CHESS. 



having" a piece obliquely taken off from 

 their fiat round bonnets. The exterior 

 pieces are called castles or rocks, and 

 are commonly made to resemble turrets ; 

 or may be only pawns of a larger size. 

 The pawns, eight in number, are ranged 

 so as to occupy all the squares on the se- 

 cond line, immediately in front of the 

 line of pieces. Pawns are generally 

 pieces of turned wood, of a neat pattern, 

 and with spherical summits. This de- 

 scription of one party will answer for 

 both ; observing that the players are de- 

 signated according 1 to the colour of their 

 pieces. Such as are white or yellow, are 

 called white, and such as are black, red, 

 green, &c. are called black. 



The king- can only move one square at 

 a time, but in any direction that may be 

 open to him : he cannot, however, move 

 to, nor remain on, a square which is com- 

 manded by any of the adversary's pieces 

 or pawns. The queen moves only in right 

 lines, but her range is unlimited where 

 the board is clear : thus she can go the 

 whole breadth, or the whole length, or 

 the whole diagonal of the board. If 

 placed in the centre of the board, she 

 could, consequently, move in any one 

 of the eight, i. c. four rectangular, 

 and four diagonal directions, diverging 

 from the square on which she might 

 stand. The bishops always move in a 

 diagonal direction, each invariably adher- 

 ing to that colour on which he was ori- 

 ginally placed ; these pieces are called 

 according to the colour on which they 

 stand and move, without any reference 

 to their own complexions respectively. 

 Thus the white party has a black and a 

 white bishop ; though they are both made 

 of a white substance : the same holds in 

 regard to the adversary's bishops. The 

 knights have a circular move, always 

 proceeding to such squares, within two 

 distant, as may be of opposite colour to 

 that from which they move ; counting 

 that square, say it be white, as one, the 

 knight passes over one square, either 

 black or white, and settles on a black 

 square next thereto. Hence a knight 

 can remove to or command eight squares, 

 all in different directions from that on 

 which he stands. The castles only move 

 at right angles with the board; pro- 

 ceeding, if nothing should interrupt, 

 either the whole length, or the whole 

 breadth, at pleasure. The pawns have 

 each the privilege of moving forward two 

 squares, at the first move of each e- 

 spectively, provided no obstacle should 

 present itself: but ever after they can 



only move forward one square at a time. 

 When pawns capture, they do it oblique- 

 ly, but only at one square distance ; thus 

 a pawn, on a white square, can take any 

 pawn or piece of the adversan 's that may 

 be on either of the diagonals proceeding 

 from such white square, right and left, 

 provided such pawn or piece be on 

 the square next to that on which the 

 pawn stands. Pawns riever recede ; all 

 their moves are straight forward; they 

 have, however, the great privilege of 

 being changed for any piece the party 

 they appertain to may choose, whenever 

 they can reach that line on which the ad- 

 versaries' pieces were originally arranged: 

 on such occasions the successful pawn is 

 taken off the square, and any piece its 

 owner may have lost is placed thereon in 

 its stead. As a queen is usually chosen, 

 where one has been lost, this is called 

 making a queen. 



A review of the chess board will show- 

 that every piece, as it stands on the 

 board, protects one pawn, while each of 

 the two centre pawns has four defences ; 

 The weakest parts of the board are 

 the pawns before the knights and bi- 

 shops. 



The king cannot remain in check, nor 

 can he remove to a square that is com- 

 manded by any piece or pawn of the ad- 

 versary. When he is so situated as to be 

 liable to be taken, /. e. in check, and that 

 he cannot move but into a similar situa- 

 tion, the game is ended, by what is call- 

 ed check-mate. When the party cannot 

 move any of his pieces or pawns, and his 

 king is not in check, or, as it is called, en 

 prise, but would be so if he moved, be 

 wins the game, under the plea of stale- 

 mate. To effect this, when the party has 

 lost his defences, is therefore an object 

 of moment. Young plajers, when carry- 

 ing all before them, very frequently give 

 their adversaries this negative victory, by 

 pushing on, without attending to the con- 

 sequences of too closely confining the 

 opponent's king 1 . 



When the space between the king and, 

 either castle is clear, and that neither 

 the king nor castle is en prise, the cas,^ 

 tie may then be brought next to the king, 

 and the king be placed on the opposite 

 side of the castle ; this is called castleing, 

 but can only be done once in the game, 

 and before either the king or the castle 

 has made any move. If either the king, 

 or castle, crosses or comes upon a square 

 that is commanded by a piece or pawn 

 belonging to the adversan 7 , the cas* 1 

 rannothe allowed. 



