Page:Collier's Cyclopedia of Commercial and Social Information.djvu/454

424 as, "Oh, I should have won that if so-and-so had not occurred," etc. Your adversary who defeats you will think more highly of you if you say nothing, or merely acknowledge his greater skill. If you find a person who defeats you easily, remember how much thought and time he must have devoted to the subject in order to obtain this advantage, and bear in mind that it is only by a similar process that you can gain like results.

Draughts is a game in which one is particularly called upon to estimate the skill and style of play of one's adversary. One person may very easily be drawn into a trap, where another more cautious could not be thus defeated. Again, a too cautious player may be defeated by a dashing move, whereas another opponent would win the game in consequence. We will now give one or two examples of games, calling attention to the points in each. The men are supposed to be arranged as before mentioned—white's men from 21 to 32, black's from 1 to 12. Black moves first.

Now, at this point of the game, if white were a very young or incautious player, he might be easily tempted into a false move by black moving 11 to 16, for white, seeing a supposed advantage in position, might move 24 to 20. Let us suppose these moves to have been made, and black wins at once, for, moving 3 to 8, he compels white to take 20 to 11, and then, with a man at 8, takes 11, 18, and 25, and procures a king at 29, thus gaining a majority of two men, an advantage equivalent to the game, for, by exchanging man for man on every occasion, he would soon reduce the odds to 4 to 2, or 2 too.

If, however, black play a more cautious game, he should move 4 to 8.

White again might lose the game if he moved either 24 or 23 to 19, for black would respond by 10 to 15, when white must move from 19 to 10, black from 6 to 29, taking these men as before.

Black's best move is, perhaps, 25 to 22.

At this period of the game exchanges of men usually take place, the object being an advantage of position, as follows:

Up to the present time no great advantage is gained on either side, the game being, perhaps, slightly in favor of black, who may cause a separation in white’s men by the following:

White may replay by— Then, Now, unless black moves 2 to 6, or 10 to 15, white could procure a king as follows: Suppose black had moved 12 to 16 then white 18 to 14, and whatever black now does, white must procure a King. It is under such conditions as these that the acute player often wins a game; for we shall find that the eagerness for gaining this king may cause white to be in a difficult position, carrying on the game under this supposition, we have Black must now lose a man, and therefore the game, a follows— Black. White.

The Double Corners.—When there is one king against two, the rule is that the game is drawn unless it be won in at least twenty moves. If the player does not know how to block up in the double corners, this may easily be a drawn game. We will now show the moves for blocking in the double corners, giving the case that will require the greatest number of moves. Black's kings at 1 and 5; white's at 10. Had black moved from 15 to 19 at last, white could have gone to 24, and the game would have been prolonged. There is no position on the board where two kings cannot defeat one in fifteen moves. It is usual with two experienced players to pronounce the game drawn when there are two kings only on each side, one of which is enabled to reach the double corners, There are however, two or three chances of catching an incautious player. The following example will serve to illustrate cases. White's