by David Lawson
However, according to the New York chess columns, there appeared to be great reluctance on the part of Stanley (considered to be American chess champion) and others to come forward, although only three of Morphy’s games had been published as yet: the Rousseau game in 1851, and two games in the Clipper (the Petroff and a McConnell game).
But reports of Paul’s genius had reached New York, and Lowenthal, in passing through on his way to London in 1851, had told Stanley something of his experience in meeting Paul in 1850.
However, about a month after Paul’s challenge to the American chess players, tragedy struck the Morphy household. One September day, while Judge Morphy was conversing near the courthouse, he turned suddenly in response to a friend, and the large brim of a Panama hat cut across his eye. Although in pain, the Judge paid little attention to it until the next day, when the eye became inflamed, and a physician was called who had him confined to a dark room for some time. His health became impaired, and he died on November 22, 1856, of apoplexy or congestion of the brain, leaving an estate of $146,162.54.
This tragic event so affected the close-knit Morphy family that it very nearly prevented Paul’s participation in the plans for the holding of the National Chess Congress in October of the next year, some eleven months later.
In the meantime, the January 1857 issue of the recently launched Chess Monthly magazine noted that
Mr. Paul Morphy, the most promising player of the day yields the chess scepter of New Orleans. His late challenge to any player in the United States has not yet been accepted.
Early in 1857, Daniel Willard Fiske, editor of the Chess Monthly, suggested the desirability of a national chess congress. At a special session of the New York Chess Club held March 26, 1857, a committee was appointed to issue a formal proposal for a general assemblage of American players, and to correspond with other clubs upon the feasibility of such an assemblage. Fiske acted as secretary of this committee.
A circular dated April 17, 1857, was widely circulated throughout the Union to chess clubs and well-known amateurs, and Fiske wrote the following letter to Charles Maurian (later published in the New Orleans Times-Democrat of January 6, 1895):
June 29, 1857
Charles A. Maurian
Commercial Reading Rooms, New Orleans
Dear Sir: I have written today to Mr. Morphy with reference to the coming National Tournament and to learn the opinions and wishes of the chessmen of New Orleans in reference to the undertaking. . . .
Will you be good enough to confer with Mr. Morphy, to whom I have written at greater length? I have suggested to him that you send in immediately the names of three or four persons to act on the part of New Orleans as members of the managing committee. Beg Mr. Morphy to be one of that number, as his name attached to the committee would aid us everywhere more than that of any other man in the Union. The committee hope that your city, so famous a few years back as the seat of a fine chess contest [Stanley–Rousseau match, 1845] and so well known now, both here and in Europe, as the residence of Mr. Morphy, will not be lukewarm in the matter.
Yours—Daniel W. Fiske
The First American Chess Congress book discussed Morphy’s reply to this letter:
Early in July [Fiske got a reply] from Mr. Morphy declining to accede to the request, the death of his father a few months before making him reluctant to take part in such a scene of festivity as a Chess Congress. A lengthy letter was then sent to Mr. Maurian, urging him and others of Mr. Morphy’s friends in New Orleans, to press the matter for the sake of Chess and the Congress.
This second letter of Fiske’s was also published in the New Orleans Times-Democrat of January 6, 1895:
September 3, 1857
Charles A. Maurian, New Orleans
Dear Sir:—Mr. Michinard sailed for New Orleans yesterday and will bring you the latest news in reference to the Great Congress. . . .
The great question here, as well as throughout the entire North, is will Paul Morphy come? In spite of the adverse belief of Mr.Michinard, we all hope that he will. The bare announcement that he might be certainly expected would help on our subscription in this part of the Union more than all other circumstances combined. Assure him that whether victor or loser, he would be the lion of the tournament. We are willing to make any arrangement that may be necessary to secure his attendance. It would increase our subscriptions, double the interest of the tournament and add largely to its respectability abroad.
Let me beg you to state all these things to Mr. Morphy, and convince him that no other person has it in his power to do so much good to American chess as he has, and that the entire community of chess players confidently expect it at his hands.
Mr. Hammond of Boston; Montgomery, Thomas, Elkin, Baldwin, and Doughtery of Philadelphia; Montgomery of Georgia; Cheney of Syracuse; Calthrop of Connecticut, besides Stanley and others, of New York, will play in the tournament. We were all much pleased with Mr. Michinard’s visit. I only regret that I came in too late from the country to see much of him.
Yours,
Daniel W. Fiske
The Prospectus of the National Chess Congress had been prepared and distributed some time in advance of the Congress’s actual commencement on October 6, 1857. It listed the Committee of Management and the Committee of Co-operation, on which every region of the country from Maine to California was represented. Paul Morphy was also listed (in anticipation) as a member of the Committee on the Chess Code, having been asked to serve by both the Committee of Management and Prof. George Allen of Philadelphia, chairman of the Committee on the Code.
It is evident from the above correspondence that Paul Morphy, practically an unknown, paradoxically began to dominate the American chess scene, even before arrangements for the National Congress of 1857 were completed. Early in September, however, Morphy replied to both Fiske and Allen, declining to participate:
New Orleans, September 5, 1857
Daniel W. Fiske, Esq.
My Dear Sir:
I find by the Prospectus of the National Chess Congress that I am of the “Committee on the Chess Code.” Although a very flattering compliment, it is one which I must with great respect decline, as it will not be in my power to leave New Orleans this or the coming month. I therefore address you, as the Secretary of the New York Managing Committee, to beg that you tender the “Committee” my sincere thanks for the honor conferred upon me, and the assurance of my regret at being compelled to decline it.
Yours in chess
Paul Morphy
New Orleans, September 7, 1857
Dear Sir [Prof. George Allen]:
Your very flattering letter has come to hand, and it is with great regret, I assure you, that I find myself unable to return such an answer as I could desire. Honored as I feel in being one of the Committee on the Chess Code and eager as I would be to render my respected colleagues all the assistance in my power, I am yet compelled most respectfully to decline the honor of serving on the “Committee.” It will be impossible for me to travel North in October next, and participate either in the Tournament or discussion which will precede it. Under these circumstances, I have only to thank you for the highly flattering tenor of your communication, and to tender members of the “Committee” the expression of my hearty wishes for the success of their labors.
With high regard
Paul Morphy
However, Judge Meek, a close family friend, brought a good deal of persuasive pressure to bear upon Paul’s family in this matter, and finally Maurian was given permission to send a telegram on September 19, 1857, which was delivered two days later.
Paul Morphy starts for N. York on Wednesday 23rd. –Chas Maurian.
Shortly before Morphy left for New York, he was elected president of the New Orleans Chess Club. The Times-Democrat reported that on September 23, 1857,
at 5 o’clock in the afternoon Mr. Morphy took passage [via the Mississippi] on board the steamer Benjamin Franklin bound for Cincinnati, and eight [eleven] days t
hereafter he landed in New York.
Immediately upon receiving the telegram that Morphy would be present, the New York Committee of Management issued the following circular, which was sent to all chess clubs and prominent amateurs of the country:
September 23, 1857
The Committee of Management of the National Chess Congress, take great pleasure in announcing that all the arrangements for the first great assemblage of Chess Players of this country, are at length complete. Nearly every one of the leading amateurs in the United States will be present. Mr. Paul Morphy of New Orleans will positively attend. . . .
Charles D. Mead, President
It will be noted in the above circular that much emphasis was placed upon the attendance of Morphy, although not one person expected or who later attended the Congress, with the sole exception of Judge Meek, had ever met him. Yet this Congress was destined to be remembered down through the years as “The Morphy Congress.”
The Prospectus of the Congress laid down conditions and procedure for the Grand Tournament, the Minor Tournament, and the Problem Tourney. Problems for the Tourney were
to be addressed to Eugene B. Cook, Hoboken, New Jersey, before the first day of November 1857. This late date has been chosen in order to enable the composers of England, Germany, and France [meaning all Europe] to compete with their brethren of America for these prizes.
The Problem Tourney was open to all, and was ultimately won by Rudolph Willmers of Vienna.
The following “Rules, Regulations and Proceedings” in the Prospectus are of special interest when considered in contrast to present-day tournament conditions:
4. The combatants in the Grand Tournament are to meet at the New York Club on Monday, the fifth of October at three p.m.when they will be paired off by lot. The playing will be commenced on the following day.
6. The games are to be played in accordance with the Code of Chess Rules, published in Staunton’s Chess Player’s Hand Book, and all disputed points referred to a Special Committee appointed by the Committee of Management, whose decision must be considered final. Drawn games are not to be counted.
7. The hours of play will be from 9 a.m. until 12 p.m.
10. One game at least is to be played at a sitting. After four hours, however, at the request of either party, a game may be adjourned for one hour. All play will cease at 12 o’clock, p.m. or as near that time as both parties in a game shall have played an equal number of moves.
11. In cases of unreasonable delay, the Committee of Management reserve to themselves the right to limit the time to be consumed on any move, to thirty minutes.
12. As the Committee of Management guarantee to every subscriber of five dollars and upwards, a correct and detailed account of the Congress, all the games played, and all the problems competing for prizes, are to be regarded as their property, and no one will be allowed to publish any of such games or problems, without their express sanction.
The “Programme of Proceedings” in the Prospectus stated that the features of the Congress were to be
sessions for debate in which the interests of American Chess and the present condition of the Chess Code will be fully discussed. . . . A Grand Tournament composed of acknowledged first-class players, receiving no odds from any other players, or from each other, is intended to form the second feature. . . . The method of play will be as follows: The contestants shall meet on Monday, the fifth of October, at three p.m. Should the number of entrances amount to any even and easily divisible number, say 32 [sixteen was the actual number entered] they shall then be paired off by lot and commence their games simultaneously.
The eight players winning three out of five games, are to be declared victors in this first section of the Tournament, and the eight losers excluded from further share in the contest. The eight winners are then to be paired off by lot as before, the four couples beginning their matches simultaneously. The four winners of the first three games are to be declared victors in this second section of the Tournament, and entitled to the four prizes.
To determine the order in which the prizes shall be distributed, the four prize-bearers will then be paired off against each other as before, each couple to play the best of five games. The two winners in this third section of the Tournament shall then play a match for the two highest prizes, and the player winning the first five games shall be entitled to the first prize—the second prize going to the loser. The two losers in this third section of the Tournament, shall also contend for the third and fourth prizes. The winner of the first three games shall receive the third prize—the fourth going to the loser.
It will be noted that no official time limit was set on moves in the “Rules,” nor was there any provision for the sealing of moves at adjournment. Game scores were not to be freely available for publication. Rule 11 was never invoked, although it might well have been in the match between Morphy and Paulsen, for its application could have affected the score of the players. But more about this in the following chapters.
CHAPTER 5
The National Chess Congress
As was noticed in Chapter 4, Morphy came to the Congress by way of the Mississippi to Cincinnati. Thence, by railroad, he arrived in New York on Sunday, October 4, registering at the St. Nicholas Hotel. Now present to participate in the Grand Tournament were:
And others were expected.
At the appointed time the next day, October 5, at 3 p.m., those mentioned above, together with W. J. A. Fuller and Denis Julien, met and requested Colonel Charles D. Mead to act as their chairman, and Daniel W.Fiske as secretary for the first feature of the Congress—discussion of pertinent matters.
Uppermost for consideration was some means of avoiding the unfortunate pairing of players that might result from the method described in the Prospectus. Under this “knock-out” system, used at the London 1851 Tournament, the strongest players might be eliminated, even in the first round. Should Morphy and Paulsen, generally considered the two strongest players, be drawn against each other in the first round, under this plan one of them would be excluded from all further participation in the tournament.
Several other methods of pairing were discussed. It was (as recorded in The First American Chess Congress)
remembered that considerable disappointment had been felt in the London tournament, from the fact that some of the very best players had been drawn against each other in the first round or section. Several, who would otherwise have probably taken prizes, had been thus thrown out at the very first stage. . . . After a lengthy discussion it was determined to reject other propositions, and to carry out the method of play adopted and published in the Prospectus. Several other questions of minor importance were debated, and so much time was consumed in these preliminary arrangements that it was resolved to postpone the drawing until the afternoon of the next day.
And so the pairings were left entirely to chance. There was much activity and excitement that first night, for, as The First American Chess Congress book describes:
In the evening [October 5] the rooms of the club were thronged with spectators to witness some passages-at-arms between Mr.Paul Morphy and Mr. Charles H. Stanley, considered American Champion.
Actually, Frederick Perrin was the first to engage Morphy in New York. In his book The Exploits and Triumphs in Europe of Paul Morphy, Frederick M. Edge tells something of that first evening at the New York Chess Club:
Who that was present that evening does not remember Paul Morphy’s first appearance at the New York City Chess Club? The secretary, Mr. Frederick Perrin, valorously offered to be his first antagonist, and presented about the same resistance as a mosquito to an avalanche. Then who should enter the room but the warrior, Stanley. . . . Loud cries were made for Stanley! Stanley! And Mr. Perrin [now on the second game] resigned his seat to the newcomer, in deference to so general a request. Thus commenced a contest, or rather a succession of contests, in which Mr. Stanley was indeed astonished. “Mate” followed upon “Mate,” until he arose from his chai
r in bewildered defeat.
Of the four games played, Stanley lost all. There must have been much wondering on the part of all those in attendance that night.
Judge Meek, Alabama’s strongest player, had arrived a little early at the Congress and had told everyone what to expect when Morphy came. But, as Hazeltine later told it in the Macon Telegraph of May 2, 1867:
When our subject [Judge Meek] visited New York in 1857 it was to introduce the conqueror of us all, Paul Morphy—and that as our conqueror. “Oh! yes,” was the credulous answer, “he beats you and Dr. Ayers, and his uncle and Rousseau, rusty with inaction; but wait until he gets here.” Nobody boasted in Judge Meek’s presence, but the inference was plain enough. Then, one who ever saw him will remember the light that would fill those pleasant eyes, the smile that overspread those noble features, and that peculiar manner in which he would adjust his glasses, and with quiet confidence agree that they would see. Did ever the event more thoroughly justify the judgment of expectation? Morphy arrived. At once it was evident that the tenderest ties of honor and friendship existed between them. No father could watch with more tender anxiety, or glory with more exultant pride in the triumphs of a favored son, than this great man, in the victorious career of his protégé. And the youthful hero in turn, reverenced his noble friend as a father could not more have been reverenced.
The December 1857 Chess Monthly also carried an account of Morphy’s arrival at the Congress:
It was with the prestige acquired by his victories over Lowenthal, Rousseau, Ernest Morphy, Ayers, Meek and McConnell that Paul Morphy arrived in New York on the fifth [fourth] of October to take part in the first Congress of the American Chess Association. Notwithstanding his high reputation, there were many, who from his youth and the small number of his published games, manifested much incredulity concerning his Chess strength.
