CHESS.

Press, Volume LIV, Issue 9704, 17 April 1897, Page 3

CHESS.

" Weekly! Press and Referee."

The Canterbury Chess Club meets in the Cham.. 1 " of Commerce, M.r, Building cyci. Tuesday anil ■F«_-*-.;r •***r*cr__i *7 *p.-_»- to 10-30 _______ "V_-sito_-* __r*e _-lvc__3-» TO COK"R__si*b_J_>E_rXS. ill C«_s_ EciToas "X.Z. Kield." __iny_ thanlcs lor p—per. _zie drat we I—ive received since the first issue. Errata.—ln Problem No. 536 the black pawn on Black's X 3 7 should be a White one. R-W.XS. and Sl-Yl——See note above. Tho solution under the circumstances is all the more crediteWe. Did-MiD (Christchurch).—You will probably have ' notice— the improvement in the j-ri_ti_jj of the din .grains. Problkm No. 536.—Correct solutions have been received from R.W.U.;Sibyl and J.H.B. SOLUXIO-; OF PROBLEM No. 536. WHITE. 81/ ACS, 1 B Q Xt 4 PROBLKM No. 538. By G. Zek&i. B.ACK.

WHITR. White to play and mate In two moves. Position ol pieces.-Whlte-K on Q R 5, Q on Q B 8, R on X 5, and Q Xt 2, H on Q 83, Ktofi X 11 8, PonQ2, Q4, and QKt 6. Black—X on Q3,8 on Q R 5, and Q R 6, Xt on X B 3, and X sq, P on X B 2, <_ 2, .6,QKt 4, and QKt 6. Mate in two.

ENGLAND V. AMERICA.

Two more of the games played in the recent match by cable:— Boahd No. 2. Ruy Lopez. WHIT-. BLACK. J. W. Showalter C. D. Locock (America). (England). IPK4 1 P X 4 2KKtB 2KtQB3 3 B Xt 5 3 Xt B 3 4 Castles 4 Xt x P SPQ4 58K2 6QK2 6KtQ3 7 B x Xt 7 Q P x B (a) BPxPB Xt B 4 9RQsq 9 B Q 2 10 P X Xt 4 (b) 10 Xt R 5 (c) 11 KtxKt llßxKt 12PKt5 12PKKt3(d) 13Kt83 13QK2 14 Q X 4 14 b x P 15RxB 15KxR -.'•'.. 16 QKt4,ch.-* 16QK3 17 QQ4, ch(«V 17KBsq I 18BxB(f) -,- '.-, 18PKt3 19886 **** 19KK-q '■ 20PQR4 20PQR4 -lßQ'so 21PKR3 22 X Xt 2 22 R X Xt sq 23PKR3 23PKKt4 24KtK2 24KKt2 25PKt3 25 RKt3 26 Q X Xt 4 26 Q x Q, oh 27PxQ 27RKsq 28KtKt3 28KBsq 29Kt85 29RxB 30 P x R 30RK3 31KtK7,ch 31KKt2 32 Xt Xt 8 , 32KBsq 33K83 33PKt4 34 RQRsq 34 PKt5 35RQsq 35P84 36 R Q 5 Resigns. (a) Well-known, and by Mr Locock hi-isalf, to be fatal if continued as by Showalter above. The right move is 7 Xt Px P. ; (b) This move disproves the variation adopted by Mr Locock. „»__"' (c) The only move. If 10. . . . . Xt R3, then 11 PK6, P x P; 12. Xt X 5 winning a piece. (d)HI2 BxP, then 13. PK6, PxP; 14. Q R5, eh, &c., and if hi answer to 13. P X 6,13. .... Bxß,thenl4. Pxß, eh, X Bgq; 15. Q X 8, eh, Q x Q ; 16. PxQ=Q, eh, R x Q;l7. Rxß &c. The alternative therefore is 12. . . . . PK R4; 13. PK6, PxP; 14. OK 4, BxP, eh; 15. Xx B, castles, eh; 16. KKt tq, QK 2, with the possibility of a better fight than in the actual game. (c) Driving the King back, thus keeping Black's Rooks separated. (f) The remainder Is of no interest, White having an easily won game. BOAR. No. 4. Queen's Pawn Opening. WHIT-. B.AC-. J. Barry T. F. Lawrence (America) .(England) IPQ4 IPQ*. . 2PKJ 2KtKB3 3 B Q 3 3 P X 3 4PKBl(l) 4P84 5P83 5 Xt B 3 6 Xt ■*"> 2 68Q3 7KtR3(b) 7QKt3(c) 8 Castles BBQ2 9 Xt B 3 9 P X R 3 (d). 10KtK5 10 PxP 11 Kxß(e) 11 KxKt 12KPxP 12 CastlesQß(f) 13 X R sq 13 P B 3 (g) l-t(jK2 14 Q X X sq 158K3 -&PK.4tTfi) 16P85 16PxP(i) 17 Bxß P 17 QB2 18QRKsq 18RK2(j) 19 Q Xt 5 19 X R X sq 20 BQ2 20 RxR 21BxR 21BxP(k). 22 B x Xt eh 22KxB 23QxPch 238Q3 24QB5ch _4KQsq 25QxPc_ 25KBsq 26QxR P 26 PKt5 27KtKt5 27QK2 288R4 _3QK7 29 Q B 6 -9 Xt Q sq 30 Xt X 4 »BK. I ■ 31QB5c_ 31K82 32 RKaq 32 QBS 33 Q X 5 eh 33 X Xt 3 34 B x B Resigns.

(a) The well-known "Stonewall " variation of tliis opening, introduced the late Mr Ware, of Boston. Herr lipke revived it at the Leipsdc Congress, 189*. (b) Lipke played this move against Schlechter, the intention being to sacrifice this Xt after Black Castled with Xt Xt 5, P R 3 ; P X B 4, See. (C) We prefer 7. . . . . B <*» 8; 8. Castles, P _ P. followed by R Q B sq, and CastleS. <d) Not necessary. 9. - . . P-x P at once would have delayed White's Xt X 5. M Compulsory. If 11. PxP, a pawn is tort with 11. . . . ■ B x Xt; 12. Pxß,Kt x X P. (f> "Perhaps it would have been preferable to Castle X R. If 15 P 85, then 13. . . . , Et 8 3, threatening PR" 46r) Slack could have still kept a safe game with 13T . . . . PB4, 10-owed byKtß 3 and then Xt K5. (h) This is decidedly bad, and gives him the inferior game. He had nothing better again than 15. -. . . PB4: Ktß3; and Xt K5. fi) There is an alternative variation with 16. . . . QB2; 17. Px P.RxP,: 18. 885.RK 2; 19. Q R X sq, X R X sq, -C. . (J) Here might be -.egested la . . . . X R B sq; 19. Q Xt 5, Xt X 2, followed by <"» B 3. Tern por-rily he would not have lost a pawn. (k) To take the pawn or to leave it is equally bad. Black's game is disorganised and should be lost, but it would have been better to submit to the loss of the 6 P and defend the B P with R B sq. He might have made a better fight even afterwards, but he could not have saved the game. Mr Barry played very well.

NOTES.

"" In the championship tournament of the Rangitikei Club Mr Wm. Meldrum gained the Bret place with a score of 6 wins, no losses; Mr O. C. Pleasants scored 2 wins, 4 losses; Mr A. Gifford, 2 wins, 3 losses; Mr A. H. O'Loughlin, 1 win, 4 losses. The welcome news has come by cable that Steinit. was well enough last week toleave the private hospital in Moscow to which he was taken after his match with Lasker. All chess-players will rejoice to hear of his recovery from a serious and protracted illness, and will join in hoping that he may completely regain hia health, and that for year- to come he may be able to continue his literary labours in the service of the game. "•■■■-.- ---•* It would- not be matter of surprise, it would be a step of legitimate progress, to see a chair of chess established and endowed in one of the leading universities. Why not T There is not in the curriculum of any one at tfatm * study whioh is more truly a

beneficial intellectual discipline than chess. Also chess has moral and Social as well as disciplinary features that few lines of study or thought can claim to possess.''— New York Clipper. The Birmingham Weekly Mercury remarks that when two amateurs play together they rarely trouble themselves about the quality of their games; but if an amateur should lose to an expert like JBlackburne he will go over the moves with the greatest care, noting (1) where he went wrong, and (2) where his opponent took advantage of his weak play. On the other hand, if an amateur should win from a Blackburne— and the worst player occasionally -wins— the game does him no good. Nay, it may do him lasting injury, by inducing an accession of vanity that may swamp all future effort.

As to the chess quality of the games of the recent Lasker-Slcinitz match, the verdict of the Field is as follows:—" Take any of the series and compare the styles of the antagonists. It will be found that in Lasher's arrangement of the forces, whether _3 first or second player, they occupy strategically favourable positions, each one ready to band when and where wanted. Every single piece has functions. It performs the task assigned to it in the general plan, and this plan embraces the entire battlefield. But Steinitz's forces have no cohesion, and the absence of a general plan is felt. There are isolated assaults upon apparently weak spots, but it invariably turns out that Lasker is sufficiently prepared to defend them, and that in beating off an -.---live s_Uv Le t'.pliefi Willi _n _ff__.llal c— —._.—.--——t—lcl_. X— 51.01.--, I——?■—;—-*— £»oo<_ S^"* s *^-—»_sj» _s — __m_3—<_ -to S—es___c-— - _—.—. sreneralsliip."

The Toadies' Cbes. Clnlj of "M*o. 103. Great Russell street, W.C., London, is making arrangements for an international chess tournament for women. The prize list will not "be lower than the -following- :—First prize £60. second prize £50, third prize fllO, -o-Vth. prize £30, fiftH prize £20, sixth prize £15. Sir George Newnes, Bart., promised. to donate the first prize. The promoters have received gratifying encouragement from home and from Europe, Mrs Harriet Worrall and Mi. Nellie Shoivalter, as the two strongest women players in America, have been specially invited to compete in the tournament. Mrs Worrall has expressed her intention to attend.—San Francisco Chronicle.