A Small Clue to Follow...

I posted the following at rec.games.chess.misc

Does anyone have access to the American Chess Bulletin, Volume 9, 1912? As part of my research on the Jerome Gambit, I'm trying to track down a reference given in Google books, supposedly in American Chess Bulletin, Volume 9 (1912) p. 158

"...for a kindlier, sweeter old Knight of Caissa never lived. For years he offered the Jerome Gambit to all players, being strong in the..."

The whole paragraph, section, or article would be interesting to see. Many thanks.

Rick

Very quickly came the response:

Newsgroups: rec.games.chess.misc
From: Rook House >@rookhouse.com>
Date: Sat, 18 Apr 2009 16:32:00 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Re: American Chess Bulletin, Vol. 9, 1912

Here is the entire paragraph from page 158 of the 1912 American Chess Bulletin:

Another of the old-timers now at Kansas City is Mr. Parsons, for a long time secretary of the local club at Minneapolis, Minn. Bro. P. is a sort of dean among the Gate City players, having the same quaint and loveable qualitites that so long endeared the late Mr. Reed to the members of the St. Louis Club. Some time I want to write you a little appreciation of dear old Mr. Reed, for a kindlier, sweeter old Knight of Caissa never lived. For years he offered the Jerome Gambit to all players, being strong in the faith that the variation was his own creation. So far as I know, nobody ever had the heart to undeceive him.

Talk

Wikipedia not only has a listing for the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 Bxf7+), among many chess openings, (see "Hey, Wiki, it's me, Ricky..."), it also has coverage of the Blackburne Shilling Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4)

Recently on Wikipedia I stumbled across Talk: Blackburne Shilling Gambit which had the following:

...Another suggestion not mentioned in the article is that after 1.P-K4,P-K4 2.N-KB3,N-QB3 3.B-B4,N-Q5?...I should have thought the most enterprising way of punishing black's loss of tempo is with 4.BxP check!! (eg. ....KXB 5.NxPcheck etc. with ample compensation for the piece and a probably winning attack. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 212.85.28.67 (talk) 12:52, 28 February 2009 (UTC)

Disagree. After 5...Ke7 white has no way to continue the attack or even getting more piece in to contine. Moving the Queen out 6. Qg4 d6 7. Qg5+ Nf6 =+ or 6. Qh5 can be met with Nf6 =+. Black is better and white's 4. Bxf7 is an unsound sacrifice. SunCreator (talk) 15:04, 28 February 2009 (UTC)

If one likes this sort of sacrifice for White (compare the Cochrane Gambit against Petroff's Defense: 1. e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nxf7?!), it seems to me that one ought to play against the Blackburne Shilling Gambit 4.Nxe5!? Qg5 5.Bxf7+! Ke7 6.0-0, which gives White a similar but much improved form of piece sacrifice. In that line, White gets to chase around not only Black's king, but also his knight (c3) and queen (d4) with gain of tempo. Krakatoa (talk) 22:06, 28 February 2009 (UTC)

I like the thoughts contained in the first paragraph, especially "ample compensation for the piece," although "and a probably winning attack" may be over-stating it a bit.

The second paragraph seems to miss White's best play against 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke7 – White should probably play 6.c3 Nc6 7.d4 with an okay game.

Paragraph three suggests 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Nxe5 Qg5 5.Bxf7+ Ke7 6.0-0 – which, after the natural 6...Qxe5 7.Bxg8 Rxg8 8.c3 Nc6 9.d4 is similar to the line just mentioned. (Geoff Chandler finished off a troubled Stockbridge "NN" in 1983 with 9...Qa5 10.d5 Ne5 11.Qh5 Nf7 12.d6+)

Take the advantage and run...

Sometimes the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) leads to messy positions. In those situations, it's better to have more material and more time; but it's equally important to have an idea what to do and what not to do.
perrypawnpusher - LethHansen
blitz game 3 12 FICS, 2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6
The Semi-Italian game.

4.0-0 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ 5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ Kf8 New to me. I have seen 4 other moves: 7...Kf6 (Bergeruw), 7...Ng6 (pascalwilliams, cibola), 7...Ke6 (Joyus, joejox), and 7...g6 (Islanderchess, wadada).

8.Qxe5 Bd6

A new kind of counter attack. I like it.

9.Qd4 Qh4 10.g3

A nervous move, since the thematic 10.f4 was ok, i.e. 10...Bxf4 11.g3.

10...Qh5 11.Qe3 c6
Black has the advantage of a piece for two pawns. He needs to develop quickly and safeguard his pawn. If White is to have a chance, he needs to develope even quicker.
12.d4 b6 13.e5 Bc7 14.f4

This pawn play is all very Jerome-ish, but Rybka 3, after the game, suggested instead 14.b3 followed by 15.Ba3 with more attention to the Black King.

14...Ne7 15.Nc3 b5

Probably 15...d5 was better, although that would give White an advanced, protected passed pawn.

16.Ne4 Bb7 17.Nc5 Bc8 18.f5 d6 19.Ne6+ Kg8


Black has a defense, but it begins with 19...Bxe6. This oversight swings the game towards White.

20.Nxc7 Nxf5 21.Qf4 Rb8 22.exd6 Bd7


23.Bd2 Rf8 24.Rae1 Kh7

The clocks are ticking. LethHansen is untangling. I'm hoping not to blunder.

25.Qe5 Qh3 26.Bf4 Black lost on time.

graphic by Jeff Bucchino, "The Wizard of Draws"

Short Takes

Sometimes – at least when it comes to the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) – there can be a big difference between having little to say and being speechless.

From Foster's Complete Hoyle: An Encyclopedia of Games, Including All the Indoor Games Played at the Present Day. With Suggestions for Good Play, All the Official Laws.By Robert Frederick Foster (1909)

Jerome Gambit. 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+

From The Art of Chess, James Mason, Leopold Hoffer, (Third edition, revised and enlarged, 1905)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Here 4.Bxf7+ (Jerome Gambit) may be just mentioned as quite unsound.

From Chess Openings, James Mason (1905)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ (Jerome Gambit) may be just mentioned as quite unsound.

From Chess, Robert Frederick Green (1905)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ The Jerome Gambit. Seldom played.

From Chess Openings for Beginners, Edward Ernest Cunnington (1900)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Here we may mention, with a caution, as being quite unsound, the Jerome Gambit; 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ and Black plays 6...Ke6 (or B sq.) with a safe game.

From 200 Miniature Games of ChessCombinations in the Openings, J. du Mont, (1942)

1.e4 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ The Jérôme Gambit which is unsound, but has the saving grace of leading to a lively game and is therefore suitable for anoccasional friendly game. The defender cannot, however, afford to be careless...

Optical Illusion (II)

I usually post my recent games shortly after they are played, but the following Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) slipped out of order. My apologies to my opponent and readers; no slight was intended.


perrypawnpusher - Rossgil
blitz FICS, 2009
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Qf6

9.fxe5+ Qxe5 10.Qf3 Nf6 11.d3

The odd position mentioned in "Optical Illusion (I)."

11...Bd4 12.Bf4 Qxf4 13.Qxf4+ Be5 14.Qc1 Rf8

Black has only two pieces for his Queen, but he uses them to fight back.

15.Nd2 Ng4 16.Nf3 Bf4 17.Qd1 Ne3 18.Qe2 c6

19.g3 Bh6 20.h4 Kc7 21.Ng5

Now White gets some relief.
21...Bxg5 22.hxg5 Nf5 23.exf5 d5 24.Qe5+ Kd8 25.Qd6+ Bd7 26.Qxf8+ Black resigned

Optical Illusion (I)

I've think there must be some kind of optical illusion in one variation of the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) – either that, or maybe people sometimes play blitz chess a little bit too fast for their own observational abilities.

How else to explain the following game?


perrypawnpusher - Estebang
blitz game 2 12, FICS, 2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7

5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Qf6
Black follows one of the Jerome Gambit refutations first set out in Alonzo Wheeler Jerome's analysis published in the Dubuque Chess Journal in April 1874. (Of course AWJ didn't see it as a refutation.)
9.fxe5+ Qxe5 10.Qf3 Nf6 11.d3


Black's Queen exerts pressure along the a1-h8 diagonal: if the dark-squared White Bishop should move, there can come ...Qxb2 and then ...Qxa1.

In this position against me, Rossgil (forthcoming) played 11...Bd4, focusing on that diagonal; BronxBoyII played 11...Rf8, drawing bead on my Queen; and ViennaMike played 11...Bb4+, to exploit a second diagonal, a4-e1.

11...Re8 12.Bf4


Awkward.

12...Qxf4 13.Qxf4+ Ke7

Black's game never quite recovers.

14.Qe5+ Kf8 15.Qxc5+ Kg8 16.Nc3 c6 17.e5 Ng4 18.d4 b6 19.Qc4+ Kf8 20.0-0+ Ke7 21.Qf7+ Kd8 22.Qxg7 Ne3 23.Qg5+ Kc7 24.Qxe3 d6 25.exd6+ Kd7 26.Rf7+ Kd8 27.Qg5+ Re7 28.Qxe7 checkmate

Wild Horses

There seemed to be some "wild horses" in this Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) game that kept trying to "drag me away." Or drag the game away from me.

Sorry, Podnah, good try, but not this time, either...

You can check out "Relax... Don't work so hard" for my first encounter with the creative TJPOT.

perrypawnpusher - TJPOT
blitz 3 12, FICS, 2009

1.e4 Nc6 2.Nf3 e5 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6

7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5

As old as Jerome - Brownson, USA, 1975, and as recent as perrypawnpusher - steelrfan44, Gameknot.com, 2009

8...Nf4



An idea similar to Fritz 8's seen in "Jerome Gambit: Drilling Down (13)". It seems to beg for 9.Qe5+ Ne6, but I thought I'd let the horse run wild and instead focus on my development.

9.0-0 Nf6 10.d3 d6 11.Qe3 Ne6 12.f4 Ng4

The first horse having returned, the other one now gets loose.

13.Qg3 Nc5

Can all this horsing around be good for Black? Neigh!

14.f5 h5 15.h3 Nf6 Already White now has a pawn breakthrough that would allow him to rustle one of the Knights: 16.e5 dxe5 17.Qxe5+ Qe7 18.Re1 Qxe5 19.Rxe5+ Kd8 20.Rxc5.

The move that I chose instead targets Black's King.

16.Qxg7 Rg8 17.Qh6 d5

Breaking in the center, attacking the pawn chain – but letting the e-pawn advance. Correct seems to be 17...Qe7 with defensive prospects.

18.e5 Nfd7
Black's position is suddenly so dire that Rybka 3, analyzing after the game was over, suggested that he should offer the return of a piece with 18...Ncd7 – but that White's attack was so strong that the first player could continue to develop without capturing immediately: 19.Bf4 c6 20.Nd2 Qb6+ 21.Kh1 c5 22.Rae1 Kd8 23.Nf3.

19.Qxh5+ Ke7 20.Bg5+

Winning the exchange, while 20.Qh7+ led to the win of a Rook. Regardless, the Black King is in serious trouble.

20...Rxg5 21.Qxg5+ Ke8 22.Qg6+ Kf8 23.f6 Nxe5 24.Qg7+ Ke8 25.f7+ Nxf7 26.Qxf7 checkmate