Goldsboro weekly argus. [volume] (Goldsboro, N.C.) 1885-1909, 1901-05-23
lAsKER HERE AGAIN:
Worlds Greatest Chess Master
to Give Exhibitions.
WILL NOT PLAY BLINDFOLDED.

WILL NOT PLAY BLINDFOLDED.
Favors the Old Style of Scoring
Draws Has Changed Greatly In
Appearance How He VIII Meet
Pil1sbury I'm a KIatch-speaks Kind
~ of Steinitz.
Among the distinguished passengers
on board the steamship Teutonic, which
arrived at her dock in New York at 10
o'clock or the night of April "a, was
Emanuel Lasker, the conqueror Of
Steinitz and the holder Of the chess
championship of the world, whose COM
Ing promises to create a big stir among
the followers of the royal game in the
United States for the next six weeks,
says the New York Sun. This, accord
ing to the champion, must be the limit
of his stay in the country, as impor-
tant business will call him back to
England. He will give exhibitions at
simultaneous and match play, but will
not undertake to play blindfold games,
because be considers his style to be
too great a strain upon his health. He
will also give a number of his special
lectures, which proved SO popular with
English chess audiences. The cham
p1on's first engagement will be with
the Manhattan Chess club of New
York, the programme to be arranged
after the clubs officials have consulted
with him. This will last a fortnight.
AfterWard be will go to Philadelphia
and give exhibitions at the Franklin
Chess club for about a week. Later he
will visit other important chess cen
tiers.
Lasker, who has not been In this
country since 1894, the year in which
he won the championship from Stei-
nftz, has changed a great deal in ap-
pearance, this being largely due to a
full beard that he has recently grown.
Although physically not strong, he
seems to be in good health. When in
ferviewed by a reporter, he expressed
himself as feeling in first rate spirits.
He was pleased at the opportunity of
again paying a visit to the United
States, renewing old acquaintanceships
and making new friends. When ques-
toned as to his reasons for not play
ing in the international tournament at
Monte Carlo, he merely stated that it
did not happen to suit his convenience
to, leave England, and, moreover, he
did not feel quite well enough to ssure
his doing himself justice. Business,
however, vas the chief reason.
incidentally he expressed an opinion
regarding the new method Of scoring
drawn games introduced last year at
Paris. While he did not approve of the
innovation. he thought that the rule
adopted at Monte Carlo was a decided
Improvement, but that, after all, the
old style of counting one half to each
player of a drawn game was the most
satisfactory. He was asked concern
ing the ability of Marshall, who made
such a failure at Monte Carlo, and he
expressed his belief that the American,
though not of the first rank, had good
chess in him and should develop in due
time into a high class player.
Another important subject touched
upon was the possibility Of his con-
testing a championship match with
Pillsbury, the American champion,
who, it is thought, would make it inter-
estfng for him in a set match. Here
the champions conversation became q
bit guarded, and he did not appear de-
sirous to commit himself. He acknowl-
edged, however, that in case Pillsbury
were to issue a formal challenge he
would, in the nature of things, either
have to accept or resign his title. AS
to time, and place, which would, of
course, be important items in the con-
@ifi1r,r -f r111A n 4o~&0c% Io -o~ -ok
prepared to speak. At any rate, his
brief stay over here and the approach
of summer, would preclude the POSSIBLE
ity of the event being arranged in the
near future. While he admitted that
Pillsbury's, recognized position in b
world of chess legitimately entitled the
latter to issue such a challenge, yet he
would have to insist upon one point
that he considered important, and that
was to limit the contest to n Of eight
games up instead Of ten.
Lasker paid a high tribute to Stein
ftz, who died last summer. This noted
player, the champion said. was n of
the grandest figures in the history of
the game. He gave it as his opinion
that the former champion lost his grip
on the high place he held SO long not
so much on account Of his advanced
age as because Of the loss Of conf
dence he sustained when he was pass
ed in the ace for honors by men Of a
younger generation, who defeated him.
Steinitz's idiosyncrasies and his obsti-
macy in pursuing u%nsound lines Of play,
said Lasker, contributed to his down
fall.