AJanuary 31 1894
The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Wednesday, January 31, 1894
CHAMPIONSHIP CHESS.
Lasker and Steinitz Are Likely to Start Play March 15.
By Associated Press.
New York. Jan. 30.—William Steinitz, chess champion of the world, was seen by an Associated Press reporter to-day in regard to the projected match with E. Lasker. Mr. Steinitz expressed his confidence that the match will be realized.
Hitherto Herr Lasker was unable to raise his share of the stakes, but now that Steinitz has consented to reduce the amount from $3000 to $2250 Lasker is declared to have found backers to that amount.
The match will be ten games up. The opening of the match will take place in New York, and the final games will be played in Montreal. Some of the games will most likely be played at Philadelphia. Mr. Steinitz thinks that play will begin about March 15.
He said that although he has grown older since he played the last match and has been out of practice, hit feels confident that he can beat Lasker.
March 02 1894
Fremont Weekly Herald, Fremont, Nebraska, Friday, March 02, 1894
THE CHESS MASTERS.
Steinitz and Lasker Will Meet For the Championship.
The Honor Has Been Held by Steinitz For a Quarter of a Century—Remarkable Career of the Young German Expert Who Has Challenged Him.
Even in this progressive, intellectual nineteenth century, brawn seems better paid than brains, at least in matters that attract the attention and interest of the sport loving public. If a heavyweight pugilist talks much and fights little for a year or two some club will offer from $20,000 to $40,000 as an inducement to bring him and another notorious pugilist together to satisfy public curiosity as to which can pommel the other into insensibility the quicker. If the law does not interfere the pugilists meet and the winner carries off a small fortune as the reward of his superior brawn.
How differently brains are rewarded by the sporting public is shown by the negotiations for the match for the chess championship of the world between Emanuel Lasker and William Steinitz. Steinitz won the championship a quarter of a century ago and has been monarch of the game ever since. Lasker is a comparative newcomer in chess, but he has displayed such remarkable ability that he is regarded as one of the greatest players. As a chess expert he ranks as high as Charles Mitchell and Peter Jackson rank in the pugilist arena. For some time he has been ambitious to play William Steinitz for the chess championship and last September he challenged Steinitz to meet him in a match for the championship and $3,000 a side. Steinitz was willing and Lasker began to look for the money his backers had promised him.
After weeks of hard work he has been compelled to request the assent to a proposition reducing the minimum stake to $2,250. The efforts of these chess giants to induce a club to offer a purse for their proposed contest has been almost as unsuccessful as the usual attempts of athletic clubs to hold prize fights but for an entirely different reason. The law interferes with the pugilists but lack of money is the stumbling block in the way of the chess players. There seems to be good reason to believe however that chess enthusiasts in New York or Montreal will raise a purse and as Steinitz has agreed to contest for a minimum stake of $2,250 the chess masters will undoubtedly meet before long.
William Steinitz, who now lives in Montclair is without doubt one of the greatest chess players the world has ever known. He has been meeting the best players for 35 years and has held the championship of the world longer than any other man. Twenty-five years is a long time to defend such a title but Steinitz has done it and from first to last he has shown himself to be a true sportsman.
He prizes his hard won laurels dearly but is never reluctant to defend them. A challenge when it is properly backed with money never goes begging and proposition for a match met with a businesslike reception from Steinitz, although the champion had practically concluded to retire after his great victory over Michael Ivanovitch Tschigorin the czar of the Russian players, in 1892. [Edit: Steinitz lost 2 of 2 matches to Chigorin in 1891.] Steinitz was born in Prague about 58 years ago and learned to play chess in Prague and Vienna. In 1859, 1860, and 1861 he won local tournaments in Vienna and in 1862 won sixth place in the London international chess tournament. The next year he attracted considerable attention by defeating Blackburne. Practice inspired him with such confidence that in 1866 he challenged Adolph Anderssen the champion of the world and was victorious.
In 1872 Steinitz and Zukertort met for the first time, Steinitz winning the match. Steinitz crossed the Atlantic in 1882 and as there seemed to be more money on this side for a chess master than anywhere else he made the United States his home and became naturalized. Although not a remarkable blindfold player, like Morphy, Steinitz attracted considerable attention by playing as many as 25 simultaneous games against strong players. One of his first matches in America was against Captain Mackenzie whom he defeated with ease in 1883. In June of the same year he was second to Zukertort in an international match in London, but he succeeded in defeating Tschigorin and Blackburne. In 1886 Steinitz and Zukertort met again for the championship. The score was: Steinitz, 10; Zukertort, 5; drawn, 5. Having thus disposed of Zukertort, Tschigorin was his next opponent of note. They played for the championship in 1889 and 1892, Steinitz successfully defending his title on each occasion.
Steinitz began playing chess when but 12 years of age. His first chessboard was drawn with a lead pencil and his first set of chess men was cut out of paper. These primitive pieces proving unsatisfactory, Steinitz and his brother laboriously carved a set from blocks of wood. Among the famous people who have played with Steinitz are Von Moltke, Bismarck, Napoleon III and the Prince of Wales.
Emanuel Lasker, the ambitious young German who believes he can defeat Steinitz is a mere infant in experience compared with the champion but for all that he is an opponent worthy of any living chess master's attention. As Lasker is only 25 years of age, Steinitz was champion of the world when he was born. Berlinchen, Germany, birthplace, and like Steinitz he began playing chess when only 12 years old. When only 21, Lasker won fame by defeating Baron von Bardeleben and the same year he took second prize in the Amsterdam chess congress. In London he defeated the veteran Bird in seven out of nine games and repeated victories over such strong players as Blackburne, Lee, Bird, Minati, Mason, and Gunsberg proved conclusively that he was a phenomenon. When he worsted the veteran Blackburne 6 to 0 in a set match he was looked upon as one of the few great living players.
In 1892 he came to America and at once increased his great reputation by wonderful simultaneous play and by defeating such experts as Delmar, Lipschutz, Showalter and others. In October, 1893, he performed the wonderful feat of winning 13 out of 13 games in the international tournament in New York against such experts as Showalter, Pillsbury, Gossip, Alton, Taubenhaus, Olly, Delmar, Lee, Jasnogrodsky, Hanham, Pollock, Schmidt and Ryan.
Earle Eaton.
April 03 1894
April 03, 1894, Emanuel Lasker and William Steinitz in New York, during the 1894 world championship match. From left to right: Perrin, Hartwig Cassell, Emanuel Lasker, Hanham, Reid, Wilhelm Steinitz, J.W. Baird, Peabody, Niece of Steinitz.
April 15 1894
The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Sunday, April 15, 1894
THE BIG CHESS MATCH.
Lasker Wins From Steinitz on the Forty-ninth Move.
In the chess game in the tournament for the world's championship, held at the Franklin Chess Club last night, Lasker won from Steinitz in the forty-ninth move.
The score now stands: Lasker won five; Steinitz won two; drawn, two.
D. M. Martins was umpire for Steinitz and Emile Kemeny for Lasker.
Emanuel Lasker and Wilhelm Steinitz, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1894. The World championship was held in New York, NY, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Montreal, Canada.
June 04 1894
The Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Monday, June 04, 1894
William Steinitz, ex-champion of the world, has challenged Emanuel Lasker, the present champion, for another match. He stipulates that the conditions in the main be similar to those which regulated their recent encounter, with the proviso that the new contest shall commence no later than the early part of December next.
