He never scruples to express it,...
and perhaps there is no writer of ancient or modern times who, for the
quantity of such writings left behind him, has so frequently or so
strongly declared that what he had produced in this department of
poetry 'the world would not willingly let die.'"]
A method of underrating good work often used by envy--in reality,
however, only the obverse side of it--consists in the dishonorable and
unscrupulous laudation of the bad; for no sooner does bad work gain
currency than it draws attention from the good. But however effective
this method may be for a while, especially if it is applied on a large
scale, the day of reckoning comes at last, and the fleeting credit
given to bad work is paid off by the lasting discredit which overtakes
those who abjectly praised it. Hence these critics prefer to remain
anonymous.
A like fate threatens, though more remotely, those who depreciate and
censure good work; and consequently many are too prudent to attempt
it. But there is another way; and when a man of eminent merit appears,
the first effect he produces is often only to pique all his rivals,
just as the peacock's tail offended the birds. This reduces them to
a deep silence; and their silence is so unanimous that it savors of
preconcertion.
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