The critic's first labor is the task of distinguishing between men, as history and their works display them, and the ideals which one and another have conspired to urge upon his acceptance.

A critic must accept what is best in a poet, and thus become his best encourager.

Science has but one fashion-to lose nothing once gained.

Fashion is a potency in art, making it hard to judge between the temporary and the lasting.

The poet who does not revere his art, and believe in its sovereignty, is not born to wear the purple.

Men are egotists, and not all tolerant of one man's selfhood; they do not always deem the amities elective.

The critic's first labor is the task of distinguishing between men, as history and their works display them, and the ideals which one and another have conspired to urge upon his acceptance.