Today’s Saturday Stumper

I dunno — maybe it’s just me — but the Newsday  Saturday Stumper seems to be increasing in difficulty and lessening in fun. I got it all, but clueing feels more contrary, more obscure, more strained.

From today’s Stumper, by Steve Mossberg: 38-A, four letters, “Nickname for a western capital namesake.” Have many humans been named for that capital? A search for named for [that capital] turns up a United States Navy submarine. And I doubt that she has a nickname. A search for named for the capital of [the state] turns up the submarine and a ring with a gemstone. I doubt that the ring has a nickname either. Granted, namesake need not mean “named for.” But still.

Some clue-and-answer pairs of note:

7-D, ten letters, “Sussex cinnamon roll.” A tad obscure.

9-D, four letters, “Cultivated fields.” I am happy to say that I saw through this clue in an instant.

14-A, ten letters, “Directive when sparring.” I like the misdirection in sparring, but I wouldn’t call it the answer a directive.

23-A, four letters, “Common gathering announcement.” Tricky. I was trying for figure out what a common gathering might be.

24-D, five letters, “Mr. McMurtry alma mater.” Is it common to refer to the school where one received a graduate degree as one’s alma mater? I don’t think so. But even if it is, this is a mighty weak way to clue a school. And I don’t care where Larry McMurtry did his graduate work.

26-A, nine letters, “In which ‘language’ is lingvo .” A giveaway, I think.

28-D, ten letters, “Stale-bread Italian salad.” I guessed but have never partaken.

35-A, seven letters, “Got ready for dinner, at times.” My first guess was DRESSED. I think I was supposed to make that mistake.

41-D, seven letters, “Spanish fortified wine.” I’m back in Renaissance Prose, with the professor who’d bring a bottle and paper cups to enliven our discussions and make us feel like grown-ups.

57-A, ten letters, “Swindle saw starter.” My starting point. That answer had to be.

60-A, ten letters, “Half of a formal pairing.” A Google search suggests that it’s hardly limited to formal settings.

My favorite in this puzzle: 40-A, ten letters, “While away the hours.” I whiled away a good hour working on this puzzle.

No spoilers; the answers are in the comments.