At this writing the Kent and Sussex chess congresses are underway jointly in Hastings, and we expect to provide a selection of games therefrom in the very near future. Among the many activities scheduled during this grand festival of chess was a series of simultaneous exhibitions by the veteran Master Joseph Henry Blackburne, a giant in the history of our game and a man who certainly requires no introduction to our readers. Mr. Blackburne, despite having not long ago passed the proverbial age of three score and ten, still possesses a powerful combinative flair and an exceptionally keen sight of the board; in his first three exhibitions at Hastings the old campaigner scored a total 47 wins and 5 draws, without a single loss, all while tossing off a number of brilliancies en passant, as it were.
We present below two short victories by this Nestor of chess. His opponents, Messrs. Grundy and Loye, while perhaps not of the first rank, are the current leaders of the Second-Class Open tournament at Hastings, and would, we suspect, test the mettle of many of our readers. That they should succumb so quickly against Mr. Blackburne serves as a stark reminder of the vast difference in strength between a Master and a proficient amateur.
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