Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

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Gerard Killoran
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Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by Gerard Killoran » Sat Sep 13, 2014 5:28 pm

David Bronstein claimed to have played a game in his sleep, but did Porterfield Rynd get there first?

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11584, 23 February 1901, Page 4

Mr. Porterfield Rynd, the Irish champion, is a good blindfold player. Some years ago he produced a novel (also a drama), under the title of "Quicksands." In this he wished to introduce a game of chess, and the following game appeared to him in a dream:—

White, Mr. Ivory; Black, Dr. Ebony.




As the notes were identical, this seems to have been copied from:

Illustrated Science Monthly - Volume 1 1885 - Page 214

"ARLY'S DREAM," an actual chess-dream introduced in Mr. Porterfield Rynd's "Quicksands". The title of a novel, a drama, and an opera about to be brought out simultaneously. One scene, "Persistence" taken from the opera, has been recently published by Messers. Pohlmann & Co.


Porterfield's son, born on 9 October 1873, was christened Kenneth Arly Rynd.

As I can't find any evidence for the existence of "Quicksands" in any form, I wonder if there any truth in this tale?

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Re: Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by David Sedgwick » Sat Sep 13, 2014 6:02 pm

Gerard Killoran wrote:As I can't find any evidence for the existence of "Quicksands" in any form, I wonder if there any truth in this tale?
I would regard the chances of there being any truth in a tale told by "Porkie Pies" Rynd as being pretty low.

See for example http://www.jsbeasley.co.uk/besn/2002a.pdf and http://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/chess2/diary_8.htm (Item 151). John Beasley and Tim Krabbé are both following up original research by John Roycroft, published in BCM in December 2001.

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Re: Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by Gordon Cadden » Wed Sep 17, 2014 2:47 pm

Since the publication of John Roycroft's article, in the December, 2001, BCM, Harrie Grondijs has published two editions of his book, "No Rook Unturned".
In the second edition, aficionados of the Rynd - Saavedra saga, can enjoy browsing through 384 pages of this hardback. At the conclusion, readers will arrive at a simultaneous display that the English Chess Master, F. J. Lee, gave in Dublin, on 13th. March, 1890. Fernando Saavedra sat shoulder to shoulder, with Lieutenant Colonel Lynam, and lost a Vienna Opening. Porterfield Rynd was a spectator at this display, in which Lynam, President of the Clontarf Chess Club, reached the endgame (according to Rynd), that was to become world famous. Harrie has listed the names of everyone who took part in that display.
Last edited by Gordon Cadden on Thu Sep 18, 2014 12:39 pm, edited 2 times in total.

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John Saunders
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Re: Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by John Saunders » Wed Sep 17, 2014 5:43 pm

I slightly misunderstood Gordon's post when first reading it (and have deleted a comment I made too hastily). This appears to be significant new information about the Rynd/Saavedra affair - new to me, anyway. (For those who don't know what we are talking about, see the Wikipedia entry for the Saavedra position)

If Grondijs's new claim turns out to be correct, the main new info seems to be that FJ Lee was the giver of the simul, and Rynd only a spectator. So Rynd remains a teller of porkie pies for having claimed someone else's game for his own in his column.

The second piece of new info is that Saavedra was present too. Should he have owned up to having seen the position before when later pointing out the clever finish to the columnist in Glasgow? As a man of the cloth, perhaps so, but I'd be inclined to let him off with a couple of 'hail Marys'. His villainy doesn't approach Rynd's. Besides which, maybe he did mention it when communicating with Barbier - I'm not sure we have a word-for-word record of what Saavedra wrote or said to the Glasgow columnist.

But did the moves (or similar) actually get played in the simul? Have we still only got Rynd's word for the position having occurred at all or do we now have new, hard evidence linking it to the 1890 FJ Lee simul? If so, did FJ Lee actually see and play the rook underpromotion in the game, or did the idea perhaps crop up in a post-mortem? Maybe Rynd spotted it after the game (or even during it) and later decided to make out he had played it himself. Maybe Saavedra had heard the discussion and made a mental note.

But this is pure speculation, of course. Until we know that some relevant moves were played in the simul alluded to, it is all circumstantial evidence - Rynd, Saavedra and Lynam in the right place at around the right time, but nothing else in terms of hard evidence.

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Re: Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by David Sedgwick » Wed Sep 17, 2014 8:45 pm

For John Beasley's response to Harrie Grondijs, please see http://www.jsbeasley.co.uk/besn/2005c.pdf.

Admittedly those comments were made about the first rather than the second edition of "No Rook Upturned".

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Re: Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by Gerard Killoran » Fri Sep 19, 2014 7:57 pm

I had doubts about the whole story because I'm also pretty sceptical about Bronstein's claim to have dreamt a whole game, especially one so good - Bronstein is not always a reliable source. However I think there may be reasons to believe Rynd was being pretty honest.

Rynd was a prolific giver of simultaneous exhibitions and sometimes performed blindfold, taking on up to six players at a time. When Tony Miles tried to do the same with 22 opponents, I recall him saying that afterwards it was difficult for him to forget the games he had made such an effort to memorise; in addition his sleep was affected. Perhaps Rynd just accidentally remembered a game he'd played blindfold.

Here's one of two that Rynd played simultaneously:


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John Clarke
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Re: Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by John Clarke » Fri Sep 19, 2014 10:03 pm

Gerard Killoran wrote:When Tony Miles tried to do the same with 22 opponents, I recall him saying that afterwards it was difficult for him to forget the games he had made such an effort to memorise; in addition his sleep was affected.
William Winter said in his memoirs that he'd had the same sort of problem after a 12-game blindfold display, and had always refrained from giving them thereafter.
"The chess-board is the world ..... the player on the other side is hidden from us ..... he never overlooks a mistake, or makes the smallest allowance for ignorance."
(He doesn't let you resign and start again, either.)

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Re: Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by Gordon Cadden » Sat Sep 20, 2014 3:11 pm

"Arley's Dream" was first published in Dublin, 1884. You will find it on page 147, of "Chess Fruits", by Thomas B. Rowland, and Frideswide F. Rowland. Described as the title of a novel, a drama, and an opera, about to be brought out simultaneously. One scene, "Persistance," taken from the opera, has recently been published by Messrs. Pohlmann & Co. (quote).

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Gerard Killoran
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Re: Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by Gerard Killoran » Sun Sep 21, 2014 12:20 am

Gordon Cadden wrote:"Arley's Dream" was first published in Dublin, 1884. You will find it on page 147, of "Chess Fruits", by Thomas B. Rowland, and Frideswide F. Rowland. Described as the title of a novel, a drama, and an opera, about to be brought out simultaneously. One scene, "Persistance," taken from the opera, has recently been published by Messrs. Pohlmann & Co. (quote).
The Chess Fruits quotation is a reprint of the Illustrated Science Monthly column - which was also written by Mrs Rowland. I still can't find any other proof of the existence of 'Quicksands' or any part thereof.

Curiously Rynd believed that Francis Bacon wrote the works of Shakespeare and thought he had found coded information to prove it.

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Re: Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by Gordon Cadden » Sun Sep 21, 2014 9:51 am

Gerard Killoran wrote:
Gordon Cadden wrote:"Arley's Dream" was first published in Dublin, 1884. You will find it on page 147, of "Chess Fruits", by Thomas B. Rowland, and Frideswide F. Rowland. Described as the title of a novel, a drama, and an opera, about to be brought out simultaneously. One scene, "Persistance," taken from the opera, has recently been published by Messrs. Pohlmann & Co. (quote).
The Chess Fruits quotation is a reprint of the Illustrated Science Monthly column - which was also written by Mrs Rowland. I still can't find any other proof of the existence of 'Quicksands' or any part thereof.

Curiously Rynd believed that Francis Bacon wrote the works of Shakespeare and thought he had found coded information to prove it.
According to your first post, you give, "Illustrated Science Monthly - volume 1, 1885 page 214

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Gerard Killoran
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Re: Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by Gerard Killoran » Sun Sep 21, 2014 10:58 am

Gordon Cadden wrote:
Gerard Killoran wrote:
Gordon Cadden wrote:"Arley's Dream" was first published in Dublin, 1884. You will find it on page 147, of "Chess Fruits", by Thomas B. Rowland, and Frideswide F. Rowland. Described as the title of a novel, a drama, and an opera, about to be brought out simultaneously. One scene, "Persistance," taken from the opera, has recently been published by Messrs. Pohlmann & Co. (quote).
The Chess Fruits quotation is a reprint of the Illustrated Science Monthly column - which was also written by Mrs Rowland. I still can't find any other proof of the existence of 'Quicksands' or any part thereof.

Curiously Rynd believed that Francis Bacon wrote the works of Shakespeare and thought he had found coded information to prove it.
According to your first post, you give, "Illustrated Science Monthly - volume 1, 1885 page 214
Yes, it does seem that Mrs. Rowland recycled the Chess Fruit article for the Illustrated Science Monthly - rather than vice versa as I thought. (I wonder if there is a current example of a chess writer doing such a thing.) Pohlmann & Co did publish sheet music, but where is the evidence for the existence of 'Quicksands'?

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Re: Porterfield Rynd's Dream Game?

Post by John Foley » Mon Sep 29, 2014 9:20 am

John Beasley has recently brought together his thoughts on the subject.

http://www.jsbeasley.co.uk/ochess/rynd.pdf