LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. ®^tp. inpijrigJji lf>».. Shelf .-E/1-4J J / - UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. Had SCHOOL ELOCUTION A MANUAL OF YOCAL TRAINING IN HIGH SCHOOLS, NORMAL SCHOOLS, AND ACADEMIES BY JOHN SWETT PRINCIPAL OF THE SAN FRANCISCO GIRLS' HIGH AND NORMAL SCHOOL EX-STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION, STATE OF CALIFORNIA ; AUTHOR OF " METHODS OF TEACHING " NEW YORK HARPER & BROTHERS, FRANKLIN SQUARE 1886 TM4-" 1 Copyright, 1884, by A. L. Bancroft & Co. PREFACE. This book is not an elaborate treatise, designed for special teach- ers of elocution, but a drill-book of essentials for use by teachers that do not make elocution a specialty. In most High and Normal schools, and in the advanced Grammar grades, the curriculum is so crowded that there is no time for the special training given by professional teachers of elocution to select classes of private pupils. The time generally allotted to reading and elocution seldom ex- ceeds that allowed for vocal music— perhaps one or two hours a week. Hence the successful training of large classes involves a great deal of concert drill; and this requires the use of a suitable manual of principles, directions, and drill exercises. This treatise owes its existence to the difficulties met with in the management of a very large High school, including a post- graduate Normal department, in which an honest effort has been made to secure a fair degree of attention to school reading and elocution. Fully realizing the limitations of teachers in similar schools, I have endeavored to keep within the bounds of what it is possible to accomplish without making elocution a hobby. The salient points of this hand-book are as follows 1. It includes only what it is possible to take up without material interference with the ordinary school curriculum. 2. It embraces only what pupils of average ability are capable of comprehending and mastering. 8. It includes a fair outfit of principles and practice for those who intend to become teachers. 4. It can be effectively used by teachers who are not specialists in elocution. IV SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 5. It contains clear and concise statements of principles and rules. 6. It is characterized by the copiousness and freshness of the illustrative drill-examples. It was my good fortune, more than thirty years ago, to be a student under that most critical and scholarly elocutionist and Nor- mal-school instructor, Professor William Russell; and it is natural that I should follow in the steps of my revered instructor. I am also indebted to many excellent manuals on elocution for principles and examples that constitute the common stock of matter on this sub- ject. I am under obligations to the publishers of the works of Ameri- can authors for permission to make short extracts from their pub- lications, and in particular, to Houghton, Mifflin & Co., for extracts from Longfellow, Whittier, Holmes, Lowell, and Emerson. JOHN SWETT. CONTENTS. PART I. ORTHOPHONY AND ORTHOEPY. I. Introductory Hints and Directions . . . . .11 II. Vowel Sounds 15 III. Consonant Sounds 35 IV. Classification of Elementary Sounds 39 V. Orthoepy 45 PART II. PRINCIPLES IN ELOCUTION. CHAPTER I. EMPHASIS, PAUSES, AND INFLECTIONS. I. Emphasis .......... 57 II. Pauses 64 i. Grammatical Pauses 65 II. Rhetorical Pauses ....... 65 in. Rules for Rhetorical Pauses 69 iv. Emphatic Pauses .73 III. Inflection 75 i. The Rising Inflection 82 II. The Falling Inflection . . . . ... 95 in. Inflection of the Parenthesis . . . . .109 iv. The Circumflex Inflection Ill v. The Monotone 119 vi. Examples of Pauses, Emphasis, and Inflection . . 128 CHAPTER II. FORCE AND STRESS. I. Force of Voice 141 I. Very Soft Force 144 II. Soft or Subdued Force 144. in. Moderate Force 147 iv. Loud Force . . 149 v. Very Loud or Declamatory Force . . . .151 II. Stress of Voice . . 155 i. Radical Stress . . . . . . . .155 ir. Median Stress 165 in. Vanishing Stress 172 iv. Thorough Stress 175 v. Compound Stress 180 vi. Intermittent Stress 181 (v) VI SCHOOL ELOCUTION. I. II. III. IV. V. I. II. III. IV. V. VI. VII. CHAPTER III. MOVEMENT. Moderate Movement . . . . . . . .187 Fast Movement . . 189 Very Fast Movement 191 Slow Movement 194 Very Slow Movement . . . . . . . . 195 CHAPTER IV. PITCH OF VOICE. 'Introductory . 199 Concert Drill 200 Faults . . " 201 Examples of Middle Pitch 201 Examples of High Pitch . 203 Examples of Low Pitch . . . . . . 209 Examples of Very Low Pitch 211 I. II. III. IV. V. VI. CHAPTER V. QUALITY OF VOICE. Pure Tone . The Orotund . Aspirated Quality Guttural Quality 216 220 230 237 The Falsetto 238 The Semitone 239 CHAPTER VI. MODULATION AND STYLE OF EXPRESSION. I. Modulation . . * II. The Reading of Poetry . III. Imitative Reading . IV. Exercises in Modulation V. Dialect Reading and Personation 245 248 255 259 262 PART III. MISCELLANEOUS SELECTIONS. SECTION I. PROSE SELECTIONS. 1. Elocutionary Training . 277 2. Good Reading . John S. Hurt 279 3. The Music of the Human Voice . Pmf. Wm. Russell 4. The Art of Reading . Dr. Bush 2-1 5. On Learning by Heart Lush ingt on 289 6. School Libraries 7. Poems Oliver Wendell Holmes SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Vll 8. Scrooge and Marley 9. Defense of Poetry . 10. Falstaff . 11. Wealth . 12. The Astronomer's Vision 13. Education 14. Mathematics and Physics . , Charles Dickens William Ellery Channing Henry Giles Ralph Waldo Emerson Professor Huxley . Herbert Spencer 288 293 296 298 300 302 304 SECTION II. PROSE DECLAMATIONS. 1. Character of True Eloquence . . Daniel Webster 307 2. National Greatness . John Bright 308 3. The Passing of the Rubicon . ' . Knowlcs 309 4. Our Duties to Our Country . Daniel Webster 310 5. The American War . . Lord Chatham 311 6. Freedom . . . Col. E. D. Baker 312 7. The Voices of the Dead . . Orville Dewey 313 8. G rattan's Reply to Mr. Corry .314 9. Supposed Speech of John Adams . Daniel Webster 315 10. The Constitution and the Union . Daniel Webster 317 11. The Constitution . Daniel Webster 317 12. Duties of American Citizens . Daniel Webster 318 13. Labor. . . . . Orville Deiccy 319 14. The Future of America . .Daniel Webster 320 15. Patriotism . T. F. Meagher 321 16. The Fourth of July . . Daniel Webster 322 17. True Greatness Thomas Starr King 323 18. The Normans . Frederick P. Tracy 325 19. Washington's Birthday . . Daniel Webster 326 20. Nations and Humanity . . Geo. W. Curtis 327 21 . Character of Washington . Phillips 328 22. Bunker Hill Monument . . Daniel Webster 329 23. The Birthday of Washington . Rufus Choate 331 24. The National Clock Thomas Starr King 332 25. Free Schools . Horace Mann 333 26. The Ballot . E. H. Chapin 334 27. Educational Power . . 335 28. Schools and Teachers . • 337 29. Elements of the American Government . Daniel Webster 338 SECTION III. RECITATION S Al sTD 1 HEADINGS: POETRY. 1. The Crowded Street 2. The Builders . William Cullcn Bryant 340 . H. W. Longfellow 341 Vlll SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 3. Psalm of Life . . . . II. W. Longfellow 342 4. Apostrophe to the Ocean . Lord Byron 344 5. Battle of Waterloo . Lord Byron 346 6. Santa Filomena II. W. Longfellow 347 7. The Death Struggle Sir Walter Scott 349 8. Sandal phon .... II. W. Longfellow 350 9. The Old Continentals McMastcrs 352 10. The Winds .... William Cull en Bryant 354 11. The Day is Done . H. W. Longfellow 356 12. The Battlefield William Cullcn Bryant 357 13. Hymn to Mont Blanc . Cob i 359 14. Morning Hymn John Milton 362 15. Thanatopsis .... William Cullcn Bryant 363 16. Gray's Elegy .... . 366 17. Daniel Webster Oliver Wendell Holmes 371 18. St. Augustine's Ladder . II. W. Longfellow 373 19. King Out, Wild Bells . . Tennyson 375 20. Summer Rain .... James Russell Lowell 376 21. Hymn to the North Star William Cullcn Bryant 377 22. The American Flag Drake 379 23. The Chambered Nautilus Oliver Wendell Holmes 3S1 24. Kentucky Belle . Constance F. Woolson 3S2 25. The Cliarcoal Man . Troicbridgc 389 26. Grandmother's Story of Bunker Hil I . . 0. W. Holmes 391 PART I. PART I. ORTHOPHONY AND ORTHOEPY. SECTION I. INTRODUCTORY HINTS AND DIRECTIONS. 1. As correct pronunciation is an essential of good reading, it is important that pupils should acquire at the outset a thorough knowledge of the elementary sounds of the English language, and that they should be trained to a ready command of the organs of speech. 2. The melody of our mother-tongue depends in a great measure on the fullness and purity with which the vowel sounds are given. The most marked provin- cialisms in our country consist chiefly in the peculiar shades of sound given to certain vowels. 3. In high schools and normal schools, if anywhere, critical attention ought to be given to pronunciation. It is desirable that pupils should become familiar with the diacritical marks of the dictionary in order that they may be able to find, by themselves, the correct pronunciation of any word. 4. It is the object of the following lessons to train (1) the ear to the correct sound ; (2) the voice to distinct enunciation; and (3) the eye to the use of diacritical marks. . '* (ii) 12 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. I. Hints to Teachers. 1. In all short concert drill exercises, require pupils to stand, and to stand erect. Let the concert drill he preceded by a breathing exercise. 2. Insist upon it that pupils hold the book properly in the left hand, high enough to bring the head erect, 3. In the more difficult drill exercises, the teacher should first read the examples, requiring pupils to repeat in concert. To some extent, elocution must be taught by imitation. 4. The true economy of time in vocal culture, as in vocal music, consists in training large numbers together. The concert drill lessons may be given to two or three hundred pupils in the assembly hall as effectively as to a single class in the recitation room. 5. The concert drill in phonic spelling is designed to give pupils the full command of their vocal organs, and also to secure accurate articulation, enunciation, and pronunciation. At first, it may be desirable for the teacher to lead the class, giving every sound clearly, forcibly, and distinctly. 6. The grouped lists of words illustrating the vowel sounds should be pronounced distinctly and forcibly by the teacher, then by the class in concert, and finally, by individual pupils. The monosyllables in these lists should be spelled by sound, first by the teacher, next by the class in concert, and, finally, by individual pupils. 7. Insist upon it that pupils practice every lesson, after it lias been read in school, at home, by themselves. 8. Impress upon pupils the fact that good reading, like vocal music, requires long-continued practice. 9. Insist upon it that pupils, when reading, shall raise their eyes from the book when approaching the end of a sentence, and repeat the last five or ten words lock- ing directly at the teacher or the class. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 13 II. Hints to Pupils. 1. Stand erect when you read, and hold the book in your left hand, high enough to bring the head erect. 2. By frequent inhalations, keep your lungs well filled with air. 3. Eead loud enough to be easily heard by every mem- ber of your class. If possible, look over the advance lesson before the hour of class drill. 4. After the class drill at school, read each lesson by yourself at home. You can become a good reader only by patient and persevering practice. 5. If you have any marked faults in reading, you must endeavor to correct them by self-culture out of school. 6. Enter into the spirit of whatever you read, and read it so as to convey that spirit to those who listen. 7. Think about the meaning of what you read. Eefer to the dictionary for the definition of any word you do not fully comprehend, or for the pronunciation of any word with which you are not familiar. 8. Listen attentively to the reading of your teacher, or of the best readers in the class, and try to imitate their style of reading. 9. Train yourself to the habit of raising your eyes from the book to look at the teacher or the class. It is a matter of politeness to look at those to whom you speak, or to whom you read. As you approach the end of a sentence, glance your eye along the words in ad- vance of the tongue, and then complete the sentence without looking on the book. It is a good plan to practice this by yourself before a mirror. 10. Endeavor to become so familiar with the diacrit- ical marks that you can find out, for yourself, from the dictionary, the pronunciation of any word without re- ferring to the kev, the table of sounds, or the teacher. 14 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. III. Preliminary Breathing Exercises. Concert drill exercises in articulation anal pronunciation should he preceded hy short breathing exercises. T may he conducted in a great variety of ways, of which only a few are here indicated. The length of time in inhaling or exheding may he regulated hy the rise or fall of the teachers hand. 1. Stand erect ; feet firm ; body braced ; shoulders well back; arms akimbo. 2. Inhale slowly through the nostrils for five seconds ; exhale slowly through the nostrils for five seconds. Eepeat five times. Regulate the inhaling and exhaling by the rise and fall of the hand. In inhaling, fill the lower part of the lungs and do not elevate the shoulders. 3. Take a similar exercise, prolonging the time, first to ten seconds, next to fifteen seconds, and finally to twenty seconds. 4 Inhale ; exhale slowly, giving, in a soft whisper, the sound of "Ah!" prolonged for live seconds; ten seconds ; as long as possible. 5. Inhale; exhale slowly, giving the sound of long o, in pure tone, prolonged for five seconds; next for ten seconds ; then foi fifteen seconds ; and finally, as long as possible. G- Inhale; exhale slowly, giving for ten seconds the sound of long e ; of Italian a ; of long oo. 7. Inhale ; repeat, in monotone, the long vowels, a, r, i, o, u, until the breath is exhausted. 8. Inhale ; count, with one breath, to 10 ; next, to 20 ; then, to 30. 9. Repeat, in one breath, the letters of the alphabet. 10. Inhale slowly; exhale slowly, giving the sound of liquid I prolonged for five seconds; ten seconds: fifteen seconds ; twenty seconds ; next, the sound of m ; of n ; of r. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 15 SECTION" II. VOWEL SOUNDS OB VOCALS. I. Table of Diacritical Markings. I. PHONIC MARKS OF VOCALS. Macron. Breve. Circumflex. Two dots, One dot. Wave or — < y /\ •• • Tilde. - ale at air arm, all ask, what eve, they end where her Ice, by it, lynx pique sir old on or prove son, wolf moon book use U P urge rule pull II. EQUIVALENT vocals or substitutes. a — o what, not 6 = ii done, sun e = a they, day 0, U — 00 move, rule, school i = e sir, her 0, U = 00 wolf, pull, wool e = a there, care y- 1 rhyme, time : i = e pique, weak y = i hymn, whim b = & or, all III. MARKINGS OF SUBVOCALS AND ASPIRATES. 9, chr^s, sh c,ent, eliaige § = z ]"§, ro§e ■e, -eh-k -eake, a-ehe 5h, vocal fhis, fhat g, hard go, get n = ng ink, wink fc> —J gem, age x = gz example 16 SCHOOL ELOCUTION, II. Illustrations of Vocals. i. The long sound of a. Marked with a macron, thus — a. The equivalents of long a are also included. Avoid prolonging the vanish- ing e sound, thus — ma -eed for made. age day break great gauge pale gay steak straight yea aid may deign weight neic/h — o paid way reign freight — o sleigh WORDS OFTEN MISPRONOUNCED. a/re a ra/dix prai'rie a'pri cot na'ked ra'tion ■eais'son ap pa ra'tus mayor pa/tron gla'mour maelstrom ma'tron pastry hein'ous pa tri otic ma/cron sa'chem pa/tri ot va'ri c 5 gat ed II. Italian or open a. Marked with two dots over it, thus — a. Avoid the provincialism of haf for half, laf for laugh, etc. art -calf palm ah! gaunt launch are half psalm bah! haunt staunch arm halves salve paths jaunt laugh alms -calves lath aunt taunt quiilms balm bath gape daunt ciaunch zouave -calm path wrath flaunt haunch hearth WORDS OFTEN MISPRONOUNCED. dauntless jaun'dice siiun' ter Col o ra'do guii'va laun'dry jiiunt fj Ne va'da gualio laugh'ter pi alio Mon ta'na gauntlet lla'ma so pr a'no Tu la're haimt'eri pla'za ft mi le Si» la'no . SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 17 in. The broad sound of a. Marked with two dots under it, thus — a. Avoid the two extremes: (1) That of giving a the sound of short o, as 611 for awl, etc. (2) That of making a equal to two syllables, as aVul for all, caw'ul for call, etc. ball ■caught chalk al'der faucet tall ought talk al'ways cal'drpn drawl brought stalk au'ger falchion crawl thought Qauze o.. -caucus pal'try sprawl groat haul saucer or'der iv. The short sound of a. Marked with a breve, thus — a. Avoid giving short a, as in at, the sound of intermediate «, as in ask, or of Italian a, as in alms. Say and, not and; an'swer, not an'swer etc. and an'swer pat'ent ration al bade bar'rel pag'eant rail'le ry catch har'row rath'er sat'ir ist plant mar'ry nation al suav'i ty plaid nar'row pat'ron age tap'est ry V. Sound of a as in care. Marked with a circumflex, thus — a. Avoid the two extremes : (1) That of giving it the sound of Italian «, as char for chair, thar for there, etc. (2) That of long a, as ca'er for care, tha'er for there, a'er for air, etc. air swear there pare par'ent dare square where pair fair'y rare wear their fare char'y fair hare hair lair scarcely bear pear heir prayer scar^i ty 18 SCHOOL ELOCUTION vi. Intermediate a, as in ask. Marked with a dot over it, thus — a. This is a medium sound between Italian a and short a. Avoid the two extremes : (1) That of Italian a, as farst for fast, darnce for dance, etc. (2) That of short a, as ask for ask, dance for dance, after for after, etc. •chant dance chaff daft ask ant aft bask basque brass blast -easqUe -chance cast ■class craft ■clasp ■eask draft draught fast flask glass grass graft grant glance gasp grasp hasp haft last lance mass mast mask pass past pant prance quaff raft rasp si l aft • staff skint task trance I. WORDS OFTEN MISPRONOUNCED. In all these words be careful to give a its intermediate sound as in ask, not the short sound as in and. after fast'er mas'ter pass'port bas'ket fast'est mas'tiff raft'er eas'ket glass'y pastime slant'ing ■elass'es grass'y pas'tor task'work -eraft'y lasting plas'ter vast'ness ■erafts'man massive pasture waft'ed a slant' a mass' a las' a vast ad vance a baft' II. WORDS OFTEN MISPRONOUNCED. com mand' ad vau'tage dis mast' ad vance'ment de mand' com mand'ment en hance' en chant'ment en chant' en hance'ment per chance' re mand'ed SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 19 vii. Sound of a as in what. Marked with a dot under it, thus — a. This sound is equivalent to short o, as in not. The word wlwi is pronounced hwut, not writ. was squash squab'ble stal'wart wad swap squat'ter wal-let wasp swan squal'id wal'low yacht swamp squad'ron wad'dle squab swab quar'rel wan'ton squad wand swallow was'sail Call on the class for additional words. viii. The Ions: sound of e. Marked with a macron, thus — e. Long e is one of the three vowel extremes, a and o being the other two. be thief ei'ther e'go tism tree niece nei'ther e'qui poise beam siege leisure le'ni ent •clean seize le'ver a me'na ble ear deed fe'brile pre Qed'ence eaves fierce fe'tich re'qul em IX. The short sound of e. Marked with a breve, thus — e. Avoid yit for yet, aig for egg } etc. beg feoff leath'er ket'tle tep'id leg an'y measure met'ric tcn'et bread mer'ry pleasure preface res'in said bur'y bes'tial pet'rel a gain' says heifer deVade per'uke a gainst' deaf leop'ard fet'id seck'el forget' 20 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. x. Sound of e as in verse. Marked with a wave or tilde, thus — e. This sound nearly coincides wi tli the sound of u as in urge, but is not quite so broad and guttural. Avoid the error of sounding e like ai, as airth for earth, etc. Give the r after e its full t sound. err serve earth er'mine serv'ant her verse earn earnest veYdict herd vercre o learn meYcy herb'age fern verb heard merchant earnings pert were myrrh per'son seYmon nerve germ thirst peYfect service xi. Sound of e as in there. Marked with a circumflex, thus — e. This sound is identical with the sound of a as in care, there air hair therefore where their air ere e'er heir ne'er where'fore where a§' xii. Sound of e as in they. Marked with a macron under it, thus — e. is identical with Ions a. they prey pray This sound whey weight — o vein neiol/bor — o way freight vain hein'oua neioh — o straight deism — o lii'bor xiii. The long sound of i and Marked with a macron, thus — I, y. Isle die liar fire style eye lyre buy'er fire ties by ti'ny lyre aye§ rye tyrant ho ri'zon in quTiV de rl'sive as pi r 'a nt SCHOOL ELOCUTION, 21 xiv. The short sound of i and y. Marked with a breve, thus — i, y. hirn lynx district trib'une hymn nymph syn'ocl syr'up withe sylph vlne'yard vi-e'ar myth rhythm syr'inge pret'ty pith schism syntax wit'ty xv. Sound of i as in first. Marked with a wave or tilde, thus — 1. This sound is identical with the sound of e as in her. Avoid giving the broader and more guttural sound of u as in urge. Be careful to give r its full sound. first lurch sir qir'-ele vir'tue thirst birth fir cir'-euit vir'gin girl dirge stir clr'cus stir'rup mirth verge earn gir'dle squirrel firm earth fern irk'some sir'loin worm myrrh learn meYcy thirty world dearth her earthly worfh'y w r ork bird perch early qeYtain worse gird heard earnest mirth'ful worth pearl hearse earth'en worthless xvi. Sound of i as in pique. Marked with two dots over it, thus — i. This sound is equivalent to that of long e as in me. an tique' cui sine ma chine bas tile 7 de bris' ma rine' ■ea priqe' e lite' po lice' che nille' en nui' pe tite' c^he nrige' fa tigue' ob lique' cri tique' fas cine' pe lisse' rou tine' ra vine' re gime' ton tine' u nique' phy §iqiie' 22 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. xvii. The long sound of o. Marked with a macron, thus — 6. Avoid shortening or obscui ing the sound of long o as in old, in such words as road, coat, home, bone, stone, etc bone -eolt jolt yoke only stone •comb most yolk 6'ral both dolt smoke quoth wholly broke folks spoke beau close'ly choke hold flown show lonely cloak home whole won't tro'phy croak roam more do n't o'pal oak hold roar goat o'dor I. WORDS OFTEN 3IISPRONOUNCED. Avoid the error of saying horse for hoarse, force for force. boat -eoax door •coarse gourd blow •coat load floor hoarse mourn trow toad loam brooch source toll glow toast oath pour force poll sew road oats porch board s-eroll quoth goad throat borne hoard roll gross II. WORDS OFTEN MISPRONOUNCED. In words like the following, avoid the error of giv- ing lon'j: o the sound of o as in or'der ; as IxVder For board'er, for'ger for for'ger, portrait for portrait, etc. Give its full, long sound. board'er por'ter an chr/vy de eo'rous bowl'der pdr'tion a ro'ma di plo'ma cj bow'sprit portrait ab do'men di plo'ma list poul'try for'ger eo ro'na op po'nent poiil'tice stor'age eon df/lence so no'rous shoul'der moum'er 60g no'men for'ger y SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 23 xviii. The short sound of'O. Marked with a breve, thus — o. The sound of short o, as in not, is slightly modified by the different con- sonants with which it is combined. In words like cough, gone, loss, etc., the sound of short o is modified so that it tends towards a sound intermediate between short o and broad a. Avoid the common error of saying dawg or dorg for dog ; gawd or gord for god ; also, that of giit for got, etc. on clog off €OSt moth cough of fog scoff lost cloth trough odd log moss frost . . oft long box got loss sloth soft strong fox god toss broth loft gong phlox hod ■cross troth gone wrong I. WORDS OFTEN MISPRONOUNCED. In every word give o its clean-cut short sound. -eonfma doc/ile floYin mon'acl -eom'mon don'key hov'el nonfad -ejm'et for'est groVel office -eom'bat fore'head lioYrid " or'ange -eonfrade frontier JoVund offset -eol'lar for'age 'ipiVy offing ejn'flict god'ly softly dog'ma -eoi/strue sloth'ful oft'en doctor II. WORDS OFTEN MISPRONOUNCED. bon'net proc/ess stol'id dof or ous •coffee progress squalid hofo -eaust •coffin proj'ect quar'rel inon'o gram ■eor'al phon'ic be troth' i mofe -eule prod'uct proVost be long 7 on'er ous prod'uce son'net ex tol' or'a -ele 24 SCnOOL ELOCUTION. xix. Sound of o as in done. Marked with a dot over it, thus — 6. This sound is identical with short u as in sun. none some a bdve' oven does tongue bom'bast on'ion doth rough borough oth'er dost -eol/or cov'er plov'er come -eov'et hov'er eous'in bomb doz'en hon'ey slov'eu blood •eon'jure mon'grel wor'ry xx. Sound of o as in move. Marked with two dots under it, thus — o. This sound is identical with that of oo in moon, and of u after r, as in rule. Avoid the provincialism of reducing the sound of o, oo, and u to that of long u or ew, thus — dew for do, trew for true, tew for to, yew for you, skewl for school, etc. The sound of o, oo, or u is one of the extremes of the vowel scale, made correctly by projecting the lips free from the teeth. move hoof croup youth •Ca noe' prove roof group truth a do/ lose root soup through sham poo' d'o boot whoop grew bam buo' to spoon loop tool tat too' too soon route ghoul ap prove' two noon shoot con tour* re proof you school wound ba rouche' be hove 7 noose rule soon car tourhe' gam boge' loose feol moon ta boo' de tour* cool rude your rai'er who goose ruse shoe move'ment whom moose choo§9 soothe moon'shine whose spoon fruit tour ob trude' ru'ral SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 25 XXL Sound of o as in for. Marked with a circumflex, thus — 6. This sound of o is identical with broad a as in all. It occurs before r in words of one syllable ; in accented syllables when not followed by another r; and also in the derivatives of such words as north, northern, etc. Be careful to sive r its full sound. or corpse cor'dial gor'geous cor'ner for horse bor'der mo/tal cor'nice nor storm formal mor'sel or'der born thorn fcVceps mortgage orchard xxii. Sound of o as in wolf. Marked with a dot under it, thus — o. This sound is identical with that of short oo, as in book, and that of u as in full. wolf -could n't wors'ted book pull would would n't wolfish cook hood ■could should n't good'ness hook put bo'som wood'en wc/man look push xxiii. The long sound of u. Marked with a macron, thus — u. This is a compound sound, formed of a slight sound of y joined with oo long. After d, t, I, n, and s, it is somewhat difficult to introduce the y sound. Avoid the two extremes : (1) That of overdoing the y sound, so as to make dii'ty sound like ju'ty. (2) That of sounding u like oo long, as doc/ty for dii'ty. u§e cube due lieu suit pure fuge cure sue view deuce lure mu§e tube hue ewe feud dupe mute tune flue new sluice dime 26 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. I. WORDS OFTEN MISPRONOUNCED. bu'gle flu'id mu'sic hu'mid beau'ty liu'man pu'pil nui'sanee eu'bie ju'ry pu'trid neu'ter du'ty lu'plne stu'pid suit'or II. WORDS OFTEN MISPRONOUNCED. €01n mu'ni -eate -eom mu/ni ty lu'na cy •eon sti tu'tion eii'mu la tive lu'na tic el o eu'tion lu'min a ry mu'gi eal rev o lu'tion lu gu'bri ous ed'u eate in sti tu'tion per pe tu'i ty eaTeu late xxiv. The short sound of u. Marked with a breve, thus — u. Avoid the vulgarism of saying op for up, on'der for un'de'r, etc. Say hur'ry, bud bur'row un'der eur'ren cy buff fur'row up'per sov'er eim dumb muYrain iit'ter huYri cane euYry flur'ry gutter droin'e da ry xxv. Sound of u as in rule. Marked with two dots under it, thus — u. This sound of u, when it follows the consonant r, is identical with that of o as in move, and oo in moon, little rhymes with fool, rude with mood, true with too, you with grew. brute rule brui§e pru'denc^e ru'mor fruit sehool emi§e pru'dent tru/ant erude truth eru'el prud'ish truly rude youth gru'el ru'in truffle prude true brutal ru'ral dru'id prune chew bru'in ruthless do'in" SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 27 XXYI. Sound of u as in urge. Marked with a circumflex, thus — u. This sound occurs in monosyllables before r not followed by a vowel; in accented syllables before r final, or r followed by one or more consonants different from itself, and in deriva- tives from any such words. It coincides with e as in verge, i as in thirst, and o as in word, except that u is somewhat broader and more guttural. burn furl spurt word sur'geon burst hurl spurn work stur'geon ■cur hurt purge worm mur'der •eurl purse urn world nmrliiur ■curse nurse turn worth bur'den xxvii. Sound of u as in full. Marked with a dot under it thus — u. This sound is identical with that of o as in wolf, and short oo as in book. bull puss bullock pullet bush pull butch'er pulley push full bush'eg pul'pifc - put wolf bulrush pud'ding wood cook bullet putting xxviii. The dipht' rong oi as in oil The diphthongs oi and oy are equivalents. The sound of oi ls a compound of a-f-i. oil hoist foist j°y boifer boil moist poige troy loi'ter broil joist noi§e boy roy^l coil toil quoit buoy loy'al ■coin soil point toy oint'ment loin roil joint oys'ter voy'age 28 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. xxix. The diphthongs ou and ow. The diphthong ou, identical with ow, is a compound of a + o. Open the mouth freely in giving the initial of this sound. out ■eow ground hour bower ounce how round flour power our now sound sour lower doubt owl ■elown scour shower drought fowl drown plow tower gouge howl frown slough dower III. Exercises on Vocals. I. HINTS AND SUGGESTIONS. Concert drill exercises on the following table may be given as follows : 1. Preliminary breathing exercise. 2. Concert phonic spelling of the words under each vocal. 3. Concert pronunciation of words, with various de- grees of force from the whisper to loud force, and with the rising, the falling, and the circumflex inflections. 4. It' time will allow, require each pupil, singly, to take the drill indicated above. II. TABLE OF VOCAES. a. — ale, sail, pay, they, vein, gauge, break, gaol. ii. — ah ! are, half, laugh, hearth, guard, aunt, alms, a, 6. — all, awe, aught, broad, stalk, naught, ought, a. — add, and, at, bade, plaid, catch, man, hand, a, e\ — air, dare, bear, there, square, Ore, heir, e'er, a. — ant, ask, dance, chance, glass, last, staff, gasp. a, o. — was, wand, wasp, what, swap, not, blot, god. e. — me, we, bee, bean, fierce, niece, seize, key, tea e. — end, dread, said, say§, deaf, feoff ; yes, get, yet. SCHOOL ELOCUTION 29 TABLE OF VOCALS.— Continued. e, 1. — err, her, earth, were, verge, myrrh, thirst, work, e, a. — vein, deign, rein, they, prey, weight, neigh. e, L — there, where, air, ere, bare, ne'er, care, e'er. I, y. — Ice, pine, fire, lyre, lie, liar, aisle, aye§, eye§. 1. — in, pin, been, hymn, myth, sieve, build, since. I, e. — thirst, first, girl, earn, learn, bird, third, worst, i', e. — pique, clique, ob liquet pol ice', ma fine', o.— old, oak, broke, pour, ore, door, toll, sew, tow. o, a. — odd, not, dog, god, lost, off, cough, moss, loss. o, oo, ii. — move, moon, rule, do, route, true, grew, you. 6, a. — or, nor, horse, quart, wart, corn, storm, born. 6, u. — done, son, doe§ 3 cloth, sponge, blood, flood, rim. o, oo, u. — wolf, would, wood, should, book, cook, put, u. — u§e, mu§e, due, few, view, feud, tune, cube, tube, ii, 6. — tub, but, dust, trust, done, doe§, bomb, crumb. ii, oo, o — rule, rude, truth, youth, spoon, move, prove, u. — urge, purge, burn, turn, fur, burr, cur, curl, furl, u, 66, o. — put, pull, push, bush, puss, book, took, oi, oy. — oil, boil, toil, boy, joy, cloy, roil, coil, foil, ou, ow. — out, our, ounce, flour, power, sour, owl. III. CONCERT DRIIX. In concert drill on the follovjing table, observe the fol- lovnng directions. 1. Eead the columns vertically. 2. Repeat with slow movement ; moderate ; fast. 3. Repeat in a forcible whisper. 4. Repeat with gentle force; moderate; loud. a-a-a e-e-e U-ll-U a-a-a I— I— I u-u-ii a-a-a i-i-i u-u-u a-a-a 6—5-0 u-u-u e-e-e 0-0-0 oi-oi-oy e-e-e 0-0-0 ou-ou-ow 30 SCHOOL ELOCUTION IV. Vowel Sounds in Unaccented Syllables. There are many delicate shades of sound in unac- cented vowels which must be learned from the lips of the living teacher, or by noticing carefully the pro- nunciation of educated and critical people. The cented beg'gar collar dollar ll'ar molar polar stellar cellar •cap tain curiam qeYtain I. Final unaccented ar, er, ir, or, yr. vowels a, e, i, o, u, y, preceding r in final unac- syllables, have the sound of c as in her. al'der arliior suTphur banlier aVdor au'gttr ladder color zeph'yr pa'per o'dor marly r ta'pir parlor salyr na'dir felnur hon'or mill or lelnur lion (-urn) ma'jor miirlnur a'pron(-urn) II. Final -ain like -en. muYrain chieftain villain chaplain bar gain plan'tain in. Words having a or o unaccented. In words like the following, a or o in unaccented final syllables has a slightly obscured sound of short u. ffnal vital phantom ten'ant fiscal vo'cal transom gallop le'gal velial handsome ballad menial eomlnon hamlnoek saTad morlal ■eiis'tom hill'ock sea'man na'§al blos'som tVphan firelnan na'val drag'on tra'ant brake'man o'val serlnon servant balance SCHOOL ELOCUTION. iv. Final unaccented a. 31 Unaccented a, at the end of a word, has the sound of intermediate a, verging towards short u, as com'ma or cum mu. con/ma al'ge bra pi az'za va nil'la c'ra a're a co ro'na guer ilia ex'tra a re'na ver'te bra fa ri'na, la'va, cu'po la man til'la lam'i na ml'ca op'e ra scin til'la mem o ran'da so'fa i de'a um brel'la a nath'e ma v. Sound of a in unaccented final syllables. In words like the following, a has the sound of short e; as, -age: = ej and -ater set. cour'age niar'riage sav'age pal'ate dam'age carriage ug'age pl'rate drain'age mlle'age ag'ate frig'ate fiont'age postage cll'mate ad van'tage leakage tillage pri'vate per cent'agt vi. Unaccented a as an initial syllable. In the first syllable of words like the following, the vowel a, when unaccented, has nearly the sound of short a a little obscured, or of a as in ask, verging towards short u ; as a bout', a bove' ; or a bout', a bove'. Avoid the common error of giving a the long sound ; as a, bove', ma chine' ; also that of short u, as u bout', u bove'. In the dictionary this sound is unmarked. a bove' a gain' a like' ea det' ga zette y a bout' a larm' a mong' -ea nal' ma chin a buse' a las' a part' ea less' ma rine' a cross' a live' a ri§e' ea nard' ra vine' a dult' a lone' a side' ea noe' ca reen' 32 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. vii. Silent e and o. In the ft blowing words and some others, e and o are silent before n or /, thus — heaven = hevn, evil =evL bacon golden listen open season button garden leaven often sudden cotton gladden leaden person spoken crimson glisten lengthen parson sloven deacon given liken poison shovel damson glutton lesson rea§on shrivel devil grovel lessen reckon snivel driven heathen mason raven smitten even heaven mutton raisin sunken evil harden maiden ridden token easel hasten moisten ' rotten teasel fallen happen mitten ravel weasel frozen hazel oven seven weaken frighten kitten ousel silken weapon vni. Short i in unaccented final syllables. ag'ile fac/ile sanguine o mas'cu line doc/ile fer'tile siib'tile fein'l nine des'tine frag'ile ster'ile gen'u ine duc'tile flex'ile tex'tile heYo ine cn'gine hos'tile vi'rile pu'er lie er'mine mo'bile ver'sa tile ju've nile IX. Short i in unaccented initial syllables. di vide' di vest' di gress' dl plo'ma di late' di vert' mi nute' dl ges'tion di lute' di viilge' gi raffe' dl vls'ion di reef di verge' qi gar' di la'tion di gest' di vorce' fi nance' di rec'tion di van' di vine' ti rade' bl tu'men SCHOOL ELOCUTION., 33 X. Sound of short i and y in unaccented syllables. In words like the following, there is a tendency to give short c the sound of obscure e or a, and to pra- long final -ty into -te. ac tivl ty gul li bill ty re spon si bill ty a gill ty in teTli gi. ble tran quilli ty de bill ty in coYri gi. ble pos si bil'i ty di vis i bill ty in vin'c.i ble u til'i ty el i gi bill ty il legl ble u na niml ty fu §i bill ty in finl ty in com pat i bill ty XL Sound of u in unaccented final syllables. In the pronunciation of words of two syllables ending in -ture, -dure, or -sure, there is a slight difference in good usage. By some, the word creature, for example, is pronounced as if spelled thus — creat'yer, verging tow- ards crea'cher ; by others it is pronounced thus — creat'yoor. crea'ture frac'ture na'ture rap'ture cullure fulure nurlure scriplure caplure geslure pas'ture structure fealure leclure pic'ture venlure fix'ture leisure poslure ver'dure vullure su'ture ves'ture riip'ture XII. Sound of u in unaccented final syllables. In words of more than two syllables, the sound of -ure is made somewhat longer than in words of two syllables ; as furniture is pronounced fur'nit yoor. ap'er ture lit'er a ture carl -ea ture o'ver ture tem'per a ture jii'di ca ture lig'a ture mini a ture sig'na ture siglia ture ap'er ture cur'va ture s 34 SCHOOL ELOCUTION, XIII. The syllable -tude. ap'ti tude al'ti tude at'ti tude lon'gi tude las'si tiide niuTti tiide rec'ti tiide sol'i tide seYvi tude xrv. Long o unaccented. mo roc'co po ta/to o pln'ion to bac'co pro portion pi ii'no ag'o ny up'po g'lte eTo quence xv. Miscellaneous Hints. 1. The article a is sounded in connection with the word that follows it; as, "a book" is sounded as one word of two syllables, thus — a-book'. Here the article has the sound of long a, obscured and cut off suddenly. It is not good usage to give it the sound of short u, thus — ii-book', or of fir-book'. 2. Before a word beginning with a consonant the article the, except when emphatic, is sounded as a syllable of the word which it precedes, as the-book', pronounced as a word of two syllables, accented on the last. In such cases the obscured c sound in the is really repre- sented by short i, rather than by short u; as, thi-book', thi-horse', tin-school'. It is sometimes indicated thus — th'-book', th'-horse'. 3. Before words beginning with a vowel, as the-air', the-ice', c in the has the long sound, less obscured and shortened than when the precedes a word beginning with a consonant. The error in sounding the articles a and the frequently arises from attempts to give their phonic spelling independent of their connection with the words that follow them. In order to sound the articles cor- rectly, notice how they are pronounced, by persons of good taste, in ordinary conversation. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 35 SECTION" III. CONSONANT SOUNDS. I. Articulation. 1. Distinct articulation is essential to good reading and speaking. "The first step towards becoming a good elocutionist," says Conistock, "is a correct articulation. A public speaker, possessed of only a moderate voice, if he articulates correctly, will be better understood, and heard with greater pleasure, than one who vociferates without judgment. The voice of the latter may indeed extend to a considerable distance, but the sound is dis- sipated in confusion. Of the former voice not the smallest vibration is wasted ; every stroke is perceived at the utmost distance to which it readies ; and hence it has often the appearance of penetrating even farther than one which is loud, but badly articulated." 2. "In just articulation," says Austin, ''the words are not hurried over, nor precipitated syllable over syllable ; nor, as it were, melted together into a mass of confusion ; they are neither abridged, nor prolonged; nor swallowed, nor forced, and, if I may so express myself, shot from the mouth; they are not trailed nor drawled, nor let slip out carelessly, so as to drop unfinished. They are delivered out from the lips, as beautiful coins newly issued from the mint, deeply and accurately impressed, perfectly finished, neatly struck by the proper organs, distinct, sharp, in due succession, and of due weight." 3. The best way of "training the organs of speecli to good articulation is by means of forcible phonic spelling and by drill-exercises on the elementary sounds, partic- ularly on subvocals and aspirates. 4. " Articulate utterance," says Prof. Bussell,- " requires a constant exercise of discrimination of the mind, and of precision or accuracy in the movements of tlie organs 36 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. of speech. A correct articulation, however, is not be- labored or artificial in its character. It results from the intuitive and habitual action of a disciplined attention. It is easy, fluent, and natural; but, like the skillful execution of an accomplished musician, it gives forth every sound, even in the most rapid passages, with truth and correctness. 5. "A good enunciation gives to every vowel and consonant its just proportion and character; none being omitted, no one blending with another in such a manner as to produce confusion, and none so carelessly executed as to cause mistake in the hearer, by its resemblance to another. 6. "A correct enunciation is the fundamental quality of a distinct and impressive elocution. It is an attain- ment of great value, for the ordinary purposes of communication; but it becomes doubly important, in the act of reading or speaking in public, whether we advert to the larger space which must be traversed by the voice, or the greater moment of the topics of discourse which are usual on such occasions. 7. " The appropriate style of modern eloquence is that of intellectual, more than of impassioned, expression ; and enunciation being, of all the functions of the voice, that which is most important to the conveyance of thought and meaning, it justly requires, in the course of education, more attention and practice than any other branch of elocution." II. Classification of Elementary Sounds. The elementary sounds are classified as follows : 1. Vocals, or tonics. 2. Subvocals, or subtonics. 3. Aspirates, or atonies. Vocals, represented by vowels, are sounds consisting of pure tone only. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 37 Subvocals, represented by consonants, are sounds that have tone, but are inferior to vocals in fullness. A consonant can not be named without the aid of a vowel, as o is named in the alphabet, be. Hence the term consonant, sounded with. Aspirates, represented by consonants, are sounds with- out tone. Letters are characters to represent articulate sounds. III. Diacritical Marks of Consonants. [As given in Webster's Dictionary.] 9 soft — gede, gent, ■e hard — call, la-e. ch unmarked — church, ch soft — ghaise, chute, eh hard — chyle, -chyme, g hard — gum, log. g soft— gem, gin. § soft — z — ha§, hi§. s sharp — c — sin, gas. th sharp — thing, bath. £h fiat — thine, smooth. ng unmarked— sing, riri n- — ink, link, x =.ks — box, fox. 5 = gz — exist, ex^alt. ph = f — phlox, sylph, qu — kw — queen, queer, wh = hw — when, why. IV. Drill Lessons on Consonant Sounds. I. SUBVOCAXS. Iii concert drill- exercises on the following table, observe the following directions : 1. Pronounce each word distinctly, and then give, forcibly, the phonic spelling. 2. Eepeat, forcibly, each sub vocal and aspirate three times, thus — b, b, b; d> cl, d, etc. 3. After concert drill, require each pupil, in turn, to give the sounds. b. — bib, babe, bee, ebb, mob, rub, sob, -ejb. d. — did, dog, dead, odd, dread, died, said, bed. g.— gag, gig, grog, get, girl, gills, gig'gle. 38 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. J — j°y> just, jug, gill, gem, gin, gln'ger. 1. — lull, lull, mill, bell, sale, boil, toil, soil, m. — man, maim, mum, dim, rum, some. n. — nun, none, noun, name, rim, gun. r {rough). — rude, rule, room, rood, roll, roar. r (smooth). — or, ore, more, oar, year, deer, v. — valve, vale, vine, live, of, veer, vote. w. — will, woe, we, wine, wet, wind, wood. y. — yes, yet, you, yam, yarn, yoke, yacht, z. — zone, ooze, lo§e, nose, blaze, craze, zli. — azure, measure, pleasure, treasure, th. — thy, thine, this, with, blithe, bathe, ng. — king, ring, rang, rung, sing, sang, siing. n. — ink, link, think, wink, blink. ? = gz. — exist, example, exhort, exhaust. II. ASPIRATES. f. — fife, if, fill, beef, buff, off, laugh. h. — how, home, hill, had, here, hair, hail. k, -e, eh. — kill, kick, -cake, -eome, ehyle, ehyme. p. — pipe, ripe, pup, pop, pip, peep. s. — sauce, cease, cite, Qell, sense, c,ents. t. — too, clot, tilt, trot, trust, twit, wit. sh, (;h. — shall, sham, rash, dash, c, liaise, chute. ch. — chin, chop, rich, ditch, church, birch. th. — thin, thick; pith, teeth, truth, youth. X = ks. — box, fox, locks, vex, necks, tax, lax, wax. V. Miscellaneous Hints. 1. Do not be over-particular about a heavy articula- tion of the d in and. The d should be sounded, but not so painfully emphasized as to become an elocu- tionary affectation. 2. Th is vocal, as in Chine, in the following plurals: baths, la£h§, paths, moths., clofli§, oaths, mouths, swafh§, wreafhg, boofhg; and in blithe, lithe, with, and beneath. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. o! SECTION IV. CLASSIFICATION OF ELEMENTARY SOUNDS. I. Table of Elementary Sounds. I. VOCALS. a a-oe, n-a-me If Ml, h-y-mn a a-lm§, a-rt o-ld, 11-0 a s-fl. 1-aw o O-D, o-dd a a-t, a-n O, 00 m-o-ve, m-oo-n a a-ir, e-a-re u u-se, d-ue a a-sk, ■el-a-ss u u-p, s-ii-n e e-ve, m-e 11 u-rge, b-u-rn c e-hd, 11, 00 f-u-U, w-oo-1 e h-e-r, e-rr oi, oy oi-I, b-oy i>y I-ce, m-y ou, ow ou-t, ow-1 II. SUBVOCAI.S. b b-i-b, b-a-be r r-oa-r, re-a-r d d-i-d, de-ad €h fh-Ine, wi-fh g g-a-g, g-i-g V v-al-ve, wa-ve J j-am, g-em w w-ill, w-ell 1 1-u-ll, be-U y y-es, y-et m m-ai-ni, mi-ne z z-one, z-in-e n n-u-n, nl-ne zh, z a-z'ure, sei'z-urs Dg, 11 rl-ng, ra-n-k III. ASPIRATES. f f-i-fe, o-ff t t-en-t, t-ar-t h h-at, h-ill ch ch-ur-ch, ch-ain k k-ill, boo-k sb sh-ip, wi-sb P p-I-pe, p-ut th thi-ck,, pa-th s s-ell, s-en-se wh wh-en, wh-ere 40 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. IT. Vocals and Equivalents. [Arranged according to tlia natural order of tlicir formation by tJie organs of speech.] I. LONG. II. SHORT. e e-ve, m-e 1 I-n, I-t a a-le, a-ge e e-nd, m-e-n a ai-r, c-a-re a a-t, a-n a a-liu§, h-a-lf a a-sk, p-a-ss il • u-rge, c-u-rl u u-p, b-ii-d a a-11, . 1-aw o u-n, d-o-g o-ld, n-o u p-u-11, p-u-t m-o-ve d-o COMPOUNDS AND DIPHTHONGS— LONG. u = i + oo. — u-se, m-u-te. i=~a+e. — I-ce, m-I-ne. ou = a + oo. — ou-t, th-ou. oi = a.-f e. — oi-1, b-ov. III. SUBVOCALS AND ASPIRATES. [Arranged according to tlie natural order of tlicir formation by the organs of speech.] I. COGNATES. SUBVOCALS. ASPIRATES. b b-i-b, b-a-be P P-i-pe, p-6-p w W-lll, W-00 wh Wll-CD, wh-y V v-a-lve, w-a-vo f f-I-ie, f-eo-ff fh fh-Ine, wl-fh th th-ick, mo-th z z-one, sl-ze s s-ay, s-ee d d-i-d, d-rea-d t t-en-t, t-ro-t j j-oy, • jj-ail cli ch-ur-ch ch-Inie zli a-z-ure sh sh-all, sli-ow y J-es, 7-ell li h-o\v, li-ome g 9-ag, pH k e-a-ke, e-o-ko SCHOOL ELOCUTION, 41 II. SUBTONICS WITHOUT COGNATES. m. — m-ai-m, a-m. n. — n-ii-n, n-I-ne. I;— 1-u-ll, oi-L r {rough). — r-ule, r-oom. r {smooth). — o-re, mo-re. ne.- IV. Table of Consonant Sounds. [Classified according to tlieir formation by tJie organs of speech.] In order to secure correct aud forcible articulation, it may be desirable to call the attention of pupils to the position of the organs of speech in making the conso- nant sounds. Teachers can do this without any detailed instructions in print. Lip Sounds. [Labials.] b m wh P w b-a-be, m-ai-m, wh-y, p-i-pe w-ay wh-en Lips and Teeth. [Labio-Dentals.] f V f-i-fe, v-ine, f-eo-ff e-ve Tongue and Teeth. [Linguo-Dentals.] d fh J s z t th ch sh zh d-i-d, fh-is, j-oy, s-un, z-one, t-eu-t th-ink ch-ur-ch sh-un a-z'ure Tongue and Palate. [Linguo- Palatals.] 1 y k r g-ood, l-u-U, y-et, boo-k r-oa-r y-es "Nasal Passages. n n-o-ne, si-ng, n-i-ne ri-ng Glottis. h h-at, h-ow 42 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. V. Phonic Drill. — Subvocals and Aspirates. b. — babe, bribe, rib, bid, robe, bird, curb, g, s. — cent, singe, onge, Ige, face, race, sense, cli. — church, birch, lunch, chee§e, chime, d. — did, dead, ride, dlge, death, thread, dried, f, gh. — fine, off, fife, fear, deaf, foot, laugh, g— g^g> gig. game, pis, rag, good, gauge, h. — home, how, who, hair, hate, hill, hi§. j, g-— J°y> just, jet, age, page, gem, gill, k, -e. — kill, kite, look, came, could, cake, crowd, •eh. — ache, chord, chyme, chyle, ehoir, chorus. 1. — look, lull, ball, boil, lad, well, tall, pale. in. — make, room, main, moon, numb, maim, n. — noon, neat, ten, nine, nun, pin, none, ng. — sing, ring, thing, bank, rank, thank, p. — pipe, cup, cape, hope, ripe, drop, paid. r. — roar, rear, fire, floor, door, store, more, s, 9. — sauce, singe, saw, Ige, intense, source. sh, gh. — shine, shall, ghaise, wish, bush, chute. t. — tent, dot, tell, w T rite, time, trot, threat, th. — thick, death, thin, length, width, throat, fh. — this, these, fhose, then, Chat, wifh, their, v. — vine, eve, vote, move, veer, nerve, vest, w. — wind, wet, woe, wait, wear, wl§e, wood. wh. — when, where, why, what, wheat, wheel. x = ks. — ox, box, locks, ax, tax, lacks, vex, fox. x = gz. — exact, exist, example, exhaust, exert v.— yes, yet, yell, year, young, youth, truth, z. — zone, biizz, breeze, ooze, lo§e, i§, zinc. zh. — azure, pleasure, measure, treasure. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 43 VI Articulation Drill. First, pronounce each word very distinctly and forcibly ; then give the phonic spelling, and re-pronounce the word. rb. — orb, herb, verb, -eiirb, barb, garb, rd. — hard, lard, bard, -eard, board, hoard, rk. — ark, bark, park, hark, mark, lark, spr. — spring, sprang, sprung, spray, sprite, rt. — art, heart, part, cart, dart, start, str. — string, strung, straight, strength, stray. sts. — masts, fasts, fists, nests, vests, pests, sks. — asks, tasks, basks, casks, masks, skt. — asked, tasked, basked, masked, rasped, sps. — gasps, clasps, rasps, hasps, grasps, spt. — gasped, clasped, rasped, hasped, grasped. £h. — this, that, fhe§e, those, with, bathe, th. — three, throat, thrill, thick, thin, bath. wh. — when, where, why, what, which, wheat, dn. — laden, burden, harden, sadden, gladden. kn. — hearken, liken, weaken, spoken, broken, pn. — open, weapon, happen, ripen, deepen, vn. — given, seven, oven, heaven, leaven, even, sn. — glisten, hasten, fasten, lesson, mason. VII. Articulation Drill. 1. Bound the rough rock the ragged rascal ran. 2. Shoes and socks shock Susan. (Repeat.) 3. The scene was truly rural. (Repeat.) 4. She uttered a sharp, shrill shriek. (Repeat.) 5. The difficulties were formidable, inexplicable, and irremediable. 6. Amidst the mists and coldest frosts, With stoutest wrists and loudest boasts, He thrusts his fists against the posts, And still insists he sees the ghosts. 44 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 7. Shrewd Simon Short sewed shoes. Seventeen sum- mers' speeding storms, succeeding sunshine, successively saw Simon's small, shabby shop standing staunch, saw Simon's self-same sign still swinging, silently specifying : " Simon Short, Smithfield's sole surviving shoemaker. Shoes sewed, soled superfinely." Simon's spry, sedulous spouse, Sally Short, sewed shirts, stitched sheets, stuffed sofas. Simon's six stout, sturdy sons — Seth, Samuel, Stephen, Saul, Shadrach, Silas — sold sundries. Sober Seth sold sugar, starch, spices; simple Sam sold saddles, stirrups, screws ; sagacious Stephen sold silks, satins, shawls ; skeptical Saul sold silver salvers, silver spoons ; selfish Shadrach sold shoe-strings, soaps, saws, skates; slack Silas sold Sally Short's stuffed sofas. 8. Theophilus Thistle, the successful thistle-sifter, in sifting a sieve full of unsifted thistles, thrust three thousand thistles through the thick of his thumb ; now, if Theophilus Thistle, the successful thistle-sifter, in sifting a sieve full of unsifted thistles, thrust three thousand thistles through the thick of his thumb, see that thou, in sifting a sieve full of unsifted thistles, thrust not three thousand thistles through the thick of thy thumb. Success to the successful thistle-sifter. 9. Of all the saws T ever saw saw, T never saw a saw saw as this saw saws. 10. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers; a peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked. If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, where 's the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked ? 11. When a twister twisting, would twist him a twist, For twisting a twist three times he will twist ; P)Ut if one of the twists untwist from the twist, The twist untwisting, untwists the twist. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 45 SECTION V. ORTHOEPY. Good Usage. The standard of correct pronunciation is good usage. Good usage implies the pronunciation of the educated and intellectual classes of society. The standard of good usage is found in the dictionaries of a language. In the United States, the standard dic- tionaries are Webster's and Worcester's. The standard of pronunciation is never absolutely un- deviating. Custom, from time to time, changes the pro- nunciation of words; but the number of these changes is not large. Whenever general good usage changes the pronunciation or the spelling of a word, this change soon finds its way into a new edition of the dictionary. The dictionary, then, remains the standard of good usage. There are a few hundred words in our language that have two authorized pronunciations, either of which is allowable. Affectations. All affectations in pronunciation should be carefully avoided. The affectation of el'ther and neither, for either and neither, is a case in point. Avoid in'quiry for in qui/y. There is no better test of culture, scholarship, and refinement, than a correct pronunciation. On this point, Prof. William Eussell says : " Individual opinion, when it is at variance with this important and useful principle of accommodation, gives rise to eccen- tricities, which neither the authority of profound learn- ing, nor that of strict accuracy and system, can redeem from the charge of pedantry. "It is a matter of great importance to recognize the rule of authorized custom, and neither yield to the in- fluence of those errors which, through inadvertency, will creep into occasional or local use; nor, on the other 4G SCHOOL ELOCUTION. hand, be induced to follow innovations or changes adopted without sufficient sanction. A cultivated taste is always perceptible in pronunciation, as in every other expression of mind ; and errors in pronouncing are unavoidably associated with a deficiency in the rudiments of a good education." PROVINCIALISMS. Provincialisms, or the peculiar pro- nunciation prevailing in certain localities or sections of our country, must be studiously corrected and avoided. It is to this class of errors that teachers must carefully direct their attention. The force of habit is so strong that pupils continue to mispronounce words long after they know the pronunciation to be incorrect. Provincialisms most commonly consist of some varia- tion or perversion of vowel sounds : as half for half, calf for calf, laugh for laugh, etc. ; of tew for to, trew for true, dew for do, yew for you ; of grass for grass, ask for ask, last for last, etc. ; of dawg or dorg for dog ; of git for get, giit for got, etc. ; of toon for tune, noo for new, dooty for duty, etc. ; of op for iip, under for under ; of skewl for school, rewl for rule. Another class of these errors consists in misplacing the accent of words ; as, i'de a for i de'a, ad'ult for a dult', re'cess for re cess', -eon vex' for eon'vex, ex tant' for ex'tant, in ter est'ing for in'ter est ing, il'lus trate for il lus'trate, ru'bust for ro bust', tl'rade for ti rade', ve he'ment for ve'he ment. In this connection, the following lines from Oliver Wendell Holmes convey a valuable lesson : 1. A few brief stanzas may be well employed To speak of errors we can all avoid. Learning condemns beyond the reach of hope The careless churl that speaks of soap for soap : Her edict exiles from her fair abode The clownish voice that utters road for road, SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 47 Less stern to him who calls liis coat a coat, And steers his boat believing it a boat, She pardoned one, our classic city's boast, Who said, at Cambridge, most instead of most ; But knit her brows, and stamped her angry foot, To hear a teacher call a root a root. Once more : speak clearly, if you speak at all ; Carve every word before you let it fall ; Do n't, like a lecturer or dramatic star, Try over hard to roll the British r; Do put your accents in the proper spot ; Do n't— let me beg you — do n't say "Row? " for " What?" And, when you stick on conversation's burrs, Do n't strew the pathway with those dreadful urs. I. Words Often Mispronounced. [By misplacing the accent .] The only variations from "Webster's Dictionary," in the following lists, include a few words in relation to which it may be said that cjood usa2fe is in advance of the dictionary. First, require pupils to pronounce the following words in concert; then require each pupil, singly, in turn, to pronounce five or more words. ab do'men a-e eli'mat ed ar'mis tice ar'bl ter ab'ject ad'verse ad dress' a clept' a dult' al If a're a au re'o la an tip'o de§ al busmen ba salt 7 bur lesque bi tu'men ben'zine ■ea nine ca bar -eay enne' eon tour 7 eon'vex cor'net eon'strue eon'tents •eom'plex 43 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. €on fl dant' eoni'bat ant ex/em pla ry ex po'nent leg'is la tor ly ce'um eom'pro mi§e eoni'mun ist ex pur'gate ex ploit' leth iir'gic lith og'ra pher eon'tro vert fi nance' mon soon' eom'par a ble eon'ver sant fron'tier ior'niid a ble mus taebe' mag a ziue' eon'tu me ly frag'nient a ry mis eon'strue com'plai §ance eon tribute gran'ary gon'do la mu se'um met'al lur gy eog no'nien glac/i er me'di o ere eon f Is'eate €on do'lence guar'di an gri mace' ob'li ga to ry or'tbo e py chas'tise ment civ il i za'tion gla dl'o lus haVas's ob'se quie§ ob'so lete chiv'al ric ho ri'zon on'er ous eom man dant' hy'gi cue or'nate eom pen'sate con q.en'trate eoy o'tc def i git hy me ne'al I de'a il lus'trate il lils'trat cd 6'vert oc cult' op po'nent o'a sis dev'as tate dol'or ous in qulr'y in'grate pro lix' pre text' dyn'am ite in'ter stice pre tense' de mqn'strate de co'rous in'ter est ing in'ter est ed pur loin' plae'ard dep ri va'tion des/ul to ry di plo'ma c,y dis course' dis card' llll'pl ous in eom'par a ble in dis'pu ta ble in ex'pli ca ble ir rep'ar a ble pre qed'ence pree'e dent («.) pre cedent («£0 prom e niide' py ram'i dal ex'tant dl'verse ir rePra ga Ide ir rev'o ca ble qui'nlne quan'da ry ex'or else en'vel ope (n.) ex'qui §tte lam'en ta ble leg' is la ture legfis la tive re < re flex' re course' SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 49 re source' re trlb'u tive ti rade' re cluse' strat'eg ic te leg'ra phy re search' su i ci'dal to pog'ra phy ro bust/ sys tem'ic ve'he merit ro mance' sub sld'ence va ga'ry rou tine' sys'to le • ' va'ri o loid re-e'osr nize sonorous va'ri e gat ed II. Drill ox Accent. I shall absent" myself to-day 'and shall be" absent to- morrow. Accent 7 the word with the proper ac'cent. C : . i Affix' an affix properly, f-f t C.: : I shalL comment' on your com'ment. We confine' the "animal and erect his con'fines. We conjure' him not to con'jure. He consorts' -with his con'sort. l. ' ' I contest' and so enter the con'test. u .<::';• "J We contract' and make a con'tract. - • We contrast' and produce the con'trast. We convert' and gain con'verts.; . \. i &■. - We convict' and confine con' victs. c ■:. ■>. f J We desert' into the des'ert without our dessert'. ■ We entrance' him at the ren'trance. t We escort' with an es'cort. tl aWl i '■ I essay' to produce an es'say. . . ; . :. ... : . . . We export! our ex'ports. j i i-Li'-" We extract! :an ex'tract. / ;/'.. i ,l . ; . - . We frequent' the hall and make fra'quenfr calls. They misconduct' and are punished for miscon'duct. We object' to your ob'ject. Prefix' the pre'fix. : : ; :. We prelude' . with the proper prel'ude. We premise' and give the base of the prem'ise. : > I present' the letter and make a pres'ent. 50 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. The transports will transport' the troops. We progress' and make rapid progress. We protest' and file our pro'test. We record' our names in the rec'ord. We refuse' to accept such refuse. We reprint' and produce a re'print. We subject' him and make him a sub'ject. We survey' and make a sur'vey. III. Monosyllables Often Mispronoun By giving a vowel sound incorrectly. CED. ant chaff gas more rule talk aunt chant get mourn ru§e true aft chair haunt none rinse to are ■eatch haunch nu.de root toast ask daunt hearth ore salve tour bade draught half oar staunch tube balm draft halves parse sauce tart bath dance hasp path since tune bask doe§ home palm source toad brass deaf jaunt pass scarce two basque e n, and r. The short vowel sounds and the consonant sounds, with the ex- ception of /, m, n, r, cannot be prolonged in emphasis. 5. " Every sentence;' says Prof. William Itussell, " con- tains one or more words which are prominent, and peculiarly important, in the expression of meaning. These words are marked witli a distinctive inflection ; those, in particular, which illustrate the reading of strong emotion, or of antithesis. 6. " The words which are pronounced witli peculiar inflection, are uttered with more force than the other words in the same sentences. This special force is what is called emphasis. Its use is to impress more strik- ingly on the mind of the hearer the thought, or portion of thought, embodied in the particular word or phrase on which it is laid. 7. "It gives additional energy to important points in expression, by causing sounds which are peculiarly significant, to strike the ear with an appropriate and distinguishing force. It possesses, in regard to the sense of hearing, a similar advantage to that of ' relief,' or prominence to the eye, in a well-executed picture, in which the figures seem to stand out from the canvas. 8. " Emphasis, then, being the manner of pronouncing the most significant words, its office is of the utmost importance to an intelligible and impressive utterance. It is the manner of uttering emphatic words which decides the meaning of every sentence that is read or spoken. 9. "A true emphasis conveys a sentiment clearly and forcibly to the mind, and keeps the attention of an audience in active sympathy with the thoughts of the speaker; it gives full value and effect to all that he utters, and secures a lasting impression on the memory." SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 59 II. Faults in Emphasis. In animated conversation, most persons emphasize correctly because they know clearly what they wish to express ; but, in reading the long and involved sentences of literary composition, the faults of untrained readers are numerous. 1. Sometimes the emphasis is misplaced because the reader does not clearly comprehend the sense of what is read. 2. Sometimes the emphasis is applied at random, with- out reference to prominent ideas. 3. Sometimes the untrained reader reads in a dull, monotonous tone, without any emphasis whatever. 4. Xot unfrequently the pupil overdoes the emphasis, and reads in a jerky, dogmatic manner. 5. There is often a tendency to a regular recurrence of emphasis, combined with the falling inflection, on random words, particularly at the end of every line of poetry, or of every alternate line, or at the end of every phrase or clause. III. General Principles of Emphasis. 1. Words or groups of words that express leading ideas are emphatic; those that express what is compar- atively unimportant, or that merely repeat what has been previously stated, are unempliatic. 2. Words expressing contrast of ideas are emphatic. 3. The subject and predicate of a sentence are, in general, emphatic. 4. Articles, pronouns, and connectives are, in general, unemjohaticy though any part of speech may sometimes become emphatic. 5. The emphatic words of a sentence are generally the words most strongly marked by the rising, falling, or circumflex inflection. 60" SCHOOL ELOCUTION. IV. Distinction of Emphasis. Emphasis may be divided into two kinds, antithetic or relative emphasis, and absolute emphasis. Antithetic emphasis is applied to words that indicate contrast of ideas : Absolute emphasis is used to show the importance of a single word or to express feeling, emotion, or passion. The degree of emphasis to be applied to words may be considered as slight, moderate, or strong. V. Examples of Antithetic Emphasis. 1. He is not a friend but an enemy. 2. He raised a mdrtal to the skies. She drew an angel clown. 3. To be or not to be — that is the question. 4. I come to bilry Coesar, not to praise him. 5. As for me, give me liberty or give me death. G. You cannot dd wrong without suffering wrong. 7. He that cannot bear a jest should not make one. 8. I said my father, not my mdther. 9. Talent is power ; tact is slcill. 10. After the snow, the emerald leaves, After the harvest, golden sheaves. 11. He spoke for education, not against it. 12. The clerk, in letting Scrooge's nephew did. had let two other people In. 13. Put not your trust in money, but put your money in trvist. 14. The ndblcst mind the best contentment has. 15. Be thou familiar, but by no means ralycr. 16. Give every man thine car, but few thy /V 17. Take each man's censure, but reserve thy judgment. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 61 18. COMPENSATION. Polarity, or action and reaction, we meet in every part of nature— in darkness and light ; m heat and cold; in the ebb and flow of waters; in .ma/c and female; in the inspiration and expiration of plants and animals; in the .equation of quantity and quality in the fluids of the animal &#<:??/ ; in the systole and diastole of the Ae«r£ ; in the undulations of fluids and of sound; in the ccn- trifugal and centripetal gravity ; in electricity, galvanism, and chemical affinity. Superinduce magnetism at o?ic end of a needle, the opposite magnetism takes place at the &£%e? end. If, the south attracts, the north repels. To empty Acre, you must condense £Adr«! An inevitable dualism bisects nature, so that each thing is a half and suggests andther thing to make it whole ; as, spirit, mat- tcr ; man, tubman ; odd, even ; subjective, objective; in, but ; upper, under ; motion, rest; yea, nay. All things are double, om against another— tit for tht ; an eye for an eye; a tooth for a tooth; blood for blood; measure for measure; Itfve for #te?& 6rfc and it shall be r/we^ you. He that todtercth shall be watered te- sc(/. What will you have? quoth God; p*%~ for it and £a/j£ it. Nothing venture, nothing ' have. Thou shalt be paid exactly for what thou hast clone, no more, no less. Who doth not work shall not ehrase, a clause, or a noun mod- ified by a phrase or a clause. 2. A rhetorical pause should be made whenever the regular order of a sentence is broken by the inversion of words, phrases, or clauses. 3. An emphatic pause occurs before any word that is very strongly emphatic, or to wliich the reader or speaker desires to call marked attention. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 75 SECTION III. INFLECTION. I. Introductory Eemarks. 1. In all good speaking or reading, there must be ever-varying upward and downward slides of the voice. Inflection is a means, not only of expressing emotion, passion, and emphasis, but, also, of conveying the finer distinctions and contrasts of ideas, and the more delicate shades of feeling and sentiment. 2. Inflection forms an important element of emphasis : for emphasis consists, not only in force, but also in the slides and in quantity. 3. Beading, when it lacks the melody of varied em- phasis and inflection, becomes like the monotonous droning of children who laboriously pronounce the suc- cessive words of their reading lesson in the conven- tional school tone. 4. In animated conversation, and in the reading of simple stories, the inflections take care of themselves without thought by the speaker or reader; but in the long and often inverted sentences of finished prose or poetry, involving a higher and more complicated order of thought, the proper application of emphasis and inflection requires some knowledge of the principles of elocution. 5. While it is true that a clear conception of the spirit and meaning by the reader is essential to good reading, it is equally true that, having the right con- ception, the reader may fail to convey it to the hearer, from ignorance of the principles that govern the correct expression of thought and feeling. 6. Good reading like fine singing, is the result of systematic training — is the product of culture and art. There are good natural voices both for singing and 76 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. reading, but a fine singer, without training in the science and art of music, is as rare as is a good reader of gen- eral English literature, who is ignorant of the principles of elocution, and untrained in the management of the voice. 7. The real object of school elocution is, not to enable pupils to read by imitation a few selected pieces in the style of an actor, but to make thoughtful and intelli- gent readers independent of the assistance of teachers. 8. One reason for the full treatment of inflection in this book is the great importance of the subject as a means of expressive and impressive reading. 9. Another reason is the cursory manner in which the few introductory rules and illustrations are taken up in the grammar school. Teachers of high schools and normal schools are aware of the fact that many of their pupils come into school not only ignorant of the principles of inflection, but also so untrained in the management of the voice that they cannot give the correct inflections even when indicated, and sometimes cannot even imitate them when given by the teacher. 10. It is not unreasonable to expect that, in high and normal schools, there should be training enough to enable students themselves to apply the general prin- ciples of elocution ; and that there should be practice enough to secure some flexibility in the management of the voice. 11. Expression in reading depends largely on the vari- ety produced by the proper and effective application of the slides. There is no excuse for the neglect that leads to the monotonous and lifeless style of reading charac- teristic of many high schools and colleges. "This school-tone," says Prof. Russell, "can be tol- erated only in a law paper, a state document, a bill of lading, or an invoice, in the reading of which the mere distinct enunciation of the words is deemed sufficient SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 77 In other circumstances, it kills, with inevitable certainty, everything like feeling or expression." 12. The careful study of an extract from some stand- ard author, for the purpose of marking it for inflection, emphasis, and pauses, is an intellectual discipline of no mean order. It combines, in one lesson, rhetoric, gram- mar, and elocution. 13. It matters little whether aspiring elocutionists can or can not render effectively such pieces as " The Haven," " The Bells," or " Catiline's Defiance " ; but it is a mat- ter of solid importance for them to be able to read intelligently and effectively such extracts as Macaulay's " Puritans," Bryant's " Winds," Byron's " Apostrophe to the Ocean," one of Webster's " Speeches," or an ex- tract from Milton or Shakespeare. The trained reader is able not only to read well, but also to give good reasons for reading with good taste, discrimination, and judgment. 14. As an aid both to teachers and pupils in apply- ing principles and rules, a considerable number of extracts and examples are marked for inflection, em- phasis, and pauses. When these have been carefully studied and read, pupils ought to be able to apply, to some extent at least, principles and rules to unmarked extracts, thus becoming independent of imitation and of teachers. II. Distinctions of Inflection. 1. Inflection may be defined as an upward or down- ward slide of the voice, generally on the emphatic word or words of a sentence. In words of more than one syllable, the inflection falls chiefly on the vowel of the accented syllable ; hence the mark of inflection is placed over the vowel in the accented syllable. 2. The rising inflection, indicated by the acute accent 78 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. ('), is used in direct questions, and, in general, when- ever the sense is incomplete. 3. The falling inflection, indicated by the grave accent ( N ), is used in complete declarative, exclamatory, or very emphatic statements, and, in general, wherever the sense is complete, or does not depend on something to follow. 4. The circumflex, a combination of the rising and falling inflections on the same sound or word, indicated thus ( v or A ), is used in surprise, .|arcasm, irony, wit, humor, and in expressing a pun* or a double meaning. The rising circumflex: is used in place of the direct ris- ing inflection to add force to the emphasis, and the falling circumflex in place of the direct falling inflec- tion. 5. The monotone ( ), that is, one uniform tone, is merely the absence of any marked rising or falling slide above or below the general level of the sentence. III. Length of Slides. 1. The length of the rising or the falling inflection, in ascending or descending the scale, depends on the force of emphasis applied to words marked by inflection. 2. The degrees of inflection may be roughly distin- guished as corresponding to the second, third, fifth, and eighth notes in the musical scale, including the semi- tones, or chromatic notes, of the minor second, third, fifth, and eighth notes. 3. The "second" and "third" are classed as the un- emotional slides, as contrasted with the " fifth " and " eighth," which are the emotioned inflections. IV. The Slide of the Second. 1. The inflection of the second 'is a very slight up- ward or downward slide of the voice, expressing what SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 79 may be termed the current melody of the sentence, in quiet conversation and in unemotional reading. It is the distance in tone between C and D, or Do and lie on the scale in music. 2. " The simple rise and fall of the second, and per- haps its wave," says Dr. Rush, " when used for plain narration, or for the mere statement of an unexcited idea, is the only intonated voice of man that does not spring from a passionate, or, in some degree, an earnest condition of his mind. If we listen to his ignorance, doubt, selfishness, arrogance, and injustice, we hear the vivid forms of vocal expression, proceeding from these and related passions. 3. " Thus we have the rising intervals of the fifth and octave, for interrogatives, not of wisdom but of envious curiosity ; the downward third, fifth, and octave, for dog- matic or tyrannical command ; waves for the surprise of ignorance, the snarling of ill-humor, and the curling voice, along with the curling lip of contempt ; the pierc- ing height of pitch for the scream of terror; the semi- tone, for the peevish whine of discontent, and for the puling cant of the hypocrite and the knave, who cover beneath the voice of kindness, the designs of their craft. 4. "Then listen to him on those rare occasions, when he forgets himself and his passions, and has to utter a simple idea, or plainly to narrate ; and you will hear the second, the least obtrusive interval of the scale, in the admirable harmony of Nature, made the simple sign of the unexcited sentiment of her wisdom and truth." V. Inflection Drill on the Second. 1. Count, in a gentle tone, from one to twenty, with the slight rising inflection, thus — one, two, thre'e, four, etc. 2. Count from one to twenty with the slight falling inflection, thus — one, two, etc. 80 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 3. Count with alternate rising and falling, thus — one, two, thre'e, lour, etc., to thirty. 4. Sound the long vocals, a, e, I, 6, u. : (1) With the rising second. (2) With the falling second. (3) Alter- nate rising and falling. VI. The Slide of the Third. 1. The slide of the third corresponds to the interval, on the scale, between C and JS, or Bo and Mi. 2. When the voice rises on a word through an inter- val of two tones, or a major third, it expresses moderate emphasis, interrogation, contrast, or slight surprise ; when the voice falls through the same interval, it expresses moderate emphasis, assertion, command, contrast, or the conclusion of a proposition. 3. The inflection of the third is the prevailing slide of animated and earnest conversation, and of the slightly emphatic words of narrative, didactic, or descriptive com- position. It is the slide of antithesis in contrasted words. VII. Unemotional Slides. The slides of the second and third are the senten- tial or unemotional inflections as contrasted with the fifth and the eighth, which are the slides of emotion and passion. VIII. Inflection Drill on the Third. 1. Count, with moderate force and emphasis, from one to twenty with the rising third, thus: one, two. three, etc. 2. Count from one to twenty with the falling third, thus : one, two, three, etc. 3. Count with alternate rising and falling third, thus : one, two, three', four, etc. 4. Will you gd or stay I SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 81 IX. The Slides of the Fifth and the Eighth. 1. The slide of the fifth corresponds to the interval between C and G, or Do and Sol, and the slide of the eighth, or the octave, to the interval between C and C, or Do and Do. 2. When the voice rises through the interval of the fifth, it expresses impassioned interrogation, extreme surprise, or strong negation ; when it falls through the same in- terval, it expresses deep conviction, strong determination, emphatic declaration, stern command, or strong emotion. 3. Under the influence of intense excitement or pas- sion, the voice sometimes rises or falls through the whole octave. The rising octave expresses amazement, astonishment, excited interrogation, intense irony, and the falling octave expresses fierce determination, impas- sioned scorn, imprecation, and defiance. 4. Thus, when Douglas cries out under the influence of intense auger — "And dar'st thou then To beard the lion in his den, The Douglas in his Mil?" The voice on " hall " rises through the whole octave. And when Coriolanus cries out : " Measureless liar," the voice on "measureless" falls through the octave. 5. The words " ah ! indeed ! " uttered so as to express the greatest possible degree of astonishment, illustrate the rising octave. X. Inflection Drill. 1. Sound the long vocals, a, e, I, 5, u, with the rising- fifth; the falling fifth. 2. Sound the long vocals, a, e, I, 5, u, with the rising eighth ; with the falling octave. 3. Count from one to twenty with the rising fifth; the falling fifth. 82 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. I. THE RISING INFLECTION. 1. The rising inflection calls attention to wlxat is to follow. It is the inflection of incomplete statement, of appeal, of inquiry, and of negative antithesis. 2. It is the prevailing inflection of sentiment, of tender- ness, and of pathos. 3. It is the characteristic inflection used in stating what is comparatively unimportant, trite, questionable, doubtful, or parenthetical. EULES FOR THE ElSING INFLECTION. Hide I. Questions requiring yes or no for an answer have the rising inflection, except when very emphatic. EXAMPLES. [Rising Third. — Light Emphasis.] 1. Have you recited your lessons? 2. Ts it, man, with such discordant noises, With such accursed instruments as these, Thou drownest Nature's sweet and kindly voices, And jarrest the celestial harmonics? 3. Breathes there the man with soul so dead, Who never to himself hath said, This is my own, my native land ! Whose heart hath ne'er within him hiirucd, As hdmc his footsteps he hath turned, From wandering on si foreign strand? [Fifth and Eirjldli. — Strong Emphasis.] 4. Hates any man the thing he would not Tcillt 5. What ! wouldst thou have a serpent sting thee twice ? G. And dar'st thou then To beard the lion in his den, The Douglas in his liall! SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 83 7. Art thou a friend to Roderick ? — ~Nb. Thou dar'st not call thyself his foe ? 8. Is it come to this? Shall an inferior magistrate, a governor, who holds his whole power of the Roman people, in a Roman province, within sight of Italy, hind, scourge, torture, and put to an infamous death, a Roman citizen ? Shall neither the cries of innocence expiring in agony, the tears of pitying spectators, the majesty of the Roman Commonwealth, nor fear of the justice of his country, restrain the merciless monster, who, in the confidence of his riches, strikes at the very root of liberty, and sets mankind at defiance? And shall this man escape ? Fathers, it must not be ! It must not be, unless you would undermine the very foundations of social safety, strangle justice, and call down anarchy, mdssacre, and ruin on the Common- wealth : Cicero. 9. Canst thou bind the tinicom with his band in the furrow ? or will he harrow the valleys after thee ? Wilt thou trust him because his strength is great ? or wilt thou leave thy labor to him ? Gavest thou the goodly wings unto the peacocks ? or wings and feathers unto the ostrich? Canst thou draw out leviathan with a hook ? or his tdnguc with a cord which thou lettest down ? Canst thou put a hook into his nose ? or bore his jaw through with a thorn ? Wilt thou play with him as with a bird ? or wilt thou bind him for thy maidens? Canst thou fill his skin with barbed irons ? or his head with fish spears ? Book of Job. Rule II Words repeated in surprise take (lie rising inflection, and are emphatic. EXAMPLES. 1. Must I endure all this? All Ms? Ay, more. 84 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 2. catiline's reply. " Banished from B6me ! " "What's banished but set free From daily contact with the things I loathe? " Tried and convicted traitor ! " Who says this ? croly. 3. SQUEERS. "Who cried stbj)?" said Squeers, turning savagely round. " 7 V ," said Nicholas, stepping forward. " Tliis must not go on." "Must not go on!" cried Squeers, almost in a shriek. "No!" thundered Nicholas. dickens. Call on the class to find five additional illustrations. Bide III Words and pthrases of address, unless very emphatic, take the slight rising inflection. EXAMPLES. 1. Sir, I believe the hour has come. 2. Mr. President, I desire to offer a resolution. 3. Friduds, Eomans, countrymen, lend me your ears. 4. Fellow-citizens, the time for action has come. 5. G6od friends, sweet friends, let me not stir you up To such a sudden flood of mutiny. Call on each pupil to find one additional illustration. EXCEPTION. 6. comrades ! warriors ! Thracians! if we must ficrht. let us fbht for ourselves. 7. Princes ! potentates I warriors ! Bide IV. The language of entreaty, coaxing, or flat- tery, takes the rising inflection. EXAMPLES. 1. ARTHUR IX KINO JOHN. Alas, what need you be so boisterous-ro ?i G. my prophetic sbul ! my iinch SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 97 7. We heard the piercing shriek of murder ! murder ! murder ! 8. I have done my duty: — I stand acquitted to my conscience and my country : — I have opposed this measure throughout ; and I now protest against it as harsh, op- pressive, uncalled for, unjust, — as establishing an infamous 'precedent by retaliating crime against crime, — as tyran- nous — cruelly and vindictively tyrannous. o'Counell. 9. The mustering place is Lanrick mead, Speed forth the signed, Norman, speed ; Her summons dread brooks no delay, Stretch to the race — away, away I 10. Thy threats, thy mercy, I defy, Let recreant yield who fears to die. 11. "Can naught but blood our feud atone? Are there no means?" Nb, stranger, none. Rule IV . Indirect questions and very emphatic direct questions generally take the falling inflection. Interrogative sentences beginning with who, which, when, where, why, and how, generally take the falling inflection. A direct question if repeated a second or third time, frequently takes the falling inflection for emphasis. EXAMPLES. 1. What constitutes a State ? 2. What is it that gentlemen wish? 3. When was he graduated ? 4. Why do you not study your lesson ? 5. "Speak louder; I did not hear your question." " Are you going to Boston ? " 6. why should the spirit of mortal be proud ? 98 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 7. "Do you hear the rain, Mr. Caudle ? I say, do you hear the rain ? Do you hear it against the vAnd&ws \ Do you hear it, I say? Oh! you do hear it!" Rule V. Completeness of thought or expression, whether in the clauses of a complex sentence, or in the propositions of a compound sentence, generally requires the falling in- flection. EXAMPLES. 1. DEAD HEROES. They fell | devdted, but undying ; The very gale | their names seemed sighing ; The welters | murmured of their name; The woods | were peopled with their fame; The silent pillar, lone and gray, Claimed kindred | with their sacred clay: Their spirits | wrapped the- dusky mountain, Their memory | sparkled o'er the fountain; The meanest rill, the mightiest river, Boiled mingling | with their fame forever. Byron. 2. FROM GOLDSMITH'S ''DESERTED VILLAGE." Imagination fondly stoops to trace The parlor splendor of that festive place : The whitewashed wall, the nicely sanded floor, The varnished clock that clicked behind the door; The chest, contrived a double debt to pay, A bed by night, a chest of drawers by day ; The pictures placed for ornament and use, The twelve good rides, the royal game of goose ; The hearth, except when winter chilled the day, With aspen boughs and Jlourrs and finml gay ; While broken teacups, wisely kept for show, Ranged o'er the chimney, glistened in a row. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 99 3. bacon's philosophy. It has lengthened life ; it has mitigated pain ; it has extinguished diseases ; it lias increased the fertility of the soil ; it has given new securities to the mariner ; it has furnished new arms to the vjdrrior ; it has spanned great rivers and estuaries with bridges of form unknown to our fathers ; it has guided the thunderbolt innocuously from hdaven to earth ; it has lighted up the night with the splendor of the day ; it has extended the range of the human vision ; it has multiplied the power of the human muscles; it has accelerated motion ; it has anni- hilated distance ; it has facilitated Intercourse, correspond- ence, all friendly offices, all despatch of business; it has enabled men to descend to the depths of the sea, to soar into the air ; to penetrate securely into the noxious recesses of the earth, to traverse the land in cars which whirl along without horses, and the ocean in ships which run ten knots an hour against the wind. macaulay. 4. FREEDOM. I love Freedom better than Slavery. I will speak her words ; I will listen to her music ; I will acknowledge her Impulses ; I will stand beneath her flag ; I will fight in her ranks ; and, when I do so, I shall find myself surrounded by the great, the wise, the good, the brave, the noble of every land. baker. 5. CHOATE'S EULOGY OX WEBSTER. We seem to see his form and hear his deep, grave speech everywhere. By some felicity of his personal life ; by some wise, deep, or beautiful word spoken or written ; by some service of his own, or some commemoration of the services of others, it has come to pass that " our granite hills, our inland shas, prairies, and fresh, un- bounded, magnificent wilderness ; " our encircling ocean ; the resting-place of the Pilgrims ; our new-born sister of 100 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. the Pacific; our popular assemblies; our fre*e schbols ; all our cherished doctrines of education, and of the influence of religion, and national policy and ldu\ and the Constitution, give us back his name. What American landscape will you Zoo& on ; what subject of American interest will you study ; what source of hope or of anxiety, as an American, will you acknowledge, that it does not recall him ? ifot/c VI In commencing a series of emphatic particu- lars, each particular except the last takes the slight falling inflection of the " third" and in a concluding scries, each particular except the last but one takes the falling inflec- tion. EXAMPLES. 1. The air, the earth, the water teem with delighted existence. 2. Valor, humanity, courtesy, justice, and honor, were the characteristics of chivalry. 3. The ministers of religion, the priests of hteratuiw the historians of the past, the illustrators of the prlxent. capital, science, art, invention, discoveries, the works of genius — all these will attend us in our march, and we shall conquer. Baker. 4. The characteristics of chivalry were valor, humanity, courtesy, justice, and honor. 5. A TROPICAL SCENE. The mountain wooded to the peak, the lawns And winding glades high up like ways to heaven, The slender coco's drooping crown of plumes, The lightning flash of insect and of bird. The luster of the long convblvuluses That coiled around the stately stems, and ran Even to the limit of the land, the glows And glories of the broad belt of the icorld, SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 101 All these lie sdw ; but what lie fain had seen He could not see, the kindly human face, Nor ever hear a kindly voice, but heard The myriad shriek of wheeling ctem-fowl, The league-long roller thundering on the reef The moving whisper of huge trees that branched And blossomed in the zenith, or the sweep Of some precipitous rivulet to the wave, As down the shore he ranged, or all day long Sat often in the seaward-gazing gorge, A shipwrecked sailor, waiting for a sail; No sail from day to day, but every day The sunrise broken into scarlet shafts Among the palms and ferns and precipices ; The blaze upon the waters to the east ; The blaze upon his Island overhead ; The blaze upon the waters to the west ; Then the great stars that globed themselves in heaven, The hollower-bellowing ocean, and again The scarlet shafts of sunrise, — out no sail. Tennyson's Enoch Arden. ILLUSTRATION. The contrast in the rendering of a series with the rising inflection and the unemphatic tone of indiffer- ence, or with the falling inflection and the emphasis of feeling, is illustrated by the following: The one with yawning made reply : " What have we seen ? Not much have I ! Trdes, mdadows, mountains, groves, and streams, Blue sky, and clouds, and sunny gleams." The other, smiling, said the same ; But, with face transfigured and eye of flame : '• Trees, meadows, mountains, groves, and streams, Blue sky and clouds and sunny gleams ! " 102 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Rule VII The cadence, or falling inflection at the end of a sentence, must not he made too abruptly. The closing descent in tone at the end of a sentence falls lower than the falling inflection at the end of the propositions that make up a compound sentence, and lower than the slide on emphatic words or clauses. The longer the sentence, the more marked is the cadence. The common errors in cadence are : (1) Dropping the tone suddenly on the last word of the sentence. (2) Falling too soon in the sentence. (3) A gradual dimin- ishing in force towards the end of a sentence, so that the last few words are feebly uttered. (4) A monoto- nous' sameness of inflection. The difference between the partial falling inflection in the body of a sentence and the cadence at the close, must be illustrated by the living voice of the teacher. Take the following sentence from Addison for illus- tration : " Our sight is the most perfect and most delightful of all our senses. It fills the mind with the largest variety of ideas, converses with its objects at the great- est distance, and continues the longest in action without being tired or satiated with its proper enjoyments" Here the slide on "ideas " and " distance " is the partial falling, say the falling third, while the cadence on " enjoy- ment" runs to the falling fifth. It will be noticed, also. that the voice slides upward on " action," to prepare for the cadence at the close of the sentence. EXAMPLES. 1. I have done my ditty ; T stand acquitted to my conscience and my country; I have opposed this meas- ure throughout; and I now protest against it, as hardi, oppressive, unedited for, unjilst ; as establishing an infa- mous precedent, by retaliating crime against crime; as tyrannous — cruelly and vindictively tyrannous. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. ' 103 2. Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates and men decay : Princes antl lords may nourish, or may fade — A breath can make them, as a breath has made ; But a bold peasantry, their country's pride, When once destroyed, can never be supplied. 3. God of the earth's extended plains ! The dark green fields contented lie : The mountains rise like holy towers, Where man might commune with the sky; The tall cliff challenges the storm That lowers upon the vale below, Where shaded fountains send their streams, With joyous music in their flow. Rules for Contrasted Inflections. Rule I. When negation is opposed to affirmation, nega- tion has the rising, and affirmation the falling inflection. Contrasted icords are emphatic. EXAMPLES. 1. He did not call you, but me. 2. He called you, not me. 3. He called neither you nor me. 4. Man never is, but always to be blest. 5. JOHN HOWARD. * He visited all Europe — not to survey the sumptuous- ness of palaces, or the stateliness of temples; not to make accurate measurements of the remains of ancient grandeur, nor to form a scale of the curiosities of modern art, nor to collect medals, or collate manuscripts; but to dive into the depths of dungeons, to plunge into the infection of hospitals, to survey the mansions of sorroio and pain; to take the gauge and dimensions of imsery, depression, and contempt; to remember the forgotten, to 104 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. attend to the neglected, to visit the forsaken, and com- pare and collate the distresses of all men in all countries. His plan is original ; it is as full of genius as of humanity. It was a voyage of discovert/ — a circumnavigation of charity, birke. Rule II. When the conjunction OR connects contrasted words or phrases, it is preceded "by the rising, and fol- lowed by the falling inflection. Contrasted words an emphatic. EXAMPLES. 1. Did he call Jane or Mary? 2. Is this book yours or mine ? 3. Sink or swim, live or die, survive or perish, I give my hand and my heart to this vote. 4. Do we mean to carry on or to give up the war ? Acquire an additional example from each pupil. Rule III. Contrast or antithesis is denoted by opposite inflections on the contrasted words of a sentence, and the contrasted words arc emphatic. Pupils should be cautioned against the common fault of substituting, in examples of contrast, the circumflex inflections for the direct rising and falling inflections. The following example is often incorrectly read thus : 1. In the owe we most admire the man; in the other, the work. It should be read as follows: 2. In the one we most admire the man; in the other, the wbrk. g 3. Incorrect: As is the beginning, so is the end, 4. Correct: As is the beginning, so is the end. f). Incorrect: What we gain in pSwer is lost in time, 6. Correct: What we gam in pdwer is lost in rune. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 105 The circumflex inflections are properly applied in cases of very emphatic contrast, or in the expression of irony, sarcasm, wit, and humor. Selection 3, at the end of this chapter, affords good illustrations of contrasted circumflex, while selections 1, 2, and 5 are examples of the use of the direct rising and falling inflections. "A fault of local usage, prevailing throughout New England," says Prof. Russell, "is that of giving all em- phasis with the tone of the circumflex. It is a tone incompatible with simplicity and dignity of expression, and belongs properly to irony or ridicule, to the peculiar significance of words and phrases embodying logical or grammatical niceties of distinction, or to the studied and peculiar emphasis which belongs to the utterance of a word intended to convey a pun. This fault would be avoided by giving emphasis with the direct inflection, instead of the circumflex." EXAMPLES OF CONTRAST. 1. I said good, not lad ; virtuous, not vicious ; educated, not illiterate. 2. He spoke for education, not against it. 3. After the shower, the tranquil sun ; Silver stars when the day is done. After the snow, the emerald leaves; After the harvest, golden sheaves; After the clouds, the violet sky ; Quiet woods when the winds go by. After the tempest, the lull of waves ; After the tattle, peaceful graves. After the knell, the wedding-hells ; Joyful greetings from sad farewells. After the bud, the radiant rose; After our iceejnny, sweet repbse. 10G SCHOOL ELOCUTION. After the burden, the blissful meed; After the ftirrow, the waking s&cd. After the flight, the downy nest ; Beyond the shadowy river — rest. 4. Thus the Puritan was made up of two different men : the one, all self-abasement, penitence, gratitude, pds- sion ; the other, proud, calm, inflexible, sagacious. He prostrated himself in the dust before his Maker; but he set his foot on the neck of his king. 5. ROME AND CARTHAGE. The catastrophe of this stupendous drama is at hand. What actors are met ! Two races — that of merchants and mariners, that of laborers and soldiers; twd nations — the one dominant by gold, the other by steel; two republics — the one theocratic, the other aristocratic. Home and Carthage ! Rome with her army, Carthage with her fleet ; Carthage, old, rich, and crafty — Rome, young, %)bor, and robust ; the past, and the future; the spirit of dis- cdvery, and the spirit of conquest ; the genius of cdmmcrcc, the demon of war ; the East and the South on 6ne side, the West and the North on the other; in short, two wbrlds — the civilization of Africa, and the civilization of Europe. viciob in-co. G. I have always preferred cheerfulness to mirth. The latter I consider as an act, the former as a habit of the mind. Mirth is short and transient, eJiceifulncss f\xed and permanent. Mirth is like a flash of lightning, that breaks through a "loom of clouds, and flitters for a moment ; cheerfulness keeps up a kind of daylight in the mind, and fills it with a steady and perpetual serbiity. 7. THE OXK-Iioss SHAY. For the wheels were just as strong as the thills, And the floor was just as strong as the sills, SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 107 And the panels just as strong as the floor, And the whipple-tree neither less nor more, And the back crossbar as strong as the fore, And spring, and axle, and hub encore, And yet, as a whole, it is past a doubt In another hour it will be worn out ! holmes. 8. DUST TO DUST. "Earth to earth, and dust to dust!" Here the evil and the just, Here the youthful and the old, Here the fearful and the bold, Here the matron and the maid, In one silent bed are laid ; Here the vassal and the king Side by side lie withering ; Here the sword and scepter rust — " Earth to earth, and dust to dust ! " croly. 9. HUDIBRAS. He was in logic a great critic, Profoundly skilled in analytic, He could distinguish and divide A hair 'twixt so uth and sduth-west side; On either which he would dispute, Confute, change hands and still confute. He'd undertake to prove by force Of argument a man's no hSrsc : He 'd prove a buzzard is no fowl, And that a lord may be an dial; A calf an alderman, a goose a justice, And rooks committee-men and trustees. He 'd run in debt by disputation. And pay with ratiocination. botleb. 10. TACT AND TALENT. Take them into the church. Talent has always some- thing worth Maring, tact is sure of abundance of hearers ; 108 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. talent may obtain a living, tact will mdke one; talent gets a good name, tact a great one ; talent convinces, tact converts; talent is an honor to the profession, tact gdins honor from the profession. Take them to court. Talent feels its weight, tact finds its wdy ; talent commands, tact is obeyed; talent is honored with approbation, and tact is blessed by preferment. Ride IV. Direct questions generally require the rising inflection, and their answers, the falling inflection. EXAMPLES. 1. Have you studied your lesson ? Yes. 2. Are you going to New York ? No. 3. OUR COUNTRY. Oh, country, marvel of the e'arth ! Oh, realm to sudden greatness grown ! The age that gloried in thy birth, Shall it behold thee overthrown ? Shall traitors lay that greatness low ? M! Land of Hope and Blessing, No! Bryant. 4. THE INQUIRY. Tell me, my secret soul, Oh, tell me, Hope and Faith, Is there no resting-place From sorrow, sin, and ddath ? Is there no happy spot Where mortals may be blessed, 'Where grief may find a balm, And weariness a rdst ? Faith, Hope, and Love — best boons to mortals given — Waved their bright wings, and whispered " Yes, in heaven ! '" M U KAY. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 109 5. FROM "HAMLET." Hamlet. Hold you the watch to-night? Mar. and Ber. We do, my lord. Hamlet. Armed, say you? Mar. and Bcr. Armed, my lord. Hamlet. From top to £oe ? Mar. and ^er. My lord, from head to /do£. Hamlet Then you saw not his face ? Hor. Oh, yds, my lord ; he wore his heaver up. Hamlet. What, looked he froicningly ? Hor. A countenance more in sorvow than in anger. Hamlet. Pale or red ? Hor. Nay, very pale. Hamlet. And fixed his eyes upon you ? Hor. Most constantly. Hamlet. I would / had been the're. Hor. It would have much amazed yOU. Shakespeare. III. INFLECTIONS OF THE PAEENTHESIS. Rule I. The words included in a parenthesis, or be- tween two clashes used as a. parenthesis, and any phrase corresponding in effect to a parenthesis, are read with the same inflection as the clause immediately preceding them. "A lower and less forcible tone, and a more rapid utterance, than in the other parts of a sentence, together with a degree of monotony, are required in the reading of a parenthesis. The form of parenthesis implies some- thing thrown in as an interruption of the main thought in a sentence. Hence its suppressed and hurried toue ; the voice seeming to hasten over it slightly, as if impa- tient to resume the principal object. The same remark applies, with more or less force, to all intervening phrases, whether in the exact form of parenthesis or not. Russell. 110 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. EXAMPLES. 1. Uprightness is a habit, and, like all other habits, gains strength by time and exercise. If then we Exer- cise upright principles (and we cannot have them, unless we exercise the*m), they must be perpetually on the increase. 2. " And this," said lid — putting the remains of a crust into his wallet — "and this should have been thy portion," said he, "hadst thou been alive to have shared it with me." 3. To my mind — though I am native here, And to the manner born — it is a custom More honored in the breach than the observance. tJIIAKESPEABE. Summary of Inflection. 1. The stronger the emjihasis, the longer the slides. 2. In unimpassioncd reading, the emphasis is slight and the slides are short : in bold and dignified composi- tion, the emphasis is stronger and the slides are longer: and in highly impassioned or dramatic reading, the em- phasis is strongest and the slides are longest 3. The general principle that underlies all the rules of inflection is as folloios: The rising inflection in general denotes incompleteness of statement, comparatively unim- portant statement, inter rogation, or negation ; the falling inflection denotes completed or emphatic statement. General Inflection Drill. 1. Sing the scale, upward and downward. 2. Substitute in place of the note names the long vocals, thus : a, e, I, 5, u, a, e, 5. 3. Sound the third, fifth, and eighth notes of the SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Ill scale ; then substitute for the note names the following : e, a, 60. 4. Give the long vowel sounds, a, e, I, o, ii, (1) witli the rising " second ; " (2) with the rising " third ; " (3) with the rising "fifth;" (4) with the rising "eighth." 5. Give the long vowel sounds, a, e, I, o, u, with the falling " second," " third," " fifth," and " eighth." 6. Give the long vowel sounds, a, e, I, o, u, with the rising wave of the '-'third;" of the "fifth;" of the octave ; " the falling wave with the same degrees. IV. THE CIRCUMFLEX INFLECTION. The circumflex, or wave, is a combination of the rising and falling inflections on the same word or sound. The rising circumflex ends with the rising inflection, and is denoted thus ( v ) ; the falling circumflex ends with the downward slide, and is marked thus ( A ). The circumflex is more emphatic than the direct rising and falling inflections. The circumflex may be divided into the distinctive and the emotional. I. The Distinctive Circumflex of the Third. The distinctive, or unimpassioned, circumflex occurs when the voice rises or falls through the interval of the third. It is the characteristic inflection of good-natured raillery, of humor, and of wit. It is used in express- ing a pun, or a play upon words. It expresses a double meaning, or a double relation. It carries the mind back to something that has been said, or forward to some- thing to he said. This form of circumflex is a delicate wave of the voice, and is very expressive ; but great care should be taken not to overdo it. Carried to excess, it becomes ridiculous. 112 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. II. Inflection Drill. 1. Sound the long vocals, a, e, I, 5, ii, with the slight rising circumflex of the third ; with the slight falling circumflex. 2. Count from one to twenty, with the slight risius circumflex; with the falling wave of the third. 3. It is n't the secret I care about, Mr. Caudle. It 's the slight. 4. Do you hear the rain, Mr. Caudle ? 5. When lawyers take what they would give, And doctors give what they would tdke. 6. I should do Brutus wrong, and Cassius wrong, Who, you all know, are honorable men. 7. Men, indeed/ call themselves lords of creation ! Pretty lords, when they can't even take care of an um- brella ! 8. Let any man resolve to do right now, leaving then to do as it can ; and if he were to live to the age of Ifethiisclah, he would never do wrong. But the com- mon error is to resolve to act right after b real fast, or after dinner, or to-morrow morning, or ne>i time. But now, just now, this once, we must go on the same as ever. III. Emotional Circumflex. The emotional circumflex occurs when the voice rises or falls through an interval of the fifth or the eighth. It is the wave of irony, sarcasm, scorn, contempt, hatred, revenge, astonishment, or amazement. It is the inflection of very strong emphasis. The rising circumflex occurs where, otherwise, the direct rising inflection would be used; and the falling wave where, otherwise, the falling slide would be applied. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 113 IV*. Inflection Drill. 1. Sound the long vocals, a, e, I, 5, u, with the rising circumflex of the fifth; with the falling circumflex. 2. Eepeat, five times, with surprise, the words, "ah! indeed /" with the rising circumflex of the fifth. 3. Gone to be married ! gone to swear a peace ! 4. Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions ? 5. Eepeat, with irony and the falling wave of the fifth, the expressioD, "I told you so\" 6. Sound the long vocals, a, e, I, 5, u, witli the rising wave of the eighth ; the fallino- wave of the eighth. 7. Repeat, five times, with the greatest possible aston- ishment, the following : ah ! indeed ! is it true ! 8. noble judge! excellent young man! 9. No ! by St. Bride of Bothwell, nd ! 10. Soars thy presumption then so high, Because a wretched him ye slew, Homasre to name to Roderick Dim? V. Examples of the Distinctive Circumflex. The distinctive circumflex is the delicate wave of the voice, generally of the rising or falling third, indicative of mirth, fun, wit, humor, and good-natured raillery. In the following examples, be careful not to overdo the inflection or the emphasis. EXAMPLES. 1. THE DEBTOR. A cUbtor is a man of mark. Many eyes are fixed upon him; many have interest in his well-being; his move- ments are of concern; he can not disappear unheeded; 114 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. his name is in many mouths; his name is upon many hooks'; he is a man of note — of promissory note; he fills the speculation of many minds ; men conjecture about him, wonder about him — wonder and conjecture whether he will pdy. He is a man of consequence, for many are running after him. His door is thronged with duns. He is inquired after every hour of the day. Judges hear of him and know him. Every meal he swallows, every coat he puts upon his back, every dollar he borrows, appears before the country in some formed document. Compare las notoriety with the obscure lot of the cred- itor — of the man who has nothing but claims on the world; a landlord, or yVfotrf-holder, or some such disa- greeable, hard character. 2. falstaff's instinct. Why, I knew ye as well as he that mddc ye. Why, hear me, my masters: was it for me to kill the luir- apparent ? Should I turn upon the true prince ? Why, thou knowest I am as valiant as Hercules; but beware instinct; the lion will not touch the true prince; instinct is a great matter ; I was a coward on instinct. I shall think the better of myself and thee during my life ; / for a valiant lion, and thou for a true prince, 3. falstaff's honor. How then? Can honor set a leg? No. Or an arm ? No. Or take away the grief of a wound ? N6. Honor hath no skill in surgery, tlien ? N6\ "What fa honor? A word. What is that word? Air. A trim reckoning! Who hath it? He that died o' Wednesday. Doth he flel it ? No. Doth he hear it ? No. Is it ^sensible, then ? Yea, to the dead. But will it not live with the living ? No. Why ? Detraction will not suffer it; therefore I'll none of it. — Honoris a mere 'scutcheon — and so ends my catechism. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 115 4. PORTIA, IN THE MERCHANT OF VENICE. If to do were as easy as to know what were good to do, chapels had been churches, and poor men's cottages princes' palaces. It is a good divine that follows his own instructions. I can easier teach twenty what were good to be done than be one of the twenty to follow mine own teaching. The brain may devise laws for the blood ; but a hot temper leaps over a cold decree ; such a hare is madness, the youth, to skip o'er the meshes of good counsel, the cripple. But this reasoning is not in the fashion to choose me a husband. me ! the word choose ! I may neither choose whom I ivould, nor refuse whom I dislike ; so is the will of a living daughter curbed by the will of a dead father. Is it not hard, Nerissa, that I can not choose one, nor refuse none ? 5. ROMEO AND JULIET. Jul. Oh ! swear not by the moon, the inconstant moon That monthly changes in her circled orb; Lest that thy love prove likewise variable. Rom. What shall I swear by ? Jul. Do not swear at all; Or, if thou wilt, swear by thy gracious self, Which is the god of my idolatry, And 1 11 believe thee. 6. NELLY GRAY. O, Nelly Gray ! 0, Nelly Gray ! Is this your love so warm ? The love that loves a scarlet coat Should be more uniform I hood. 7. THE WITCH'S DAUGHTER. Her mother only killed a cow, Or witched a churn or dairy-pan ; But sM, forsooth, must charm a man. whittier. 116 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 8. CONTENTMENT. Little I ask ; my wants are few : I only wish a hut of stone (A very plain brown stone will do), That I may call my own ; And close at hand is such a one, In yonder street that fronts the sun. I always thought cold victual nice. My choice would be vanilla-ice. I only ask that fortune send A little more than I can spend. holmes. 9. AUNT TABITHA. Whatever I do, and whatever I say, Aunt Tabitha tells me that is n't the way. When she was a girl (forty summers ago), Aunt Tabitha tells me they never did so. HOLME& VI. Examples of Emotional Circumflex. The emotional circumflex runs into the fifth and eighth, and requires strong emphasis. This form of the circumflex is expressive of sarcasm, irony, astonishment, revenge, and hatred. examples. 1. from dickens's "Christmas carol." "Let me hear another sound from ytiu" said Scrooge, " and you '11 keep your Christmas by losing your situa- tion. You're quite a powerful splaher t sir," he added, turning to his nephew. "I wonder you don't go into Parliament." 2. KING JOHN. Thou wear a lions hide / Doff it for shdmr, And hang a cdlj-skhi on those recreant limbs. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 117 3. CCmiOLANUS. Measureless liar ! thou hast made my heart Too great for what contains it. Boy ! Cut me to pieces, Volscians ; men and lads, Stain dll your edges on me. Boy ! — If you have writ your annals true, 't is there That, like an eagle in a dovecot, / Fluttered your Volscians in Corioli : Alone I did it. Boy! 4. SHYLOCK. If it will feed nothing Use, it will feed my revenge. He hath disgraced me, and hindered me of half a mill- ion; laughed at my losses, mocked at my gains, scorned my nation, thwarted my bargains, cooled my friends, heated my enemies. And what 's his reason ? I am a Jew ! Hath not a Jew eyes ? Hath not a Jew hands, organs, dimensions, senses, affections, passions ? Is he not fed with the same food, hurt with the same weapons, subject to the same diseases, healed by the same means, warmed and cooled by the same summer and winter, as a Christian is ? If you stab us, do we not bUecl I If you tickle us, do we not laugh ? If you poison us, do we not die ? And if you wrong us, shall we not revenge ? 5. SCHOOL FOE. SCANDAL. Sir Peter. Very well, ma'am, very wUl ; so a husband is to have no influence, no authority ? Lady Teazle. Authority ! No, to be sure ; if you wanted authority over me, you should have adopted me, and not married me ; I 'm sure you were old enough. Sir Peter. Old enough ! ay, there it is. Will, wMl, Lady Teazle, though my life may be made unhappy by your ttmpcr, 1 11 not be ruined by your extravagance. Lady Teazle. My extravagance ! Sir Peter, am L to blame because flowers are dear in cold weather ? You 118 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. should find fault with the climate, and not with me. For my part, I 'm sure, I wish it was spring all the year round, and that roses grew under our feet. Sir Peter. Zounds ! Madam, you had no taste when you married me. Lady Teazle. That 's very true, indeed, Sir Pe'ter ; and after having married you, I should never pretend to taste again, I allow. Iago. My noble lord- Othello. What dost thou say, Iago ? Iago. Did Michael Cassio, when you wooed my lady, know of your love ? Othello. He did, from first to last. Why dost thou ask ? Iago. But for a satisfaction of my thought ; No further harm. Othello. Why of thy thought, Iago ? Iago. I did not think, he had been acquainted with her. Othello. yds ; and went between us very oft. Iago. Indeed 1 Othello. Indeed ! ay, indeed : — Discern'st thou aught in that ? Is he not honest ? Iago. Honest, my lord ? Othello. Ay, honest. Iago. My lord, for aught 1 know. Othello. What dost thou think/ Iago. Think, my lord ? Othello. Think, my l&rd ? By heavens ! he echoes me, As if there were some monster in his thought Too hideous to be shown. Thou dost mean something. 7. FROM TIIK "HONEYMOON." Julia. I will go home ! Duke. You arc at home already. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 119 Julia. 1 11 not endure it S — But remember this — Duke or no duke, I '11 be a duchess, sir ! Duke. A duchess/ You shall be a queen — to all Who, by the courtesy, will call you so. Juliet. And I will have attendance ! Duke. So you shall, When you have learned to wait upon yourself. Julia. To wait upon myself! Must I bear this ? Duke. Excellent ! How well you sum the duties of a wife I Why, what a Messing I shall lidve in you ! Juliet. A blessing ? Duke. When they talk of yoit and me, Darby and Joan shall no more be remembered : — We shall be happy! Julia. Shall we ? Duke. Wondrous happy ! Oh, you will make an ddmirctble wife ! Juliet. I will make a vixen. Duke. What ? Julia. A very vixen. Duke. Oh, no ! We '11 have no vixens. Juliet. I '11 not bectr it ! I '11 to my fathers ! — ToBIN V. THE MONOTONE. The monotone is one uniform tone, which neither rises nor falls in pitch above or below the general level of the sentence. It is a continuous flow of sound, corre- sponding, in some degree, to the chanting tone in vocal music. It is generally associated with low pitch and slow movement. When the voice is under the influence of awe or horror, the monotone strikes upon the ear like the recurring pulsations of a cleep-toned bell. 120 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. The monotone is the natural expression of voice when the feelings are under the influence of awe, adoration, reverence, sublimity, grandeur, or horror. " Grandeur of thought and sublimity of feeling," says Tower, "are always expressed by this movement. The effect produced by it is deep and impressive. When its use is known, and the rule for its application is clearly understood, the reading will be characterized by a solemnity of manner, a grandeur of refinement, and a beauty of execution, which all will acknowledge to be in exact accordance with the dictates of Nature, and strictly within the pale of her laws." The monotone, one of the most effective tones in elocution, must not be confounded with monotony, one of the worst faults in school reading. There is one form of monotone, prevailing in the poetry of sentiment, that is not combined with low pitch. This may be called poetic monotone, as contrasted witli the monotone on a low pitch, which may be termed grave, monotone. In poetic monotone, the key is not necessarily lower than the middle pitch, though there is always something of the suppressed force of pathos and sentiment. In examples of the poetic monotone, the slight or suspen- sive rising inflection takes the place of monotone. I. Inflection Drill on the Monotone. 1. Repeat, five times, the long vowel sounds, a, e, I, 5, u. 2. Count, in low pitch combined with monotone, from one to twenty, thus: one, two, three, etc. 3. Roll on, thou deep and dark blue ocean, roll! Ten thousand fleets sweep over thee in vain. 4. An ancient time-piece says to all — Forever — never ! Never — forever ! SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 121 II. Examples of Poetic Monotone. 1. FROM FOE'S " EATEN." Then, methought, the air grew denser, perfumed from an unseen censer Swung by Seraphim, whose footfalls tinkled on the tufted floor. This I sat engaged in guessing, but no syllable expressing To the fowl, whose fiery eyes now burned into my bosom's core ; This and more I sat divining, with my head at ease reclining On the cushion's velvet lining that the lamp-light gloated o'er, But whose velvet violet lining with the lamp-light gloating o'er She shall press, ah, nevermore ! 2. FROM "THE CLOSING SCENE." Long, but not loud, the droning wheel went on, Like the low murmur of a hive at noon; Long, but not loud, the memory of the gone Breathed through her lips a sad and tremulous tune. At last the thread was snapped : her head was bowed ; Life dropped the distaff through his hands serene, — And loving neighbors smoothed her careful shroud, While Death and Winter closed the autumn scene. Read. 3. FASSING AWAY. While vet I looked, what a change there came ! Her eye was quenched, and her cheek was wan; Stooping and staffed was her withered frame, Yet just as busily swung she on. The garland beneath her had fallen to dust: The wheels above her were eaten with rust. 122 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. The hands, that over the dial swept, Grew crooked and tarnished, but on they kept; And still there came that silver tone From the shriveled lips of the toothless crone — Let me never forget, to my dying day, The tone or the burden of that lay — '•' Passing away I Passing away ! " TlERPOXT. III. Low, or Grave, Monotone. The low, or grave, monotone is pitched on the lower notes of the voice. It is indicated by the macrons placed over the vowels : 1. Alexander's feast. He chose a mournful muse, Soft pity to infuse: He sung Darius great and gdod, By too severe a late, Fallen, fallen, fallen, fallen, Fallen from his high estate, And weltering in his blood. dbyden. 2. the sea. Break, break, break, On thy cold gray stones, Sea ! And I would that my tongue could utter The thoughts that arise in me. well for the fisherman's boy. That he shouts with his sister at play ! well for the sailor lad, That he sings in his boat on the bay ! And the stately ships go on To their haven under the hill; SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 123 But for the touch of a vanished hand, And the sound of a voice that is still ! Break, break, break, At the foot of thy crags, O Sea ! But the tender grace of a clay that is dead Will never come back to me. Tennyson. 3. DEATH. Leaves have their time to fall, And flowers to wither at the north-wind's breath, And stars to sefc — but all, Thou hast all seasons for thine own, Death ! HEMAN'S. 4. DRIFTING. From the strong Will, and the Endeavor That forever Wrestles with the tides of Fate ; From the wreck of Hopes far scattered, Tempest-sh attered, Floating waste and desolate ; — Ever drifting, drifting, drifting On the shifting Currents of the restless heart ; Till at length in books recorded, They, like hoarded Household words, no more depart. Longfellow. 5. THE BATTLE. Heavy and solemn, A cloudy column, Through the green plain they marching came — Measureless spread, like a table dread, For the wild, grim dice of the iron game. 124 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Looks are bent on the shaking ground, Hearts beat low with a knelling sound ; Swift by the breast that must bear the brunt, Gallops the major along the front. " Halt ! " And fettered they stand at the stark command, And the warriors, silent, halt. Schiller. G. THE PRISONER OF CHILLON. For all was blank, and bleak, and gray ; It was not night — it was not day; It was not even the dungeon light, So hateful to my heavy sight — But vacancy absorbing space, And fixedness — without a place ; There were no stars — no earth — no time — No check — no change — no good — no crime — But silence, and a stirless breath Which neither was of life nor death : A sea of stagnant idleness — Blind, boundless, mute, and motionless. byron. 7. What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, Gaunt, and ominous bird of yore Meant in croaking " Nevermore." 8. To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow, Creeps in this petty pace from day to day, To. the last syllable of recorded time; And all our yesterdays have lighted fools The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle ! Life's but a walking shadow; a poor player, That 'struts and frets his hour upon the stage, And then is heard no more : it is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 125 9. THE OCEAN. Thou glorious mirror, where the Almighty's form Glasses itself in tempests ; In all time, Calm or convulsed, in breeze, or gale, or storm, Icing the pole, or in the torrid clime Dark-heaving — boundless, endless, and sublime ; The Image of Eternity — the throne Of the Invisible ; even from out thy slime The monsters of the deep are made ; each zdne Obeys thee ; thou goest forth, dread, fathomless alone. Byron. 10. SONG OF THE SHIRT. Work — work — work ! Till the brain begins to swim ; Work — work — work ! Till the eyes are heavy and dim ! Seam, and gusset, and band, Band, and gusset, and seam, Till over the buttons I fall asleep, And sew them on in a dream ! hood. 11. THE GHOST IN HAMLET. Ghost. I am thy father's spirit ; Doomed for a certain term to walk the night ; And, for the day, confined to fast in fires, Till the foul crimes, done in my days of nature, Are burnt and purged away. But that I am forbid To tell the secrets of my prison-house, I could a tale unfold, whose lightest word Would harrow up thy soul ; freeze thy young blood ; Make thy two eyes, like stars, start from their spheres ; Thy knotted and combined locks to part, And each particular hair to stand on end, Like quills lipOll the fretful porcupine. Shakespeare. 126 school elocution. Recapitulation of Inflections. 1. The rising inflection is the slide of appeal, of inquiry, of incompleteness, and of negation contrasted with oj/irma- tion. 2. The falling inflection is the slide of assertion, of com- mand, and of complete statement. 3. The circumflex is the wave of wit, humor, raillery, irony, sarcasm, satire, and revenge. 4. The monotone is the tone expressive of grandeur, sub- limity, reverence, cave, amazement, and horror. Inflection Drill Review. 1. Repeat, three times, the long vowel sounds, a, e, T, 5, u. (1) With the rising second. (2) With the ris- ing third. (3) With the rising fifth. (4) With the rising octave. 2. Repeat, three times, a, e, I, 5, u. (1) With the falling second. (2) With the falling third. (3) With the falling fifth. (4) With the falling eighth. 3. Repeat, three times, with the same degrees of in- flection as above, e, a, a, o, o. 4. Repeat, three times, a, e, I, 6, u. (1) With the rising circumflex of the third. (2) Fifth. (3) Octave. (4) Falling circumflex of the third, (o) Falling fifth. (C) Falling octave. 5. The same degrees of the circumflex as above, on e, a, a, o, o. G. Repeat, three times, a, e, I, 5, u, with the low mon- otone. 7. Repeat, three times, e, a, a, a. 5, o, with the low monotone. school elocution. 127 Inflection Drill on Vocals. Bead, in concert, the words of the following Table : 1. With the rising inflection. 2. With the falling inflection. 3. With the rising circumflex. 4. With the falling circumflex. a, e. — ale, made, braid, gauge, veil, play, weight. a. — alms, chart, heart, laugh, haunt, aunt, path. a, 6. — all, awe, law, fall, haul, bawl, -erawl, ought. a. — add, that, brat, hand, land, plaid, bade. a. — air, bare, dare, prayer, there, hair, scarce. a. — ask, -eask, task, pass, grass, dance, glance, a, o. — what, spot, wad, waud, was, watch, wan. e. — eat, beat, beet, the§e, seize, freeze, leaveg. e. — end, let, threat, get, gem, bread, yet, said, e, I. — earth, heard, learn, earn, err, third, gird, e, a, — they, weigh, nay, neigh, sleigh, prey, pray. I. — ic,e, Isle, aisle, wine, height, while, rhyme. I. — ill, it, win, thin, been, gin, since, zinc. I, e. — mirth, girl, dirt, verse, terse, worse, world. i, e. — pique, clique, -creek, oblique, ravine, o. — old, tho§e, groan, force, pour, roar, more, o. — 5dd, on, blot, spot, got, god, rod, phlox. o, oo, u. — move, proof, lo§e, loose, roof, choose. 6, a. — or, nor, war, for, lord, -cord, fought, -caught. 6, u. — done, doth, dost, dust, blood, flood, -come. 9, oo, u. — wolf, would, wood, could, should, good, u. — u§e, mute, mu§e, feud, lieu, view, new, tube. u, 6. — up, biit, hut, son, blood, gun, duck, some, u. — urge, purge, surge, curd, urn, burn, churn, u, oo, o. — rule, sehool, brute, route, wound, rude, u, oo, o. — put, pull, push, bull, wool, wolf, wood, oi, oy. — oil, toy, boil, -coil, roil, joy, boy, cloy. ou, ow. — out, noun, proud, now, how, gout, pout. 128 school elocution. Examples of Emphasis, Pauses, and Inflection. 1. JOHN BUNYAN. Bunyan | is almost the only writer | that ever gave to the abstract | the interest of the concrete. In the works of many celebrated authors | men are mere personifica- tions. We have not an Othello, but jealousy ; not an Icigo, but perfidy ; not a Brutus, but patriotism. The mind of Bunyan, on the contrary, was so imaginative | that personifications, when lie dealt with them, became mhi. A dialogue between two qualities, in his deloni. has more dramatic effect | than a dialogue between two human beings | in most flays. The style of Bunyan | is delightful to every reader, and invaluable | as a study | to every person | who wishes to obtain a wide command over the English language. The vocabulary | is the vocabulary of the common people. There is not an expression, if w T e except a few technical terms of theology, which would puzzle the rudest peasant. We have observed several pages j which do not contain a single ivbrd | of more than two syllables. Yet no writer | has said more exactly | what he meant to say. Eor magnificence, for pathos, for vehement exhortation, for subtile disquisition, for every purpose of the poet, the orator, and the divine, this homely dialect, the dialect of plain worhingmen, was perfectly sufficient. There is no book in our literature | on which we would so readily stake the fame | of the old unpolluted English language ; no booh | which shows so well | how rich that language Is, in its own proper wdalth, and how little it has been improved | by all that it has borrowed. Cowper said, fifty or sixty years ago, that he dared not name John Bunyan in his verse, for fear of moving a sneer. We | live in better fames; and we are not afraid \ to say, that though there were many clever men in England | during the latter half of the seventeenth ce*n- SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 129 tury, there were only two \ great \ creative \ minds. One of these produced the "Paradise Lost," the other | the "Pilgrim's Progress." macaulay. 2. HYDEB, ALL [This extract must be read with strongly marked rising and falling, inflections.'] Whilst the authors of all these evils j were idly and stupidly gazing on this menacing meteor, which black- ened all the horizon, it suddenly hurst, and poured down the whole of its contents | upon the plains of the Car- natic. Then ensued a scene of woe, the like of which | no eye \ had seen, no heart \ conceived, and which no tongue | can adequately tell. The miserable inhabitants, flying from their flaming villages, in part | were slaugh- tered ; others, without regard to sex, to age, to rank, or sacredness of function — fathers | torn from children, Mis- hands | from ivives — enveloped in a whirlwind of cavalry, and amidst the goading spears of drivers, and the tram- pling of pursuing horses, were swept into captivity, in an unknown and hostile land. Those who were able to evade this tempest, fled to the walled cities. But, escaping from fire, sword, and exile, they fell into the jaws of famine. For eighteen months, without intermission, this destruc- tion | raged | from the gates of Madras | to the gates of Tanjbre ; and so completely did these masters in their art, Hyder Ali, and his more ferocious son, absolve themselves | of their impious vow, that when the British armies | traversed, as they did, the Carnatic | for hun- dreds of miles in all directions, through the ivhblc line of their march they did not see one \ man, not one \ tubman, not 6ne \ child, not one \ four-footed heast | of any descrip- tion | whatever. One dead | uniform | silence | reigned | over the whole region. bubee. 130 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 3. CONTRAST OF TACT AND TALENT. [This extract affords a good illustration of distinctive or unimpassioned circumflex.} Talent | is something, but tact | is every thing. Talent | is serious, sober, grave, and respectable: tact | is all thai, and more too. It is not a sixth sense, but it is the life of all the five. It is the open eye, the quick ear, the judging taste, the keen smell, and the lively touch; it is the interpreter of all riddles, the surmdunter of all diffi- culties, the remover of all obstacles. It is useful in all places, and at all times; it is useful in solitude, for it shows a man into the world ; it is useful in society, for it shows him his way | through the world. Talent | is power, tact \ is skill ; talent | is weight, tact | is momentum; talent | knows what to do, tact ] knows how to dd it ; talent | makes a man respectable, tact | will make him respected; talent is wealth, tact \ is ready money. For all the practiced purposes, tact | carries it against talent \ ten to one. Take them to the theater, and put them against each other on the stage, and talent | shall produce you a tragedy that shall scarcely live long enough to be con- demned, while tact | keeps the house in a roar, night after night, with its successful farces. There is no want of dramatic talent, there is no want of dramatic tact; but they are seldom together: so we have successful pieces | which are not respectable, and respectable pieces | which are not successful. Take them to the bar, and let them shake their learned curls at eacli other in legal rivalry; talent | sees its way clearly, but tact | is first at its journey's end. Talent \ lias many a complinicnt from the bdnch, but tact | touches fees. Talent makes the world wonder that it gets on no faster, tact | arouses astonishment | that it gets on so fast. And the secret is, that it has no weight to carry; it makes no false steeps ; it hits the right nail on the SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 131 head; it loses no time; it takes all hints; and by keep- ing its eye on the weather-cock, is ready to take advantage of every wind that blows. Take them into the church : talent | has always some- thing worth hearing, tact \ is sure of abundance of hear- ers ; talent | may obtain a living, tact will make one ; talent | gets a good name, tact | a great one ; talent | con- vinces, tact | converts; talent | is an honor to the 'pro- fession, tact | gains honor | from the profession. Take them to court : talent | feels its loeight, tact | finds its way ; talent \ commands, tact | is obeyed ; tal- ent | is honored with approbation, and tact | is blessed by preferment. Place them in the senate: talent | has the ear of the house, but tact | wins its heart, and has its votes; talent | is fit for employment, but tact | is fitted for it. It has a knack | of slipping into place with a sweet silence and glibness of movement, as a bill- iard-hall insinuates itself into the pocket. It seems to know every thing, without learning any thing. It has served an extemporary cqoprenticeship ; it wants no drilling ; it never ranks in the dwkward squad ; it has no left hand, no deaf ear, no blind side. It puts on no look of wondrous wisdom, it has no air of profun- dity, but plays with the details of place | as dexterously as a well-taught hand | flourishes over the keys of the piano-forte. It has all the air of commonplace, and all the force and power of genius. London Atlas. 4. THE PURITANS. [Marked for emphasis, inflection, and rhetorical pauses. Require the class to give the reasons for the marking. To be read with strongly marked emphasis and inflections.'] We would speak first of the Puritans, the most remarkable body of men, perhaps, which the world has ever produced. The ddious and ridiculous parts of their character | lie on the surface. He that runs \ may read 132 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. them; nor have there been wanting | attentive and maljcious observers \ to point them out. For many years after the Bestoration, they were the theme | of unmeas- ured invective and derision. They were exposed | to the utmost licentiousness of the press | and of the stdge, at the time when the press and the stage | were most licen- tious. They were not men of letters; they wire | as a body | unpopular; they could not defend themselves; and the public | would not take them | under its protec- tion. They were therefore abandoned | without reserve \ to the tender me'reies | of the satirists and dramatists. The ostentatious simplicity of their dr4ss, their sour dspject, their nasal twang, their stiff posture, their long graces, their Hebrew names, the scriptural phrases which they introduced on every occasion, their contempt of human learning, their detestation of polite amusements, were indeed fair game for the laughers. But it is not from the laughers alone | that the phildsophy of history | is to be learned. And he who approaches this subject | should carefully guard against the influence | of that potent ridicule | which has already misled so many ex- cellent writers. Those who roused the people to resistance, who directed their measures through a long series of event- ful years, who formed, out of the most unpromising materials, the finest army | that Europe had ever sSen, who trampled down king, Church, and aristocracy, who, in the short intervals of domestic sedition and rebellion, made the name of England | terrible to every nation on the face of the earth, were no vulgar fanatics. Most of their absurdities | were mere ^eternal budges, like the signs of freemasonry, or the dresses of friars. We n - gret | that these badges | were not more attractive. We regret | that a body | to whose courage and talents | man- kind has owed inestimable obligdtiojts | had not the lofty elegance | which distinguished some of the adherents of SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 133 Charles I., or the easy good breeding | for which the court of Charles IT. was celebrated. But, if we must make our choice, we shall, like Bassanio in the play, turn from the specious caskets, which contain only the death's head and the fool's head, and fix our choice | on the plain leaden chest | which conceals the treasure. The Puritans | were men | whose minds [ had derived a peculiar character \ from the daily contemplation | of superior beings | and eternal Interests. Not content | with acknowledging, in general terms, an overriding Provi- dence, they habitually ascribed every event | to the will of the Great Being, for whose poiocr | nothing was too vast, for whose inspection | nothing was too minute. To know him, to serve him, to enjoy him, was with them [ the great end of existence. They rejected with con- tempt | the ceremonious homage | which other sects | substituted for the pure ivorship of the sbid. Instead of catching occasional glimpses of the Deity | through an obscuring veil, they aspired to gaze full | on the intolerable brightness, and to commune with him | face to face, Hence originated | their contempt | for terres- trial distinctions. The difference between the greatest and the meanest of mankind | seemed to vanish, when compared with the boundless interval \ which separated the whole race | from him | on whom their dwn eyes | were constantly fixed. They recognized no title to superiority | but his favor ; and, confident of that favor, they ' despised all the accdm- plishments | and all the dignities of the ivbrld. If they were unacquainted with the works of philosophers and poets, they were deeply read | in the oracles of God, If their names were not found in the registers of heralds, they felt assured that they were recorded in the Book of Life. If their steps were not accompanied by a splendid train of menials, legions of ministering angels \ had charge over them. Their palaces | were houses I 134 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. not made with hands, their diadems | crowns of gl6ry \ which should never fade away. On the rich and the eloquent, on ndbles and priests, they looked down with contbnpt ; for they esteemed themselves | rich in a more precious treasure, and Eloquent in a more sublime language, nobles | by the right of an earlier creation, and priests | by the imposition | of a mightier hand. The very meanest of them | was a being \ to whose fate | a mysterious and terrible importance | be- longed — on whose slightest actions \ the spirits of light and darkness | looked with anxious interest — who had been destined, before heaven and earth were created, to enjoy a felicity | which should continue | when heaven and darth | should have passed away. Events | which short-sighted politicians | ascribed to earthly causes | had been ordained on his account. For his sake | empires had risen, and flourished, and decayed. For his sake the Almighty | had proclaimed his will | by the pen of the evangelist | and the harp of the prophet. He had been rescued by no common deliverer | from the grasp | of no common foe. He had been ransomed | by the sweat of no vulgar agony, by the blood of no earthly sacrifice. It was for him | that the sun | had been dark- ened, that the rocks \ had been rent, and the dead had arisen, that all nature | had shuddered at the sufferings | of her expiring God ! Thus the Puritan | was made up | of twb different men, the one | all self-abasement, penitence, grdtii passion; the other | proud, calm, inflexible, sagacious. He prostrated himself in the dust before his Maker ; but lie set his foot \ on the neck of his ling. In hifl devotional retirement, lie prayed witli convulsion*, and groans, and thtrs. He was half-maddened by gldrious \ or thrible illusions. He heard the lyres of angels | or the tempting whispers of fiends. He caught a gleam of the Beatific Vision, or woke screaming | from dreams of SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 135 everlasting fire. Like Vane, he thought himself intrusted with the scepter | of the millennial year. Like Fleet- wood, he cried in the bitterness of his soul | that God \ had hid his face from him. But when he took his seat in the council, or girt on his sword for wdr, these tempestuous workings of the soul | had left no perceptihle trace behind them. People who saw nothing of the godly | but their uncouth visages, and heard nothing from them | but their groans | and their whining hymns, might Ucugh at them. But those had little reason to laugh | who encountered them | in the hall of debate | or in the field of battle. These fandtics | brought to civil and military affairs | a coolness of judgment \ and an immutability of p4r- pose | which some writers have thought | inconsistent with their religious zeal, but which were, in fact, the necessary effects of it. The intensity of their feelings on one subject | made them trhnquil | on every other. One overpowering sentiment | had subjected to itself | pity and hatred, ambition and fear. Death | had lost its ter- rors, and pleasure | its chctrms. They had their smiles | and their tears, their raptures \ and their sorrows, but not | for the things of this world. Enthusiasm | had made them stoics, had cleared their minds from every vulgar passion and prejudice, and raised them above the influence of clanger and of corruption. It sometimes might lead them to pur- sue unwise ends, but never to choose unwise means. They went through the world | like Sir Artegale's iron man Talus with his flail, crushing and trampling down oppressors, mingling with human brings, but having neither part nor lot | in hum.an infirmities; insensible to fatigue, to pleasure, and to phin ; not to be pierced by any weapon, not to be withstood by any ohrricr. Macaulay. 136 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 5. THE RIGHT TO TAX AMERICA. " But, Mr. Speaker, we have a right to tax America." Oh, inestimable right ! Oh, wonderful, transcendent right ! the assertion of which has cost this country thirteen provinces, six islands, one hundred thdusand lives, and seventy millions of money ! Oil, invaluable right ! for tlie sake of which we have sacrificed our rank ainon< r o nations, our importance abroad, and our happiness at home. Oh, ricjht, more dear to us than our existence, which has already cost us so much, and which seems likely to cost us our till ! Infatuated man ! miserable and undone country ! not to know that the claim of right, without the power of enforcing it, is litigatory and idle. We have a right to tax America, the noble lord tells us, therefore we ought to tax America. This is the profound logic which comprises the whole chain of his reasoning. Not inferior to this was the wisdom of him who resolved to shear the wolf. What — shear a wolf ! Have you considered the resistance, the difficulty, the danger, of the attempt ? No, says the madman, I have considered nothing but the right. Man has a right of dominion over the bea>t> of the forest ; and, therefore, I will shear the wdlf. How wonderful that a nation could be thus deluded! But the noble lord deals in cheats and delusions. They are the daily traffic of his invention ; and lie will con- tinue to play off his cheats on this house, so long ftS he thinks them necessary to his purpose, and so long as he has money enough at command to bribe gentle- men to pretend that they belikvc him. But a black and bitter day of reckoning will surely come; and whenever that day c6mes, I trust I shall be able, by a parliamentary impeachment) to bring upon the heads of the duthors of our calamities the punishment thev deserve. Bran. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 137 6. FLOWERS. Spake fall well, in language quaint and olden, One who dwelleth by the castled Bhine, When he called the flowers, so blue and golden, Stars, that in earth's firmament do shine. Stars they hre, wherein we read our history, As astrologers and seers of eld ; Yet not so wrapped about with awful mystery, Like the burning stars which they beheld. Wondrous truths, and manifold as wondrous, God hath written in those stars above ; But not less | in the bright flowerets under us | Stands the revelation of His love. Bright and glorious | is that revelation Writ all over this great world of ours ; Making evident our own creation | In these stars of earth — these golden flowers. And the Poet, faithful and far-seeing, Sees, alike in stars and flowers, a part | Of the self-same, universal being, Which is throbbing | in his brain and heart Gorgeous flowerets in the sunlight shining ; Blossoms | flaunting in the eye of day ; Tremulous leaves, with soft and silver lining; Buds | that open | only to decay ! Brilliant hopes, all woven in gorgeous tissues, Flaunting gayly in the golden light; Large desires, with most uncertain issues ; Tender lulshcs | blossoming at night ! These in flowers and men | are more than sdeming; Workings \ are they | of the self-same powers, 138 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Which the Poet, in no idle dreaming, Seeth in himself, and in the flowers. Everywhere about us | are they glowing — Some like stars, to tell us Spring is born ; Others, their blue eyes | with tears o'erflowing, Stand like Ruth | amid the golden corn ; Not alone j in Spring's armorial bearing, And in Summer's | green emblazoned field, But in arms | of brave old Autumns wearing, In the center | of his brazen shield ; Not alone in meadows | and green alleys, On the mountain-top, and by the brink | Of sequestered pools | in woodland valleys, Where the slaves of nature | stoop to drink ; Not alone iu her vast dome of glory, Not on graves of bird and least alone, But on old cathedrals | high and hoary, On the tomb of heroes, carved in stone; In the cottage of the rudest peasant, In ancestral homes, whose crumbling towers, Speaking of the Past | unto the Present, Tell us of the ancient Games of Flowers; In all places, then, and in all seasons, Flowers expand their light and soul-like wings. Teaching us, by most persuasive reasons, How akin they are | to human things. And with child-like, credulous affection, We behold their tender buds expand ; Emblems of our own great resurrection, Emblems | of the bright | and letter land. Longfellow, SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 139 7. THE SEVEN AGES OF MAN. All the world's a stage, And all the men and women merely flayers: They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts, His dc/s being seven ages. At first, the Infant, Mewling and puking in the nurse's arms. And then, the whining School-boy, with his satchel, And shining morning face, creeping like snail Unwillingly to school. And then, the Lover, Sighing like furnace, with a w'oful ballad Made to his mistress' eyebrow. Then a Soldier, Full of strange baths, and bearded like the pard, Jealous in honor, sudden and quick in quarrel, Seeking the bubble reputdtion Even in the cannons mouth. And then, the Justice, With eyes severe, and beard of formal cut, Full of wise saivs and modern Instances; And so he plays Ms part. The sixth age shifts. Into the lean and slippered Pantaloon, With spectacles on nose, and pouch on side; His youthful hose, well saved, a world too wide For his shrunk slulnk ; and his big manly voice, Turning again toward childish treble, pipes And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all, That ends this strange eventful history, Is second childishness and mere oblivion, Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything. Shakespeare. 8. BURIAL OF SIR JOHN MOORE. Not a drum, | was heard, not a funeral note, As his corse | to the rdmpart j we hurried; Not a soldier | discharged his farewell shbt O'er the grave | where our hero | we buried. 140 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. We buried him darkly, at dead of night, The sods with our Uiyonets turning; By the struggling moonbeam's misty light, And the Utntcrn | dimly burning. No useless cdffin | inclosed his breast, Not in she'd | nor in shroud | we wound him; But he lay | like a warrior taking his rest \ With his martial cloak | around him. Few and short | were the prkyers we said, And we spoke not a word of sorrow, But we steadfastly gazed on the face of the dead, And we bitterly thought of the morrow. We thought, as we hollowed his narrow he'd, And smoothed down his lonely pillow, That the foe and the stranger | would tread o'er his he'ad, And we | far away on the billow ! Lightly they '11 talk of the spirit that 's gone, And o'er his cold ashes | npbrdid him, — But nothing he '11 reck, if they let him sleep on | In the grave | where a Briton | has laid him. But hcclf | of our heavy task | was done | When the clock | struck the hour for retiring; And we heard the distant and random gun \ That the foe | was sullenly firing. Slowly and sadly | we laid him down, From the field of his fame | fresh and gory ; We carved not a line, and we raised not a stone, But left him | alone with his glory. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 141 CHAPTER IT. FORCE AND STRESS SECTION I. FORCE OF VOICE. 1. Force of utterance relates to the degree of loudness or intensity of voice. 2. The three main divisions of force are soft, moderate, and loud. These, for convenience, may be subdivided as follows : (1) Very soft (corresponding to pianissimo in music). (2) Soft (piano). (3) Moderate (mezzo-forte). (4) Loud (forte). (5) Very loud (fortissimo). 3. The general rule of force is, to read with an intensity appropriate to the thoughts or emotion to be expressed, and with a power or strength of voice sufficient to fill the room, so that every person in it may hear distinctly every word that is uttered. 4. Force of voice must be stronger in the school- room than in the parlor, and louder in the lecture-hall than in the school-room. If read to an assemblage of a thousand people, the most didactic and unimpassioned document must be read with considerable force. 5. Pupils should be cautioned against attempting any degree of force beyond the compass of their voices, and also against the conventional school-tone of loudness, which consists in raising the voice to so high a pitch that it grates on the ear like the filing of a saw. 6. "The command of all degrees of force of voice," says Prof. Eussell, " must evidently be essential to true 142 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. and natural expression, whether in reading or speaking. Appropriate utterance ranges through all stages of vocal sound, from the whisper of fear and the murmur of repose, to the boldest swell of vehement declamation, and the shout of triumphant courage. But to give forth any one of these or the intermediate tones, with just and impressive effect, the organs must be disciplined by appropriate exercise and frequent practice. For every day's observation proves to us, that mere natural instinct and animal health, with all the aids of informing intel- lect, and inspiring emotion, and exciting circumstances, are not sufficient to produce the effects of eloquence, or even of adequate utterance. 7. " The overwhelming power of undisciplined feeling may not only impede but actually prevent the right action of the instruments of speech ; and the novice who has fondly dreamed, in his closet, that nothing more is required for effective expression than a genuine feeling, finds, to his discomfiture, that it is perhaps the very intensity of his feeling that hinders his utterance ; and it is not till experience and practice have done their work, that he learns the primary lesson, that force of emotion needs a practiced force of will to balance and regulate it, and a disciplined control over the organs to give it appropriate utterance. 8. " The want of due training for the exercise of public reading or speaking is evinced in the habitual undue loudness of some speakers, and the inadequate force of others — the former subjecting their hearers to unnecessary pain, and the latter to disappointment and uneasiness. 9. " Force of utterance, however, has other claims on the attention of students of elocution, besides those which are involved in correct expression. It is, in its various gradations, the chief means of imparting strength to the vocal organs, and power to the voice itself. The due SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 143 practice of exercises in force of utterance, does for the voice what athletic exercise does for the muscles of the body : it imparts the two great conditions of power — vigor and pliancy." CAUTION. 10. In drill upon the following exercises, bear in mind the following direction from Prof. Monroe : " Seek to make the sounds always smooth and musical ; and never lose sight of the fact that what is wanted in every-day use of the voice, in the school-room or elsewhere, is a pleasant and natural intonation. The practice of loud and sustained tones is an excellent means of improving the voice ; but is to be the exception, not the rule, in ordinary reading. Still less should a shouting tone be used in conducting a recitation, or in the ordinary dis- cipline of a class. Yet the softest tone must be elastic and full of life, not dull and leaden." Concert Drill on Force. 1. Eepeat, three times, the long vocals, a, e, I, o, u, (1) with soft force ; (2) with moderate force ; (3) with loud force. 2. Count from one to twenty with very soft force ; with soft force; with moderate force; with loud force ; with very loud force. 3. Eepeat, five times, the word " all," beginning with very soft force, and increasing the degree of force with each successive repetition of the word. 4. Eepeat the following with increased force on each successive repetition : " loud, louder, loudest." 5. Eepeat, three times, e, a, a, a, o, o, (1) with soft force ; (2) moderate force ; (3) loud force. 144 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. I. Very Soft Force. Very soft force is appropriate to the expression of tenderness, sadness, or peaceful and tranquil feeling. EXAMPLES. 1. DIRGE. Softly! She is lying With her lips apart. Softly! She is dying Of a broken heart. Whisper! She is going To her final rest. Whisper! Life is growing Dim within her breast. Eastman. 2. LULLABY. Sweet and low, sweet and low, Wind of the western sea, Low, low, breathe and blow, Wind of the western sea ! Tehhtsos. 3. ENOCH ARDEN. He therefore turning softly like a thief, Lest the harsh shingle should grate underfoot, And feeling all along the garden-wall, Lest he should swoon and tumble and be found, Crept to the gate, and opened it, and closed, As lightly as a sick man's chamber-door, Behind him, and came out upon the waste. And there he would have knelt, but that his knees Were feeble, so that falling prone he dug His fingers into the wet earth, and prayed Tennyson. II. Soft or Subdued Force. Soft force differs from very soft only in degree. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 145 EXAMPLES. 1. TIME. Touch us gently, Time ! - Let us glide adown thy stream Gently, as we sometimes glide Through a quiet dream. Humble voyagers are we, O'er life's dim, unsounded sea, Seeking only some calm clime ; . Touch US gently, Time! Barry Cornwall.. 2. DEATH OF THE OLD TEAR. Full knee-deep lies the winter-snow, And the wintry winds are wearily sighing, Toll ye the church-bell, sad and slow, And tread softly and speak low, For the old year lies a-clying. Old year, you must not die. Tennyson. 3. THE DEATH-BED. We watched her breathing through the night, Her breathing soft and low, As in her breast the wave of life Kept heaving to and fro. Our very hopes belied our fears, Our fears our hopes belied — We thought her dying when she slept, And sleeping when she died. hood. 4. THE FAERIE QUEEN; Eftsoons they heard a most melodious sound Of all that might delight a dainty ear. Such as, at once, might not on living ground, Save in this paradise, be heard elsewhere : Right hard it was for wight which did it hear 10 146 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. To weet what manner music that might be, For all that pleasing is to living ear Was there consorted in one harmony ; Birds, voices, instruments, winds, waters, all agree. Spenser. 5. THE ARSENAL. Down the dark future, through long generations, The echoing sounds grow fainter and then cease ; And like a bell, with solemn, sweet vibrations, I hear once more the voice of Christ say, "Peace!" Longfellow. 6. THE LOST CHORD. Seated one day at the organ, I was weary and ill at ease, And my fingers wandered idly Over the noisy keys. I do not know what I was playing, Or what I was dreaming then ; But I struck one chord of music, Like the sound of a great Amen! It flooded the crimson twilight, Like the close of an angel's psalm, And it lay on my fevered spirit, With a touch of infinite calm. It quieted pain and sorrow, Like love overcoming strife ; It seemed the harmonious echo From our discordant life. It linked all perplexed meanings Into one perfect peace, And trembled away into silence, As if it were loath to cease. Adelaide Proctor. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 147 III. Moderate Foece. Moderate force is the prevailing tone in the reading of unimpassioned narrative, descriptive, or didactic com- position, in a small room, or to a small number of persons. It is the degree of force used in conversation. The characteristic quality of moderate force is "pure tone," and the stress, "unimpassioned radical." EXAMPLES. 1. There was a sound of revelry by night. 2. What constitutes a state ? 3. Scrooge never painted out old Marley's name. 4. The history of England is emphatically the history of progress. 5. The eyes of men converse as much as their tongues. 6. Spake full well in language quaint and olden, One who dwelleth by the castled Ehine, When he called the flowers, so blue and golden, Stars, that in earth's firmament do shine. 7. The way was long, the wind was cold, The minstrel was infirm and old. 8. I met a little cottage ^irl, She was eight years old, she said ; Her hair was thick with many a curl, That clustered round her head. 9. Blessings on thee, little man, Barefoot boy with cheeks of tan, With thy turned-up pantaloon, And thy merry whistled tune. 10. I wrote some lines once on a time In wondrous merry mood, And thought, as usual, men would say They were exceeding good. 148 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. They were so queer, so veiy queer, I laughed as I would die; Albeit, in the general way, A sober man am I. 11. Listen, my children, and you shall hear Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere, On the eighteenth of April, in seventy-five; — Hardly a man is now alive Who remembers that famous day and year. 12. Around I see the powers that be ; I stand by Empire's primal springs ; And princes meet in every street, And hear the tread of uncrowned kings ! 13. Mrs. Siddons once had a pupil who was practicing for the stage. The lesson was upon the " part " of a young girl whose lover had deserted her. The rendering- did not please that Queen of Tragedy, and she said : "Think how you would feel under the circumstances. What would you do if your lover were to run off and leave you ? " "I would look out for another one," said that philosophic young lady ; and Mrs. Siddons, with a gesture of intense disgust, cried out, "Leave me!" and would never give her another lesson. 14. HEADING AS AN ACCOMPLISHMENT. AVe had rather have a child .return to us from school a first-rate reader, than a first-rate performer on the piano-forte. We should feel that we had a far better pledge for the intelligence and talent of our child. The accomplishment, in its perfection, would give more pleasure. The voice of song is not sweeter than the voice of eloquence. And there may be eloquent reader-. as well as eloquent speakers. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 149 IY. Loud Force. Loud force is the tone used to express courage, bold- ness, defiance, anger, grandeur, and sublimity. It is used by the public speaker in addressing a large audi- ence, or when speaking under the sway of strong emotion. This degree of force requires full and deep breathing, and a vigorous use of the vocal organs. The middle ; pitch is the appropriate key of loud force. A high pitch weakens the effect of forcible reading or declamation. EXAMPLES. 1. Joy! Joy! Shout, shout aloud for joy. 2. Hark to the brazen blare of the bugle ! Hark to the rolling clatter of the drums. 3. Not in vain the distance beacons. Forward, for- ward, let us range; Let the great world spin forever down the ring- ing grooves of change. 4. Alexander's feast. Now strike the golden lyre again ; A louder yet, and yet a louder strain. Break his bands of sleep asunder, And rouse him, like a rattling peal of thunder. Dbyden. 5. revenge. And longer had she sung— but, with a frown, Eevenge impatient rose. He threw his blood-stained sword in thunder down, And, with a withering look, The war-denouncing trumpet took, And blew a blast, so loud and dread, Were ne'er prophetic sounds so full of woe : And ever and anon, be beat The doubling drum with furious heat Collins. 150 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. C. MILTON'S "PARADISE LOST." Now storming fury rose, And clamor such as heard in heaven till 11610 Was never ; arms on armor clashing, brayed Horrible discord, and the madding wheels Of brazen chariots raged : dire was the noise Of conflict; overhead the dismal hiss Of fiery darts in flaming volleys flew, And flying vaulted either host with fire. So under fiery cope, together rushed Both battles main, with ruinous assdult And inextinguishable rage. All heaven Resounded; and had earth been then, all earth, Had to her center shook. What wonder? where Millions of fierce encountering angels fought On dither side, the least of whom could wield These elements, and arm him with the force Of all their regions. 7. THE BELLS. Hear the loud alarum bells — Brazen bells ! What a tale of terror, now, their turbulency tells ! In the startled ear of night How they scream out their affright ! Too much horrified to speak, They can only shriek, shriek, Out of tune, In the clamorous appealing to the mercy of the fire. In a mad expostulation with the deaf and frantic fire. Leaping higher, higher, higher, With a desperate desire, And a resolute endeavor, Now, noio to sit or never By the side of the pale-faced moon! PoE . SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 151 V. Veky Loud or Declamatory Force. Very loud force prevails in oratorical declamation before lame audiences. It is also heard in the tones of anger, of passiou, of command, in calling or shouting, and in intensely dramatic reading. EXAMPLES. 1. Now for the fight ! now for the cannon peal, Forward ! through blood and toil, and cloud, and fire ! Glorious the shout, the shock, the crash of steel, The volley's roll, the rocket's blasting spire. 2. To arms ! they come ! the Greek ! the Greek ! 3. Liberty ! Freedom ! Tyranny is dead. 4. Thy threats, thy mercy I defy, I give thee in thy teeth the lie. 5. He raised a shout as he drew on Till all the welkin rang again : " Elizabeth ! Elizabeth ! " 6. From every hill, by every sea, In shouts proclaim the great decree, 11 All chains are hurst, cdl men are free!" Hurrah, hurrah, hurrah ! 7. SPARTACUS TO THE GLADIATORS. [Radical and vanishing stress, and strongly marked circumflex in- flections.'] Ye stand here now like giants, as ye are. The strength of brass is in your toughened sinews; but to-morrow some Roman Adonis, breathing sweet perfume from his curly locks, shall with his Illy fingers pat your red brdwn, and bet his sesterces upon your blood. Hark ! hear ye yon lion roaring in his den ? 'T is three days since he tasted flesh; but to-morrow he shall break his 152 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. fast upon yoilrs, and a dainty meal for him ye will be. If ye are beasts, then stand here like fat oxen, waiting for the butcher s knife ! If ye are men, follow me ! Strike down yon guard, gain the mountain passes, and there do bloody wbr\ as did your sires at old Th> r- mbpylce ! Is Sparta dead ? Is the old Grecian spirit frozen in your veins, that you do crouch and cower like a belabored hound beneath his master's lash? Oh, com- TCides ! wdrrim^s ! Tlirdcians ! if we must fight, let us fii»ht for ourselves ! If we must slaughter, let us slaughter our oppressors ! If we must die, let it be under the clear -shy, by the bright ivdtcrs, in noble, honorable utlttLC. Kellogg. 8. CATILINE'S DEFIANCE. Conscript fathers, I do not rise to waste the night in icords : Let that plebeian talk ; 't is not my trade ; But here I stand for right! — Let him show jwbofs! For Roman right ; though none, it seems, dare stand To take their share with me. Ay, cluster there S Cling to your master, judges, Romans, slaves ! His charge is false. I dare him to his proofs. Crolt. 9. 11ICIIELIEU. Who spake of life ? I bade thee grasp that treasure as thine honor — A jewel worth wdiole liecatombs of lives ! Begone! redeem thine honor! Bach to Marion — Or Baradas — or Orleans — track the robber — Regain the packet — or crawl on to age — Age and gray hdirs like mine — and know thou 'at lost That which had made thee great and saved thy cbuntry. See me not till thou 'st bought the right to seek me. Away ! Nay, chhr thee ! thou hast not fail'd yet — There 's no such wdrd as fail. bulwer. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 153 10. FREEDOM. 8. If I could stand for a moment upon one of your high mountain tops, far above all the kingdoms of the civilized world, and there might sde, coming up, one after another, the bravest and wisest of the ancient warriors, and statesmen, and kings, and monarchs, and urie'sts ; and if, as they came up, I might be permitted to ask from them an expression of opinion upon such a case as this, with a common voice and m thunder tones, reverberating through a thousand valleys, and echoing down the ages, they would cry : " Liberty, Freedom, the Universal Brotherhood of Man!" I join that shout; I swell that anthem ; I echo that praise forever, and for evemnbrc. 11. THE WAR INEVITABLE. They tell us, sir, that we are iveak — unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger 'I Will it be the next iveek, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house ? Sfhall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction ? Shall we acquire the means of effectual | resistance by lying supinely on our backs, and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot ? SIf, we are not weak, if we make a proper use of those means which the God of nature hath placed in our power. It is in vain, sir, to extenu- ate the matter. Gentlemen may cry peace, peace ! — but there is no peace. The war is actually begun / The next gale that sweeps from the ndrtfi will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field ! Why stand we here Idle ? What is it that gentlemen wish ? What would they helve ? Is life so clear, or. peace so siceet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty 154 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. God ! I know not what course others may take ; but as for m4 3 give me liberty, or give me death ! Patrick Henry. VI. Eecapitulation of Force. 1. Force must be regulated by the thought or feeling to be expressed. 2. Soft force prevails in the expression of peaceful thought, of sentiment, of tranquillity, and of suppressed emotion. 3. Moderate force is the natural tone of conversation and of narrative, descriptive, and didactic composition. 4. Loud force prevails in the expression of anger, ])as- sion, sublimity, command, and strong feeling. 5. Very loud force prevails in calling and shouting; in cries of alarm, fear, and terror ; and in intense dra- matic expression. Examples of Force. VERY SOFT. Low, low, breathe and blow, wind of the western sea. SOFT. How sweet the moonlight sleeps upon this bank. MODERATE. Marley was dead, to begin with. EOUD. Hear the loud alarum bells — brazen bells ! How they clang, and clash, and roar. VERY LOUD. Liberty ! freedom ! Tyranny is dead. Require each pupil to select, write out, and read in the class, a similar set of quoted illustrations. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 155 SECTION II STBESS OF VOICE. Stress denotes the manner of applying volume of voice to single words or sounds. The elocutionary divisions of stress are : 1. Eadical > 4. Thorough = 2. Median <> 5. Compound X 3. Vanishing ^> 6. Intermittent ?^Sz The radical and the median stress are the most im- portant and the most used of these divisions; and to these the attention of school readers should be chiefly directed. The other forms of stress mainly concern the special elocutionist or the actor; and may, therefore, be treated very briefly. I. EADICAL STEESS. 1. In radical stress, the force strikes abruptly upon the radix, or bet. 6. SUMMER. And what is so rare as a day in June ? Then, if ever, come perfect days ; Then Heaven tries the earth if it be in tune, And over it softly her warm ear lays ; Whether we look or whether we listen, We hear life murmur or see it glisten ; Every clod feels a stir of might, An instinct within it that reaches and towers, And, groping blindly above it for light, Climbs to a soul in grass and flowers. 7. SEA-WEED. When descends on the Atlantic The gigantic Storm-wind of the equinox, Landward in his wrath he scourges The toiling surges, Laden with sea-weed from the rocks Lowell. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 159 Ever drifting, drifting, drifting On the shining Currents of the restless main; Till in sheltered coves, and reaches Of sandy beaches, All have found repose again. Longfellow. 8. THE DRUM. At a distance, down the street, making music with their feet, Came the soldiers from the wars, all embellished with their scars, To the tapping of a drum, of a drum ; To the pounding and the sounding of a drum ! Of a drum, of a drum, of a drum ! drum, drum, drum ! 9. COMPENSATION. Experienced men of the world know very well that it is best to pay scot and lot as they go along, and that a man often pays dear for a small frugality. The bor- rower runs in his own debt. Has a man gained any- thing who has received a hundred favors and rendered none ? Has he gained by borrowing, through indolence or cunning, his neighbor's wares, or horses, or money ? There arises on the deed the instant acknowledgment of benefit on the one part, and of debt on the other; that is, of superiority and inferiority. The transaction remains in the memory of himself and his neighbor; and every new transaction alters, according to its nature, their relation to each other. He may soon come to see that he had better have broken his own bones than to have ridden in his neighbor's coach, and that "the highest price he can pay for a thing is to ask for it." Emerson. 160 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. IT. The Impassioned Radical! 1. The impassioned radical stress falls on the ear with abrupt, explosive force, like the beat of a I drum. A good illustration of extreme radical stress is afforded by loud, explosive laughter. 2. The impassioned radical marks positive assertion, strong determination, and authoritative command. It is the abrupt stress of courage, boldness, anger, and hatred. 3. The absence of radical stress, so common in un- trained readers and speakers, indicates feebleness, inde- cision, and confusion or timidity. A lack of radical stress may kill the most impressive sentiments, or may transform a gay, joyous, lively piece of composition into dull, joyless, or even melancholy expression. 4. Carried to excess, however, the radical stress be- comes the mark of egotism, dogmatism, and undue self- assertion. It often characterizes the rant of the stump speaker who "tears a passion into tatters." 5. There is little tendency in school to' excess of radical stress : on the contrary, there is generally a lack of it. Impassioned Radical Stress Drill. 1. Repeat, three times, with abrupt, explosive force, the long vocals, a, c, I, o, ii. 2. Repeat; in the same manner, the following : ale, arm, all, ooze. 3. Repeat, four times, with explosive laughter : ha S ha ! ha ! ho ! ho ! ho ! haw ! haw ! haw ! 4. Tramp, tramp, tramp, the boys are marching. 5. AwdJcef arise! or be forever fallen ! 6. Up, drairhride/e, groom, what, warder, lib! Let the portcMlis fall. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 161 7. To arms! to arms! to arms! they cry. 8. Shoulder arms! forward march! halt! Right about face, march ! 9. Hold ! hold ! for your lives ! 10. Back to thy punishment, false fugitive. 11. He was struck, struck like a dog. 12. Up ! comrades, up ! in Rokeby's halls Ne'er be it said our courage falls. 13. Send out more horses ! skirr the country round. Awake ! Awake ! 14. Ring the alarum bell ! Murder and treason ! Malcolm ! awake ! Malcolm ! Ban quo • 15. THE CLANSMAN TO HIS CHIEF. "Macldinc! you've scourged me like a hound; — You should have struck me to the ground. You should have played a chieftains part ; — You should have stabbed me to the heart. " You should have crushed me unto death ; But here I swear with living breath, That for this ivrong which you have done, I '11 wreak my vengeance on your son. " I scSm forgiveness, haughty man ! You 've Injured me before the clan ; And naught but blood shall wipe away The shame I have endured to-day." mackay. 16. ALEXANDRA. Welcome her, thunders of fort and of fleet ! Welcome her, thundering cheer of the street ! Welcome her, all things useful and sweet ; Scatter the blossoms under her feet ! Break, happy land, into earlier flowers ! Make music, bird, in the new budded bowers ! li 162 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Blazon your mottoes | of blessing and prayer! Welcome her, welcome her, all that is ours ! Warble, bugle ; and trumpet, blare ! Flags, flutter out | upon turrets and towers ! Flames, on the windy headland flare ! Utter your jubilee, steeple and spire ! Clash, ye bells, in the merry March air! Flash, ye cities' in rivers of fire ! Rush to the roof, sudden rocket, and higher | Melt into the stars for the land's desire! TtXSYSON. 17. THE OLD CONTINENTALS. And grummer, grummcr, grummer, Rolled the roll of the drummer, Through the morn ! And louder, louder, LOUDER, Cracked the loud gunpowder, Cracked amain ! Then higher, higher, higher, Burned the old-fashioned fire Through the ranks ! And rounder, rounder, ROUNDER, Roared the iron six-pounder, Hurling death ! 18. THE BRAZEN BELLS. Hear the loud alarum bells, — Brazen bells ! What a tale of terror, now, their turbulency tells ! In the startled ear of night How they scream out their affright ! Too much horrified to speak, They can only shriek, shriek, Out of tune, SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 163 In the clamorous appealing to the mercy of the fire, In a mad expostulation with the deaf and frantic fire Leaping higher, higher, higher, With a desperate desire, And a resolute endeavor, Now — noiv to sit or never, By the side of the pale-face moon. the bells, bells, bells, What a tale their terror tells Of despair! How they clang and clash and roar ! What a horror they outpour On the bosom of the palpitating air! Yet the ear, it fully knows, By the twanging And the clanging, How the danger ebbs and flows; Yet the ear distinctly tells, In the jangling And the wrangling, How the danger sinks and swells, By the sinking or the swelling in the anger of the bells — Of the bells— Of the bells, bells, bells, bells, Bells, bells, bells— In the clamor and clangor of the bells ! PoE . 19. INDEPENDENCE. Bead this Declaration | at the head of the hrmy : every sivbrd | will be drawn from its scabbard, and the solemn vow | uttered, to maint&in it, or to perish | on the bed of honor. Publish it from the pulpit ; religion | will approve it, and the love of religious liberty | will cling round it, resolved \ to stand with it, or fall with it. Send it to the public halls; proclaim it there; let them | hear it, who heard the first roar | of the enemy's 164 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. cdnnon; let them | see it, who saw their brothers and their sSns | fall on the field of Banker IPdl, and in the streets of Lexington and Concord, and the very vxMls will cry out | in its support. Webster. 20. FREEDOM. Many years long gone, I took my stand by Free- dom, and where | in rny earliest youth | my fed | were planted, there | my manhood | and my age shall march. And for 6ne, I am not ashamed of Freedom. I know her power. I rejoice | in her majesty. I walk | beneath her banner. I gl6ry | in her strength. I have seen Free- dom | in history, again and again; with mine own eyes | I have watched her | again and again | struck ddwn | on a hundred chosen fields of tattle. I have seen her friends | fly /rd??i her ; I have seen fdes | gather round her ; I have seen them | hind her to the stake; I have seen them give her ashes to the winds — regdthering them again | that they might scatter them | yet more vhddy ; but when her foes | turned to cxiilt, I have seen her again | meet them | face to face, resplendent in complete steel, and brandishing | in her strong right hand | a flaming sivord, red with insuffer- able light. And I take courage. The people | gather round her. The Genius of America | will at last | lead her s6ns to Freedom. RuCER 21. PERORATION OF BUZFUZ '. — BARDELL VS. PICKWICK. [The following is an example of the bombastic style of ranting oratory, which is a burlesque of true art.] Of this man I will say little. The subject presents but few attractions; and /, gentlemen, am not the man, nor are you, gentlemen, the men, to delight in the con- templation of revolting heartlessness, and of systematic vlllany. I say systematic villauy, gentlemen; and when SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 165 I say systematic villainy, let me tell the defendant Pick- wick, if he be in court, as I am informed he is, that it would have been more decent in him, more becoming, if he had stopped away. Let me tell him, further, that a counsel, in the discharge of his duty, is neither to be intimidated, nor bullied, nor put down; and that any attempt to do either the one or the other will recoil on the head of the atte'mpter, be he 'plaintiff or be he de- fendant, be his name Pickwick, or Noakes, or Stoakes, or Stiles, or Brown, or Thompson. But Pickwick, gentlemen, Pickwick, the ruthless de- stroyer of this domestic oasis in the desert of Goswell street, — Pickwick, who has choked up the well, and thrown ashes on the sward, — Pickwick, who comes before you to-day with his heartless tomato-sauce and warm- ing-pans, — Pickwick, still rears his head with unblush- ing effrontery, and gazes without a sigh on the ruin he has made ! Damages, gentlemen, heavy damages, is the only punishment with which you can visit him, — the only recompense you can award to my client ! And for those damages she now appeals to an enlightened, a high- minded, a right- feeling , a conscientious, a dispassionate, a sympathizing, a contemplative jury of her civilized country- men ! dickens. II. MEDIAN STBESS. 1. The median stress corresponds to the "swell" in music. It is strongest in the middle of a sound or a word. It is adapted to the expression of harmonious and poetic ideas. 2. "It is," says Russell, " the natural utterance of those emotions which allow the intermingling of reflection and sentiment with expression, and which purposely dwell on sound, as a means of enhancing their effect. 3. "This mode of stress is one of the most important 166 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. iu its effect on language, whether in the form of speak- ing or of reading. Destitute of its ennobling and ex- pansive sound, the recitation of poetry sinks into the style of dry prose, the language of ^devotion loses its sacredness, the tones of oratory lose their power over the heart. 4. " There is great danger, however, of this natural beauty of vocal expression being converted into a fault by being overdone. The habit recognized under the name of mouthing has an excessively increased and prolonged median swell for one of its chief characteristics. In this shape, it becomes a great deformity in utterance, — particularly when combined with what is no infrequent concomitant, the faulty mode of voice known as chant- ing or singing. Like sweetness among savors, this truly agreeable quality of sound becomes distasteful or dis- gusting when in the least degree excessive. 5. "The practice of median stress, therefore, requires very close attention. The spirit of poetry and the lan- guage of eloquence, — the highest effects of human ut- terance, — render it indispensable as an accomplishment in elocution. But a chaste and discriminating ear is requisite to decide the just degree of its extent. 6. "Median stress has the form of effusive utterance in sublime, solemn, and pathetic emotions : it becomes expulsive, in those which combine force with grandeur, as in admiration, courage, authoritative command, indig- nation, and similar feelings. But its effect is utterly in- compatible with the abruptness of explosion, Its com- paratively musical character adapts it, with special felicity of effect, to the melody of verse, and the natural swell of poetic expression." 7. Median stress requires a prolongation of vowel and liquid sounds; it is a contrast to the abruptness of the radical stress. It prevails in combination with "pure tone" and the "orotund." school elocution. 167 Median Stress Dkill. 1. Eepeat, three times, the long vocals, a, e, 1, 5, u : (1) With moderate force and effusive median stress. (2) With expulsive median stress. (3) With increased force and expulsive median stress. 2. In the same manner repeat, four times, the vocals, e, a, a, a, o, o. 3. Count from one to twenty, with soft force and effusive median stress ; with loud force and expulsive median stress. 4. Eepeat, three times, the following words with ex- pulsive median stress : all, call, ball, tall, hall, pall. 5. Eepeat four times, in monotone, with full swell on the prolonged /, the following : bells, bells, bells, bells, bells. Examples of Median Stress. 1. Eoll on, thou deep and dark blue ocean, roll! 2. Ye winds, ye unseen currents of the air, Softly ye played a few brief hours ago. 3. The curfew tolls the knell of parting day. 4. Hail ! holy light, offspring of heaven, first-born. 5. The rivers, lakes, and ocean, all stood still. 6. Sweet Auburn ! loveliest village of the plain. 7. Was it the chime of a tiny bell That came so sweet to my dreaming ear ? Like the silvery tones of a fairy's shell That he winds on the beach, so mellow and clear. 8. Eing out the old, ring in the new, Eing, happy bells, across the snow. 168 scnooL ELOCUTION. 9. Lord, thou art clothed with honor and majesty. 10. And where her sweetest theme she chose, A soft, responsive voice was heard at every close, And Hope, enchanted, smiled and waved her golden hair. 11. These are thy glorious works, parent of good, Almighty ! Thine this universal frame. 12. Then the angel threw up his glorious hands to the heaven of heavens, saying : " End is there none to the universe of God. Lo ! also, there is no beginning." 13. Peal out evermore, Peal as ye pealed of yore, Brave old bells, on each Sabbath day. 14. I heard the bells on Christmas Day Their old, familiar carols play, And wild and sweet, The words repeat Of peace on earth, good-will to men ! 15. Thou, too, sail on, Ship of State ! Sail od, Union, strong and great ! 16. These struggling tides of life that seem In wayward, aimless course to tend, Are eddies of the mighty stream That rolls to its appointed end. brtakt. 17. From the wall into the sky, From the roof along the spire : Ah, the souls of those that die Are but sunbeams lifted higher. Longfellow. 18. So shall our voice of sovereign choice Swell the deep bass of duty done, And strike the key of time to be, When God and man shall speak as one! Wbrtisb. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 169 19. Ah, distinctly I remember, it was in the bleak December, And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor. Eagerly I wished the morrow : vainly I had sought to borrow From my books surcease of sorrow — sorrow for the lost Lenore — For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore — Nameless here for evermore. PoE . 20. Babie, dainty Babie Bell, How fair she grew from day to day ! What woman-nature filled her eyes — What poetry within them lay ! Those deep and tender twilight eyes, So full of meaning, pure and bright, As if she yet stood in the light Of those oped gates of Paradise. aldrich. 21. The splendor falls on castle walls And snowy summits old in story : The long light shakes across the lakes, And the wild cataract leaps in glory. Blow, bugle, blow; set the wild echoes flying; Blow, bugle ; answer, echoes — dying, dying, dying. Tennyson. 22. By the rude bridge that arched the flood, Their flag to April's breeze unfurled, Here once the embattled farmers stood, And fired the shot heard round the ivorld. Emerson. 23. Dow T n the dark future, through long generations, The echoing sounds grow fainter, and then cease ; And like a bell, with solemn, sweet vibrations, I hear once more the voice of Christ say, " Peace ! " 170 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Peace ! and no longer from its brazen portals The blast of War's great organ shakes the skies ! But beautiful as songs of the immortals, The holy melodies of love arise. lomotellow. 24 Youth longs and manhood strives, but age remem- bers — Sits by the raked-up ashes of the past; Spreads its thin hands above the whitening embers That warm its creeping life-blood till the last. But my gentle sisters ! my brothers ! These thick-sown snow-flakes hint of toil's release ; These feebler pulses bid me leave to others The tasks once welcome — evening asks for peace. Time claims bis tribute ; silence now is golden ; Let me not vex the too long-suffering lyre ; Though to your love untiring still beholden, The curfew tells me — cover up the fire. holmes. 25. 0, a wonderful stream is the river Time, As it runs through the realm of tears, With a faultless rhythm and a musical rhyme, And a boundless sweep and surge sublime, As it blends with the Ocean of Years. tatob. 26. THE WEDDING BELLS. [Head this stanza with pure tone, middle pitch, slow movement, and orotund quality.'] Hear the mellow wedding -\hA\s — golden bells ! What a world of hclppiness their harmony foretells ! Through the balmy air of night, how they ring out their delight ! From the molten-golden notes, All in tune, What a liquid ditty floats To the turtle-dove that listens, while she gloats On the moon ! SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 171 Oh, from out the sounding cells, What a gush of euphony voluminously wells ! How it swells, how it dwells On the Future ! How it tells of the rapture that impels To the swinging and the ringing of the bells, bells, bells, Of the bells, bells, bells, bells, bells, bells, bells — To the rhyming and the chiming of the bells. PoE . 27. INVOCATION TO LIGHT. [Bead the following selection with orotund quality, slow movement, and strong force.'] Hail ! holy Light — offspring of Heaven, first-born, Or of the Eternal, co-eternal beam ; May I express thee unblamed ? since God is light, And never but in unapproache'd light, Dwelt from eternity — dwelt then in thee, Bright effluence of bright Essence increate ! Or hear'st thou, rather, pure ethereal stream, Whose fountain who shall tell ? — Before the sun, Before the heavens thou wert, and, at the voice Of God, as with a mantle, didst invest The rising world of waters, dark and deep, Won from the void and formless infinite. milton. 28. LIBERTY OF THE PEESS. 1. The liberty of the press is the highest safeguard to all free government. Ours could not exist without it. It is like a great, exulting, and abounding river. It is fed by the dews of heaven, which distill their sweetest drops to form it. It gushes from the rill, as it breaks from the deep caverns of the earth. It is augmented by a thousand affluents, that dash from the mountain top, to separate again into a thousand boun- teous and irrigating streams around. 2. On its broad bosom it bears a thousand barks. There genius spreads its purpling sail. There poetry dips its silver oar. There art, invention, discovery, 172 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. science, morality, religion, may safely and securely float. It wanders through every land. It is a genial, cordial source of thought and inspiration, whatever it touches, whatever it surrounds. Upon its borders there grows every flower of grace, and every fruit of truth. bakes. 29. FROM THE BOOK OF PSALMS. Bless the Lord, my soul. Lord my God, Thou art very great ; Thou art clothed with honor and majesty : who coverest thyself with light as with a garment; who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain ; who layeth the beams of His chambers in the waters; who maketh the clouds His chariot; who walketh upon the wings of the wind; who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed forever. 30. ossian's address to the sun. thou that rollest above, round as the shield of my fathers ! whence are thy beams, O sun ! thy everlasting light ? Thou comest forth in thy awful beauty ; the stars hide themselves in the sky ; the moon, cold and pale, sinks in the western wave. But thou thyself movest alone : who can be a companion of thy course ? III. VANISHING STEESS. 1. The vanishing or terminal stress is used when the force of voice hangs upon the final part of a word. It corresponds to the crescendo in music. It is a form of stress expressive of very strong emphasis, and is often combined with the rising or falling circumflex. 2. Used with a moderate decree of force, this stress is applied in the expression of petulance, of peevish- ness, of impatience, of willfulness, and of querulous complaint ; combined with strong force, it is applied to express persistent determination, astonishment, amaze- ment, and horror. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 173 3. Concerning the use of this stress, Prof. Eussell remarks : " Like all other forms of impassioned utter- ance which are strongly marked in the usages of natural habit, this property of voice is indispensable to appropri- ate elocution, whether in speaking or reading. Without 'vanishing stress,' declamation will sometimes lose its manly energy of determined will, and become feeble song to the ear. High-wrought resolution can never be ex- pressed without it. Even the language of protest, though respectful in form, needs the aid of the right degree of vanishing stress, to intimate its sincerity and its firm- ness of determination, as well as its depth of conviction. 4. " But when we extend our views to the demands of lyric and dramatic poetry, in which high-wrought emotion is so abundant an element of effect, the full command of this property of voice, as the natural utter- ance of extreme passion, becomes indispensable to true, natural, and appropriate style." EXAMPLES. [The italicized words have tlie vanishing stress, and are marked vjith Uie circumflex inflection.^ 1. I know we do not mean to submit. We never shdll submit. 2. Earth may hide, waves engulf, fire consume us, But they shdll not to slavery doom us. 3. I'll have my bond; I will not hear thee speak: I '11 have my bond : and therefore speak no more. 4. But they shall go to school. Don't tell me they shouldn't. (You are so aggravating, Caudle, you'd spoil the temper of an angel !) They shdll go to school : mark that ! and if they get their deaths of cold, it 's not my fault; I diclnt lend the umbrella. 5. " Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend" I shrieked, upstarting ; 174 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. "Get thee back into the tempest, and the night's Plutonian shore ! Leave no black plume as a token of that lie thy soul hath spoken ! Leave my loneliness unbroken ! quit the bust above my dbor ! Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door ! " Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore." 6. FROM GEATTAN'S SPEECH. Here I stand for impeachment or trial. I dare accu- sation ! I defy the honorable gentleman ! I defy the government ! I defy their whole phdlanx ! Let them come forth ! 7. FBOM "WEBSTER. On such occasions, I will place myself on the extreme boundary of my right, and bid defiance to the arm that would push me from it. 8. the seminole's reply. I loathe ye in my bosom, I scorn ye with mine eye, I '11 taunt ye with my latest breath, And fight ye till I die. parks 9. RIENZI. I come not here to talk. Ye know too well The story of our thralldom. We are slaves ! The bright sun rises to his course and lights A race of slaves ! He sets, and his last beam Fdlls on a slave. mitford. 10. BHUTU8 TO CASSITJS. Frit, till your proud heart break ; Go, show your slaves how choleric you are, And make your bondsmen tremble. Must / budge ? SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 175 Must I observe you ? Must I stand and crouch Under your testy humor ? By the gods, You shall digest the venom of your spleen, Though it do split you ; for, from this day forth, I'll use you for my mirth, yea, for my Idughter, When yOU are Waspish. Shakespeare. IV. THOEOUGH STEESS. Thorough or through stress corresponds to the organ tone in music. The force is powerful enough to per- vade an entire word or sound — the beginning, the middle, and the end. It is indicated thus : ( = ). Thorough stress prevails in vehement declamation and impassioned oratory when the speaker is under the sway of intense excitement. It is also used in calling or shouting, when the voice is rolled out in a full and steady stream. Carried to excess, this stress is characteristic of rant, bombast, and the worst faults of untrained speakers. EXAMPLES. 1. Vanguard ! to ri^ht and left the front unfold. 2. Peal ! peal ! peal ! Bells of brass and bells of steel. 3. "To all the truth we tell! we tell!" Shouted in ecstasies a bell. 4. And like a silver clarion rung, " Excelsior." 5. Advance your standards ! draw your willing swords. 6. Forward the light brigade ! 7. Clang ! clang ! clang ! the massive anvils rang. 8. " Ship ahoy ! ship ahoy ! " shouted the captain. 9. Shoulder — arms ! .Forward march ! Halt ! 176 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 10. Charge for the guns ! Charge ! Charge ! 11. Then rose the awful cry, " Fire ! fire ! fire /" 12. Halloo! ho-o-o-o! come here! Halloo!. 13. Hurrah! hurrah! for the fiery fort is ours; Victory ! Victory ! Victory ! 14. Liberty ! freedom ! Tyranny is dead ; Kun hence, proclaim, cry it about the streets ! 15. Rejoice, ye men of Anglers ! ring your bells ; King John, your king and England's, doth approach. Open your gates, and give the victors way ! 16. "0, spare my child, my joy, my pride! 0, give me back my child!" she cried; "My child I my child ! " with sobs and tears, She shrieked upon his callous ears. 17. "Nine," by the cathedral clock! Chill the air with rising damps ; Drearily from Mock to block In the gloom the bell-man tramps — " Child lost f Child lost ! Blue eyes, curly hair, Pink dress — child lost ! " 18. Body of turkey, head of owl, Wings a-droop like a rained-on fowl, Feathered and ruffled in every part, Skipper Ireson stood in the cart. Scores of women, old and young, Strong of muscle, and glib of tongue, Pushed and pulled up the rocky lane, Shouting and singing the shrill refrain : "Here's Find Oirson, fur his horrd Jiorrt, Torrd an futhcrrd an' corrd in, a corrt, By the ivomcn o' MorUecad /" SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 177 19. fitz- james's defiance. Come 6nc, come till ! this rock shall fly From its firm base as soon as 1. scott. 20. THE AMERICAN FLAG. Flag of the free heart's hope and home ! By angel hands | to valor given ; Thy stars | have lit the welkin dome, And all thy hues | were born in heaven. Forever float | that standard sheet ! Where breathes the foe | but falls before us, With Freedom's soil | beneath our feet, And Freedom's banner | streaming ocr us ! Drake. 21. MOLOCH. He called so loud, that all the hollow deep Of hell resounded. " Princes ! Potentates ! Warriors! the flower of heaven, once yours, now lost, If such astonishment as this can seize | Eterncd spirits; or have ye chosen this place To rest your wearied virtue, for the ease | ye find | To slumber here, as in the vales of heaven ? Or | in this abject posture \ have you sworn | To adore the Conqueror, who now beholds | Cherub and seraph | rolling in the flood, With scattered arms and ensigns; till, anon, His swift pursuers, from heaven's gates | discern | The advantage, and descending, tread us clbivn \ Thus drooping ; or with linked thunderbolts \ Transfix us to | the bottom of this gulf ? Awake ! arise ! or be forever fallen ! " milton. 22. PERORATION OF WEBSTER'S REPLY TO HAYXE. The scene in the Senate Chamber of the United States, as Web- ster delivered this peroration, is thus described by C. W. March : The exulting rush of feeling with which he went through the 12 178 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. peroration threw a glow over his countenance, like inspiration — eye, brow, each feature, every line of his face seemed touched as with a celestial fire. The swell and roll of his voice struck upon the ears of the spell-bound audience, in deep and melo iious cadence, as waves upon the shore of the far-sounding sea. The Miltonic grandeur of his words was the fit expression of his thought and raised his hearers up to his theme. His voice, exerted to its utmost power, penetrated every recess and comer of the Senate — penetrated even the ante-rooms and stair-ways, as he pronounced in the deepest tones of pathos these words of solemn significance : I have not allowed myself, sir, to look beyond the Union, to see what might lie hidden in the dark recess behind. I have not coolly weighed the chances of pre- serving liberty when the bonds that unite us together shall be broken asunder. I have not accustomed myself to hang over the precipice of disunion, to see whether, with my short sight, I can fathom the depth of the abyss bcloiv ; nor could I regard him as a safe counselor in the affairs of this gdvernment whose thoughts should be mainly bent on considering, not how the Union may be best preserved, but how tolerable might be the condi- tion of the people when it shall be broken up and destroyed. While the Union lasts, we have high, excit- ing, gratifying prospects spread out before us, for us and our children. Beyond that I seek not to penetrate the veil. God grant that, in my day at least, that car- tctin may not rise ! Gbd grant that on my vision never may be opened ivhat lies behind! When my eyes shall be turned to behold, for the last time, the sun in heaven, may I not see him shining on the broken and dishonored fragments of a once glorious Union'; on States dissevered, discordant, belligerent; on a land rent with civil feHa\ or drenched, it may be, in fraternal blood ! Let their last feeble and lingering gldnce, rather, behold the gorgeous Snsign of the republic, now haourn and horn throughout the earth, still full hiyJi advdnced, its arms and trophies streaming in their original liistcr, not a SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 179 stripe erased or polluted, nor a single star obscured; bearing for its motto, no such miserable interrogatory as " What is all this worth ? " nor those other words of delusion and folly, " Liberty /fast, and Union after- wards ; but everywhere, spread cdl over in characters of living light, blazing on cdl its ample folds, as they float over the sect and over the Iccnd, and in every wind under the whole heavens, that other sentiment, dear to every true American heart — Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable. 23. PERORATION OF BURKE ? S SPEECH ON THE IMPEACHMENT OF WARREN HASTINGS. Of this famous speech Macaulay says : " The energy and pathos of the great orator extorted expressions of unwonted admiration from all ; and, for a moment, seemed to pierce even the resolute heart of the defendant. The ladies in the galleries, unaccustomed to such displays of eloquence, excited by the solemnity of the occa- sion, and perhaps not unwilling to display their taste and sensibility, were in .a state of uncontrollable emotion. Handkerchiefs were pulled out ; smelling-bottles were handed round ; hysterical sobs and screams were heard, and some were even carried out in fits. At length, the orator concluded. Raising his voice, till the old arches of Irish oak resounded, he said : " I impeach him in the name of the Commons of Great Britain in Parliament assembled, whose parliamentary trust he has abused. " I impeach him in the name of the Commons of Great Britain, whose national character he has dishonored. '• I impeach him in the name of the people of India, whose Iccios, rights, and liberties he has subverted. " I impeach him in the name of the people of India, whose property he has destroyed, whose country he has laid waste and desolate. "I impeach him in the name of human nature itself, which he has cruelly outraged, Injured, and oppressed, in both se*xes. And I impeach him in the name and by the 180 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. virtue of those eternal laws of justice, which ought equally to pervade every aye, condition, ran],, and situation, in the world." V. COMPOUND STRESS. Compound stress is a combination of* the radical and the vanishing stress upon the same word. Indeed, it may be considered as a very emphatic form of the emotional circumflex inflection. It is applied, like the circumflex, to express extreme astonishment, irony, sar- casm, mockery, and contempt. It is the stress of ex- treme emotion. In the following examples, the words upon which the compound stress falls are marked with the circumflex inflection. EXAMPLES. 1. Repeat, three times, with extreme astonishment : ah ! indeed ! 2. Repeat, three times, with strong emphasis and the falling circumflex : eve, ale, arm, all, old, ooze. 3. Repeat, with strong force and the rising circumflex : a, e, i, o, u ; the same with the falling circumflex. 4. Banished from Borne ! What 's banished but set free From daily contact of the things I loathe / He dares not touch a hdir of Catiline. 5. KING JOHN. Gone to be married, ! (/one to swear a pc''cc ! False blood to false h\oo<\ joined / gone- to be friSnds I Shall Louis have Blanche, and Blanche these provim Shaki -rr\ur. 6. BPARTACUS. Is Sparta dead? Is the old Grecian spirit frSzen that you do vroiich and cower like a belabored hound beneath his master's lash ? SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 181 7. JULIUS CESAR. Must I budge? Must I observe you ? Must / stand and crouch Under your testy humor ? By the gods, You shall digest the venom of your spleen Though it do split you ; for, from this day forth, 1 11 use you for my mirth, yea, for my laughter ■ Wheil yOU are 'Waspish ! Shakespeare. 8. FROM CICERO'S ACCUSATION OF VERRES. Is it come to this ? Shall an inferior magistrate, a governor, who holds his whole power from the Koman people, in a Eoman province, within sight of Italy, hind, scourge, torture with fire and red-hot plates of iron, and at last put to the infamous death of the cross, a Eoman citizen ? VI. INTERMITTENT STRESS, OR THE TREMOR. 1. Intermittent stress, or the tremor, is the tremulous force of voice upon a sound or a word. The tremor is characteristic of the tottering feebleness of old a°:e, of the weakness of sickness, or of the tones of a person shivering and trembling with cold, or with fear. 2. It naturally occurs in the utterance of fear, grief, joy, sobbing, and laughter, when the emotions are so strong as to enfeeble the flow of breath. In extreme pathos, the voice often trembles or quickens with emotion. 3. This form of stress must be very delicately applied, for, in excess, it becomes ridiculous. 4. Concerning the appropriate application of this form of stress, Prof. Russell remarks: "In the reading or the recitation of lyric and dramatic poetry, this function of voice is often required for full, vivid, and touching expression. Without its appeals to sympathy, and its peculiar power over the heart, many of the most beau- 182 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. tiful and touching passages of Shakespeare and Milton become dry and cold. Like the tremolo of the accom- plished vocalist in operatic music, it has a charm, for the absence of which nothing can atoue — since nature suggests it as the genuine utterance of the most deli- cate and thrilling emotion. 5. "The perfect command of tremor requires often- repeated practice on elements, syllables, and words, as well as on appropriate passages of impassioned lan- Drill ox Tremor. 1. Inhale ; give the tremulous sound of long a, thus : a — a — a — a, etc., prolonged until the breath is exhausted. 2. In a similar manner, take each of the remaining long vowel sounds, e, I, o, u. 3. Take a similar drill on a ; on a; on o. Examples of Tremor. 1. OLD AGE. Pity the sorrows of a poor old man, Whose trembling limbs hare borne him to your door, Whose days are dwindled to the shortest span; — Oil! give relief; and Hear en will bless your store! 2. GAFFER GRAY. "Ho! why dost thou shiver and shake, Gaffer Gray \ And why does thy nose look so blue ? " "'Tis the weather that's cold, 'Tis I'm grown very old, And my doublet is not very new; Well-a-daif !" "Wordsworth 3. OLD AGE. And still there came that silver tone, From the shriveled lips of the toothless crone — SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 183 Let me never forget to my dying day The tone or the burden of her lay — "Passing avjay ! passing away I" pierpont. 4. LAUGHING UTTERANCE. 1. A fool, a fool, I met a fool in the forest; A motley fool, a miserable varlet. 2. Oh ! then I see Queen Mab hath been with you. 5. SOBBING. So Mary said, and Dora hid her face By Mary. There was silence in the room ; Arid all at once the old man burst in sobs : — " I have been to blame — to blame ! I have killed my son ! I have killed him — but I loved him — my dear son ! May God forgive me! — I have been to blame. Kiss me, my children I " Tennyson's Bora. 6. GOODY BLAKE AND HARRY GILL. She prayed, her withered hand nprearing, While Harry held her by the arm — "God! who art never out of hearing, may he never more be warm ! " The cold, cold moon above her head, Thus on her knees did Goody pray : Young Harry heard what she had said, And icy cold he turned away. No word to any man he utters, Abed or up, to young or old ; But ever to himself he mutters, "Poor Harry Gill is very cold." Abed or up, by night or day, His teeth may chatter, chatter still: Now think, ye farmers all, I pray, Of Goody Blake and Harry Gill. Wordsworth. 184 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 7. HII* VAX WINKLE. The honest man could contain himself no longer. He caught his daughter and her child in his arms. " / am your father!" cried he, "young Rip Van Winkle once — old Rip Van Winkle now ! — Does nobody know poor Rip Van Winkle ? " Irving. 8. ENOCH ATIDEN. " Enoch, poor man, was cast away and lost." He, shaking his gray head pathetically, Eepeated muttering, " Cast away and lost ; " Again in deeper inward whispers, "Lost!" Tenktbov. 0. little giietohen. They lifted her up tearfully, they shuddered as they said, " It was a bitter, bitter night ! the child is frozen dead." The angels sang their greeting for one more redeemed from sin. Men said, "It was a bitter night; would no one let her in ? " Kecapitulation of Stress. 1. The radical is the stress of animation, of earnest- ness, of assertion, of command, and of passion. 2. The median is the stress of sentiment, of pathos and tenderness, of awe, reverence, sublimity, and enthu- siasm, 3. Vanishing stress is the stress of very strong em- phasis, of contempt and disdain, of willfulness, petulance, and impatience. 4. Thorough stress is (lie stress of impassioned oratory, and intense dramatic expression. 5. The compound is the stress of the circumflex inflec- tion, of irony, sarcasm, contempt, and astonishment. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 185 6. The tremor is the stress of feebleness, of childishness, and of grief Stress Drill. 1. Radical. Attention, all. 2. Median. All in one mighty sepulcher. 3. Vanishing. All, all is lost! All lost! 4. Thorough. Come one, come all ! 5. Compound-. What all, are they all lost ? 6. Intermittent. All my sons are c/cac?, all, all dead! Examples of Stress. KADICAL. Hear the loud alarum bells — brazen bells ! MEDIAN. Hear the mellow wedding bells — golden bells ! VANISHING. I '11 have my bond, and therefore speak no more. THOROUGH. Awake ! Arise ! or be forever fallen. COMPOUND. Gone to be married ! gone to svjear a peace ! INTERMITTENT. Pity the sorrows of a poor old man Whose trembling limbs have borne him to your door. 186 SCHOOL ELOCUTION, CHAPTEE III. MOVEMENT. Introductory. 1. The three leading divisions of movement, rate, or time, in reading, are slow, moderate, and fast. These distinctions are, for convenience, subdivided as follows : 1. Moderate (corresponding, in music, to andante). 2. Fast (allegro). 3. Very fast (presto). 4. Slow (adagio). 5. Very slow (largo). 2. Different kinds of prose and verse require differ- ent rates of movement, but the general principle that governs all reading or speaking may be stated as fol- lows : Bead slowly enough for your hearers to compre- hend, fully and easily, what is rend. 3. Good extemporaneous speakers generally have a slow and deliberate utterance, because they take time to think what to say. They, also, give their hearers time to think of what is said by the speaker. 4. The habit of slow reading may be acquired, not by a drawling, hesitating utterance, but by observing rhetorical and grammatical pauses; by prolonging vocal and liquid sounds-, and by taking time to think of the meaning of what is read. 5. The general principles governing movement are well expressed in the following extract from Russell's "American School Header :" "Everything tender, or sol- emn, plaintive, or grave, should be read with great moderation. Everything humorous or sprightly, every- SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 187 tiling witty or amusing, should be read in a brisk and lively manner. 6. " Narration should be generally equable and flowing ; vehemence, firm and accelerated; anger and joy, rapid; whereas dignity, authority, sublimity, reverence, and awe should, along with deeper tone, assume a slower movement. 7. " The movement should, in every instance, be adapted to the sense, and free from all hurry on the one hand, or drawling on the other. 8. " The pausing, too, should be carefully proportioned to the movement or rate of the voice ; and no change of movement from slow to fast, or the reverse, should take place in any clause, unless a change of emotion is implied in the language of the piece." Movement Drill. 1. Eepeat, three times, the long vocals, a, e, I, o, u : (1) With low pitch and very slow movement. (2) "With middle pitch and slow movement. (3) With moderate movement. (4) With fast movement. (5) With very fast movement. 2. Count from one to twenty : (1) With slow move- ment. (2) With moderate movement. (3) With fast movement. 3. Eepeat, with moderate movement — The day is done, and the darkness Falls from the wings of night As a feather is wafted downwards From an eagle in his flight. I. Moderate Movement. Moderate movement is the characteristic rate in the reading of didactic, descriptive, or narrative composition, and of the poetry of sentiment. 188 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. EXAMPLES. 1. ENGLISH SCENERY. The great charm, however, of English scenery, is the moral feeling that seems to pervade it. It is associated in the mind with ideas of order, of quiet, of sober, well- established principles, of hoary usage, and reverend custom. Everything seems to be the growth of ages of regular and peaceful existence. The neighboring village, with its venerable cottages, its public green, sheltered by trees, under which the forefathers of the present race have sported; the antique family mansion, standing apart in some little rural domain, but looking down with a pro- tecting air on the surrounding scene; all these common features of English landscape evince a calm and settled security, a hereditary transmission of home-bred virtues and local attachments, that speak deeply and touehingly for the moral character of the nation. irvi>-g. 2. THE SEASONS IN SWEDEN. I must not forget the suddenly changing seasons of the northern clime. There is no lonn: and limzerino; spring unfolding leaf and blossom one by one; no long and lingering autumn, pompous with many-colored leaves and the glow of Indian summers. But winter and sum- mer are wonderful, and pass into each other. The quail has hardly ceased piping in the com, when vAnter, from the folds of trailing clouds, sows broadcast over the land, snow, icicles, and rattling had. The days wane apace. Ere long the sun hardly rises above the horizon, or does not rise at all. The moon and the stars shine through the day; only, at noon, they are pale and wan, and in the southern sky a red, fiery glow, as of sunset, burns along the horizon, and then goes but. And pleasantly, under the silver moon, and under the silent, solemn stars, ring the steel shoes of the skaters on the frozen sea, and voices, and the sound of OellS. Longfellow. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 189 II. Fast Movement. Fast, or quick, movement, is the characteristic rate in the expression of mirth, fun, humor, gladness, joy, and haste. EXAMPLES. 1. PAUL p.evere's hide. A hurry of hoofs in a village street, A shape in the moonlight, a bulk in the dark, And beneath, from the pebbles, in passing, a spark Struck out by a steed that flies fearless and fle'et : That was all ! And yet, through the gloom and the light, The fate of a nation was ruling that night ; And the spark struck out by that steed, in his flight, Kindled the land into flame with its heat. lo.xgfellow. 2. l'allegro. Haste thee, nymph, and bring with thee Jest and youthful Jollity, Qidps, and cranks, and wanton tulles, Nods, and becks, and wreatheVl smiles Such as hang on Hebe's cheek, And love to live in dimple sleek; Sport that wrinkled Care derides, And Laughter holding botli his sides. Come, and trip it as ye go On the light fantastic toe ; And in thy right hand lead with thee The mountain nymph, sweet Liberty. Milton. 3. ONCE MOKE. " Will I come ? " That is pleasant ! I beg to inquire If the gun that I carry has ever missed fire ? And which was the muster-roll — mention but one — That missed your old comrade who carries the gun ! You see me as always, my hand on the lock, The cap on the nipple, the hammer full cock. 190 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. It is rusty, some tell me ; I heed not the scoff; It is battered and bruised, but it always goes off I "Is it loaded?" I'll bet you! What does rit it hold ? Hammed full to the muzzle with memories untold ; Why, it scares me to fire, lest the pieces should fly Like the cannons that burst on the Fourth of July ! HOLilES. 4. RHYME OF THE HAIL. Singing through the forests, Battling over ridges, Shooting under arches, Eumbling over bridges ; Whizzing through the mountains, Buzzing o'er the vale, Bless me ! this is pleasant, Biding on the rail! Saxe . 5. TUE MAY QUEEN. You must wake and call me early, call me early, mother dear ; To-morrow '11 be the happiest time of all the glad Xew Year ; Of all the glad New Year, mother, the maddest, merriest day ; For I 'm to be Queen o' the May, mother, I 'm to be Queen o' the May. tenmtsok. G. THE MESSAGE. The muster-place is Lanrick mead ; Sliced forth the signal! Norman, speed! The summons dread brooks no delay. Stretch to the race — away! away! bcott. 7. THE SUMMONS. Come as the winds come, when forests are rended : Come as the waves come, when navies are stranded. Faster come, faster come, faster and faster: Chief, vassal, page, and groom, tenant and master. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 191 Fast they come, fast they come ; see how they gather ! Wide waves the eagle plume, blended with heather. Cast your plaids, draw your blades, forward each man set ; Pibroch of Donuil Dim, knell for the onset S Sc0TT . 8. THE SMILING LISTENEK. Precisely. I see it. You all want to say That a tear is too sad and a smile is too gay ; You could stand a faint smile, you could manage a sigh, But you value your ribs, and you do n't want to cry. > It's awful to think of — how year after year With his piece in his pocket he waits for you here ; Xo matter who 's missing, there always is one To lug out his manuscript, sure as a gun. III. Very Fast Movement. Very fast movement is expressive of hurry, alarm, confusion, flight, ecstatic joy. and ungovernable rage and fury. EXAMPLES. 1. MAZEPPA. Away ! — away ! — and on we dash ! — Torrents less rapid and less rash. Aiccty, avsaij, my steed and I, Upon the pinions of the v:\ncl, All human dwellings left behind ; We sped like meteors through the shy, When with its crackling sound the night Is chequered with the northern light. bykox. Sisters ! hence, with spurs of speed ! Each her thundering falchion wield; Each bestride her sable steed; Hurry! hurry to the field. 192 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 3. FLIGHT. Forth from the pass in tumult driven, Like chaff before the wind of heaven, The archery appear; For life ! for life ! their flight they ply ; While shrink, and shout, and battle-cry, And plaids and bonnets waving high, And broadswords flashing to the sky, Are maddening in the rear. S corr. 4. GOOD NEWS. I sprang to the stirrup, and Joris, and he ; 1 galloped, Dirck galloped, we galloped all tlnee; " Good speed ! " cried the watch as the gate-bolts undrew ; " Speed ! " echoed the wall to us galloping through. Behind shut the postern; the lights sank to rest, And into the midnight we galloped abreast. Not a word to each other; we kept the great pace, N^ck by ne'ek, stride by stride, never changing our place ; I turned in my saddle and made its girths tight, Then shortened each stirrup and set the pique right, Eebuckled the che'ek-strap, chained slacker the bit, Nor galloped less steadily Roland a whit. bhowniko. 5. HOW THE OLD HORSE WON' THE BET. " Bring forth the horse!" Alas! he showed Not like the one Mazeppa rode ; Scant-maned, sharp-backed, and shaky-kneed, The wreck of what was once a steed ; Lips thin, eyes hollow, stiff in joints, Yet not without his knowing points. "Gb!" — Through his ear the summons stung, As if a battle- trump had rung ; The slumbering instincts long unstirred Start at the old familiar word ; It thrills like flame through every limb — What mean his twenty years to him ? SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 193 The savage blow his rider dealt Fell on bis bollow flanks unfelt ; The spur that pricked his staring bide Unheeded tore bis bleeding side; Alike to bim are spur and rein — He steps a five-year-old again ! Before tbe quarter-pole was passed, Old Hiram said, " He 's going fast." Long ere the quarter was a half, The chuckling crowd bad ceased to laugh; Tighter his frightened jockey clung As in a mighty stride be swung, The gravel flying in bis track, His neck stretched out, bis ears laid back, His tail extended all the while Behind bim like a rat-tail file ! Off went a shoe — away it spun, Shot like a bullet from a gun ; Tbe quaking jockey shapes a prayer From scraps of oaths he used to swear ; He drops bis whip, be drops bis rein, He clutches fiercely for a mane ; He'll lose his bold — he sways and reels — He '11 slide beneath those trampling heels ! But like the sable steed that bore Tbe spectral lover cf Lenore, His nostrils snorting foam and fire, No stretch bis bony limbs can tire; And now tbe stand be rushes by, And " Stop bim ! stop bim ! " is the cr\ T , Stand back ! lie 's only just begun — He's having out three heats in one! Now for the finish ! At the turn, The old horse — all the rest astern — Comes swinging in, with easy trot; By Jove ! lie 's distanced all the lot ! holmes. 13 194 SCHOOL ELOCUTION IV. Slow Movement. Slow movement prevails in the utterance of praise and adoration, and in all expression when the mind is under the influence of meditation, grief, melancholy, grandeur, sublimity, vastness, or power. It is the characteristic rate of thoughtful and powerful oratory. In slow movement, the rhetorical pauses are long, and the voice dwells on the liquid and the long vowel sounds. EXAMPLES. 1. ASTRONOMY. Generation after generation has rolled aica-y, age after age has swept silently by; but each has swelled, by its contributions, the stream of discovery. Mysterious movements have been unraveled ; mighty Idivs have been revealed ; ponderous drbs have been weighed ; one barrier after another has given way to the force of intellect ; until the mind, majestic in its strength, has mounted, ste'p by stdp, up the rock}- height of its self-built pyramid, from whose star-crowned summit it looks out upon the grandeur of the universe self-clothed with the prescience of a Gdd. Mitchell. 2. THE RAVEN. Ah, distinctly I remember, it was in the bleak December, And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor : Eagerly I wished the morrow ; — vainly I had sought to borrow From my books surcease of sorrow — sorrow for the lost Lenore — For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore — Nameless here for evermore. Toe. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 195 3. THE ANCIENT MARINER, Alone, alone, all, all alone, Alone on the wide, wide sea ; And never a saint took pity on My soul in agony. The many men, so beautiful ) And they all dead did lie ! And a thousand thousand slimy things Lived on — and so did I. I closed my lids and kept them close, Till the balls like pulses beat ; For the sky and the sea, and the sea and the sky Lay like a load on my weary eye, And the dead were at my feet. Coleridge. 4. THE HOUR OF DEATH. Leaves have their time to fall, And flowers to wither at the north-wind's breath, And stars to set — but all, Thou hast all seasons for thine own, Death ! Mrs. Hemans. 5. TO A WATERFOWL. Whither, midst falling dew, While glow the heavens with the last steps of day, Far through their rosy depths dost thou pursue Thy solitary way ? Vainly the fowler's eye Might mark thy distant flight to do thee wrong, As, darkly painted on the crimson sky, Thy figure floats along. bryast. V. Very Slow Movement. Very slow movement prevails in the expression of deep emotions, such as awe, reverence, horror, melancholy, and grief. 196 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Iii this movement the rhetorical and grammatical pauses are very long, and the vowel and liquid sounds are dwelt upon and prolonged. The prevailing inflection in this movement is the monotone. EXAMPLES. 1. Air, earth, and sea resound his praise abroad. 2. Boll on, thou deep and dark blue ocean, roll. 3. Old ocean's gray and melancholy waste. 4. Childless and crownless in her voiceless woe. 5. It thunders ! Sons of dust, in reverence bow. 6. Unto Thee I lift up mine eyes, Thou that dwell- est in the heavens. 7. Thou hast all seasons for thine own, Death ! 8. Now o'er the one half world Nature seems dead ; and wicked dreams abuse The curtained sleeper. Thou sure and firm-set earth, Hear not my steps which way they walk, for fear The very stones prate of my whereabouts, And take the present horror from the time Which now suits with it. 9. CARDINAL WOLSET. Farewell, a long farewell, to all my greatness. This is the state of man ; to-day he puts forth The tender leaves of hope, to-morrow blossoms, And bears his blushing lienors thick upon him; The third day comes a frost, a killing frost; And when he thinks, good easy man, full surely His greatness is a-ripening — nips his root, And then he falls, as I do. I have ventured, Like little wanton boys that swim on bladders, This many summers in a sea of glory — SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 197 But far beyond my depth; my high-blown pride At length broke under me ; and now has left me, Weary, and old with service, to the mercy Of a rude stream, that must forever hide me. Shakespeare. 10. DIIEAM OF DARKNESS. The crowd was famished by degrees. But two Of an enormous city did survive, And they were enemies. They met beside The dying embers of an altar-place, Where had been heaped a mass of holy things For an unholy usage. They raked up, And, shivering, scraped with their cold, skeleton hands, The feeble ashes; and their feeble breath Blew for a little life, and made a flame, Which was a mockery. Then they lifted Their eyes as it grew lighter, and beheld Each other's aspects — saw, and shrieked, and died ; Even of their mutual hideousness they died, Unknowing who he was, upon w r hose brow Famine had written Fiend. Byron 11. HIAWATHA. O the long and dreary Winter ! the cold and cruel Winter ! Ever thicker, thicker, thicker Froze the ice on lake and river; Ever deeper, deeper, deeper Fell the snow o'er all the landscape, Fell the covering snow, and drifted Through the forest, round the village. Longfellow. Examples of Movement. VERY SLOW. Farewell, a long farewell to all my greatness. 198 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. SLOW. Alone, alone, all, all alone. MODERATE. There was a sound of revelry by night. FAST. Come and trip it as ye go On the light fantastic toe. VERY FAST. Hurry ! hurry to the field ! Require each pujril to make out and read in the class a similar set of quoted illustrations. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 199 CHAPTER IV. PITCH OF VOICE. I. Introductory. 1. Pitch, or key, denotes the highness or lowness of the voice in tone. The range of the voice from the lowest to the highest tone is called its compass. 2. The compass of the voice among readers corre- sponds, in some degree, to the tenor, soprano, contralto, and bass, among singers; but every voice has its own relatively low, middle, and high tones. 3. For every one, the middle pitch is that tone to which the voice inclines in conversation, or in unim- passioned reading. 4. The three main divisions of pitch are the low, the middle, and the high; but these, for convenience, are subdivided into very low, low, middle, high, and very high. 5. The general key in which a selection should be read is determined by the general sentiment or character of the piece. 6. In order to avoid monotony, there should be some slight variation of pitch at the beginning of each suc- cessive paragraph that marks a new topic of discourse, or a change of idea. 7. Low pitch is the tone expressive of serious thought, of awe, of reverence,, of adoration, of horror, and of despair. 8. Middle pitch is the tone of conversation, and of unimpassioned narrative or descriptive reading. 200 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 9. High pitch is the tone of gayety, joy, and gladness ; of courage and exultation; and of shouting and calling. 10. Of the importance of drill exercises in pitch, Prof. Monroe says : " One of the commonest faults in school reading, and in the delivery of many public speakers, is a dull monotony of tone. This sameness is still more disagreeable to the ear when the voice is kept strained upon a high key. Not less unpleasant is an incessant repetition of the same cant or sing-song. Elocutionary rules will do little or nothing toward removing these faults. Faithful drill is needed, under the guidance of rr. 18. EYE OF ELECTION. From gold to gray, our mild, sweet day Of Indian summer fades too soon ; But tenderly, above the sea, Hangs, w 7 hite and calm, the hunter's moon. In its pale fire the village spire Shows like the zodiac's spectral lance ; The painted walls, whereon it falls, Transfigured stand in marble trance ! wmmsa. Concert Drill ox Pure Tone. 1. Repeat, four times, the long vowels, a, e, I, o, u : (1) With moderate force, pure tone, and rising inflection. (2) With soft or gentle force. (3) With high pitch, pure tone, and sustained force. 2. Count from one to fifty: (1) With quiet conversa- tional tone and rising inflection. (2) Falling inflection. (3) Circumflex inflection. (4) The monotone. 3. Give the sound of long o, prolonged for ten sec- onds ; of ii ; of e. 4. In high pitch, and thin, clear, pure tone, call as to persons at a distance: ho! ho! ho! II. The Orotund. 1. The orotund is a round, deep, full, clear, resonant SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 221 chest tone of voice. It has the flow and fullness of an organ-peal. It is the tone of emotion, excitement, and passion. 2. The orotund has the smoothness of pure tone, but combines it with a much heavier volume of sound. The swelling tones of the orotund are the appropriate means of expressing reverence, awe, sublimity, grandeur, and strong feeling or passion. It prevails in oratorical declamation and in the reading of lyric or dramatic poetry. 3. The prevailing stress of the orotund is the median, changing, however, under excitement, into the radical. 4. In the orotund utterance, the breathing must be full and deep, to insure a good supply of breath ; the mouth must be well opened ; all the vocal organs must be called into full play ; and then, in harmony with strong emotions, the voice swells out like the blast of a bucde or the resonant swell of an oro;an. 5. The three degrees of the orotund may be distin- guished as the effusive, the expulsive, and the explosive. Orotund Drill. 1. Eepeat, four times, in monotone, the long vocals, a, e, I, o, "u. 2. Inhale to the utmost capacity of the lungs and then give, with strong swell and round tone, the sound of long o, prolonged as long as the breath will allow. S. Eepeat four times the following vocals : e, a, ii, a, o, o. 4. Lo ! the mighty sun looks forth ! Arm ! thou leader of the north. 5. Awake ! Arise ! or be forever fallen ! 6. Air, earth, and sea, resound his praise abroad. 7. Eoll on, thou deep and dark blue ocean, roll, Ten thousand fleets sweep over thee in vain. 222 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 8. Farewell, a long farewell to all nay greatness. 9. Hail ! holy light, offspring of Heaven first-born ! 10. Liberty ! freedom ! Tyranny is dead ! 11. It thunders! sons of dust, in reverence bow! 12. Hear the mellow wedding bells — golden bells. 13. Hear the loud alarum bells — brazen bells. 14. thou Eternal One! whose presence bright All space cloth occupy, all motion guide, Unchanged through time's all-devastating flight; Thou only God! There is no God beside! Examples of Effusive Orotund. 1. THE ARSENAL. This is the Arsenal. From floor to c&ling, Like a huge organ, rise the burnished arms; But from their silent pipes no anthem peuling, Startles the villages | with strange alarms. Ah! what a sound will rise — how wild and drear jf — When the death-angel touches those swift I'bjs! What loud lament | and dismal Miserere Will mingle | with their awful symphonies ! I he'ar even now | the infinite fierce chorus, The cries of agony, the endless groan, Which, through the ages | that have gone before us, In long reverberations | reach our own. Longfellow. 2. THE OCEAN. The armaments | which thunderstrike the walls | Of rock-built cities, bidding nations quake, And monarchs | tremble in their cdjritals ; The oak leviathans, whose huge rib* make | Their clay creator | the vain title take | SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 223 Of lord of thee, and arbiter of war — These | are thy toys, and, as the snowy flake, They melt into thy yeast of waves, which mar | Alike | the Armada's pride, or spoils of Trafalgar. Byron. 3. HYMN TO MONT CLAXC. Ye kc-falls ! ye that from the mountain's brow | Adown enormous ravines slope amain — Torrents, methinks, that heard a mighty voice, And stopped at 6nce amid their maddest plunge ! Motionless torrents ! silent cataracts ! Who made you glorious as the gates of heaven \ Beneath the keen full moon ? Who bade the sun | Clothe you with rainbows ? Who, with living flowers Of loveliest blue, spread ghrlands at your feet ? — God ! let the torrents like a shout of nations \ Answer ! and let the ke-plains echo : God I God ! sing, ye meadow-streams, with gladsome voice ! Ye ^n?ic-groves, with your soft and soul-like sounds ! And they too have a voice, yon piles of snow, And in their perilous fall | shall thunder : God ! Coleridge. 4. THE CHAMBERED NAUTILUS. Build thee more stcctely mansions, my soul, As the swift seasons roll ! Leave thy low-vaulted past ! Let each new temple, nobler than the last, Shut thee from heaven with a dome more vast, Till thou at length art free, Leaving thine outgrown shell by life's unresting sea ! Holmes. 5. FROM THE PSALMS. Praise ye the Lord. Praise ye the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the heights. Praise ye him, all Ins angels: praise ye him, all his hosts. Praise ye him, sun and moon: praise him, all ye stars of light. Praise 224 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. him, ye heavens of heavens, and } r e waters that be abbvi the heavens. Let them praise the name of the Lbrd: for he commanded, and they were created. lie hath also established them for ever and ever : he hath made a decree which shall not pass. Praise the Lord from the earth, ye dragons, and all deeps: fire, and hail; snow, and vapors; stormy wind fulfilling his wbrd: mbuntains, and all Mils; fruitful trees, and all cedars : beasts, and all cattle; creeping things, and flying fbwl : kings of the earth, and cdl people : princes, and all judges of the earth: botli young men and maidens; old men and children. Let them praise the name of the Lord : for Ms name alone is excellent; his glory is above the earth and heaven. G. EVE OF ELECTION. Our hearts qrow cold, we lightly hold A right which brave' men died to gain ; The stake, the cord, the ax, the sword, Grim nurses at its birth of pain. The shadow rend, and o'er us beud, martyrs, with your crowns and palms ! Breathe through these throngs, your battle-songs, Your scaffold prayers and dungeon psalms ! w hit-tier. Examples of Expulsive Orotund. These examples are to be rendered with a stronger swell than those under the head of effusive orotund. 1. LAXJS DEO. It is dbne ! Clang of bell and roar of gun Send the tidings up and dbwn. How the belfries rdck and reel, How the great guns, peal on pral, Fling the joy from town to town ! whittibb. SCHOOL ELOCUTION, 225 2. CHRISTMAS. Ring but, ye crystal spheres ! Once bless our human ears, If }^e have power to touch our senses so ; And let your silver chime Move in melodious time, And let the bass of heavens deep organ blow ; And with your ninefold harmony Make up full consort to the angelic symphony. Milton. 3. THE OCEAN. Boll on, thou deep and dark blue Ocean — roll ! Ten thousand fleets | sweep over thee in vain ; Man | marks the earth with ruin, — his control | Stops with the shore; upon the watery plain | The 'wrecks are all thy deed, nor doth remain J A shadow of man's ravage, save his own, When for a moment, like a drop of rain, He sinks into thy depths | with bubbling gr5an, Without a grave, unknelled, uncoffined, and unknown. Byron. 4. THE OUGAX. Suddenly the notes of the deep-laboring organ burst upon the ear, falling with doubled and redoubled inten- sity, and rolling, as it we're, huge billows of sound. How well do their volume and grandeur accord with this mighty building ! With what pomp do they swell through its vast vaults, and breathe their awful har- mony through these caves of death, and make the silent sdpulcher vocal ! And now they rise in triumph and acclamation, heaving higher and higher their accordant notes, and piling sound on sound. And now they panse, and the soft voices of the choir break out into sweet gushes of melody; they soar aloft, and warble along the rdof and seem to play about these lofty vaults like the pure airs of heaven. Again the pealing organ heaves 15 226 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. its thrilling thunders, compressing air into music, and rolling it forth upon the soul. What long-drawn ca- dences ! What solemn, sweeping concords! It grows more and more dense and powerful; it fills the vast pile, and seems to jar the very walls; the ear is stunnnl, the senses arc overwhelmed. And now it is winding up in full jubilee; it is rising from the earth to heaven; the very soul seems rapt away and floated upwards on this swelling tide of harmony. Irving. 5. PERORATION OF WEBSTER'S PLYMOUTH HOCK ORATION. Advance, then, ye future generations I We would hail you, as you rise in your long succession, to fill the places which we now fill, and to taste the blessings of existence, where we are passing, and soon shall have passed, our own human duration. We bid you welcome to this pleasant land of the lathers. We bid you welcome to the healthful skies and the verdant fields of New Eng- land. We greet your accession to the great inherit which we have enjoyed. We welcome you to the bless- ings of good government and religious liberty. We wel- come you to the treasures of science, and the delights of learning. We welcome you to the transcendent sweats of domestic life, to the happiness of kindred, and parents, and children. We welcome you to the immeasurable blessings of rational existence, the immortal hope of Christianity, and the light of everlasting Truth ! 6. GOD IN NATURE. "God," sing ye meadow streams, with gladsome voice'. Ye pine groves, with your soft and soul-like sounds I Ye living flowers that skirt the eternal frost! Ye wild goats sporting round the eagle's nest ! Ye eagles, playmates of the mountain storm ! Ye lightnings, the dread arrows of the clouds! Ye signs and wonders of the elements! Utter-forth "God," and fill the hills with praise! From Coleridge's Hymn to Mont Blanc SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 227 7. A NEW YEAR'S CHIME. Ho ! ye wardens of the bells, Ring ! ring ! ring ! Ring for winter's bracing hours, Ring for birth of spring and flowers, Ring for summer's fruitful treasure, Ring for autumn's boundless measure, Ring for hands of generous giving, Ring for vows of nobler living, Ring for truths of tongue or pen, Ring, " Peace on earth, good-will toward men." Ring ! ring ! ring ! Eing, that this glad year may see Earth's accomplished jubilee 3 Ring ! ring ! ring ! 8. REVERENCE. Lord, my God, Thou art very great ! Thou art clothed with honor and majesty ; who coverest thyself with light as with a garment; who stretchest out the heavens like a curtain; who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters ; who maketh the clouds his chariot; wdio walketh upon the wings of the wind; who laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed forever. The BlhUm Examples of Explosive Orotund. 1. THE BATTLE OF IVRY. Now glory to the Lord of Hosts, from whom all glories are ! And glory to our Sovereign Liege, King Henry of Na- varre ! Now let there be the merry sound of music and the dance, Through thy cornfields green, and sunny vales, -pleas- ant land of Frccnce / 228 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. And thou, Eochelle, our own liochelle, proud city of the waters, Again let rapture light the eyes of all thy mourning daughters ; As thou wert constant in our ills, be joyous in our joy, For cold and stiff and still are they who wrought thy walls annoy. Hurrah ! hurrah ! a single field hath turned the chance of war. Hurrah! hurrah! for Ivry and King Henry of Nwohrrtl Macailav. 2. RICHMOND TO HIS TROOPS. Fight, gentlemen of England ! fight, bold yeomen ! Draw, archers, draw your arrows to the head: Spur your proud horses hard, and ride in blood ; Amaze the tvelkin with your broken staves. A thousand hearts are great within my bosom : Advance our standards, set upon our foes ! Our ancient word of cburage, fair St. George, Inspire us with the spleen of fiery dragons ! Upon them ! Victory sits on our helms. Shakespeare. 3. INDEPENDENCE. The great bell swung as ne'er before : It seemed as it would never cease ; And every word its ardor flung From off its jubilant iron tongue Was, "War! War ! WAB!" Read . 4. INDEPENDENCE. Sir, before Gbd, I believe the hour is cbme/ My judg- ment approves this measure, and my whole Mart is in it. All that I hare, and all that I dm, and all that I hbpe, in tins life, I am now ready here to stake upon it : and I leave off. as I began, that, live or d\c, swrvivc or SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 229 perish, I am for the declaration ! It is my living senti- ment, and, by the blessing of God, it shall be my dying sentiment — Independence now, and independence \ forever ! Webster. Explosive and Expulsive Orotund. These two forms of the orotund are often combined in the same piece, and ■ it is not easy to draw a marked line of division. In impassioned declamation the utter- ance changes from one to the other, according to the degree of feeling or passion. The following extract affords an illustration : 1. Webster's tribute to Massachusetts. Mr. President, I shall enter on no encomium upon Massachusetts ; she needs none. There she is ; behold her, and judge for yourselves. There is her history; the world knows it by heart. The past, at least, is secure. There is Boston, and Concord, and Lexington, and Bunker Hill ; and there they will remain forever. The bones of her sons, fallen in the great struggle for Inde- pendence, now lie mingled with the soil of every State, from New England to Georgia; and there they will lie forever. And, sir, where American Liberty raised its first voice, and where its youth was nurtured and sustained, there it still lives, in the strength of its manhood, and full of its original spirit. If discord and disunion shall wound it ; if party strife and blind ambition shall hawk at and tear it; if folly and madness, if uneasiness under salu- tary and necessary restraint, shall succeed in separating it from that Union by which alone its existence is made sure — it will stand, in the end, by the side of that cradle in which its infancy teas rocked ; it will stretch forth its arm, with whatever of vigor it may still retain, over the friends who gatlier round it ; and it will fall at last, if 230 SCHOOL ELOCUTION fall it must, amid the proudest monuments of its own glory, and on the very spot of its origin. III. Aspirated Quality. Aspirated quality means, in general, a combination of tone with whisper, causing the huskiness and harshness produced by a superabundance of breath under the in- fluence of powerful emotions, such as anger, rage, terror, and horror. The whisper represents the extreme oi' aspirated quality. The Whisper. The pure whisper lies half way between breathing and vocality. The half-whisper is a combination of tone and whisper. The forcible whisper is a most val- uable vocal exercise. It requires full, deep, and frequent breathing, and the vigorous use of the lips, tongue, and other vocal organs. The degrees of force in the whisper are indicated by the terms effusive, expulsive, and ex- plosive. The pure whisper is rarely used in reading, the effect being generally suggested by the half-whisper, or by aspi- rated quality. The following exercises and examples are o-iven for the purposes of vocal training. Table of Aspirates. [First whisper the words, then the aspirates, and then give the phonic spelling of each word in a forcible whisper.] p p-i-pe, li-p t t-eu-t, t-as-te wh wh-en, wh-y eh ch-ur-ch, bir-ch f f-i-fo, lea-f sh sh-all, la-sh th th-ick, my-th h h-o\v, h-ail s s-ale, le-ss k ea-ke, la-ke school elocution. 231 Whisper Drill. Practice each exercise with three degrees of force : (1) Effusive, or soft. (2) Expulsive, or forcible. (3) ExjjIo- sive, or intense. 1. With effusive force, repeat as many times as pos- sible without taking breath: a-c-I-o-u. 2. To a, e, I, 6, u, join /, and repeat as above ; join t; join h. 3. Count, in a whisper, from one to ten, with one breath ; from one to twenty ; one to thirty, or more. Examples of Effusive Whisper. 1. Step softly, and speak low. 2. Whisper ! she is going to her final rest. Whisper! life is growing dim within her breast. 3. Hark ! hist ! around I list. The bounds of space all trace efface Of sound. 4. And his little daughter whispered, As she took his icy hand : "Isn't God upon the water, Just the same as on the land?" 5. And again to the child I whispered : " The snow that hushcth all, Darling, the merciful Father Alone can make it fall ! " 6. And the bridemaidens whispered : " 'Tiverc better by far, To have matched our fair cousin with young Lochinvar." 7. The red rose cries, " She is near, she is near ; " And the white rose weeps, "She is late;" The larkspur listens, "I hear, I hear;" And the lily whispers, " I wait." 232 school elocution. Examples of Expulsive Whisper. 1. Or whispering with white lips, "The foe! they come ! they come ! '• 2. To bed, to bed ; there 's knocking at the gate. Come, come, come, give me your hand. 3. Soldiers ! You are now within a few steps of the enemy's outposts. Let every man keep the strictest silence, under pain of instant death. Examples of Explosive Whisper. 1. Hark ! I hear the bugles of the enemy. For the boats ! Forward ! Forward ! 2. Hamlet. Saw ! tchu 1 Horatio. The king, your father. Hamlet. The Icing, my father ? 3. Art thou some god, some angel, or some devil, That mak'st my blood run cold and my hair to stand ! Whisper and Toxe. In some of the following illustrations of aspirated quality, the whisper predominates over tone ; in others, the aspiration only affects the tone with a marked roughness, huskiness, or aspirated harshness. The extent to which aspirated quality may be applied is often a matter of taste on the part of the reader. EXAMPLES. 1. But hush ! hark ! a deep sound strikes like a rising knell. 2. THE CURFEW BELL. "Sexton," Bessie's white lips faltered, pointing to the prison old, With its walls so dark and gloomy — walls so dark, ami damp, and cold — SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 233 " I Ve a lover in that prison, doomed this very night to die, At the ringing of the Curfew, and no earthly help is nigh. Cromwell will not come till sunset," and her face grew strangely white, As she spoke in husky whispers, " Curfew must not ring to-night." 3. MACBETH TO THE GHOST. Avaunt ! and quit my sight I Let the earth huh thee ! Thy bones are mdrrowless, thy blood is cold: Thou hast no speculation in those eyes Which thou dost glare with ! Hence, horrible shadow ! Unreal mockery, hence ! 4. HAMLET TO THE GHOST. [Aspirated quality and occasional half -whisper. \ Angels and ministers of grace defend us ! Be thou a spirit of health, or goblin damned — Bring with thee airs from heaven, or blasts from hell — Be thy intents wicked, or charitable — Thou com'st in such a questionable shape That I ivill speak to thee. 1 11 call thee, Hamlet, King, father, royal Dane : Oh, answer me : Let me not burst in ignorance ! but tell Why thy canonized bones, hearsdd in death, Have burst their cerements ! why the sepulcher, Wherein we saw thee quietly inurned, Hath oped his ponderous and marble jaws, To cast thee up again ? What may this mean, That thou, dead corse, again, in complete steel, Ptevisit'st thus the glimpses of the moon, Making night hideous : and we fools of nature, So horribly to shake our disposition, W r ith thoughts beyond the reaches of our souls ? Say, u'hy is this ? wherefore ? what should we do ? 234 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 5. FROM "EUGENE AKA.M." [Horror and remorse. Aspirated pectoral and guttural quality.] And, lo ! the universal air Seemed lit with ghastly flame ; — Ten thousand thousand dreadful eyes Were looking down in blame : I took the dead man by his hand, And called upon his name ! God ! it made me quake to see Such sense within the slain ! But when I touched the lifeless clay, The blood gushed out amain ! For every clot, a burning spot Was scorching in my brain ! And now, from forth the frowning sky, From the heaven's topmost height, 1 heard a voice — the awful voice Of the blood-avenging sprite : — " Thou guilty man! take up thy dead And hide it from my sight!" hood. C. MACBETH. [Horror and fear. Intense suppressed force ; prevailing monotone : very slow movement; strong aspirated quality.] Now o'er the one half world Nature seems dead ; and wicked dreams abuse The curtained sleep ; now witchcraft celebrates Fale Hecate's offerings; and withered murder, Alarumed by his sentinel, the wolf, Whose howl's his watch, thus with his stealthy pace. Towards his design Moves lilce ei ghbst. — Thou sure and firm-sot earth ! Hear not my stops, which way they walk; for (ear The very stbnes prate of my whereabout, And take the present horror from the time Which now suits with it. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 235 7. DARIUS GREEN AND HIS FLYING MACHINE. [Secrecy. Forcible whisper and half -whisper. ~\ And one by one, through a hole in the wall, In under the dusty barn they crawl, Dressed in their Sunday garments all ; And a very astonishing sight was that, When each in his cobwebbeel coat and hat Came up through the floor like an ancient rat. And there they hid; And Eeuben slid The fastenings back, and the door undid. " Keep dark ! " said he, "While I squint an' see what the' is to see." '* Hush ! " Eeuben said, " He 's up in the shed ! He 's opened the winder — I see his head ! He stretches it out, an' pokes it about, Lookin' to see 'f the coast is clear, An' nobody near; — Guess he don' o' who 's hid in here ! He 's riggin' a spring-board over the sill ! Stop laffin', Solomon ! Burke, keep still ! He 's a-climbing out now — Of all the things ! What's he got on? I van, it's wings! An' that 't other thing ? T vum, it 's a tail ! An' there he sets like a hawk on a rail ! Steppin' careful, he travels the length Of his spring-board, and teeters to try its strength. Now he stretches his wings, like a monstrous bat ; Peeks over his shoulder, this way an' that, Fer to see 'f there 's any one passin' by ; But there 's on'y a ca'f an' a goslin' nigh. Flop — flop — an' plump To the ground with a thump, Flutterin' and flounderin' all in a lump." Trowbridge. 236 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Special Aspirate Drill. [In 2^'Oiiouncing the following words having the combination hw, the aspiration is often very feebly given or not given at all. the hw with marked force.] Sound way ivlicy wet whet wear where wit whit weal wheel wot what wen wlwn wig whig were wliir wield w'heclccl wine whine witch which wight wldte wist whist wile while weather wJiether Pronunciation Drill. [Keep the lungs each word.] u'dl filed icith air and exhaust the breath upo whale whalebone whatever whap wharf whapper wharfage whatsoever wheelbarrow wheat what-not wheel-horse wheeze wheezing wheelwright whelp whereas whensoever whelm wherever wheresoever whence whenever whereabout whew whereby whereunto whiff wherefore wherewithal whim whiffle whimper whip whir whinny whirlwind whipsaw whirligig whirl whistle whisper whisk whittle whizzing white whither whoa SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 237 IV. Guttural Quality. The guttural, or throat, quality is the harsh, grating, rasping utterance to which the voice tends in the ex- pression of hatred, contempt, revenge, and loathing. It is often combined with aspirated quality in the expres- sion of extreme impatience or disgust, intense rage, and extreme contempt. EXAMPLES. 1. OTHELLO. Oh, that the slave had forty thousand lives, My great revenge had stomach for them all. 2. THE SPY. You shall die, base dog ! and that before Yon cloud has passed over the sun ! 3. SHYLOCK TO ANTONIO. Signior Antonio, many a time and 6ft, On the Bialto you have rated me About my moneys and my usances; Still have I borne it with a patient shriig, For sufferance is the badge of all our tribe : You call me — misbeliever, cut-throat, dog, And spit upon my Jewish gaberdine, And all for use of that which is mine bum. Well, then, it now appears, you need my help. Go to, then; you come to me, and you say, " Shylock, we would have moneys ; " you say so ; You, that did void your rheum upon my beard, And foot me as you spurn a stranger cilr Over your threshold; moneys is your suit. What should I say to you ? Should I not say, "Hath a dog money? is it possible A cur can lend three thousand ducats ? " or Shall I bend low, and in a bondman's key, With bated breath, and whispering humbleness, 238 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Say this : — " Fair sir, you spelt on me on Wednesday last ; You splXmecl me such a day; another time You called me — dog ; and for these courtesies I'll lend you — thus much — moneys? V. The Falsetto. The falsetto is the thin, sharp, high-pitched tone pro- duced when the voice breaks, or gets above its natural compass. It is used by men when they imitate the voices of women and children. It is the tone suitable for the expression of old age, sickness, feebleness, pain, and helpless terror. 1. "My child! my child!" with sobs and tears, She shrieked upon his callous ears. 2. " Billy — where are you, Billy, I say ? Come, Billy, come home to your best of mothers ! " 3. And even Tiny Tim, excited by the two young Cratchits, beat on the table with the handle of his knife, and feebly cried, " Hurrah ! " 4. Mr. Orator Puff had two tones in bis voice, The one squeaking thus, and the other down so; In each sentence he uttered he gave you your choice ; For one half was B alt, and the rest G below. Oh ! oh ! Orator Puff, One voice for an orator's surely enough I "Oh! save!" he exclaimed, in his he-and-she tones, " Help me out ! help me out ! I have broken my bones ! " " Help you out ! " said a stranger, who passed, " what a bother! Why, there's two of you there; can't you help one another ? " Oh ! oh ! Orator Puff, One voice for an orator 's surely enough ! SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 239 5. And in a coaxing tone he cries, "Charcot chared!" And baby with a laugh replies, iC Ah, go! Ah, go!" "■Charco , !"—"Ah, go!" VI. The Semitone. When the voice slides through the interval of a semi- tone only, it gives the plaintive tones expressive of sadness, grief, or pathetic entreaty. If the inflection runs through the interval of a tone and a half — a minor third in music — it becomes more plaintive, and marks a stronger degree of pathos or sadness ; and when the inflection extends into the minor fifth, it denotes still stronger pathetic feeling. The semitone, then, is the plaintive tone in reading, corresponding to the minor key in music. It should be used delicately, for, in excess, it runs into the whine, or becomes the affectation of cant. Semitone Deill. 1. Sound the vocals, a, e, I, 5, u, three times, on the interval between C and C sharp ; then on the minor third ; then on the minor fifth. 2. Count from one to twenty on the same notes as above. Examples of Semitone. 1. O come in life, or come in death, lost ! my love, Elizabeth. 2. For I am poor and miserably old. 3. How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough and to spare, and I perish with hunger ! I will arise and go to my father and will say to him, 240 SCHOOL ELOCUTION". "Father, I have sinned against heaven and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son : make me as one of thy hired servants ! " 4. MY CHILD. I can not make him dead ! His fair sunshiny head Is ever bounding round my study, chair; Yet, when my eyes, now dim With tears, I turn to him, The vision vanishes, he is not there ! I walk my parlor floor, And, through the open door, I hear a footfall on the chamber stair ; I 'm stepping toward the hall To give the boy a call; And then bethink me that he is not there ! PlERPOXT. 5. Hiawatha. the long and dreary Winter ! the cold and cruel Winter ! Ever thicker, thicker, thicker Froze the ice on lake and river; Ever deeper, deeper, deeper Fell the snow o'er all the landscape, Fell the covering snow, and drifted Through the forest, round the village. the famine and the fever ! the wasting of the famine ! O the blasting of the fever ! the wailing of the children ! the anguish of the women ! All the earth was sick and famished ; Hungry was the air around them, Hungry was the sky above them, SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 241 And the hungry stars in heaven Like the eyes of wolves glared at them ! "Give your children food, Father! Give us food, or we must perish ! Give me food for Minnehaha, For my dying Minnehaha!" Through the far-resounding forest, Through the forest vast and vacant Eang that cry of desolation ; But there came no other answer Than the echo of his crying, Than the echo of the woodlands, " Minnehaha ! Minnehaha ! " Longfellow. 6. BABIE BELL. It came upon us by degrees, We saw its shadow ere it fell, The knowledge that our God had sent His messenger for Babie Bell. We shuddered with unlanguaged pain, And all our thoughts ran into tears, Like sunshine into rain. We cried aloud in our belief, " Oh, smite us gently, gently, God ! Teach us to bend and kiss the rod, And 'perfect grow through grief? Ah, how we loved her, God can tell ; Her heart was folded deep in ours ; Our hearts are broken, Babie Bell. aldrich. 7. MACBETH. To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow, Creeps in this petty pace from day to day To the last syllable of recorded time, And all our yesterdays have lighted fools The Way tO dusty death. Shakespeare. 16 242 -SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 8. new YEAR'S eve. You '11 bury me, my mother, just beneath the hawthorn shade ; And you'll come sometimes and see me where I am lowly laid. I shall not forget you, mother; I shall hear you when you pass, With your feet above my head in the long and pleasant Good-niorht, good-ni^ht ! When I have said Q-ood-ni^ht for evermore, And you see me carried out from the threshold of the door, Do n't let Effie come to see me till my grave be growing green — She '11 be a better child to you than ever I have been. Tennyson's May Queen. 9. FROM "BERTHA IN THE LANE." [This extract should be read with subdued force, slow movement, and 'prevailing poetic monotone and semitone.'] Colder grow my hands and feet ; — When I wear the shroud I made, Let the folds lie straight and neat, And the rosemary be spread ; — That if any friend should come (To see thee, sweet!), all the room May be lifted out of gloom. And, dear Bertha, let me keep On my hand this little ring — Which at nights, when others sleep, I can still see flittering. Let me wear it out of sight, In the grave — where it will light All the dark up, day and night SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 243 On that grave drop not a tear ! Else, though fathom-deep the place, Through the woolen shroud I wear I shall feel it on my face. Eather smile there, blessed one, Thinking of me in the sun; Or forget me— smiling ou ! E . B . browning. VII. Eecapitulation of Quality. 1. Pure tone is the tone of ordinary conversation, and of unimpassioned didactic, narrative, or descriptive reading. 2. The orotund is the tone expressive of deep feeling, of reverence, of sublimity, and of grandeur. It prevails in oratorical declamation, and in the reading or recita- tion of lyric or dramatic poetry. 3. Aspirated quality is expressive of secrecy, feebleness, terror, horror, and amazement. 4. Guttural quality is expressive of disgust, impatience, hatred, and revenge, 5. TJie semitone is the plaintive expression, in the minor key, of pathos, pity, grief, or entreaty. Examples of Quality. PURE TONE. Was it the chime of a tiny bell That came so sweet to my dreaming ear ? OROTUND. 1. Build thee more stately mansions, O my soul f 2. And let the bass of heaven's deep organ blow. WHISPER. To bed, to bed; there's knocking at the gate. Come, come, come, give me your hand. 244 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. ASPIRATED. Angels, and ministers of grace, defend us. GUTTURAL. How like a fawning publican lie looks ! SEMITONE. For Heaven's sake, Hubert, let me not be bound. VIII. General Eeyiew Drill. 1. Eepeat, three times, the long vowel sounds, a, e, I, 6, u : (1) With moderate rising inflection. (2) Moderate falling inflection. (3) High rising inflection. (4) Em- phatic falling inflection. (5) High rising circumflex. (6) Emotional falling circumflex. (7) Low monotone. 2. Eepeat, three times, a, e, I, o, u. : (1) With very soft force. (2) With soft force. (3) With moderate force. (4) Loud force. (5) Very loud force. 3. Eepeat, three times, a, e, I, 6, u : (1) With the median stress. (2) With the radical stress. (3) With compound stress. (4) With vanishing stress. (5) Thor- ough stress. (6) With intermittent stress. 4. Eepeat, three times, a, e, I, 6, li: (1) With slow movement. (2) With moderate movement. (3) With fast movement. 5. Eepeat, three times, a, c, I, 5, ii : (1) With very high pitch. (2) With high pitch. (3) With middle pitch. (4) With low pitch, (o) With very low pitch. G. Eepeat, three times, a, e, I, 5, u : (1) With the whisper. (2) With pure tone. (3) With the orotund. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 245 CHAPTER VI. MODULATION AND STYLE OF EXPRESSION, SECTION I. MODULATION. 1. Modulation is the variation in the tones of the voice in order to express the ever-varying thought, feeling, emotion, or passion to be expressed. 2. These changes depend largely upon the perception, taste, and judgment of readers ; upon the extent to which readers are capable of entering into the spirit of what they read ; and upon the flexibility of the voice in expressing different shades of emotion by appropri- ate tones. 3. There are certain general principles that control modulation, but there are no fixed rules of detail which can be applied in the exercise of " good taste.'' 4. " The importance of this principle of adaptation of voice," says Prof. William Russell, "may be perceived by adverting to the fact, that nothing so impairs the effect of address, as the want of spirit and expression in elocution. 5. " No gravity of tone, or intensity of utterance, or precision of enunciation, can atone for the absence of that natural change of voice, by which the ear is enabled to receive and recognize the tones of the various emo- tions accompanying the train of thought which the speaker is expressing. These, and these only, can indi- 246 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. cate Lis own sense of what he utters, or communicate it by sympathy to his audience. 6. " The adaptation of the voice to the expression of sentiment is not less important, when considered in ref- erence to meaning, as dependent on distinctions strictly intellectual, or not necessarily implying a vivid or varied succession of emotions. 7. " The correct and adequate representation of con- tinuous or successive thought, requires its appropriate intonation ; as may be observed in those tones of voice which naturally accompany discussion and argument, even in their most moderate forms. 8. "The modulation or varying of tone is important, also, as a matter of cultivated taste. It is the appropri- ate grace of vocal expression ; it has a charm founded in the constitution of our nature ; it touches the finest and deepest sensibilities of the soul ; it constitutes the spirit and eloquence of the human voice, whether re- garded as the noblest instrument of music, or the appointed channel of thought and feeling." I. General Principles. 1. A low hey is the natural expression of awe, rever- ence, solemnity, sadness, and melancholy ; a high key, of violent passions, such as anger and rage, joy and exulta- tion. The middle key is the natural pitch of conversation, and of unimpassioned narrative, descriptive, or didactic writing. 2. Soft or gentle force is expressive of subdued feeling, pathos, and tenderness ; loud force, of strong passions and oratorical declamation; moderate force, of unimpas- sioned thought. 3. Slow movement is appropriate to the expression of deep thought, power, grandeur, sublimity, solemnity; movement is characteristic of vivacity, joy, and uncon- SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 247 trolled passion ; moderate movement, of uninipassioned narrative, descriptive, or didactic pieces. 4. The ivhisper is expressive of secrecy, silence, or extreme fear; guttural quality, of revenge, hatred, despair, horror, or. loathing ; the orotund, of power, grandeur, vastness, sublimity ; the falsetto, of puerility or weak- ness ; the semitone, of sadness and pathetic entreaty. 5. The radical stress is expressive of command, assertion, force, power, and excited feelings ; the median stress, of peace, tranquillity, solemnity, grandeur, sub- limity, reverence, and awe. 6. Then there is the variety that arises from imitative reading, or the suiting of the sound to the word, phrase, or sentence; and that of personation, or the changes of expression to denote the different characters in a dia- logue or play. II. Style of Beading. 1. The following analysis of a good style of reading is taken from Russell's " American School Eeader " : " If we observe attentively the voice of a good reader or speaker, we shall find his style of utterance marked by the following traits. His voice pleases the ear by its very sound. It is wholly free from affected suavity ; yet, while perfectly natural, it is round, smooth, and agreeable. It is equally free from the faults of feeble- ness and of undue loudness. 2. " It is perfectly distinct, in the execution of every sound, in every word. It is free from errors of negli- gent usage and corrupted style in pronunciation. It avoids a measured, rhythmical chant, on the one hand, and a broken, irregular movement, on the other. 3. " It renders expression clear, by an attentive ob- servance of appropriate pauses, and gives weight and effect to sentiment, by occasional impressive cessations of voice. It sheds light on the meaning of sentences, 248 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. by the emphatic force which it gives to significant and expressive words. 4. " It avoids the c school ' tone of uniform inflections, and varies the voice upward or downward, as the suc- cessive clauses of a sentence demand. It marks the character of every emotion, by its peculiar traits of tone ; and hence its effect upon the ear, in the utterance of connected sentences and paragraphs, is like that of a varied melody, in music, played or sung with ever- varying feeling and expression." SECTIOX II. THE BEADING OF POETRY. I. Introductory. 1. Pupils are sometimes told to read verse as if it were prose. Such a direction may be given to counteract the tendency to sing-song, or it may be applied in the reading of doggerel rhymes ; but it cannot be applied to the reading of poetry. 2. Poetry, being the language of imagination, senti- ment, or passion, requires, as compared with prose, a greater variety of expression. Moreover, poetry is rhythmical and melodious, and, in reading it, attention must be given to movement and harmony. 3. "The modulation of the voice," says Prof. Russell, " in adaptation to different specie* of metrical composi- tion, is indispensable to the appropriate or effective reading of verse. The purest forms of poetry become, when deprived of this aid, nothing but awkward prose. A just and delicate observance of the effect of meter, on the other hand, is one of the surest means of im- parting that inspiration of feeling which it is the de- sign of poetry to produce." SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 249 4. In the reading of poetry, the pupil should bear in mind the following hints : (1) The movement, or time, in verse, is generally slower than in prose, the vowel and liquid sounds being slightly prolonged. (2) In poetry, as compared with prose, the force is somewhat softened for the sake of melody. (3) The existence of meter in poetry requires a rendering of verse different from the reading of prose. The meter should not be made prominent, but should be delicately indicated. As in prose, attention must be given to the sense, to em- phasis, and to inflection. II. CLesural Pauses. The esesural pause is a slight rest occurring some- where near the middle of the line in certain kinds of verse. In heroic and blank verse, it commonly falls at the end of the fourth syllable. In smoothly written verse, the grammatical pause marking a phrase or a clause is often made to coincide with the esesural pause. EXAMPLES. 1. This is the place, | the centre of the grove : Here stands the oak, | the monarch of the wood. How sweet and solemn | is this midnight scene ! The silver moon, | unclouded, holds her way Through skies where I | could count each little star; The fanning west wind | scarcely stirs the leaves. 2. A man he w r as | to all the country dear, And passing rich | with forty pounds a year; Eemote from towns | he ran his godly race, Nor e'er had changed, | nor wished to change, his place ; Unpracticecl he | to fawn, or seek for power, By doctrines fashioned | to the varying hour; Far other aims | his heart had learned to prize, More skilled to raise | the wretched than to rise. 250 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. III. Meter, or Piiytilmical Accent. 1. Meter is the measure of rhythm, or metrical feet, in poetry. One difference between the reading of prose and of poetry consists in the distinctive marking of the rhythm in verse. If read without regard to rhythm, the sonorous harmony of the higher forms of poetry is lost. 2. As some knowledge of prosody is generally obtained from the school text-books on rhetoric, only an allusion to the subject is necessary in a manual of elocution. 3. In reading poetry, the measure should be delicately indicated, but not made so prominent as to run into sing-song, or to break the grammatical relation of words. 4. The melody of verse often depends on making some word, or successive words, slightly emphatic, as in the following line from Longfellow's " Psalm of Life : " "And things | arc not | wlvdt they | seem." If " not " is emphasized, the rhythm is broken. So in the successive stanzas of Bryant's " Planting of the Apple-tree," the emphasis in the last line of the suc- cessive stanzas falls as follows : 1. "So plant we | the apple-tree" 2. "When we plant | the apple-tree" etc. IV. Kinds of Verse. 1. The following summary from Prof. Russell's "Amer- ican Elocutionist " may be of interest to the critical student: "The influence of the various kinds of verse on the voice may be considered as affecting generally the rate, or movement, and the time, of utterance. 2. "Thus, blank verse is remarkably slow and stately in the character of its tone ; and the timing of the pauses requires attention chiefly to length. Heroic r is commonly in the scone prevailing strain, but not to such an extent as the preceding. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 251 3. "The octosyllabic meter is generally more quick and lively in its movement, and the pauses are comparatively brief. But, under the influence of slow time, it gives intensity to grief, and tenderness to the pathetic tone. 4 " The quatrain, or four-lined stanza, in the common form (called sometimes common meter), has a compara- tively musical arrangement of the lines, and a peculiar character in its cadence, which admits of its expressing the extremes of emotion whether grave or gay. It prevails, accordingly, in hymns and in ballads alike, whether the latter are pathetic or humorous. It derives the former character from the observance of slow rate, and the lat- ter from quick rate. 5. " Trochaic verse has a peculiar energy, from the abruptness of its character — the foot commencing either with a long or an accented syllable. In gay pieces, and with quick time in utterance, it produces a dancing strain of voice, peculiarly adapted to the expression of joy ; while in grave and vehement strains, with slow time, it produces the utmost force and severity of tone. These two extremes are strikingly exemplified in Milton's ' I/ Allegro ' and ' II Penseroso.' 6. " Anapaestic meter has a peculiar fullness and sweet- ness of melody. Slow time accordingly renders it deeply pathetic, and quick time renders it the most graceful expression of joy. This, as well as iambic and trochaic verse, becomes well fitted to express the mood of calm- ness and tranquillity, when the rate is rendered moderate" V. Accent of Wokds. The accent of a word is sometimes changed to prevent breaking the measure, as in the following examples: 1. Ye icefalls ! ye that from your dizzy heights Adown enormous rav'ines slope amain. l 2. That thou, dead corse, arrayed in complete steel. 252 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 3. And these few precepts in thy memory, see thou character. 4. Then lend the eye a terrible aspect'. 5. I must be patient till the heavens look with an aspect? more favorable. VI. Final -ed. The final -ed is often sounded as a separate syllable, to prevent a break in the meter. EXAMPLES. 1. To live with her and live with thee In unreproved pleasures free. 2. Of linked sweetness long drawn out. 3. Eode aimed men adown the glen. 4. Through this the well-beloved Brutus stabbed. 5. And as he plucked his cursed steel away. 6. To wear an undeserved dignity. 7. That orbed maiden with white fire laden. 8. Whereat she smile'd with so sweet a cheer. 9 While that the armdd hand doth fight abroad, The advisexl head defends itself at home. VII. Rhyme. In reading poetry, the words that rhyme must some- times be specially emphasized. Sometimes, also, the pro- nunciation of a word may be changed to make it rhyme with another word, as wind for wind. In reading the following couplet from Hudibras, "And pulpit, drum ecclesiastic, He beat with drum instead of a stick.'' it becomes necessary to emphasize the a, or rather to SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 253 sound the two words "a stick" like a word of two syl- lables accented on the first, thus — afstick. In reading the following lines from the same poem, the word " coloneling " is pronounced exactly as it is spelled, col r o net ing, in four syllables : "Then did Sir Knight abandon dwelling, And out lie rode a-coloncling." Also, in the following, "And wisely tell what hour o' th' day The clock does strike, by algebra," the long sound is given to fiual a in algebra, to make the word rhyme with day. In the following couplets from Holmes, the rhyming words are italicized for emphasis : "It is a pity and a shame — alas! alas! I know it is, To tread the trodden grapes again, but so it has been, so it is." In this example the three words, "know it is," are pronounced like a word of three syllables, accented on the first, thus — knou/-it-is ; so, also, so'-it-is. VIII. Examples of Khyme. 1. AT THE ATLANTIC DINNER. I suppose it 's myself that you 're making allusion to, And bringing the sense of dismay and confusion to. Of course some must speak — they are always selected to, But pray what 's the reason that I am expected to ? I 'm not fond of wasting my breath as those fellows do That want to be blowing forever as bellows do ; Their legs are uneasy, but why will you jog any That long to stay quiet beneath the mahogany ? Holmes. 2. CLASS MEETING, 1875. It is a pity and a shame — alas ! alas ! I know it is, To tread the trodden grapes again, but so it has been, so it is ; 254 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. The purple vintage long is past, with ripened clusters bursting so They filled the wine-vats to the brim — 't is strange you will be thirsting so ! For who can tell by what he likes what other people's fancies are ? How all men think the best of wives their own par- ticular Nancies are ! If what I sing you brings a smile, you will not stop to catechise, Nor read Bceotia's lumbering line with nicely scanning - Attic eyes. Though on the once unfurrowed brows the harrow-teeth of Time may show, Though all the strain of crippling years the halting feet of rhyme may show, We look and hear with melting hearts, for what we all remember is The morn of Spring, nor heed how chill the sky of gray November is. Thanks to the gracious powers above from all mankind that singled us, And dropped the pearl of friendship in the cup they kindly mingled us, And bound us in a wreath of flowers with hoops of steel knit under it; — Nor time, nor space, nor chance, nor change, nor deatli himself shall sunder it ! holmes. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 255 SECTION III. IMITATIVE BEADING. The extent to which imitative reading, or the suiting of sound to sense, may properly be carried, in certain classes of selections, is a matter in regard to which there is a diversity of opinion among elocutionists. It is one of those questions of taste that cannot be regu- lated by definite directions applicable to all cases. Some general principles, however, may be laid down, from which there is no intelligent dissent. The style of reading should be imitative in the sense of making it conform to the spirit and meaning of the piece. In the utterance of words in which the sound seems to approximate to the sense, such as buzz, hiss, thunder, groan, sigh, scream, etc, the tone may be suggestive of the idea. Thus, in reading such passages as, "From his lips escaped a groan,' though an actual groan would be .ridiculous, the word "groan" may be uttered so as to suggest a groan. EXAMPLES. 1. Hear the loud alarum bells — brazen bells. 2. Clang ! clang ! the massive anvils ring. 3. Blow, bugle; answer echoes, dying, dying, dying. . 4. Oh ! the bells ! what a talc their terror tells Of despair! How they clang, and clash, and roar, What a horror they outpoiir On the bosom of the palpitating air ! "Wherever the author distinctly suggests an imitation, it should be given so far as is consistent with good taste. Thus, when Longfellow writes, "And loud that clarion voice replied," 256 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. it is evident that the refrain, "Excelsior!" should be given in a loud, clear, resonant manner. Examples for Practice. 1. A voice replied for up the height, "Excelsior!" 2. She seemed in the same silver tones to say, " Passing away, passing away ! " 3. What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore Meant in croaking, "Nevermore." 4. An ancient time-piece says to all, " Forever — never ! Never — -forever ! ; ' 5. "To all the truth we tell, we tell/' Shouted in ecstasies a bell. 6. BUNKER HILL. How the bayonets gleamed and glistened, as we looked far down and listened To the trampling and the drum-heat of the belted gren- adiers. Over heaps all torn and gory — shall I tell the fearful story, How they surged above the breastwork as a sea breaks o'er a deck; How, driven, yet scarce defeated, our worn-out men retreated, With their powder-horns all emptied, like the swimmers from a wreck ! IIo . , Imitation should not be too literal. The attempt is sometimes made in reading Tennyson's "Bugle Song," to snve a realistic imitation of the notes of a bugle. While the professional reader may attempt such a feat of vocal gymnastics, it is certainly outside of the limits of good taste in school reading. The words. " Blow, SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 257 bugle, blow," may be given with a prolonged swell, and in a thin, clear, pnre tone, so as to suggest the bugle note. So in reciting Poe's " Bells," the imitative rendering is often carried to a ridiculous extreme. In these and similar cases it is not a literal reproduction of the sound that should be attempted, but an artistic and idealized suggestion of it. EXAMPLES. 1. And "rummer, grumraer, grummer, Eolled the drum of the drummer, Through the morn. And rounder, rounder, rounder, Roared the iron six-pounder, Hurling death. 2. I hear them marching o'er the hill ; I hear them fainter, fainter still. 3. CHUKCH BELLS. " In deeds of love, excel ! excel ! " Chimed out from ivied towers a bell. " heed the ancient landmarks well ! " In solemn tones exclaimed a bell. " Ye purifying waters swell ! ? ' In mellow tones rung out a bell. "To all the truth we tell! we tell ! " SJiouted in ecstasies a bell. 4. WEIENT THE COWS COME HOME. When Ivlinsde, klano-le, klingle, Far down the dusty diugle, The cows are coming home ; ISTow sweet and clear, now faint and low, The airy tinkliugs come and go, Like chimings from the far-off tower, 17 258 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Or patterings of an April shower That makes the daisies grow. That makes the daisies grow. Ko-ling, ko-lang, kolinglelingle, Far down the darkening dingle. The cows are coming home. 5. CHAllCOAL. And thus from morn to eve he cried, " Charco' ! charco' ! " While echo faint and far replied, -Charco' !"— " Hark, 0!" And in a coaxing tone he cries, " Charco' ! charco' ! " And baby with a laugh replies, "Ah, go!" — "Ah, go! " " Charco' ! " — " Ah, go ! " trowbridgk. 6. FIRE. Fire! fire! fire! See the red flames leaping higher. Peed ! peal ! peed ! Bells of brass and bells of steel. Crash ! crash ! crash ! See the fiery surges lash ! Fire ! fire ! fire ! Bristles every throbbing wire. 7. EXCELSIOR. And like a silver clarion rung—" Excelsior I " And from his lips escaped a groan-— " Excelsior /" But still he answered with a sigh—" Excelsior ! A voice replied far up the height— " Excelsior ! " S. nil' PELLS. Hear the sledges with the bells— silrcr bells ! What a world of merriment their melody foretells! SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 259 Hear the mellow v'eclding bells — golden bells ! What a world of happiness their harmony foretells ! Hear the loud alarum bells — brazen bells! What a tale of terror now their turbulency tells ! Hear the tolling of the bells — iron bells ! What a world of solemn thought their monody compels! POE. SECTION" IV. EXERCISES IX MODULATIOX. Modulation is the variation of voice according to the sentiment, thought, or emotion to be expressed. In im- passioned reading, tones are the most prominent quali- ties of voice. Thorough drill on the following examples will break up the tendency of pupils to read all kinds of selections in one formal " school-tone." It is left for teachers and pupils to exercise their own judgment and taste in the rendering of these extracts, which embrace a wide range of expression. EXAMPLES. 1. Blow, bugle, blow, set the wild echoes flying, Blow, bugle, answer echoes, dying, dying, dying. 2. The loud wind dwindled to a whisper low. 3. There is a silence where no sound may be. 4. I hear them marching o'er the hill, I hear them fainter, fainter still. 5. " Cusha, cusha, cusha," calling. 6. To arms ! to arms ! to arms ! they cry. 7. Arm ! arm ! — it is — it is the cannon's opening roar. 8. Advance your standards, draw your willing swords ! 260 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 9. Pity the sorrows of a poor old man. 10. Ping, joyous chords ! — ring out again ! 11. Poll on, thou deep and dark blue ocean, roll. 12. Come and trip it, as ye go, On the light fantastic toe. 13. But hush! hark! a deep sound strikes like a ris- ing knell. 14. Away ! away ! and on we dash. 15. Forward the light brigade! 16. All's hushed as midnight yet. 17. Hail ! holy light, offspring of Heaven, first born. 18. Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead! 19. Silence how dead ! and darkness how profound ! 20. Or whispering with white lips, " The foe ! they come, they come ! " 21. Joy ! joy ! Shout, shout aloud for j6y ! 22. Strike ! till the last armed foe expires ! 23. How like a fawning publican he looks ! 24. Thou hast all seasons for thine own, Death ! 25. Ping the alarm-bell ! Murder ! and treason ! 26. Pide softly ! ride slowly ! the onset is near ! Move slowly ! move softly ! the sentry may hear. 27. No ! by St. Bride of Bothwell, no ! 28. On a sudden open fly The infernal gates, and on their hinges grate Harsh thunder ! 29. Heaven opened wide Her ever-during gates, harmonious sound, On golden hinges turning. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 261 30. But gentler now the small waves glide, Like playful lambs on a mountain side. 31. With many a weary step, and many a groan, Up the high hill he heaves a huge round stone. 32. When Ajax strives some rock's vast weight to throw, The line, too, labors, and the words move slow. 33. Soft is the strain when zephyr gently blows, And the smooth stream in smoother numbers flows. But when loud surges lash the sounding shore, The hoarse rouoh verse should like the torrent roar. 34. Clang ! clang ! the massive anvils ring, Clang ! clang ! a hundred, hammers swing ; Like the thunder rattle of a tropic sky, The mighty blows still multiply. 35. SONG OF THE SHIRT. Work ! work ! work ! Till the brain begins to swim ; Work ! work ! work ! Till the eyes are heavy and dim! Seam, and gusset, and band, Band, and gusset, and seam, Till over the buttons I fall asleep, And sew them on in a dream ! H ood. 36. THE TWO VOICES FROM THE GRAVE. First Voice. How frightful the grave! how deserted and drear! With the howls of the storm- wind, the creaks of the bier, And the white bones all clattering together! Second Voice. How peaceful the grave! its quiet how deep! Its zephyrs breathe calmly, and soft is its sleep, And flow'rets perfume it with ether. 262 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 37. MILITARY COMMAND. " Forward the Light Brigade ! Charge for the guns ! " lie said. Shoulder arms ! Forward march ! Halt ! Charge ! Chester, charge ! On ! Stanley, on ! 38. THE HERALD'S CALL. Rejoice, ye men of Angiers, ring your bells, King John, your king and England's, doth approach. Open your gates and give the victor way. SECTION V. DIALECT BEADING AND PERSONATION. In dialect reading, the peculiarities of speech should be reproduced with fidelity, but should not be exagger- ated. In the reading of dialogues there is, of necessity, a marked change of tone and manner when the reader personates two or more characters. Examples of Dialect Reading. 1. skipper ireson's hide. Scores of women, old and young, Strong of muscle, and glib of tongue, Pushed and pulled up the rocky lane, Shouting and singing the shrill refrain : "Here's Find Oirson, fur his liorrd horrt, Torrd an' fatherrd an' corr'd in a corrt By the women o MorbU'ead!* 1 whittier. 2. THE deacon's masterpiece. But the Deacon swore, as deacons do, With an "I dcto nun," or an "I tell yeou" He would build one shay to beat the ta&wn, 'n' the Icaounty 'n' all the hentry raoun* ; It should be so built that it couldn' break daown. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 263 " Far," said the Deacon, " 't 's mighty plain Thut the weakes' place mus' stan' the strain ; 'n' the way t' fix it, uz I maintain, Is only jest T' make that place uz strong uz the rest." Holmes. 3. SPRING. little city-gals, do n't never go it Blind on the word o' noospaper or poet ! They're apt to puff', an' May-day seldom looks Up in the country ez it doos in books ; They're no more like than hornets'-nests an' hives, Or printed sarmons he to holy lives. I, with my trouses perched on cow-hide boots, Tuggin' my foundered feet out by the roots, Hev seen ye come to fling on April's hearse Your muslin nosegays from the milliner's — Puzzlin' to find dry ground your queen to choose, An' dance your throats sore in morocker shoes ; I've seen ye an' felt proud, thet, come wut would, Our Pilgrim stock wuz pithed with hardihood. Pleasure does make us Yankees kind o' winch, Ez though 'twuz sumthin' paid for by the inch ; But yit we du contrive to worry thru — Ef Dooty tells us thet the thing 's to du — An' kerry a hollerday, ef we set out, Ez stiddily ez though 'twuz a redoubt, Lowell. 4. THE GRIDIROX. Patrick. I beg pardon, sir; but maybe I'm under a mistake, but I thought I was in Prance, sir. An't you all furriners here ? Parley voo frongsay ? Frenchman. Oui, monsieur. Patrick. Then, would you lind me the loan of a grid- iron, if you plase ? I know it 's a liberty I take, sir ; but it's only in the regard of bein' cast away; and if you plase, sir, parley voo frongsay ? 264 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Frenchman. Oui, monsieur, oui. Patrick. Then would you lincl me the loan of a grid- iron, sir, and you '11 obleege me ? Frenchman. Monsieur, pardon, monsieur — Patricia Then lind me the loan of a gridiron, I say. Frenchman. Oui, oui, monsieur. Patrick Then lind me the loan of a gridiron, and howld your prate. Well, 1 11 give you one chance more, you owld thafe ! Are you a Christian, at all, at all? Are you a furriner that all the world calls so p'lite ? Bad luck to you! do you understand your mother tongue ? Parley voo frongsay ? ( Very loud.) Parley voo frongsay ? Frenchman. Oui, monsieur, oui, oui. Patrick. (Screaming.) Thin Unci mc the loan of a gridiron ! 5. AFTER-DINNER SPEECH BY A FRENCHMAN. "Milors and Gentlemans — You excellent chairman, M. le Baron de Mount-Stuart, he have say to me, ' Make de toast.' Den I say to him dat I have no toast to make; but lie nudge my elbow ver soft, and say dat dere is von toast dat nobody but von Frenchman can make proper; and, derefore, wid your kind permission, I vill make de toast. ' De brevete is de sole of de feet,' as you great philosophere, Dr. Johnson, do say, in dat amusing little vork of his, de Pronouncing Dictionnaire ; and, derefore, I vill not say ver moch to de point. "Ah! mes amis! ven I hear to myself de flowing- speech, de oration magnifique of you Lor' Maire, Mon- sieur Gobbledown, I feel dat it is von great privilege for von dtranger to sit at de same table, and to cat de same food, as dat grand, dat majestique man, who are de terreur of de voleurs and de brigands of de metrop- olis; and who is also, I for to suppose, a halterman and de chief of you common scoundrel. Milors and SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 265 gentlemans, I feel dat I can perspire to no greatare honneur dan to be von common scoundrelman myself; but, lie'las! dat plaisir are not for me, as I are not free- man of your great cite', not von liveryman servant of von of you compagnies joint-stock. But I must not forget de toast. " Milors and Gentlernans ! De immortal Shakispeare lie have write, ' De ting of beauty are de joy for never- more.' It is de ladies who are de toast. Vat is more entrancing dan de charmante smile, de soft voice, de vinking eye of de beautiful lady ! It is de ladies who do sweeten de cares of life. It is de ladies who are de guiding stars of our existence. It is de ladies who do cheer but not inebriate, and, derefore, vid all homage to dere sex, de toast dat I have to propose is, ' De Ladies ! God bless dem all ! ' " 6. DUNDREARY IN THE COUNTRY. 1. Diwectly after the season is over in town, I always go into the count wy. To tell you the twuth, I hate the countwy — it 's so awful dull — there 's such a howid noise of nothing all dav; and there is nothing to see but gween twees, and cows, and buttercups, and wab- bits, and all that sort of cattle — I don't mean exactly cattle either, but animals, you know. 2. And then the earwigs get into your hair-bwushes if you leave the bed-woom window open ; and if you lie down on the gwass, those howid gwasshoppers, all legs, play at leap-frog over your nose, which is howible torture, and makes you weady to faint, you know, if it is not too far to call for assistance. 3. And the howid sky is always blue, and everything bores you; and they talk about the sunshine, as if there was more sunshine in the countwy than in the city — which is abthurd, you know — only the countwy sun is hotter, and bwings you all out in those howid fweckles, 2C6 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. and turns you to a fwiteful bwicky color, which the wetches call healthy. 4. As if a healthy man must lose his complexion, and become of a bwicky wed color — ha, ha ! — bwicky — howid — bwicky wed color — cawoty wed color ! 7. THE HEATH EX CHINEE. Which I wish to remark — And my language is plain — That for ways that are dark, And for tricks that are vain, The heathen Chinee is peculiar, Which the same I would rise to explain. Ah Sin was his name ; And I shall not deny, In regard to the same, What that name might imply; But his smile it was pensive and child-like, As I frequently remarked to Bill Nye. It was August the third, And quite soft was the skies — Which it might be inferred That Ah Sin was likewise; Yet he played it that day upon William And me in a way I despise. Which we had a small game, And Ah Sin took a hand; It was Euchre. The same He did not understand ; But he smiled as he sat by the table, With a smile that was child-like and bland. Yet the cards they were stocked In a way that I grieve, And my feelings were shocked At the state of Nye's sleeve. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 2G7 Which was stuffed full of aces and bowers, And the same with intent to deceive. But the hands that were played By that heathen Chinee, And the points that he made, "Were quite frightful to see ; Till at last he put down a right bower, Which the same Nye had dealt unto me. Then I looked up at Nye, And he gazed upon me; And he rose with a sisjh, And said, " Can this be ? We are ruined by Chinese cheap labor : ' — And he went for that heathen Chinee. In the scene that ensued I did not take a hand ; But the floor it was strewed, Like the leaves on the strand, With the cards that Ah Sin had been hiding, In the srame he "did not understand." &* In his sleeves, which were long, He had twenty-four packs — Which was coming it strong, Yet I state but the facts ; And we found on his nails, which were taper, What is frequent in tapers — that's wax. Which is why I remark — And my language is plain — That for ways that are dark, And for tricks that are vain, The heathen Chinee is peculiar, Which the same I am free to maintain. Bret Harte 2G8 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 8. MARK TWAIN AND THE REPORTER. "Hoping it's no harm, I've come to interview you. I am connected with The Daily Thunderstorm" "Come to what?" " Interview you." "Ah! I see. Yes — yes. Um ! Yes — yes." "Are you ready to begin?" " Beady," " How old are you ? " " Nineteen in June." " Indeed ! I would have taken you to be thirty-five or six. Where were you born ? " "In Missouri?" " When did you begin to write ? " "In 1836." "Why, how could that be, if you are only nineteen now ? " " I do n't know. It does seem curious, somehow." "It does indeed. Whom do you consider the most remarkable man you ever met ? " "Aaron Burr." "But you never could have met Aaron Burr, if you are only nineteen years — " "Now, if you know more about me than I do, what do you ask me for ? " " Well, it was only a suggestion ; nothing more. How did you happen to meet Burr?" "Well, I happened to be at his funeral one day; and he asked me to make less noise, and — " "But, good heavens! If you were at his funeral, he must have been dead ; and, if he was dead, how could he care whether you made a noise or not ? " "I don't know. He was always a particular kind <>t a man that way." "Still, I don't understand it at all. You say he spoke to you, and that he was dead I " SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 269 " I did n't say be was dead." "But wasn't lie dead?" "Well, some said he was, some said lie wasn't." " What do you think ? " " Oh, it was none of my business. It was n't any of my funeral." "Did you — However, we can never get this matter straight. Let me ask about something else. What was the date of your birth ? " "Monday, October 31, 1693." " What ! Impossible ! That would make you a hun- dred and eighty years old. How do you account for that ? " " I do n't account for it at all." "But you said at first you were only nineteen, and now you make yourself out to be one hundred and eighty. It is an awful discrepancy." " Why, have you noticed that ? {Shaking hands) Many a time it has seemed to me like a discrepancy ; but some how I couldn't make up my mind. How quick you notice a thing ! " "Thank you for the compliment, as far as it goes. Had you, or have you, any brothers or sisters ? " "Eh ! I — I — I think so — yes — but I don't remember." "Well, that is the most extraordinary statement I ever heard." " Why, what makes you think that ? " " How could I think otherwise ? Why, look here ! Who is this a picture of on the wall ? Is n't that a brother of yours ? " "Oh, yes, yes, yes! Now you remind me of it, that was a brother of mine. That's William, Bill we called him. Poor old Bill!" " Why, is he dead, then ? " " Ah, well, I suppose so. We never could tell. There was a great mystery about it." 270 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. " That is sad, very sad. He disappeared, then '. ' "Well, yes, in a sort of general way. We buried him." "Burial him! Buried him without knowing whether he was dead, or not ? " "Oh, no! Not that. He was dead enough." " Well, I confess that I can't understand this. If you buried him, and you knew he was dead — " "No, no! We only thought he was." "Oh, I see! He came to life again?" "I bet he didn't." "Well, I never heard anything like this. Somebody was dead. Somebody was buried. Now, where was the mystery ? " "Ah, that's just it! That's it exactly! You see we were twins— defunct and I; and we got mixed in the bath-tub when we were only two weeks old, and one of us was drowned. But we did n't know which. Some think it was Bill; some think it was me." "Well, that is remarkable. What do you think?" "Goodness knows! I would give whole worlds to know. This solemn, this awful mystery has cast a gloom over my whole life. But I will tell you a secret now, which I never have revealed to any creature before. One of us had a peculiar mark, a large mole on the back of his left hand; that was me. That child was the one that ivas drowned? " Very well, then, I do n't see that there is any mys- tery about it, after all." "You don't ? Well, I do. Anyway, I don't see how they could ever have been such a blundering lot as to go and bury the wrong child. But, 'sh ! Don't men- tion it where the family can hear of it. Heaven knows they have heart-breaking troubles enough without adding this." "Well, I believe I have got material enough for the SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 271 present; and I am very much obliged to you for the pains you have taken. But I was a good deal inter- ested in that account of Aaron Burr's funeral. Would you mind telling me what particular circumstance it was that made you think Burr was such a remarkable man ? " " Oh, it was a mere trifle ! Not one man in fifty would have noticed it at all. When the sermon was over, and the procession all ready to start for the cemetery, and the body all arranged nice in the hearse, he said he wanted to take a last look at the scenery ; and so he got up, and rode with the driver" 9. PRINCE HENRY AND FALSTAFF. Falstajf. I call thee coward ? I '11 see thee hanged ere I call thee coward : but I would give a thousand pdund I could run as fast as thou canst. You are straight enough in the shoulders, you care not who sees your back Call you that backing your friends ? A plague upon such backing ! give me them that will face me. — Give me a cup of sack: I am a rogue, if I have drunk to-day. P. Henry. villain! thy lips are scarce wiped since thou drank'st last. Fal. All's one for that. A plague on all cowards, still say I ! P. Henry. What 's the matter ? Fal. What 's the -matter ? here be four of us have taken a thousand pound this morning. P. Henry. Where is it, Jack ? where is it ? Fed. Where is it ? taken from us, it is ; a hundred upon poor four of us. P. Henry. What ! a hundred, man ? Fed. I am a rogue, if I were not at half-sword with a dozen of them, for two hours together. I have 'scaped by miracle. I am eight times thrust through the 272 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. doublet; four, through the hose; my buckler cut through and through ; my sword hacked like a hand-saw. I never dealt better since I was a man; all would not do. A plague of all cowards ! Let them speak ; if they speak more or less than truth, they are villains aud the sons of darkness. P. Henry. Speak, sirs ; how was it ? GaclsJtill. We four, set upon some dozen — Fed. Sixteen, at least, my lord. Gad. And bound them. Peto. No, no, they were not bound. Fal. You rogue, they were bound, every man of them , or I am a Jew, else — an Ebrew Jew. Gad. As we were sharing, some six or seven fresh men set upon us — Fed. And unbound the rest; and then come in the other. P. Henry. What ! fought ye with them all ? Fal. All? I know not what ye call all; but if I fought not with fifty of them, I am a bunch of radish : if there were not two or three and fifty upon poor old Jack, then I am no two-legged creature. Poins. Pray heaven, you have not murdered some of them. Fed. Nay, that's past praying for; for I have pep- pered two of them ; two I am sure I have paid ; two rogues in buckram suits. I tell thee what, Hal, if I tell thee a lie, spit in my face, and call me a horse. Four rogues in buckram let drive at me — P. Henry. What! four? Thou saidst but two even now. Fed. Four, Hal; I told thee four. Poins. Ay, ay, lie said four. Fal. These four came all afront, and mainly thrust at me. I made no more ado, but took all their seven points on my target thus. -SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 273 P. Henry. Seven ! why, there were but four, even now. Fed. In buckram ? P. Henry. Ay, four in buckram suits. Fed. Seven, by these hilts, or I am a villain else. Dost thou hear me, Hal ? P. Henry. Ay, and mark thee too, Jack. Fed. Do so, for it is worth listening to. These nine in buckram that I told thee of — P. Henry. So, two more already. Fed. Their points being broken, — began to give me ground; but I followed me close, came in foot and hand, and with a thought, seven of the eleven I paid. P. Henry. monstrous ! eleven buckram men grown out of two ! Fed. But, as ill luck would have it, three misbegot- ten knaves, in Kendal green, came at my back, and let drive at me; — for it was so dark, Hal, that thou couldst not see thy hand. P. Henry. These lies are like the father that begets them ; gross as a mountain, open, palpable. Why, thou knotty-pated fool; thou greasy tallow-tub. Fed. What, art thou mad? art thou mad? is not the truth the truth? P. Henry. Why, how couldst thou know these men in Kendal green, when it was so dark thou couldst not see thy hand ? Come, tell us your reason ; what sayest thou to this ? Come, your reason, Jack, your reason. Fed. What, upon compulsion ? No. Were I at the strappado, or all the racks in the -world, I would not tell you on compulsion. Give you a reason upon com- pulsion ! If reasons were as plenty as oldchocrrics, I would give no man a reason upon compulsion. P. Henry. I '11 be no longer guilty of this sin. This sanguine coward, this bed-presser, this horse-back breaker, this huge hill of flesh — 18 274 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Fed. Away, you starveling, you eel-skin, you dried neat's-tongue, you stdck-fi.sk S for breath to utter what is like thee ! you tailor 's yard, you sheath, you bow-case, you vile standing tuck — Shakespeare. Hints about Additional Selections. Dialogues, dialect pieces, and humorous selections are useful in school for the purpose of breaking up the tendency to stiffness, formality, and monotony in read- ing. There are times when the ripple of laughter is music in the school-room, and when the sunlight of humor is needed to dispel the mists of a gloomy day. There seems to be no good reason w 7 hy the flashes of wit and humor that delight a whole nation should be altogether shut out from the school-room, because they do not form a part of " classic literature." Though such humorous and dialect selections might not seem appro- priate for a drill-book like this volume, the wise and cheerful teacher will make good use of them, taking care, of course, to exclude objectionable selections. Teachers will do well to bear in mind that the taste of boys and girls from fourteen to eighteen years of age is not so critical as that of men and women of middle ao;e. These extracts should be read at sight, the book being passed from hand to hand, and one book serving for the whole class. Many excellent selections can be found in such books as Lowell's "Biglow Papers," Dickens's tt Pickwick Ta- pers," Bret Harte's " Poems," Saxe's " roems," Hood's " Poems," Mark Twain's books, Monroe's "Humorous Pleadings," Garrett's "Speaker's Garland," Shoemaker's "Elocutionist's Annual," and many other books of " Selections." PART III PART III. MISCELLANEOUS SELECTIONS. SECTION I. PROSE SELECTIONS. 1. ELOCUTIONARY TRAINING. -1. Elocutionary, training should be begun in early life, because then the vocal organs are flexible. It is a serious defect in our school methods of instruction, that the expressive faculties, comprising feeling, affection, emotion, passion, imagination, fancy, association, imita- tion, and description, are called so little into action. Elocution, when properly taught, calls into active exer- cise the expressive faculties, and tends to educate the child as a social being.-, 2. In most ungraded schools in the country, and in many city schools, an hour of the closing afternoon of ejach week may be usefully devoted to declamation, dia- logue, and select readings. It is not advisable to compel every child in school to take part in these exercises, for there are some who never can become good readers, and others who are so awkward and diffident that it is cruel to force them upon the school stage with a declamation. 3. Appropriate selections should at first be made by (277) 278 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. the teacher; for the uncultivated taste of pupils will lead them to choose pieces altogether too difficult, or utterly worthless when committed to memory. Select at times, for the boys, short prose declamations, which, when learned, remain in the memory as models of pure prose and patriotic feeling. If they learn a poem, let it not be one made up of doggerel rhymes, or of pain- ful attempts at a low order of wit. 4. A careful selection of pieces will be the surest safeguard against the ranting, tearing, overstrained, the- atrical style of florid oratory which so painfully mars many school exhibitions. The teacher can take odd moments at the intermission, or recess, or before and after school, for the purpose of hearing rehearsals, and giving special instructions. 5. Teachers should instruct pupils in the elements of gesture. Gestures spring naturally from the close sym- pathy of mind and body. A look of the eye, an expression of the countenance, a movement of the hand, often convey more than words can express. The prin- ciples of gesture may be easily learned from any one of several excellent works on elocution. 6. The reading and recitation of poetry by girls is an indispensable part of the education of woman, as one of the most efficient modes of discipline for the taste and imagination. Many of the most exquisite passages of the poets can never be fully appreciated until repeated by the voice of woman. 7. It requires no close observer to perceive the effects of poetry on the youthful mind. Childhood delights in the melody of verse, and is pleased with its flowing harmony of sound. In poetry are embodied some of the most beautiful lessons of morality ; and they are presented in a manner which arrests the attention and impresses the character. What teacher has not seen the dull eye kindle, the vacant countenance take expression, SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 279 the face glow with emotion, and the whole boy become lost in the sentiment of his declamation ? 8. Introduce elocution into school to cultivate a taste for reading, to exercise and strengthen memory, to awaken feeling, to excite imagination, and to train those who are to enter the professions, to become graceful and pleasing speakers. Introduce it as a relief from study, a pleasing recreation, and a source of intellectual enjoyment. Introduce it as a part of the aesthetic edu- cation so peculiarly appropriate for woman. Make it as a part of the education of man as an expressive being. 2. GOOD HEADING. 1. There is one accomplishment, in particular, which I would earnestly recommend to you. Cultivate assidu- ously the ability to read well. I stop to particularize this, because it is a thing so very much neglected, and because it is such an elegant and charming accomplish- ment. Where one person is really interested by music, twenty are pleased by good reading. "Where one person is capable of becoming a skillful musician, twenty may become good readers. Where there is one occasion suit- able for the exercise of musical talent, there are twenty for that of good reading. 2. The culture of the voice necessary for reading well, gives a delightful charm to the same voice in conversa- tion. Good reading is the natural exponent and vehicle of all good things. It seems to bring dead authors to life again, and makes us sit down familiarly with the great and gdod of all ages. 3. What a fascindtion there is in really good reading ! What a pbvjer it gives one ! In the hospital, in the chamber of the Invalid, in the nursery, in the domestic and in the social circle, among chosen friends and com- panions, how it enables you to minister to the amixse- 280 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. ment, the comfort, the pleasure of dear ones as no other art or accomplishment ca?i. No instrument of man's devising can reach the heart as does that most w6n fid instrument, the liftman voice. 4. If you would double the value of all your other acquisitions, if you would add immeasurably to your 6wn enjoyment and to your power of promoting the enjoyment of others, cultivate, with incessant care, this divine gift. No music below the skies is equal to that of pure, silvery speech from the lips of a man or woman of high culture. j0HN s . IIvET . 3. THE MUSIC OF THE HUMAN VOICE. 1. Willis, in his essay on " unwritten music," has placed the appropriate sound of the female voice among the most beautiful of its forms ; and there is, unquestiona- bly, a fine analogy between the sound of the running brook, the note of the wood-bird, the voice of a happy child, the low breathing of a flute, and the clear, soft tone of a woman's voice, when it utters the natural music of home — the accents of gentleness and love. 2. To a well-tuned ear, there is a rich, deep melody in the distinctive bass of the male voice, in its subdued tones. But the key-note of poetry seems to have been lent to woman. On the ear of infancy and childhood, her voice was meant to fall as a winning prelude to all the other melodies of nature ; the human nerves are attuned, accordingly, to the breath of her voice; and. through life, the chords of the heart respond most readily to her touch. 3. Yet how often is this result impeded by the pro- cesses of artificial culture; by the over-excitement of mind and nerve, attending excessive application; by that unwise neglect of health and healthful action, which dims the eye and deadens the ear to beauty, and robs SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 281 life of the joyous and sympathetic spirit which is native to childhood ; and which, otherwise, would ever be gush- ing forth in notes of gladness and endearment, the physical not less than the moral charm of human utterance ! 4. There are beautiful exceptions, undoubtedly, to this general fact of ungainly habit. But the ground of just complaint is, that there is no provision made in our systems of education for the cultivation of one of woman's peculiar endowments — an attractive voice. Our girls do not come home to us. after their period of school life, qualified to read with effect in their own language. There is wanting in their voices that adap- tation of tone to feeling, which is the music of the heart in reading ; there is wanting that clear, impressive style which belongs to the utterance of cultivated taste and judgment, and which enhances every sentiment by appropriate emphasis and pause ; there is even a want of that distinct articulation which alone can make sound the intelligible medium of thought, prof. William Russell. 4. THE AET OF BEADING. 1. The art of reading well is an accomplishment that all desire to possess, many think they have already, and that a few set about to acquire. These, believing their power is altogether in their genius, are, after a few lessons from an elocutionist, disappointed at not becoming themselves at once masters of the art ; and with the restless vanity of their belief, abandon the study for some new subject of trial and failure. Such cases of infirmity result in part from the wavering character of the human tribe ; but they chiefly arise from defects in the usual course of instruction. 2. Go to some of our colleges and universities, and observe how the art of speaking is not taught there. 282 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. See a boy of but fifteen years, with no want of youth- ful diffidence, and not without a craving desire to learn, sent upon a stage, pale and choking with appre- hension ; being forced into an attempt to do that, without instruction, which he came purposely to learn ; and furnishing amusement to his classmates, by a pardonable awkwardness, that should be punished, in the person of his pretending but neglectful preceptor, with little less than scourging. 3. Then visit a conservatorio of music; observe there the elementary outset, the orderly task, the masterly discipline, the unwearied superintendence, and the in- cessant toil to reach the utmost accomplishment in the Singing- Voice ; and afterwards do not be surprised that the pulpit, the senate, the bar, and the chair of medical professorship, are filled with such abominable drawlers, mouthers, mumblers, clutterers, squeakers, chanters, and mongers in monotony ; nor that the Schools of Singing- are constantly sending abroad those great instances of vocal wonder who triumph along the crowded resorts of the world ; who contribute to the halls of fashion and wealth their most refined source of gratification ; who sometimes quell the pride of rank by a momentary sensation of envy ; and who draw forth the admiration and receive the crowning applause of the prince and sage. 4. The high accomplishments in elocution are sup- posed to be universally the unacquired gifts of genius, and to consist of powers and graces beyond the roach of art. So seem the plainest services of arithmetic to a savage; and so, to the slave, seem all the ways of music which modern art has so accurately penned, as to time, and tune, and momentary grace. Ignorance knows not what has been done; indolence thinks nothing can be done ; and both uniting, borrow from the abused eloquence of poetry an aphorism to justify supineness of inquiry. dr. Rush. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 283 5. ON LEARNING BY HEART. 1. Till he has fairly tried it, I suspect a reader does not know how much he would gain from committing to memory passages of real excellence ; precisely because he does not know how much he overlooks when merely reading. Learn one true poem by heart, and see if you do not find it so. Beauty after beauty will reveal itself, in chosen phrase, or happy music, or noble sug- gestion, otherwise undreamed of. It is like looking at one of Nature's wonders through a microscope. 2. Again : how much in such a poem that you really did feel admirable and lovely on a first reading, passes away, if you do not give it a further and much better reading ! — passes away utterly, like a sweet sound, or an image on the lake, which the first breath of wind dispels. If you could only fix that image, as the pho- tographers do theirs, so beautifully, so perfectly ! And you can do so ! Learn it by heart, and it is yours for ever ! 3. I have said, a true poem; for naturally men will choose to leam poetry — from the beginning of time they have done so. To immortal verse the memory gives a willing, a joyous, and a lasting home. Some prose, however, is poetical, is poetry, and altogether worthy to be learned by heart; and the learning is not so very difficult. It is not difficult or toilsome to learn that which pleases us ; and the labor, once given, is forgot- ten, while the result remains. 4. Poems, and noble extracts, whether of verse or of prose, once so reduced into possession and rendered truly our own, may be to us a daily pleasure-; — better far than a whole library unused. They may come to us in our dull moments, to refresh us as with spring flowers ; in our selfish musings, to win us by pure delight from the tyranny of foolish castle-building, self-gratulations, 284 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. and mean anxieties. They may be with us in the work- shop, in the crowded street, by the fireside ; sometimes, perhaps, on pleasant hill-sides, or by sounding shores ; — noble friends and companions — our own ! never intru- sive, ever at hand, coming at our call. 5. For those, in particular, whose leisure time is short, I believe there could not be a better expenditure of time than deliberately giving an occasional hour — it requires no more — to committing to memory chosen passages from great authors. If the mind were thus daily nourished with a few choice words of the best English poets and writers ; if the habit of learning by heart were to become so general, that, as a matter of course, any person presuming to be educated might be expected to be equipped with a few good pieces, — I be- lieve that it would lead, much more than the mere sound of it suggests, to the diffusion of the best kind of literature and to the right appreciation of it; and that men would not long rest satisfied with knowing a few stock pieces. C. The only objection I can conceive to what I have been saying is, that a relish for higher literature may be said to be the result of cultivation, and to belong only to the. few. But I do not admit that even the higher literature must belong only to the few. Poetry is, in the main, essentially catholic — addressed to all men ; and though some poetry requires knowledge and culture, much, and that the noblest, needs only natural feeling, and common experience. Such poetry, taken in moderation, followed with genuine good-will, shared in common, will be intelligible and delightful to most meq who take the trouble to be students at all, and ever more and more so. 7. Perhaps, also, there may be a fragment of truth in what Charles Lamb has said — that any spouting M wjthe*8 and blows upon a line passage;" that there is no enjoy- SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 285 ing it after it has been "pawed about by declamatory boys and men." But surely there is a reasonable habit of recitation as well as an unreasonable one ; there is no need of declamatory pawing. To abandon all recita- tion, is to give up a custom which has unquestionably given delight and instruction to all the races of man- kind. If our faces are set against vain display, and set towards rational enjoyment of one another, we need not fear that our social evenings will be marred by an oc- casional recitation. And, moreover, it is not for recit- ing's sake that I chiefly recommend this most faithful form of reading — learning bv heart. 8. I come back, therefore, to this, that learning by heart is a good thing, and that it is neglected among us. Why is it neglected ? Partly because of our indolence ; but partly, I believe, because we do not sufficiently con- sider that it is a good thing, and needs to be taken in hand. We need to be reminded of it. I here remind yon. Like a town-crier, ringing my bell, I would say to you, " Oyez, oyez ! Lost, stolen, or strayed, a good ancient practice — the good ancient practice of learning by heart. Every finder shall be handsomely rewarded." 9. If you ask, " What shall I learn ? " the answer is, do as you do with tunes — begin with what you sincerely like best, what you would most wish to remember, what you w 7 ould most enjoy saying to yourself or repeating to another. You will soon find the list inexhaustible. Then "keeping up " is easy. Every one has spare ten minutes : one of the problems of life is how r to employ them usefully. You may well spend some in looking after and securing this good property you have won. LrSHINGTOX. 286 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 6. SCHOOL LIBRARIES. 1. The influence of well-selected books in a school is second only to that of the teacher; and in many in- stances the information, self-gleaned by the pupils, is the most valuable part of a common-school education. 2. A teacher may fail in the discharge of duty ; but the golden grains of thought gleaned from good books will spring up in the youthful minds and yield their fruit, just as certainly as the fertile soil of our beauti- ful valleys rewards the toil of the husbandman with a bountiful harvest. 3. The object and aim of the public school should be to give children a thirst for information, a taste for reading ; to make them alive to knowledge ; to set them out on the path of self-education through life. Why teach them to read at all, if books be not afterwards furnished for them to read ? 4. Xot many years ago, in one of the obscure towns of Massachusetts, there lived a farmer's boy who " went to a common school" in the winter, and worked on the farm in summer. The books of a little town library fell into his hands ; he devoured them, and hungered for more. He grew to be a man, and was acknowledged by all to be the most distinguished American educator of his time. 5. Every public school in our country is a debtor to Horace Mann. He thus graphically sums up the advan- tage of a school library : " Xow no one thing will contribute more to intelligent reading in our schools than a well-selected library ; and, through intelligence, the library will also contribute to rhetorical ease, grace, and expressiveness. Wake up a child to a consciousness of power and beauty, and you might as easily confine Hercules to a distaff, or bind Apollo to a tread-mill, as to confine his spirit within the mechanical round of a SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 287 school-room where such mechanism still exists. Let a child read and understand such stories as the friendship of Damon and Pythias, the integrity of Aristides, the fidelity of Eegulus, the purity of Washington, the invinci- ble perseverance of Franklin, and he will think differently and act differently all the days of his remaining life. 6. "Let boys or girls of sixteen years of age read an intelligible and popular treatise on astronomy and geol- ogy, and from that day new heavens will bend over their heads, and a new earth will spread out beneath their feet. A mind accustomed to go rejoicing over the splendid regions of the material universe, or to luxuriate in the richer worlds of thought, can never afterwards read like a wooden machine — a thing of cranks and pipes — to say nothing of the pleasures and the utility it will realize." 7. POEMS. 1. Now I tell you a poem must be kept and used, like a meerschaum or a violin. A poem is just as porous as the meerschaum — the more porous it is, the better. I mean to say that a genuine poem is capable of absorbing an indefinite amount of the essence of our own humanity — its tenderness, its heroism, its regrets, its aspirations — so as to be gradually stained through with a divine secondary color derived from ourselves. So, you see, it must take time to bring the sentiment of a poem into harmony with our nature by staining ourselves through every thought and image our being can penetrate. 2. Then, again, as to the mere music of a new poem ; why, who can expect anything more from that than from the music of a violin fresh from the maker's hands ? Now you know very well that there are no less than fifty-eight different pieces in a violin. These 288 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. pieces are strangers to each other, and it takes a cen- tury more or less, to make them thoroughly acquainted. At last they learn to vibrate in harmony, and the in- strument becomes an organic whole, as it were a great seed capsule, which had grown from a garden-bed in Cremona, or elsewhere. Besides, the wood is juicy and full of sap for fifty years or so, but at the end of iiity or a hundred more gets tolerably dry and comparatively resonant. c 3 Don't you see that all this is just as true ot a poem ? Counting each word as a piece, there are more pieces in an average copy of verses than in a violin. The poet has forced all these words together, and fast- ened them, and they don't understand it at first But let the poem be repeated aloud, and murmured oyer in the mind's muffled whisper often enough, and at length the parts become knit together in such absolute soli- darity that you could not change a syllable without the whole world's crying out against you for meddling with the harmonious fabric. houuk 8. SCROOGE AND MAULEY. 1 Marlev was dead, to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of his burial was sibcms there is more of truth than in many histories and SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 295 philosophic theories. The fictions of genius are often the vehicles of the sublimcst verities, and its flashes often open new regions of thought, and throw new light on the mysteries of our being. In poetry, when the letter is falsehood, the spirit is often profoundest wisdom. 7. And if trllth thus dwells in the boldest fictions of the poet, much more may it be expected in his delinea- tions of life ; for the present life, which is the first stage of the immortal mind, abounds in the materials of poetry, and it is the high office of the bard to detect this divine element among the grosser labors and pleasures of our earthly being. The present life is ndt wholly prosaic, precise, tame, and finite. To the gifted eye it abounds in the poetic. 8. The affections, which spread beyond ourselves and stretch far into futiirity ; the workings of mighty passions, which seem to arm the soul with an almost superhuman energy ; the innocent and irrepressible joy of infancy; the bloom, and buoyancy, and dazzling hopes of youth; the throbbing of the heart, when it first wakes to love, and dreams of a happiness too vast for earth; woman, with her beauty, and grace, and gentleness, and fullness of fueling, and depth of affection, and blushes of purity, and the tones and looks which only a mother's heart can inspire — these are all poetical. 9. It is not trlXe that the poet paints a life which does not exist. He only extracts and concentrates, as it we're, life's ethereal essence, arrests and condenses its volatile fragrance, brings together its scattered beauties, and prolongs its more refined but evanescent joys. And in this he does well ; for it is good to feel that life is not wholly usurped by cares for subsistence and physical gratifications, but admits, in measures which may be indefinitely enlarged, sentiments and delights worthy of a higher being. channino. 296 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 10. FALSTAFF. [This extract affords an example of " humorous style" with prevail- tug circumflex inflections.] 1. There is something cordial in a fat man. Every- body likes him, and he likes everybody. Food does a fat man good; it clings to him; it fructifies upon him; he swells nobly out, and fills a generous space in life. A fat man, therefore, almost in virtue of being a fat man, is, 'per se, a popular man; and he commonly deserves his popularity. 2. A fat man feels his position solid in the world ; he knows that his being is cognizable ; lie knows that he has a marked pldce in the universe, and that he need take no extraordinary pains to advertise mankind that lie is among them ; he knows that he is in no danger of beinu; overlooked. 3. A fat man is the nearest to that most perfect of figures, a mathematical sphere ; a tMn man, to that most limited of conceivable dimensions, a simjrfe line. A fat man is a being of harmonious volume, and holds relations to the material universe in every direction ; a thin man has nothing but length; a tMn man, in fact, is but the continuation of a point. 4. Well then might Falstaff exult in his sue; well might lie mock at the prince, and his other lean contem- poraries ; and, accordingly, when he would address the prince in terms the most degrading, he heaps epithet upon epithet, each expressive of the utmost !<<>" the angel solemnly demanded. " Is there indeed no £nd ? — and is this the sorrow that hills you ? " But no «?(te answered, that he might answer himself. Then the a?i#c£ threw up his glorious hands to the heaven of heavens, saying, " End' is there none to the universe of Gbd. L6 1 also, there is no beginning." 13. EDUCATION. 1. Suppose it were perfectly certain that the life and fortune of every one of us would, one day or other, depend upon his winning or losing a game at chess. Do n't you think that we should all consider it to be a primary duty to learn at least the names and the moves of the pieces ; to have a notion of a gambit, and a keen eye for all the means of giving and getting out of check ? Do you not think that we should look with a disappro- bation amounting to scorn, upon the father who allowed his son, or the state which allowed its members, to grow up without knowing a pawn from a knight } 2. Yet it is a very plain and elementary truth, that the life, the fortune, and the happiness of every one of us, and, more or less, of those who are connected with us, do depend upon our knowing something of the rules of a game infinitely more difficult and complicated than chess. It is a game which has been played for untold ages, every man and woman of us being one of the two players in a game of his or her own. The chess- board is the world, the pieces are the phenomena of the SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 303 universe, the rules of the game are what we call the laws of Nature. 3. The player on the other side is hidden from us. We know that his play is always fair, just, and patient. But also we know, to our cost, that he never overlooks a mistake, or makes the smallest allowance for ignorance. To the man who plays well, the highest stakes are paid, with that sort of overflowing generosity with which the strong shows delight in strength. And one who plays ill is checkmated — without haste, but without remorse. 4. Well, what I mean by Education is learning the rules of this mighty game. In other words, education is the instruction of the intellect in the laws of Nature, under which name I include not merely things and their forces, but men and their ways; and the fashioning of the affections and of the will into an earnest and loving desire to move in harmony with those laws. For me, education means neither more nor less than this. Any- thing which professes to call itself education must be tried by this standard, and if it fails to stand the test, I will not call it education, whatever may be the force of authority, or of numbers, upon the other side. 5. It is important to remember that, in strictness, there is no such thing as an uneducated man. Take an extreme case. Suppose that an adult man, in the full vigor of his faculties, could be suddenly placed in the world, as Adam is said to have been, and then left to do as he best might. How long would he be left un- educated ? Not five minutes. Nature would begin to teach him, through the eye, the ear, the touch, the properties of objects. Pain and pleasure would be at his elbow telling him to do this and avoid that; and by slow degrees the man Avould receive an education, which, if narrow, would be thorough, real, and adequate to his circumstances, though there would be no extras and very few accomplishments. '304 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 6. Those who take honors in Nature's university, who learn the laws which govern men and things and obey them, are the really great and successful men in this world. Those who won't learn at all are plucked ; and then you can't come up again. Nature's pluck means extermination. 7. Thus the question of compulsory education is set- tled so far as Nature is concerned. Her bill on that question was framed and passed long ago. But, like all compulsory legislation, that of Nature is harsh and wasteful in its operation. Ignorance is visited as sharply as willful disobedience — incapacity meets with the same punishment as crime. Nature's discipline is not even a word and a blow, and the blow first; but the blow without the word. It is left to you to find out why your ears are boxed. hi-xley. 14 MATHEMATICS AND PHYSICS. 1. For all the higher arts of construction, some acquaintance with mathematics is indispensable. The village carpenter, who, lacking rational instruction, lays out his work by empirical rules learnt in his appren- ticeship, equally with the builder of a Britannia Bridge, makes hourly reference to the laws of quantitative rela- tions. The surveyor on whose survey the land is purchased, the architect in designing a mansion to be built on it, the builder in preparing his estimates, his foreman in laying out the foundations, the masons in cutting the stones, and the various artisans who put up the fittings, are all guided by geometrical truths. Rail- way-making is regulated from beginning to end by mathematics : alike in the preparation of plans and sec- tions, in staking out the line, in the mensuration of cuttings and embankments, in the designing, estimating, SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 305 and building of bridges, culverts, viaducts, tunnels, sta- tions. And similarly with the harbors, docks, piers, and various engineering and architectural works that fringe the coasts and overspread the face of the country, as w T ell as the mines that run underneath it. 2. Out of geometry, too, as applied to astronomy, the art of navigation has grown; and so, by this science, has been made possible that enormous foreign commerce which supports a large part of our population, and supplies us with many necessaries and most of our luxuries. 3. And nowadays even the farmer, for the correct laying out of his drains, has recourse to the level — that is, to geometrical principles. When from those divisions of mathematics which deal with space, and number, some small smattering of which is given in schools, we turn to that other division which deals with force — of which even a smattering is scarcely ever given— we meet with another large class of activities which this science pre- sides over. 4. On the application of rational mechanics depends the success of nearly all modern manufacture. The properties of the lever, the wheel and axle, etc., are involved in every machine ; every machine is a solidified mechanical theorem ; and to machinery in these times we owe nearly all production. 5. Trace the history of the breakfast-roll. The soil out of which it came was drained with machine-made tiles ; the surface was turned over by a machine ; the seed was put in by a machine ; the wheat was reaped, thrashed, and winnowed by machines; by machinery it was ground and bolted ; and had the flour been sent to Gosport, it might have been made into biscuits by a machine. 6. Look round the room in which you sit. If mod- ern, probably the bricks in its walls w T ere machine-made ; 20 300 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. by machinery the flooring was sawn and planed, the mantel-shelf sawn and polished, the paper-hangings made and printed ; the veneer on the table, the turned legs of the chairs, the carpet, the curtains, are all products of machinery. 7. And your clothing — plain, figured, or printed — is it not wholly woven, nay, perhaps even sewed, by ma- chinery ? And the volume you are reading — are not its leaves fabricated by one machine and covered with these words by another? Add to which, that, for the means of distribution over both laud and sea, we arc similarly indebted. 8. And then let it be remembered that according as the principles of mechanics are well or ill used to these ends, comes success or failure — individual and national. The engineer who misapplies his formulas for the strength of materials, builds a bridge that breaks down. The manufacturer whose apparatus is badly devised, can not compete with another whose apparatus wastes less in friction and inertia. 9. The ship-builder adhering to the old model is out- sailed by one who builds on the mechanically justified wave-line principle. And as the ability of a nation to hold its own against other nations depends on the skilled activity of its units, we see that on such knowledge may turn the national fate. Judge, then, the worth of mathematics. 10. Pass next to physics. Joined with mathematics, it has given us the steam-engine, which does the work of millions of laborers. That section of physics which deals with the laws of heat, has taught us how to econ- omize fuel in our various industries ; how to increase the produce of our smelting furnaces by substituting the hot for the cold blast; how to ventilate our mines; how to prevent explosions by using the safety-lamp ; and, through the thermometer, how to regulate inmimer- SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 307 able processes. That division which has the phenomena of light for its subject, gives eyes to the old and the myopic ; aids through the microscope in detecting dis- eases and adulterations ; and by improved lighthouses prevents shipwrecks. 11. Eesearches in electricity and magnetism have saved incalculable life and property by the compass ; have subserved sundry arts by the electrotype; and now, in the telegraph, have supplied us with the agency by which, for the future, all mercantile transactions will be regulated, political intercourse carried on, and perhaps national quarrels often avoided. While in the details of indoor life, from the improved kitchen range up to the stereoscope on the drawing-room table, the applica- tions of advanced physics underlie our comforts and gratifications. Herbert Spencer. SECTION II. PROSE DECLAMATIONS. 1. CHARACTER OF TRUE ELOQUENCE. [This speech is characterized by full declamatory force, long piauscs, strong emphasis, prevailing dovjnward inflection, orotund quality, and radical stress. Require pupils to give reasons for the marking of rlie- torical pauses and inflections.] 1. When public bodies | are to be addressed | on mo- mentous occasions, when great interests | are at stake, and strong passions \ excited, nothing | is valuable | in speech, further than it is connected | with high intel- lectual | and moral endowments. Clearness, force, and earnestness | are the qualities | which produce conviction. True eloquence, indeed, does not consist in speech. It cdnnot be brought from far. Labor and learning may 308 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. toil for it, but they will toil in vain. Words and phrases \ may be marshaled in every way, but they can not cbm- pass it. It must exist in the man, in the subject, and in the occasion. 2. Affected passion, intense expression, the pomp of declamation, all | may aspire after it ; they cannot rbuh it. It comes, if it come at all, like the outbreaking of a fountain from the earth, or the bursting forth of vol- canic fires, with spontaneous, original, native force. 3. The graces | taught in the schools, the costly orna- ments | and studied contrivances of speech, shock and disgust men, when their own lives, and the fate of their wives, their children, and their country, hang on the decision of the Atmr. Then, words have lost their power, rhetoric is flam, and all elaborate oratory \ contemptible. Even genius itself | then feels rebuked and subdued, as in the presence of %/ter qualities. Then, patriotism \ is eloquent ; then, self-devotion \ is eloquent, 4 The clear conception, outrunning the deductions of logic, the Ugh purpose, the firm resolve, the dduni spirit, speaking on the tongue, beaming from the eye, informing eWy feature, and urging the w&oJe mdn bnivard, right bnivard, to his object— this, this | is eloquence ; or, rather, it is something greater and %fter than all eloquence— it is dc^'ow, noble, sublime, godlike action. 2. NATIONAL GREATNESS. 1. I believe there is no permanent greatness to a nation except it be based upon morality. I do not cave for military greatness or military renown. I care for the condition of the plopU among whom I live. There is no man in England who is less likely to speak irrev- erently of the crown and monarchy of England than I am; but crowns, coronets, miters, military display, the pomp of war, wide colonies, and a huge empire are, m SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 309 my view, all trifles light as ctir, and not worth consid- ering, unless with them you can have a fair share of comfort, contentment, and happiness among the great body of the people. 2. Palaces, baronial castles, great halls, stately man- sions, do not make a nation. The nation, in every country, dwells in the cottage; and unless the light of your constitution can shine there, unless the beauty of your legislation and excellence of your statesmanship are impressed there in the feelings and condition of the people, rely upon it you have yet to learn the duties of government. j0HN Bright . 3. THE PASSING OF THE EUBICOK [An example of impassioned argumentative declamation. .] 1. A gentleman, Mr. President, speaking of Csesar's benevolent disposition, and of the reluctance with which he entered into the civil war, observes, "How long did he pause upon the brink of the Rubicon ? " How chme he to the brink of that river ? How dctred he cross it ? Shall private men respect the boundaries of private property, and shall a man pay no respect to the bound- aries of his country's rights ? How dared he cross that river? 0, but he paused upon the brink! He should have perished upon the brink ere he had crossed it ! 2. Why did he pause ? Why does a man's heart pal- pitate when he is on the point of committing an un- Idwful deed? Why does the very murderer, his victim sleeping before him, and his glaring eye taking the measure of the blow, strike wide of the mortal part ? Because of conscience ! 'T was that made Caesar pause upon the brink of the Eubicon. 3. Compassion ! What compassion ! The compassion of an assccssin, that feels a momentary shudder as his 310 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. weapon begins to cut ! Cresar paused upon the brink of the Rubicon ? What ictts the Rubicon ? The boundary of Caesar's province. From what did it separate his province? From his country. Was that country a desert? No: it was cultivated and fertile; rich and jib]) id oils ! Its sons were men of genius, spirit, and oss ^ ss y we owe to this liberty, and these institutions of govern- ment. 3. Nature has, indeed, given us a soil which yields bounteously to the hands of industry ; the mighty and fruitful ocean is before us, and the skies over our heads shed health and vigor. But what are lands, and seas, and skies, to civilized man, without society, without 'knowledge, without morals, without religious culture? and how can these be enjoyed, in all their extent, and all their Excellence, but under the protection of wise institutions and a free government ? 4. Fellow-citizens, there is not one of us here present who does not, at this moment, and at every moment, experience in his own condition, and in the condition of those most near and ddar to him, the influence and the benefits of this liberty, and these institutions. Let us then acknowledge the blessing ; let us feel it deeply and powerfully ; let us cherish a strong affection for it, and resolve to maintdin and perpetuate it. The blood of our fathers, let it not have been shed in vain; the great hope of posterity, let it not be blasted. Webster. 5. THE AMEEICAN" WAR 1. These abominable principles, and this more abom- inable avowed of them, demand the most decisive indig- nation ! I call upon that Eight Eeverend Bench, those holy ministers of the Gospel, and pious pastors of our Church; I conjure them to join in the holy work, and to vindicate the religion of their God ! I appeal | to the wisdom | and the Idio | of this learned Bench, to de- 312 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. fend and support the justice of their cbuntry ! I call upon the Bishops | to interpose the unsullied sdnctity of their lawn, upon the judges \ to interpose the purity of their ermine, to save us from this 'pollution .' 2. I call upon the honor of your Lordships, to rever- ence the dignity of your ancestors, and to maintain your own ! I call upon the spirit and humanity of my cbuntry, to vindicate the national character I I invoke the genius of the Constitution ! From the tapestry | that adorns these ivdlls, the immortal ancestor of the noble Lord | frowns with indignation at the disgrace of his country ! 3. Turn forth into our settlements, among our ancient connections, friends, and relations, the merciless cannibal, thirsting for the blood of man, teaman, and child? Send forth the infidel savage ? Against whbm ? Against your brethren ! To lay waste their country, to desolate their dwellings, and extirpate their race and name, with these horrible hounds of savage war ! 4. Spain | armed herself with blbod-hounds to extirpate the wretched natives of America; and ice | improve on the inhuman example | of even Spanish cruelty ; — we turn loose these savages, these fiendish hounds, against our brethren and countrymen in America, of the same Ictnguage, Utws, liberties, and religion — endeared to us by every tie that should sanctify humanity! rn-r. 6. FREEDOM. I will speak the words of Freedom ; I will listen to her music ; I will acknowledge her \mp>ulses ; I will stand beneath her flag ; I will light in her rhriks; and, when I do so, I shall find myself surrounded by the the wise, the good, the brdve, the ndble of ivery land. If I could stand for a moment upon one of your high SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 313 moilntaiii~toj)s, far above all the kingdoms of the civil- ized world, and there might see, coming up, one after another, the bravest and wisest of the ancient warriors, and statesmen, and kings, and monarchs, and priests; and if, as they came lip, I might be permitted to ask from them an expression of opinion upon such a case as this, with a common voice and in thunder tones, reverberating through a thousand valleys, and echoing down the ages, they would cry : "IAherty, Freedom, the Universal Brother- hood of Man!" /join that shout; I swell that anthem ; I echo that praise forever, and for evermore. Col. E. D. Baker. 7. THE VOICES OF THE DEAD. 1. The wdrld | is filled | with the voices of the dead. They speak | not from the public records of the great world only, but from the private history | of our own experience. They speak to us | in a thousand remem- brances, in a thousand incidents, events, and associations. They speak to us, not only from their silent graves, but from the throng of life. Though they are invisible, yet life | is filled | with their presence. They are with us by the silent fireside | and in the secluded chamber. They are with us | in the paths of society, and in the crowded assemblies of men. 2. They speak to us | from the lonely wdy-side; and they speak to us | from the venerable w&lls | that echo to the steps of a multitude | and to the voice of prayer. Go where we will, the dead | are with us. We live, we converse with those | who once lived | and conversed | with us. Their well-remembered tone | mingles with the whispering breeze, with the sound of the falling ldaf, with the jubilee shout ] of the sprmg-time. — The earth ( is filled | with their shadowy train. 314 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 3. But there are more substdntied expressions | of the presence of the dead | with the Kving. The earth | is filled with the labors, the wbrks, of the dead. Almost all the literature in the world, the discoveries of scit n<-, } the glories of drt, the ever-enduring temples, the dwelling- places of generations, the comforts and improvements of life, the languages, the maxims, the opinions of the Vicing, the very frame-work of society, the institutions of nations, the fabrics of empires — d/Z | are the works of the R TRACy 19. WASHINGTON'S BIETHDAY. 1. Inspiring auspices, this day, surround us and cheer us. It is the anniversary of the birth of Washington. We should know this, even if we had lost our calendars, for we should be reminded of it by the shouts of joy and gladness. The whole atmosphere is redolent of his name ; hills and forests, rocks and rivers, echo and re- echo his praises. 2. All the good, whether learned or unlearned, high or low, rich or poor, feel, this day, that there is one treasure common to them all, and that is the fame and character of Washington. They recount his deeds, pon- der over his principles and teachings, and resolve to be more and more guided by them in the future. 3. To the old and the young, to all born in the land, and to all whose love of liberty has brought them from foreign shores to make this the home of their adoption, the name of Washington is this day an exhilarating theme. Americans by birth are proud of his eharaet i . and exiles from foreign shores are eager to participate in admiration of him; and it is true that he is this day, here, everywhere, all the world over, more an object of love and regard than on any day since his birth. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 327 4. On Washington's principles, and under the guid- ance of his example, will we and our children uphold the Constitution. Under his military leadership our fathers conquered ; and under the outspread banner of his political and constitutional principles will we also conquer. 5. To that standard we shall adhere, and uphold it through evil report and through good report. "We will meet danger, we will meet death, if they come, in its protection ; and we will struggle on, in daylight and in darkness, ay, in the thickest darkness, with all the storms which it may bring with it, till "Danger's troubled night is o'er, And the star of Peace return." Webster. 20. NATIONS AND HUMANITY. 1. It was not his olive valleys and orange groves which made the Greece of the Greek. It was not for his apple orchards or potato fields that the farmer of Xew England and New York left his plow in the furrow and marched to Bunker Hill, to Bennington, to Saratoga. A man's country is not a certain area of land, but it is a principle; and patriotism is loyalty to that principle. The secret sanctification of the soil and symbol of a country is the idea which they represent ; and this idea the patriot worships through the name and the symbol. 2. So with passionate heroism, of which tradition is never weary of tenderly telling, Arnold von Winkclreid gathers into his bosom the sheaf of foreign spears. So, Nathan Utile, disdaining no service that duty demands, perishes untimely with no other friend than God and the satisfied sense of duty. So, through all history from the beginning, a noble army of martyrs has fought 328 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. fiercely, and fallen bravely, for that unseen mistress, their country. So, through all history to the eud, that army must still mdrch, and fight, and fall. 3. But countries and families are but nurseries and Influences. A man is a father, a brother, a German, a Boman, an American; but beneath all £A2se relations, Ac ?'s a widfi. The end of his human destiny is not to be the best German, or the best Boman, or the best father ; but the best man he can be. geoege w. clktis. 21. CHARACTER OF WASHINGTON. 1. Sir, it matters very little what immediate spot may be the birthplace of such a man as Washington. No people can claim, no country can appropriate him. The boon of Providence to the human race, his fame is eternity, and his residence creation. Though it was the defeat of our arms, and the disgrace of our policy, I almost bless the convulsion in which he had his origin. If the heavens thunder eel, and the earth roelccd, yet, when the storm passed, how pu^e was the climate that it cleared ; how r bright, in the brow of the firmament, was the planet which it rcvecded to us ! 2. In the production of Washington, it does really appear as if Nature was endeavoring to improve upon herself, and that all the virtues of the ancient world were but so many studies preparatory to the patriot of the new. Individual instances no doubt there we're — splendid exemplifications of some single qualification. Caesar w T as merciful ; Scipio was continent ; Hannibal was patient; but it was reserved for Washington to blend them all in one, ami, like the lovely masterpiece of the Grecian artist, to exhibit, in one glow of associated beauty, the pride of every model, and the perfection of every master. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 329 3. As a general, he marshalled the peasant into a vet- era?!; and supplied by discipline the absence of experience ; as a statesman, lie enlarged the policy of the cabinet into the most comprehensive system of general advan- tage ; and such was the wisdom of his views, and the philosophy of his counsels, that to the soldier and the statesman, he almost added the character of the sage ! A conqueror, he was untainted with the crime of blood ; a revolutionist, he was free from any stain of treason; for aggression commenced the contest, and his country called him to the command. 4. Liberty unsheathed his sword, necessity stdincd, vic- tory returned it. If he had paused here, history might have doubted what station to assign him ; whether at the head of her citizens or her soldiers, her heroes or her patriots. But the last glorious act crowns his carder, and banishes all hesitation. Wlw, like Washington, after having emancipated a hemisphere, resigned its crown, and preferred the retirement of domestic life to the adoration of a land he might be almost said to have Created ? Phillips. 22. BUNKEK-HILL MONUMENT. 1. The Bunker-Hill monument is finished. Here it stands. Fortunate in the natural eminence on which it is placed — higher, Infinitely higher, in its objects and purpose, it rises over the land, and over the sda ; and visible, at their homes, to three hundred thousand citi- zens of Massachusetts — it stands, a memorial of the past, and a monitor to the present, and all succeeding generations. 2. I have spoken of the loftiness of its purpose. If it had been without any other design than the creation of a work of art, the granite of which it is composed 330 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. would have slept in its native bed. It lids a purpose ; and that purpose gives it character. That purpose enrobes it with dignity and moral grandeur. That wSU- known purpose it is, which causes us to look up to it with a feeling of awe. It is itself the orator of this occ&sion. 3. It is not from my lips, it is not from any human lips, that that strain of eloquence is this day to flow, most competent to move and excite the vast multitudes around. The potent speaker stands motionless before them. It is a 'plain shaft. It bears no inscriptions, fronting to the rising sun, from which the future anti- quarian shall wipe the dust. Nor does the rising sun cause tones of music to issue from its summit. But at the rising of the sun, and at the setting of the sun, in the blaze of noon-day, and beneath the milder efful- gence of lunar light, it looks, it speaks, it acts, to the full comprehension of every American mind, and the awakening of glowing enthusiasm in every American heart. 4. Its silent, but awful utterance ; its deep pathos, as it brings to our contemplation the 17th of June, 177". and the consequences which have resulted to us, to our country, and to the world, from the events of that day, and which we know must continue to rain influence on the destinies of mankind to the end of time ; the eleva- tion with which it raises us high above the Ordinary feelings of life — surpass all that the study of the closet, or even the inspiration of genius can product 1 . 5. To-ddy, it speaks to its. Its future auditories will be through successive generations of me*n, as they rise up before it, and gather round it. Its speech will be of jjdtriotism and courage; of civil and religious liberty; of free government; of the moral improvement and ele- vation of mankind; and of the immortal mSmory of those who, with heroic devotion, have sacrificed fckeii lives for their country. n ANIKL Webster. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 331 23. THE BIRTHDAY OF WASHINGTON. 1. The birthday of the " Father of his Country" ! May it ever be freshly remembered by American hearts ! May it ever re-awaken in them a filial veneration for his memory ; ever rekindle the fires of patriotic regard for the country which be loved so well, to which he gave his youthful vigor and his youthful energy, during the perilous period of the early Indian warfare ; to which he devoted his life in the maturity of his powers, in the field ; to which again he offered the counsels of his wis- dom and his experience, as president of the convention that framed our Constitution ; which he guided and directed while in the chair of state, and for which the last prayer of his earthly supplication was offered up, when it came the moment for him so well, and so grandly, and so calmly, to die. 2. He was the first man of the time in which he grew. His memory is first and most sacred in our love, and ever hereafter, till the last drop of blood shall freeze in the last American heart, his name shall be a spell of power and of might. 3. Yes, gentlemen, there is one personal, one vast felicity, which no man can share with him. It was the daily beauty, and towering and matchless glory of his life which enabled him to create his country, and at the same time secure an undying love and regard from the whole American people. "The first in the hearts of his countrymen ! " Yes, first ! He has our first and most fervent love. 4. Undoubtedly there were brave and wise and good men, before his day, in every colony. But the Amer- ican nation, as a nation, I do not reckon to have begun before 1774. And the first love of that Young America was Washington. The first word she lisped was his name. Her earliest breath spoke it. It still is her 332 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. proud ejaculation; and it will be the last gasp of her expiring life! 5. Yes; others of our great men have been appre- ciated—many admired by all ; but him we love ; him we all love. About and around him we call up no dissen- tient and discordant and dissatisfied elements — no sec- tional prejudice nor bias— no party, no creed, no dogma of politics. None of these shall assail him. Yes ; when the storm of battle blows darkest and rages highest, the memory of Washington shall nerve every American arm, and cheer every American heart. Ri -fcs choate. 24 THE NATIONAL CLOCK. 1. Every nation is like a clbck, the forces at work within carrying forward some purpose or plan of Prov- idence with patient constancy; but when the season comes that the sixtieth minute is diie, and a new hdur must be sounded, perhaps not for the nation alone, but for the world, th6n—thhi the clock strikes, and it may be with a force and resonance that startles and inspires the race. 2. The first American revolution was such a period — that was the glory, of it. The Euglish Government had oppressed our /cithers. It tried to break their spirit. For several ye'ars it was a dark time, like the hours before the striking of the d&wn. 3. But the Colonial time-piece kept ticking, ticking to the pressure of the English Government, the giant wheels playing calmly till about 1775', when there was a strange stir and Inc: within the case. The r could not bear any more of it. But the sixtieth minute came, and the clock strucl: 4. The wdrld heard— the battle of Lixington—bne; the Declaration of Independence— tirb ; the surrender of Bur- SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 333 goyne — three; the siege of Yorktoion—fbur; the Treaty of Paris— five ; the inauguration of Washington — six. 5. And then it was sunrise of the new day, of which we have seen yet only the glorious forenoon. Thomas Starr King. 25. FEEE SCHOOLS. 1. It is impossible for us adequately to conceive the boldness of the measure which aimed at universal edu- cation through the establishment of Free Schools. As a fact, it had no precedent in the world's history; and, as a theory, it could have been refuted and silenced by a more formidable array of argument and experience than was ever marshaled against any other institution of human origin. 2. But time has ratified its soundness. Two centuries of successful operation now proclaim it to be as wise as it was courageous, and as beneficent as it was disin- terested. Every community in the civilized world awards it the meed of praise, aud States at home, and nations abroad, in the order of their intelligence, are copying the bright example. 3. What we call the enlightened nations of Christen- dom are approaching, by slow degrees, to the moral elevation which our ancestors reached at a single bound ; and the tardy convictions of the one have been assimi- lating, through a period of two centuries, to the intuitions of the other. 4. The establishment of Free Schools was one of those grand mental and moral experiments whose effects could not be developed and made manifest in a single genera- tion. But now, according to the manner in which human life is computed, we are the sixth generation from its founders; and have we not reason to be grateful, both to God and man, for its unnumbered blessings ? The 334 school elocution. sincerity of our gratitude must be tested by our efforts to perpetuate and to improve what tiiey established. The gratitude of the lips only is an unholy offering, Hoka< i. .Mann. 26. THE BALLOT. 1. Consider, for a moment, what it is to cast a vote. It is the token of inestimable 'privileges, and involves the responsibilities of an hereditary trust. It has passed into your hands as a right, reaped from fields of suffer- ing and blood. 2. The grandeur of history is represented in your act. Men have wrought with pen and tongue, and pined in dungeons, and died on scaffolds, that you might obtain this symbol of freedom, and enjoy this consciousness of a sacred individuality. To the ballot have been trans- mitted, as it we're, the dignity of the sceptre and the potency of the swbrd. 3. And that which is so potent as a right, is also pregnant as a duty; a duty for the prSsent and for the future. If you will, that folded leaf becomes a tongue of justice, a voice of order, a force of imperial law — securing rights, abolishing abuses, erecting new institu- tions of truth and love. And, however you will, it is the expression of a solemn responsibility, the < of an immeasurable pbwer for good or for dvil, ndw and hereafter. 4. It is the medium through which you act upon your country — the organic nerve which incorporates ydu with its life and wblfare. There is no agent with which the possibilities of the republic are more intimately in- volved, none upon which we can fall back with more confidence than the ballot-box. a u. Chamh. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 335 27. EDUCATIONAL POWER. 1. The true teacher must have the faith of martyrs. In the limited horizon of the school- room, the teacher can dimly see only the beginning of the effects of his training upon his pupils. The solid and lasting results, the building up of character, the creative power of motives, are made evident only in the wider circle of the world, and at the end of a life-time. Hence the power of the teacher, like that of the silent and invis- ible forces of nature, is only feebly realized. 2. I once visited, in the Sierra, a quartz mine of fabulous richness. Deep in the bowels of the earth, swarthy miners were blasting out the gold-bearing rock ; above, the powerful mill was crushing the quartz with its iron teeth. In the office, piles of yellow bars, ready to be sent to the mint to be poured into the channels of trade, showed the immediate returns of well-directed labor and wisely invested capital. An hour later, I stepped into a public school-house not half a mile distant, where fifty children were conning their lessons. What does the school yield, I asked myself, on the invest- ment of money by the State ? The returns of the mine were made in solid bullion ; the school returns were all far in the unknown future. 3. I crossed the continent from the Pacific to the Atlantic on the grandest commercial highway ever built, and all along, towns, villages, cities, mines, farms, machine shops, manufactories, and converging roads, bore evidence of the mighty physical forces of the nation ; and when I entered a meeting of the National Educational Association in a P>oston school-house, where two hundred thoughtful men and women were assembled, it seemed, after wit- nessing the gigantic play of industrial and commercial forces, that the school-masters and school-mistresses were lookers-on and idlers in the bustling life around. 336 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 4. But when, in the mild summer evening, I walked under the elms of Boston Common and reflected that independence was once only a dim idea in the minds of a few leading patriots ; that the engine which had whirled me over the iron track, three thousand miles in seven days, was once only an idea in the brain of an enthu- siast ; that the telegraph wires, radiating like nerves from the centers of civilization, were created by the in- ventive genius of an educated thinker, I realized that there is a silent power, mightier than all mechanical forces, which preserves, directs, and controls the material prosperity of a great nation. 5. I "o out into the streets of the creat commercial center of our country. I hear everywhere the hum of industry, and see around the stir of business. I see the steamships plying like gigantic shuttles to weave a net- work of commercial relations between the new world and the old. I see the smoke of manufactories where skillful artisans are constructing the marvelous produc- tions of inventive genius. The banks are open ; keen capitalists are on 'Change ; and the full tide of human- ity is pulsating through every artery of the town. The results of business are solid and tangible. I step into the Xew York Normal College where a thousand young women are fitting for the profession of teaching, and if asked for the tangible results of the educational invest- ment, the evidences are not at hand. 6. But when I pause to consider that intelligence is the motive power of trade : that the city with its banks, ware- houses, cl lurches, residences, and manufactories, is the product of skilled labor; that the steamship is navigated by means of science, and is built as a triumph of art : that science surveyed the railroad lines, and that skill runs the trains freighted with the products of industry and art; then I begin to perceive some connection between educational forces and the material results of civilization. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 337 28. SCHOOLS AXD TEACHERS. 1. Looking into the near future, I see the aisles of the school-room widen into the broad streets of the city. The boys are business men. One commands the steam- ship, one operates the telegraph, and another runs an en- gine ; one is a railroad director, and another rides over the road to take his seat in the senate of the United States. One works a gold mine, another an iron mine, and another a coal mine ; one is a merchant, one a banker, one a "Wall-street speculator ; one is a farmer in the west, another a manufacturer in the east; one is a mer- chant, another a mechanic, and a third is an inventor. 2. The girls have become women. Some preside as queens in home circles, some are teachers, some are writers, some are artists, and others are skilled in household work. I realize that the life of a nation is made up of mothers that guard the homes of the men who drive the plow, build the ships, run the mills, work the mines, construct machinery, print the papers, shoulder the musket, and cast the ballots ; and it is for all these that the public schools have done and are now doing their beneficent work. 3. When I ponder over the far-reaching influence of the teacher and the school, I comprehend, in some measure, the relation to our national well-being, of our American system of free public schools — the best, not- withstanding its defects and shortcomings, that the world has ever known. It is the duty of every teacher to strive with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all Ids might, to perfect a system of education which shall train a race of men and women in the next generation, that shall inherit, with the boundless re- sources of our favored land, something of the enemy. enterprise, talent, and character of the sturdy pioneers who settled and subdued the wilderness. 22 338 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 4. Only timid and despairing souls are frightened into the belief that the foundations of society are breaking up on account of over-education in the common schools. Neither representatives of the Caste of Capital nor the Caste of Culture can convince the American people that vice, crime, idleness, poverty, and social discontent are the necessary result of an elementary education among the workers of society. No demagogue, with specious statements, can lead any considerable number of citizens to regard the school-master as a public enemy. 5. The free common school is the Plymouth Kock of American liberty. If the system of free schools, as now- conducted and organized, fails to meet the needs of social progress, not the extent, but the kind and quality, of education must be changed. Neither high school nor university must be lopped off from our free-school system. G. It is only through skilled labor, wisely and intelli- gently directed, that a people can become or remain permanently prosperous and happy ; it is only by means of intelligent and educated voters that liberty can be preserved; and it is only by means of a more complete education among all classes that humanity can rise to a higher type of social evolution. There is no slavery so oppressive as that of ignorance. 29. ELEMENTS OF THE AMERICAN GOVERNMENT. 1. The English colonists in America, generally speak- ing, were men who were seeking new homes in a new world. They brought with them their families and all that was most dear to them. Many of them were edu- cated men, and all possessed their lull share, according to their social condition, of knowledge and attainments of that age. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 339 2. The distinctive characteristic of their settlement is the introduction of the civilization of Europe into a wilderness, without bringing with it the political insti- tutions of Europe. The arts, sciences, and literature of England came over with the settlers. That great por- tion of the common law which regulates the social and personal relations and conduct of men, came also. 3. The jury came ; the habeas corpus came ; the tes- tamentary power came ; and the law of inheritance and descent came also, except that part of it which recog- nizes the rights of primogeniture, which either did not come at all, or soon gave way to the rule of equal par- tition of estates anions children. 4. But the monarchy did not come, nor the aristocracy, nor the Church, as an estate of the realm. Political institutions were to be framed anew, such as should be adapted to the state of things. But it could not be doubtful what should be the nature and character of these institutions. A general social equality prevailed among the settlers, and an equality of political rights seemed the natural, if not the necessary consequence. Daniel Webster. 340 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. SECTION III. RECITATIONS AND READINGS: POETRY. 1. THE CROWDED STREET. 1. Let me move slowly | through the street, Filled | with an ever-shifting train, Amid the sound | of steps that heat | The murmuring walks | like autumn rain. 2. How fast | the flitting figures | come! The mild, the fierce, the stony face ; Some | bright with thoughtless smiles, and some | Where secret tears | have left their trace. 3. They pass — to toil, to strife, to rest ; To Mills | in which the feast | is spread ; To chambers | where the funeral guest | In silence | sits | beside the dead S 4. And some | to happy hbmes repair, Where children pressing cheek to cheek, With mute caresses \ shall declare | The tenderness | they cannot speak. 5. And sdmc, who walk in calmness he* re, Shall shudder when they reach the door | Where one | who made their dwelling d£ar, Its fl6wer, its light, is seen no more. G. Youth, with pale cheek | and slender frame, And dreams of greatness [ in thine eye ! Goest thou to build an early name, Or early | in the task | to diet 7. Keen son of trade, with eager brow ! Who | is now fluttering | in thy snare ? Thy golden fortunes, t6wer they now, Or melt | the glittering spires | in air ? SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 341 8. Who I of this crowd | to-night | shall tread | The dance I till daylight ideam again ? Who | sorrow o'er the untimely dead ? Who | writhe | in throes | of mortal pain I 9. Some | famine-struck, shall think how long | The cold | dark hours, how slow | the light ; And some, w T ho flaunt amid the throng, Shall hide | in dens of shhmc | to-night. 10. Each, where his tasks or pleasures call, They pass, and heed each other not. There is | who heeds, who holds them all, In His large love | and boundless thought. 11. These struggling tides ( of life | that seem | In wayward, aimless course to te'nd, Are Eddies | of the mighty stream \ That rolls | to its appointed end. Bryant. 2. THE BUILDEES. 1. All | are architects of Fdkte, Working | in these walls of Time ; S6me | with massive deeds | and great, Some I with ornaments | of rhyme. 2. Nothing | useless is | or Vow ; Each thing | in its place | is test ; And what seems \ but idle shoiu \ Strengthens [ and supports the rest. 3. For the structure \ that we raise, Time \ is with materials | filled ; Our to-days | and yesterdays | Are the blocks \ with which we build. 4. Truly shape ] and fashion these; Leave no yawning gh-ps \ between ; 342 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Think not, because no man sees, Such things | will remain unseen. 5. In the elder days | of art, Builders wrought | with greatest care | Each minute | and unseen part ; For the gods are everywhere. 6. Let us do our work | as well, Both the unseen \ and the seen ; Make the house, where gdds | may dwell, Beautiful, entire, and clean. 7. Else our lives | are incomplete, Standing | in these walls of Time; Broken stairways, where the feet | Stumble | as they seek to climb. 8. Build to-day, then, strong and sure, With a firm | and ample hdsc, And | ascending and secure | Shall lo-morroLV \ find its place. 9. Thus alone | can we attain | To those turrets, where the eye | Sees the world | as one vast plain. And one boundless reach | of sky. 3. PSALM OF LIFE. 1. Tell me not | in mournful numbers, Life | is but an empty drSam ; For the soul | is dead \ that slumbers. And things | are not | what they seem, 2. Life | is real! Life | is earnest! And the grave | is not its goal ; Dust | thou art, to dust retiirnest, Was not spoken | of the s6ul. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 343 3. Not enjoyment, and not sorrow, Is our destined end or way; But to tict that each to-morrow | Finds us farther | than to-day. 4. Art | is long, and Time | is fleeting, And our hdarts, though stout and brave, Still, like muffled drums, are beating | Funeral marches | to the grave. 5. In the world's broad field of battle, In the bivouac of Life, Be not like dumb, driven cattle ; — Be a hero | in the strife ! 6. Trust no Future, howo'er pleasant ! Let the dead Past | bury its dead ! Act — act in the living Present! Heart within, and God | derheacl. 7. Lives of great men | all remind us | We can make our lives j sublime, And, departing, leave behind us | Foot- prints | on the sands of time. 8. Foot-prints, that perhaps another, Sailing o'er life's solemn main — A forlorn | and shipwrecked brother — Seeing, shall take heart again. 9. Let us, then, be up and doing, With a heart | for hny fate; Still achieving, still pursuing, Learn to labor | and to whit. Longfellow. 344 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 4. APOSTROPHE TO THE OCEAN. [This 'poem is to be read with slow movement, median stress, expul- sive orotund quality, and strong force.} 1. There is a 'pleasure \ in the pathless v:bods, There is a rapture \ on the lonely shore, There is society, where none intrudes, By the deep sea, and music in its roar. I love not man the less | but nature | more, From these our interviews, in which I steal | From all I may be, or have been before, To mingle with the universe, and feel | What I can ne'er exjoress, yet can not all conceal. 2. Poll on, thou deep and dark blue ocean, roll! Ten thousand fleets | sweep over thee in vain. Man | marks the earth with riiin — his control | Stops with the shore ;— upon the watery pldin | The wrecks \ are all thy deed, nor doth remain | A shadow of mans ravage, save his bien, When, for a moment, like a drop of rain, He sinks into thy deaths | with bubbling groan— Without a grave, uuknelled, uncoffined, and unknown. o O. The armaments | which thunderstrike the walls | Of rock-built cities, bidding nations quake, | And mdnarchs | tremble in their capitals ; The oak leviathan, whose huge rib* make | Their clay creator | the vain title take | Of lord of thee, and arbiter of wdr— These | are thy tbys, and, as the snowy flake, They melt into thy yeast of wdves, which mar Alike | the Armada's pride, or spoils of Trafalgar. SCHOOL ELOCUTION". 345 4. Thy shores are Empires, changed in all save thee; — Assyria, Greece, Eome, Carthage, wliM are they? Thy waters | washed them power | while they were free, And many a tyrant \ since; their shores obey | The stranger, skive, or savage ; their decay | Has dried up realms to deserts : not so | thou ; . Unchangeable | save to thy wild waves' play, Time | writes no wrinkle | on thine azure brow : Such as creation's dawn beJield, thou rollest now. 5. Thou glorious mirror, where the Almighty's form | Glasses itself in tempests ; in all time, Calm or convulsed — in bre'eze, or gale, or storm — Icing the pole, or in the torrid clime | Dark heaving ; boundless, endless, and sublime ! The image of eternity — the throne | Of the Invisible; even from out thy slime \ The monsters of the deep \ are made; each zone | Obeys thee ; thou goest forth, dread, fathomless, alone. 6. And I have loved thee, ocean ! and my joy | Of youthful sports | was on thy breast to be Borne, like thy bubbles, onward ; from a boy \ I wantoned with thy breakers — they | to me | Were a delight ; and, if the freshening se'a | Made them a terror, 't was a pleasing fe'ar ; For I was, as it were, a child of thee, And trusted to thy billows \fdr and near, And laid my hand upon thy mane — as do I here. Byron. 34G SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 5. BATTLE OF WATERLOO. 1. There was a sound of revelry by night, And Belgium's capital had gathered then Her beauty and her chivalry, and bright The lamps shone o'er fair women and brave men ; A tliousand hearts beat happily ; and when Music arose with its voluptuous swell, Soft eyes looked love to eyes which spake again, And all went merry as a marriage-bell; — But hush ! hark ! a deep sound strikes like a rising knell ! 2. Did ye not hear it ? — No ; 't was but the wind, Or the car rattling o'er the stony street : On with the dance ! let joy be unconf ined ; No sleep till morn, when youth and pleasure meet To chase the glowing hours with flying feet But hdrk ! — that heavy sound breaks in once more, As if the clbucls its echo would repeat ; And nearer, clearer, deadlier than before ! Arm! ABM! it is — it is — the cannons opening roar! 3. Ah! then and there was hurrying to and fro, And gathering tears, and tremblings of distress, And' cheeks all pale, which but an hour ago Blushed at the praise of their own Ibveliness; And there were sudden p&rtings, such as j^ess The life from out young hearts, and choking sighs Which ne'er might be repeated ; who could guess If ever more should meet those mutual eyes, Since upon night so sweet such awful vibm could rise '. 4. And there was mounting in hot haste; the sided, The mustering squadron, and the clattering cdr, SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 347 Went pouriug forward with impetuous speed, And swiftly forming in the ranks of war; And the deep thunder peed on peal afar ; And near, the beat of the alarming drum Roused up the soldier ere the morning star; While thronged the citizens with terror dumb, Or whispering with white lips : " The foe ! They come ! they come /" 5. And Ardennes waves above them her green leaves, Dewy with nature's tdar-drops, as they pass, Grieving, if aught inanimate e'er grieves, Over the unrcturning or are — alas ! — Ere evening to be trodden like the grass, Which now beneath them, but above shall grow In its next verdure, when this fiery mass Of living valor, rolling on the foe, And burning with high hope, shall moulder cold and low 6. Last noon beheld them full of lusty life; Last eve in Beauty's circle proudly gay ; The midnight brought the signal-sound of strife; The morn, the marshaling in arms — the day, Battle's magnificently stem array ! .The thunder-clouds close ber it, which, when rdnt, The earth is covered thick with other clay — Which her own clay shall cover, heaped and pe'nt, Rider and horse — friend, foe — in one red burial blent. Byron's Ckilde Harold. 6. SANTA FILOMEXA. This poem was written in honor of Florence Nightingale, an Eng- lish lady, distinguished for her philanthropy, and for her devotion to the sick and wounded soldiers in the Crimean war. "Filomena" is the Latin for "Nightingale." There is a Saint Filomena, who is 348 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. represented as floating down from heaven attended by two angela bearing the lily, palm, and javelin, and beneath, in the foreground, the sick and maimed, wlw are healed by her intercession. 1. Whene'er a noble deed I is wrought, Whene'er is spoke | a noble thought, Oar hearts, in glad surprise, To higher levels | rise. 2. The tidal wave | of deeper souls | Into our inmost being | rolls, And lifts us | unawares | Out of all meaner cares. 3. Honor to those | whose words and deeds | Thus help us | in our daily ne'eds. And | by their overflow | Raise us | from what is low ! 4. Thus thought I, as by night I rdad | Of the great army | of the de'ad, The trenches | cold and damp, The starved | and frozen camp ; 5. The wounded | from the battle plain, In dreary hospitals of pain — The cheerless corridors, The cold | and stony floors. G. Lo ! in that house of misery | A lady | with a lamp | I see | Pass through the glimmering gloom. And ilit | from room to room. 7. And slow | as in a dream of bliss, The speechless sufferer | turns to kiss | Her shadow, as it falls | Upon the darkening walls. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 349 8. As if a door in heaven | should be | Opened | and then closed suddenly, The vision | came and w^nt, The light shone | and was spent. 9. On England's annals, the long- Hereafter | of her speech and song, That light | its rays | shall cast | From portals | of the past. 10. A Lady with a Lamp | shall stand | In the great history of the land, A noble type of good, Heroic womanhood. 11. Nor even shall be wanting here | The palm, the lily, and the spear, The symbols | that of yore | Santa Tilomena bore. Longfellow. 7. THE DEATH STEUGGLE. [An example of animated and impassioned description, characterized by fast movement and radical stress.] "Now yield thee, or, by Him who made The world, thy heart's blood dyes my blade!" " Thy threats, thy mercy I defy ! Let recreant yield, who fears to die!' — Like adder darting from his coil, Like wolf that dashes through the toil, Like mountain-cat who guards her young, Full at Fitz-James's throat he sprung; Eeceived, but recked not of a wound, And locked his arms his foeman round. — Now, gallant Saxon, hold thine own ! No maidens arm is round thee thrown! >50 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. That desperate grasp thy frame might feel Through bars of brass and triple steel !— They tug, they strain ! down, down, they go, The Gael above, Fitz-James below. The Chieftain's gripe his throat compressed; His knee was planted in his breast; His clotted locks lie backward threw, Across his brow his hand he dreV, ^ From blood and mist to clear his sight, Then gleamed aloft his dagger bright! —But hate and fury ill supplied The stream of life's exhausted tide ; And all too late the advantage came, To turn the odds of deadly game; For, while the dagger gleamed on high, ^ Reeled soul and sense, reeled brain and eye. Down came the blow ! but in the heath The erring blade found bloodless sheath. The struggling foe may now unclasp The fainting Chief's relaxing grasp; Unwounded from the dreadful close, But breathless all, Fitz-James arose. scorr. 8. SANDALPHON. 1 Have you read in the Talmud of old, In the Legends the Rabbins have told Of the limitless realms of the air; Have you read it— the marvelous story Of Saudalphon, the Angel of Glory, Sandalphon, the Angel of Braver ? 2. How, erect, at the outermosl gates Of the City Celestial he waits, With his feet on the ladder ol light, SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 351 That, crowded with angels unnumbered, By Jacob was seen, as he slumbered Alone in the desert at night ? 3. The Angels of Wind and of Fire Chant only one hymn, and expire With the song's irresistible stress — Expire in their rapture and wonder, As harp-strings are broken asunder By music they throb to express. 4. But serene in the rapturous throng, Unmoved by the rush of the song, With eyes unimpassioned and slow, Amonq- the dead anq-els, the deathless Sandalphon stands listening, breathless, To sounds that ascend from below T ; — 5. From the spirits on earth that adore, From the souls that entreat and implore In the fervor and passion of prayer; From the hearts that are broken with losses, And weary with dragging the crosses Too heavy for mortals to bear. 6. And he gathers the prayers as he stands, And thev change into flowers in his hands, ■J O ' Into garlands of purple and red ; And beneath the great arch of the portal, Through the streets of the City Immortal Is wafted the fragrance they shed. 7. It is but a legend I know, A fable, a phantom, a show, Of the ancient Babbinical lore ; Yet the old mediaeval tradition, The beautiful, strange superstition, But haunts me and holds me the more. ouZ SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 8. When I look from my window at night, And the welkin above is all white, All throbbing and panting with stars, Among them, majestic, is standing Sandalphon, the angel, expanding His pinions in nebulous bars. 9. And the legend, I feel, is a part Of the hunger and thirst of the heart — The frenzy and fire of the brain, That grasps at the fruitage forbidden, The golden pomegranates of Eden, To quiet itS fever and pain. Longfellow. 9. THE OLD CONTINENTALS. [This piece may be rendered with a considerable degree of imitative reading. It is characterized by declamatory force, radical stress, and orotund, quality. Let the class mark for rlietorical pauses, cm^'i and inflections. ] 1. In their ragged regimentals, Stood the old Continental*, Yielding ndt, When the Grenadiers were langing, And like hail fell the plunging Ccbmo?i-shot ; When the files Of the isles, From the smoky night encampment bore the banner of the rampant Unicorn, And grummer, grummer, grummer, rolled the roll of the drummer, Through the morn ! 2. Then with eyes to the front all, And with guns TwrizdntcU. Stood our sires; SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 353 And the balls whistled deadly, And in streams flashing redly Blazed the fires ; As the roar On the shore, Swept the strong battle-breakers o'er the green-sodded acres Of the plain ; And louder, louder, louder, cracked the black gunpowder, Cracked amain ! 3. Xow like smiths at their forges "Worked the red St. George's Cannoniers ; And the villainous "saltpeter" Eang a fierce, discordant me'ter Hound their ears ; As the swift Storm-drift, With hot, sweeping anger, came the horse-guards' clangor On our flanks. Then higher, higher, higher, burned the old-fashioned fire Through the ranks ! 4. Then the old-fashioned Colonel Galloped through the white infernal Powder-cloud; And his broadsword was swinging, And his brazen throat was ringing Trumjjct-lowd. Then the blue Bullets neV, And the hooper-jackets re'dden at the touch of the leaden Bijk-breath. And rounder, rounder, rounder, roared the iron six- r j?ounder, Hurling death! mcMasteb* 23 354 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 10. THE WINDS. [Head this poem line by line, and let the class repeat, in concert, after you. Then require each pupil, in turn, to go upon the platform and read one stanza, subject to the criticism of the class and teacher.'] 1. Ye winds, ye unseen currents of the air, Softly ye played, a few brief hours ago; Ye bore the murmuring bee ; ye tossed the hair O'er maiden cheeks that took a fresher glow ; Ye rolled the round white cloud through depths of blue, Ye shook from shaded flowers the lingering dew; Before you the catalpa's blossom fle*w, Light blossoms, dropping on the grass like snow. 2. What change is this ? Ye take the cataract's sound ; Ye take the whirlpool's fury and its might ; The mountain shudders as ye sweep the ground ; The valley ivbods lie prone beneath your flight; The clouds before you shoot like eagles past; The homes of men are rocking in your blast ; Ye lift the roofs like autumn leaves, and cast, Skyward, the whirling fragments out of sight. o O. The weary fowls of heaven make wing in vain, To 'scape your wrath; ye seize and dash them dead; Against the earth ye drive the roaring rain ; The harvest field becomes a river's bed ; And tbrrcnts tumble from the hills around ; Plains turn to hikes, and villages are drowned; And wailing voices, midst the tempest's sound, Rise, as the rushing waters swell and spread. 4. Ye dart upon the deep; and straight is heard A wilder roar; and men grow pale and pray; SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 355 Ye fling its floods around you, as a bird Flings o'er his shivering plumes the fountain's spray. See ! to the breaking mast the sailor clings ; Ye scoop the ocean to its briny springs, And take the mountain billoiv on your wings, And pile the wreck of navies round the bay. 5. Why rage ye thus ? — no strife for liberty Has made you mad ; no tyrant, strong through fe*ar, Has chained your pinions till ye wrenched them frde, And rushed into the unmeasured atmosphere; For ye were born in freedom where ye blow ; Free o'er the mighty deep to come and go ; Earth's solemn woods were yours, her wastes of snow, Her isles where summer blossoms all the year. G. ye wild winds; a mightier power than yours In chains upon the shore of Europe lies ; The sceptered throng, whose fetters he endures, Watch his mute throes w r ith terror in their eyes ; And arme'd ivarriors all around him stand, And, as he struggles, tighten every band, And lift the heavy spear, with threatening hand, To pierce the victim, should he strive to rise. 7. Yet oh ! when that wronged Spirit of our race Shall bre'ak, as soon he must, his long-worn chains, And leap in freedom from his p"is0?i-place, Lord of his ancient hills and fruitful plains, Let him not rise, like these mad winds of air, To waste the loveliness that time could spare, To fill the earth with woe, and blot the fair Unconscious breast with blood from liftman vdins. 356 SCHOOL ELOCUTION But may he like the Spring-time come abroad, Who crumbles Winters gyves with gentle might, When in the genial breeze, the breath of God, Come spouting up the unsealed springs to light ; Flowers start from their dark prisons at his feet, The wdods, long dumb, awake to hymnmgs sweet ; And morn and eve, whose glimmerings almost m<5e1 Crowd back to narrow bounds the ancient night Brvant. 11. THE DAY IS DONE. 1. The day is (lone, and the darkness Falls from the wings of Night, As a feather is wafted downward From an eagle in his flight 2. I see the lights of the village Gleam through the rain and the mist, And a feeling of sadness comes o'er me That my soul cannot resist. 3. A feeling of sadness and longing, That is not akin to pain, And resembles sorrow only, As the mist resembles the rain. 4. Come, read to me some pbem, ^ Some simple and heartfelt lay, That shall soothe this restless feeling, And banish the thoughts of day. b. N6t from the grand old masters, Not from the bards sublime, Whose distant footsteps echo Through the corridors of Time. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 357 6. For, like strains of martial music, Their mighty thoughts suggest Life's endless toil and endeavor ; And to-night I long for rest. 7. Read from some humbler poet, Whose songs gushed from his heart, As shoivcrs from the clouds of summer, Or tears from the eyelids start; 8. Who, through long days of labor, And nights devoid of dase, Still heard in his soul the music Of wonderful melodies. 9. Such songs have power to quiet The restless pulse of care, And come like the benediction That follows after prayer. 10. Then read from the treasured volume The poem of thy choice, And lend to the rhyme of the poet The beauty of thy voice. 11. And the night shall be filled with music, And the cares that infest the day, Shall fold their tents like the Arabs, And as silently steal away. Longfellow. 12. THE BATTLE-FIELD. Once this soft turf, this rivulet's sands, Were trampled | by a hurrying croivd, And fiery hearts | and armed hands \ Encountered in the bdttlc-clovA. 358 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 2. Ah' ! never shall the land forget | How gushed the life-blood | of her brave — Gtished, warm with hope and courage ye% Upon the soil \ they fought to save. 3. Now all is calm, and frdsh and still; Alone the chirp of flitting bird, And talk of children on the hill, And bell of wandering kine | are heard. 4. No solemn host goes trailing by The black-mouthed giin | and staggering wain ; Men start not at the odttle-ery ; Oh, be it never heard again ! 5. Soon rested | those who fought ; but thou, Who minglest in the harder strife | For truths | which men receive not now, Thy warfare | only ends with life. 6. A friendless warfare ! lingering long | Through weary day | and weary year. A wild and many-weaponed throng | Hang on thy front, and flank, and rear. 7. Yet nerve thy spirit | to the proof, And blench not at thy chosen lot; The timid good may stand aloof, The sage may frown — yet faint thou 7ibt. 8. Nor heed the shaft | too surely cast, The foul | and hissing bolt of scorn ; For with thy side | shall dwell, at last, The victory | of endurance | born. 9. Triith | crushed to e'arth | shall rise again ; The eternal years | of Gbd are hers ; But Error | wounded, writhes in pain, And dies | among his wbrshijicrs. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 359 10. Yea, though thou lie upon the dust, When they who helped thee flee in fdar, Die | full of hope and manly trust, Like those who fell in battle here. 11. Another hand | the sword shall wield, Another hand | the standard wave, Till from the trumpet's mouth | is pdaled The blast of triumph | o'er thy grave. Beyaitt. 13. HYMN TO MONT BLANC. [This is a difficult piece of reading. It should be first analyzed grammatically and rhetorically, to enable the pupil to comprehend the full meaning. The reading, in general, will be characterized by me- dian stress, orotund quality, strong force, and slow movement.'] Hast thou a charm to stay the morning-star In his steep course ? So long he seems to pause On thy bald, awful he'ad, sovereign Blanc! The Arve and Arveiron at thy base Eave ceaselessly ; but thou, most awful form, Risest from forth thy silent sea of pines, How silently ! Around thee and above, Deep is the air and dark; substantial black; An ebon mass : methinks thou fiercest it As with a ivedgc ! But when I look again, It is thine own calm home, thy crystal shrine, Thy habitation from eternity. dread and silent Mount ! I gazed upon thee, Till thou, still present to the bodily sense, Didst vanish from my thought : entranced in prayer, 1 worshiped the Invisible alone. Yet, like some sweet, beguiling melody — So sweet, we know not we are listening to it — Thou, the meanwhile, wast blending with my thought, Yea, with my life and life's own secret joy; 3G0 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Till the dilating soul— enrapt, transfused Into the mighty vision passing — thgre, As in her natural form, swelled vast to Heaven ! Awake, my soul ! not only passive praise Thou owest; not alone these swelling tears, Mute thanks, and secret ecstasy. Awake, Voice of sweet song ! Awake, my heart, auah: ! Green vales and icy cliffs, all join my hymn. Thbu first and chief, sole sovereign of the vale '. 0, struggling with the darkness all the night, And visited all night by troops of stars, Or when they climb the sky or when they sink ; Companion of the morning-star at dawn, Thyself Earth's rosy star, and of the dawn Co-herald ; wake, wake, and utter praise ! Who sank thy sunless pillars deep in earth ? Who filled thy countenance with rosy light? Who made thee parent of perpetual streams? And you, ye live wild torrents, fiercely glad! Who called you forth from night and utter death, From dark and icy caverns called you forth, Down those precipitous, black, jagged rocks, For ever shattered and the same for ever? Whb gave you your invulnerable life, Your strength, your speed, your fury, and your joy, Unceasing thunder and eternal fbam ? And who commcinded (and the silence came), "Here let the billows stiffen, and have rest?" Ye kc-falls! ye that from the mountain's brow Adown enormous ravines slope amain — Torrents, methinks, that heard a mighty voice, And stopped at once amid their maddest plunge! Motionless torrents! silent cataracts! — Who made you glorious as the gates of Ehaven Beneath the keen full moon? Who bade the s&fl Clothe you with rainbows? Who, with living Jlbwers SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 361 Of loveliest blue, spread garlands at your feet ? — God ! let the torrents, like a shout of nations Answer ! and let the ice-plains echo, God ! God ! sing ye meadow-streams with gladsome voice ! Ye pine-groves, with your soft and soul-like sounds ! And they, too, have a voice, yon piles of snow, And in their perilous fall shall thunder, God ! Ye living flowers that skirt the eternal frost ! Ye loild ghats sporting round the eagle s nest ! Ye eagles, playmates of the mountain-storm ! Ye lightnings, the dread arrows of the clouds ! Ye signs and wonders of the elements ! Utter forth " God ! " and fill the hills with prhise. Once more, hoar mount ! with thy sky-pointing peak, Oft from whose feet the avalanche, unheard, Shoots downward, glittering through the pure serine, Into the depth of clouds that veil thy breast — Thou, too, again, stupendous mountain I thou, That, as I raise my hdad, awhile bowed low In adoration, upward from thy base Slow-traveling with dim eyes suffused with tdars, Solemnly sternest, like a vapory clbucl, To rise before me — rise, oh, ever rise; Rise, like a cloud of Incense, from the earth ! Thou hingly spirit throned among the hills, Thou dread ambassador from earth to heaven, Great hlcrarch ! tell thou the silent sky, And tell the stars, and tell yon rising sun, Earth, with her thousand voices, praises God I Coleridge. 362 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 14. MORNING HYMN. [This piece is characterized by slow movement t median stress, and orotund quality.] These are thy gldrious wbrks, Parent of good, Almighty ! Thine this universal frame, Thus wondrous fair; Thyself hbiv wondrous then! Unspeakable, who sit'st above these heavens To us invisible, or dimly seen In these thy lowest works ; yet these declare Thy gdodness beyond thought, and power divine. Speak, ye who best can tell, ye sons of tight, Angels; for ye behold him, and with songs And choral symphonies, day without night, Circle his throne rejoicing; ye, in Heaven, On earth, join all ye creatures, to extol Him first, him last, him midst, and without end. Fairest of stars, last in the train of night, If better thou belong not to the dawn, Sure pledge of day, that crown'st the smiling morn With thy bright circlet, prdise him in thy sphdre, While cUiy arises, that sweet hour of prime. Thou Sun, of this great world both eye and sdul, Acknowledge him thy greater ; sound his praise In thy eternal course, both when thou climlJst, And when high noon hast gained, and when thou faWst. Mbon, that now meet'st the orient Sun, now ily'si. With the fixed sUtrs, fixed in their orb that flie^ ; And ye five other wandering fires, that move In mystic dance not without song, resound His praise, who out of darkness called up light. Air, and ye elements, the eldest birth Of Nature's womb, that in quaternion run, Perpetual circle, multiform ; and mix And nourish all things; let your ceaseless chun Vary to our great Maker still new pniise. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 363 Ye mists and exhalations, that now rise From hill or steaming lake, dusky or gray, Till the sun paint your fleecy skirts with gold, In honor to the world's great Author rise; "Whether to deck with clouds the uncolored sky, Or wet the thirsty eartli with falling showers, Bising or falling, still advance Ms praise. His praise, ye winds, that from four quarters hlow, Breathe soft or loud; and wave your tops, -yejnnes, With every plant, in sign of worship, wave. Fountains, and ye that warble as ye flow, Melodious murmurs, warbling, tune his prtdse. Join voices all, ye living souls : ye birds, That singing, up to heaven's gate ascend, Bear on your wings and in your notes Ms prhise. Milton. 15. THANATOPSIS. [As a preliminary exercise, let pupils name all the phrases and clauses, and tell what each modifies ; also, call on them to parse the more difficult words. The reading of this poem is characterized by slovj movement, median stress, and orotund, quality.'] To him | who | in the love of Nature \ holds Communion | with her visible forms, she speaks | A vdrious language; for his gayer hours | She has a voice of gUtdncss, and a smile And eloquence of beauty, and she glides | Into his darker musings with a mild | And healing sympathy, that steals away Their sharpness | ere he is aware. When thoughts | Of the last bitter hour | come like a blight | Over thy spirit, and sad images | Of the stern agony, and shroud, and pall, And breathless darkness, and the narrow house, Make thee to shudder | and grow sick at heart, 364 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Go forth I under the open sky, and list To Nature's teachings; while from all around — Earth and her wdters, and the depths of air — Comes | a still voice : — Yet a few days j and thee j The all-beholding sun | shall see no more | In all his course ; nor yet | in the cold [/round, Where thy pale form | was laid with many tears, Nor in the embrace of ocean, shall exist | Thy Image. Earth, that nourished thee, shall claim Thy growth, to be resolved to earth again; And, lost each human trace, surrendering up Thine individual be'ing, shalt thou go | To mix forever with the elements, To be a brother | to the insensible rbch \ And to the sluggish clod, which the rude swain | Turns with his share, and treads upon. The bah Shall send his roots abroad, and pierce thy mold. Yet not to thine eternal resting-place ] Shalt thou retire alone— nor could'st thou wish \ Couch m6re magnificent. Thou shalt lie down | With patriarchs | of the infant wbrld — with langs, The powerful of the earth — the vnsc, the good, Fair forms, and hoary seers of ages pdst, All | in one mighty sepidchcr. The Mils, Rock-ribbed and ancient as the sun; the wiles, Stretching in pensive quietness between ; The venerable woods; rivers, that move In majesty ; and the complaining brboks, That make the meadows grim; and, poured round 6X1 Old oceans gray and melancholy waste — Are but the solemn decorations | all \ Of the great tomb of man! The golden shn, The plhnets, all the infinite host of hearen, Are shining on the sad abodes of death, Through the still lapse of ages. All that triad The globe | are but a hand fid | to the tribes SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 365 That slumber in its bosom. Take the wings Of morning, and the Barcan desert pierce, Or lose thyself | in the continuous woods | Where rolls the Oregon, and hears no sound [ Save his own dashings — yet | the dead | are there ; And millions | in those solitudes, since hrst The flight of years began, have laid them down | In their last sleep : the dead | reign there | alone ! So shalt thou rest ; and what if thou withdraw | Unheeded by the living, and no friend \ Take note of thy departure ! All that breathe \ Will share thy destiny. The gdy \ will laugh When thou art gone, the solemn brood of care | Plod on, and each one, as before, will chase His favorite phantom ; yet all these | shall leave Their mirth and their employments, and shall come | And make their bed | with thee. As the long train Of ages glides away, the sons of me'n — The youth \ in life's green spring, and he who goes | In the full strength of years, mcltron and maid, The bowed with age, the Infant | in the smiles | And beauty of its innocent age | cut off — Shall | one by one | be gathered to thy side | By those | who in their turn | shall follow them. So live, that when thy summons | comes to join | The innumerable caravan | that moves | To that mysterious realm where each shall take His chamber | in the silent halls of ddath, Thou go, not like the quarry-slave at night, Scourged to his dungeon ; but, sustained and soothed | By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave | Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch About him, and lies down | to pleasant dreams. Bryant. 366 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 16. ELEGY WRITTEN IX A COUNTRY CHURCHYARD. 1. The curfew | tolls the knell | of parting day ; The lowing herd | winds slowly | o'er the Ua ; The pldwman | homeward | plods his weary way, And leaves the world | to darkness | and to mh. 2. Now fades | the glimmering landscape | on the sight, And all the air | a solemn stillness | holds, Save where the beetle | wheels his droning flight, And drowsy tinldings \ lull the distant folds; 3. Save | that from yonder | ivy-mantled tower, The moping owl | does to the moon | complain | Of such as, wand'ring near her secret bower, Molest her ancient, solitary reign. 4. Beneath those rugged elms, that yew-tree's shd-de, Where heaves the turf | in many a moldering heap, Each | in his narrow cell | forever laid, The rude fdrefathers \ of the hamlet | sleep. The breezy call \ of incense-breathing morn, The swallow \ twittering | from the straw-built shed, The cock's shrill clarion, or the echoing horn, No more | shall rouse thdm | from their lowly bed. 6. For them | no more the blazing hearth | shall burn, Or busy hduscwife \ ply her evening care ; No children \ run | to lisp their sire's return, Or climb his knees \ the envied Jclss | to share. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 367 7. Oft did the harvest | to their sickle | yield, Their furrow | oft | the stubborn glebe | has broke ; How jocund | did they drive their team a-field ! How bowed | the woods | beneath their sturdy stroke ! 8. Let not Ambition | mock their useful toil, Their homely joys, and destiny | obscure; Nor Grandeur | hear | with a disdainful smile | The short | and simple annals | of the poor. 9. The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power, And all that beauty, all that wealth \ e'er gave, Aw T ait | alike | the inevitable hour : The paths of glory | lead | but to the grave. 10. Nor you, ye proud, impute to these the fault, If Memory | o'er their tomb | no trophies raise, Where, through the long-drawn aisle | and fretted vault, The pealing anthem | swells the note | of praise. 11. Can storied lim, or animated bust, Back to its mansion | call the fleeting breath ? Can Honors voice | provoke the silent diist, Or Flattery soothe | the dull, cold ear | of Death ? 12. Perhaps in this neglected spot | is | laid j Some heart \ once pregnant | -with celestial fire — Hands | that the rod of empire | might have swayed, Or waked to ecstasy | the living lyre : 3G8 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 13. But Knowledge | to their eyes | her ample page, Eicli with the spoils of time, did ne'er unroll ; Chill Penury | repressed their noble rage, And froze the genial current | of the soul. 14. Full many a gem | of purest ray serene | The dark, unfathomed caves of decern | bear ; Full many a flower \ is born to blush unse'en, And waste | its sweetness | on the desert air. 15. Some village Hampden, that, with dauntless brdast, The little tyrant | of his fields | withstood ; Some mute, inglorious Milton | here may rest — Some Cromwell, guiltless of his country's blood. 16. The applause | of listening senates | to command, The threats | of pain and ruin | to despise, To scatter plenty | o'er a smiling land, And read their history | in a nation's eyes, 17. Their lot \ forbade; nor circumscribed | al6ne | Their growing virtues, but their crimes confined ; Forbade to wade | through slaughter | to a throne, And shut the gates | of mercy | on mankind ; 18. The struggling pangs | of conscious trhtli | to hide, To quench the blushes of ingenuous shame, Or heap the shrine of Luxury and Pride | With incense I kindled at the Muses flame. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 369 19. Far from the madding crowd's | ignoble strife, Their sober wishes | never learned to stray ; Along the cool, sequestered vale | of life | They kept the noiseless tdnor | of their way. 20. Yet e'en these bones | from insult to protect, Some frail memdrial | still erected nigh, With uncouth rhymes | and shapeless sculpture | decked, Implores the passing tribute | of a sigh. 21. Their name, their ye'ars, spelt by the unlettered Muse, The place of fame \ and elegy | supply ; And many a holy text | around she straws, That teach the rustic moralist | to die. 22. For who, to dumb forgetfulness | a preV, This pleasing, anxious being | e'er resigned, Left the warm precincts | of the cheerful day, Nor cast | one longing, lingering look \ behind? 23. On some fond breast | the parting soul \ relies, Some pious drops | the closing eye requires ; E'en from the tomb | the voice of Nature | cries, E'en in our ashes | live | their wonted fires. 24. For the'e, who, mindful of the unhonored ddad, Dost | in these lines | their artless tale | relate, If chance, by lonely contemplation le'd, Some kindred spirit \ shall inquire thy fate — 24 370 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 25. Haply | some hoary-headed swain | may say : ^ " Oft have we seen him, at the peep of dawn, Brushing with hasty steps | the dews away, To meet the sun | upon the upland lawn. 26. " There, at the foot | of yonder nodding beech, That wreathes its old, fantastic roots so high, His listless length | at noontide | would he stretch, And pore upon the brook | that babbles by. 27. " Hard by yon wood, now smiling | as in scorn, Muttering his wayward fancies, he would rove; Now drooping, woful-wan, like one forlorn, Or crazed with cclrc, or crossed in hopeless loir. 28. " One morn | I missed him | on the 'customed hill, Along the hdath, and near his favorite tre*e ; Another | came, nor yet beside the rill, Nor up the Idivn, nor at the wood | was he ; 29. "The ndxt, with dirges due, in sad array, Slow | through the church-way path | we saw him borne Approach and reud | (for thou canst re'ad) | the lay | Graved on the stone | beneath yon aged thorn." THE EPITAPH. Here | rests his head | upon the lap of earth, A youth | to Fortune \ and to Fame \ unknown ; Fair Seienec | frowned not | on his humble Hfih, And Melancholy | marked him | for her bwn. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 371 31. Large | was his bounty, and his soul \ sincere; Heaven | did a recompense | as largely send : He gave to misery — all he had — a tear ; He gained from Heaven — 'twas all he wished — a friend. No further seek | his merits | to disclose, Or draw his frailties | from their dread abode (There | they alike | in trembling hope | repose) — The bosom \ of his Father | and his God. Thomas Gray. 17. DANIEL WEBSTER 1. When life hath run its largest round [ Of toil and triumph, joy and woe, How brief | a storied page is found | To compass all its outward show! 2. The world-tried sailor tires and droops; His flag is r^nt, his keel forgot ; His farthest voyages | seem but loops | That float | from life's entangled knot. 3. But when within the narrow space | Some larger soul hath lived and wrought, Whose sight | was open to embrace | The boundless realms | of deed and thought, 4. When, stricken by the freezing blast, A nation's living pillars fall, How rich | the storied page, how vast, A word, a whisper, can recall ! 5. No medal | lifts its fretted face, Nor speaking marble | cheats your eye, 372 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Yet, while these pictured lines I trace, A living Image | passes by : G. A roof | beneath the mountain pines ; The cloisters | of a hill-girt plain ; The front of life's embattled lines ; A mound | beside the heaving main. 7. The"se | are the scenes : a hoy appears ; Set life's round dial | in the sun, Count the swift arc | of seventy years. His frame | is dust ; his task | is done. 8. Yet pause upon the noontide hour, Ere the declining sun | has laid | His bleaching rays | on manhood's power, And look upon the mighty shade. 9. No gloom | that stately shape can hide, No change | uncrown its brow ; behold ! Dark, calm, large-fronted, lightning-eyed, Earth has no double | from its mold. 10. Ere from the fields | by valor won | The battle-smoke | had rolled away, And bared the blood-red setting sun, His eyes | were opened on the day. 11 His kind | was but a shelving strip | Black | with the strife | that made it freV ; He lived | to see its banners dip | Their fringes | in the western sen. 12. The boundless pr&iries \ learned his name, His words | the mountain bchoes knew, The northern breezes | swept his fame | From icy lake | to warm bayou. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 373 13. Ill toil I he lived; in p^ace | lie died; When life's full cycle was complete, Put off his robes of power and pride, And laid them | at his Master's feet. 14. His rest | is by the storm-swept waves | Whom life's wild tempests | roughly tried, Whose heart | was like the streaming caves | Of ocean, throbbing at his side. 15. Death's cold white hand | is like the snow | Laid softly | on the furrowed hill — It hides the broken seams below, And leaves the summit | brighter still. 16. In vain the envious tongue upbraids ; His name | a nation's heart shall kdep | Till morning's latest sunlight fades | On the blue tablet | of the deep ! holmes. 18. ST. AUGUSTINE'S LADDEE. 1. Saint Augustine ! w T ell hast thou said, That | of our vices | we can frame | A ladder, if we will but tread | Beneath our feet | each deed of shame ! 2. All common things, each day's events, That | with the hour | begin and end, Our pleasures | and our discontents, Are rounds | by which | we may ascend. a. The low desire, the base design, That makes another's virtues | ldss The revel ( of the ruddy wine, And all occasions | of excdss; 374 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 4. The longing | for ignoble things The strife | for triumph | more than truth ; The hardening of the heart, that brings | Irreverence | for the dreams of youth ; 5. All thoughts of ill ; all evil de'eds, That have their root \ in thoughts of ill; Whatever hinders | or impedes | The action | of the noble will;— 6. All these | must first | be trampled down | Beneath our feet, if we would gain | In the bright fields | of fair renown | The right | of eminent domain. 7. We have not wings, we can not soar; But we have feet | to scale and climb, By slow degrees, by more and more, The cloudy summits | of our time. 8. The distant mountains, that nprear | Their solid bastions | to the skies, Are crossed | by pathways, that appear | As we | to higher levels j rise. 9. The heights | by great men | reached and kept | Were not attained | by sudden flight, But they, while their companions slept, Were toiling upward | in the night. 10 Standing | on what | too long | we bore I With shoulders bent | and downcast eyes, We may discern—unseen bef6re— A path | to higher destinies ; 11. Nor deem the irrevocable Past | As wholly wasted, wholly vain, If, rising on its wrdeks, at hist | 'To something nobler | we attain. homrwium. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 375 19. RING OUT, WILD BELLS. [This extract should be read with radical and median stress, strong force, and strongly contrasted inflections. Let the class mark for em- phasis and inflection.] 1. Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky, The flying cloud, the frosty light ; The year is dying in the night; Ring out, wild bells, and let him die. 2. Ring out the old, ring in the new, Ring, happy bells, across the snow ; The year is going ; let him go ; Ring out the false, ring in the true. 3. Ring out the grief that saps the mind, For those that here we see no more ; Ring out the feud of rich and poor, Ring in redress to all mankind. 4. Ring out a slowly dying cause, And ancient forms of party strife, Ring in the nobler modes of life, With sweeter manners, purer laws. 5. Ring out the want, the care, the sin, The faithless coldness of the times ; Ring out, ring out my mournful rhymes, But rinsj the fuller minstrel in. 6. Ring out false pride, in place and blood, The civic slander and the spite ; Ring in the love of truth and right, Ring in the common love of good. 7. Ring out old shapes of foul disease, Ring out the narrowing lust of gold, Ring out the thousand woes of old, Ring in the thousand years of peace. 376 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 8. Ring in the valiant man and free, The larger heart, the kindlier hand; King out the darkness of the land, Kino- in the Christ that is to be. tenntson. 20. SUMMER RAIN. [This extract should be read icith varying degrees of force, with the radical stress, ranging from unim passioned to emotional The last two stanzas afford scope for "imitative expression."] 1. Now on the hills I hear the thunder mutter; The wind is gathering in the west ; The upturned leaves first whiten and flutter, Then droop to a fitful rest; Up from the stream with sluggish flap Struggles the gull, and floats away; Nearer and nearer rolls the thunder-clap; "We shall not see the sun go down to-day. Now leaps the wind on the sleepy marsh, And tramples the grass with terrified feet; The startled river turns leaden and harsh— You can hear the quick heart of the tempest heat. 2. Look! look!— that livid flash! And instantly follows the rattling thunder, As if some cloud-crag, split asunder, Fell, splintering with a ruinous crash, On the earth, which crouches in silence under; And now a solid gray wall of rain Shuts off the landscape, mile by mile. For a breath's space I see the blue wood again, And, ere the next heart-beat, the wind-hurled pile, That seemed but now a league aloof, Bursts rattling over the sun-parehed roof. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 377 3. Against the windows the storm comes dashing; Through tattered foliage the hail tears crashing; The blue lightning flashes ; The rapid hail clashes ; The white waves are tumbling; And, in one baffled roar, Like the toothless sea mumbling A rock-bristled shore, The thunder is rumbling, And crashing, and crumbling — Will silence return never more ? Lowell. 21. HYMN TO THE NOETH STAE. [The reading of this poem ivill be characterized by slow movement, median stress, orotund quality, and middle key.] 1. The sad and solemn night Hath yet her multitude | of cheerful fires ; The glorious host of light | Walk the dark atmosphere | till she retires ; All through her silent watches, gliding slow, Her constellations come, and climb the heavens, and go. 2. Bay, too, hath many a star | To grace his gorgeous reign, as bright as tlihj : Through the blue fields afar, Unsden, they follow in his flaming way: Many a bright lingerer, as the eve grows dim, Tells what a radiant troop | arose and set with him. o O. And thou | dost see them rise, Star of the Pole ! and thou | dost see them set. Alone, in thy cold skies, Thou keep'st thy old unmoving station yet, 378 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Nor join'st the dances | of that glittering train, Nor dipp'st thy virgin orb | in the blue western main. 4. There, at morn's rosy birth, Thou lookest meekly through the kindling air, And eve, that round the Earth | Chases the day, beholds thee | w&tching there; There | noontide finds the'e, and the hour that calls | The shapes of polar flame | to scale heaven's azure walls. Alike, beneath thine eye, The deeds of darkness | and of light | are done ; High toward the starlit sky | Towns blaze, the smoke of battle blots the Sun ; The night-storm on a thousand hills | is loud, And the strong wind of day | doth mingle sea and cloud. G. On thy unaltering blaze | The half-wrecked mariner, his compass lost, Fixes his steady gaze, And steers, undoubting, to the friendly coast ; And they who stray in perilous wastes, by night, Are glad when thou dost shine | to guide their footsteps right. 7. And therefore | bards of old, Sages and hermits of the solemn wood. Did | in thy beams | behold | A beauteous type | of that unchanging good, That bright | eternal bdacon, by whose ray | The voyager of time | should shape his heedful way. Bryant SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 379 22. THE AMERICAN FLAG. [To be read with declamatory and dramatic force, radical and thorough stress, and orotund quality.] 1. When Freedom from her mountain height Unfurled her standard to the air, She tore the azure robe of night. And set the stars of glory there; She mingled with its gorgeous dyes The milky baldric of the skies, And striped its pure celestial white With streakings of the morning light ; Then, from his mansion in the sun, She called her eagle-bearer down, And gave into his mighty hand The symbol of her chosen land. 2. Majestic monarch of the cloud ! Who rear'st aloft thy regal form, To hear the tempest-trumpings loud And see the lightning lances driven, When strive the warriors of the storm, And rolls the thunder-drum of heaven, — Child of the Sun ! to thee 'tis given To guard the banner of the free ; To hover in the sulphur-smoke, To ward away the battle-stroke, And bid its blen dings shine afar, Like rainbows on the cloud of war — The harbingers of victory ! 3. Flag of the brave ! thy folds shall fly, The sign of hope and triumph high, When speaks the signal trumpet tone, And the long line comes gleaming on. Ere yet the life-blood, warm and wet, Has dimmed the glistening bayonet, 380 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. Eacli soldier's eye shall brightly turn To where thy sky-born glories burn ; And, as his springing steps advance, Catch war and vengeance from the glance ; And, when the cannon-niouthings loud Heave in wild wreaths the battle-shroud, And gory sabres rise and fall Like shoots of flame on midnight's pall, Then shall thy meteor glances glow, And cowering foes shall fall beneath Each gallant arm that strikes below That lovely messenger of death. 4. Flag of the seas ! on ocean's wave Thy stars shall glitter o'er the brave. When Death, careering on the crale, Sweeps darkly round the bellied sail, And frighted waves rush wildly back, Before the broadside's reeling rack, Each dying wanderer of the sea Shall look at once to heaven and thee, And smile to see thy splendors fly, In triumph, o'er his closing eye. 5. Flag of the free heart's only home, By angel hands to valor given, Thy stars have lit the welkin dome, And all thy hues were born in heaven. Forever float that standard sheet 1 Where breathes the foe but falls before us With Freedom's soil beneath our feet, And Freedom's banner waving o'er us ! Dbakk SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 381 23. THE CHAMBERED NAUTILUS. [The reading of this poem, should be characterized by slow movement, median stress, pure tone, and orotund quality. To be marked by the class for emphasis, inflection, and pauses.] f 1. This is the ship of pearl, which, poets feign, Sails the unshadowed main,— The venturous bark that flings On the sweet summer wind its purpled wings In o'ulfs enchanted, where the siren sino-s, And coral reefs lie bare, Where the cold sea-maids rise to sun their streaming- hair. 2. Its webs of living gauze no more unfurl; Wrecked is the ship of pearl ! And every chambered cell, Where its dim dreaming life was wont to dwell, As the frail tenant shaped his growing shell, Before thee lies revealed — Its irised ceiling rent, its sunless crypt unsealed ! 3. Year after year beheld the silent toil That spread his lustrous coil ; Still, as the spiral grew, He left the past year's dwelling for the new, Stole with soft step its shining archway through, Built up its idle door, Stretched in his last found home, and knew the old no more. 4. Thanks for the heavenly message brought by thee, Child of the wandering sea, Cast from her lap forlorn ! 382 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. From thy dead lips a clearer note is born Than ever Triton blew from wreathdd horn! While on my ear it rings, Through the deep caves of thought I hear a voice that sings, — 5. Build thee more stately mansions, my soul, As the swift seasons roll ! Leave thy low-vaulted past ! Let each new temple, nobler than the last, Shut thee from heaven with a dome more vast, Till thou at length art free, Leaving thine outgrown shell by life's unresting sea ! Holmes. 24 KENTUCKY BELLE. 1. Summer of 'sixty-three, sir, and Conrad was gone away, Gone to the county-town, sir, to sell our first load of hay ; We lived in the log-house yonder, poor as ever you Ve seen; Ptoschen there was a baby, and I was only nineteen. 2. Conrad, he took the oxen, but he left Kentucky Belle. How much we thought of Kentuck, I couldn't begin to tell — Came from the Blue-Grass country; my father gave her to me When I rode north witli Conrad, away from the Ten- nessee. 3. Conrad lived in Ohio, a German he is, you know; The house stood in broad cornfields, stretching on, row after row. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 383 The old folks made me welcome ; they were kind as kind could be ; Bat I kept longing, longing, for the hills of the Ten- nessee. 4. Oh ! for a sight of water, the shadowed slope of a hill ! Clouds that hang on the summit, a wind that never is still ! But the level land went stretching away to meet the sky, Never a rise, from north to south, to rest the weary eye ! 5. From east to west, no river to shine out under the moon, Nothing to make a shadow in the yellow afternoon : Only the breathless sunshine, as I looked out, all forlorn ; Only the "rustle, rustle," as I walked among the corn. 6. When I fell sick with pining, we did n't w T ait any more, But moved away from the corn-lands, out to this river- shore — The Tuscarawas it's called, sir: off there's a hill, you see ; And now I've grown to like it next best to the Ten- nessee. 7. I was at work that morning. Some one came riding like mad Over the bridge and up the road — Farmer Houf's little lad. Bareback he rode ; he had no hat ; he hardly stopped to say, " Morgan's men are coming, Frau ; they 're galloping on this way. .84 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. "I'm sent to warn the neighbors. He isn't a mile behind ; He sweeps up all the horses — every horse that lie can find. Morgan, Morgan the raider, and Morgan's terrible men, With bowie-knives and pistols, are galloping up the glen ! " 9. The lad rode down the valley, and I stood still at the door ; The baby laughed and prattled, played with spools on the floor; Kentuck was out in the pasture; Conrad, my man, was gone. Near, nearer, Morgan's men were galloping, galloping on ! 10. Sudden I picked up baby, and ran to the pasture-bar ; " Kentuck ! " I called — " Kentucky ! M She knew me ever so far ! I led her down the gully that turns off there to the right, And tied her to the bushes, her head just out of sight. 1.1. As I ran back to the 1og[ house, at once there came a sound — The ring of hoofs, galloping hoofs, trembling over the ground — Coming into the turnpike out from the White-Woman Glen, Morgan, Morgan the raider, and Morgan's terrible men. 12. As near they drew and nearer, my heart beat fast in alarm ; SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 385 But still I stood in the door-way, with baby on my arm. They came ; they passed ; with spur and whip in haste they sped along — Morgan, Morgan the raider, and his baud, six hundred strong. 13. Weary they looked and jaded, riding through night and through day; Pushing on east to the river, many long miles away, To the border-strip where Virginia runs up into the west, And fording the Upper Ohio before they could stop to rest. 14. On like the wind they hurried, and Morgan rode in advance ; Bright were his eyes like live coals, as he gave me a sideways glance; And I was just breathing freely, after my choking pain, When the last one of the troopers suddenly drew his rein. 15. Frightened I was to death, sir; 1 scarce dared look in his face, As he asked for a drink of water, and glanced around the place. I gave him a cup, and he smiled — 'twas only a boy, you see ; Faint and worn, with dim-blue eyes; and he'd sailed on the Tennessee. 16. Only sixteen he was, sir — a fond mother's only son — Off and away with Morgan before his life had begun! The damp drops stood on his temples; drawn was the boyish mouth; And I thought me of the mother waiting down in the South. as 386 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 17. Oh ! pluck was he to the backbone, and clear grit through and through ; Boasted and bragged like a trooper ; but the big words w 7 ould n't do ; — The boy was dying, sir, dying, as plain as plain could be, Worn out by his ride with Morgan up from the Ten- nessee. 18. But when I told the laddie that I too was from the South, Water came in his dim eyes, and quivers around his mouth. " Do you know the Blue-Grass country ? " he wistful began to say; Then swayed like a willow T -sapling, and fainted dead away. 19. I had him into the log house, and worked and brought him to ; I fed him, and I coaxed him, as I thought his mother \l do; And when the lad got better, and the noise in his head was gone, Morgan's men were miles away, galloping, galloping on. 20. "Oh, I must go," he muttered; "I must be up and away ! Morgan — Morgan is waiting for me ! Oh, what will Morgan say ? " But I heard a sound of tramping and kept him back from the door — The ringing sound of horses' hoofs that I had heard before. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 387 21. And on, on, came the soldiers — the Michigan cavalry — And fast they rode, and black they looked, galloping rapidly — They had followed hard on Morgan's track ; they had followed day and night ; But of Morgan and Morgan's raiders they never had caught a si edit. 22. And rich Ohio sat startled through all those summer days ; For. strange, wild men were galloping over her broad highways — Now here, now there, now seen, now gone, now north, now east, now west, Through river-valleys and corn-land farms, sweeping away her best. 23. A bold ride and a long ride ! But they were taken at last. They almost reached the river by galloping hard and fast ; But the boys in blue were upon them ere ever they gained the ford, And Morgan, Morgan the raider, laid down his terrible sword. 24. Well, I kept the boy till evening — kept him against his will — But he was too weak to follow, and sat there pale and still. When it was cool and dusky — you 11 wonder to hear me tell — But I stole down to that gully, and brought up Ken- tucky Belle. 388 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 25. I kissed the star on ber forehead — my pretty, gentle lass — But I knew that she 'd be happy back in the old Blue- Grass. A suit of clothes of Conrad's with all the money I had, And Kentuck, pretty Kentuck, I gave to the worn-out lad. 26. I guided him to the southward as well as I knew how ; The boy rode off with many thanks, and many a back- ward bow ; And then the glow it faded, and my heart began to swell, As clown the glen away she Avent, my lost Kentucky Belle ! 27. When Conrad came in the evening, the moon was shin- ing high ; Baby and I both were crying — I could n't tell him why— But a battered suit of rebel gray was hanging on the wall, And a thin, old horse with drooping head, stood in Kentucky's stall. 28. Well, he was kind, and never once said a hard word to me ; He knew I could n't help it — 't was all for the Tennessee. But, after the Avar Avas over, just think what came to pass — A letter, sir ; and the two Avere safe back in the old Blue-Grass. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 389 29. The lad got over the border, riding Kentucky Belle; And Kentuck she was thriving, and fat, and hearty, and well ; He cared for her and kept her, nor touched her with whip or spur. Ah ! we 've had many horses since, but never a horse like her ! Constance F. Woolson. 25. THE CHAECOAL MAK 1. Though rudely blows the wintry blast, And sifting snows fall white and fast, Mark Haley drives along the street, Perched high upon his wagon seat; His somber face the storm defies, And thus from morn till eve lie cries, — "Chared! chared!''' While echo faint and for replies, — "Hark, Of Hark, Of" " Chared ! " — " Hark, ! " — Such cheery sounds Attend him on his daily rounds. 2. The dust begrimes his ancient hat; His coat is darker far than that ; 'T is odd to see his sooty form All speckled with the feathery storm ; Yet in his honest bosom lies Nor spot nor speck, — though still he cries, — " Chared/ chared/ " And many a roguish lad replies, — " Ark, ho ! ark, ho ! " " Chared ! " — " Ark, ho / " — Such various sounds Announce Mark Haley's morning rounds. 390 SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 3. Thus all the cold and wintry day He labors much for little pay; Yet feels no less of happiness Than many a richer man, I guess, When through the shades of eve he spies The light of his own home, and cries, — " Chared! chared! " And Martha from the door replies,— "MarJc, ho! Mark, ho!" " Chared! "—Marie, ho ! "—Such joy abounds When he has closed his daily rounds. 4. The hearth is warm, the fire is bright; And while his hand, washed clean and white, Holds Martha's tender hand once more, His glowing face bends fondly o'er The crib wherein his darling lies, And in a coaxing tone he cries, " Chared! chared! " And baby with a laugh replies, — " Ah, go ! ah, go ! " " Chared! "— " Ah, go ! "—while at the sounds The mother's heart with gladness bounds. 5. Then honored be the charcoal man ! Though dusky as an African, 'Tis not for you, that chance to be A little better clad than he, His honest manhood to despise, Although from morn till eve he cries, — " Chared! chared! " While mocking echo still replies, — -Hark, 0! hark, ! " "Chared!"— "Hark, 0/"— Long may the sounds Proclaim Mark Haley's daily rounds, Trowbridge. SCHOOL ELOCUTION. 391 26. GEANDMOTHEE'S STOEY OF BU^KEE HILL. [The spirited rendering of this graphic picture affords a wide scope for variety of expression. Care must be taken not to overdo it.] 1. 'Tis like stirring living embers when, at eighty, one remembers All the achings and the quakings of "the times that tried men's souls"; When I talk of Whig and Tory, when I tell the Rebel story, To you the words are ashes, but to me they're burning coals. 2. I had heard the muskets' rattle of the April running battle ; Lord Percy's hunted soldiers, I can see their red coats still ; But a deadly chill comes o'er me, as the day looms up before me, When a thousand men lay bleeding on the slopes of Bunker's Hill. o O. 'T was a peaceful summer's morning, when the first thing gave us warning Was the booming of the cannon from the river and the shore : "Child," says grandma, "what's the matter, what is all this noise and clatter ? Have those scalping Indian devils come to murder us once more ? " 4. Poor old soul ! my sides were shaking in the midst of all my quaking, To hear her talk of Indians when the •••■■ 8888 ••••••