New Indoor Game.
Year: 1890

page_text: Date of Application, 11th Jan., 1890
Complete Specification Left, 9th Oct., 1890-Accepted, 29th Nov., 1890
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
A New Indoor Game.
I, THOMAS STURGEON of Easby Drive Ilkley in the County of York Engineer do
hereby declare the nature of my said invention to be as follows:-
The game is played on a square board marked out in small squares somewhat
similar to an ordinary chess-board but I prefer to have only twenty-five squares that
is to say five squares each way. I provide seven little figures, one of which represents
a burglar and the other six represent policemen.
The burglar is placed on the centre square of the board and one policeman is placed
on each of the corner squares. The other two policemen are placed, one on each of
the middle squares of two opposite sides so as to be opposite to each other.
The game is played by two persons one of whom plays the burglar and the other
plays the policemen. All the moves are made like that of a knight in chess, that is to
say, each move consists in moving the piece or figure one square in a straight
direction and then one square in a diagonal direction, or (which comes to the same
thing) one square in a diagonal direction and then one square in a straight direction,
care being taken that the angie made by the two portions of the move shall be an
obtuse angle. The piece must not be doubled back so as to bring it back on to the
square beside that from which it started. Like the knight in chess the pieces, in
making a move, can jump over any men which may be on any intervening squares.
The game commences by the person who is playing the burglar making
The burglar again
Then the person who plays the policemen moves one of his men.
moves. Then, any one of the policemen and so on. The object of the game is of
course for the policemen to catch the burglar and the burglar is caught and the game
consequently won when the policemen succeed in getting the burglar so placed that
he has not a move left, that is to say, when all the squares on to which he might
otherwise move are occupied by policemen.
a move.
The object of the burglar must be to delay his capture as long as possible by
moving in such a manner as always to have at least two squares open to him for his
next move so that if a policeman should go on to one of these, the burglar has still
one left to go on to. Or, if he cannot place himself so as to have two squares open
to him, he must look out for a position in which he can get for his next move a
square on to which a policeman cannot get during the intervening move of his
opponent.
Of course other figures might be used such as one hare and six hounds or six black
men and one white or vice versa, and variations might be made in the number of
squares or even in the number of pieces but I prefer to have twenty-five squares and
as I find these conditions to
the number of pieces described and the "knight's move
answer best.
و"
Although, with six policemen on a small board of twenty-five squares, it might, at
first sight, appear that the burglar must be caught at once, this is not the case at
all. If both players exercise ordinary thought it makes a very interesting game, the
burglar being difficult to catch and giving rise to a great deal of thoughtful
manoeuvring on the part of the policemen.
I
propose
Bobbies.'
to call this game
"
The game of B. B." or "The Burglar and the
Dated this 10th day of Januar 1890

page_text: COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
A New Indoor Game.
I, THOMAS STURGEON of Ilkley in the County of York, Engineer, do hereby
declare the nature of my said invention and in what manner the same is to be
performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in and by the following
statement :-
The game is played on a square board marked out in small squares somewhat
similar to an ordinary chess board but I prefer to have only twenty-five squares that
is to say five squares each way. I provide seven little figures, one of which
represents a burglar and the other six represent policeman. The burglar placed
on the centre square of the board and one policeman is placed on each of the corner
squares. The other two policeman are placed, one on each of the middle of two
opposite sides so as to be opposite to each other. The game is played by two persons
one of whom plays the burglar and the other plays the policeman. All the moves
are made like that of a knight in chess, that is to say, each move consists in moving
the piece or figure one square in a straight direction and then one square in a diagonal
direction or, which comes to the same thing, one square in a diagonal direction and
then one square in a straight direction care being taken that the angle made by the
two portions of the move shall be an obtuse angle. The piece must not be doubled
back so as to bring it back on to the square beside that from which it started. Like
the knight in chess, the pieces in making a move can jump over any men which may
be on any intervening squares.
The game commences by the person who is playing the burglar making a move.
Then the person who is playing the policeman moves one of his men. The burglar
again moves. Then any one of the policeman and so on. The object in the game is,
of course, for the policemen to catch the burglar and the burglar is caught and the
game consequently won, when the policemen succeed in getting the burglar so placed
that he has not a move left, that is to say when all the squares on which he might
other wise move, are occupied by policemen.
The object of the burglar must be to delay his capture as long as possible by moving
in such a manner as always to have at least two squares open to him for his next
move so that if a policemen should go on to one of these the burglar has still one left
to go on to, or if he cannot place himself so as to have two squares open to him he
must look out for a position in which he can get for his next move, a square
on to which a policeman cannot get during the intervening move of his opponent.
Fig. 1 in the accompanying drawing is a plan of the board, the letters indicating
the position of the pieces at the commencement of the game. P. P. P being police-
men and B the burglar. Although with six policemen on a small board of twenty-
five squares, it might at first sight appear that the burglar must be caught at once,
this is not the case at all. If both players exercise ordinary thought, it makes a very
interesting game, the burglar being difficult to catch and his moves giving rise to a
great deal of thoughtful manoeuvring on the part of the policeman. In fact a skilful
player with the burglar may delay his capture indefinitely if his opponent does
not comprehend the principle which ought to be observed by the policemen in
making their attack on the burglar, and which may be set forth as follows.
When the burglar stands on the middle square of the board he has eight squares
open to him. He is therefore in the most advantageous position in which he can
be placed. It should therefore be the object of the policemen to place one of their
men on this square as early as possible in the game.
This can be done, perhaps in the second but with certainty, in the third move of
the policemen, thus as the burglar moves first he is obliged to move off the middle
square. One of the centre policemen then moves to the edge of the board, say
from P. a. to P. b, see Fig. 2. This policeman is now ready to pop on to the middle
square as soon as there is a vacancy. Should the burglar in his second move not
go back on to the middle square, this policeman moves from Pb to M (the middle

page_text: square of the board) and he should be kept here throughout the game. But if in the
second move of the burglar, he goes back on to the middle square of the board, M,
one of the other policemen should be moved, say from P. d. to P. e. The burglar in
bis third move must vacate the square M and the first policeman, Pb, immediately
moves on to this square and nothing should induce him to move from it except, as may
sometimes happen, the last and winning move may be made by this man.
The policemen should now be played so that as soon as possible the position will be
shewn in Fig. 3. The aim of the police should now be, to get out the man Pf. This
is done by first moving one of the four men say P. g. to square h or hand then in the
next move, taking P. f to the square lately occupied by P. g. In this way six squares
towards the centre of the board will be occupied by policemen and the consequence
will be, that every second move made by the burglar will necessarily bring him on to
the outside square of the board and his capture will be a question of only a few moves.
In fact I think the burglar may be captured with certainty at about the thirteenth
move of the policemen.
It is clear that the form of the pieces may be varied and the number of pieces and
of the squares on the board may also be varied without departing from the principle
of the game but 1 prefer the numbers to be as already stated as I find these conditions
give the best result.
1 propose to call the game "The Burglar and the Bobbies."
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is :-
A game played upon a board, preferably of twenty-five squares, the pieces all
having the knight's move. I prefer the number of the pieces to be seven, six of which
are played by one player and one by his opponent, substantially as described.
Dated 9th October 1800.
GEO.
DOWNING,
8, Quality Court, London, W.C., Agent for Applicant.
GEO. DOWNING,
8, Quality Court, London, W.C., Agent for Applicant.