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I think 'literal' (in the sense of a typographical error) is what the setter is getting at, and Chambers gives - 'a misprint of a letter', as part of its definition.
The comma between 'Hte, ahs' suggests they're separate examples of letters - eth and ash - and literally misprinted.

This reminds me of that famous clue:

GEGS (9, 4)

Or something like that, with the answer SCRAMBLED EGGS. That has always been cited as a most ingenious clue so I don't think the one mentioned in this thread is so bad. Personally, I think the example I've given isn't a good clue because there's no definition.

I think GEGS is regarded as a genuine &lit clue - the wordplay and the definition are each given by the complete clue.
I seem to remember that Henry Davenport, newsreader on "Drop the dead donkey" struggled with it!

Orson, like you, I've never felt the GEGS clue was a good one!

Hannah

I haven't noticed any of your posts for ages. I used to enjoy your stuff on Pedants United

Thanks Grunger . . I've had a few ups and downs . . Hoping to be more active . . Material for P.U is never hard to find :)