Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1911-09-12
"Do you play chessf
Eyes"
"Well. there IL no better way Of
spending an evening. Let rs have
r~op,aU

'Well. there is no better way Of
spending an evening. Let rs have Q
game"
He took up the chessboard. set the
pitcher Of punch aside. placed the
board on the table. arranged the men.
Without saying by your leave" be
took the Arst move. BishonL. wonder.
ing at the mans audacity. lowered his
eyes to the chessboard and soon forgot
his astonishment In the game BE saw
at once that the stranger was an ex.
cellent player. The game was long
one, and for some time neither gained
an advantages: then Bishoff. thinking
he saw way to checkmate his an
tagonist. moved and looked up at his
antagonist as If to say. "I'l soon have
you now. my fine fellow"
The stranger looked up. too. and
with a low laugh turned his head
toward the picture Of the chess play.
ers that hung over the chimneypiece.
Bishoff glanced from the board to the
picture. then back to the board. he
started The chessmen were In the
same position as In the painting. Bish-
of having the advantage. And then It
dawned on Bishoff that his visitor and
the man with the red beard were one
and the same.
II will checkmate you In six moves"
said the stranger.
"You mean that I viii checkmate
you in six moves" said Bishoff.
'This against your castle that 1t is
who checkmates you" He drew forth
draft for 10000 marks on bank In
Cologne.
"Done." said Bishoff.
His opponent took up piece and
moved 1t like an automaton. Bishoff
moved again. On the strangers fourth
move something Bishoff had never
counted on happened. It seemed to
him that the tables were turned. Aft
er a long time he moved. The stran-
ger moved again. Bishoff. who now
lost his head. moved for the fifth time.
"Checkmate!" said the stranger.
moving.
you've won: the castle Is yoursr
gasped Bishoff.
The stranger chuckled
"All this is very Queerr gasped the
American. staring at the man with
eyes as big as butter plates.
"You are mistaken. Nothing is queer.
What is. is. You have only certain
relations with the world Of which you
are conscious. You think the past is
dead Nothing is dead. Everything
always lives. but all things change.
Good night This castle is now mine,
but l leave you In possession for the
present"
That's all Bishoff remembers Of that
memorable evening. The next morn
ing he awoke sitting in his chair. The
fire had gone out. and he was shiver'
ing. He left without even waiting for
breakfast and offered the castle for
sale. An agent found a purchaser. and
before Bishoff returned to America he
met the man in the agents Office to
complete the sale.
He nearly tainted on recognizing In
the new owner his visitor who had
checkmated him at chess.
While the papers were being made
,,,1 ha a
off continued to stare at the purchaser,
who gave no sign Of ever having seen
him before. The man was in modern
dress. and his beard. though red. was
cropped close. He had lost everything
Of his old fashioned appearance in the
picture. In other words. he seemed to
have been taken out of the fifteenth
or sixteenth century and dropped into
the twentieth.
"Have you ever been In the castle?"
Bishoff asked him.
mo. do not live In Germany. l
have since my boyhood been In busi-
ness in South America. 1t Is there
that have acquired the means to re-
cover the home of my ancestors"
At this point the agent finished work
Ing on the papers and said:
Baron Becker comes into his own
after many centuries. he Is a hneal
descendant Of the original baron who
built the castle. It was lost some 400
years ago at q game Of chess. There
is q legend that a descendant Of its
first owner would come again into its
possession in the same way that 1t was
lost to the family"
Bishoff was so affected at this In
formation that he signed his receipts
and hurried away without asking any
questions. much to his regret ever
since. for he appears to be in a mud
die about the whole affair. The only
part of 1t about which he Is certain is
that he was wide awake and In his full
senses when the events occurred In the
agents Office.
He always ends his story with the
remark. There Is so much legend
about that Rhine country that some Of
u v,,y,of ho trf,on