The mediterranean naturalist 
V 
CHESS. 
“Labor efc constantia” 
All communications connected with this column 
to he addressed to the editor of the Chess Column , 
48, S trad a Merc anti. 
To CORRESPONDENTS. 
Solution of Problem No. 2 will be given in our 
next issue. 
PROBLEM No. 3. 
By W. Service. 
Black. 
White. 
White to play and mate in three moves. 
Game ending. 
The following pretty finish occurred in a han- 
dicap tourney of the Baltimore Chess Association:— 
Black (Pollock.) 
White (Toisch.) 
Black played 1..., Kt x P; 2 P x Kt (Q to Q 4 
was the proper move), B x P; 3 K to R sq, R x R!; 
4 Q to B sq, R x P ch * 5 K x R, Q to R 3 ch' and 
tnat$s next move. 
t Hi 
CHESS IN CHINA. 
(From a letter by Baron H. von. der Lasa ) 
— “The game of Chinese chess has never been 
the object of my researches, because it differs es- 
sentially from our game. A river crosses the chess 
board in the middle between the two players. The 
savant Freret, in a discourse on the origin of chess 
read or delivered by him at the Academy in 1729. 
at a seance in which the young King Louis XV 
participated says that the Chinese name chess the 
game of the elephant, and that they acknowledge 
having received it from the Indians. Thellaipiene 
or great Chinese dictionary, states under the word 
Sianghki, that it was in the reign of Vouti, about 
the year 537 of J. C., that chess reached China. I 
do not know whether the Celestial Empire has its 
chess periodica], but I strongly doubt it. No 
Chinese word has to my knowledge been tran- 
slated into a European tongue. I possess several 
Chinese treatises, but am ignorant of their contents 
Their diagrams, of which the books are partly 
composed, seem to be collections of problems. M. 
de Mollendorf says in his article that the game is 
more generally spread in China than is the ease 
with chess in Europe, but that it is chiefly the 
popular classes that continuedly practise it, while 
it is lightly esteemed by the superior classes. The 
latter prefer an entirely different game ‘Wei-Ch’i,’ 
which they regard as older and more difficult. I 
believe this is the same game as that of the Japa- 
nese, known among the latter under the name of 
‘Go.’ ” 
THE SHORTEST GAME ON RECORD. 
Black giving the odds of K B P. 
(Remove Black’s KBP. 
White. Black. 
Mr. Leeky. Dr. Mason. 
1 P to K 4 1 P to K Kt 4 (a) 
2 Q to R 5 mate (b) 
Notes — (a)1 (b)' 
Played at Walpole house, Thorpe, Norwich. 
White. Black. 
Mr. F. Mr. I. 0. Howard Taylor. 
1 P to K B 4 1 P to K 3 
2 P to K Kt 4 2 Q to R 5 mate 
This game also occurred in a correspondence 
match in America. 
Mr. Alex. 8. Orr was the manipulator of the 
White men in the following game: — 
White. 
1 P to K 4 
2 Kt to Q B 3 
3 Q to R 5 mate 
Black. 
1 P to Iv Kt 4 
2 P to 1\ B 3 
