Azed 2588

Cabins Gladys fitted out with little money – they involved short commons? (13) 

SCAMBLING-DAYS (obsolete term for days of makeshift meals in Lent [a time of fast or eating little {short meals}]  Commons is a general term for food)

Anagram of (fitted out) CABINS GLADYS and (with) M (money)

SCAMBLING-DAYS*

Heads for Harwich after alert reports North Sea mist (4) 

HAAR (raw east coast mist ; raw North Sea mist)

HAAR (first letters of [heads for] each of HARWICH, AFTER, ALERT and REPORTS)

HAAR

Not bright about road, mistaken course (7) 

DIADROM (a course or passing)

DIM (not bright) containing (about) an anagram of (mistaken) ROAD

DI (ADRO*) M

When imbibing I desist from vintage Scotch perhaps (7) 

AIBLINS (Scots word for perhaps)

AS (when) containing (imbibing) (I + BLIN [Spenserian [vintage] word for cease or desist from)

A (I BLIN) S

Old woman in truth abandoning husband (4) 

TROT (Shakespearean term for an old woman or crone)

TROTH (in truth!) excluding (abandoning) H (husband)

TROT

Garrison commander a month after defeat (8) 

KILLADAR (commandant of a fort or garrison)

KILL (defeat) + ADAR (month of the Jewish calendar)

KILL ADAR

Food for Maoris? This mostly includes an aniseed liquor (8) 

TARAKIHI (morwong [Australasian food fish]; possible food for Maoris)

THIS excluding the final letter S (mostly) containing (includes) (A [an] + RAKI [an aniseed flavoured spirit of Turkey)

T (A RAKI) HI

Part of chair back was in place at fringes of town library? (5) 

SPLAT  (thin strip forming the upright middle part of a chair-back)

SAT (was in place) containing (at fringes of) PL (public library; town library)

S (PL) AT

Parasite, any cut from local plants (3) 

BOT (the maggot of a botfly, parasitic in the intestines of the horse and other animals)

BOTANY (the plants of an area; local plants) excluding (cut from) ANY

BOT

Treasury chap I found in heart of in-tray, looking back (5) 

ROGET (reference Peter Mark ROGET [1779-1852] who published the first edition of Thesaurus [Treasury] that bears his name in 1852. The first edition contained 15,000 words.  Wikipedia tells me that the latest version has 443,000)

(EGO [the I or self] contained in [found in] TR [central letters of {heart of]} IN-TRAY]) all reversed (looking back)

(R (OGE) T)<

Hospital dept. was poorly involved (8)

ENTAILED (involved)

ENT (Ear, Nose and Throat department of a hospital) + AILED (was poorly)

ENT AILED

Eggs arranged and put in grades as before (8) 

GRENADES (small bombs.  EGG can also be defined as a bomb or mine)

I can’t see how the parsing works here.  There are lots of words or pairs of words in the clue that include letters within GRENADES but I can’t identify the key words involved in what is probably a compound anagram of the entry and word(s) in the clue.  All of EGGS, ARRANGED, AND, GRADES and AS are composed of letters in GRENADES

GRENADES* (?)

Passionate person once displaying energy in pursuit of fabulous bird (4) 

FUME (archaic [once] word for a passionate person)

FUM (fabulous bird) + (in pursuit of) E (energy)

FUM E

Bullets, number almost all explosive (7) 

AMMONAL (high explosive made from ammonium nitrate and aluminium)

AMMO (ammunition; bullets) + N (number) + ALL excluding the final letter L (almost)

AMMO N AL

What bird enthusiast erects, best constructed during night classically (7, 2 words)

NEST BOX (an item to aid birds make a home; what a bird enthusiast erects)

Anagram of (constructed) BEST contained in (during) NOX (Roman [classical] goddess of night)

N (ES T B*) OX

Drive former president out of party? (4) 

ELAN (vigour. drive)

The best I can come up with here is DELANO (middle name of Franklin DELANO Roosevelt [1882 – 1945], former President of the United States) excluding the outer letters (out of) DO (party), but how often do we refer to Presidents by their middle name?

ELAN

Businesswoman making opening that involves changing n rupees (13) 

ENTREPRENEUSE (businesswoman)

ENTREE (introduction or prelude [opening]) containing (that involves) an anagram of (changing) N RUPEES

ENTRE (PRENEUS*) E

One fires shot daily – see moving target caught (10) 

SCATTER-GUN (a type of shotgun; weapon that fires shot)

(C [see can be defined as the third letter of the alphabet C] + an anagram of [moving] TARGET) contained in [caught] SUN (daily newspaper)

S (C ATTERG*) UN

Like a crystal Archibald’s sculpted – not bad (6) 

CHIRAL (like a crystal)

CHIRAL (anagram of [sculpted] ARCHIBALD excluding [no] the letters BAD

CHIRAL*

Island fast revealing hostility to poet (9) 

MALTALENT (Spenserian [poet’s] word for ill-will or hostility)

MALTA (island country in the Mediterranean] + LENT (a time of fasting)

MALTA LENT

Cut danger inherent in wager (7) 

BRISKET (cut of meat)

RISK (danger) contained in (inherent in) BET (wager)

B (RISK) ET

Fool confined in cell unkindly (4) 

LUNK (fool)

LUNK (hidden word in [confined in] CELL UNKINDLY)

LUNK

Scots miserly – about right? Love it (6) 

NIRLIT (Scottish word for niggardly or miserly)

(NIL [zero; love score in tennis] + IT) containing (about) R (right)

NI (R) L IT

Highlander set about opening of area (4) 

GAEL (a Celt of the Scottish Highlands; highlander)

GEL (firm up; set) containing (about) A (area)

G (A) EL

How drought affects region, always restricting clear lake (6) 

ARIDLY (the way in which drought can make regions parched or very dry)

AY (always) containing (restricting (RID [clear] + L [lake])

A (RID L) Y

What raja may accompany, always full of energy? Reverse of that (4) 

YOGA (reference raja YOGA [form of YOGA  stressing control of the energy of the mind via meditation])

(AY [always] containing [full of] GO [energy]) all reversed (reverse of that)

(Y (OG) A)<

Italian sausages made of minced meat or hollow inside (10) 

MORTADELLE (Italian pork sausage, flavoured with coriander)

(OR + DELL [a deep hollow or small valley]) contained in (inside) an anagram of (minced) MEAT   The two elements OR and DELL are contained at different parts of the anagram but they are clued as two distinct elements so can be handled separately

M (OR) TA (DELL) E*

Honeysuckle, if enveloped in top part (9)

CAPRIFOLE (an old name for honeysuckle)

IF contained in (enveloped in) (CAP [top] + ROLE [part [in a play])

CAP R (IF) OLE

Last bit of lunch left for pet (3) 

HON (honey, as a term of endearment; pet is also a term of endearment)

H (final letter of [last bit] of LUNCH) + ON (I can’t see how ON relates to ‘left’ unless we are linking through the ON side being the left side of the cricket ground to a batsman)

H ON

News mag distributed for Aussie itinerants? (7) 

SWAGMEN (in Australia, men who carry their SWAG [bundle of possessions] with them, especially when in search of work; Aussie itinerants)

Anagram of (distributed) NEWS MAG

SWAGMEN*

A dominant principle betraying discrimination of a kind (6) 

AGEIST  (descriptive of discrimination on the grounds of age; discrimination of a kind.  That policy is AGEIST, that’s discrimination)

A + GEIST (dominating principle)

A GEIST

Fall on bottom, end of cord coming away (6) 

BEDROP (to DROP upon; fall on)

BED (sea or lake bottom) + ROPE (cord) excluding the final letter E (end of … coming away)

BED ROP

Rising celebrity breaking Nelson’s heart? They were lovers (6) 

LEMANS (archaic (they were) word for lovers)

NAME (celebrity) reversed (rising; down entry) and contained in (breaking) LS (middle letters of [heart] NELSON)

L (EMAN<) S

West country watercourse at no time going the wrong way (4) 

REEN (Somerset [west country] word for a ditch or watercourse)

NE’ER (never; at no time) reversed (going the wrong way)

REEN<

Old but scent-free, growing white (4) 

ALBE (old word for ALBEIT [although, but])

ALBESCENT (becoming white) excluding (-free) SCENT

ALBE

Spot providing environment for male duck (4) 

SMEE (one of a variety of ducks)

SEE (spot) containing (providing environment for) M (male)

S (M) EE