move was made, but it became more and more evident that unless some vigorous measure were adopted, and that at once, Black must escape and presently take the initiative in their own hands. At the 22nd move therefore, Mr. S. once more suggested that, hazardous as it might appear, the best possible mode of play was even now to sacrifice the King's Pawn. After listening with every attention to the numerous advantages which he pointed out as likely to accrue to them from this move, and the dangers attending every other mode of play, Messrs. de Rivière and Kylman at length expressed their cordial approval of the sacrifice, and "Pawn to King's sixth," was announced as White's 22nd move! From this crisis to the 28th move, when White made another startling sacrifice of a Rook! Messrs. Löwenthal, Blunden, and Kipping fought admirably, but the attack was not to be resisted, and at the 38th move, the game having then lasted about eight hours, they surrendered.

The following are the correct moves of this interesting lutte.

Consultation Game.

And Black struck their colours.

Notes.

(a) Had they taken the King's Pawn, there would have followed, on White's part, Q. R. to K. square; P. to K. B. fourth, &c.

(b) This move, as we have remarked above, was unadvised. Instead of it, Mr. Kylman, who, by the way, is a young player of great modesty and great talent, suggested Q. to K. second, which would undoubtedly have been better. Mr. S. proposed the more attacking play of P. to K. sixth, the probable result of which it may be instructive to seek. Let us then suppose

16. P. to K. sixth 17. K. B. takes P.

18. B. takes Kt.

16. B. P. takes P. (best)
17. Q. P. takes B. (best)
18. K. takes B.

(It should be remarked that if White, instead of taking off the Knight here, take the Q. B. P. with the Queen, Black may Castle and come out of his difficulties with little if any inferiority of situation.)

19. Q. takes Q. B. P. (check)

20. Q. R. to Q. fourth

21. Q. R. to K. B. fourth (check)

22. Q. to Q. B. square

19. K. to B. third

20. P. to K. R. fourth (best)

21. K. to K. Kt. fourth

And surely White ought to win without much trouble.

(c) By this counter-attack, Black gains invaluable time.

(d) This appeared an agreeable surprise to White, as Mr. S. had previously demonstrated to his allies, that the danger of 16. K. R. to K. square was that it afforded Black an opportunity of throwing forward their Pawn to Q. B. fourth, and thus paralyzing the action of the White Q.'s B. There can be no doubt, we believe, that P. to Q. B. fourth, would have been a much better line of defence. (e) It was suggested afterwards, with much show of truth, that White could have done well at this instant by taking the Queen's Pawn with the Queen's Rook. Had they done so, the following is a likely continuation.

18. Q. R. takes Q. P.

19. B. takes K. B. P.

20. P. to K. sixth (check)

21. Q. takes K. Kt. P. (check)

18. K. takes R.

19. Q. takes B.

20. Q. takes P.

And we do not see how Black can avert defeat.

(f) This will be found upon analysis, we think, to be preferable to the obvious move of P. to K. Kt. fifth, and, indeed, to any other move at White's command. (g) Had they taken now with the Queen's Pawn, White's best course probably would have been to have played K. B. to Q. Kt. fifth, which would have gained them a piece at least.

(h) Instead of so playing, they might have taken the K. B. Pawn, which would probably have led to the following varianti:

26. B. to K. R. fourth

27. K. R. to K. square

25. Q. takes K. B. P.
26. Q. takes Q. R. (check)

And White must win.

(i) Threatening to win the adverse Queen by B. to K. B. square.

(k) This is an excellent coup, as unexpected too as it is clever.

(7) If they had taken the proffered Rook at this moment, it would have cost their Queen.

(m) It was anything but indifferent; they moved thus or K. to Kt. second, as the reader will find on attentively examining the position.

(n) If they had played the natural move of Q. to K. B. seventh, the game would have proceeded thus:

30. Q. to K. B. seventh.

31. K. R. takes Q. B. P. (check)

32. Q. R. takes Kt.

33. Q. to K. seventh (check) 34. Q. mates

31. K. to Q. Kt. square

32. K. takes K. R.
33. K. to Q. B. third

Upon the termination of this game, the meeting adjourned until the next morning, when hostilities re-commenced, and many interesting contests took place, for the best of which we shall find room in our next. At three o'clock, in obedience to the arrangements of the Committee, the boards were deserted, and the President having been voted to take the chair, Mr. Staunton proceeded to lay before the meeting the alterations in the Chess Code of Laws which Mr. Jaenisch, Mr. Heydebrand, and himself considered to be desirable.

Mr. Staunton commenced the subject by observing that at the last meeting of the Association he had taken occasion to animadvert upon the defects and inconsistences of our present Chess statutes, and to urge upon the members who did him the honour to listen to his views, the necessity of adopting some means to obtain a complete revision of the Laws, so that they might be applicable to all probable cases of dispute, and form a fixed and uniform code of Rules for the government of Chess Players in every nation of the civilized world. Mr. Staunton then read the resolution passed at the previous meeting at Manchester, which empowered him to enter into correspondence with MM. Jaenisch and Heydebrand, the two most eminent Chess authors on the continent, and remarked: "In obedience to that resolution, I immediately put myself in communication with those gentlemen, and the result has been all that you could desire. Impressed with the necessity of remodelling our present very imperfect Chess Laws, MM. Jaenisch and Heydebrand were no sooner apprized of the movement made in this country, than, with an earnestness and cordiality which entitle them to the gratitude of every Chess Amateur, they devoted themselves to the task they had been solicited to undertake, and I have now the pleasure to present to the meeting the fruits of their labours. On the part of Mr. Jaenisch, we have been favoured by a Treatise on the Laws, more comprehensive and evincing more research than any production of the kind yet written; and on the part of Mr. Heydebrand, I have before me a brochure less voluminous, but perhaps of fully equal practical utility." After entering at some length into the subject of his own contribution to the tripartite work, which he trusted would appear in conjunction with the pamphlets of his coadjutors in a single volume during the present year, Mr. Staunton went on to say: "Before proceeding to give you an abstract of alterations which we propose to submit to the judgment of the Chess community, it is but just to my colleagues and myself to assure you that these alterations have not been ventured without long consideration and a great amount of hard reading. Our endeavour has been to acquire an accurate knowledge of the ancient moves and powers of the Chess men. To ascertain, as nearly as the accessible works of the period would permit, when that remarkable change in the moves, &c., took place, which gave us the present game, and finally, to trace from the earliest works extant on the game in Europe, the different Laws or Rules which have been devised from time to time in various countries to regulate the players. In the attainment of this indispensable information many works now obsolete have been carefully consulted, and a vast amount of time and mental labour, not always with commensurate results, has been expended." After enumerating the ancient works to which attention had been paid, Mr. Staunton confessed his own labours with respect to them had been considerably lightened by a discovery, as remarkable as it was interesting, of several invaluable MSS. on Chess, which had enabled him to settle many long controverted points, and correct many erroneous impressions regarding the old Laws and usages of the game (an account of these new-found treasures is given in another portion of the

number). Mr. Staunton then proceeded to mention those Rules in the received Laws to which his own and the attention of his collaborateurs had been especially directed. These comprised :

1st. The Rule regarding the counting 50 moves at the end of a game. 2nd. The Rule prescribing certain penalties for illegal moves. 3rd. The Rule regarding a plurality of Queens. 4th. Regarding the Passar battaglia. 5th. Concerning the wrong disposition of the men at the beginning of a game. 6th. Regarding the touching a Piece. 7th. Respecting the crying "check" when no check is given. 8th. The question as to the right of lookers-on to interfere when they see an illegal move, &c. 9th. The subject of a limit to the time in moving. Upon these and several other matters of moment to the Chess player, Mr. S. expatiated as fully as the time admitted; and concluded a discourse which, judging from the attention with which it was listened to by the auditory, must have been of more than ordinary interest, by exhibiting the copies of two beautiful MSS., one in Latin, supposed to be of the 14th century, and the other the original MS. of the celebrated Gioachino Greco.

At the conclusion of the lecture, a vote of thanks was accorded by acclamation to Mr. Staunton, and the meeting separated to meet again shortly afterwards at

THE ANNUAL DINNER.

The dinner took place at the Adelphi Hotel, Mr. Schwabe, supported by Mr. Staunton and M. de Riviere, occupying the chair.

Upon the removal of the cloth, the chairman gave "the Queen," which was received with the customary enthusiasm. The next toast was "Prince Albert and the rest of the Royal Family," followed by "The Army and Navy." The chairman afterwards rose, and proposed the toast of the evening:-"Success to the Northern and Midland Counties Chess Association." He did not know why the Association should be limited in title to the Northern and Midland Counties, the object being to assemble the principal players from all parts of the country, and for his own part he should be glad to see its title altered. He could assure the distinguished players who had honoured them with their presence that they were heartily welcome, and if amid the labours and anxieties of business the Hon. Secretary, Mr. Sparke, had omitted anything which might have conduced to their comfort and enjoyment, he was sure they would attribute the short-coming, not to any neglect on his part, but to the pressure of his avocations. He was happy to see that on the small field of Chess as on the larger one of war, England and France were united. After expressing a hope that at the next meeting there would be time to discuss the points referred to by Mr. Staunton in his able and highly interesting observations that day, for which, as well as for his many other services, he was sure they all felt grateful, the chairman concluded by giving "Success to the Northern and Midland Counties Chess Association." (The toast was drunk with acclamation.)

Mr. Morecroft, the Hon. Secretary of the Rock Ferry Chess Club, proposed the health of Mr. Staunton, whom he eulogized in warm terms as having done more for Chess than any one living, or perhaps than any one who ever lived. The present was an assembly of Chess players, and he was convinced there was not one among them who had not benefited deeply by that gentleman's games and writings. That day, even, he had added to the many obligations they were all under to him, by the instructive paper he had read, and it was with sincere pleasure that he proposed "Health and long life to Mr. Staunton." The toast was drank with all the honours.

Mr. Staunton, in replying to the compliment, expressed his perfect concurrence with the opinion of the Chairman, that the title of the Association should be changed so as to embrace amateurs of every county, and hoped that at the next meeting some resolution would be adopted to that effect. It might without any impropriety be called "The British Association for the Promotion of Chess," and hold its meetings, like another "British Association," at every chief town by VOL. II.

F F

turns in the kingdom. He thought it especially desirable that the meetings should not be confined to the commercial districts where time was of such importance, but should be held occasionally at such places as Leamington, Worcester, Oxford, Cambridge, and the like. Instead, then, of assembling a host of players for two days only, the meetings might, when required, extend over a week. This would enable visitors to do something more than play a few desultory games and eat a good dinner. The most distinguished might impart a higher tone and greater interest to these gatherings by papers illustrative of the history and literature of the game. Thanking them for the honour they had conferred upon him in drinking his health, he hoped that, although he was not likely to meet them for some years in Liverpool, he might have the pleasure of doing so at the St. George's Chess Club in London. Mr. Staunton resumed his seat amid general cheering.

After a few more toasts, including the healths of Herr Löwenthal, M. de Riviere, and Mr. Morton Sparke, each of whom responded with taste and feeling to the compliment, a discussion took place as to the next place of meeting, which it was finally decided should be Leamington, and the party separated.

SOME OBSERVATIONS ON THE ORIGIN OF CHESS.

BY DR. DUNCAN FORBES.

From the Illustrated London News.

CHAPTER I.-INTRODUCTORY.

It was acutely observed by the late Ensign O'Doherty in his ninety-eighth maxím, that "the reason why many important matters remain in obscurity and doubt is, that nobody has adopted the proper means for having them cleared up." This judicious remark on the part of the philosophic standard-bearer, appears to me to be most applicable to the present state of our information respecting the origin and progress of the game of Chess. Modern writers on the subject, with a few distinguished exceptions, merely repeat the puerile legends handed down to us by Carrera, Ruy Lopez, and Salvio-men, who, undoubtedly, were first-rate chess-players, but rather deficient in antiquarian accuracy. Since the times of those early luminaries of the South, two of our most eminent Orientalists, Dr. Hyde and Sir William Jones, both of Oxford, arrived at the conclusion that Chess was invented in India, and thence introduced into Persia and other Asiatic regions during the sixth century of our era. This view has been adopted, solely on its own intrinsic merits, by Mr. Francis Douce and Sir Frederic Madden in their more recent communications on the subject to the "Transactions of the Archæological Society.

In the following papers it is my intention to follow up to the utmost the path already pointed out by the Orientalists of Oxford. I happen to possess sources of information, which to my predecessors were either altogether inaccessible, or imperfectly known. I think I can clearly show that the game originated in India, and nowhere else. I do not mean to say that I can intimate anything like the precise time when, or spot where, the invention took place; nor is this at all requisite for the investigation. In fact many of our noblest discoveries, even of comparatively recent date, are still involved in obscurity. We know not to a certainty who it was that first applied the magnetic needle, so as to serve as a guide to the adventurous mariner across the pathless surface of the mighty deep. The art of printing with moveable types-an art by which the secrets of the remote past are transmitted to the remotest future is little more than four centuries old, yet are we still in a state of uncertainty as to the precise time when, the place where, and the person by whom, this divine discovery was made. This much, ho wever, we may safely say, that this art had its birth near the banks of the Rhine, either at Strasbourg or Maintz, or still lower down; for be it known that