Chess

[Fr. échec; Sp. zúque; from the cry of check, when the king (Hind. and Pers. shah ) is put in a condition of being taken.] ( Games.) An ingenious and highly scientific game played by two parties, each having at command 16 pieces, made of wood, bone, or ivory, upon a board divided into 64 squares, 8 on each of the four sides. of public trials of skill before the nineteenth century, though we hear of games played blindfold more than three centuries ago. The remarkable power of playing a number of games blindfold has been frequently exhibited, the number of games thus played at one time ranging from 8 by Murphy and others to the extraordinary number of sixteen by Zukertort. The French champion, Philidor, who died in 1795, was the greatest che player of the eighteenth century. In the first international tournament, organized by the English champion, Staunton, in connection with the London World's Fair of 1851, Ander en, of Breslau, was the chief victor. Soon after appeared Paul Murphy, the most precocious genius ever known in the world of che . He defeated all competitors so completely as to win the title of champion of the world. Steinitz, an Austrian, was the next to win this title, which he defended in a series of great matches until 1894, when he was beaten by Lasker, whose record ranks him as the greatest master of the day. Dr. Tarrasch, of Nuremburg, also has made a remarkable record of succe , winning in succe ion the tournaments of Breslau in 1889, Manchester in 1890 and Dresden in 1892. (Bot.) The Bromus secalinus , a species of handsome gra , 3 ft. high, found in fields, often among wheat.See BROMUS. Che -apple, n . ( Bot . ) See CRATEGUS. Che -board, n. IMG:content-0147.jpg:[graphic] game of che . The checkered board used in the "And cards are dealt, and che -boards brought."-Prior. Ches's el, n. A wooden vat in which cheese is pre ed. Ches's ex, n. [Fr.] ( Mil . ) The boards used for the floor ing of a temporary military bridge. Che '-man, n. A piece used in the game of che Ches's om, n. Mellow earth. These squares are colored red and white, or black and white, alternately, and the pieces of each player are of different colors. On either side there are 8 superior and 8 inferior pieces. The former consist of a king, a queen, 2 bishops, 2 knights, and 2 rooks or castles; the latter consist of 8 pawns, or foot-soldiers. On commencing a game, the king and queen occupy the centre squares of the first or royal line, and are supported in regular succe ion by a bishop , a knight , and a rook , while before each piece stands a pawn . In placing the board, it is the custom to place a white square at the player's right- hand corner; and, in arranging the pieces, the queen is always placed on a square of her own color. The pieces on the king's side are called the king's, -as king's bishop, Ling's knight ; while those on the queen's side are similarly styled queen's bishop , . The pawns take -v. a. To deposit in a chest; to hoard. their names from the pieces before which they stand; "The tender che om and mellow earth."-Bacon. Che '-player, n. One who plays che , or is skilled in that game.