CHESS.

Press, Volume LIII, Issue 9604, 19 December 1896, Page 3

CHESS.

-_•_ " Weekly Press and Referee." The Canterbury Chess Club meets in the Chamber of Commerce, A.AI.P. Buildings, every Tuesday and Friday from 7 p.m. to 10.30 p.m. Visitors are always welcomed. The Sydenham Chess Club meets every Monday and Thursday at 7 p.m. at its room, Colombo street south. Visitors are invited to look in. The Linwood Chess Club meets every evening at 7.30 at its room, corner of Worcester and Rollcston streets. Visitors cordially invited. TO CORRESPONDENTS. Lkarnxr.—Have sent you the rules by past. J.H.B. (Wellington).—Have replied by post. Chess Editor "N.Z. Field."—Have not received your slips yet. Chess Editors "Weekly "News," "Evening Star," and " Otago Witness."—Slips received with thanks. Problem No. 523.—Correct solutions have been received from J.H.8., Gambit, and En Passant. SOLUTION OF PROBLEM NO. 523. WHITE. BLACK. 1 Xt B 3 1 P x Xt; or (a) 2KKt 3 . v 2 Any move 3 P B 4 mates (a)l . . . . 1 KKS; or(b) 2 KtQ2, eh 2 X moves 3 PB4 mates <b)l .... 1 BQ3; or(c) 2 Q B 5, eh 2KKS 3 Xt Q 2 mates (c) 1 . . . . 1 BB 2 2 Q Q 8, eh 2 X moves 3 O, or X mates accordingly. The variations it Black moves the queen are easy. PROBLEM NO. 525. By Robin H. Legge. SLACK.

WHITB. White to play and mate in three moves. Position of pieces:—White—X on Q Xt 3, Q on X B 3, Xt on X Xt 8, and Q 87, P on X R 5, X Xt 2, and QR 4. Black—X on K4,PonK Xt 6, K3, and QB 3. Mate in three. N.Z. CHAMPIONSHIP CONGRESS. By the time these lines appear entries for the Tournament will have closed. Messrs Hookhain and Andersen will represent the Canterbury Chess Clubhand Messrs Mellor and Edwards the . Olago Chess Club. Nothing is known definitely as to who will come from the North Island. NUREMBERG TOURAMENT. Another very beautiful game (says the Field) played in the Masters' Tournament at the Nuremberg Congress. Queen's Gambit Declined. WHITS. BLACK. Steinitz. Jauowski. IPO4 IPQ4 2P0'84 2PK3 3 Xt Q B 3 3 Xt X B 3 4KtB3 48K2 5 Q B 2 (a) 5 Castles 6PK4 6PxKP 7KtxP 7KtB3 8 B X 3 8 Xt x Xt 9 Q x Xt 9 P B 4 (b) 10QQ3 10PB5 ÜBQ2 11PK4 12PxP 12BKKt3 13QKt3(c) 13KtQ5 14QQsq 14BxKt(d) 15PXB 15R84 16 B Q 3 16 R x P, eh 178K4 17 0,0,2 18883 18PB4 19 Q Q 3 19 R X sq 29 Castles QRV ' 23.QR5 21 KKtsq 21 KB3 22 BxP(e) 22 KRK2 23 B X 4 • 23 R Xt so. 24 X R X sq. 24 X It sq. 258Q5 • 25 RQ2* 26RK4 26 X o. 3 27QRKsq. 27R(0,3)Kt5 2SKBsq.(O 23PQK3(g) 29 P R 4 29 P Q R 4 30PR5 oORKBsq. 31PR6 3lQ,xßp* 32RxP 32 ll(Bsq.)QKtsq.(h) 33 P x P eh. 33 B x P 34R(84)K4(i) 34QR8ch. • 35KQ2 - 35KxPch. MXXi loßKlsq.-O)

37 PB4 37 QB7 38 B x R 38 <J x B 39RKR«q. 39 P R 3 4QRKS 40RQKt$q. 41 B X 4 (k) 41 B x R 42RxPcb 42KKt2 Resigns (I) ... (a) The variation intending; to open the game with 6. P X 4 does not seem to answer, since Black gets the attack, and White has to move his queen four times to get back to its original square. (b) A fine move in conjunction with the subsequent PK 4. Janowski plays with wonderful lucidity, and should have won the game in the opening, with more care. (c) If 13. BB 3, then 13. . . Xt Xt 5; 14. Q K4, BK B 4 and wins. Janowski must have foreseen all these variations, which shows him to be a player of great depth of calculation. (d) This hasty move spoils the combinations. 14. . . R B 4 at once would have given him a decisive advantage. (c) White having had such a lucky escape (as it appears) should not have tempted fortune with the capture of a pawn that opens the Q Xt file upon his kinir's position. If he wanted to snatch a pawn, why not B x P. cli. (f) We have been puzilinjr about this move, and found the following beautiful variation. It shows how f*r Steinitz looks into the -fame. Supposing he had plajed the tempting 28 B B 7 the continuation might have been :— WHITE. BLACK. 23 ... . v 28 RxP, eh 29BxR 29 R x B, eh 33 X x R 33 Xt X 7, dis eh, and mate must follow in a few moves. (g) The nest few moves on both sides are explained by both sides being short of time in this difficult position. 00 It 32 . . . . B X 4, then 33 P x P, eh, X x P ; 34 B x Xt, cb, P x B ; 35 Q x P, eh, BB 3 ; 36 R Xt sq, eh, KRsq;37 Rx B, and if 37 .... R (Xt 3) x R, then 38 Q x R. eh, and 39 R Xt 8 mates. (i) Mr Blackburne pointed out the following pretty variation :— 34 R x Xt 34 P x R, or (a) 35 R x P 35 Q R 8, eh 36K82 56 O x P, eh (best) 57 B x Q 37 R x B, eh 33 Q x R 38 R x Q, eh and draw 34 .... (a) 34 U x P 35 Q x P, eh 35 X x Q 56 R R 4, eh 36 B R 3. eh (best) 37 R x B, eh 37 X x R 38 R R sq, eh 38 X Xt 4 39 R Xt sq, eh 39 X B 5 40 R Xt 4, eh 40 X B 4 41 B X, eh 41 X X 3 42 B Q 5. eh 42 X Q 2 43 R Xt 7, eh, and draws by perpetual cheek, (j) Threatening- mate. (k) To prevent 41. . ... R Xt 6 ; 42. RK 8, eh, B B sq ; 43. R x P, eh, X Xt 2 ; 44. R R 7, eh, X Xt sq; 45. BQ 5, eh, and mate next move. If 44. . . . . KB 3, then 45. Rx B, eh, XX 3 ; 46. BQ 5, eh, X Q 3 ; 47. R Q 8, mate. (1) A grand game, which is equally creditable to winner and loser. Time does not permit us to analyse it exhaustively. The reader may have more leisure. NOTES. Mr W. G. Grace, son of Dr. Grace, the famous cricketer, is a chess player, and lately took part in one of Mr Blackburne's simultaneous demonstrations. The, Auckland Weekly News says :—" Li Hung Chang-has the reputation of being one of the best chess players in China. The Pall Mall Gazette is authority for the statement that the only antagonist whom Li has not defeated is the Emperor, and adds: 'One can imagine weighty reasons for the grand old Chinaman refusing to checkmate his august master.' It is not stated whether it is the Chinese game or the game known to us which the Oriental statesman can play. As is well known, they differ greatly from each other." How many chess players have been returned at the election ? In Dunedin there is Mr J. A. Millar, for Wellington Sir Robert Stout. Outside the large towns we know of Mr Pirani, Major Steward, and some others. In the last Parliament chess as a recreation had taken the place of other inferior amusements. It is true members of the House when it is in session have, if they attend to their duties, little or no time for recreation. But to use the language which Lord Onslow applied to the Labour members, chessists are " earnest, thoughtful men," more given to thinking than speaking, and perhaps in an enlightened future a'candidate may find it to his advantage to announce himself a chess player. A man's character may be judged by his amusements. It was recorded some time ago that Mr A. F. Mackenzie, the noted problemist, would have to cease composing through failure of eyesight. It is gratifying to learn that despite his terrible affliction Mr Mackenzie is still enabled to obtain solace from his favorite pastime, as the following letter to the Leeds * Mercury ' shows :—" You will, I fancy, be surprised at receiving the enclosed problems from mc for your tourney. No. 1 was partly composed before I lost my sight; it\has .now been mentally recalled,, and thus completed. Nos. 2, 3, and 4 have been composed in every way, sans voir — without use of, or reference to, board, men, *5r diagram. When the conditions of your tourney were read to mc, I passed them by as a thing that little concerned mc now. I never dreamt I would be able to take part. It is only quite recently I found from experiment, to my surprise, 1 could compose almost as easily without vision as with it." j In view of a second edition of his work on " Chess Endings," the late Mr Freeborough invited his readers to point out any in- i accuracies detected in the work. The Leader j (Melbourne) says that Mr Esling devoted considerable time to the examination of the work, and, assisted by Mr Whitton, he has prepared a list which is given in the Leader. Persons having copies of the work will do well to correct them by Mr Esling's list. The book is a most valuable one, but in all works of the kind it is difficult, if not im- | possible, to secure absolute accuracy, even by the exercise of the greatest care in revision. In the present case the corrections are not numerous.