# Talk:Devello Z. Sheffield

This review is transcluded from Talk:Devello Z. Sheffield/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.
Nominator: Kimikel (talk · contribs) 05:17, 29 January 2025 (UTC)
Reviewer: Dclemens1971 (talk · contribs) 16:57, 17 March 2025 (UTC)

I am looking forward to reviewing this article. I aim to complete the review within 7 days.

Update: Excellent and informative. I have completed my initial review. I have several points where I think the prose and MOS compliance can be improved to GA levels and one question about the place of death and which source should be cited for that fact. Please ping me in any reply, Kimikel, as I am not online every day this week. Dclemens1971 (talk) 17:31, 18 March 2025 (UTC)
Thank you very much for the review. I will get to it within a day or two. Kimikel (talk) 17:43, 19 March 2025 (UTC)
@Dclemens1971: I'm very appreciative of your thorough review. I've addressed all of your comments; please let me know if there is anything else I can fix. Thank you! Kimikel (talk) 14:24, 21 March 2025 (UTC)
GA review (see here for what the criteria are, and here for what they are not)
It is reasonably well written.
a (prose, spelling, and grammar):  b (MoS for lead, layout, word choice, fiction, and lists): 
It is factually accurate and verifiable, as shown by a source spot-check.
a (reference section):  b (inline citations to reliable sources):  c (OR):  d (copyvio and plagiarism): 
Source spot check: Tsu 2023 Y Latourette 1935 Y Smith 1913 Y McCutcheon 1963 Y "Rev. Devello Z. Sheffield, D.D." 1913 Y
It is broad in its coverage.
a (major aspects):  b (focused): 
Excellent work focusing on the subject while providing encyclopedic perspective and context. This is a strong feature of this article. I would strongly recommend adding Sheffield to the article on the Chinese typewriter since it seems like reliable sources describe him as the first inventor of one, albeit non-commercially successful. I would also consider adding inventor to the lead sentence.
It follows the neutral point of view policy.
Fair representation without bias: 
No concerns here. Language is neutral and tone is encyclopedic.
It is stable.
No edit wars, etc.: 

It is illustrated by images and other media, where possible and appropriate.
a (images are tagged and non-free content have non-free use rationales):  b (appropriate use with suitable captions): 

Overall:
Pass/Fail: 

Notes on prose moved from above:

Please use the {{death date and age}} template for the death date in the infobox.
Done
What was the illness that continued to ail him throughout his life? I see now the source does not specify this
While in his mid-twenties, he entered a phase of religious skepticism before becoming a member of the Presbyterian Church. In 1866, the same year as his conversion, he began attending the Auburn Theological Seminary; he graduated and was ordained as a Presbyterian minister on May 2, 1869. How long was this phase of skepticism? It can't have been very long if he converted to Presbyterianism around age 25. Did he have a religious background before, and what is the significance of this skepticism in his conversion and future career? This sentence could use some fleshing out.
Unfortunately, Latourette is the only source that contains this information and I've already included all of the information that he gives. I'm not sure I could flesh it out more.
In fact, it took him until 1872 to purchase a home that he had wanted due to this hostility. Unclear what encyclopedic relevance the timing of his purchase of a home has to do here.
Removed
Professor Emeritus of English Composition and Group Leadership See MOS:JOBTITLE; these should be lower case.
Done
Despite his efforts' lack of efficacy... Inartful phrasing.
Changed to "Despite his lack of success," Kimikel (talk) 14:24, 21 March 2025 (UTC)
disinterest in his message. Incorrect use of "disinterest".
Changed
Around that time, he also defended the instruction of Chinese classics, calling them "a means of studying the Chinese language" Unclear the significance of this statement; it seems like a truism.
Removed
His petition and his benevolence towards his attacker were praised; he was presented with a tablet and two scrolls commending his actions. Who praised him and presented him with the tablet/scrolls? (And what was the significance of the tablet and scrolls)?)
Fleshed out as much as I could
In 1881, he published Universal History, a widely circulated Chinese textbook considered one of the first to detail the history of the rest of the world. I assume this means "...the first book in Chinese to detail..."; if so, can you clarify?
Fixed
with his other hand Please structure with gender-neutral terminology per MOS:GNL.
Fixed
Notes on source:

"Rev. Devello Z. Sheffield, D.D." 1913 gives his death location as Tongzhou/Tungchow; Latourette 1935 (cited for other facts) lists his death location as Pei-tai-ho ([4]). Do you have any reason to prefer one source over another?
In addition to 1913 giving Tongzhou as his death location, the Auburn Theological Summary gives it more generally as Peking, of which Tongzhou is a district. Also, Paterno writes: "He died on July 1, 1913, at the age of seventy-two, near the scene of his life 's labors in China, and was buried in Tungchow." Since Petaiho is over 150 miles from Tongzhou, if all of these sources are to believed, he could not have died there.