288 REPORTS FROM THE SECTIONS. 
failed to remind him of its divine qualities and to assume its natural 
position. Again, the musical critics of our papers do not show 
either much knowledge of their subject, or much care for their 
task. Read over the hundred, say, of musical crepentes of each year, 
and this is about the substance of them all :—“ On sucha day 
such a person gave a concert at sucha place ; the attendance, 
though not very large was appreciative. r. A. sang with his 
instrument that she elicited an encore. Mrs. C.’s charming song 
this or the other, never fails to be appreciated,” and so on, from 
five to twenty lines, according to the number of artists not to be 
offended. One exception to this rule, however, I do recall, and 
that was in an evening paper, after one of Mdlle. Charbonnet’s 
concerts, where the writer made an ores if not at criticism, 
at any rate at analysis. He wrote, speaking of a stringed 
quartette, to this effect :—“ Those who write for strings make use 
of dissonants not only of the 7th of dominant but of ‘other 7ths ; 
they are not only employed singly, but also in sequences. This 
Now what would a painter say if he read in an art 
critique, “ Painters who paint landscapes freely use yellow, not 
only alone but in mixture with blue or other colours, and these 
mixtures are to be found principally in the works of Millais ?” 
they answer : “ Cricket here is a national passion, and is played 
in great perfection.” Our cricketers are in their way, a sort of 
artists Anand I fag hana ‘ake isa show of truth and common 
tort. Artists complain that there is no- 
sitio ye the » Siete music. The fact is that many 
attempts at high-class concerts have been made in Sydney, 
both i an i ese 
have been failures—I m nancially. I except, of course, 
for which eioakdevabnth of of friendship, patronage, or charity, ae 
done more t than any musical enthusiasm. sd is then apparent 
ledged as an art. Deeply, however, as I myself feel miscom- — 
a of that to which I have serene wind S20 
