Dr. Osip Bernstein's favourite player

Came across the following article in "Chess Review" 1956. From  "Chess Heroes from the Golden Past" by Bruce Hayden.

I was looking out on the sea front of Hastings St. Leonards, Sussex, England and listening to the reminiscenes of Grandmaster Ossip Bernstein, now the last to survive to play chess from the age of Lasker, Tarrasch, Pillsbury - and even the youthful Capablanca, Alekhine and Rubinstein, before the First World War.
Bernstein was one of the great players from this golden age of chess. He knew and played against them all - even notching wins against the mighty Lasker. From the great St. Petersburg Tournament of 1909 down to the present day is a long trek; yet, when the veteran returned to the international arena at Montevideo, in 1954, at the age of 71, he won the First Brilliancy Prize by hoisting Nadjorf on the wrong end of a brilliancy in a demonstration of how he and his old comrades in arms used to do their stuff back in the old days.
But imagine my surprise when I asked the great old warrior who was his favourite among the players of the past. "James Mason," he replied, "Not because he was the strongest but because he played my two favourite combinations."
Then he showed me them on the chess-board beside us.

Mason - Winawer
Vienna, 1882
From his favourite Giuoco Piano, Mason now continued with the following.
40.Rxg5 hxg5 41.Qh7+ Nd7
On 41...Kd8 White's eye embraces the board to win back the Queen Rook! 42.Qh8+ Ke7 43.Rxb8. With the text, he wins a Knight.
42.Bxd7 Qg8
If 42...Qxd7 then simply 43.Qxd7+ recovering the Rook - or, as Tartakover gives, 43.Rc4+ Kd8 44.Qh8+. The text meets with an immortal reply.
43.Rb7+!!


Here is the wonderful point of the combination which makes this Bernstein's favourite. It is one of the finest conceptions in the literature of the game, says Tartakover, who adds that the themes of Deflection by 43...Rxb7 44.Qxg8, of Disorganisation by 43...Kd8 44.Rxb8+ (44.Qxg8+ will also do) and Disjunction by 43...Kxb7 44.Bc8++! form part and parcel of the whole conception. A wonderful double offer of the Rooks.
43...Kxb7 44.Bc8++ Ka8
Black avoids 44...Kxc8 45.Qxg8+ Kc7 46.Qg7+ and a prompt resignation.
45.Qxg8 Rxf5 46.Qd8 Rxd5 47.Qd7 Rb1+ 48.Kh2 Rd2 49.Qc6+ Kb8 50.Qxe4 Rbb2 51.Be6 Kc7 52.Qc4+ Kb6 53.Bd5 g4 54.hxg4 Rf2 55.Qc6+ Ka7 56.Qc7+ Resigns.
There was an elegance about Mason's play at its best, and an elegance about his Victorian prose in his chess writings. But, 'tis said, he looked upon the bottle long and lovingly-

For those interested in the complete game:

I will give the second position tomorrow...