try and fathom
“try and fathom the gist of my writings.”
The “and” does not mean “to” (To try to fathom the gist). To use and in that manner is grammatically incorrect.
The word “try” in this instance must then mean “to sit in judgment over as for example a case is tried in court.
The word fathom comes from the measurement fathom which is about the length of a man’s outstretched arms. To fathom implies, figuratively, “getting you arms around.”