an ingenious game performed with different pieces of wood, on a board divided into 64 squares or houses; in which chance has so small a share, that it may be doubted whether a person ever lost a game but by his own fault.

Each gambler has eight dignified pieces, viz. a king, a queen, two bishops, two knights, and two rooks, also eight pawns: all which, for distinction's sake, are painted of two different colours, as white and black.

As to their disposition on the board, the white king is to be placed on the fourth black house from the corner of the board, in the first and lower rank; and the black king is to be placed on the fourth white house on the opposite, or adversary's end of the board. The queens are to be placed next to the kings, on houses of their own colour. Next to the king and queen, on each hand, place the two bishops; next to them, the two knights; and last of all, on the corners of the board, the two rooks. As to the pawns, they are placed without distinction, on the second rank of the house, one before each of the dignified pieces.

Having thus disposed the men, the outset is commonly begun by the pawns, which march straight forward in their own file, one house at a time, except the first move, when it can advance two houses, but never moves backwards: the manner of their taking the adversary's men, is side-ways, in the next house forwards; where having captivated the enemy, they move forward as before. The rook goes forward or cross-ways through the whole file, and back again. The knight skips backward and forward to the next house, face one, of a different colour, with a sidling march, or a slope, and thus kills his enemies that fall in his way, or guards his friends that may be exposed on that side. The bishop walks always in the same colour of the field that he is placed in at first, forward and backward, alike, or diagonally, as far as he lifts. The queen's walk is more universal, as she takes all the steps of the before mentioned pieces, excepting that of the knight; and as to the king's motion, it is one house at a time, and that, either forward, backward, sloping, or side-ways.

As to the value of the different pieces, next to the king is the queen, after her the rooks, then the bishops, and last of the dignified pieces comes the knight. The difference of the worth of pawns, is not so great as that of noblemen; only, it must be observed, that the king's bishop's pawn is the best in the field, and therefore the skilful gambler will be careful of him. It ought also to be observed, that whereas any man may be taken, when he falls within the reach of any of the adversary's pieces, it is otherwise with the king, who, in such a case, is only to be halted with the word check, warning him of his danger, out of which it is absolutely necessary that he move; and, if it so happen that he cannot move without exposing himself to the like inconvenience, it is check-mate, and the game is lost.

Sarrasino has an express treatise on the different opinions Chessmen of the origin of the Latin *schacchi*, whence the French *échecs*, and our *chess*, is formed. Menage is also very full on the same head. Leunclavus takes it to come from *Ufesces*, famous Turkish robbers; P. Sirmond, from the German *schach*, "thief;" and that from *calculus*. He takes *chess* to be the same with the *ludus latrunculorum* of the Romans, but mistakenly. This opinion is countenanced by Vossius and Salmarius, who derive the word from *calculus*, as used for *latrunculus*. G. Todofanus derives it from the Hebrew, *schach, vallavit et nati sunt*; whence *check* and *check-mate*. Fabricius says, a celebrated Persian astronomer, one Schatrencha, invented the game of *chess*; and gave it his own name, which it still bears in that country. Nicod derives it from *schake*, or *sogue*, a Moorish word for lord, king, and prince. Bochart adds, that *schach* is originally Persian; and that *schachmat*, in that language, signifies the king is dead.—The opinion of Nicod and Bochart, which is likewise that of Scrivener, appears the most probable.

Donatus, on Terence's *Eunuch*, observes, that Pyrrhus, the most knowing and expert prince of his age at ranging a battle, made use of the men at *chess* to form his designs, and to shew the secrets thereof to others. Vopiscus, in his life of Proculus, informs us, that one of the Roman emperors had the title *Augustus* given him, because of his gaining ten games at *chess* successively. Tamerlane is recorded as a very expert gamester at *chess*—*Chess* is doubtless a most ancient and universal game: the common opinion is, that it was invented by Palamedes at the siege of Troy. Others attribute the invention to Diomedes, who lived in the time of Alexander: the romance of the Rose attributes it to one Attalus; but the truth is, the game is so very ancient, there is no tracing its author. In China, it makes a considerable part of the education of their maids; and seems to take the place of dancing among us. In Spain, whole cities challenge each other at *chess*. John of Salisbury relates, that in a battle between the French and English in 1117, an English knight seizing the bridle of Louis le Gros, and crying to his comrades, *The king is taken*, that prince struck him to the ground with his sword, saying, *Ne sais-tu pas qu'aux échecs on ne prend pas le roi?* "Dost thou not know, that at *chess* the king is never taken?" The reason is, that when the king is reduced to such a pass that there is no way for him to escape, the game ends, without exposing the royal piece to further affront.

Cardinal Cajetan, and other casuists, rank *chess* in the number of prohibited games, as requiring too much application; and Montaign blames it as too serious for a game.

**Chess-Trees**, *tequets d'animaux*: two pieces of wood bolted perpendicularly, one on the larboard, and another on the larboard side of the ship. They are used to confine the *clue*, or lower corners of the mainmast; for which purpose there is a hole in the upper part, through which the rope passes that usually extends the clue of the sail to windward. See *Tack*.

The chess-trees are commonly placed as far before the mainmast as the length of the main-beam.