From: guy@ulysses.att.com (Guy Jacobson)
Subject: *** Enigma Minisample ***

Date: Mon, 4 Oct 1993 18:13:42 GMT

Dear Net-puzzlers:

Below I have posted an ASCII version of the four-page mini-sample issue of
the National Puzzler's League magazine _The_ENIGMA_.  The NPL is mentioned in
the rec.puzzles.crosswords FAQ as "simply the best organization devoted to
word puzzles." Besides the puzzle types named in the minisample, The Enigma also features a cryptic crossword in each issue.  I've
only been a member for a short time, but so far it's been a hogshead of fun.

If you do decide to join, let Mercury know that you learned about the NPL
from the minisample posted on netnews.

-- Guy

___________________________________________________________________________


                         T H E     E N I G M A

   Copyright (c) 1993, National Puzzlers' League.  All rights reserved.
                  For permissions, apply to the editor.


January_1993_________________Portland,_Oregon____________________MINISAMPLE

   This is a special introductory edition of The ENIGMA (just four pages
instead of the usual twenty or more).  It is also an invitation to you to
participate in a pastime that will provide you with great enjoyment for
very little expense.

  The ENIGMA is the monthly publication of The National Puzzlers' League.
The NPL, founded in 1883, is the oldest puzzle organization in the United
States and the oldest continuously active one in the world.  In 1987, we
published our 1000th issue.  We have a devoted membership of about 400, and
all of us are IN THE GAME strictly to have fun and to perpetuate the
puzzleistic art.  The ENIGMA is our battleground where we challenge and
entertain each other with ingenuity, wit, and humor.

   Every issue of The ENIGMA contains a wide variety of puzzles, some easy
and some tough.  Beginner or experienced, you'll always get a good workout.
About half the puzzles can be solved without reference books. (Some of our
members collect dictionaries, specialized lists, even computer programs;
many others have solved happily for years with no more than a college
dictionary and thesaurus.)  You'll also find stumpers to test the
vocabulary, logic, and persistence of the most expert solvers.

   The ENIGMA also contains performance records of those solvers (about a
quarter of our members) who like to have their solutions checked and
reported, votes for favorite puzzles, and news about puzzles and puzzlers.
New members receive the guide to The ENIGMA, which explains the many types
of puzzles.  You'll also receive the NPL directory, giving names,
addresses, and noms de plume of puzzlers.  A member's nom serves as
introduction to any other member.  Our members do a lot of corresponding,
and many lasting friendships have been made in the NPL.  Each summer, we
have a four-day convention filled with puzzles, games, and comradeship.
For many, the annual convention is the best part of being an NPLer.

   When you turn the page, you'll find puzzles that appeared a few years
ago in The ENIGMA.  Most of them were solved by about two-thirds of the
members who sent in lists.  (Few members solve everything--and at least
some puzzles in every issue are supposed to be really challenging.)  Most
puzzles in The ENIGMA are in verse, but you don't have to be a poet to
write them, or a scholar to solve them.  In each verse, one or more words
are missing, replaced by words like "ONE" and "TWO."  Your job is to figure
out the missing words.  Look at this example:

          FIFTH-LETTER CHANGE (6)
          When Felix gets a whiff of ONE,
          You see him jump and run,
          But still, before the day is through,
          He's curled up for a TWO.

   The title tells you what kind of answer you need.  In this case, it's a
letter change: a word becomes a new word when a designated letter is
changed--like "design" to "resign," or "irritate" to "irrigate."  The
number in parentheses says you're looking for a six-letter word (ONE) that
becomes a new word (TWO) when its fifth letter is changed.  The context
gives you your clues, and after some thought you hit on the answer: ONE is
"catnip" and TWO is "catnap."

   When you understand that example, you're ready to turn the page and
tackle the rest of the puzzles.  And if you enjoy this sample edition of
The ENIGMA, we hope you'll join us in the NPL.  Page 4 will tell you how.


2__________________________THE_ENIGMA_MINISAMPLE___________________________


   BEHEADMENT: A word becomes a new one when its first letter is
removed.  Example: ONE = factor, TWO = actor.

1. BEHEADMENT (6, 5)

They followed the stream as it FIRST through the wood,
Staying as much in the shade as they could.
A splash, and a swimmer then came into sight.
"He's SECOND!" one Girl Scout cried out in delight.

   CURTAILMENT: A word becomes a new one when its last letter is
removed.  Example: ONE = aspiring, TWO = aspirin.  The asterisk
indicates that the six-letter word is capitalized.

2. CURTAILMENT (7, *6)
"Cleopatra," if it's true
That opposites attract,
Could be called the ONE of "TWO"
By known historic fact.

   DELETION: A word becomes a new one when an interior letter is
removed.  Example: ONE = simile, TWO = smile.

3. DELETION (9, 8)
So the jury finally TWO that czar of crime?
And a jury trial is ONE? High bloody time.

4. DELETION (5, 4)
One year fat, one year lean.
Never anywhere between.
Diet changes every day;
Either ONE or TWO, I say.

   TERMINAL DELETION: A word is changed to a new one by removing its
first and last letters.  Example: ONE = foregone, TWO = Oregon.

5. TERMINAL DELETION (6, 4)
I knew my son would be a TALL
When he was very small,
For when I put him in his SMALL
He doodled on the wall.

  WORD DELETION: A word removed from inside a longer one leaves a
third word.  Example: TOTAL = performance; ONE = man, TWO = perforce.
The length is given only of the longest (TOTAL) word.

6. WORD DELETION (8)
I ate at seven, felt TOTAL by ten.
I doubt if I'll INSIDE eat OUTSIDE again.

7. WORD DELETION (10)
I TWO the praise of any soul
With knowledge of a ONE like this.
I've just an ALL--so on the whole
I'm glad that ignorance is bliss.

  CHARADE: A word is broken into two or more shorter words. Example:
TOTAL = scarcity; ONE = scar, TWO = city. The length is given only of
the long word.

8. CHARADE (10)
My migraine was pounding; I needed some rest.
"There's WHOLE," said my FIRST, "in the medicine chest."
The SECOND on all of the labels looked blurred.
I took one at random and promptly got THIRD.

  LETTER CHANGE: One letter is changed in a word to make a new one.
Example: ONE = pastry, TWO = pantry (a third-letter change).

9. FIRST-LETTER CHANGE (8)
Our baby had colic, and ONE all the day.
No sound's ever TWO it, I'm happy to say.

10. THIRD-LETTER CHANGE (11)
His mood was indicative, her voice purely passive;
He grew more explicative, her boredom grew massive.
To his ONE, she said, "Somehow I feel it's not you
I'm looking for," ending their date with a TWO.

  TRANSPOSAL: A word or phrase becomes a different one when its
letters are rearranged.  Example: ONE = sleuth, TWO = hustle.

11. TRANSPOSAL (6)
Listen, old fellow, my FIRST you may be,
But that gives you no right to pry.
You've plenty of crust, it is easy to see--
Why, you're even SECOND than I!

12. TRANSPOSAL (8, 5 3)
Their salad is Caesar,
But please hold the crouton--
They're the FIVE THREE.
Their fruit is the kiwi,
Their EIGHT is a futon--
They're the FIVE THREE.
They're as chic as you get,
SSTs, not the jet--
They're the FIVE THREE.


___________________________THE_ENIGMA_MINISAMPLE_________________________3


  LETTER BANK: From the "bank" of letters contained in the short word,
which has no repeated letters, a longer word is formed using all the
letters at least once and as many more times as needed.  Examples:
ONE = lens, TWO = senselessness.  ONE = field, TWO = fiddledeedee.

13. LETTER BANK (6, 9)
A SECOND broke a hundred knees
And FIRST along in her unease.

14. LETTER BANK (6, 10)
I work for an importing firm
That sells exotic birds.
Our president loves cockatiels
And tries to teach them words.
Our lawyers love the parrots
How their talking gives them thrills.
But our LONGERs hate the SHORTERs:
They've no use for those big bills!

  HETERONYM: Two words or phrases have the same spelling but different
pronunciations and meanings.  Example: ONE = notable, TWO = not able.
Asterisks indicate capitalized words.

15. HETERONYM (2 9; 3, *3 5)
Adam said, "I'll take this film to FIRST," and off went he.
Jumping out of SECOND off to case the apple tree.

16. HETERONYM (3 5, *8)
In fourteen hundred ninety-two,
Columbus gasped, "I'm lost! I'm through!"
FIRST mounted as he turned quite green:
"What will I tell the SECOND queen?"

  HOMONYM: Two unrelated words or phrases are pronounced the same but
spelled differently.  Example: ONE = hair, TWO = hare.

17. HOMONYM (6, 7)
Sweet to die for country?
The FIRST did not agree.
He SECOND in the bushes
Till it was safe to flee.

18. HOMONYM (6, 6)
Lambs who ONE on the green may get caught on a thorn;
Lambs who TWO on green tables get caught and then shorn.

  SPOONERGRAM: A phrase becomes another phrase when the initial sounds
in the words are swapped.  Example: ONE = Morse code, TWO = course mowed.

19. SPOONERGRAM (6 6, 7 7)
His radio excitedly reported, "There's a sighting:
A UFO is just above and seems to be alighting!"
"Oh, dear, I'm all undressed and washed; this one last task, then bed.
I can't go out to see the FIRST, alas," the SECOND said.

20. SPOONERGRAM (6 3, 5 6)
No farce is Wagner's Ring; it is a ONE
Of music, drama. Fearful deeds are done.
The hero, Siegfried, battles mighty odds,
And TWO are played on dwarfs and men by gods.

  REBUS: A word or phrase is represented by letters, numbers, or
symbols.  The word "abalone"--read as "a B alone"--might be
represented by:

         B

And the phrase "damper sand"--read as "D, ampersand"--might be
represented by:

        D&

21. REBUS (12)
        .
        T = T

My holiday plans have been ruined this year;
I was going to go to the south.
But my ANSWER's bill took all my savings away;
Why should he, then, look down in the mouth?

22. REBUS (*6 *4 2 *3)

         F T/IO  

(* note: in the printed puzzle, the "F" above is on its side. -- GJ *)

See Fred and Ginger southward wing--
In ANSWER they both dance and sing.

  ENIGMA: A word or phrase is clued indirectly, as in a riddle.

23. ENIGMA (8)
My first half says I'm one alone,
My second that I'm many;
That's paradoxical, I own--
Makes little sense, if any.
But even worse is yet in store,
For when my halves combine,
Behold! not one, not two or more,
But everything is mine.


4__________________________THE_ENIGMA_MINISAMPLE__________________________


  Not all ENIGMA puzzles are in verse. You may already be familiar
with some of the following types from other puzzle publications.

  ANAGRAMS: Apposite words or phrases composed of the same letters as
the answer. For example, NAME FOR SHIP is an anagram of H.M.S.
PINAFORE.

24. THEY SEE (3 4)

25. BEAR HIT DEN (10)

26. BENEATH CHOPIN (3 5 5)

27. TRUSS NEATLY TO BE SAFE
    (6 4 4 5)

  ANAQUOTE: A quotation is divided into 3-letter chunks (ignoring
punctuation and spaces). The chunks are alphabetized for you to
rearrange.  "Find the clues" would be: (4 3 5) DTH ECL FIN UES.
Numbers in parentheses tell how many letters are in each word of the
quotation; asterisks represent capitalized words (in this case, the
author's name).

28. ANAQUOTE (2 10, 2 2 4, 2 3 10 2 4 2 6 2 6. *5 *7)

AND ASI ATI AUR EAR EAS EDA ERS INL ISH ITE NBY NLO OIS OSE OTH RAT
REM SCH TON TWH URE VEW

  CRYPTOGRAM: A message in cipher.  Each letter in the coded message
stands for another letter wherever it appears; E might stand for N, R
for W, and so on. (No letter stands for itself.) The asterisk marks a
capitalized word.

29. CRYPTOGRAM 
MVJRFKBR *S NJSVV RMDP M XRFJFBLMXRSY WPWFLT, JRP HSVW XLFDSCPC
EFIMCMTN SN FH ZKPNJSFEMOVP ZKMVSJT!

  FORMS: Puzzles similar to crosswords, but with regular geometric
shapes and no black squares.  The square and diamond look like this:

1. L A V A       1.        I
2. A V E R       2.       A N A
3. V E N T       3.     A N I S E
4. A R T Y       4.   A N O T H E R
                 5. I N I T I A L E D
                 6.   A S H A M E D
                 7.     E E L E R
                 8.       R E D
                 9.         D

30. SQUARE (5-letter words)
1. A kind of puzzle in this minisample 2. Use one end of a pencil
3. Wash up 4. Theater employee 5. Mystics

31. DIAMOND
1. Last letter 2. Tell a lie 3. Jungle cat 4. Hissed, like soda
5. Went this way and that 6. Born in Brussels 7. Suitable for a king
8. Lair 9. Poor grade


SOLUTIONS
1. s-naked 2. Antony-m 3. indic(a)ted 4. f(e)ast 5. s(crib)e
6. f(ever)ish 7. s(matter)ing 8. pa-ink-iller 9. s/e-qualled
10. pr-o/e-position 11. senior, nosier 12. mattress, smart set 13. limped,
millipede 14. toucan, accountant 15. be developed; bed, Eve loped
16. his panic, Hispanic 17. coward, cowered 18. gambol, gamble 19. flying
saucer, sighing flosser 20. tragic mix, magic tricks 21. periodontist
[period on "T" is "T"].  22. Flying Down to Rio [F lying down, T,
"or," I O] 23. monopoly 24. the eyes 25. hibernated 26. the piano
bench 27. fasten your seat belts 28. In literature, as in love, we are
astonished at what is chosen by others.  Andre Maurois 29. Although I
still have a photographic memory, the film provided nowadays is of
questionable quality!

30. R E B U S   31.     Z
    E R A S E         F I B
    B A T H E       T I G E R
    U S H E R     F I Z Z L E D
    S E E R S   Z I G Z A G G E D
                  B E L G I A N
                    R E G A L
                      D E N
                        D


J O I N   U S

Membership in the National Puzzlers' League is $13 for the first year and
$11 yearly thereafter (outside North America, add $9).  Membership includes
a subscription to The ENIGMA (12 monthly issues).  For LARGE TYPE, add $9.
Send your check, made out to the National Puzzlers' League, to the
treasurer: Joseph J. Adamski (MERCURY), 2507 Almar, Jenison MI 49428.

The editor is SIBYL: Judith E. Bagai, Box 82289, Portland OR 97282.


   Copyright (c) 1993, National Puzzlers' League.  All rights reserved.
                  For permissions, apply to the editor