This crossword No. 21689 clues and answers were published on Mon 13 Sep 1999 and the puzzle can be visited by following The Guardian Cryptic Crossword No. 21689 link.
All Across Clues and Answers:
1-across – Metal washing machine? : COPPER
5-across – Didn’t stay uninhabited : DESERTED
9-across – They’re much smarter than their mates : PEACOCKS
10-across – Mongrel dog sustained by meat : MUTTON
11-across – Fear arrest : APPREHENSION
13-across – Peruvian in Spain cannot be understood : INCA
14-across – Wordplay of a Socratic kind : ACROSTIC
17-across – Free American money – and she gets a quarter : BUCKSHEE
18-across – They may be eaten slowly or bolted : NUTS
20-across – Admits information is revealed in the accounts : ACKNOWLEDGES
23-across – Bill returns with a part of her : CAROLE
24-across – Involved in happy Oriental festival : EPIPHANY
25-across – The quality of mercy : LENIENCY
26-across – Come into force? : ENLIST
All Down Clues and Answers:
2-down – Sign to appeal to males : OMEN
3-down – One way to shoulder the job of team selection : PICKABACK
4-down – I creep around helping in the kitchen : RECIPE
5-down – Kill-or-cure medicine? : DESPERATEREMEDY
6-down – Mystery involved a number in regular correspondence : SYMMETRY
7-down – They’re the last to recognise death is near : RITES
8-down – Financial experts involved in some cost : ECONOMISTS
12-down – Declare girl in acute trouble : ANNUNCIATE
15-down – She cleans out for the steward : SENESCHAL
16-down – How mince is cooked by Chinese? : CHOWMEIN
19-down – Light in it, for example, goes out : IGNITE
21-down – I complain when she comes up : NAOMI
22-down – They run well, naturally, and their rise is celebrated : GNUS
This crossword has in total 27 where 14 are across and 13 are down.