 long, that they sent a
quivery little cold wave through me:
 
- and so-on, and so-on. Yes, it was too loud. Once I could have enjoyed it and
seen nothing out of the way about it, but now its note was discordant. It was
good Arkansas journalism, but this was not Arkansas. Moreover, the next to the
last line was calculated to give offence to the hermits, and perhaps lose us
their advertising. Indeed, there was too lightsome a tone of flippancy all
through the paper. It was plain I had undergone a considerable change without
noticing it. I found myself unpleasantly affected by pert little irreverencies
which would have seemed but proper and airy graces of speech at an earlier
period in my life. There was an abundance of the following breed of items, and
they discomforted me:
 
Of course it was good enough journalism for a beginning; I knew that quite well,
and yet it was somehow disappointing. The Court Circular pleased me better;
indeed its simple and dignified respectfulness was a distinct refreshment to me
after all those disgraceful familiarities. But even it could have been improved.
Do what one may, there is no getting an air of variety into a court circular, I
acknowledge that. There is a profound monotonousness about its facts that
baffles and defeats one's sincerest efforts to make them sparkle and enthuse.
The best way to manage - in fact the only sensible way - is to disguise
repetitiousness of fact under variety of form: skin your fact, each time, and
lay on a new cuticle of words. It deceives the eye; you think it is a new fact;
it gives you the idea that the court is carrying on like everything; this
excites you, and you drain the whole column, with a good appetite, and perhaps
never notice that it's a barrel of soup made out of a single bean. Clarence's
way was good, it was simple, it was dignified, it was direct and business-like;
all I say is, it was not the best way:
 
However, take the paper by and large, I was vastly pleased with it. Little
crudities of a mechanical sort were observable here and there, but there were
not enough of them to amount to anything, and it was good enough Arkansas
proof-reading, anyhow, and better than was needed in Arthur's day and realm. As
a rule, the grammar was leaky and the construction more or less lame; but I did
not much mind these things. They are common defects of my own,
