Mind Sharpeners

Southland Times, Issue 21997, 22 April 1933, Page 18

Mind Sharpeners

Comments. Apart from The Book Puzzle, which really was too much for most of you—the average correct answer was one—- “ Rip Van Winkle”—most difficulty seemed to be found in the jumbled quotation—there were only five correct answers to -this, surprisingly enough. Cousin Daphne Shields knew “The King of the Golden River”—and one competitor knew, four out of the ten book questions. Remember that neatness goes a long way in your favour, cousins. —COUSIN BETTY. Answers to those appearing in ths page on April 1: Whats and Whys. 1. A shadow. • . 2. Miss Ouri and Mrs Sippi (Miss* ouri and Mississippi). 3. One is stepping up the stairs, the other is staring up the steps. 4. Milk, or cream. 5. Your word. 6. A stalk of corn. (12 marks—2 each). Feet to Hand Puzzle. FEET BEET BEAT BEAD BEND BAND HAND (3 marks). , Transposition in Rhymes. Mantle, mantel, lament, mental. (5 marks). Boys’ Names Puzzle. 1 Patrick, 2 Thomas, 3 Andrew, 4 Stephen, 5 Edgar. (5 marks). Numbered Birds. three eight five seven four ten two six one nine (Heron) (geese) (5 marks). Quotation Puzzle. “Leaders are ordinary people with extraordinary determination.” —Abraham Lincoln. (5 marks). Arithmetical Puzzle. Names of Fish. 1. cr(eep) + ab(le) = crab. 2. da(y) + ce(nt) = dace. 3. Spr(ing) + at(tic) = sprat. 4. Sal(t) + mon(ey) — salmon. 5. (f)oy(er) + ster(n) = oyster. 6. ha(y) + ke(ep) — hake. 7. tur(n) + bot(tle) = turbot. 8. pr(ay) + awn(ing) = prawn. 9. mus(k) + sel(l) = mussel. 10. so (me) + left) — sole. (20 marks—2 each). A Letter Puzzle. BERMUDA. (3 marks). Book Puzzle. 1. Nils. (“Wonderful Adventures of Nils,” by Lagerlof). 2. Etans and Schwartz. (“King of the Golden River,” by Ruskin). 3. Diamond. (“At the Back of the North Wind,” by George MacDonald). 4. David. (“David Blaize and the Blue Door.”) 5. Mr Mole. (“Wind in the Willows, by Grahame). ' - ‘ 6. Pitamakan and Thomas Fox. (“Trail of the Spanish Horse,’ by James Willard Schultz). 7. John of the Woods. 8. Alice in Wonderland. 9. Mary. (“The Secret Garden.”) 10. Rip Van Winkle. (20 marks —2 each). Word Exploration. Some of you did not make quite clear the fact that you knew how to pronounce thb. words. The word that gave the most trouble was “egregious. It is pronounced “eegreejus,” with the accent on the second syllable, and its pure meaning of “surpassing” is archaic now. In its modern usage it is a derogatory term, used in the sense of “shocking”—and is almost always coupled with the word “ass” as a term of contempt. “Egregious folly,” “egregious blunder,” “egregious nonsense — those are the phrases in which it is most familiar. “Gofer” is a funny little word I found, quite unimportant, and is a “thin batter-cake stamped "with honeycomb pattern by the irons it is baked in.” “Goffer,” with which dressmakers are familiar, is usually spelt with the extra “f”. A number of you used “transilient” as a noun; it is an adjective, meaning “extending across from one point of support to another, and may be used to describe a cable or bridge, for instance. Results: Cousin Edith Mclnnes 86 Cousin Winsome Blue 79 Cousin Aileen Henderson 73a Cousin Patricia Henderson 72J Cousin Margaret Jellyman 71 Cousin Betty Padget 70 Cousin Peggy Hodge 69 Cousin Molly Hynd 64J Cousin Zoe Smith 60J Cousin Phyllis Rule 54£ Cousin Daisy Dunlop 50| Cousin Nancy Stevens 50J Cousin Violet Robertson 50 Cousin Lilian Todd 48J Cousin Raney Gough 45 Cousin Monica Ford 45 Cousin Daphne Shields 44 Cousin Margaret Todd 30 Cousin Leslie Horrell 16 Cousin Ernest Grey 8