CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP OF AUSTRALASIA.

A match for the chess championship of Australasia...

The contestants are Mr. William Crane, jun., the present holder of the coveted honour, and Mr A. E. N. Wallace, a player who has achieved considerable distinction in the chess circles of the United Kingdom. During his brief sojourn in the Antipodes Mr Wallace has won the chess championship of Queensland. Recently he has taken up his residence in this colony. The match takes place under the auspices of the Sydney School of Arts Chess Club, whose officials made admirable arrangements for the conduct of the match. A comfortable room has been secured, and the convenience of both players and spectators has been studied. The players have their board in one room, and in an adjoining apartment a duplicate board keeps the onlookers informed of the state of the game.

The following are the conditions under which Messrs Crane and Wallace and their respective supporters have agreed that the match shall be played, and it may be mentioned that they are in all essentials similar to those usually adopted in similar contests in Europe and America :-

1. The stakes shall be £25 a side, and the match to be for the championship of Australia.

2. The player who first wins seven games shall be declared the winner of the match. Drawn games not to count until after five games have been drawn; any game thereafter drawn to count as half a win to each player.

3. The time limit shall be 15 moves an hour, and time shall be kept by one set of double stop clocks, which are to be tested by the umpires before the match begins.

4. The days and hours of play shall be Tuesday and Saturday in each week from 6.30pm to 10.45pm.

5. An engagement to play shall be binding, unless reasonable notice and explanation be given for any postponement required , and failure to give such notice shall be deemed forfeiture, except in cases of accident or sudden illness. At the time fixed for play, if either of the players is absent, his clock shall be set going, except in such cases provided for above.

6. No game shall be adjourned until after four hours' play, except by mutual consent of the players.

7. An adjourned game shall be finished before a new game is started, but either player may decline to begin a new game after 8.30 p.m.

8. The stakeholder and referee shall be Mr. H. W. Apperly.

9. That Mr. P M Scott be umpire for Mr. Crane, and Mr. J. L Jacobsen umpire for Mr. Wallace.

10. The games shall be played at Gunsler's Cafe, Pitt-street, Sydney, within a partition which shall only be accessible to the players, umpires, and referee.

11. Tickets of admission to the match shall be signed by the umpires, and may be cancelled at any time at the request of the umpire of either player.

12. The spectators shall be requested to keep strict silence, and to refrain from any applause or signs of disapproval.

13. Neither player shall absent himself from the room during the hours appointed for play except for a reasonable time, to be agreed upon by the umpires.

14. The player whose turn it is to play shall remain near the board, but his opponent may move about inside the partition reserved for the players at such distance from the board as shall be fixed by the umpires.

15. The player whose turn it is to move at the time of adjournment shall enclose his move in an envelope, which shall be sealed and handed over to the referee; the move thus made shall be written in ink in words.

16. Either player who shall analyse a pending game by himself over the board, or with others even without the board, shall forfeit such game.

17. The games of this match shall be governed by the code of laws published in Lowenthal's book of the London Chess Congress of 1862, with the exception that if either player repeat the same move three times in succession, then his opponent may claim a draw.

18. The games played in this match shall be the property of the players.

- The Sydney Morning Herald (issue Wednesday 19 July 1893)

Match Score

Wallace

½ ½ ½ 0 1 1 ½ ½ ½ 0 1 ½ 1 ½ 1 1 +6 =8 -2 (10/16)

Crane

½ ½ ½ 1 0 0 ½ ½ ½ 1 0 ½ 0 ½ 0 0 +2 =8 -6 (06/16)

Running Total

Wallace
0.5 1.0 1.5 1.5 2.5 3.5 4.0 4.5 5.0 5.0 6.0 6.5 7.5 8.0 9.0 10.0

Crane
0.5 1.0 1.5 2.5 2.5 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0 5.0 5.0 5.5 5.5 6.0 6.0 06.0