Dateline: 03/29/99

"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire."
- William Butler Yeats

Results from MCCC #6
Winter Segment, '98-'99
"THE EMERALD ISLE"

The Winner:
Three medals lie scattered where Michael Collins died fighting for freedom (3,7,4)

submitted by:
tsk@net2phone.com
(T. Scott Kennedy)

Runner-Up:
Limerick's place in poetry? Read me these and I'll elaborate (3,7,4)

submitted by:
kabe@law.co.za
(Keith Engers)

Honorable Mention:
Tell me dear is he going to provide a home for the little people? (3,7,4)

submitted by:
helen@pro-dtp.demon.co.uk
(Helen Robertson)

Here are the clues with the judge's comments.

Good-bye to all the MCCC contestants. I've enjoyed commenting on the entries of the past three months and now I pass the torch to a new judge. My comments have been controversial at times and resulted in some lively discussion. So much the better!

In closing, I wish you well and I hope you'll continue to enjoy these competitions. Now I can be a participant and get someone else's feedback.

Guide's Comment:

Many thanks to the outgoing judge. It was a job well-done with no monetary reward.

The new judge, a North American, is no stranger to clue-writing contests. I look forward to the comments in the upcoming segment.

If you'd like to comment on this contest, the judging or anything else that you encounter here at TMC, please post a message to the Bulletin Board

1.
Three medals lie scattered where Michael Collins died fighting for freedom (3,7,4)

Clue Type: Anagram

Three medals lie = Anagram fodder
scattered = Anagram indicator
where Michael Collins died fighting for freedom = Definition

Comments: The Winner

Smooth surface and a sound encryption with no superfluous elements. Totally original definition and the reference to Michael Collins is fair considering the highly acclaimed film by the same name. Well done!

2.
Article with gem, by passageway without article, is said to have no snakes (3,7,4)

Clue Type: Charade

Article = THE
with gem = +EMERALD
passageway without article = AISLE - A = ISLE
is said to have no snakes = Definition

Surface: According to legend, St. Patrick drove snakes out of Ireland, which is often alluded to as, 'The Emerald Isle'

Comments:

I like the definition but the surface kills this clue. I like the element, 'passageway without article = ISLE'. However, its incorporation into the clue was done at the expense of the surface.

3.
Tell me dear is he going to provide a home for the little people? (3,7,4)

Clue type: Anagram

Tell me dear is he = Anagram fodder
going = Anagram indicator
to provide = connector
a home for the little people = Definition

Surface: Ireland is where 'the little people', or fairies, live.

Comments: Honorable Mention

I like it. A fanciful definition that is challenging but fair. The only downside is the, 'going to provide' anagram indicator/connector. I might have used, 'rebuilding the home for... '

4.
Strange dream: I'll see the leprechauns land (3,7,4)

Clue Type: Anagram

Strange = Anagram indicator
dream I'll see the = Anagram fodder
leprechauns land = Definition

Surface: It would be strange but nice to dream of seeing leprechauns landing on earth.

Comments:

Good effort but 'leprechauns' triggers the answer. As far as the surface goes, leprechauns are earthly creatures whereas your explanation seems to suggest aliens.

5.
A land of mist, magic and mirth? I'll see the dream destroyed (3,7,4)

Clue Type: Anagram

A land of mist, magic and mirth = Definition
I'll see the dream = Anagram fodder (APST)
destroyed = Anagram indicator

Surface: The surface is unfortunately apt at the moment, with the Northern Ireland peace process looking increasingly fragile.

Comments:

Nice alliterative definition. Good anagram and indicator but the surface falls just short of a ribbon.

6.
Limerick's place in poetry? Read me these and I'll elaborate (3,7,4)

Clue Type: Anagram

Limerick's place in poetry = Definition
Read me these... I'll = Anagram fodder
elaborate = Anagram indicator

Surface: 'Limerick' would not have a capital 'L' except for its position at the beginning of the sentence, and 'elaborate' is a verb.

Comments: Runner-Up

Well done! Nice ambiguity for 'Limerick' and the poetic reference is reinforced with the 'read' element of the anagram fodder. In my books, 'elaborate' is a good anagram indicator. My only quibble is the inclusion of the word, 'and' in the anagram fodder. It could have been omitted (replaced by a comma?) without diminishing the surface.

7.
Lethal remedies are disastrous for this troubled land (3,7,4)

Clue Type: Anagram

Lethal remedies = Anagram fodder
are disastrous for = Anagram indicator
this troubled land = Definition

Comments:

Good anagram indicator and the definition is fair but the phrase, 'lethal remedies', is too self-contradictory (oxymoronic) to be taken seriously. That being said, I think lethal remedies would be disastrous for any land. What about 'All the remedies'?

8.
I let her lead me south, first roaming the land of the limerick. (3,7,4)

Clue Type: Anagram

I let her lead me S (south, first) = Anagram fodder
roaming = Anagram indicator
the land of the limerick = Definition

Surface: I let some gal take me on a tour of Ireland starting around Limerick.

Comments:

Another clue using 'limerick' (see #6). Unfortunately, the definition in this one is too direct. I think with the added help of the enumeration, this clue could be solved without referring to the cryptic elements. Also, without a capital 'L', the clue and the surface explanation don't jive.

9.
St. Patrick's land excursion made eel slither! (3,7,4)

Clue Type: Anagram

St. Patrick's land = Definition
excursion = Anagram indicator
made eel slither = Anagram fodder

Comments:

From a physicist's point of view, I suppose an 'excursion' could be "a movement in an oscillating or alternating motion..." However, in this clue, the anagram indicator (and it's position) is inadequate. Apart from that, I think the definition is a give-away.

10.
Lethal "remedies" concocted where orange and green clash (3,7,4)

Clue Type: Anagram

Lethal remedies = Anagram fodder
concocted = Anagram indicator
where orange and green clash = Definition

Surface: Sorry to put a downer on the St Patrick`s Day celebrations, but there IS just a little bit of a problem in the Emerald Isle.

Comments:

As far as 'lethal remedies' is concerned, please see comments for #7. Once again, a good anagram indicator and fair definition but you lose marks for the oxymoron.

Previous results (Winter Segment):
MCCC #1 | MCCC #2 | MCCC #3 | MCCC #4 | MCCC #5

Previous results (Fall Segment):
MCCC #1 | MCCC #2 | MCCC #3 | MCCC #4 | MCCC #5 | MCCC #6
Fall Segment Winners

Previous results (Summer Segment):
MCCC #1 | MCCC #2 | MCCC #3 | MCCC #4 | MCCC #5 | MCCC #6
Summer Segment Winners

Previous results (Spring Segment):
MCCC #1 | MCCC #2 | MCCC #3 | MCCC #4
Spring Segment Winners

Current Contest | Prizes | Annual Winners

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