Learn to play indifferently either with the white or black men. Do not play too many games at a sitting—and never suffer the loss of a game to occasion you much disquietude. Think of how many thousand games a Philidor must have lost before he attained his highest excellence; besides, the loss of one well-fought game with a fine practitioner will do more towards your improvement than the gain of ten light skirmishes with weaker players than yourself. Endeavor to play all your Pieces equally well. Many young players have a predilection for a particular Piece, as the Knight or the Queen, and lose both time and position in trying to prevent exchanges of their favorite. In opening your game, endeavor to bring your superior officers into action speedily, but avoid all premature attacks. Take care not to play a Piece to a square where it impedes the action of another, and beware of venturing an unsupported Piece in the adversary's game.
If subjected to a violent attack, you may often disconcert your opponent by compelling the exchange of two or three Pieces. When, however, you are about to exchange officers, you must calculate not only their ordinary value, but their peculiar worth in the situation in question; for example, a Rook is generally more valuable than a Knight or a Bishop; but it will happen, that by exchanging a Rook for one of the latter you may greatly improve your game.
It is mostly good play to exchange the Pieces off when you are superior in power, so that when you have the odds of a Piece given to you by a finished player, you should endeavor to exchange as often as you can consistently with safety.
When an exchange of two or more Pieces appears inevitable, look closely to see whether it is better for you to take first or to compel your opponent to do so. When one of the enemy is completely in your power, do not be too eager to make the capture—there may perhaps be a move of importance which you can make before you take him. Beware also of snatching hastily a proffered man, it may be only given as a bait to catch a more important advantage from you.
If at the end of a game you remain with Pawns against a Knight and find it difficult to evade his repeated checks, recollect that by placing your King on the same diagonal as the Knight, with but one intervening square between them, you cannot again be checked under three moves.
When you have lost a game which has cost you great attention, it is a good practice to play it over afterwards in private, and endeavor to discover where the error occurred through which your opponent gained his first advantage. This custom will improve both your memory and your play.
ON THE SEVERAL OPENINGS OR BEGINNINGS OF GAMES.
Before proceeding to the consideration of the various methods of commencing the game, it is advisable for you to recur to the preceding sections, which treat of the arrangement of the men—the moves of the men—their relative powers—the technical terms in use among players—and the laws of the game. When you have familiarized yourself with these, it will be time for you to direct your attention to that most important feature in the game of chess—the art of opening the game.
There are several modes of beginning the game, but the following are the principal:—