While Staunton was busy with the Shakespeare edition, he received a courteous letter from the New Orleans Chess Club, inviting him to that city to play Paul Morphy, who had won the first American Chess Congress. Staunton replied, thanking the Club and Morphy "for the honour implied in your selection of me as the opponent of such a champion". Staunton pointed out that he had not competed for several years and was working six days a week (on editing Shakespeare), and so he could not possibly travel across the Atlantic for a match. He also wrote in the "Illustrated London News" that he 