CHESS.

Otago Witness, Issue 4057, 15 December 1931, Page 67

CHESS.

Conducted by

L. D. COOMBS.

Solutions of problems, original compositions, games, and analyses Invited for this column. All correspondence should bo addressed to the Chess Editor. Otago Witness Ofllce. Dunedin. PROBLEM No. 537.

By

J. A. Schiffmann.

(Black Ten Pieces).

(White Eleven Pieces). 3R3q|K4prll 1 P 3 p 2 | 1 B p Kt PQ2Ip2kKt2R | b 5 P 1 | 3 p 1 P 2 i 6 kt 1. White to play and mate in two moves. PROBLEM No. 538.

By

W. J. Wood.

(Black One Piece).

(White Six Pieces). S|lKßs|B|3klP2|B|sKt2| 4 P Kt 2 | 8. White to play and mate in three moves.

SOLUTIONS TO PROBLEMS. Problem No. 533 (Schor). —Q takes P. Solution received from J. J. Marlow, T. J. W., and E. A. Le Petit. Problem No 534 (Paluzie). — 1. Kt to B 2, B takes P; 2. Q takes B, etc. If 1. ..PtoK6: 2, Q to B 3. ch, etc. If 1 . . ,B to Q 5 ; 2. Q takes Q Kt, etc. If 1 . . .B to B 1 ; 2. Q takes B P, etc. If 1 . . .others ; 2. Q to B 1, etc. Solution received from E. A. Le Petit.

END GAME No. 174.

By

Vittorio De Barbieri.

(Kindly supplied by E. A. Le Petit.) (Black Five Pieces).

(White Three Pieces). SlB|B|3b4|3p2Ktp|4p3|2 k 4 P | 4 K 3. White to play and draw. SOLUTION TO END GAME No. 172. 1. B to K R 4 K to Kt 3 2. B to B 2, ch K to R 3 3. B to B 5 (a) B to K 4 4. B to K 7 (b) K to Kt 3 5. B to Q 8, ch K to B 3 (c) 6. B to B 6 B to R 7 7. B to Q 4 B to Kt 6 8. B to R 7 B to B 5 9. B to Kt 8 B to K 6 10. B to R 2 B to R 2 11. B to Kt 1, wins. Solution received from A. 0. Gray (Christchurch). GAMES. The following game was played in the ninth round of the International tournament jit Bled : — (Queen's Pawn Opening.) White. Black. E. D. Bogoljubow. A. Alekhine. 1. P to Q 4 Kt to K B 3 2. P to Q B 4 P to K 3 3. Kt to Q B 3 B to Kt 5 4. Q to B 2 P to Q 4 5. P to Q R 3 B takes Kt, ch 6. Q takes B Kt to B 3 7. Kt to B 3 P takes P 8. Q takes P Castles 9. B to Kt 5 P to K R 3 10. B to R 4 (a) P to K Kt 4 11. B to Kt 3 P to Kt 5 12. Kt to K 5 Q takes P 13. Q takes Q Kt takes Q 14. R to B sq Kt to B 4 15. R takes P P to K R 4 16. P to K 3 Kt to Q 4 17. R to B sq P to B 3 18. Kt to Kt 6 R to Q sq 19. P to K 4 Kt takes B 20. R P takes Kt K to Kt 2 21. Kt to B 4 (b) Kt takes Kt 22. P takes Kt K to Kt 3 23. P to B 3 B to Q 2 24. P takes P P takes P 25. R to R 4 (c) P to K 4 26. P to B 5, ch K to Kt 4 27. P to K Kt 3 B to B 3 28. B to K 2 B takes P 29. R to B 7 B to B 6

30. B takes B P takes B 31. R to B 3 K takes P 32. R takes P, ch K to Kt 3 33. R to Kt 4, ch K to B 2 34. R to K R 4 R to R sq 35. R to Q Kt 4 P to Kt 3 36. P to R 4 Q R to Q B sq 37. P to R 5 P takes P 38. R to Kt 5 R to R 7 39. K to Q sq K to Kt 3 40. R takes R P R takes P 41. R to R 6 R to B sq 42. R takes R P R to K R sq (d) 43. K to B sq R to Kt 7 44. R to Q 7 P to K 5 45. R to B sq P to B 4 46. R to Q 5 R to K B sq 47. R to Q 6, ch R to B 3 48. R to Q 8 K to B 2 49. R to Q 7, ch K to K 3 50. R to K Kt 7 K to K 4 51. R to Q sq R to B 3. ch 52. K to Kt sq R to B 6 53. R to K B sq R to B 6 54. R to B sq R to Kt 6, ch 55. K to R sq R (Kt 6) takes P Resigns

(a) Here 10. B to B 4 would have been better, so that B to K 5 could be played if Black played the Pawn to K Kt 4. After 11. . .P to Kt 5 Black must win the Queen’s Pawn, but if he had played 14. . ,P to B 3 ; 15. R to B 4, and White regains the Pawn that way. (b) The reply to this was very obvious, and if 21. P takes Kt, K takes Kt; 22. B to K 3, ch. P to B 4; and Black comes out with the better position. But if here 21. Kt to R 4, Black must take the Knight back somewhere, and against that the White Knight is more or less a prisoner at R 4 ; either way an unsatisfactory alternative for White.

(e) Or 25. B to K 2, with K to B 2 and K to K 3 afterwards, was the better continuation, for there was a positive disadvantage in losing the King s Pawn. Alekhine is not the player to miss a point like this, and coming out of it all the Pawn to the good was just a matter of routine to him. (d) And again the simple method of winning is begun, forcing the adverse King to B sq, and then the advance of the centre Pawns, plus the win of White's remaining Pawn could not be prevented.

In the following game, played at the Prague congress, White forced a draw by perpetual check when he had a brilliant winning continuation. The position had occurred in a game played 15 years before : — (Queen’s Pawn Opening.) White. Black. Mikenas Kashdan (Lithuania). (U.S.A.). 1. P to Q 4 Kt to K B 3 2. P to Q B 4 P to K 3 3. Kt to Q B 3 P to Q 4 4. B to Kt 5 Q Kt to Q 2 5. P to K 3 B to K 2 6. Kt to B 3 P takes P (a) 7. B takes P P to Q R 3 8. Castles P to Kt 4 9. B to Q 3 P to B 4 10. Q to K 2 B to Kt 2 11. K R to Q sq Q to Kt 3 12. Q R to B sq Castles (K R) 13. Kt to K 5 (b) K R to K sq (c) 14. P takes P Kt takes P (d) 15. B takes Kt B takes B (e) 16. B takes P, ch (f) K takes B 17. Q to R 5, ch K to Kt sq 18. Q takes P, ch K to R 2 (g) 19. Q to R 5, ch (h) Drawn (a) This move enables White to bring his King’s Bishop into play without having to lose time afterwards in capturing the Pawn. 6. . .Castles is better.

(b) Threatening to win a piece by Kt takes Kt.

(c) If Kt takes Kt. then P takes Kt, winning a piece. The text-move has-the disadvantage of taking the Rook away from the defence of the King's Bishop’s Pawn. Q R to K sq appears to be better. (d) If 14. , ,B takes B P, then 15. Kt takes Kt, Kt takes Kt; 16. B takes P, ch, K takes B ; 17. Q to R 5, ch K to Kt sq ; 18. R takes Kt, P to Kt 3 (if 18. . -R to K B sq, then 19. Q to Kt 4, P to B 4; 20. Q to Kt 3 with advantage to White) ; 19. Q to R 4, B to K B sq (if 19. . .Q to B 3, then 20. R takes B, Q takes R ; 21. B to B 6, and wins) ; 20. Kt to K 4, B takes Kt; 21. Q R to B 7, and wins. (e) If 15. . .Kt takes B, then 16. B takes P, followed, if 16. . .Kt takes R, by 17. Q to Kt 4, P to B 4 ; IS. Q to Kt 3, and wins. (f) This sacrifice should give no more than a draw.

(g) A mistake which should have led to a lost game. After K to R sq, White had nothing better than a draw by perpetual check with the Queen at R 5 and B 7.

(h) White fails to profit by his opponent’s mistake and forces the draw by perpetual check. There was, however, a win for him. It was pointed out afterwards that the position after 18. . .K to R 2 had already occurred in a game between Janowski and Chajes in the Rice Memorial tournament at New York in 1916. (There it was reached by a slightly different route, entailing 19 moves on each side.) Janowski discovered a very fine winning continuation for White and was awarded the first prize for brilliancy. His winning continuation was as follows: —20. Kt to Q 7 (instead of Q to R 5, ch), Kt takes Kt; 21. R takes Kt (threatening either R takes B or Q takes B. With the King at R sq, this second threat would not exist), B to B 3 ; 22. Kt to K 4, B takes P (it 22. . ,B takes R, then 23. Kt . takes B, ch, and 24. Q to R 5, mate ; or, if, instead, 22. . .B takes Kt, then 23. Q takes B, R to K Kt sq; 24. Q R to B 7, and wins) ’, 23. Kt to Kt 5, ch, K to R 3 (If K to R sq, then Q to R 5, ch. and mate in two more moves) ; 24. P to Kt 4, P to Kt 3 (if K takes Kt, then Q to R 5, ch. followed by R to B 7, mate) ; 25. P to K R 4. R to R sq; 26. Q to R 7, ch, R takes Q; 27. R takes R, mate. NOTES. The late H. L. James.—We have been informed that the late Mr James was one of the earliest members of the Auckland Chess Club, he having joined it a month after it was formed. A Disgrace.—The Times correspondent reports an incident that occurred at the recent Masters’ tournament at Bled. “ During his game with Kashdan, Kostich was absent from the board for some time, and was found by the director of the tournament (Hans Kmoch) analysing the position in the hall of the hotel.” Laws of Chess.—At the annual meeting of the British Chess Federation held on October 17, it was stated that the British edition of the F.I.D.E. Laws of Chess had been issued. A. 0. Gray.—The British Correspondence Chess Association conducts a special tourney for overseas members. Mr A. O. Gray, of Christchurch, has been placed in section A of this tourney. A QUESTION AND A REPLY. " Dear Sin, —Owing to my hours of work (all night) I am unable to get in touch with any Chess players, and my mate and self have been trying to learn the game by re-playing games as published in the Otago Witness. By following these we have managed to learn the moves, and the notes supplied have taught us the reasons for same ; so that we can now manage to play away in our own little way. The problems interest me very much, and I can follow them all right. In fact, I have managed to solve several correctly; however, I cannot get any possible meaning out of the letters and figures that are printed beneath

each diagram, such as in No. 534: 3 B 2 B 1 | R 3 P 2 P| and so on. If you would kindly publish an explanation of these, so that a new chum would understand their use, you would greatly oblige.—Yours truiy, “ A Learner.” [The letters and figures give the position in ” Forsyth ” notation, and are a check to the printed diagram. The capital letters represent White pieces and the small letters Black ones. The figures show the number of vacant squares between the pieces. The lines are divided off. Each line reads from left to right, the top line being given first. 2 B 1 k kt 1 R would be two blank squares, White Bishop, one blank square. Black King, Black Knight, one blank square, White Rook. 6 p Q would be six blank squares, Black Pawn, White Queen. —Chess editor.]