The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1875-09-02

Playing Chess BIIndfOld.

OidHfll, III his dnlby VI -OORuldblLluH
066D talks of ''blind man managing
game at chess" much as one would speak of
blind man using a telescope-as thing
absurd ON the face of it. He was chess
player, too, aud one would suppose he had
at times thought over games he had former
ly played, and thus learned, to some degree,
how game can be mentally followed. But,
as we have said, the feat OF blindfold chess
| playing is even more wonderful to a che
player who does not possess the power OF
calling up before the mind complete pic
| ture of board and men at any stage of
game, than it is to one unfamiliar with
chess. For the player knows how varied
the resources of the game commonly are at
each stage, how the choice of any move
from among several which are available de-
ponds on consequences calculated seven or
eight moves deep, mot for the selected
move alone, but for each of the rejected
moyes.) Now if the blindfold player
reasoned out each move, by considering the
scope and influence of each piece, arguing
mentally, for instance, that such and sucn
piece have been moved to such and such
a square, commands such and such other
squares, or can be brought in so many
moves to some desired position, or must be
guarded by such and such steps from other
pieces, it would be simply impossible for
him to conduct game, or ut least to com
plete one within any reasonable time. Yet,
strangely enough, many chess players sup
pose that it is a feat of this kind which the
blindfold player accomplIshes. And neces-
sarily the marvel, already great, becomes
almost incredible when we remember three
ten, twelve, nay, if we remember rightly,
in one case twenty, blindfold games have
been conducted simultaneously by one
player. The real meaning of the feat is un-
derstoOd, however when we notice that
some of the strongest chess players have
been unable to play blindfold, precisely as
some of the greatest mathematlcians have
| heen unable To deal mentally with any but
the simplest problems. philidor and La
Bourdonnaisc could both-play without seeing.
the board, but Mcdonnell, st. Amant anu
Stanton never accomplished this feat, (at
least in any recorded partie.) Harrwitz
could play blindfold; his rivals Horwitz
could not. At the present day Blackburn
and Zukertort can play ten or twelve games
blindfold, but several of the strongest chess
players living do not, we believe, possess
the power. We must, therefore, find an
| exploration which shall not require the
bllndfold player who is unable to carry on
contest without seeing the board. The
explanation Is simple. The blindfold player
is able TO picture to himself the board and
men, at any stage of the game, and thus
plays mentally with as much ease and con-
hdence as if he had the board before him.
II he Is conducting dozen blindfold garAes
simultaneously, his method is the same,
We are unable to say, however, whether he
pictures all the games at once, as though
the boards We're ranged before him; OF calls
| up mental picture of each board, with the
men properly placed for that game as its
turn comes round. Probably, In most cases.
the latter is the method adopted. 1t matters
little for our argument which manner of
conceiving the boards and men is preferred.
| When blindfold chess player Tor rather
player without board, for the blindfolding
Is merely nominaD Is conducting twelve
games he has, either in one mental image or
available for successive study, twelve
boards, each with sixty-four squares, or
768 squares to be separately recognized.
within all (at starting) 1884 men. AT every
step he has to select between several alter
native moves, each admitting CT several al
tentative replies, each reply suggesting va-i
Gus lines of play, so that the total number
of moves to be considered increases in
geometrical proportion. To consider each
position effectively he must conceive the
/ various steps of each line of play as actually
taking place before him. To do this for
ten or twelve games, against good players,
surrounded by spectators who expect each
game to progress without undue delay, $50
that he must play ten times as rapidly as
his opponents), requires unqueshonably a
power OF mental calculation rivahng in de-
| gree shown in the feats of Colburn. Bidder
and Others, though. altogether different in
kind. la fact, il has been remarked by
Todhunter, the mathematician, that skill in
chess is quality not unlike mathematics,
as a test of mental power, though with this
important differenceth mathematics prop
erIy employed are useful in science, where
as the skill shown by the chess player can
afford no results corresponding to the labor
required in attaining such SKILL CorRhili
Magazine.