he chooses. This form of draughts,
played on a board of 144 squares with 30 men a side, is extensively
practised by British soldiers in India.

The German _Damenspiel_ is Polish draughts played on a board of the
same size and with the same number of men as in the English game. It
is sometimes called Minor Polish draughts, and is practised in Germany
and Russia.

The _Italian game_ differs from the English in two important
particulars--a man may not take a king, and when a player has the
option of capturing pieces in more than one way he must take in the
manner which captures most pieces. There is a difference too in the
placing of the board, the black square in the corner of the board
being at the player's right hand, but until a king is obtained the
differences from the English system are unimportant in practice.

In _Spanish draughts_ the board is set as for the Italian game. The
men move as in English draughts, but, in capturing, the largest
possible number of pieces must be taken, and the king has the same
powers as in the Polish game. The game does not differ essentially
from the English game until a king is obtained, and many games from
Spanish works will be found incorporated in English books. Sometimes
the game is played with 11 men and a king, or 10 men and 2 kings a
side, instead of the regulation 12 men.

_Turkish draughts_ differs widely from all other modern varieties of
the game. It is played on a board of 64 squares, all of which are used
in play. Each player has 16 pieces, which are not placed on the two
back rows of squares, as in chess, but on the second and third back
rows. The pieces do not move diagonally as in other forms of the game,
but straight forward or to the right or left horizontally. The king
has the same command of a horizontal or vertical row of squares that
the queen in Polish draughts has over a diagonal. Capturing is
compulsory, and the greatest possible number of pieces must be taken,
captured pieces being removed one at a time as taken.

AUTHORITIES.--Falkener's _Games Ancient and Oriental_; Lees' _Guide to
the Game of Draughts_; Drummond's _Scottish Draught Players_ (Kear's
reprint); Gould's _Memorable Matches_ and _Book of Problems_, &c. The
_Draughts World_ is the principal magazine devoted to the game. In
Dunne's _Draught Players' Guide and Companion_ a section is devoted to
the non-English varieties.