herculis telegraph

[twiglet3]

a decree imposed by the ruler of a victorious nation

D?K?A?

 

precipitous river course

?A?L?

[souperman]

1)diktat

[Quizmonster]

Falls, perhaps?

[fordward]

River course  NALLA

[Quizmonster]

According to my dictionaries, Fordward, there is nothing especially 'precipitous' - as given in the question - about a nalla. From Hindi 'nala', it just means a water-course or stream.

'Falls', in terms of rivers, don't necessarily just mean something along the lines of Niagara! They may merely be cascades, as in white-water rafting, but they're certainly precipitous.

Nalla may well be right, of course, in terms of the crossword it comes from, but it doesn't seem to fit the description accurately enough. Cheers

[fordward]

Hello Quizmonster

according to My Chambers dictionary it has down Ravine is that not 'precipitous'??

[avis50]

It is FALLS as it links with VICTORIA in the Saturday crossword.  Not a good clue, though, to my mind

[Quizmonster]

Chambers defines a ravine as "a deep narrow gorge". However, a river in a ravine need not move precipitously, Fordward, but may just meander along quietly. It depends entirely on the severity of the drop from one end to the other.

It seems quite an effective clue to me, Avis.

Cheers to both of you.

[fordward]

At the end of the day a clue is only a clue , not the answer Quizmonster

[Quizmonster]

I'm assuming that Avis actually knows the correct answer is 'falls'...ie has seen the appropriate completed grid in print. So, given that the compiler and I appear to have agreed on the answer, I can't see what the hassle is. He/she set the puzzle and I successfully solved it...end of story.

I am not at all familiar with the particular crossword - if that's what it is - but it occurs to me to wonder how likely it ever was that 'nalla' might be correct. It's not a word on the lips of most British people, after all. Had it been from the 'Azed' in 'The Observer' or 'Mephisto' in 'The Sunday Times', then, perhaps...but 'The Telegraph'?? (And there, I at least will leave matters.)