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The mask is the one which we all wear, even though unconsciously, to hide our thoughts and feelings. Alison Terry wore one, though she had never realized it until she faced a crisis in her life. Alison, a girl of sympathetic mood and action whose keen intelligence is overbalanced by the inexperience of innocence and a sheltered upbringing, goes to New York with her erratic husband, Phil Howland. She passes through various stages of disillusionment inevitably resulting from cheap boarding-house life, association with the undesirable friends of her husband, and the discovery that Phil himself is selfish and lacking in ambition, a man whose chief interests seem to lie in restaurant-life and gambling. Then comes tragedy in the loss of their little child in a horrible accident for which Phil is responsible. The splendid strength with which Alison forces him to forgive himself and the subsequent loneliness and suffering, lead to the establishment of a mutual bond of sympathy, understanding and encouragement which starts them on the road to their ultimate happiness. Miss Irwin has written a story that rings true, and its publishers recommend "The Mask" with unusual confidence. (Summary from 1917 dust-jacket blurb)

2San Francisco Before And After The Earthquake

By Will Irwin

As all but Martians know (and who knows, perhaps even they), the city of San Francisco, California, was destroyed by massive earthquake and unquenchable fire in April, 1906. Will Irwin was a sometime San Franciscan who was then living in New York. He wrote a piece for the newspaper The Sun on April 21st, remembering and describing he city that was no more. He called it The City That Was. Four years later he returned to San Francisco and, amazed at the rebuilding, wrote a second piece for The San Francisco Call which he entitled The City That Is. The first endeavor became famous and was frequently reprinted; it made the reputation of Irwin as a reporter. - Summary by David Wales

The American Newspaper is a critical study of journalism conducted by Will Irwin from 1909 to 1910 spanning fifteen articles that discuss the origins, purposes, and principles to which journalists should aspire. The article series appeared in Collier's in serialized form in 1911. Summary by progressingamerica

4Love Sonnets of a Car Conductor

By Wallace Irwin

The comic genius of Wallace Irwin is boldly evident in this saga of the daily life and romantic aspirations of a humble but fervent New York City transit worker. In sonnet form we follow our hero's romantic challenges in his wooing of Pansy, the love of his dreams, and through Irwin's skill as a poet share in the classic tribulations that follow, "I got the zing from Pansy's orb / Which says, 'Dry out now, Shorty, --please absorb!'". Irwin's poetic virtuosity is brashly displayed in his use of the everyday jargon of New York City, adding both realism and brilliance to our understanding of and subsequent empathy for the daily trials of a hard working streetcar conductor and those he meets, "The yap that kicks and rings a deadhead call / Must either spend or else get off the car". Irwin takes us on a comedic streetcar ride through a life - a ride which is both amusing and instructive with frequent flashes of both wisdom and folly - leaving us with the prophetic and invaluable advice: "Up against Love the Candy Kid is nix; / The Porous Plaster wins because it sticks". - Summary by Bruce Kachuk