Source identified1
Read & copy
“If your adversary is long in playing, you ought not to hurry him.”
Meaning & context
Franklin makes patience part of fair competition, arguing that disturbing an opponent’s concentration displays rudeness or craft rather than genuine skill.
Source details
Benjamin Franklin, The Morals of Chess, rule 4 in the reviewed public-domain Wikisource transcription. Franklin tells a player not to hurry or distract a slow opponent and immediately lists singing, whistling, watch-checking, reading and tapping as examples; the passage is historical conduct advice about fair play.
