SUNDAY CROSSWORD —

988

ACROSS

1 Elephant driver

(6)

4 Perspire (5)

7 Silver-white element (6)

13 Mind a child

(7)

14 Upper limb (3)

15 Foretold, prophesied or signified (7)

16 Indian goddess (4)

17 Order of the British Empire, in short (3)

18 Mend socks

(4)

21 Stoutly partisan (8)

23 English furniture maker (8)

27 Lack of prejudice (9)

29 Intensified, ascended or mounted (9)

31 Slender threads - like those seen in light-bulbs (9)

32 A flight of fancy or hopeless ambition?

(4,5)

33 Authorised (8)

37 Cricket fielding position

(5,3)

42 Cooking rod

(4)

43 Dinner jacket

(3)

44 Double reed

(4)

47 Pass sentence on (7)

48 French assent

(3)

49 Challenges or contradicts (7)

50 Goes off course (6)

51 Unexpected difficulties that arise (5)

52 Extensions (6)

2 Central parts of wheels (4)

3 Disentangle (7)

5 Erode, cause to diminish by constant usage

(4,3)

6 Lacking any purpose (7)

8 Neighbour of Libya (7)

9 Concerning, in legal terms "rein" anagram ? (2,2)

10 Examplars (6)

11 King of the Huns (6)

12 Deal with, control (6)

19 Painting of inanimate objects (5-4)

20 Go easy (4,5)

22 Sheep's milk cheese (7)

24 Leaves, shoots, or resin of hemp

(7)

25 Pack tightly, force or cram?

(5)

26 ___ ale : water for drinking?

(5)

28 "Losing my religion" rock group (3)

30 Guided (3)

34 Blasphemy, desecration or heresy (7)

35 Chant or sing

(6)

36 Disappointment (3-4)

37 Moving along the ground especially an aircraft? (7)

38 Of a mocking nature (6)

39 Sagged; wilted

(7)

40 Parcels of land

(6)

41 Pokes fun at

(6)

45 Knot in wood

(4)

46 Exchange fee

(4)