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Scottish Championship 1886
From: The Chess Player's Chronicle.
The third annual Congress was begun on Monday, 5th April, in the rooms of the Glasgow Chess Club, 79 Queen Street, Glasgow. There can be no doubt that this meeting has been more successful than either of its predecessors, although Mr D Y Mills of London, the winner of the Championship Cup for 1885, and Mr John Crum of Glasgow, the first Champion, were unable to attend.
The programme was the same as that of previous years and included:—
(1) Major Tournament. Prizes: 1st, Championship Cup, value £25, for one year, and £4 4s; 2nd, £2 2s; 3rd, £1 1s.
(2) Minor Tournament. Prizes: 1st, £3 3s; 2nd, £2 2s.
(3) Handicap Tournament. Prizes: 1st, £3 3s; 2nd, £1 11s 6d.
In the Major Tournament there were 12 entrants, whose final scores were as follow:
1
G.E. Barbier
■
1
1
0
1
½
1
1
1
1
1
1
9½
2
John Russell
0
■
1
1
1
1
1
1
0
1
1
1
9
3
John Gilchrist
0
0
■
½
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
8½
4
G.B. Fraser
1
0
½
■
1
0
0
1
1
½
½
1
6½
5
J.H.C. McLeod
0
0
0
0
■
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
6
6
Peter Fyfe
½
0
0
1
0
■
0
½
1
1
1
½
5½
7
John D. Chambers
0
0
0
1
1
1
■
0
0
0
0
1
4
8
James Marshall
0
0
0
0
0
½
1
■
½
1
1
0
4
9
Sheriff Spens
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
½
■
1
0
0
3½
10
David Forsyth
0
0
0
½
0
0
1
0
0
■
1
1
3½
11
G.A. Thomson
0
0
0
½
0
0
1
0
1
0
■
½
3
12
A.I. McConnochie
0
0
0
0
0
½
0
1
1
0
½
■
3
Photo from:
The Glasgow Athenaeum: A Sketch of Fifty Years' Work (1847-1897)
By James Lauder, FRSL, Secretary of the Institution.
Saint Mungo Press, Glasgow, 1897Barbier was employed as a teacher of French at the Athenaeum in Glasgow.
In the Minor Tournament there were 13 entries, as compared with 7 and 8 in 1884 and 1885 respectively. The result of their play was as follows :—
Minor Tournament
1
J.M. Finlayson
■
1
½
1
1
1
1
½
½
1
1
9½
2
Alex Berwick
0
■
0
½
1
1
1
½
1
1
1
1
9
3
W.W. Robertson
½
1
■
1
0
1
1
1a
0
½
1
1
9
4
G. Shand
0
½
0
■
1
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
8½
5
J. Phillips
0
0
1
0
■
0
1
1
1
1
1
1
7½
6
W. Seligman
0
0
0
1
1
■
0
1
1
1
1
7
7
R. Lyness
0
0
0a
0
0
1
■
0
1
1
1
5
8
J. Mackenzie
½
½
0
0
0
0
1
■
1
0
0
1
5
9
W. Black
½
0
1
0
0
0
0
■
0
1
1
4½
10
W. McCombie
0
0
½
0
0
0
0
1
1
■
1
4
11
W. Hodge
0
0
0
0
0
1
0
■
1
2
12 J.D. Maclean 13
W.M.A. Service
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
■
0
(a) scored by default.
A few games remained unplayed, owing to want of time on the part of the players, but none of these could affect the prize-winning, with the exception of that between Mr Lyness and Mr Rbertson, which the playing Committee decided Mr Rbertson was entitled to claim. Mr Finlayson accordingly won the first prize, and Messrs Berwick and Robertson tied for the second, with an even score. One game played between them to determime the prize winner was won by Mr Robertson. It is noteworthy that these gentlemen tied in last year's Congress for the same prize. On that occasion Mr Robertson also won the deciding game.
Handicap Tournament
In the Handicap Tournament there were fourteen entrants, who were classed as follows :—
Class I., G B Fraser, Spens, Court, McLeod, Forsyth, Gilchrist, Fyfe and Chambers.
Class III, Maclean, McCombie, Finlayson, Mackenzie, and Shand.
Class IV, Hodge. This contest was carried through on the pairing system, one won game being decisive.Class I. gave to Class III. Pawn and two moves, and to Class IV. Knight.
Ultimately Mr McLeod won the first prize, and Mr Shand the second.
The play in all the competitions may be described as of a very much higher standard than that of previous years. This is undoubtedly due to the impetus which the Association has given to the development and cultivation of Chess throughout the country.
It was suggested in the course of the meeting that a public testimonial, on account of his great service to Chess, should be presented to Mr G B Fraser, Dundee. For many years Mr Fraser was acknowledged to be the best Chess player in Scotland, and as a Chess analyst, and the discoverer of many important and interesting variations in different Openings, he holds a position unique among living British Chess-players. Mr Fraser is eminently deserving of this recognition, not only by Scotch, but by all British Chess-players throughout the world, and the proposal will doubtless be cordially received by English as well as Scotch players. Subscriptions will be received by the Chess Editor of "The Glasgow Weekly Herald," or we shall have much pleasure in forwarding any amounts sent to us for the purpose.
Annual General Meeting
The Annual General Meeting of this Association was held on Friday, 9th April, Sheriff Spens in the chair. The first business was the election of officers. All the former office-bearers, with the exception of Messrs Court and Crum, Directors, who by the rules retired and were ineligible for the current year, were re-elected; Mr John Russell and Mr John D Chambers, both of Glasgow, being elected in room of the retiring Directors. The office-bearers are now as follows: President—Sir Archibald Orr-Ewing, Bart, of Ballikinrain, M.P. Vice- Presidents—Sir Wyndham C. Anstruther, Bart, of Carmichael; Rev John Donaldson M.A., Kirkconnel Manse (" Delta "); G. B. Fraser, Dundee ; and Walter C. Spens, Advocate, Sheriff-Substitute of Lanarkshire, Glasgow. Directors—John Fraser, B.A., Edinburgh; Christopher Meikle, Edinburgh; John S. Pagan, Crieff; Dr James Clerk Rattray, Edinburgh and Blairgowrie; Arthur Russell, Cupar-Fyfe; D. Y. Mills, London; A. I. McConnochie, Aberdeen; Rev George McArthur, M A., Edinburgh; John Russell, Glasgow; and John D. Chambers, Glasgow. Secretary and Treasurer—David Forsyth, 169 West George Street, Glasgow.
The Treasurer then read the statement as to the funds of the Association, which showed an estimated balance for 1886 of £56 4s 6d, as compared with £42 5s 4d and £46 11s in 1884 and 1885 respectively.
The next point, the Chairman said, was the fixing of the time and place of the next annual meeting. He proposed that the meeting should take place in Edinburgh, as the representative city of the East of Scotland, as Glasgow this year had, as it were, represented the West of Scotland. No counter motion was proposed, and it was accordingly resolved that the next Congress should be held in Edinburgh, in July 1887, on - a week to be afterwards fixed by the Committee.
Source
The Chess Player's Chronicle, Vol. 9, 1886, pp. 489-491Additional notes
1. All the players in the Championship were shown to be from Glasgow, except for McLeod (Bilbao) and McConnachie (Aberdeen). There were no entries from the major chess centres of Edinburgh and Dundee.
2. In the Minor Tournament, most of the entrants were from Glasgow, the exceptions being Robertson (Edinburgh), Phillips (Helensburgh), Mackenzie (Islay), Hodge (Dumbarton), and Service (Airdrie).
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