CHESS “GENIUS”

Greymouth Evening Star, 22 April 1938, Page 9

CHESS “GENIUS”

CHAMPION KEPT GUESSING. There is no "nonsense" about 12-year-old Elaine Saunders, the girl who kept the world chess champion. Dr. Alekhine, guessing in a long duel in London recently. Dr. Alekhine described her as a “genius.” She lives in.St. George’s Road, Richmond. Her mother is plump, pleasant, unassuming. Her father quiet, half-French, thoughtful. They call her Mimi, Mimi has light brown bobbed hair with a fringe of curls at the side- Height 4ft 2in. Eyes brown. Spare time indoors is spent chess playing and star-gazing through a long telescope. But she is no believer in fairies, or Santa Claus, and thinks it is unkind of parents to tell children Father Christmas stories. "When I grow up,” she said, “I want to have a riding school with horses Qf my own." Mimi spends holidays at a New Forest riding school under a strict instructor. Saturday afternoon term-time she goes to football matches with her father. "I follow the Leagues, but I have not got to the coupon stage yet," she said'. Aviation is runner-up with chess for Mimi at present. She has been up 30 times, done every kind of acrobatic as passenger, longs for the day when she can learn to pilot a ’plane. “They say if you’ve good hands with a horse you’ll have a light touch with the stick of a ’plane as well,” she said. Running a car doesn’t interest her, because she thinks motoring is no longer what it used to be, with the 30 m.p.h. and all the other restrictions. PLAYS A LONE HAND. Mimi plays a lone hand. She is an only one-. Likes grown-ups better: than children (whom she finds on the whole rather stupid). Boys better

lhan girls. Sporting people best of all. Books don’t, interest her except adventure stories. ‘She doesn’t read more than three a. year, apart from school ones, and Rider Haggard is her favourite author. She likes only Wild West, films. "I don’t mind arithmetic, and needlework’s not so bad,” she said, “but games are all I. really care about at school.” “I don’t care what I wear,” she said, “so long as my clothes fit well. My check frocks, like this one, are my favourites. And I like trousers. I don’t mind party frocks, so long as I don’t, catch cold and have to have medicine and doctors and stay in bed, but I think a lot of the games you have to play at parties are silly.” Mimi counts her father and mother and Mr C. D. Locock. her chess teacher, her best friends. Is also lend of Tibbie, her cat. her two budgerigars, chocolate cake, and the gold charm bracelet friends brought her from SwitzerlandFather Saunders is pleased with her. Says she started chess when she was six and has studied hard. But if ever there is any “nonsense” he will pul. a. stop to it all. Bedtime for Mimi is nine o’clock.