His employer at the time, the New York Tribune, sent him with a note on company letterhead that insisted Hill was a unique talent whom the paper desperately needed to send abroad to capture the American war effort.

The passport office appears to have agreed as Hill was allowed to travel, eventually resulting in war-based pieces making up a large portion of his portfolio.

[9] A 1912 article from his hometown newspaper, The Bingamton Press, reported that London-based Vanity Fair had commented on Hill's talent for the covers in a then-recent publication.

[10] Hill was responsible for the dust jacket illustrations on the first editions of F. Scott Fitzgerald's first three books: This Side of Paradise and Flappers and Philosophers in 1920 and The Beautiful and Damned two years later in 1922.

[12] In 1917, the Houghton Mifflin Company published a 150-page collection of illustrations by W. E. Hill with accompanying text by Franklin P. Adams titled "Among Us Mortals: Pictures and Legends by W. E.

The book features 12 chapters that serve as organizational themes for collections of illustrations, titled in order: The Amateur Vaudeville, The Movies, The Burlesque Show, Afternoon Tea Hour, Modern Art, The Senior Hop, Summer People, War Stuff, The Apartment House, Opening Night, The Fraternity Banquet, and Christmas.

Many Americans living abroad at the end of World War I treasured "Among Us Mortals" for how much it reminded them of home, with countless letters to the editor sent in thanks to the New York Tribune for running the collection.

Everyday themes of the week included The Medical Profession,[19] Men's Business Lunch,[20] The Intellectuals,[21] The Soda Fountain,[22] The Millinery Sale,[23] The Suburban Station,[24] and dozens more.

Occasionally Hill published "Among Us Mortals" pages with more specific or entertainment-based themes, like The War Play,[25] The Sudden Shower,[26] The Poetry of Motion,[27] By The Sad Sea Waves,[28] The Amateur Vaudeville,[29] The Ladies' Choral Club,[30] and Between The Acts.

Dozens of "Among Us Mortals" spreads from both The Washington Times and the New York Tribune have been preserved by the Library of Congress's Chronicling America project for online viewing.

In response, the performers at nearby Gayety Theater took out a full page-ad in The Washington Times to share their thoughts on the publication and to invite Hill to experience real burlesque at one of their shows.