The Puzzler

By Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon

FIVE AND TEN

Each of ten clues (listed a j in no special order) yields a tenletter word chat may be split in half to form two five-letter words. The 20 five-letter words formed in this way belong in the diagram; solvers may locate them with the help of Across and Down words, which are treated normally. Final diagram entries include seven proper nouns; 21 Down is an archaic variant.

The answers to last month’s Puzzler appear on page 100.

TEN-LETTER WORDS

a.Pig leaves around the first of November after cold drinks b.Goes too far in running course heat c. Half of Rams snack in taverns with TV equipment (two words)

d.Tailor gets ten red cleaning products e.Each September, he keeps working with a woman of the underworld f.Three cars careening around hairpin turn in color

g.“South to Fuel" written on back of one hundred and one vehicles h.Lousy peso’s price for viewing instruments

i.Poor lad is in rut from factory work j.Rifle belonging to a guerrilla found in period of inactivity

ACROSS

8. Polish article gives name of woman in pop music ... (6)

10.... and gets actor Richard up in arms (7)

11.Working nurse cages one of the bears (6)

13.Madrid mister pockets small receptor (6)

16.Oddly neglected wordless verse forms (4)

18. Low part of a diamond (4)

19. Sound of fish catcher heard (4)

22. The smallest bit of a turkey (4)

23. Medicine that works for a priest (4)

24. Inventor’s flare (4)

26. Numb one’s skin pulled back (6)

27. Curtis Strange in the rough? (6)

30. Greek gives alien a new round ring (7)

31. Fine whipped cream on last piece of pie (6)

DOWN

1. Like an outdoorsman wearing a hairpiece? (6)

2. Craftily snares Gunsmoke actor (6)

3. Allows services to be redone (4)

4. Promise a bad sun scare (9)

5. Insufficiently thick chambers (4)

6. Monstrous greed around here in France is killing the king (8)

7. Earliest of birches are free of leaves (4)

9. Pacific North caught in dry spell’s

middle (6)

12.Part of the body is associated with speaking (4)

14. Withdrew backing of former President Kennedy (9)

15. The very top chopped liver (4)

17. Visitor from space over part of Britain (4)

18. Clubs offering underwear without hesitation (8)

20. Loaded ski town died (6)

21. Scheme usually involving Aussie bird (4)

24. Lose color, left in the sand (6)

25. Cut down on the sound made by exercise (6)

27. River boat’s driver creates racket (4)

28. Trollop’s treat (4)

29. Chant couplets about English harvest (4)

Note: The instructions above are for this month’s puzzle only. It is assumed that you know how to decipher clues. For a complete introduction to clue-solving, send an addressed, stamped envelope to The Atlantic Puzzler, 8 Arlington Street, Boston, Mass. 02116.

Answers to the October Puzzles

“COMMONERS”

Across. 1. SH(A)RED 5. GRIP(E)S 9. A VENUE 10. WAR-P 12. RUFFIANLY (anag.) 15. A(DO)BE 16. MALT-R-EATS 17. P(RIM)AL 19. SAKE (double def.) 20. BO(N)G 22. HO(L)MES 24. PO(LONA)ISE (Nola anag.) 26. (t)FELON (rev.) 29. SINKHOLES (anag.) 30. ET(C)OH (anag. + c) 31. K-ILLER 32. T(OK)ENS 33. (s)TALKER Down. 1. SCRI(M)P 2. HAUL (homoph.) 3. REF IT 4. DUAL (rev.) 5. GENIAL (anag.) 6. R(EL)ATIONS 7. PAN(0-RAM)IC 8. S(PH)ERE 11. REB-UKE 13. F(LINT)LOCK 14. DRAC-ON-IAN (card rev.) 18. RO(DEN)T 20. BUFFET (double def.) 21. C-LINKS 23. SENSOR (homoph.) 25. A-TOLL 27. SKI-T 28. MERE (hidden)

ACROSTIC NO. 39

“Encyclopedias for the young are forever showing Abraham Lincoln splitting rails with an ax. . . Rails were split with wedges, and these were hammered in with

mauls. A good woodsman respected his ax too much to use it for this kind of work.”

—Tom Burnam, (The Dictionary of) Misinformation