The Maori?

The use of ‘the French’ to signify LA, LE or LES, ‘the Italian’ to signify IL and so on is a long-established and often-used cryptic cluing device.

There are relatively few cryptic crosswords written in New Zealand so  you might well think that using  ’the Maori’ to signify TE (see 6 across) would be my or my predecessor’s innovation. I first came across it however years ago in one of Noel Jessop’s crosswords in that great old, now defunct, Australian magazine The Bulletin. I was a little surprised that Mr Jessop would assume any Australians would know this snippet of Te Reo Maori.

A mistake of numbers?

In a comment under the answers to crossword 749 ^[1], Barrie Graham upbraids me for the mistaken use of 99 to signify IC in 13 down here, pointing out that 99 in Roman numerals should be rendered as XCIX. He helpfully suggests ‘one hundred’ or ‘a hundred’ as valid alternatives.  I must admit my ignorance is exposed here though in my defence I must say I have used the same clue snippet a number of times before and, having received no adverse comments, assume people got it anyway.

I can and indeed do claim further mitigating evidence. Chambers XWD — A dictionary of crossword abbreviations by Michael Kindred and Derrick Knight lists IC as ninety-nine or 99. (Under the pseudonym of Mordred ^[2], Derrick Knight sets crosswords for The Independent ^[3].)

Furthermore, in Cryptic Crossword Dictionary by Jennifer Chandler  (Herron Publications 1993) I read “… be aware that cryptic crossword compilers don’t always use Roman numerals the way the Romans did! … There are few words in the English language … which include CMXCIX but lots that have IM — hence the cryptic corruption of 999. The numbers 49 and 99 follow a similar pattern and have become part of cryptic lore as IL and IC.”