Charlotte Boardman Rogers

“ In the early days of Chess-playing, people used to take literally weeks in which to make a single move, as they wished to study every possible situation which might develop therefrom. The Chessboard would become grey with dust and all interest, as far as the spectators were concerned, would be gone. Today, conditions have changed and now there is a rule that each player must make a given number of moves within a certain period, and if a player fails to do this he forfeits the game. ”

“ In developing a game of Chess, the beginner should remember this maxim: Move no Piece or Pawn twice, until each has been moved once. By following this principle none of the forces will be needlessly exposed to attack from the enemy, for it is true of Chessmen that divided they fall, and united they stand. The student should, also, develop his game on both wings that is on the King's side and on the Queen's side before beginning an attack. As the student progresses he will learn that there are many Chess openings and that each develops a certain line of play, which he must follow up ”

“ While Chess is a purely scientific form of amusement, and one that requires constant practice and study, if a player desires to become skilled, it affords such pleasure to those who are among its devotees and offers such exceptional opportunities for mental development that no person of culture can afford to neglect it. Of course, the scope of the present volume only permits a survey of the general principles and laws of the game but the compiler has endeavored to give the student a thorough groundwork for ordinary purposes ”

“ Until a person has become a really scientific Chess player, he cannot be expected to know all the different games; and as a little knowledge on many subjects is dangerous, the student will find it very helpful to play one game over and over, preferably, of course, some match or tournament game, until he is familiar with every move and with the reasoning that prompted it. ”

“ The Middle Game, as the student has already learned, is that stage of a game of Chess when the Pieces and Pawns are so far developed that theoretical analysis is no longer possible, as it was in the opening moves. At this point, all of the player's skill in the art and science of combination is put to the test and many of the most brilliant Chess players are able to give mate without letting the game reach what the student has already learned to be End Game positions. ”

“ The student must learn to play with both the White and the Black men, thus being able to play a game of defence or attack. In most books on the subject of Chess, it is generally understood that the student plays with the White men, but this is a mistake, for when he comes to lay aside his textbook and play with someone else, he may draw the Black men which puts him at a disadvantage, and he is likely to make moves that are favorable to his opponent with the idea that the White men must win. He is, also, liable to move a White man by mistake and then he must pay the penalty of a false move. ”

“ The student, when playing with others, should study a game of his own and play it over and over until he has corrected all of the weaknesses in his methods of attack and defence; and he should study out for himself how to vary his system of play to meet and conquer his opponent. ”

“ The game of Chess, as already stated, is played by two persons or parties, and the object of each is to capture his opponent’s King or place him in such a position that he cannot move without being taken. ”

“ The Pawn is of less value than any of the other Chessmen and cannot take a very prominent part in the game when isolated. His greatest value is realized, however, when he forms part of a diagonal; and diagonals of pawns are most effective when inclining toward the center of the board, and not toward the wings. As Pawns move only one square at a time, excepting in the first move, their progress is slow, but if developed together it is possible for one or more of them to reach the eighth rank and be Queened. ”

“ It is very well to follow the rules and systems of scientific players, but if the student's opponent does not follow the same system and make the correct moves in return, the student's knowledge will be of little avail and luck may win for the ignorant player an advantage that rightly belonged to the one who was familiar with the science of the game, but who failed to vary his general system of play to meet unexpected situations. ”

“ At this point in the game, the student should study the positions of the White men and of the Black, and he will see that it is quality of position rather than quantity of men that gives Black the advantage. Black has lost a number of his men but the others are so well developed that they have far more strength than White's which are either pinned in or undeveloped. White's two Rooks and his King's Bishop are shut in by their Pawns and his King's Knight is pinned to protect the King from the adverse Bishop. ”

“ If a player touch one of his opponents Pieces or Pawns, he must take it if it can be taken legally; but if he cannot take it legally, he must move his King. If a player touch more than one of his opponent's Pieces or Pawns, he must take any one of them which his opponent may select; or if none of them can be taken legally, he must move his King. The touching of a force implies an intention to move or take it, according as it is the player's own or his opponents ”

“ By comparing her strength with that of the other Pieces, the student will see that she is about double the value of a Rook, except in end-game positions when two Rooks co-operating could accomplish more than a Queen. An adverse Rook on the same rank or file as the Queen is very dangerous, no matter how many Pieces and Pawns may come between, and the player should guard against it by capturing the adverse Rook, if it can be done without sacrifice, or by moving the Queen into a safer position. ”

“ It is of great importance that the beginner acquires a clear idea of the appearance of the board so that he can see it in his " Mind's Eye," when it is not really before him. He should be able to tell at once what squares are commanded by a certain Piece in a given position, and he should also be able to play on boards with squares of other color combinations than the one with which he is familar, such as red and white, black and white, black and yellow, brown and yellow, etc. ”

“ When the player who has drawn the White Men moves a Piece or a Pawn, it is his opponent's turn, and so the game continues, each moving alternately, one man at a time, of his own color and capturing only the men of the opposite color. ”

“ This power of the Pawn to become a Piece increases its importance, in spite of its slow progress across the board and makes it of more value than would at first be imagined. A fine player may always be identified by his judicious handling of the Pawns.
While the Pawn's move is forward in a vertical line, its power of capturing radiates forward diagonally. Thus if a White Pawn occupies QB3 and a Black Pawn stands on Q5, the White Pawn moves diagonally from its QB3 to Q4 and captures the Black Pawn. If there were no adverse Piece to capture, the White Pawn would move to QB4. ”

“ The student will remember that a gambit means the sacrifice of a Piece or Pawn for the sake of an advantage that is to be gained later by the first player. Each player, in turn, moves his KP to K4 and then the first player moves his KBP to KB4, where it is in a position to be captured by the adverse Pawn.
The student will note that in each of these openings, the first move of each player is identical, i.e., the KP to K4. This opening move clears the way for the King, the Queen, and the King's Bishop, if the player cares to develop them. ”

“ It is White's move, but if he takes his Queen from in front of his King, he exposes it to check from the adversary's Rook. If he moves the King, then his Queen will be captured and the game will have to be drawn, and if he takes Black's Rook with the Queen, then the adverse King will be placed in a similar position, i. e., stalemate.
Support. A force is supported when it is within the range of another of the same color that would be in a position to capture it were it an enemy. An attacking force is supported by another Piece or Pawn which commands the square or position attacked. ”

“ This example of an End Game illustrates the importance of the Queen as a mating force, and also illustrates, to the student, how important it is for him to protect her so that he can use her in just such methods of attack as were seen in the moves just notated. Black, having neither a Piece nor a Pawn on the board, could only hope to win by a drawn game if White had given a stalemate. ”

“ Only skillful players fully appreciate what can be done with them, and use them to the best advantage. In the opening or middle game, Pawns are more easily supported on K4 or Q4, than when further advanced. Pawns on these squares should be maintained abreast as long as possible; for if one is advanced, the position of the other is weakened. The student will find it beneficial to study end games in which Pawns take part in the checkmate, and also Pawn moves in general throughout the game. ”

“ For this reason, Chess openings have been a study of profound interest to Chess players all over the world wherever the game is played, and the principal or regular openings are named after the Piece or Pawn which determines their character, the persons who invented them, or the countries where they were originally adopted. ”

“ Until a student has had considerable experience, and learned to play a game of his own he will do well to move each Piece once before he has moved any Piece twice, as this will enable him to keep his forces together and prevent needless exposure and weakness in his defence and attack. ”

“ XVII. When check is given, any move made by the player, whose King is in check, is illegal if it does not stop the check.
XVIII. If a false or illegal move is found to have been made, in a game, all subsequent moves must be retracted, and a proper move made, after which the game proceeds as if no error had been made. But if the source of the manifest illegal or false move cannot be traced, then the game must be annulled.
XIX. In the case of a dispute between the players, if the question is one of fact, it must be referred to a bystander or umpire ”

“ In Black's third move, he captures the Pawn that White has just played and removes it from the board. He has also moved his own Pawn from the middle of the board which better enables White to form a center which was the advantage he hoped to gain when he offered Black the Pawn. Black, however, has retained the advantage of force having one more Pawn than his adversary and if he can keep it he may eventually win the game. ”

“ The second player, generally the Black, at the beginning of the game, is said to have the defence, as the first player is said to have the attack. Defensive measures are those taken to provide against or to repel attack. To defend a Piece or Pawn is to protect or support it from or against an adversary. ”

“ The system or method of recording the moves of a game.
Odds. An initiary advantage conceded to a weaker player by a stronger one. All important Chess clubs have a carefully graded scale of odds, marking the classes of players. A common gradation is given in the following:—
⁠ (1) Pawn and move. (When a Pawn is conceded the KBP is understood unless another is specified.) The player giving the odds takes his KBP off the board and his adversary has the first move. ”

“ To develop a Piece or Pawn is to bring it from the comparatively powerless and inactive position which it occupies at the beginning of the game to a position which is more favorable for defence or attack. To develop a game is to bring all or nearly all of the Pieces and Pawns into positions of defence or attack. ”

“ To guard or support a Piece by the interposition of another force between the Piece attacked and the attacking Piece. A superior force is protected or covered from attack by an inferior one.
Queening a Pawn or Advancing a Pawn to Queen. When a player has advanced a Pawn to the eighth, or last, square of a file, it assumes the rank and power of a Queen or any other Piece, excepting a King, that the player chooses, in which case he is said to have Queened a Pawn. ”

“ Both distance and direction must be taken into consideration with every move, as well as the advantages that are to be gained by moving any one Piece in preference to another, but the student must become familiar with the relative value of the Pieces and Pawns and with their respective moves, before this can be made perfectly clear to him. ”