07.29.12 — Around the World in 72 Days — the Acrostic

Around the World in Seventy-Two Days board game

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Sunday, July 29, 2012

ACROSTIC, Puzzle by Emily Cox and Henry Rathvon

Edited by Will Shortz

This Sunday’s acrostic draws a quotation from Around the World in Seventy-Two Days by Nellie Bly.

In the late 1800s, New York journalist Elizabeth Cochrane Seaman made a name for herself as daredevil reporter "Nellie Bly," posing as a patient to expose horrendous conditions in mental hospitals, crusading for the rights of women and the poor, and becoming a global celebrity with an around-the-world trip that saw her beat Jules Verne's fictional schedule. ~ Amazon.com

The quotation: I FOUND THE ROADS IN THE SAME STATE OF PERFECTION IN ALMOST ALL THE EASTERN PORTS AT WHICH I STOPPED. I COULD NOT DECIDE… WHETHER THE SMOOTHNESS OF THE ROAD WAS DUE TO THE ABSENCE OF… NEW YORK STREET COMMISSIONERS.

The author’s name and the title of the work: NELLIE BLY, AROUND THE WORLD

The defined words:

A. Chuck Berry song that repeatedly asks, “Honey, is that you?, NADINE

B. Image maker cited in 2012 politics (3 wds.), ETCH A SKETCH

C. Logical in a straightforward way, LINEAR

D. Nocturnal display each autumn, LEONIDS

E. Forward, as an exhibitionist, IMMODEST

F. Repletion’s opposite, EMPTINESS

G. Member of London’s Yeomen Wanders, BEEFEATER

H. Some unfinished business (2 wds.), LOOSE ENDS

I. Command from one who’s wary… or polite (2 wds.), YOU FIRST

J. Like drinking tea with your pinkie extended, maybe, AFFECTED

K. Item common on coffee tables, REMOTE

L. Kia’s counterpart of Hyundai’s Sonata, OPTIMA

M. Lacking social polish, UNCOUTH

N. Cramped; prejudiced, NARROW

O. Stroke that’s facilitated by “soft hands” (2 wds.), DROP SHOT

P. Bulletins of the last decade, TWEETS

Q. Practical joke that can leave one hopping mad?, HOTFOOT

R. Gaseous hydrocarbon, ETHANE

S. Group of prominent people (2 wds.), WHO’S WHO

T. Descriptive of a small town (hyph.), ONE-HORSE

U. Don’t take lying down, RESIST

V. Extremely desperate (hyph.), LAST-DITCH

W. Speed; off, DISPATCH

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The full paragraph of the quotation:  I have spoken about the perfect roads in Ceylon. I found the roads in the same state of perfection in almost all the Eastern ports at which I stopped. I could not decide, to my own satisfaction, whether the smoothness of the road was due to the entire and blessed absence of beer wagons, or to the absence of the New York street commissioners. ~ Chapter IX. Delayed Five Days, Around the World in Seventy-Two Days.

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Click on image to enlarge.

Puzzle available on the internet at

THE NEW YORK TIMES — Crossword Puzzles and Games.