CHESS

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1199, 22 February 1895, Page 10

CHESS

All communications for this department must be addressed to the Chess Editor, Mr C. W. Benbow. 22/2/95 *#* The Wellington Chess Club meets every Tuesday and Friday ev ning at 7.30 in Room No. 11, Exchange Buildings, Lambton Quay. Visitors are cordially welcomed. SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS. No 1596 (P. F. Blake). 1 Kt to B 6 1 Any move 2 Mates accordingly. Solved by H.B. and J.N.H. (Wellington) ; F.E (Picton : M.R. (Taranaki); A.L.T. (Wanganui) ; R.P. (Gisborne), " The key move is not difficult to find, but the variations are good (8J)" ; Horace (Patea) ; H.D. (Bulls): and Felix (Auckland). There is considerable variety of play in this problem (8£). No 1579 (Rev. J. Jespersen). lQtoKt3 IQxQ 2 P to K Kt 5 2 Any move 3 Mates accordingly. There are several excellent variations, and it will be noticed that the Queen is sacrificed in every one of them. Solved by H.D. (Bulls) ; F.A.L.K. (Wellington); Te Ika a Maui, "A pretty problem;" R.P. (Gisbome)," A. real beauty (9£) ; " T.F. (Picton); and M.R. (Taranaki). A very brilliant and attractive problem (9.jt). PROBLEM No. 1606. By George J. Slater (Bolton). From the Leeds Mercury. Black.

White. White to play and mate in two moves. Black to play and mate in two moves. White forces Black to mate in tw» moves Black forces White to mate in two moves, , PROBLEM No. 1607. By F. Moller (Altona,). From the Times Weekly Edition. Black.

• White. White to ulay and mate in three moves

NEW ZEALAND CHESS CONGRESS. A stubbornly contested game between Mr Edwards, of the Dunedin Club, and Mr Hookham, of the Canterbury Chess Club. Queen's Pawn Game. White Black. (Mr Edwards, (Mr Hookham, Dunedin). Canterbury.) 1 Pto Q 4 1 P to Q 4 2 Kt to K B 3 2 Kt to K B 3 3 B to Kt 5 3 P to K 3 4 P to K 3 4 B to K 2 SQKttoQ2 5 P to Kit 3 6BxKt 6BxB 7 P to Q B 4 7 Castles 8 P to K B 4 8 P to K Kt 3 9PtoKKt4 This attack with the pawns on the King's wing is premature and comes to nothing except to weaken White's position. 9 K to Kt 2 10PtoR5 10PtoKKt4 11 B to Q 3 11 Kt to Q B 3 12BtoKtsq , J .., , We cannot conceive what possible benefit White expected to receive from this move, which is bad on the face of it, as it shuts in his Queen's Book. 12RtoEsq 13PtoR3 J?£{°?, 3 14 B to B 2 14 Q to Q 3 15 P to B 5 15 Q to Q 2 16 B to Kt sq . . This unfortunate Bishop is doing.a lot of work to no purpose. 16PtoK4 17 B to B 5 17 Q to K 2 18 Kt to Kt 3 18 B x B 19 P x B 19 P x P 20 K Kt x P 20 Kt x Kt 21 Kt x Kt 21 Q x P 22 Kt to Kt 3 22 Q to Q 2 23 Q to Q 2 23 K R to K sq 24 Castles Q R 24 Q to K 4 25 Q to Q 4 25 Q x P White has now won two pawns as the result of his opponents weak play and with care should be sure of the game. 26 Q to Q 2 26 Q to K 4 27KttoQ4 27QRtoQsq

28 P to R 4 28 Q to K 5 29 Q R to K sq 29 B x Kt ??§ X £ ch 30QxQ 31 P x Q 31 R x R 32RxR 32Pto Kt 5 liiese exchanges have simplified matters tor Black, and with the preponderance of ±Slack pawns on each wing White is practically helpless. Q?s!°^ Ktsc l 33Pt0K84 its?°S«? ■ 34Kt083 ?! £ + ° 5*o 4 35 R to K Kt sq ?7*+«#S 36RtoKt2 SSJ Si 8 37Rt082 38 P to R 4 38 P tn B q O EB 39KtoKt2 f?5 to 40Kt083 S 5, ;o f 0 E 8 41KtoKt2 42RtoK8 42 E to Q 2 43 R to K 5 43 K to B 3 , 44 E to K 8 44PtoKt6 45KtoK2 45RtoK2ch J,46RxR 46KxR - \ * The , exc^ a SI e . of the R °oks had been neatly forced, and White might safely have resigned at this stage. ° 47 P to R 5 47 K to Q 2 48 K to B 3 48 K to B 2 49 K x P 49 P to Kb 3 50 K toB3 50 Px P 51 P x P 51 K to Q 3 52 K to K 3 52 P to B 4 53 K to Q 3 ■ „ 53 P to B soh 54 K to B 3 54Kto B 3 55 K to Kt 4 55 P to B 6 56 K x P 56 K to Kt 4 57 Resigns The ending has been very interesting. CHESS IN AMERICA. A beautiful game played in the seventh round of the New York Chess Tournament between Messrs Pillsbury and Showalter. The notes are from the Baltimore News. Queen's Pawn Opening. White Black (Mr Pillsbury) (Mr Showalter) IPtoQ 4 lPtoQ'4. 2 P to Q B 4 2 P to K 3 3KttoQß3' 3 Kt to KB 3 4 Kt to B 3 4 B to K 2 58t084 SPtoQR3 As if intending to take the B P, supporting with P to Q Kt 4, but otherwise useful 6 E to B sq 6 Castles 7 P to £ 3 7 Q Kt to Q 2 BBtoQ3 8 P to B sis advisable here, since Black having moved his R P can the less advantageously break up the wing by P to Q Kt 3. Black now properly present Bit. BPtoB4 9 Castles 9 P x B P 10 B x P 10 P to Q Kt 4 11 B to Q 3 11 B to Kt 2 12QtoK2 12 E to B sq 13 Kt to K 5 13 P to B 5 14 B to Kt sq 14 Q to Kt 3 In openings of this nature an early connecting of the Rs and the satisfactory posting of the Q is a great object. Both side have here fairly surmounted the difficulty—a sure sign of an evenly and well played opening. 15 Kt x Kt 15 Kt x Kt 16 Kt to K 4 16 Q to B 3 ' 17 P to B 3

Forced, or P to B 4 would win a piece. Black now initiates a Balaclava charge on the K side. ";;;.'■■;■ 17 P to B 4 18 Kt to B 2 18 Pto Kt 4 ' , 19BtoKt3 19PtoKR4 IfPtoßs. 20PxP, PxP. 21KttoKt 4, Pi B. (P to KB 4. 22 Bto K 4 equally) 22 B to K 4, P x P ch. .23 K to K sq. 24 Q to Kt 3, Bx B. 25 Qxß, Qx P ch, regaining the piece. ' 20 Kt to Qsq 20 Pto E 5 - 21 B to K sq 21 Q to. Kt 3 228t0K82 22 B to KB 3 < The advance of White's K P is the bone of contention. 23 P to Q 5 ! 23 P x P 248x8P 24Qt083 If B xP- 25 P to K 4 attacks Q, B and Kt. 25Pt084! 25Et0Q82 26 P x P 26 B to Q sq 27BxP 27Ktt084! 28 Q to R 5 2g R to Q B 2 at once appears a safer answer to Black's powerful Kt move. 28 P to Q 5 29 R to Q B 2 29 P to Q 6 30RtoQ2 30KttoK5 31BxKt 31RxRch 32 K x R 32 Q x B 33Ktt083 33RtoKR2 A most unusual instance of forcing an advantageous exchange of Qs, though two Pawns minus. 34KtxQ 34RxQ 35KttoQ6 35 Rx B 36KtxB 36BxP 37 K to B 2 37 R x P 38KttoB5 38RtoR8 39 Kt to K 4 If 39 Kt x P, Bto R 5 ch. 40 Ktoß 3, R to Q Kt 8, 41 Pto K Kt 3, Bto B 3 and wins. 39 B to Q sq 40 P to R 3 40 B to R 4 41 P to Q Kt 4 A last effort! Black now quickly winds up a really magnificent game. 41 P x P en pass 42 R to Kt 2 42 R to R 8 43 Rx P 43 Pto Q 7 44 Kt x P 44 B x Kt 45 Pto K 4 45 Bto B 8 ' 46 E to Q B 3 46 B x P 47 R to B 7 47 R to B 8 48 Rto Kt 7 48 PtoKt 5 • 49 P to K 5 49 R to B 4 50 P to K 6 50 R to B 4 ch 51 K to Kt 3 51 R to Q Kt 4 52RtoQR7 52PtoKt6 53 Resigns Time, 2hr 54min. Time, 2hr SOmin. NOTES.

The following references to chess are taken from the Life of Sir Richard Burton, the great traveller and linguist: —" My father being a man of active mind, and haTing 1 nothing in the world to do, began to be unpleasantly chemical; he bought Parke's " Catechism," filled the house with abominations of all kinds, made a hideous substance that he called soap, and prepared a quantity of filth which be called citric acid, for which he spoiled thousands of lemons. When his fit was passed over it was succeeded by one of chess, and the whole family were bitten by it. Every spare hour, especially in the evening, was given to check and checkmating, and I soon learned to play one, and then two games with my eyes blindfolded. I had the sense, however, to give it up completely,, for my . days were full of Philidor, and my dreams were of gambits all night. With all this wasting of time I kept my eye steadily fixed on the main chance. I gave up boxing at Owen Swift's, and fencing at Angelo's, and spent all my spare time in learning Hindostani with old Duncan Forbes. Ajvery curious Scotchman it was. He had spent a year or

so in Bombay, and upon the strength of it he was a, perfect master of the Oriental languages.'.Ho had two passions: one was for smoking a huge meerschaum stuffed with the strongest possible tobacco, and the other was chess, concerning which he published some, at that time, very interesting and novel studios. • 'Perhaps his third passion was not so harmless; it was simply for not washing. He spoke all his Eastern languages with the broadest possible Scotch accent; and he cared much more; for telling anecdotes than for teachingr """; However, he laid a fair foundation, and my tiheii slight studios of Arabic secured me the • old man's regard." [Prof essor Forbes was well known to the chess players of a generation Sor two ago as a writer on the Origin and Progress of Chess." —Editor Chess.'] ,: ■