Azed No. 2,559 Plain

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Lots of Scottish references in this week’s plain puzzle.

I haven’t been able to explain a couple of references, so suggestions please.

picture of the completed grid

ACROSS
1 HOG-CONSTABLE
Greedy one studies food supply – his targets were sounder, but loose? (12)
A charade of HOG CONS TABLE; but I don’t fully understand the definition. According to Chambers, a hog-constable (or hog-reeve) was an official whose duty was to round up loose swine.
10 AWARN
The old caution a nation initially welcoming conflict … (5)
WAR in A N(ation).
11 ARIES
… Those engaged losing millions – it’s a sign (5)
AR(m)IES (those engaged in war – reference back (via the ellipsis) to the previous clue).
13 SPRACKLE
Join climbers in Cairngorms? Retreating, deer whines (8)
ELK CARPS (all rev). It’s a Scottish term, meaning to clamber.
14 TUNKU
Eastern prince, reverse of British noodle? (5)
UK NUT (all rev).
15 ELLAGIC
Melting glacier shifting right to left – sort of nutty? (7)
*GLACIER, with L instead of R. It relates to gallnuts.
17 KERNISH
Old peasant troubled shrink admitting start of eccentricity (7)
E in *SHRINK. It’s an obsolete Irish term for a peasant.
18 WUSSY
Cheeky minx, woman replacing husband, mimsy one (5)
HUSSY with W replacing the initial H. Mimsy is defined in Chambers as meaning “prim, demure or prudish”, and wussy as the adjectival form of wuss “a weakling, an excessively timid person”. I’m not sure that there is an equivalence in meaning here, although the answer was clear. Mimsy of course also appears in the Lewis Carroll poem Jabberwocky (“all mimsy were the borogroves”).
19 RUDAS
Coarse Scots when going after Mrs Grundy, firing off extremes (5)
(p)RUD(e) AS.
21 SHEER
Like a debutante presented to Her Majesty in very fine fabric? Quite (5)
SHE ER and two definitions.
23 ACTOR
Is this player, shiner, exciting in orchestra? (5)
Compound anagram: ACTOR + SHINER = IN ORCHESTRA.
25 THOMIST
Disciple of theological pioneer admitting 50% of errors (7)
THO’ MIST(akes).
27 TOMENTA
Downy plant coverings: chaps installed full amount almost (7)
MEN inside TOTA(l).
30 PROVO
Militant supporting what’s left of spread (5)
PRO (supporting) VO (verso – the left hand page of an open book).
31 DIDAPPER
I’ll be captivated by s-spiffy little bird on the river (8)
I inside D-DAPPER.
32 DERRY
Place giving Aussie bad feeling? Leaving capital optional (5)
Double definition, I think, referring both to (London)derry in Northern Ireland, and the Australian term.
33 NEIST
Catch when fishing round island that’s closest for some (5)
IS(land) inside NET; it’s a variant of nighest.
34 PRESBYTERATE
Erring, betray S. Peter in office of religious elders (12)
*(BETRAY S PETER).
DOWN
1 HASTY-WITTED
Rash that’s gone is characterized by ditty wet composed (11)
HAS *(DITTY WET).
2 GARNISH
Staffage appalling at Balmoral in queen being put up therein (7)
IN R (rev) inside GASH (Scottish for ghastly). Staffage is derived from a German word – nothing to do with staff.
3 CRAKES
Crows with recipe taking second place in ‘Bake-off’ submissions? (6)
R in CAKES.
4 ON CUE
Where chalk’s applied at the right moment (5, 2 words)
Double definition.
5 NIKE
Some turning up seeking famed Louvre piece head off (4)
Hidden and reversed (turning up) in “seeking”. It’s a reference to this famous sculpture.
6 SOLLERET
Part of knight’s foot armour, forged o’ steel, left and right (8)
*(O STEEL L R).
7 ARGAND
Unusual lamp, grand when planted in a border (6)
G(rand) in A RAND.
8 BING
Heap of refuse, last to be cast from furnace’s function? (4)
B(last)ING.
9 LEWISSON
Iron tenon: some instruction required with one installed (8)
W(ith) I (one) inside LESSON (instruction).
12 SACHERTORTE
Product of teashop creator … OAP’s thrilled with it! (11)
Another compound anagram: SACHERTORTE + OAP = TEASHOP CREATOR. If I understand the history correctly, the original was created by an apprentice chef in the household of Chancellor Metternich: it was the chef’s son who opened the chain of hotels and cafes where you can now enjoy the cake.
16 PUSHOVER
Satisfied sound, once, about effort of scrum in easy win (8)
SHOVE in PUR (an old form of PURR).
17 KARSTIFY
Render in rough stone old-style wharf, possibly first installed (8)
*FIRST in KAY (old form of QUAY, or KEY). Quite what the word “karstify” means is unclear (it’s undefined in Chambers and the ODE) but Azed’s definition seems plausible.
20 ATROPIA
Nurse comes round opening up premed alkaline (7)
PORT (opening; rev) in AIA (nurse).
22 EMEERS
Prophet’s descendants rising proudly to the surface, last rising about halfway (6)
EMERSE (a botanical term, referring e.g. to leaves, rising above the surface of water) with the final E moving to the middle.
24 CARPER
Critic having to push off, disowned by leader (6)
(s)CARPER.
26 SPANE
Prepare for solids? Och aye, mashed neaps (5)
*NEAPS. It’s a Scottish term meaning to wean, but I don’t think the clue really works, as parsnips in Scotland are neeps, not neaps (which are spring tides).
28 MURE
What kept Pyramus from Thisbe – or Ida from mice! (4)
In A Midsummer Night’s Dream Tom Snout plays the wall between the gardens of Pyramus and Thisbe, and although the play refers to a Wall, “mure” is a Shakespearean term for a wall. I’m afraid I haven’t been able to work out who Ida was.
29 ADIT
Passage in Iliad italicized (4)
Hidden in “Iliad italicized”.

15 comments on “Azed No. 2,559 Plain”

  1. Thanks Bridgesong,
    1 ac ‘Sounder’ is ‘a herd of pigs; a young boar’. (spent ages looking for PIG-CONSTABLE).
    28 MUR[ida]E
    Thanks as ever to Azed.

  2. Thanks for the blog. Lot of Scottish words and quite a lot of biology this week, Much easier than the previous Plain. I did not know Mrs Grundy, was she famous for being a prude ?

  4. Thank you for Mrs Grundy.
    I forgot to say I did ask a geologist about KARSTIFY , apparently karstification is a natural process producing rough stone outcrops. Does “render” in the clue imply a natural process ?

  5. Along with Gonzo@1 I spent too long looking for PIG-CONSTABLE. I took definition of HASTY-WITTED (when I finally got it) to be simply “rash” rather than “rash that’s gone” as blog states. Thanks both.

  6. Wiggers @5: I took “that’s gone” to indicate that this term is marked in Chambers as obsolete, so forming part of the definition rather than the wordplay.

  7. Apparently, Mrs Grundy was a character mentioned, but not appearing, in a1798 play called Speed the Plough.

    5dn defeated me. I knew of the Winged Victory of Samothrace but forgot that Nike was the goddess of victory. And I’m kicking myself for not spotting it reversed in the clue.

  8. I have seen the Nike statue . No head and no arms but the wings are intact and it is still beautiful .

  9. Thanks to bridgesong and, as always, Azed. I really enjoyed this but my last two, not entered but understood, were THOMIST and DERRY. Ancient brain clicked on THO, then the two names for DERRY as a walk cleared the fog.
    “O Danny Boy” as we sang in primary school to what we called the “Londonderry Air”, a name that identifies one side of a, now fading divide.
    I do some Guardian crosswords but shudder at too many definitions. This week had “round home” as a definition for TOAST RACK. When I protest I’m upbraided for having a concrete mind!
    In the Louvre the Winged Victory (Nike) used to stand (does it still?) in a prominent position at the top of a flight of stairs near the pre-pyramid entry. Much easier to see than the Mona Lisa.

  10. Keith Thomas@9 When I saw Nike it was at the top of that beautiful staircase , nearly 30 years ago so may have changed.
    Someone once told me that the local radio stations referred to Stroke City, a rather neat and uncontentious version of Londonderry/Derry, I do not know if this is actually true ??

  15. Regulars will know that I’m in general no fan of the compound / composite anagram; but here I think SACHERTORTE is outstanding, especially if bridgesong’s history is correct. I’d say 9 / 10 and I’m surprised no one’s commented on it. Azed refers to them as composite anagrams.
    Stefan

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