Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1886-12-24
MECCA OF CHESS PLAYERS.
Theodore TiltOn's Pen Picture of
Some Notable Characters.

writes Theodore Tilton in an entertaining
letter TO the Kansas City journal. to
spend an idle hour at the Cafe de la Re-
gence. This time-honored temple OF Caissa
is the Mecca OF chess players. Pilgrims
from the four quarters OF the globe visit
it with curiosity and respect. Though
London Is the centre of the chess world,
yet the English Divan has no such long
| sweep OF historical associations as the
French Regence. Built on The spot where
Henry ". made his victorious entry into
Paris, the Cafe de la Regence maintains
/ the genius loci and is perpetual battle
ground Of kings.
AS monument of the past, it's name is
itself a history and bears witness to
cornerstone laid in the early part of the
eighteenth century or more than $50 years
ago Indeed, the Regence is OF such
qoOdly age that among its original fire.
quenters were Rousseau, D'Alembert and
MarmOntel, who were all in their graves
before tue dawn Of the present century.
Twas the trysting place of Robespierre.
1t was the bivOuac OF Bonaparte. 1t does
not boast OF any tangible relic or souvenir
OF Robespierre, but it preserves small
table of gray marble on which the young
C0rsican lost many game OF chess 10 his
friend Capt. Bertrand. Years afterward,
at st. Helena, where the great exile was
he still played it badly, His memorial
t@Sle at the Regence, bearing his almost
tilegible name on WORKOUT silver plate,
has been put to much service since his
day, and has been the scene of mauy u
more brilliant chess contest than be him
self was ever able to wage. 1t IS true that
he won some yapid victories over Nine. de
Remusat, yet all his recorded gamea, with
out exception. are OF Inferior quality.
inc long line of mApnnrgC Of tho 70
gence began of course with PhIlidor. He
has proved to be the st. Peter of an I'M
broken apostolic succession. His canoni-
calls were OF a long past fashion, a pow
dered wig and knee breaches. Hi portraits
make him look like an American grand
father OF continental days. j fancy him
bordering his ''pawns," which he called
''the soul of mis- chess" He was the one
Achilles of his age; but among his later
contemporaries and his immediate sue
cessOrs were several Agamemnons. These
were Legal and Nerdoni, Sasias and
Calvi, BOncourt and Mouret-all giants
in their Gay.
And one of them was not only q giant,
but dwarf. This was little Monsieur
Mouret. VINO was such pigmy that he
was able to wriggie into the celebrated
machine known as the chess automaton,
where he hid his tiny self from all spec
tatOrs. like mouse in wainscot, and
where daily, for many months, from his
place or cOncealment, he moved the fatal
nngeTs OF that grim wooden Turk who
administered checkmatc to lords and
ladies, to princes and potentates, and to
all other visitors who were willing to give
good pay for being well drubbed. 1t was
a long time before the cunning imp within
| was suspected by the curious world with
| out.
A very different type OF man from Mou-
| ret was Deschapelles, whose form was
! tall and stately, whose face never wore a
| smile and whose disposition was so jeal-
Gus that ''be bore, like the Turk, no
| brother near the throne" He disdained
| to play with any opponent on even terms,
but always gave odds. At length, when
few younger players, whom he had
| trained, grew Into an equality OF force
with their trainer, and he was no longer
able to win from them at odds, he sud.
denly ceased to play altogether and
| proudly abdicated his sultanship.
| The present representative-in-chief OF
| the Regence is Arnous de Riviere. He re-
ceived his first chess training from Kie-
zeritsky, and became the intimate friend
of ANDERSEN, Staunton and Morphy. He
| may now Justly be called the ''douen," or
veteran, of living chess players in France.
| But a rumor has just been set af1oat that
the accomplished man is shortly to be
appointed to a position in the govern
| mental commission for the centennial OF
the French republic.
Americans on visiting the Regence are
proud to see the honor which it renders to
the memory or Morphy; it has put his
| bust en- tace with that of Philidor. My
| recollection is fresh and vivid of Morphy's
| pale, intellectual face and forehead and |
! regret that in his bust. though it was the
work of no less a sculptor than Lequesne,
~ "A Ns,fa Al
| marvellous young man. 1t lacks what
Suakespeare's description gives to Cicero,
and what nature gave to Morphy-"fiery
| and ferret eyes" But as the bust was
nodded from life 1t can never have a rival
In authenticity, and must be accepted as
historical. L happened to be at the Re-
| gence when the news came OF Morphy's
death. The immediate and unanimous
| verdict of the whole chamber of experts
was that he had proved himself the ua-
rivaled and supreme player OF his time,
and that his only predecessor OF equal
I grade was Labourdonnais. Morphy had
never been daily conner and goer at The
Regence, like LabourdonnaIs, and yet
Morphy's connection with the famous
cafe was sufficient to give the house a
| unique addition 10 it's historical celebrity
for it was at the Regence that he made his
most surprising exhibition of blindfold
play. 1t was at the Regence that he van
pushed Harrwtz, and 1t was under the
shadow of tue Regence, in a private apart
ment, few steps distant, that he affixed
Lue final seal TO his patent of supremacy
by conqueripg ANDERSEN.
It's known that a gold watch and chain
of great value was publicly presented To
| MOrphy at the New YORK University, on
his return from these European victories
This souvenir, which ought to be in
America. is at the Regence. Its possessor
is Arnous de REVERE, who few DAYS ago,
as graceful courtesy to a newly arrived
American visitor, took it from it's hiding
| place and showed il to William j. A.
Fuller, of New York, one OF the prime
movers OF the first American chess con-
gress. This now venerable chess player,
on taking the relic into his hands, had the
odd satisfaction of saying: II have seen
this before, for it was 1 who had the honor
TO make the speech on the occasion of th G
presentation OF this watch and chain To
MOrphy, quarter of a century ago"
The Regence, like the Bourse, is place
where ''many men have many minds ~
and yet often common opinion pervades
the one as 10 does the other. 1t is, at pres
ent, the common opinion at the Regenoe
that the strongest living playeris Steintz
The consent is general that he is the cham.
piOn, not only by title but by right. And
yet how long can he expect to hold the
/ DatOni Only few years for he has lost