CHESS. 



171 



Chs. The pawns are to be placed without distinction, on the 

 second line, or rank, one before each of the dignified 

 pieces. 



The moves of the pieces are as follows : The pawns 

 move straight forwards in their own files, one house at 

 a time ; but when first played, may be carried forward 

 two hou.-es at a time, if the player chooses. They never 

 move backwards, sitiewise, ordiagonally, unless in taking 

 an enemy's piece, which is done one diagonal move in 

 advance, the pawn occupying the house of the captured 

 piece a rule which applies to every case of capture. 

 The rook moves straight forwards, backwards, and 

 sidcwiie, or by rank or file at pleasure, the whole com- 

 pass of the board. The bishop moves diagonally, al- 

 ways keeping the same colour, over the whole board, 

 forwards or backwards. The queen combines the moves 

 of the rook and bishop, which renders her a very im- 

 portant piece. The king does the same, only he is 

 circumscribed to passing over one house at a time. The 

 motion of the knight is the most irregular, being a 

 kind of vault over the adjacent square into that which is 

 next to it sidewisc, and of a different colour. The range, 

 therefore, of his move, is limited, but it may be either 

 forwards, backwards, or sidewise. The game is not 

 won, in consequence of having taken the pieces of the 

 adversary, but by placing his king in such a situation 

 that he is exposed to be taken, or is in cJicck, and cannot 

 move into any other situation without being also in 

 check, or exposed to be taken, which is called check- 

 mate. 



Such is the mode of playing the game in Europe ; 

 but in the East, where it is in very great vogue, it is of- 

 ten found in a different form. Frequently the queen has 

 the move of the knight, as well as of the rook and bi- 

 shop ; and sometimes there are additional pieces used, 

 by which the game is rendered much more complica. 

 ted. 



Sir William Jones, in the second volume of the Asia- 

 tic Researches, describes a very complicated kind of 

 chess, from one of the Sanscrit books called Paraaas, 

 which has the name of Cltatiiraji, or the game of four 

 kings : being played by four persons representing as 

 many princes, two allied armies combating on each side. 

 It is thus described in the Bhawishya Purao, the book 

 alluded to. " Eight squares being marked on all sides, 

 the red army is to be placed to the cast, the green to the 

 south, the yellow to the west, and the black to the north. 

 Let the elephant (says the Puran) stand on the left of 

 the king, next to him the horse, then the boat, a;:d be- 

 fore them all four foot soldiers ; but the boat must be 

 placed in the angle of the board." Particular rules are 

 subjoined for the conduct of the game ; and some of the 

 moves are directed by throwing the dice, in which it dif- 

 fers materially from chess as most commonly played. 

 We refer to the Asiatic Researches for what the presi- 

 dent has said farther concerning this curious game ; sub- 

 joining only the following remark : " A ship or boat is 

 absurdly substituted, we see, in this complex game for 

 the ral'h, or armed chariot, which the Bengalese pro- 

 nounced rot'li, and which the Persians changed into 

 rokh ; whence came the rook of some European nations; 

 as the vierge andfol of the French are supposed to be 

 corruptions of ftrze mdjil, the prime minister and ele- 

 phant of the Persians and Arabs." 

 ^ In a letter from Eyles Irwin, Esq. to the Earl of 

 Charlemont, in 1793, published in the fifth volume of 

 the Irith Transactions, there is an interesting account 

 of the Chinese mode of playing the game of chess. " A 

 young mandarine," says Mr Irwin, of the profession 



of arms, having an inquisitive turn, was my frequent vi- 

 sitor ; and what no questions could have drawn from 

 him, the accidental sight of an English chess-board ef- 

 fected. He told me that the Chinese had a game of the 

 same nature ; and on his specifying a difference in the 

 pieces and board, I perceived, with joy, that I had dis- 

 covered the desideratum of which I had been so long in 

 search. The very next day my mandarin brought me 

 the board and equipage ; -and I found that the Bramins 

 were neither mistaken touching the board, which has a 

 river in the middle to divide the contending parties, nor 

 in the powers of the king, who is intrenched in a fort, 

 and moves only in that space, in every direction. But 

 what I did not before hear, nor do I believe is known 

 out of this country, there are two pieces, whose move- 

 ments are distinct from any in the Indian^ or European 

 game. The mandarin, which answers to our bishop, in 

 his station and sidelong course, cannot, through age, 

 cross the river; and a rocket boy, still used in the In- 

 dian armies, who is stationed between the lines of each 

 party, acts literally with the motion of the rocket, by 

 vaulting over a man, and taking his adversary at the 

 other end of the board. Except that the king has his 

 two sons to support him, instead of a queen, the game, 

 in other respects, is like ours, as will appear in the plan 

 of the board and pieces I have the honour to enclose, 

 together with directions to place the men and play the 

 game." 



The Chinese call this game Chong KK, or the royal 

 game; and the following is the mode of play ing it, accord- 

 ing to Mr Irwin : " As there are nine pieces, instead of 

 eight, to occupy the rear rank, they stand on the lines 

 between, and not within the squares. The game is con- 

 sequently played on the lines. The king, or chong, 

 stands in the middle line of this row. His moves resem- 

 ble those of our king, but are confined to the fortress 

 marked out for him. The two princes, or sons, stand 

 on each side of him, and have equal powers and limits. 

 The mandarins, or tichong, answer to our bishops, and 

 have the same moves, except that they cannot cross the 

 water, or white space in the middle of the board, to an- 

 noy the enemy, but stand on the defensive. The knights, 

 or rather horses, called maa, stand and move like ours 

 in every respect. The war- chariots, or tche, resembled 

 our rooks or castles. The rocket- boys, or pab, are pie- 

 ces whose motions and powers were unknown to us. 

 They act with the direction of a rocket, and can take 

 none of their adversary's men. that have not a piece or 

 pawn intervening. To defend your men from this at- 

 tack, it is necessary to open the line between, either to 

 take off the check or the king, or to save a man from 

 being captured by the pao. Their operation is other- 

 wise like that of the rook. Their stations are marked 

 between the pieces and pawns. The five pawns, or 

 ping, make up the number of the men equal to that of 

 our board. Instead of taking like ours, they have the 

 rook's motion, except that it is limited to one step, and is 

 not retrograde. Another important point in which the 

 ping differs from ours, is, that they continue in statu quo, 

 after reaching their adversary's head quarters. It will 

 appear, however, that the Chinese pieces far exceed the 

 proportion of ours, which occasions the whole force of 

 the contest to fall on them, and thereby precludes the 

 beauty and variety of our game, when reduced to a strug- 

 gle between the pawns, who are capable of the highest 

 promotion, and often change the fortune of the day. The 

 posts of the ping are marked in front." 



Mr Twiss mentions a small treatise on chess, written, 

 as he supposes, about 400 years ago, at the end of which 



Chess. 



