Sunday Book Review: James Mason in America

James Mason in America
The Early Chess Career, 1867-1878
Joost van Winsen
hard cover
(McFarland, 2011)




I wanted to title this review "Mason, James Mason; International Man of Mystery".

I know that mashes together a couple of movie concepts: the "Bond, James Bond" self-introduction from Ian Fleming's secret agent, and the reference to the spoof "Austin Powers, International Man of Mystery."

Yet, the question Joost van Winsen addresses in his very readable book is: Who is James Mason? The query has several interesting aspects.

A good place to start would be to acknowledge that for the years covered by James Mason in America, the titled player was arguably the strongest among active players in the country, save, perhaps, for George H. Mackenzie.

Too many readers, I am afraid, would respond: Who is George H. Mackenzie?



Ah, yes.

If you are interested in the history of chess play in the United States, James Mason in America is a rich look at the early career of a fine player and writer (columnist for The Spirit of the Times and The American Chess Journal ) – and the development of the American chess scene, especially in the post-Morphy era, and especially in New York.

Even if the reader is not a chess history buff, the 200 plus games and positions in the book give a lot of entertainment and instruction on the play of double King pawn and double Queen pawn openings, including gambits – drawn from club and match play, and far more likely to be relevant to the study of modern day club players than, say, the latest tweaks in the Catalan as played by today's 2700+ rated gladiators.

If you are looking for the latest Informant-style analysis; well, best look for the latest Informant, instead.  

The post-Civil War period was a time of the rise of American chess clubs, where a man like Mason, an Irish immigrant from Kilkenny, could not only move up among the ranks of players by dint of skill and effort, he would have a chance to make business contacts that might allow him to move up financially and socially, as well. 

It was also a time of rivalries – between individuals, factions, clubs, cities and regions. Who would, for example, pull together everything for an international chess congress for the country's centennial year? Could there be an early American Chess Association? Who was the best American player? How did the Americans stand up to European chess play?

Personal battles were not just fought over the chessboard, but in print, via rival chess news sources. A look back at American chess in this period showed the beginnings (later, perfected by Steinitz) of a third phase of combat: one could claim that he lost the game, for example, but won the post-mortem analysis, only to be trumped again in the coverage of the match...


It is interesting in this light to see the British Henry Bird complain that during his sojourn in America, no matter how many games he won, it seems that the papers mostly published his losses. He even had Fischer-like complaints that in a particular tournament, the Americans conspired against him to make their own wins easier, and his more difficult.

Van Winsen paints an intriguing picture of Mason, and it is a compelling one, if at times containing somewhat un-heroic elements. Having negotiated a match with Max Judd in St. Louis for 1876, Mason surprised his opponent by simply not showing up, in the city or for the match. Apparently they met later and played some games, although neither could agree in print, who won, how many games, etc.

Mason won the Fourth American Chess Congress amidst charges that he bought and sold games. Mason claimed innocence, of course. On the other hand, he became a strong voice for proper recompense for play, an advocate for the professional chess player. 

 As James Mason in America shows, in its notes (by Mason) to games and in articles and letters by its subject, that Mason was an instructive writer and a fine annotator. This is value beyond taking the reader back in time to a rich, varigated chess world that was remarkably different – and, at times, remarkably similar – to our own, today.

The final mystery, which the author explores to the best of current resources, is the fact that James Mason was not actually James Mason. While not quite on the level of claims such as William Shakespeare's works being actually penned by, say, Sir Francis Bacon, it is fascinating to consider in yet another way that a pre-teen "Patrick Dwyer" (currently the best guess) might have completely re-invented himself on this side of the Atlantic, plunging into the world of chess and emerging as "James Mason". 

James Mason's early chess career in the United States ended with his return to the Old World. It is hoped that author Joost van Winsen will return, as well, with further chronicles of his subject.