Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1891-06-27
A GREAT CANE Or CHESS
TIE YOUNG Man wro SEAT TIE
PAst4A FIFTY YEARS AGO.

kfFtAfHhE0 tAtN tNfN w fAAtFAAtFf essss OfNf
serens Rina ~ Contest There Was hut
One Mao Who Could Pias such ch-@.
On summer afternoon. almost Fifty
years ago. Suleimann Pasha. command.
er.in-chcf of the Egyptian artillery. sat
at coffee In n cafe on the Nile terrace In
Cairo Al tables near him were many
soldiers who had helped him fight the
armies OF Sultan Aahmud not many
months before Several Of them had
been with him In the battle Of Nizib
when he routed the Turkish army under
Hafiz Pasha aud Col Won MoItke, then
in the sultans service But Sulejmann
Pasha was not thinking of the soldiers
about him. nor of Hahz Pasha. nor Col
won Moltke nor the great battle Of Nizib
His whole attention was concentrated
on chessboard before him
Suleimann Pasha was a famous chess
player I'm the first few weeks after his
return 10 Cairo he had beaten dozens OF
times Ulema Reschid Aga. formerly the
champion chess player Of northern
Egypt lie regarded his reputation as a
chess player M somewhat akin to his
reputation as warrior He considered
chess to he pre-eminently a soldiers
game. and never tired Of making elabor
ate comparisons between strategy on the
chess board and strategy on the field of
battle. Every afternoon he met Ulema
Reschid Aga at the cafe ON the Nile ter
race and beat him two or three games
On this particular afternoon. almost
fifty years ago, Ulema Reschid Aga was
a little late in coming 70 his Waterloo
and Sulcjmann Pasha was having pre-
liminary skirmish with himself while
awaiting his opponents arrival HE
diversion was interrupted by the appear
ance ON the terrace of long, gaunt
bony young stranger The stranger
strobe right up 20 the pasha's table. aud
after making half military salute. said
so loudly that every one on the terrace
could hear:
"Pasha, ! challenge you TO game OF
chess.
All the officers on tho terrace sat quite
still and stared at the thin. pale young
man who stood before their great com.
mander The pasha looked him over
curiously;
lam at your service, was his answer
after long pause. How high do you
usually playF
Sometimes for nothing. sometimes for
great deal You fix the stakes, pasha.'
We'll IA hundred ducats will not be
too much.
The stranger nodded and sat down
The lots were cast The game was be
gun All the officers in the cafe left their
coffee TO crowd around the players The
first few moves convinced them that the
long, bony fingers OF the stranger had
moved chess mon many times before Al
the end Of twenty minutes the pasha's
eyes suddenly frightened and no smiled
He had an inyincible combination lie
placed his queen before his opponents
queen The officers began to grumble,
for they thought theft commander had
lost his head Only Rosebud Aga. who
had in the meantime joined the crowd OF
spectators, looked happy He had guessed
his friends combination, and he, too, was
sure that Il was invincible
"IIe will take the queen, commented
the spectators, anxiously
Then he will be checkmated In eight
moves" whispered back Reschid Aga
And IL he doesn't take herr
"He will lose his own" said the ex.
champion. triumphantly
The stranger moved pawn. Sulej
mann took his queen The officers thought
il was all up with the gaunt young man
and started back Ia their coffee They
were called back, however, by the first
words the pasha's opponent had spoken
since he sat down 10 the table
"Pasha in twelve moves you will be
checkmnted
The interest of the pasha's friends be.
came intense They counted each move
/ aloud -three-four-an the
pasha was already hard pressed. Five
ix-seven-eight- nine-and his mer
were hemmed la on all sides Ten-ths
| pasha tried IN vain to break the blockad,
] by sacrificing his queen Eleventh,
drew back his king into corner. lively,
and the stranger cried out; ..Check
mate.
There was dead silence. and all stared
at the pasha tie thought hard for sew
eral minutes. without uttering a word
Then lac looked searchingly into Tn,
strangers face and said
"Once before have seen chess playe,
as you play 1t Your strategy Is not new
TO me. although cannot cope with II
The game that your playing reminds ms
OF was mueh finer than this II wa
played with cavalry and infantry AN,
heavy artillery till the ground shooI
under our fret The great chess playe
from the north who WIS then against IN,
had 80. 900 men In his hands they wer,
invincible The mad and euvious inter
ference Of liatiz rasha ruined his comb
nations however and gave Us the game.
The pasha stopped moment to scri
tinize the strangers face II was expires
sianless Then he continued
Young man vou remind mo OF tina
great CHESS player from the north h,
all bat routrd AZ al Nth. a. ,ou haV
routed me here Young man. oniy on
nan IN the world can play Chess iik
that He j. tol Won Moltke
You have il answered the stranger
reaching the pa,li., his hand Il All
Moitke F. New York sun