Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1898-05-26
CRITICISM is UNPROFITABLE.
What He Said Was Justified, No
Doubt. But He Suffered.

What He Said Was Justified, no
Doubt, But He Suffered.
No one man or woman or child, young
or old, should cultivate the art of criti-
cism. 1t will be certain sooner or later
to get them into deep and unaloyed
trouble. From Hazlitt down to Clement
Scott the path of the critic has been
strewn with thorns and large stones.
One can never tell what may happen TO
him if he turns critic. The punishments
are sometimes terrible. You may even
have an English Bards and Scotch Re
viewers" written about you. It is true
that temptations to turn censor are
nowadays many, but they should all be
resisted. Any uGassuming, modest
man when he thinks what a critic should
have will be soon persuaded from trying
to wear such mantle. The critic should
know something about what he is talk
ing about. He should have at least
casual acquaintance with recognized
standards in that branch of art over
which he presides. He should have the
industry to examine what he criticises.
Of course, none of these qualifications
are absolutely essential to a good critic,
but he should have them.
There is, however, a north side young
man who did not consider the fatal step
he was taking in turning critic. He has
always had very fattering opinion of
his discernment, but what, perhaps,
may excuse him with most people more
than anything else is the fact that he
acted at the instigation of love. He has
been for some time deeply enamored of
one Of the sweetest girls in that section
OF the city. AS far as he can judge his
affections are reciprocated. Active urg-
ing of his suit, however, was inter
rupted last September when the girl
who is to either make him happy for life
or else wither his existence like d leaf
before the blasts of December, as he
puts it mentally to himself, went east
to finish off her education. Just before
Christmas she returned, however. OF
course he kept the snow pretty well
packed on the front steps visiting her.
They got along in truly ideal manner
the first three times he was there. On
the fourth she piqued his curiosity fear
fully by telling him that if he was real
good she had something to show him.
Then she pretended that she saw he
didn't care enough, and wouldn't let
him know what it was under any cir
cumstances.
It took lot of diplomacy on his part,
but after awhile she let the cat out of
the bag by withdrawing aad producing
on her return large roll of something
which, when united, proved to be manu-
script. She confided to him that it was a
novel she had written while at school.
He admired the handwriting and the
ribbons it was tied up in extravag antly,
but she informed him that this would
not do. That he must furnish a critical
estimate of the value of her work and
that she knew from his professional
training he was peculiarly fitted to do
this. Of course he was dying to get a
look through it, anyway, so he began
to peruse it without further urging.
After reading for about ten minutes,
during which time she played the piano
furiously to conceal her turbulent emo
lions, he said that in his honest opinion
it was superb, quite beyond caviI or
criticism in any serious respect. She
would not have this, however. She said
that she felt sure he must have noticed
some slight point that could be i'm
proved. At this he smiled an aside, like
they do on the stage. coughed once or
twice and said that if she would insist
there was just one little point.
oil Sc, he
beautiful author in the greatest excite
ment.
well" he went on, "you have here,
Felicia was sewing on the side porch.
Now, I just merely wanted to suggest
that in this country porches are not
sewed on. They are propped up or
nailed on
He might have gone on, but the look
she gave him froze his blood. At pres
ent he is perfectly wretched. He doesn' t
know whether it can ever be fully made
up again or not.-Chicago Times-Her-
AID