin befitting king but not round (4) | old gold coin: R |
|
| 25 | THEFT | Stolen thing’s ton weight in America (5) | stolen thing: T (ton) HEFT (weight in America) | |
| 26 | NAEVUS | Students concealing a regularly heavy overgrowth of blood vessels (6) | overgrowth of blood vessels: NUS (students) concealing A [regularly] hEaVy | |
| 27 | EON | Time out of school, an age (3) | age: E |
|
| 29 | TOOARTS | To row Thames hollowed out strong-timbered trees (7) | strong-timbered trees: TO OAR (row) T |
|
| 32 | AGAPAE | A break, Scots’ one for love feasts (6) | love feasts: A GAP (break) AE (Scots’ one) | |
| 34 | AFFYDE | Poet’s betrothed wildly daffy on ecstasy | poet’s betrothed: [wildly] DAFFY* E (ecstasy) | |
| 36 | TRIFORM | Intermittedly starlit pattern having threefold character (7) | having threefold character: [intermittedly] sTaRlIt FORM (pattern) | |
| N | 39 | PES | Writes foot (3) | foot: PENS (writes) |
| S | 41 | ORNATE | One star intricately decorated (6) | decorated: ONE |
| 43 | OLEIN | Component of fats, oil mixed with skin of emulsion (5) | component of fats: [OIL + EN (skin of EmulsioN)]* [mixed] | |
| 44 | DHOL | Hold preposterous drum (4) | drum: HOLD* [preposterous] | |
| P | 47 | REEN | Groom watercourse (4) | watercourse: PREEN (groom) |
| 49 | WOODRAT | Long-tailed rodent would reportedly upset sailor (7) | long-tailed rodent: WOOD (homonym [reportedly] of would) <[upset]TAR (sailor) | |
| 51 | TITI | Tree monkey (4) | double definition | |
| 52 | ARNAS | Spain leaves enclosed areas for large cattle (5) | large cattle: E (Spain) [leaves] ARENAS (enclosed areas) | |
| 53 | KIDULT | Scottish dress round Dutch man with childish tastes (6) | man with childish tastes: KILT (Scottish dress) [round] DU (Dutch) | |
| A | 54 | SIC | Chase nameless Sicilian (3) | chase: SICA |
| 56 | APOGEE | Excited opera-goer missing dizzy Orr’s highest point (6) | highest point: [excited] |
|
| 57 | AUNES | Measures of old pancakes lacking fluid (5) | measures of old: |
|
| 58 | ESTYN | Established unknown national educational authority (5) | educational authority: EST (established) Y (unknown) N (national) | |
| 59 | TRELLISED | Provided with latticework and organised, it’d resell (9) | provided with latticework: [organised] ITDRESELL* | |
| Down | ||||
| R | 1 | TOT | Little thing’s wrong (3) | little thing: TORT (wrong) |
| 2 | HEIGH-HO | Routine call for attention after dance announced (7, hyphenated) | routine: HO (call for attention) [after] (HEY homonym [announced] of (dance)) | |
| 3 | IN CARE OF | Queer race info to be left at US address (8, 3 words) | to be left at US address: [queer] RACEINFO* | |
| 4 | KIER | Preserve missing pages in bleaching vat (4) | bleaching vat: KI |
|
| 5 | NASHI | Fruit not available to three quarters of Islamic sect (5) | fruit: NA (not available) SHI |
|
| 6 | EELGRASS | Sea plant providing different regale on ship (8) | sea plant: [different] REGALE* SS (ship) | |
| 7 | SNASTE | Burnt candle wick, a mess finally surrounded by tin and wrapping of toile (6) | burnt candle wick: A mesS [finally] [surrounded by] SN (tin) [wrapping of] ToilE | |
| 8 | LLANO | One-all sadly, England out as Argentine levels (5) | Argentine levels: ON |
|
| 9 | SCRAYE | Seabird surprisingly finally nested in Glencoe rock slope (6) | seabird: surprisinglY [finally] [nested in] SCRAE (Glencoe rock slope) | |
| 10 | LYTTA | Docked old bloodhound swallows kitten’s heart and part of tongue (5) | part of tongue: [docked] LYA |
|
| 11 | EXS | Former partners’ riotous sex (3) | former partners: [riotous] SEX* | |
| 18 | SOFA | Strangeness of Acamedician’s seat (4) | seat: S (strangeness) OF A (acamedician) | |
| 20 | INVAR | Alloy of tin lacking tritium variety (5) | alloy: |
|
| 21 | URSA | Bear up primarily as heart of sorrows returns (4) | bear: U (Up primarily) <[AS [heart of] sorRows] [returns] | |
| R | 22 | ATTAP | Poet’s deck with adornments and palm (5) | palm: ATTRAP (poet’s deck with adornments) |
| 28 | NEMNS | Formerly identifies non-smoker after workers return (5) | formerly identifies: NS (non-smoker) [after] <MEN (workers) [return] | |
| 30 | TENIA | Raised mesh structure one advanced US architectural feature (5) | US architectural feature: <[raised]NET (mesh structure) I (one) A (advanced) | |
| 31 | ATTENDEE | One present a couple of hours before noon by river (8) | one present: AT TEN (a couple of hours before noon) DEE (river) | |
| 33 | POETISES | Records in rhyme attitudes including English Italian uprising (8) | records in rhyme: POSES (attitudes) [including] E (English) <IT (Italian) [uprising] | |
| 35 | YOLD | The old lacking energy and worn out surrendered long ago (4) | surrendered long ago: Y |
|
| O | 37 | FLAT | Move lightly supported by liquid having lost all effervescence (4) | having lost all effervescence: FLOAT (move lightly supported by liquid) |
| 38 | RIOTISE | Old extravagance has reorganised priorities excluding tipsy rip (7) | old extravagance: [reorganised] |
|
| 40 | SOON AT | Will’s about, at, on and so, all at sea! (6, 2 words) | Will’s about: [AT ON SO]* [at sea] | |
| W | 42 | ARTIER | Having more skin blemishes, is more affectedly creative (6) | more affectedly creative: WARTIER (having more skin blemishes) |
| 45 | HORAS | Short of space, senhora awkwardly dances (5) | dances:[short of EN (space)] S |
|
| 46 | URSON | Our boy, not ordinary, a prickly creature (5) | a prickly creature: OUR SON (boy) [not O (ordinary)] | |
| 48 | EQUAL | Evenly balanced equation, periodically usable (5) | evenly balanced: EQ (equation) [periodically] UsAbLe | |
| 50 | ELUL | Eastern not completely quiet month (4) | month: E (eastern) [not completely] LULL (quiet) | |
| 52 | ACE | A common entrance, a single point (3) | a single point: A CE (common entrance) | |
| 55 | COD | Poke fun at local chap (3) | double definition: poke fun at/local chap | |
I thought the manner of hiding the quotation more than made this EV worthwhile. Chalicea’s puzzles usually aren’t too difficult, but are often fun or stuffed with thematic goodies. This was no exception, and I enjoyed solving it.
Thank you to you, too, Mister Sting for your warm blog. I loved that word ‘enjoyable’. It just isn’t in my nature to set the really tough ones and I am always delighted when the solvers have fun solving. This was one that James Leonard had vetted years ago and I learned that he had scheduled it just before he died. As I am sure you know, he was a very keen bird-watcher and had no time for dogs. The title was originally ‘Don’t Blame the Setter’ but his editorial comment (and reason for accepting this one for publication) was ‘As I agree with Warden Sparrow’s view of the dog, I rather prefer the above title (Blame the Setter).