Quite a bit happened in the year 1885. Grover Cleveland became President of the United States. The French were at war in Indo-China. Gilbert and Sullivan's comic opera The Mikado premiered. And last but certainly not least, a patent was granted to an African-American woman, Sarah E. Goode, for, of all things, a cabinet bed.

While much less noteworthy on a global scale, the following checker problem also first appeared in 1885. It's an interesting and practical study in winning checker technique.

BLACK

WHITE
White to Play and Win

W:W18,20,21,22,23,25,27,28,29,31,32:B1,3,4,5,8,9,11,13,14,15,16.

This is of course 2019, not 1885. Grover Cleveland is long gone, the French left Indo-China decades ago, the The Mikado has become a treasured part of operatic history, and modern variants of the cabinet bed can be found everywhere. But can you solve this relatively timeless checker problem? We think it's as fresh now as it was some 134 years ago. Put it to bed, and then click your modern mouse on Read More to see the solution.

Solution

27-24 8-12---A 24-19 15x24 28x19 1-6---B 32-27 3-8---C 27-24 6-10---D 31-27 White Wins---E.

A---Avoiding the 2 for 1 with 24-19.

B---Probably best and although other moves are possible, all of them lose.

C---Both 3-7 and 6-10 allow a 2 for 1.

D---Black is just about out of choices.

E---Black loses material no material what move is made.