When the king was in hopeless danger, Napoleon's game had just
begun. Others before him had looked upon kings on the board of
life as the chess player looks upon the wooden or ivory king
before him.

But to Napoleon kings were pawns, to be moved around and made
ridiculous. When he felt like it, he made pawns into kings--the
descendant of one of his pawn-kings reigns to-day in Sweden.

Napoleon's game deprived the queen of all power--she was less
than a pawn. HIS game sent the bishops hopping back and forth,
diagonally or at right angles, as he saw fit. He created knights
to his heart's content, and he taught them to move as he wanted.

Napoleon was great because there was nothing of the chess player
about him. He did not admit of regular, foreordained moves on
the chess-board or on the board of life. HE REFUSED TO CONSIDER
ANYTHING IMPOSSIBLE UNTIL HE HAD TRIED IT. He tells us himself
that he deserved credit for crossing the Alps, not that he
accomplished a difficult feat, but because he refused to believe
those who declared the feat impossible.

If anybody said "Check" to Napoleon, he kicked over the
chess-board and began a new game of his own--that was what
surprised the poor, dull old Austrian generals in Italy.

No; the real great man is no chess player, he has no chess
player's mind. And do you, Mr. Reader, waste no time at chess,
if you have any idea of being WORTH WHILE in a big or a little
way. ----