All those exclamation points - all wrong. 

Vladimir Vukovic was getting old. Others of his age had retired, but he was still writing and searching for chess truth. Vladimir looked at Marco’s annotations once again, then glanced proudly at an open copy of his own new book ‘The Chess Sacrifice’. Vukovic had it right, but then, he had had the benefit of almost seventy years analysis and the work of numerous grandmasters. 

Marco had spent weeks meticulously analyzing the wonderful Lasker-Napier game Marco witnessed while participating at Cambridge Springs, 1904. Marco greatly admired this fight of a game and had lavishly sprinkeled praise on both players, showing analysis that backed up his admiration. This analysis had been passed down from generation to generation. Grandmaster Reuben Fine, along with Fred Reinfeld, had put their stamp of authentication on Marco’s notes by passing them on, unchanged, in their book on Lasker. 

But Vukovic was now setting the record straight by publishing modern analysis showing that Marco’s double exclamation points should actually have been question marks. Neither the highly praised 20. Bc4, nor the bold reply 20...exf4 were correct. And now the truth was in the print in front of him. 

"The analysis is still not correct." Came a voice. 

Startled, Vukovic turned. He looked over and saw a tall stranger who had seemed to enter the otherwise vacant club from nowhere. Too preoccupied to ask how the other had entered, he instead replied with the typical chess master’s curiosity, "What analysis is that, sir?" 

"The one on the page you are looking at, Lasker-Napier 1904." 

"And who are you to say so? - this analysis is the result of over sixty years of work by some of the finest chess minds that ever lived. They are not just my annotations..." Vuckovic hesitated, and then decided to continue modestly, "...Although I did check them myself." 

"Everyone still thinks that Napier could not have played 19...exf4" Came the even-tempered voice, "But that is not true." 

(Diagram)
FEN: r1b1r2k/pp2Npbp/6p1/2B1p1PP/5P2/2n5/PPP5/R3KB1R b KQ - 0 19
TEXT: wKe1,Ne7,Bc5,f1,Ra1,h1,Pa2,b2,c2,f4,g5,h5/bKh8,Nc3,Bc8,g7,Ra8,e8,Pa7,b7,e5,f7,g6,h7

Lasker - Napier 
Position after 19. Bc5

Vukovic stared at the man, who seemed ageless – he did not have so much as a wrinkle. He did not know whether to take such a comment seriously from someone he had never seen before. Then his curiousity got the better of him, and he decided that this stranger could be someone who at least may have access to some new analysis. 

"So how can 19...exf4 be possible? After 20. hxg6 fxg6 21. Bc4 Marco was right for once. White has a strong attack." 

"But not a winning one. Suppose instead of Marco’s 21...b5, Black plays the straightforward 21...Bf5?" 

Vukovic was relieved. This man did know of the game, but his tame suggestion was easily refuted. "White can try either 22. bxc3 or 22. Bf7, either way going after material." 

"Which would you like to try?" 

Vukovic was surprised. He didn’t think the man would be so persistent. He looked at the stranger again and saw no signs of anxiety or emotion, just his cool, calm demeanor. "22. Bxf7." Said Vukovic. 

"Then 22...Ne4 with lines similar to those you point out in the analysis in your book after move 20." 

"But the position is different. The advantages are in White’s favor." Replied Vukovic. 

"Not really. For example, if White tries 23. Bxe8 Rxe8 24. Ba3, then Black has 24...Ng3!" 

Vladimir couldn’t believe his ears. After all these years, new analysis coming to haunt and beguile him. He couldn’t completely trust his mental vision, so he took out pieces and set up the position. They took chairs and sat down. "How about O-O-O with the idea of Nxf5?" 

"If 25. O-O-O Nxh1 26. Nxf5, then moving the Knight is dangerous. But if Black just plays the simple 26...gxf5, then after 27. Rxh1 Black can play 27...Kg8." 

Vukovic stared at the board. The reduced material and Black’s better placed King meant that Black’s extra pawn gave him enough compensation for his weak pawn structure. He quickly tried a few side variations, but it was easy to see that White was not winning. "For now, let’s say that this is not so clear. How about 22.bxc3?" 

The stranger didn’t smile. He just reset the position on the board and played 22...Rc8. 

That was certainly better than 22...Bxc3+ 23. Kf2 Bxa1 24. Rxa1 when 24...Rc8 was impossible due to the crushing 25. Bd4+. "And now if White tries to win the exchange with 23. Bf7 or 23. Bb5?" 

"That is the fun line..." 

It seemed out of place to hear the word "fun" from someone who didn’t look like they ever smiled. 

Without hesitation he continued "23. Bb5 (or Bf7) Rxc5 24. Bxe8 Re5+ 25. Kf2 Rxe7." 

"But surely now after 26. Rae1 White has the better endgame with chances to win?" 

"Looks are deceiving in this position." The stranger slid his nicely fianchettoed Bishop from g7 to the decidly passive-looking f8. 

Vukovic looked at the move. It couldn’t be right. Of course, taking the Rook on e7 right away would mean the loss of the g-pawn, as Rg1 was impossible due to the skewer from the Black Bishop. In that line Black’s three connected passed pawns and Bishop pair might even win for him! 

"So why not just move the Bishop, say to b5 or a4?" 

"The lines are similar. For example, if 26. Ba4, then Be4!" 

Vladimir again stared at the board. It couldn’t beright moving into such a pin. Besides, the f-pawn was weak. Maybe the stranger didn’t know so much after all. 

"27. Rh4" he said authoritatively, and then started to look around. He was right after all. The stranger’s analysis had a hole, and the position was starting to lose interest. 

The stranger didn’t hesitate or say a word. He just slid the Rook up two squares to e5. 

Vukovic almost laughed. Not only did the stranger fail to attempt to guard the f-pawn, but he also was moving the Rook onto a square where it wasn’t guarded, so the pin was even stronger - and when his Rook took the f-pawn, it was attacking the Bishop again! It was not worth looking any longer, but some strange compulsion made him show the line on the board by confidently taking 28. Rxf4. 

The tall man across the chess board had not lost interest. Playing immediately, as he did for all his previous moves, the stranger quickly slid 28...Bc5+. 

Of course. Vukovic felt foolish for missing this line and acting so superior. The check was the only move, but a good one. Moving to the g-file lost back the g-pawn with check. And even though White shouldn’t lose, the win was fading as quickly as his confidence. Vladimir’s first thought was that maybe his previous move or two had been too hasty to allow such activity. But in looking over the board he realized he probably had no improvement. Returning to the present position, he decided that maybe allowing the discovered check was OK with 29. Ke2. It was the only try to win, only now instead of moving with assurance, his move was made in the form of a question. This stranger was no patzer, after all. 

"Yes, that is White’s best, but Black may even be able to force a draw with 29...Bc6+ 30. Kd1 Rd5+ when Black can try to draw after 31. Ke2 Re5+ or it is his choice to play for more." 

The old man was feeling his age. White may still be have some chances, but he knew from experience that Black would have to make a bad mistake to lose from such a position, and in analysis one did not count on mistakes. "I concede that 19...exf4 may be playable. But let’s give it some time. It took sixty years for the whole world to find the other errors; maybe you have made some errors that I overlooked. After all, I am not so young any more. By the way, I am Vladimir Vukovic. Who are you?" 

The stranger stood up and for the first time hesitation entered his voice. "My name is not important. I just thought that with all that work you put in, you deserved to know the truth." 

"That is very..." but the old man’s words were hardly out of his mouth when the stranger turned and disappeared as quickly as he had come. The truth! He stared at the empty chair across from him and then at the board. It seemed as though this new analysis was too good to be true. Who could take the work of years of grandmasters and just toss it aside as if it were nothing? Maybe someday analysis could be made perfectly, but he knew that in his lifetime the ultimate truth would never be known. 

Copyright 1992-2005 by Dan Heisman, all rights reserved.

http://www.correspondencechess.com/samizdat/