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ACC 5 -- The rest of the clues.

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Warren Usui

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Jul 27, 1992, 8:40:46 PM7/27/92

The contest word for ACC5 was MARSUPIAL. The winning clue was supplied by
Guy Jacobson who came up with:

Bum rap: U.S. Mail pouches are found in this strange order.

Anagram ("Bum") of "rap: U.S. Mail"
= MARSUPIAL ("pouches are found in this strange order")

I liked this clue because I liked the actual definition part "pouches are found
in this strange order". Many people I thought gave away the clue with broad
references to Kangaroos and Opposums. I was hoping to get some phrases like
"playing possum" or "kangaroo court" but did not.

Now for the rest of the clues. Since I have no formal training in this
sort of thing, I will admit that some of the clues listed in the set
that I liked may have technical problems. For example, I did not follow
a Ximenean rule that a member of a larger class cannot be used to define
the class itself (one poster brought this up). I need to think more about
this, but it may be a good rule to follow in the future.

Other clues (sort of in the order that I liked them) were:

____

From: SHE...@ucs.indiana.edu (Steven J. Sherman)

Joey plus Maria: a bad combination. (9)

Joey= def (baby kangaroo) anag (bad combination) of plus maria

I liked the use of Joey. This was my second favorite clue.

----

From: Roger Phillips <ro...@quantime.co.uk>

US Mail parcel's half destroyed - I carry the litter in my pocket (9)

[anagram of "US Mail par" (parcel's half = half of parcel);
I (a marsupial) carry the litter (young animals) in my pocket (pouch)]

This had almost the same anagram as the winning clue. I liked the other clue's
definition a little better and the "I reference" I thought was strange (how
many marsupials are on the net, anyway?)

____

From: m...@src.dec.com

Joey, e.g., comes from a planet above the horizon; Alan and I follow,
but come the other way.

joey, a young kangaroo, is an example of a marsupial
planet = MARS
above the horizon = UP (as in the moon is up)
I = I
Alan = AL

I liked the Joey reference, but I thought the clue was wordy.

---

From: Jeremy Holden <jho...@netcom.com>

L.A. Rams one up! This baby's in the bag. (9)

(Anag of LA RAMS I UP)

This clue is probably flawed since there is really no anagram indicator.
However, I am a fan of the Los Angeles Rams (a professional American
football team), so I decided to list this one as one I liked.

___

From: Decay <kirby...@tandem.com>

I am with, oddly enough, Mrs. Paula Koala (9)

The Koala reference is a give-away, although I thought the Mrs. Paula Koala
phrase is cute.

----

From: Tom Deneau <to...@cayman.amd.com>

Having a baby carrier, Mom has to eat in rearranged den. (9)

Having a baby carrier = MARSUPIAL (the adjective).
Mom (MA) has to eat (SUP) in rearranged den (LAIR reversed).

Worth mentioning because I liked the use of marsupial as an adjective.

___

From: Wen-Ling Hsu <h...@learning.siemens.com>

Animal disturbed Puma's lair (9)

A marsupial is an animal, and an anagram of Puma's lair.

I like how simple this clue is, but animal is a less interesting definition
than some of the others.

---

From: j...@doc.imperial.ac.uk

Marshal drops first holdall but takes up one which may carry issue in pouch. (9)
------------- ------
H UPI
---------------------
MARSAL
------------------------------------
MARSUPIAL

This was an okay clue, but I thought it was a bit unwieldy and slightly
indirect.

---

From: Albert Young <yo...@mtl.mit.edu>

Animal mauls pair viciously; her pouch saved lives (9)

[anag. "mauls pair"]

I'm not sure if saved lives is equivalent to necessary for survival
of young.

---

The rest of the clues below all seemed to be give away the clue with
references to specific marsupials. I thought they were mostly okay,
except that I don't think Maria was a Shark in West Side Story. Her
brother was a Shark (a member of the Puerto Rican gang).

From: Ray Steiner <ste...@andy.bgsu.edu>

Manx cat in a den at morning flipped on seeing a possum, perhaps.

Explanation: PUS(s) in LAIR +AM (all reversed).
MANX: Indicates "tailless".

From: ura...@leland.stanford.edu

Wild pair? Mauls kangaroo, for example! (9)

Wild pair? Mauls : anagram MARSUPIAL
kangaroo, for example : MARSUPIAL

From: Clark <AT...@asuvm.inre.asu.edu>

An opossum, for example, is a rum pal. Rum, indeed! (9)

From: "David A. Mattingly" <dama...@starbase.spd.louisville.edu>

Scars up one, a left kangaroo.

MARS UP I A L defn

From: @orchard.la.locus.com:uunet!tadusa!tadtec!tjfs (Tim Steele)