CHESS.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 779, 4 February 1887, Page 5

CHESS.

All communications for this department must be addressed to the Chess Editor, Mr C. W. Benbow. 4/2/87 R.J.D (Clyde).— Yonr problem is under examination, and. if correct, it shall appear shortly. Your 'attempts with Problems Nos. 7G9 and 770 were ingeni uis, but you will like the real solutions much better. C.H. B. (Auckland).—Post card received and replied to. SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS. No. 763 (S. M. Joseph). 1 Q to Q B sq 1 Any move 2 Mates accordingly Solved by H.B. (Wellington) ; O.P.Q. (Foxton) ‘ The key-move is very good indeed (b) ; A.L.T. (Wanganui) ; C.S. (Masterton); D.T.U (Blenheim) ; R J.L. (Palmerston North); H.D. (Bulls) ; and R.P. (Gisborne) ‘As interesting and ingenious a two-mover as I have seen for a long time (9). The planning and working out of this problem is most creditable to the composer (8&). No. 770 (B. C. Laws.) IBtoR4 1 K x R 2QtoIC B 4 (eh) 2 Any move 3 Mates accordingly Solved by A.L.T. (Wanganui); and R.P. (Gisborne) ‘ Tne main variation is exceptionally beautiful (9i). This problem, which is a, very fine one indeed, has proved too much for most of our solvers (9). PROBLEM No. 701. By Harmel Pratt (Salt Lake City.) Black.

PROBLEM No. 782. By Franz Schriifer (Bamberg.) Black.

CHESS IN ENGLAND. A new Blackburnian Brilliant which is going the rounds : (Vienna Opening.) White Black. (Mr J. H. Blackburne.) (Mr Stelling.) 1 P to IC 4 1 P to K 4 2 Q ICt to B 3 2 Q Kfc to B 3 3 P to B 4 3PxP 4 P to Q 4 4 P to Q 4 5 B x P This departure from the usual Stemitz gambit was suggested by Blackburne during a consultation gam© between Mackenzie and

himself against Zukertort and Gur.zberg, which resulted in favor of the first players. 5 P xP 6 P to Q 5 6 Q to B 3 7 Q to Q 2 7 Q ICt to IC 2 8 P to Q 6 S Kt to Kt 3 9 Kt to Q 5 9 Q x Kt P. 10 Kt x P (ch) 10 K to Q sq 11 R to Q sq H ILto Kt S q It is evident Black stiould have taken the Bishop, and perhaps equalized things a little Q 7 12 B to Kt 5 . This seems to be a re win of the C>ueen, but subsequent moves will show that M.r Blackburne bad nothin? to fear. 13 Kt to IC 6 (ch) 13 P x Kt 14 B to B 7 , „ Ortainly a fine finishing touen. If K x JA to 15 P Qneens (ch), Ktoß3; 16 to Q 6 (cH B x Q; 17 Q« B 15 P Queen, end win,. , Ne „,..

THE CAFE DE LA REGENCE. (From the ‘ International.’) The Ion;/ line of the magnates of the Rdgence began of course with Philidor. fie has proved to be the Sfc. Peter cf an unbroken apostolic succession. His canonicals were or a long past fashion, a powdered wig and knee breeches. His portraits make him look like an American grandfather of Continental days. I fancy him pondering his ‘Pr wns,’ which he called the soul of Chess.’ He was the one Acrulles .of his age ; but among his latter contemporaries and his immediate successors were several Agamemnon*. These were Legal and Veiaom, Sasias and Calvi, Boucourt and Mouret-all giants in their day. . , And one of them was not only a giant, but a dwarf. This was little Monsieur Moures, who was such a pigmy that he was able to wriggle into the celebrated machine known as the Cness Automaton, where he hid his tiny- self from all snectators, like a mou*e in a wainscot, ana where daily for many months, from his place of concealment, he moved the fatal fingers of that grim wooden Turk wlio administered checkmate to lords and laaies, to princes and potentates, and to all other visitors who were willing to give good pay for being well drubbed, it was a long time before the cunning imp within was suspected by the curious world WI A very different type of man from Mourefc was Deschapeiles, whose form was tall and stately, whose face never wore a smile, and whosfTdisposition was so jealous that he bore like the Turk, no brother near the throne. He disdained to play with any opponent on even terms, but always gave odds-. At length, At hen a few vounger players, whom he had trained, grew ffito an equality of force with their trainee and he was no longer able to win from them at odds, he suddenly ceased to play altogether, aud proudly abdicated his sultanship. The sceptre passed to Labourdonnais the ureatest of all French Chess players, past or present! What a master ! There are elderly gentlemen still at the Rdgence who were the comrades, chums, cronies, of Labourdonnaisi, and they never tire of relating their reminiscences of this astonishing genius. He was hot only their player of players, but their man of men. It is strange that there is no likeness of him at the Rdgence. _ I Hrrrited, a c 0 temporary portrait of this celebrated Frenchmam engraved for an early number of the Palamede, an old magazine that no linger exists, and I was not surprised to find that his head was noble enough to be ca.led classic, i. think that Chess owes to Labourdonnais more than it does to 3 any other master, dead or living • for it was he who set free and gave to the : pieces ’ the soul which Philidor had restricted too narrowly to the ‘Pawns, Moreover, I am sure that it was Labourdonnais who kindled and moulded the mind of Paul Morphy, iust as Morphy was in turnlthe inspiration of Steinitz, and just as Anderson was the foster father of Zukertort. T , , . , The untimely death of Labourdonnais bequeathed to St. Amant the leaderships of the Rdo-ence. There was a disparity of force between the two masters. Labourdonnais had beaten the best English player, MacdonneU; but St. Amant was beaten by MacdonneU s successor, Staunton. The elegant Sfc. Amant was a dandy ; almost a ‘ dude.’ He was quite too awfully exquisite. There is an amusing tradition in the Cafd, that his customary seat was near a front window, where his handsome features might be seen in the best light. He played every afternoon until he heard the sharp rat-a-tat of his wife’s parasol on the outside of the window-pane, summoning him home to dinner. Always, as soon as he heard the signal, he jauntily rose, genteely abandoned the Chess-board, airily bowed to his opponent, and skipped away on tip-toe after the imperious parasol, as it flitted round the corner. A Russian, bearing the prickly name of Kiezcritsky, was St. Amant's successor, ana conducted the French periodical which, in honor of the Cafe, was called La Eegence. He invented a gambit that still bears his name, though the gambit itself may now almost be said to exist no move. He was a frail and sickly man, with too much brain for his body ; and he wasted early away. . After the Russian came a Prussian. Ims was Neumann. He, too. found an early grave. He has not left behind him a due measure of reputation with the public at large; and yefc all studious readers of the masterpieces of Chess know that Neumann's style was uncommonly clear and pure—like that, for instance, of Captain Mackenzie of New York. —Theodore Tilton.