Saturday, August 3, 2013 — Do you speak the language?

Introduction

Today's puzzle from Cox & Rathvon has a language theme. Furthermore, in a move that almost seems designed to disprove a statement that I made in a comment to a reader a couple of weeks ago, we see a rare instance where the theme is found not only in the across clues — but in the down clues, as well.

Solution to Today's Puzzle

Legend:	"*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed
	"( )" letters inserted; "_" letters deleted; "†" explicit in the clue

Across

1a   HINDUSTANI* — anagram (garbled) of IN DASH UNIT

6a   _S|HIV_ — hidden in (stuck in) beeS HIVe

9a   MANS(I)ON — {MANS (guy's) + ON (running)} containing (around) I ([Roman numeral for] one)

10a   W|RANG(L)E — L {[Roman numeral for] 50} contained in (in) {W (western) + range (grazing land)}

12a   TAG|A|LOG — TAG (label) + (connected with) A (†) + LOG (record)

13a   RA(T O)N — RAN (hurried) containing (around) TO (†)

15a   LA(PLAN)D — PLAN (map) contained in (held by) LAD (boy)

17a   RECLAIM* — anagram (plastic) of MIRACLE

18a   ECHIDNA* — anagram (strange) of CHAINED

21a   ART(EM)IS —{ART (creative activity) + IS (†)} containing EM (Dorothy's aunt).

In the childrens' story The Wizard of Oz^[7] (or, as it was originally titled, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz), Dorothy Gale lives with her Uncle Henry and Aunt Em.

In Greek mythology, Artemis^[5] is the daughter of Zeus and sister of Apollo. She was a huntress and is typically depicted with a bow and arrows.

23a   G(AM)UT — AM (band on the radio) contained (breaking into) GUT (instinctive)

24a   C(AT|A)LAN — CLAN (family) containing (clutching) {AT (†) + A (†)}

27a   IGNORED* — anagram (cuckoo) of ON RIDGE

28a   CAR|OT|ID — {CAR (auto) + ID (I had; I'd)} containing (keeps) a reversal (returning) of TO (†)

29a   HIDE — double definition; "cover up" & "skin"

30a   MACE|DON|IAN — MACE (club) + DON (put on) + IAN (Fleming; English writer Ian Fleming^[7], creator of James Bond)

Down

1d   HEMS — double definition; "gropes for words" & "changing lines for models"

2d   _NONS|TOP_ — hidden in (shows) ShanNONS TOPstitching

3d   U|SING — U (unlimited rum; rUm without its first and final letters) + SING (spill the beans)

4d   T|ANGLED — T (team's leader; first letter [leader] of Team) + ANGLED (went fishing)

5d   {NEW AGER}~ — sounds like (you might say) {KNEW (recognized) + WAGER (risk)}

7d   H(IGH TE)A — HA (that's funny) containing (eating) an anagram (bananas) of EIGHT

The British distinguish between afternoon tea and high tea, although both may be referred to simply as tea^[10]. Afternoon tea^[2,5,7,10] (or Low Tea) is a light afternoon meal, typically eaten between 3:00 pm and 5:00 pm, at which tea, sandwiches, biscuits [British term for cookies] and cakes are served.

High tea^[7] (also known as meat tea) is the evening meal or dinner of the working class, typically eaten between 5pm and 7pm. It typically consists of a hot dish such as fish and chips, shepherd's pie, or macaroni cheese, followed by cakes and bread, butter and jam. Occasionally there would be cold cuts of meat, such as ham salad. Traditionally high tea was eaten by middle to upper class children (whose parents would have a more formal dinner later) or by labourers, miners and the like when they came home from work. The term was first used around 1825 and high is used in the sense of well-advanced (like high noon, for example) to signify that it was taken later in the day.

8d   VI(ET|NAMES)E — {ET (alien) + NAMES (specifies)} contained in (in) VIE (struggle)

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial^[7] (often referred to simply as E.T.) is a 1982 American science fiction film co-produced and directed by Steven Spielberg. It tells the story of a lonely boy who befriends an extraterrestrial, dubbed "E.T.", who is stranded on Earth. He and his siblings help the extraterrestrial return home while attempting to keep it hidden from their mother and the government.

11d   APRICOT* — anagram (transported) of TO CAPRI

14d   {OLD ENGLISH}* — anagram (rough) of IN HELL DOGS

16d   AUDI|T|OR — AUDI (German car) + T (tenor) + OR (†)

19d   HO(MINI)D — HOD (mason's tool) containing (holding) MINI (very small)

20d   AR(CAD)IA — ARIA (song) containing (about) CAD (rogue)

In Greek mythology, Pan^[5] is a god of flocks and herds, typically represented with the horns, ears, and legs of a goat on a man’s body.

Arcadia^[5] is a mountainous district in the Peloponnese of southern Greece. In poetic fantasy it represents a pastoral paradise and in Greek mythology it is the home of Pan.

21d   A|TT|ACHE — A (†) + TT {heartless twit; TwiT with its interior letters deleted (heartless)} + ACHE (hurt)

22d   MENOTTI* — anagram (meandering) of INTO MET

Gian Menotti^[5] (1911 – 2007) was an Italian-born US composer. He wrote the operas The Old Maid and the Thief (1939), The Consul (1950), and Amahl and the Night Visitors (1951).

The Metropolitan Opera House^[7] (popularly known as the Met) is an opera house located on Broadway at Lincoln Square in the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Part of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the theater opened in 1966. It replaced the former Metropolitan Opera House at Broadway and 39th St. and is the current home of the Metropolitan Opera Company.

25d   L|ARGO — L (large) + ARGO (mythical ship)

A largo^[5] is a musical passage, movement, or composition marked to be performed in a slow tempo and dignified in style.

In Greek mythology, the Argo^[7] was the ship on which Jason and the Argonauts sailed from Iolcos to retrieve the Golden Fleece. It was named after its builder, Argus. 

26d   A|DEN — A (†) + DEN (place for criminals [a den of thieves])

Key to Reference Sources: 

^[1]   - The Chambers Dictionary, 11th Edition
^[2]   - Search Chambers - (Chambers 21st Century Dictionary)
^[3]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (American Heritage Dictionary)
^[4]   - TheFreeDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[5]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford Dictionary of English)
^[6]   - Oxford Dictionaries (Oxford American Dictionary)
^[7]   - Wikipedia
^[8]   - Reverso Online Dictionary (Collins French-English Dictionary)
^[9]   - Infoplease (Random House Unabridged Dictionary)
^[10] - CollinsDictionary.com (Collins English Dictionary)
^[11] - TheFreeDictionary.com (Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary)

Signing off for today — Falcon