Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1895-09-22
PLAYED FOR HIS LIFE.
By II. n. Crelllnl.

La III L Oh HIS LIFE.
(By II. n. Crellin)
Sultan Murad was devoted to the
game Of chess. To say. without flat
terry, that he was a good player is TO
say that he was man Of considerable
intellectual power. But Sultan Murad
in his play had two failings. He liked
TO have an adequate stake on the event
of the game. and he could very i'll
brook defeat.
These weaknesses are always trying
but in the case of so powerful and alb
sOlute a monarch they rendered the
game one of exceeding danger. To
lose pretty constantly meant ruin: to
win too often might easily mean death
Under these circumstances it became
difficult for His Majecty TO find on ad-
veTsary, and an invitation to contest
came to have as fatal a significance and
to be as much dreaded, and, if possible,
I avoided, as the post of Grand Vizier
had been in the reign OF Selim the
Grim. SO many had lost all they pos
sessed. and some their lives into the
bargain. that every high officer of
state stunned as far as possible the
| dangerous honor Of facing his master
across a chess board Naturally, no
official could with more difficulty es-
cape the ordeal than the Grand NiZier
himself, and, indeed, it was owing prin-
ciDally to this cause that so many occu-
pants of this high post had rapidly sue
ceeded one another during the reign of
Sultan Murad.
It so happened that the present
Grand Vizier was as keen an enthusi-
asst for the game as the Sultan himself.
This had been probably his chief reel
ommendation for the Office; and being
a born gambler and of constitutions
ally bold and reckless nature, he was
always ready TO play, counting neither
the cost nor the hazard.
He PLAYED on with varying fortune.
| but generally losing until he had
staked and lost everything he possess
ed or could scrape together
At length, one afternoon, on the Sui
tan saying to him, well Grand Vizier,
and what dOst thou venture on this new
game?' he answered ruefully: My
Padishah, except the garments in
which I stand before thee, and which
| are already thine, there is of a truth no
one thing I possessed that I have not
| staked and lost. so great is the skill Of
your majesty at this Internal game
Come Vizier" said Murad. IF it be
so bad with thee as that 1 Will tell thee
| what thou shalt do. Thou shalt on thy
part stake thy daughter. and on my
part will stake the loyeliest odalisque
| in my harem, and ten thousand gold
pieces to boot, and we viii play yet an
other game"
The Grand Vizier heard this PROPOSE
tiOn to stake his daughter, his only
child with dismay; but he knew his
| imperial master too well TO venture a
refusal.
Therefore they played, and he lost.
Then the unhappy father, in the bitter
ness of his heart. said: ooh. Sultan. I
have my head only, and that is at thy
mercy, but if thou wilt on thy part
stake my daughter whom thou hast
just won, will wager my head against
| her"
''Vizier," said Murad gravely, "the
stakes are hardly even, but if thou
wishest it so it shall be done"
And once more they played and again
the Vizier lost
Then Murad laughed, and said: "Be
not alarmed; I give thee thy last stake
for thou hast never fiinched. but hast
| ever played boldly and we'll; only this
understand. we have played our last
game, and thou hOldest thy Office only
until I appoint another in thy place"
After this final defeat of his cour-
ageous and indomitable Grand Vizier
Murad was hard put to it to find any
suitable opponent 10 face him at the
chess board All men shirked the dan
gerOus honor. and the unhappy Vizier
or Pacha commanded to undertake the
perilous duty found it difficult to guess
whether victory or defeat might prove
more perilous
AT length the Sultan bethought him
of plan which seemed to promise
more diversion than could be obtained
from encOuntering these timOrous and
unwilling adversaries. He caused it
to be proclaimed that any man might
challenge His Majesty to a game of
chess, the conditions being that the
challenger staked his own head against
the Office of Grand ViZier.
AT the time of issuing the proclama-
ton there lived in Adrianople a fam
llf NNAAeloA4lAe1 VI iii NN liNa otiAa Aehtilti-
mother and one son. The latter was
a young man of pleasing manners, a
good presence and of remarkable en-
ergy and intellectual capacity.
The news Of the Sultan's offer had
reached this retired and secluded fam
lily, and the son, whose name was Os-
man and who had long been a devoted
student of the game, had just an
nounced TO his father and mother his
determination TO proceed to the capital
and put his life on the hazard of the
event
To this both father and mother We
hemenuy and most naturally objected.
and tried by every argument they could
think Of to dissuade him; but the young
man would not be gainsaid, and at
length he set out on his dangerous ad-
venture.
When Osman was ushered into the
presence of the Sultan and the object
Of his coming explained, Murad him