Blame those who deserve it, not those who don’t.
An author’s new book had been reviewed unfavourably in a literary weekly. He said to an acquaintance:
‘I’ll concede that a critic has a right to give an honest opinion, but I think John Cartright went a bit too far this time.’
‘How do you know it was Cartright? The article wasn’t sighed.’
‘I’d recognize his style anywhere, confound him!’
‘You’re putting the saddle on the wrong horse, old man. John Cartright didn’t write that review. I did.’