March 19, 1939
Hartford Courant, Hartford, Connecticut, Sunday, March 19, 1939
Checkers, Chess Editors Experienced In Games
James Moir Won First Championship at 16 In Scotland, Heads State Association; G. E. Avery Learned Chess On Bicycle Trip in 1900 Using Improvised Set
By Robert H. Zaiman
“Go and get interviews with our checkers and chess editors and write a story about them,” the boss said to me one night a few weeks back.
I nodded my assent, not knowing just exactly what I was letting myself in for with these two quiet and unassuming men, whom most of the reporters, copy readers, office boys and the rest of the people who go to make up a newspaper office, had never met or even seen although they edit weekly columns in The Sunday Courant.
I secured the interviews and ??und in the personalities of these two men, James Moir, checkers editor and G. E. Avery, chess editor. Two of the most interesting ones I have ever seen or hope to see.
[Omitting Checkers interview]
I thanked Mr. Moir, and gathered up my notes, prepared for my next interview
First Game of Chess
It wasn't until a week later that I was able to contact Mr. Avery, and set a date for our talk. I met him at the door, just I had Moir, and ????ered him into the boss's quiet office where I began to fire questions at him.
Where, when and how…” I ??anded first, and calmly Avery revealed a fascinating tale to me.
It was the year 1900 and he and a friend were on their way from Hartford to Washington by bicycle. Just outside of Baltimore, in a little town called Reinstertown, Md., they ???? forced to spend a night in a ???ll hotel. Faced with an evening of inactivity, his friend suggested ?? they play chess. But, alas, no-???? was there to be found a set with which to play, and besides Avery had never played the game.
But Avery's friend was not to be stopped by such trifles, and with a chess board drawn in the table and slips of paper for men, Avery played his first game of chess.
Average Game Two Hours
On his return to Hartford he joined the Hartford Chess Club which was then located on Main Street. A short time later the club was abandoned. However, Avery continued playing and was instrumental in the forming of the new Hartford Chess Club several years ago. He was elected the club's second president.
“Most people think of chess as a game that goes on for hours,” I told Avery. “How long would you say an average chess game lasted?”
“Well,” said Avery, “I have known matches to last as long as seven hours and others only several minutes but I should say that the average time for a match would be two hours.”
Avery has played several of the world's best chess players, including Marshall and Capablanca. He is captain of the Travelers chess team. With three others, he represented Connecticut in the Connecticut Valley-Western Massachusetts tournaments recently.
As he walked out of the office and I settled back with the notes of my two interviews, I suddenly became aware of the vast coverage of “Connecticut's Most Valued Newspaper” with such small and interesting groups, as the two men I had just encountered represented, so well covered in its columns.
