Jerome Gambit: Puzzles and Mysteries (Part 4)

Before I began this blog, much of my investigation into the Jerome Gambit appeared online in the "Puzzles and Mysteries" section of Edward Winter's The Chess History Information and Research Center. Although it highlighted my mis-steps almost as often as my true discoveries, it provided valuable exposure to my quest, and put me in touch with a number of helpful sources, for which I remain expecially thankful to Mr. Winter.

With the help of the online Wayback Machine, I was able to bring much of this information forward. It adds to my earlier series of posts containing my longer Jerome Gambit article.

The May, 1877 volume of the Nordisk Skaktidende (pp. 97-102) has an article on the Jerome Gambit by S. A. Sorensen. In it, the author refers to Jerome's article in the Dubuque Chess Journal, 1874. Interestingly, Sorensen was still playing the Jerome Gambit over a decadelater, when a game of his appeared in the November 1889 Deutsches Wochenschach (pp. 423-424) (provided by Ken Whyld). 

Sorensen's article was translated into English and appeared in the Chess Player's Chronicle, 1877 (pp 169-174). Thanks, again, to Mr. Whyld for a copy of this.

In 1879, G.H.D. Gossip's Theory of the Chess Openings appeared. I am interested in seeing the Jerome Gambit analysis it contains, if only because the April 1879 Chess Player's Chronicle (p. 86) complained in its review of Theory, that "Game V., the last of the Giuoco Piano, is an analysis of the Jerome Gambit, substantially the same with that which appeared in the Chess Player's Chronicle, 1877..."

Does anyone have access to the 1879 edition of Gossip's Theory of the Chess Openings? I am aware that the second, 1891 edition of Theory does not have any Jerome Gambit analysis.

Rick Kennedy, 11.10.02

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My (belated) thanks to Mr. Owin Hindle, who provided a copy of Gossip's 1879 Theory of the Chess Openings which showed its Jerome Gambit information to be clearly based on Sorensen's 1877 article, or the Chess Player's Chronicle's 1877  translation of Sorensen.

Thus, first we have the publishing of some of Alonzo Jerome's writings and games, starting in 1874.

Next, Sorensen's article (published in Copenhagen) in 1877, which produced two English sources - in magazine form, in the Chess Player's Chronicle, and in book form, in Gossip's Theory.

Then, back in the U.S., we have another thread from  S. A. Charles, who started writing analyses of openings for his local Cincinnati Commercial Gazette, in 1880, but who switched over to the Pittsburgh Telegraph in 1881 where his writings on the Jerome Gambit (based on correspondence games with Jerome) appear. Charles' writings are gathered together in the October 1881 Brentano's Chess Monthly, and then are  edited to appear in the Telegraph again.

Cook's English  Synopsis of the Chess Openings, third edition, in 1882 for the first time has analysis of the Jerome Gambit, likely from the Sorensen/Chess Player's Chronicle/Gossip line.

The third edition of Synopsis is reprinted in the States in 1884, with the American Supplement, written by  S. A. Charles, uniting both the American and Danish/English lines.  The English Chess Openings Ancient and Modern 1889 thereafter continue the interest.

Cook produced a 4th edition of "Synopsis" with the Jerome lines unchanged, but thereafter he did not update the book. His Evolution of Chess Openings in the early 1900s left the Jerome Gambit behind. Chess Openings Ancient and Modern was updated, but when one of its authors died, it was reprinted; and with its last edition, that source of Jerome Gambit support died out, too.

I suspect the publication of Blackburne's book of games - including his 1880 defeat of a Jerome Gambit - hastened the end of the JG as well. The game, for example, is all that shows up in Builger's Hanbuch, when the Jerome shows up at all.

However - just the other day, perusing the Cincinnati Commercial Gazette for 1881, I saw  there was a reference to a Jerome Gambit game annotated by MacKenzie in his chess column in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat. It seems White won with the Jerome - in a correspondence game in Australia... 

I received the following game from Mr. Ken Fraser, chess historian in Australia. Mr. Fraser discovered it in Charlick's chess column in the 12 May 1877 issue of the Adelaide Observer, with the following introduction:

Chess in Adelaide

The following long and stubbornly-contested game was fought April 4, 1877, on the occasion of the visit to Adelaide, during the Easter holidays, of Mr. A. Holloway, of Williamstown, formerly of the Bristol Chess Club. The other game, between the same pair of players, won, at the Kt odds, by Mr. Holloway, was published a few weeks ago. The present partie was played on equal terms.

Charlick referred to the opening as the "Evans-Jerome Double Gambit."

H. Charlick - A. Holloway, Australia 1877

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 6.Bxf7+ Kxf7 7.Nxe5+ Nxe5 8.Qh5+ Ng6 9.Qd5+ Kf8 10.Qxc5+ d6 11.Qe3 Nf6 12.d4 Kf7 13.0-0 Re8 14.Nd2 c6 15.f4 Kg8 16.Re1 Kh8 17.Ba3 Nd5 18.Qg3 Ndxf4 19.Nc4 c5 20.e5 Qh4 21.Nxd6 Be6 22.Nxe8 Rxe8 23.Bxc5 b6 24.Bd6 Bc4 25.Qxh4 Nxh4 26.Rad1 Nhxg2 27.Re4 Bd5 28.Rde1 Re6 29.c4 Nxe1 30.cxd5 Rg6+ 31.Kf1 Ned3 32.e6 Nxd5 33.e7 Nxe7 34.Rxe7 h6 35.Bg3 a5 36.d5 Nc5 37.d6 Rf6+ 38.Kg1 Kh7 39.Be5 Rg6+ 40.Kf1 Rg5 41.d7 Nxd7 42.Bc7 Rd5 43.Re6 Rf5+ 44.Kg1 Rf6 45.Re7 Nc5 46.Be5 Rg6+ 47.Kf1 Nd3 48.Bc3 a4 49.a3 b5 50.Rb7 Rg5 51.h4 Rg4 52.Ke2 Rg3 53.Rxb5 Nc1+ 54.Kd2 Nb3+ 55.Kc2 Rg2+ 56.Kd1 Rg3 57.Be5 Rg4 58.Rb4 Rxb4 59.axb4 Kg6 60.Kc2 Kf7 61.Bc3 g5 62.hxg5 hxg5 63.Kb2 Ke6 64.Ka3 Kd5 65.Kxa4 Kc4 66.Be5 g4 67.b5 Nc5+ 68.Ka5 Nd7 69.Bg3 Kd5 70.Bf2 Nc5 71.Kb6 Nd7+ 72.Kc7 Ne5 73.b6 Nc6 74.b7 Nb4 75.Bg3 Ke6 76.Bd6 1-0

Rick Kennedy, 01.04.03

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H. Charlick had at least one additional trial with the Jerome Gambit.

As I indicated earlier, there was a reference in an 1881 Cincinnati Commercial Gazette to a Jerome Gambit game played by correspondence - reported in Mackenzie's chess column in the St. Louis Globe-Democrat.

It turns out that Mackenzie copied the game - and its notes - from Charlick's column in the Adelaide (Australia) Observer. They are presented here, with the note: it looks like the game first appeared in Andrew Burns' chess column in  theMelbourne Leader... Over 100 years ago, it was still a "small" chess world!

The Adelaide Observer, Saturday, May 28, 1881

"CHESS IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA
(From the Melbourne Leader.)

The following fine game is one of those in the closely contested match by correspondence to which we lately referred, between Messrs. Charlick and Mann.  The time occupied in playing it was six months.  It abounds in interesting and difficult positions.  Another game has since been finished ending in a draw, making the score - Charlick 4, Mann 3, drawn 6.  [Since, Mr Mann has won a game, making the score perfectly even.]

White, Mr. H. Charlick.  Black, Mr. J. Mann, J.P.
Jerome Gambit

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

This ingenious sacrifice was invented by Mr Jerome, an American player, in 1874, and, unless correctly answered, yields a strong attack.  It seems rather rash to venture on it in a correspondence game.

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5

5...Kf8 is, we think, better.

6.Qh5+ Ng6

6...Ke6 is preferable.

7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3

The authorities give 9.Qc3, but White prefers the text.

9...Nf6 10.d4 Qe7

10...Kf7 is surely stronger, bringing his R into immediate action, and threatening ...Nxe4.

11.0-0 Ng4

This only assists White in developing his game by driving back the N presently; 11...b6 seems the best method of getting his forces into action.

12.Qe2 Qh4 13.h3 Nf6 14.f4

White has now a most formidable attack.

14...Nh5 15.Qf2 Qxf2+ 16.Rxf2 Rf8 17.f5 Ne7 18.c4 c6

Again we should have preferred ...b6.

19.g4 Nf6 20.Nc3 d5 21.e5

White's Pawns now look quite irresistible.

21...Nd7 22.cxd5 Nxd5 23.Ne4 N7b6 24.b3 a5 25.e6

This, we believe, is premature; 25.Bg5 is a very strong move.

25...h6 26.Bb2 Ke7 27.Re1 Ra7

Black's game is so cramped that defeat is inevitable.

28.Nc5

White might also have obtained a fine game by 28.h4.

28...Na8 29.Nd3 b5 30.Ne5 Kd6 31.Rc1 Ra6 32.Rc5 Bb7 33.Rfc2 Rc8 34.Bc1 a4 35.b4

Very well played.

35...a3

Had he taken 35...Nxb4, White would have gained a winning position by 36.Bf4.

36.Bd2 Nab6 37.Be1 Na4 38.Bg3 Ke7 39.Nd7 Nxc5 40.dxc5 Rg8 41.Bd6+ Ke8 42.Rd2 Ra4

This, we believe, is his best play; had he moved 42...Nf6, White could have replied with 43.Be5, forcing the game in a few moves. (If 42...Nxb4 White wins offhand by 43.f6!)

43.Rxd5

Well played, obtaining a winning position, though it still requires great care to bring about that result.

43...cxd5 44.f6 gxf6 45.Nxf6+ Kd8 46.e7+ Kc8 47.Nxg8 Bc6 48.Nf6 Rxb4 49.e8Q+ Bxe8 50.Nxe8 Rb1+ 51.Kf2 Rb2+ 52.Kf3 Rxa2 53.Nc7 b4 54.Nxd5 b3 55.c6 Rc2 (Must) 56.Bxa3 Ra2 57.Bd6 Rc2 58.Be5 b2 59.Nb6+ Kd8 60.c7+ Rxc7 61.Bxb2 Rc5 62.Bd4 Rb5 63.Nc4 Ke7 64.h4 Ke6 65.Ke4 Rb1 66.Ne3 Kf7 67.h5 Kg8 68.Nf5 Kh7 69.Be3 Re1 70.Nxh6 Rxe3+ 71.Kxe3 Kxh6 72.Kf4 and Black resigns.

The whole of the end game has been played by White with the greatest precision."

Rick Kennedy, 30.04.03

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