Saturday, November 2, 2013

Curious Case of Samuel Rosenthal vs Prince Balaschoff - The Montgomery County Times

The Montgomery County Times, Wales
15 April 1899
The newspaper from Cardigan - Salopian - Montgomeryshire area put a chess column and reported interesting story each week. As shown in this issue.

Anecdotes:
As we known, Samuel Rosenthal once engaged in a court battle to one of his student Prince Balaschoff for breaking his lesson contract. The Montgomery County Times put a short report on this:

A curious chess law-suit before the first Chamber of the Civil Tribunal of Paris has just ended. Rosenthal, the well-known Polish chess master, resident in paris since 1867, was engaged about ten years ago by Prince Balaschoff as his professor of chess at £ 25 per month, to be increased to £40 per month whenever the Professor travelled with his pupil. Pupil and Professor, according to La Strategie, were on the best of terms for many years, they were even engaged in collaboration on a  grand chess treatise, when, suddenly, a few months ago, Professor Rosenthal received a somewhat unceremonious dismissal. He sued, in response, for £ 750 back salary fixed under the written agreement,  £50 for a final journey to Stuttgart, and  £1,250 for his unjustifiable dismissal and loss of profits on the projected treatise. The Civil Tribunal allowed the first demand, but rejected the two latter. We believe that this is the first time that compensation for chess services has figured so definitely in a court of law.

Game:
Medicus vs T.M. Kenny 1-0 , unknown
Ruy Lopez
Unknown game between two probably amateur players.

Problem:
White to play and mate in two moves, composer unknown

the Montgomery County Times - 15 April 1899

Blackburne vs Pillsbury 1899 Cable Chess Match - The Montgomery County Times

The Montgomery County Times, Wales
1 April 1899
Newspaper from Montgomery - Cardigan area, Wales. Chess Column starts around 1895 in this newspaper.

Game:
Henry Joseph Blackburne vs Harry Nelson Pillsbury 1-0, 4th Anglo American Cable Chess Match
Giuoco Piano

In this issue, The Montgomery County Times chess column highlight the first board of chess match in Great Britain vs USA cable match. The issue comments on Blackburne outsmarted Pillsbury in the pawn end game. A model chess game in this cable format.


The Montgomery County Times Chess Column
1 April 1899
tags: historical chess games, historical cable chess game, old chess game in newspaper, age of chess, descriptive notation, 1.p-k4 , Kt-Kt5Ch