The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-02-07
FOOLS MATE.

the whole wide world. and. like war corre-
spondents. in cold, phegmatic neutrality,
calculating the chances of the cOmbatantS
and forecasting the end Of their struggle.
Check
We'll. there
Check
'Ah. hum. it's no good; I resign The
loungevs moved away. and the speaker
leaned back I'm his chair and calmly sur
veyed the board.
CASTOR" he said. at length, you are a
master of the science of the game; it is
useless for me to contend against YOU"
CASTOR Slater. the manager of the Durn-
stable Bank, lighted another cigarette and
acknowledged the compliment with light
laugh and deprecatory shake of the head.
Not at all. my dear fellow. not at all. If
you will pardon the apparent rudeness OF
the observation, my victories lie, not in
any phenomenal strength of my own, but
rather in the weakness of my adversaries.
Now. if you had retained the queens
knight in the position that it held half way
through the game. and covered the square
with the rock
stop. pray. STOP" the other interjected,
you are wasting your eloquence. haven't
the faintest idea where that knight was.
My game always degenerates into the for
Torn hope. and 1 play waiting for a stroke
of luck TO give me the victory. rarely with
any deeper intent
But that is not the way TO play chess"
II know; but it is the only way play. I
can't concentrate my thoughts sufficiently;
cannot. like you, centralize them upon the
game and the game alone; they will drift
away, as they have done tonight, when,
while you have matched your strategy
against my ignorance i have been wonder
ing who that man is over there. who has
watched the whole game, and whose eyes
seemed to CLEAN at every move you made.
If I am any judge of faces. CASTOR, there
you have a foeman worthy of your-shaII
i say ivory, to prevent muddling of the
metaphor"
At the words of his friend CASTOR Slater
turned from the board where he had been
arranging the pieces and glanced at the
stranger. who was leisYrely slipping his cof-
fee; a military looking man, tall and heavy
in build. with full moustache waxed at
the ends to two ferocious daggers. Their
eyes met, and with the easy-Soing air of
men of the world a suspicion of nod was
interchanged. and CASTOR busted himself
with the board again.
There Frank" he said after a moment
with the pieces; white to play and mate
I'm three moves. Try that; it's one of my
own
Frank Thornley, gazed at the board for a
few minutes. for. apart from want of appli-
cation. he had a keen and solid admiration
for the game of games. the science of sci
ences. and at last looked UP and modify
shook his head
Impossible
Another voice interrupted, and the stran-
ger, handing his card. asked in melodi-
Gus voice if he might be permitted to watch
them.
II am a great admirer of the game" he
explained. in semi-apologetic tone. land
play little myself" he added. as a kind
of afterthought
CASTOR Slater gave half a glance at the
pasteboard. Colonel Henry Walton" and
then turned with a bow to tine colonel who
took his seat by the table.
white plays and mates in three moves"
CASTOR Slater murmured, complacently.
lone of my own problems
'Ah.'' The colonel smiled, and whistled
very softly to himself
''Will you try it?''
with pleasure but prefer the red"
"Oh, it is. impossible TO stop the mate; II
Is certain to q player
Certain thar white mates in three moves;
but you have overlooked the fact that red
can mate in two.
But it is so: take the white
CASTOR Slater changed his seat, and Frank
Thornley, eAcusing himself. the two faced
one another with the problem before them.
One" the colonel cried, pushing forward
CASTOR Slater's game for the white was
over. He moved the king: and then Two. -
said the other quitely, as down swooped
his queen. Mate"
Perhaps you did not, intend that red
should play first" Colonel Walton suggest
cd Nuhf hn xyOr,
would have won, only it was a, case of mate
in three moves for white and two for red.
with victory for the first mover
You perceived il very rapidly" respond
ed CASTOR. proffering his cigarette case.
am pretty well used to problems" the
colonel answered as he lighted his cigarette,
but would you care to try q gamer
only too delighted"
They played a pretty game. and, to his in
finite satisfaction. CASTOR Slater won, won
easily. little too easily. it seemed TO him.
against the man who had just shattered a
problem he had spent hours upon, but as
the colonel evinced slight pique at his de-
feat. CASTOR felt bound to regard the vic
tory as due to some oversight on the part
After all. what does failure or success de-
pend upon so much as those strange unac-
countable oversights? Oversights that the
onlooker cannot comprehend cannot CON
ceive possible, and wonders how that OBJ
vious advantage was neglected. that fatai
error committed. only to fall into some
such blunder himself as soon he faces
the board.
me nrSt contest or CASTOR Slater and
Colonel Henry Walton was followed by
many others. Now in the hotel smoking
room, and afterwards, as the friendship
ripened. in the colonel's own private apart
ments, and ever the tide OF fortune ebbed
and flowed. now yielding victory to one and
now to the other.
Time after time had Slater anxious to re-
turn the colonefs hospitality. invited him
TO pay visit TO his rooms above the bank
but the colonel had always gracefully and
good-temperehly declined. No no nv
dear CASTOR" he would say with n hearty
slap on the back: never invite strangers
To your house; think. my dear fellow of
the responsibility OF your position"
1t Is not so great YOU imagine" Gas
ton had replied. TRUE. our bank is n coIln-
try one. but it's not Anticipated by any
means; we have as fine strong rooms and
safes as could be found in London. We
In our Golfers TO run the risk of old-fash
Toned safes and Out-of-date locks: anU
what Is better still. IL our strong room door
Is touched after business hours the county
police are instantly aware of the fact ror
we are connected directly with the station
by an electric alarm"
-'Cengratuate you. old boy the colonel
had heartily responded. and so ended the
conversation. But ut last a repeated urgenr
invitation had broken down his scr1IpIes
and he had consented to pay the long-de-
sired visit.
III.
II Mr. CASTOR Slater could have overheard
the conversation of Col Henry Walton as
he summed himself in Durnstable Park a
couple Of days after he had given his PROM
ise. his opinion of the open-mindedness of