what happened on the big tour of the usa?

Harry Pillsbury was a very good player. He had an amazing memory and very strong play. Unfortunatly he died by syphilis :S. He wasn't a professional player but he won the Hastings tournament in 1895 with Steinitz, Lasker, Schlechter, Chirogin and Tarrasch on it. No joke. Was a wonderful player and he estabilished the record of Blindfold in the year of 1902 in Moscow, by playing 21 simultaneous games, winning 16 of them, drawing 4 and losing only 1!

Yeah he could give much more to the chess indeed.

Yeah, one of those who died too soon....

Interestingly, Pillsbury may have been the strongest player never to have become world champion.

http://db.chessmetrics.com/CM2/PeakList.asp

As you can see here, this would rank him approximately 10th all-time best player (depending on the range in years you are looking at - looking at a three year span, as in this case, he's thenth) and better than five world champions.

That's an interesting list, I searched that site and find no information for Mir Sultan Khan, who had an extraordinary 3 of 4 years, which turned out to be his complete carreer, Would have thought he figured somewhere....

Sultan Khan didn't quite make the all-time list it seems.

His best during his own time seems to have been #6 in the world

http://db.chessmetrics.com/CM2/PlayerProfile.asp?Params=199510SSSSS3S128041000000111000000000028310100

Ah, what really struck me on that list, was David Janowski at #31, never realised he was quite that strong..... It's because of him that I've been playing the Vienna game for 40 years....

Some interesting names on the list. There are several that I don't readily associate, and I don't think most people would associate, with an all-time best list.

#11 Géza Maróczy - for instance.

I mean most only have ever heard his name in association with the Maroczy Bind Sicilian variation.

or Oldrich Duras...

I'm under correction, but I think Maroczy still holds the record for the number of similtaneous blindfold games....

 Not Maroczy. The record can be interpreted in a few different ways, such as pure numbers, or most strong opponents, no consultation of record sheets....

It could be Koltanowski (large number, no scoresheet consultation). It could be Alekhine (large number, strongest, no consultation). Others like Najdorf and Flesch have better numbers but their exhibitions have such issues as scoresheet consultation and opponents wandering off after a few moves.

Fine had a notable blindfold feat: Four simultaneous games at 10 seconds per move.

Ah, man I was thinking of Najdorf. I blame old age. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.....

See the Sultan Khan myth debunked here:

http://www.chess.com/article/view/best-player-ever