This puzzle has additional and missing letters, and misprints in definitions. However, we don’t know which clues are affected in what way or even how many of each there are (only that there are ‘approximately equal numbers of each’). Nor do we know what is to be done to complete the puzzle, only that these letters will explain whatever it is.
Well, this should be a piece of cake.
Unsurprisingly, this was tough in various ways. Not knowing which (or even how many) clues were affected, let alone how they were affected, made for various sticking points. For example, since DOWN TO EARTH fit nicely in the space allotted to 13 down in the grid, 26 across, which would perhaps have been easier without misleading crossing letters, held out against solving for a rather long time.
Further, although it took a while, having most of the final letters allowed me to find the following instruction:
SOME ANSWERS ARE TO UNDERGO TEN THOUSAND PERCENT INFLATION
However, it was by no means immediately obvious to me what that meant. It was only after the interminable grinding of mental cogs that I found that ten answers contained currency units, and that these were to be replaced by units with a face value 100 times greater (thus PENCE, had it appeared, would have been replaced by POUND).
The inflated currencies were:
CENT -> LILANGENI (Swaziland)
XU -> DONG (Vietnam)
AT -> KIP (Laos)
BAN -> LEU (Romania and Moldova)
PAISA -> RUPEE (India, Nepal, and Pakistan)
NGWEE -> KWACHA (Zambia)
AGORA -> SHEKEL (Israel)
TOEA -> KINA (Papua New Guinea)
FEN -> YUAN (China)
KOBO -> NAIRA (Nigeria)
THE UPTON TIMES is, obviously in retrospect, a cue of sorts.
Old seems to do double duty (for HUNT and CHAP) in 41dn. Unfortunately, I can’t fully parse 28dn.
Notation
(xxx) = definition
[xxx] = (anagram/homophone/container/etc.) indicator
XXX* = anagram
< = reversal
USUCAPTS = extra/missing/correct letter
CENTRAL (LILANGENI) = currency unit in answer (currency unit of greater face value to be entered into grid)
Please post a comment if the explanations are not clear.
| Across | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| S | 1 | USUCAPTS | U (United) CAPT (captain) [residing in] US (America) acquires property through long possession (8) |
| O | 7 | BUTENE | It could be used to cork [tops of] BOTTLES (and USUALLY THEY EXPERIENCE NO ESCAPES) (6) |
| M | 11 | CENTRAL (LILANGENI) | Riddle C (about) to ENTRAL (ENTHRAL (intrigue) – H (husband)[’s lost])! (12) |
| E | 14 | ONTOGENY | History of development ON (just after) G ([opening of] GLOBE) [included in] TONY (theatrical award) (8) |
| A | 16 | ELY | Combs city REALLY [regularly] (3) |
| N | 17 | OUMA | Grab O (old) UMA (PUMA (wild cat) [with P ([front of] PAW missing]) (4) |
| S | 18 | EXULT (DONG) | Triumph over SEX (congress) ULT (in the last month) (7) |
| W | 19 | WINSEYS | Materials IN (consisting of) S (sulphur) < YES (certainly) [held] [back] (7) |
| E | 20 | RAYAH | HEARAY* (HEARSAY S (son) [ignored]) [converted] non-Muslim (5) |
| R | 22 | TRUCE | [Retired] < exECUTive [enjoys] respite (5) |
| S | 24 | CLASS | Form CLAS ([detailed] CLASE (CLAUSE (part of act of parliament) U (unionist) [rejected])) (5) |
| A | 26 | ATE/ATE (KIP) | TE (THE [heartless]) Greek goddess (4) |
| R | 27 | PANDA CARS | They transport Bill {AND ALPACAS}* [cruelly] [leaving] AL (Alabama) (9, two words) |
| E | 30 | SIREN SUIT | [Forgetting about] D (Germany), INDUSTRIES* [recycled] war-time dross (9, two words) |
| T | 32 | BANE (LEU) | E (Spain) [continues] BAN (to prohibit) peso (4) |
| O | 33 | NANCY | NAN (Relative)’s COY (modest) French city (5) |
| U | 36 | CURSE | Evil CR (councillor) SE (outwardly SUBVERSIVE) (5) |
| N | 38 | AGARS | AGA (What could heat) RN (Royal Navy) S (SHIP[’s first]) jellies (5) |
| D | 41 | CAPSULE | SUL (SULK (Someone aloof) [mostly]) [seen in] CAPE (cloak) – part of pose, perhaps (7) |
| E | 42 | PAISANO (RUPEE) | Parson who’s a friend of PA (grandpa) IS A NO (novice) (7) |
| R | 43 | TOLL | T (GOVERNMENT[’s right]) to ROLL (register) cost (4) |
| G | 44 | TIP | Overturn hive (3) |
| O | 45 | SOTADEAN | SEAN (In Dublin, John) [protects] TAD (little boy) related to Greek poet (8) |
| T | 46 | LONG WEEKEND (KWACHA) | {GENT KNEW OLD E (earl)}* [relaxed] in extended period of leisure (12, two words) |
| E | 47 | HEEL IN | To cover roots, O (nothing)[’s extracted from] [fluid] {IN HOLE}* (6, two words) |
| N | 48 | LEADENED | Depressed LEAD (guide) [crosses] DEE (river) (8) |
| Down | |||
| T | 2 | SINUITIS | [Doctor] {IS IN US [with] I (current)]* cavity problem (8) |
| H | 3 | CANASTER | Rough tobacco in CAN (tin) HAS < RET (to soften) [retrospectively] (8) |
| O | 4 | ANTLER | LEARNT* [about] what rye may produce (6) |
| U | 5 | TEGGS | Sheep, EG (say), [boarding] TUGS (vessels) (5) |
| S | 6 | SNEERED | ERSE (Irish) SNED (cut) [sandwiches] and scoffed (7) |
| A | 7 | BINDI | BAIN (R (Right) [away], BAIRN (Scots child)) < ID (papers) [over] red mark (5) |
| N | 8 | TARNAL | < {LA (The foreign) RAT (traitor) returns for ever to the USA (6) |
| D | 9 | ELEGY | < GEL (Posh girl) [shown up] [in] EY ([extremely] EARTHY) verse of Reflective Moon (5) |
| P | 10 | NULLAS | ASP (Snake) NULL (not existing) [above] Indian ravines (6) |
| E | 12 | PYTHAGORAS (SHEKEL) | [Complex] {GRAPH EASY TO}* theorist (11) |
| R | 13 | DOWN TO EARTH (KINA) | Practical [treatment of] {TOOTH WAN |
| C | 15 | OFFEND (YUAN) | ST (Street) [in] OSTEND (foreign port) [becomes] FF (very loud) – intense (7) |
| E | 21 | SPIN | To deviously give gin in SPAIN (part of Iberia)’s [not A (accepted)] (4) |
| N | 23 | KOBOLD (NAIRA) | KNOB (Handle) OLD (ancient) spirit (7) |
| T | 25 | ARET | Award aged A (American) [in front of] RE (god) (4) |
| I | 28 | ALESTAKE | Ann’s pointer as spoken by TAKE (escort) (8) |
| N | 29 | SUILLINE | Swinish {ILLNESS IN U (university)}* – [rampant] [but not] S ([ultimately] DISASTROUS) (8) |
| F | 31 | SCROTAL | FACTORS* [affected] L ([source of] LEATHER) of skin bag (7) |
| L | 34 | AGUISE | Historically, fashion’s AL ([nearly] ALL (completely)) GUISE (pretence) (6) |
| A | 35 | CRESOL | {SO CLEAR}* [liquid] disinfectant (6) |
| T | 37 | SPREAD | [After] S ([latest of] DELAYS), DEPART* [angrily] – [short of] T (time), become faster (6) |
| I | 39 | APPLE | Maybe boffin’s ALE (beer) [consumed by] PP (parish priest)? [On the contrary] (5) |
| O | 40 | KNOWN | Widely recognised KN ([suburbs of] KINGSTON) to W (west) and N (north) (5) |
| N | 41 | CHACE | Hurt old HAC (HACK (chap) [cut down]) [in] CE (church) (5) |
| U | S | U | C | A | P | T | S | B | U | T | E | N | E |
| L | I | L | A | N | G | E | N | I | R | A | L | U | P |
| D | N | O | N | T | O | G | E | N | Y | R | E | L | Y |
| O | U | M | A | L | F | G | E | D | O | N | G | L | T |
| W | I | N | S | E | Y | S | R | I | R | A | Y | A | H |
| N | T | S | T | R | U | C | E | N | C | L | A | S | S |
| K | I | P | E | P | A | N | D | A | C | A | R | S | H |
| I | S | I | R | E | N | S | U | I | T | L | E | U | E |
| N | A | N | C | Y | D | C | U | R | S | E | T | I | K |
| A | G | A | R | S | K | R | C | A | P | S | U | L | E |
| R | U | P | E | E | N | O | H | L | R | T | O | L | L |
| T | I | P | S | S | O | T | A | D | E | A | N | I | S |
| H | S | L | O | K | W | A | C | H | A | K | E | N | D |
| H | E | E | L | I | N | L | E | A | D | E | N | E | D |
This was a tough puzzle and I had to do a bit of searching for those currencies I’d never heard of, but I got there in the end despite feeling like giving up a few times.
I’m sure many others will have got the point about currencies increasing 100 times but unfortunately that is not 10,000% inflation. If 1p (one penny, not one pence, Mr Sting!) becomes £1 that is 9,900% inflation. If the percentage increase really were 10,000%, then something costing 1p would now be £1.01. But maybe I’m nitpicking.
28D I thought was “a les” the plural of “a la” [accents omitted]
Is 41D chap cut down = CHA and in church = CE?
25D I put ARES not ARET, but I think your parsing is more convincing than mine was.
It was Thursday before I realised what was going on.
And it was still an effort to complete the grid after that.
Thanks to Kruger and Mister Sting
Obviously happy to hear the opinions of others but I think the maths in this puzzle is quite OK ie 10,000% inflation is the same as multiplying the basic unit by 100.
I don’t think so, nmsindy, otherwise by your method a 100% increase would be the same as multiplying by 1, ie no change. The way to work out percentage increase is: (new amount – old amount) divided by old amount and times by 100. So if 1 becomes 100, it is (100-1) divided by 1 times 100 = 9900%. If you still don’t believe me, try doing it on a calculator that can add on percentages. The one on a Mac works: 1 + 9900% = 100.
Or you could try this site:
http://www.marshu.com/articles/calculate-percentage-increase-decrease-percent-calculator.php
Again, happy to hear opinions, but the puzzle does not refer to “percentage increase”, rather “inflation”.
I did wonder about that, nmsindy, and you could be right there as inflation seems to be a much more complicated subject. However, from the site below, I would quote this:
“The CPI 12-month rate (the amount prices change over a year) between December 2015 and December 2016 stood at 1.6%. This means that a basket of goods and services that cost £100.00 in December 2015 would have cost £101.60 in December 2016.”
The CPI being a measure of price inflation. £100 to £101.60 is a percentage increase of 1.6%, just as 1.6% is the current rate of inflation announced in the news recently.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/bulletins/consumerpriceinflation/latest