Russell provided forty-three illustrations for a new edition of Owen Wister’s classic western novel, The Virginian, which was published by the Macmillan Company in 1911. Most of these were pen and ink drawings, which he created from a working copy of the book. The light and quivering pen style seen here, with its occasional lack of outline, was influenced by Russell’s close friendship with the famous illustrator Will Crawford, whom he met during his first trip to New York in the winter of 1903–04. Although Crawford maintained otherwise, Russell was deeply influenced by his influential pen-and-ink style. Russell spent a great deal of time in Crawford’s New York studio, and their work appeared together in print. Through Crawford, Russell gained entrée into the New York art world. In a letter to the artist in 1905, Crawford wrote: “Do you remember the work you did for Scribner’s?—Your artistic reputation will probably be ruined. . . as I am spoiling them by making some pen decorations to go with them.” The influence went both ways; partly through his friendship with Russell, Crawford amassed a large collection of cowboy and Indian artifacts for his studio.