CHESS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume L, Issue 15252, 15 March 1913, Page 4 (Supplement)

CHESS.

TO CORRESPONDENTS. "J.P."— solution of 2924 is correct. Thanks for contribution, which we will examine. "H.S.B."— solutions of 2923 and 2925 are correct. in 2926 Q-Kt 3 would be answered by . . .Q-KKt 2 ch, as you suggest, but that is not what it usually called a "cook." If no other move than Q-Kt 3 were effective, then the problem would be branded "no solution." Your friend's advice was sound. There is no better grounding than the study of endings. Freeborough can now be obtained at 2s 6d from F. Hollinjfs, 7, Great Turnstile. Holborn. London, who has purchased all that remains of the edition. " P.0.L."—2926-7 correct. Thanks for letter. Advance solutions of Nos. 2928 and 2930 received from "Tenet'.' and "C.H." SOLVERS' REMARKS. No. 2926 (Heathcote) *' A perfect gem."— No. 2927 (Ludyani).—" Some clever variations, but Black king: too cramped."—F.C.L. * "F.C.L." joins with "Q." and "Tenei" in congratulating us on the increased roll of solvers, and hopes to see it doubled ere long. SOLUTIONS OF PROBLEMS. No. 2926 (0. Heuthcote).— 4. . 1 N0.2927 (A. Ludyani).—P-0. 3. If 1 .. . Rxß, 2 QxP-KxQ, 3 Kt-B 4 mate. If 2. . . P-K 4, 3 Q-Kt 8 mate. ' If 1. . . RxP, 2 Q-Q 2—RxQ. 3 Kt— 3 mate. H1... KtxP, 2 KtxP, Kt-K 1, 3 Q.-B 4 mate. If ... P-K 4, 2 BxP, etc ; PROBLEM No. 2931. , (By O. JAROBY.— From the Yorkshire Post.) Bi,ack, 14.

I' .... _*_***!--— vrrrTZ _J v/miem — -i White, 7. 2r5, lplPlS2, qplQppsl, 4k2, rspl, SSPp, 3sP3, 2b4K. White to play and mate in two move*. PROBLEM No. 2932. (By P. H. Williams.—From the Chess Amateur.) Black, 4.

; - ; -; — ■) Whim, 9. 183K2, 8. 2P2SIs, 7P. 5,2, IQ3PkI, SBIR, 6rl. »hit« to play and mate in three moves. a-srisjws ns^srSSi atte nr l? o, ? iißta ',? w " hi. ingenious ?..;?. ?k J o ,*!' free M of which are rendered futile; but, indeed, it looked at one state Mi* he were likely to escape. The endina- is lull of strategy_and delicate situations, requiring greal n W f^*Sll pMt ' des P ite his aunerio" devE ment. Altogether a very interesting game. Scotch Gambit. / i White, S*ekely; Black, Tyroler 1 P-K 4-PK 4 16 BxKt-PrR f^P^Tl*^ B3 17™35u-K4 Iflnw* 11^^(0 6 PxP(a-S B3 5 ch 21 O-R h(s\-Kt a a m 9 P K Xlv^ Z S W 6-KtxßP (2) * Sis^K 13ch II PQKt 4-K-Kt 3 26 KtxBPMWK? K s rto 15 P-KR 4 (e)-Q.K „ So R-Kt'ilh-Restn.. »ote» (a) to (h) are by Mr. F. D. Yates. _(•) Leading into an attacking variation of the Ciuoco Piano, A good alternative was 6 P-K 5-P-Q 4, 7 B-QKt 5-Kt-K 5, 8 PxP-B-Kt 3 q QKt-Q 2-Ca«tles. r &t 3 9 i (b) 1 l ! refreshing to meet a move of this aort in a first-class tourney, if it is only because of anticipation of a bright game. In this «st we are not disjointed. Few instances of it occur to master games, though Marshall has adopted it once or twice * - iv (c) Black should have seized the' opportunity of opening up the game by P-Q 4. when miirht follow 8 PxP-KtxP, 9 Q-Kt 3-QKt-K 2/ with . safe position. (d) After the bishop is driven to Kt 3, P-0 6 is almost decisive in its cramping effect on the queen s side. (e) So as to be able to answer P-KR 3 by P-KR 5 and if then Kt-R aq, B-R 4, with obvious superiority. » (f) 19. . : KtxKt, 20 QxKfc-Q-K 4. 21 R-K so— QxP gives no relief, because after B-Kt so. OB 5 is threatened. x (g) With numerous threats: Kt-B 5, R-K so. or B-Kt sq - .(h) The position after Black's 21st move wasr2bqrkl, pblplplp, lplPlp2. 353 Q., IPIB3P, P2s4 B4PPI, R4KIR. In such a position there must be many ways of winning. For instance: 22 Kt-B5 -K-R sq (If 1...Q-K 5, 23 FB 3), 23 Q-R 6-R-Kt sq, 24 KtxßP, and mate in two. r • (1) Preventing both R-K sq and B-Kt sq.. (2) Necessary in view of White's obvioua intention to play R-Kt 3. (3) Not KxKt, because of QxKfc ch, etc. (4) We think BxP would have led to a speedier ending. ■ Black seems to have no effective reply. (5) Threatening QxKt ch, etc. Endurance is a far greater factor in success in chess nowadays than the rank and file realise Have you ever played day after day for a fortnight in a match or tourney? Have you ever played nine hours a day? , If not. just fix your mind on the subject for a few minutes and trv to realise what it. would mean to you if vou were called upon to do both. Well, that is the ordeal that competitors in the annual championship tourney in New Zealand are' called upon to face. It is in reality more a trial of endurance than a test of the ability to play good chess Incidentally we may remark that we have always held the opinion that a tournament is not the best means of determining who is the finest player in any country or community. It may verv well be adooted for the purpose in the tlrt\ ins'tance After that, we consider that the champion should hold the title until defeated in a set match However, that is by the way. We cannot expect to sweep away a deep-rooted system, and we must therefore bo content to concern ourselves with the improvement of the existing system. Existing conditions are not satisfactory—far from it. These annual contests in New Zealand nearly always occur in the hottest part of the year ; thev are unwieldy, too long, and to some extent not representative; and, as we have already said, they are primarily a trial of endurance. It transpired at Nelson that during the congress Mr. Gyles had lost 71b in weight, and our report mentioned that Mr. Kelllng cracked up badly in the later rounds. No doubt these were not the »nly oases in which the strain-told its tale. Our •eport also stated : " These championship tourneys ire yearly becoming more strenuous, and there is 1 1 strong feeling that, the precent system of getting through three -rounds in two days bv playing sine hours a day (three sittings of ..three hours • sach) should be abandoned. It is consfdered j :hat a much better plan would be to play only n the forenoon and evening, the afternoons being ' ivailable for recreation and the comoletion of any ] fames that require a third sitting." The report included with, the following significant passage : ' ' Unless some such plan for reducing the. strain ' >f the present high-pressure system is adopted rithin the ensuing 12 months, some of New Zeaand's 'biggest guns' will not, it is understood. Se in action when the clocks of the Auckland ' !ongr«s» are put in motion on Boxing Day." In ' >ur Wellington letter of last week it was stated 3 ;hafc at a meeting of the chess-plavina- members )f the Workinsmen's Club it was deckled to re- ' x>mmend to the New Zealand Chess Association i he advisableness of making a reduction in the j louro of play on the lines mentioned above. The dea is good, but unless some modification of the lime limit lie made it is difficult to see how it inn he carried out. In this connection it is ineresting to note the experience of English ilayers. Through the courtesv of Mr. A. O. Fell he hon. secretary of the New Zealand Chess ' Association, we are able to quote from a letter i eceived from Mr. Leonard P. Rees, the secretary ] if the British Chess Federation, on this subtect * Hr. Rees says:— " You wijll find 20 moves an hour i ind one game a day, as we play, less strennnui ban 15 moves an hour and one game and a-half * wr day.- The lessening of the number of moves ' >er hour in no way relieves the continuous con- < jentTatiOn of thought, and very manr players < imply use the time because they are allowed it; i hey are often ' tied up' at the hour, as though ; hey were playing 20 moves an hour. All our eague matches are played at 24~movs in one * lour, 30 in one hour and a-ouarter. 36 in. one f lour and? a-half. and so on. Many of our county < natches are plaved at 30 in one hour and a- i luarter as the first period." Playing one serious c rame and part of another each day for a fortlight is certainlv very strenuous wojk. and, if >ossible. it should be avoided, but there is a ? lifficulty which must confront, the promoters of i inv tournament in a land where nearly all the i ilavers are busy men and cannot spare more than c fortnight from their work. Suppose there are t 6 entries—not an abnormal number—then each ,' nmpetlter has to plav 15 eames. which, at th« ;'? *** At one game a day, means that the tourna- '

IT lir lI—<—IIIHIIIIHM "'III ll' HI IT' "I II ' ,i IM II 111 ■"" ■ ment must last - two weeks and s-fcalf, wilhou counting adjourned games or ties,. and a tim S limit of 15 moves an hour does not admit of mor than one game & day if the games are long. A the Napier congress the' average length of a gam was between 41 and 42 moves. Twenty-nine game exceeded this length, and of these no less than 1. • exceeded it by 50 per cent. Now, for the sake 0 argument, let us call a game of 42 moves an aver « age game and one of 63 moves a long game. Then r assuming. that each player consumes his full time an " average game" would occupy (at 15 move t per hour) rather over five hours and a-half, whil' f a "long game" would take nearly eight hour • and a-half. If, therefore, the sittings' are re f duced to six hours per diem and the present tim< f limit retained, it will only be possitde to flnisl • one "average game" ciicb day and ewery " lonf • game" will have to be adjourned. Fancy m , accumulation of 13 adjourned ganvss 1 When would the recreation come in? We believe tha in the case of New Zealand's annual congress tb< remedy lies in limiting the number-oK entries: W< ' consider that 12 entries would be amply sufficient It is doubtful whether there are more than eigh players in the Dominion who have any prospect on their present form, of winning the champion ship, and we hold the opinion that the Chess As sociation might very well exercise a more strict supervision over the entries. It would, of course ' be a delicate matter for the diets Association t( ' tackle, but we hold that it is a duty which thej should not shirk. ' The annual match between Yorkshire and Lan cashire was played at Leeds on Saturday, Januarj 25, with 30 players a-side, and was won by York shire by 16* to 81, five unfinished games beint left for adjudication. The match was the flrsi round of the northern counties' championship Play was at the rate of 30 moves in the firtf hour and a-quar'ter and 12 moves eacih subsequenl half-hour. (Congress players, please note). We are glad to notice that our contemporary the Walrarapa Daily News, has commenced s chess column under the conduct of Herr Von Sehnnparooki. ' who, we believe, formerly edited the column in the Marlborough Herald. There ought to be plenty of scope in the Wairarapa district, as there are ■ several enthusiastic playeri there. '• _____'■■