LIBRARY^cONGRESsJ Shelf J&MA V'\ | in ^ •^ APP- VOICE CULTURE ELOCUTION / WM. T. ROSS, A. M. [author's edition I SAN FRANCISCO, CAL. PAYOT. UPHAM & CO,, PUBLISHERS, 1886. Copyright, 1886. By WM. T. ROSS. All rights reserved. Printed by Golden Era Co. PREFACE. Voice Culture and Elocution is designed to supply a want long felt by the author, for a text-book combining in a more practical form the following features : Clear and concise statements and explanations of prin- ciples ; explicit and full directions for exercise under rules ; and a liberal supply of carefully selected sentences and paragraphs for study and practice. The book includes : i. Exercises in Calisthenics and in Gesture arranged for systematic practice, by means of which ease, grace and versatility in Movement and Gesture may be ac- quired. 2. Brief explanation ot the Organs of Speech, with full directions for development of the Breathing Organs, and for acquiring control and economy of breath. 3. Simple and explicit directions for the cultivation, preservation and proper use of the voice in speaking and in singing. 4. Explanation and classification of the Elements of Speech, with a complete arrangement of tables, words and sentences for practice in Articulation. 5« A clear and concise statement of principles, with full directions for practice under the rules. 6. Copious and carefully selected sentences and para- graphs, arranged for the exemplification of rules and principles, and for practice under thdm. And, 7. A choice 'collection of original and selected pieces for Reading and Recitation. The author, not wishing to burden his text-book with what can be easily and cheaply obtained from the various publications, has devoted only a limited space to selec- tions. It has been his aim to' embody in this work the course of instruction which has resulted from an experience of twenty-five years in the profession, — a course that has stood the test of practical experiment. In the hands of the intelligent student and the faithful teacher, the author feels confident that his text-book will be a valuable aid toward the acquisition of the Art of Elocution. Permission for the use of specified extracts and se- lections have been kindly granted by The Century Co., of New York; S. C. Griggs & Co., of Chicago ; Houghton, Mifflin & Co., of Boston, and other Publishers. W. T. R. San Francisco, Cal., 1886. CONTENTS. Introductory : Province of Elotfution ix Benefits to be Derived from its Study x Elocution : Voice — Action — Gesture i . Voice Qualifications. . .• 2 Calisthenics : Exercises — Chest — Ann — Body — Head — Instep 3 " for Wrist and Ann Relaxation 6 Indian Dance . 7 Gesture ; Province and Aim .... 8 Position — Steps — Arms at Rest 9 Initial Movement — Unfoldment — " Ictus " 13 Intellectual l'«asis and Scope . 15 Notation — Directions— How to Practice 17 Exercises, — [Hand] — Supine -Prone — Vertical — Index . . 20 " Clinched — Clasped — Folded — Wringing 27 " Crossed on Breast — Applied 30 Preparation for the Gesture " . 31 Miscellaneous Examples 33 Significant Gestures : Pantomime Language 37 Head — Eyes — Arms — Hands — Body. 38 Organs of Speech : Breathing — Voice — Articulation. 43 Breathing Exercises : Abdominal — Blowing and Sipping the Breath 49 VI CONTENTS. Full and Deep — Audible Expulsion 50 Deep Breathing while Walking , 51 Effusive — Expulsive — Explosive 53 Voice Culture : Necessity for a Good Yoice — Free Throat 55 Definitions, — Time, Quantity, Quality, etc.. 57 Exercises, — Production of Tone — Pure — Glottis Stroke.. 58 Projecting the Tone — Flexibility of Voice 63 Exercises for Mouth, Tongue and Lips 65 Articulation : How to Improve the Articulation 67 Classification and Formation of the Elements 68 Elementary Sounds, — (Phonetic Arrangement) 7° Exercise in Combinations — [Tables] 7 2 Difficult Combinations with Words and Sentences 79 Table of Vowels with Diacritical Marks 103 Analysis of Words 104 Vowel Sound Practice in Sentences 106 Reading by Vowel Sounds 129 Sentences of Difficult Articulation I2Q An Alphabetical Alliteration 132 Pronunciation, — A Habit — How to Practice 133 Exercise of Difficult Pronunciations *34 Modulation and Expression : Definitions, — Pitch — Force — Stress 137 Pitch : Exercises for Increase of Compass 138 Middle — High — Very High — Low — Very Low 141 Force : Loud and Abrupt — Smooth and Subdued 148 Emphasis : General Rules, with Exercises 15° Stress, — Monotone — Median — Expulsive and Explosive Radical 152 Terminal — Compound — Thorough — Intermittent 159 Laughter, — Exercises for Practice of Different Kinds. . . 166 Inflection : General Rules for the Rising and Falling Slides 169 Cadence 172 Time : Quantity and Movement 174 Pause : Rhetorical 179 Cesural 181 " Grouping," and Exercises in Rhetorical Analysis 182 Emphasis : By Force, by Time and by Slide 185 Antithesis — Emphatic Repetition — Climax 189 The Significance of Modulation and Emphasis 196 Transition : In Expression and in Personation 198 Quality : Exercises in Pure and Impure 201 Imitative Modulation 204 Rhythmus and Melody ■ Measure of Speech 206 Style : Colloquial — Declamatory — Dramatic — etc 212 Hints to the Student of Elocution 229 Hamlet's Advice to the Players 234 Advice to Speakers 236 SELECTIONS. The Hero of Lake Erie Fred Emerson Brooks . . 237 The Tell-Tale Eye R. W. Emerson 240 The Field of Waterloo Byron 243 The Sunset of Battle 246 Rain on the Roof Coates Kinney 248 Caesar Crossing the Rubicon Knowles 249 The Life-Boat 251 The Miner's Reverie 252 Use and Misuse of Words E. P. Whipple 253 The Courtship of Larry O'Dee 256 Tell's Apostrophe to the Alps Knowles 257 vlll CONTENTS. Napoleon Bonaparte Phillips 258 Rienzi's Address to the Romans Miss Mitford 260 Women All at Sea N. V. Graphic 261 Cassius Against Csesar Shakespeare. . 265 Marullus to the Roman Populace Shakespeare . .' 267 Sounds Thoreau 268 Voices of the Wildwood Ella Sterling Cummins. 269 A Similar Case 272 The Study of Nature /.. Agassiz 273 The Petrified Fern 275 An Incident at Sea Wm. T. Boss 276 Grandpa's Nap. Fred E??ierson Brooks. . 278 Marmion Taking Leave of Douglas . . . Scott 280 Extract from a Lecture on Thackeray. G. S. Meade 282 Catiline's Defiance Croly 283 Against Employing Indians in War.. Lord Chatham 285 The Frog and the Frenchman Fred Emerson Brooks . . 287 Colonel Baker as an Orator. Clara S. Foltz 290 Freedom .E.D. Baker 291 The Golden Gate Madge Morris 292 Feminine Pity * Holmes 294 Bernardo Del Carpio. . Mrs. He?nans 295 The Funny Story jfosephine Pollard 297 The Isle of Long Ago . . .B.F. Taylor . . 298 On the American Revolution Henry „ . 299 Tell on his Native Hills Knoivles 301 The Two Professions. 302 The Lost Sheep Sally Pratt McLean. . . . 307 The Murderer's Secret Webster 308 A Psalm of Life I^ongfellow. 309 Sprinkling the Streets 311 Ode on the Passions Collins 313 Liberty and Union Webster 316 Wolsey's Fail Shakespeare 317 Spartacus to the Gladiators at Capua. Kellogg . -. 318 Jf We Knew 320 Charge of the Light Brigade Tennyson 322 Quarrel Scene Between Brutus and Cassius .... Shakespeare 324 The Flag of Our Union Geo. P. Morris 328 INTRODUCTORY. The importance and utility of Elocution is so generally con- ceded, and so fully appreciated, that it is only necessary here to give a brief summary of its scope, and to mention a few of the uses to which it may be applied. Elocution does not consist in mere imitation of the voice and manner of the teacher, nor in the learning to recite pieces as a parrot learns to talk. Its province is to aid the pupil in acquiring ease, grace and ver- satility in gesture. To impart a knowledge of correct breathing, and the art of util- izing the breath in the proper production of tone. To discipline and develop the voice in qualities, compass, strength, flexibility and control. To improve the articulation so that each element may have its correct and due amount of sound in the enunciation of words. To communicate a practical knowledge of the principles and rules in modulation and expression. And to teach the pupil the art of using the rules and exercises of elocution, not as the end and aim of the study, but as the means for the better expression of thought and emotion. By such a course of instruction the individuality of the student is best preserved. This is a matter of the greatest importance — especially to one who has marked natural ability. The true province of elocution, therefore, is not to make a per- son less, but more natural. X INTRODUCTORY. The following are some of the benefits to be derived from the study, and the uses to which the art may be applied. Elocution is a means for artistic and intellectual culture. It is an accomplishment. It improves the conversational powers. To the possessor of the art, it is a solid satisfaction, and it en- hances the enjoyment of society. It is the best form of gymnastics — exercising in a salutary man- ner the most important functions of mind and body. Through a proper direction of its breathing and vocal exercises, it is made an important factor for the preservation and restoration of health. It stimulates thought through the reflex influence which well- spoken words are known to have upon the mind of the speaker. It aids in getting a higher appreciation of the beautiful and grand in literature. It brings out the subtler meanings of language through the proper enunciation of the words. It is one of the three essential branches of oratory, and neces- sary to the highest success in public speaking. To all instructors, needful; to the teacher of reading, indispen- sable. It is most essential to the study of drama, and important as a preparation for the actor's calling. " There's a charm in delivery, a magical art, That thrills like a kiss from the lip to the heart; 'Tis the glance, the expression, the well-spoken word, By whose magic the depths of the spirit are stirred." VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. We must exclude everything from the definition of language, but actual speaking. * It is only by the spoken word that the speaker breathes his own life into the souls of his hearers. — WUhchn Von Humboldt. Delivery has the sole and supreme power in oratory. —Cicero. Elocution is the Art of expressing thought and feeling by means of Voice and Action. Voice is the result of air made audible, in its passage from the lungs, -by the action of the vocal ligaments. It becomes Speech, when individualized by the organs of resonance and articulation. Action is pantomime language, appealing to the eye. It comprises all the physical means for communi- cating thought and feeling. Gesture is a term synonomous with Action, and is the one more commonly used. It embraces Position, Poise and Movement. 2 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. The Voice Qualifications essential to a good elocu- tion, and which, if not already possessed by the student, must be acquired through the development and culture of the organs of speech, are, i. Fullness, Strength, Clearness and Resonance. 2. Distinctness and Correctness of Articulation. 3. Perfect adaptation and control of voice through the variations in Pitch, Stress, Time, and the other elements of vocal expression. CALISTHENICS. "The wise, for cure, on exercise depend." A few Calisthenic exercises should precede Gesture. They will contribute freedom and strength to the trunk and limbs. The following will be found ample for the purposes intended. Each movement should be repeated five to twenty times, depending upon the difficulty of the exercise, and upon the strength and convenience of the pupil. Ten to twenty minutes, once or twice a day, may be profitably devoted to systematic physical exercises. Position. — Weight of the body equally on both feet, heels together, and toes extending to the right and left at an angle of sixty degrees. Head erect, shoulders well CALISTHENICS. 3 back and arms by the side — the military position. This is the attitude of attention, or "first position." Chest Extension. — With the arms extended in front, palms together, throw the arms horizontally backward, then return to the front on the same line, keeping the elbows straight and the body erect. The movement should be made only at the shoulder joints. Upward Chest Extension. — From " first position," without bending the elbows, swing the arms from the sides upward, striking back of hands together directly over head ; then, by reverse movement, return the arms to first position. These movements should be given slowly at first, in- creasing in rapidity and energy in the ratio of acquired strength and skill. Circular Movement of Arms. — i. Forward. From "first position," elbows straight, swing the arms forward, up in front, back close to the sides of the head and down behind to commencing po- sition, describing with the hands, as near as possible, par- allel circles. The arms are allowed to rotate freely at the shoulder joints. 2. Backward. Carry the arms back, up, around and down in fiont, — the reverse of the preceding, ft may be best to practice first with each arm separately, and then both together. Great care should be taken to keep the feet firmly in position, the knees straight and the body perfectly erect. Arm and Body Movement Combined. — For com- 4 VOICE AND CULTURE ELOCUTION. mencing position, extend the arms straight up each side of the head. Then, from this position, with elbows and knees kept straight, swing the arms down to the front, back, up, around and down again, at the same time bending the body forward, letting the bend be mostly at the hips. If it can be done with ease, allow the extended fingers to touch the floor. The reverse movement brings the body to an erect position, while the arms are carried back, down, and up in front to commencing position. Performed with energy, this is a most invigorating and econmical practice, giving the pupil the greatest amount of exercise in the shortest possible time. Body Movements. — i. Forward and backward. With hands on hips, knees and trunk straight, bend the body forward, then backward as far as possible. Repeat as often as desir able. 2. Sideward. With the same conditions as in the preceding, bend the body first to the right side, then to the left, and continue the required number of times. 3. Twisting the Trunk. With hands as before and feet kept firmly in position, twist the body to the right until the face is turned directly to the rear ; then reverse the movement, twisting the body to the left in like man- ner. 4. With hands on hips, bend the body to the right, and then swing it around forward and to the left, back and around to the right, describing, with the head, as complete and large a circle as possible. The same move- ment is reversed. Three times each way is enough for one practice. The body is allowed to rotate freely at the hips, without bending the knees or moving the feet. calisthenics. 5 Head Movements. — i. Forward and backward. With hands on hips, body kept erect and firm, first bend the head forward, then back, and repeat. 2. Twisting. Turn the head to the right, bringing the chin over the shoulder, then to the left, and repeat. 3. Sideward. Incline the head over the right shoul- der, then over the left, and so continue. 4. Circular Movement of Head. Incline the head to the right, let it swing forward and around to the left, back, and around to the right, allowing it to ro- tate freely, with muscles of the neck relaxed. Repeat but three or four times, then reverse the movement. If continued too long, this exercise may produce dizziness ; but practiced in moderation, it is beneficial to the health, and encourages greater ease and freedom in the move- ments of the head in speech. Instep Flexion. — 1. With hands on hips, elbows well back, and body erect, rise on the toes with an elastic spring, and then return gently to the commencing position. 2. Raise the body, to the "tiptoe position," as in the preceding exercise. Then, by bending the knees, lower the body to a "squatting" position, but keeping the trunk erect, heels off the floor, and hands on the hips. Return to erect tiptoe position, and continue the exercise without letting the heels to the floor. In this, as in all physical exercises, practice gently until strength and facility is acquired. The following additional exercises for instep flexions O VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. may be practiced with some profit and no little amuse- ment. 3. The Rocking Movement. Rise on toes and keep in tip toe position. Advance right foot to front ; then, with a springing movement, reverse the position of the feet, carrying the left foot to the front, and the right foot, at the same time, to the rear, — continuing the movement with a very elastic and light bound, allowing only the toes to touch the floor. Another more complex exercise is the following : 4. Alternate spreading and crossing of feet. From the tip-toe position, with a springing movement spread the feet to the right and left ; then, with another spring, cross them, (the right in front of the left) ; then spread them apart as before ; and then, with another spring, cross the left in front of the right. Continue the move- ment with very light, elastic bounds, and always keeping on the toes. Wrist and Arm Movements. — 1. With arms extended horizontally to the right and left, hands hanging loosely at the wrists, shake the arms, allowing the hands to dangle with perfect freedom as though they were lifeless appendages. 2. With elbows bent and pressed against the sides of the body, lower arm extending to the front and upward, the hands hanging loose at the wrists, shake the lower arm up and down, sideways and around. These exercises give flexibility to the wrists — a most essential condition in gesture. A good exercise for acquiring the difficult art of letting the arms hang loosely from the shoulders and just where CALISTHENICS. 7 the attraction of gravitation takes them, (which is one of the most important positions of the arms at rest), is the following : 3. Let go the arms, allowing them to hang by the sides perfectly relaxed. Gently twist the body to the right, then to the left, and continue to increase the rapid- ity and strength of the movement, allowing the arms to swing or " flop " with perfect freedom. " Taking the mind or will out of the arms, and concen- trating it upon the movements of the body," will assist the pupil in accomplishing this, at first, difficult exercise. All movements that aid in the partial or complete natural relaxation or tension of the muscles of the trunk and limbs, contribute largely to the requirements of Action in the expression of thought and feeling. Perhaps one of the very best general exercises for the complete and partial relaxation or " decomposing " of the various muscles of the. neck, trunk and limbs, is what the author of this Manual calls, in his " Calisthenic Ex- ercises," (a small work published some time ago,) "The Indian Dance." The directions are as follows : Take " first posi- tion," rise on the toes, arms hanging loose by the sides, and muscles of the trunk relaxed. With the weight of the body on the right toe, hop twice ; then, with the weight on the left toe, hop in the same manner, and so on — alternately changing from one toe (foot) to the other. Be sure to keep the muscles of the neck, trunk and arms relaxed in the execution of this exercise, that it may jesult in a healthful and invigorating influence to the whole system. 8 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. The relaxation of the muscles of the neck and arms should be complete — the trunk and lower limbs but par- tial. The student of Elocution will find that in all physical exercises, especially the Breathing, it will be necessary to wear the clothing loose in order to practice the move- ments with comfort and profit. GESTURE. "Suit the action to the word, the word to the action, with this special observance, that you o'er step not the modesty of nature." —Shakespeare. "What a piece of work is man ! How noble in reason ! how infinite in faculty ! in form and moving how express and ad- mirable! in action how like an angel/'in apprehension how like a god." —Shakespeare. Since, in the evolution of human expression, Gesture preceded speech, and in speech, Voice preceded Articula- tion, so this natural order should be observed in the study of Elocution. The study of gesture, and the practice of well-directed exercises for its encouragement and culture, is the first department of Expression to which the attention of the student should be called. Anatomy teaches that the movements of man are, by nature, those of grace. The articulations of the bones, and the attachment and arrangement of the muscles, all show that "the human form divine " was fashioned to ex- execute graceful curves — not angularities and straight lines. Artificial and awkward movements are natural to no one. To be natural, therefore, is to be graceful. True Gesture is largely the spontaneous outgrowth of the thought and feeling. " Nothing is more deplor- able than a gesture without a motive." Hence the student should not aim to acquire gesture so much as to acquire flexibility of the muscles, and habits of ease and grace of movements. The more readily and correctly the physical nature responds to the mental and emotional, the more perfect becomes the physical expression of thought and feeling. In the following systematic and progressively arranged ex- ercises for the cultivation and improvement of gesture, the conservation of this great law is kept steadily in view. POSITION AND STEPS. Right Foot Position. — Weight of body on the left foot, knee straight and toes to the left oblique. The right foot at right angles to the heel of the left, heels two to four inches apart and the right knee slightly bent. The left hip should extend a very little to the back- ward oblique and the head slightly to the left. The chest should be well to the front, which necessitates a forward curve in the small of the back. This position is favorable to abdominal breathing. Besides giving an easy, graceful and restful position, the right foot is ready for an advance step without a change of the gravity of the body. *' The supporting is the standing foot, — the other, the acting." IO VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. From this position, practice the following changes. i. Make a change in poise, without shifting the feet, by swaying the hips forward and a little to the right oblique, carrying the right hip obliquely to the front and bringing the weight of the body chiefly on the ball of the right foot. Return to first position. 2. From first position advance the right foot six or eight inchss to the right oblique, changing the poise as before, keeping the ball of left foot firm in position and allowing the heel to rise. Then return to first position. 3. With nearly the same movement, carry the right foot directly to the front, and return to position. Left Foot Position. — Same relative position of the feet, with the left foot in advance. Practice the same changes from this as from the right foot position. These changes in poise indicate approach or closer relations with the audience. They also break the monot- ony of attitude and give rest. Combine with these exercises in Poise the " Calisthenic Gesturings" given further on. Steps From Right Foot Position. — 1. Step to the front, having the left foot follow and take the same relative position to the right foot as before the step was made. Then return the left to first position, bringing back the right to its former place at right angles to heel of the left. 2. In the same way, step to the right oblique, and back. 3. Then directly to the right and back. 4. Next, to the right backward oblique, allowing the left foot to stop in front of the right as in left foot posi- tion. 5. Then make the step directly to the rear in the same way as in the last. From Left Foot Position, go through similar steps to the left. Temporary Step. — From each position in each direc- tion, practice what may be called the Temporary Step- in this step the foot that follows is carried only half the distance of the advance, the heel elevated, the inside ball of foot touching the floor and the limb relaxed. The return is made as in the permanent steps. The Combination of the right and left oblique steps is made as follows : 1. From Right Foot Position, step to the right oblique, keeping weight of body on the right foot ; then step to the left oblique, allowing the weight to settle back on the right foot, which is at the rear of the left. Then with the left foot thus freed, return with one long step to com- mencing position. Make advance steps short (not far- ther than you can reach with the toe of the advance foot without changing position of the body), then you will be able to return easily to first position. In speech, steps are not usually taken to get some where, but generally to indicate direction. For such purposes, short steps are as good as long, and are made easier and with more grace. The "acting foot," which makes the first movement in the advance, falls on the accented syllable of the emphatic word in exact time with the completion of the gesture which it supplements. The "supportin foot " follows J 2 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. without any special significance in the expression, and is to the movement what the unaccented syllable is to the word. Economy or the conservation of power is the great need in both physical and vocal expression. The best results with the least expenditure of energy should be made the chief object in all elocutionary exercise and study. The attainment of the easiest way, which is always the best way, may require long and intelligent practice. Position of Arms at Rest. — i. Arms at the Side. Let the arms fall to the sides, just where the attraction of gravity takes them. In this position, if the upper arm comes in contact with the body, the student may know that the muscles of the arm are not entirely relaxed. This is the most important position of the arms at rest, and the one in which they more easily depart from and return to in gesture. To acquire this art of letting go the arms and hands, Calisthenic exercises, i, 2 and 3, [pp. 6 and 7] should be practiced long and faithfully. Other positions of the arms at rest that may be taken occasionally, when admissible, are : 2. Left Hand on the Hip, elbow thrown well back, and right arm by the side, as in the above. 3. Right Hand on the Breast, with the fingers rest- ing between the buttons of the coat or vest, the arm re- laxed and lying gracefully against the body, the left arm by the side. 4. For Ladies, instead of the last two, the hands may be lapped in front, or the arms lightly folded at waist. Either is an easy and graceful position. I 3 5. Arms Folded over the Breast, is a good position of the "arms at rest," and may sometimes be employed as gesture with great significance. The "Calisthenic Gesturings," systematized and arrang- ed for practise some years ago, will be found very efficient for correcting angularities in gesture, and other faults in the movements of the arms. They also contribute to the development of grace and versatility in gesture, and to the encouragement of spon- taniety in physical expression. That this system has proved superior to others, in the experience of the author and many of his pupils, is owing largely to its being founded upon the correct idea of the source of gesture, and of the true province and scope of the exercises for the attainment of the greatest flexibility and freedom of the muscular system. It is not assumed that other exercises, having the same end in view, might not be given with profit to some ; but to the student who has not years to devote to the study and practice of physical expression, the exercises given in this book will be found quite sufficient. A few things well done is generally better than many things half or poorly done. Before commencing the exercises under Calisthenic Gesturings, Calisthenics proper should be practiced as an important, if not a necessary preparation. Positions and steps should also be mastered, so that well-balanced and graceful attitudes may be maintained, and ease and grace of movement acquired. Initial Movement of the Arm. — Much impor- tance is attached to this movement. 14 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. It forms the commencement of almost every gesture made with the arms. It is the beginning of that grace- ful unfolding of the arm, which starts at the shoulder, passes successively to the elbow and to the wrist and ter- minates at the finger-tips. Perfect relaxation of the arm, is the first essential in the Initial Movement. Then raise the upper arm so that the elbow will be al- most horizontal with the shoulder — the fore-arm, hands and fingers remaining relaxed. It will be noticed that the fore-arm swings toward the front of the body, and that the hand curves downward from the wrist. From this Initial Movement, but without a pause, the arm unfolds in whatever direction the gesture takes. This unfolding from the shoulder to the finger-tips may be likened to the unwinding of a whip-lash, and the quick turn of the hand and fingers at the completion of the movement, to the cracker at the end of the lash, giving the snap or accent to the gesture. This flexible turn of the hand at the wrist is called the ictus, and is to the gesture what accent is to the word, or emphasis to the sentence. The almost universal law of gesture requires the termination or ictus to fall directly upon the accented syllable of the emphatic word. If it falls but a moment either before or after, the force of the gesture is weakened or wholly destroyed. To illustrate : Repeat the following climax sentence with the degree of earnestness required for its proper ex- pression, and have the gestures fall just before the most emphatic words as marked (g) and note the effect. I tell you, though (g) you, though the whole (g) world, though an ANGEL from (g) HEAVEN, were to declare the truth of it, I (g) WOULD not believe it. 1 5 Give it next with the gestures terminating immediately after the emphases, as follows : I tell you, though you (g), though the whole WORLD (g), though an angel from HEAVEN (g), were to declare the truth of it, I would not (g) believe it. Now give it with the gestures falling, as they should, exactly upon the emphatic words, and mark the increased effect. I tell you, though you, though the whole world, though an angel from HEAVEN, were to declare the truth of it, I would not believe it. The difference is not only seen, but felt by both speaker and hearer. But this law of concentration is so much a part of our being, that, where there is harmony between mind and body, there is no great danger of going wrong. Physical and vocal culture are among the best means for attaining this intellectual harmony. They will de- velop in the speaker an aptness and a disposition to con- centrate voice and action upon the most significant ideas. INTELLECTUAL BASIS AND SCOPE OF GESTURE. Basis. — i. Gestures that terminate below the horizontal line, are said to be gestures of the Will. Besides expressing determination and purpose, they are used to indicate in- feriority. 2. Gestures terminating on the horizontal line, belong to 1 6 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. the realm of the Intellect. They are usually employed in historic and geographic ideas, and in general allusions. 3. Those that terminate above the horizontal line may be regarded as gestures of the Imagination, since they usually imply an unfolding and lifting toward the ideal. They also denote superiority, freedom, greatness. Scope. — 1. Gestures that terminate to the /t-wz/ are Direct and Individual. They indicate that which is near. 2. Those that terminate to the oblique (a direction half way between the front and sides) are General in their scope, and are less definite and less emphatic than those made to the front. 3. Gestures that terminate at the sides are inclusive — all- embracing; hence, express Universality. 4. To the backward-oblique, gestures express Past Time, or putting in the past. They indicate remoteness and obscurity. The above should be given a liberal interpretation. It may serve as a general, but not always a special guide in the study and application of gesture. The exercises for practice are arranged under four series and four directions. The Four Series are the Front, the Oblique, the Lateral (sides) and the Backward-oblique. The Four Directions are the Descending, the Horizon- tal, the Ascending and the Zenith. By using the initials of the words representing the Series and Directions, we get the following convenient GESTURE. 1 7 Notation of Gesture. — i. f., front ; o., oblique ; 1., lateral, and b. o., back- ward-oblique. 2. d., descending ; h., horizontal ; a., ascending ; and z., zenith. From these we form the following combinations : d. f.j descending front. h. f., horizontal " a. f., ascending " z., zenith, (directly overhead). d. o., descending oblique. h. o., horizontal " a. o., ascending " d. 1., descending lateral. h. 1., horizontal " a. 1., ascending " d. b. o., descending backward-oblique. h. b. o., horizontal " " a. b. o., ascending " " Additional Notations. — r. h., means right hand. 1. h., left hand. b. h., both hands. s., supine, (palm of the hand up). p., prone, ( " " " down). v., vertical, (palm turned outward). ind., index hand. h. ind., half index hand. cli., hand clinched. cla., hands clasped. 1 8 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. cro., hands crossed on breast. fol., " and arms folded. rep., gesture repeated. imp., impulse — gesture repeated from elbow or wrist. Still others might be given, but the above will be found sufficient for marking exercises and selections for special drill. It is not advisable to use these notations, nor any of the work in gesture, except as helps in discipline — as means to ends. Explanation of Directions. — To understand the " Series," and the directions in which the gestures termi- nate, in the exercises given for practice, let the student imagine himself standing in the center of a square room, twice his height, and facing to the center of one side. i. Front Series. Then, directly in front, where the floor meets the wall, is d. f.; half way up, h. f. ; where the wall meets the ceiling, a. f. ; and the center of the ceil- ing, z. 2. Oblique Series. The right and left lower corners of the room is d. o. ; half way up in the corners, h. o. ; the upper corners, a. o. ; and overhead, z. 3. Lateral Series. Where the floor meets the sides of the room directly to the right and left is d. 1. ; half way up, or the center of the sides, h. 1. ; at the ceiling, a. 1. ; and overhead, as before, z. 4. Backward-oblique Series. The lower backward- oblique corners is d. b. o. ; half way up in the corners, h. b. o.; the top corners, a. b. o. ; while overhead always represents the zenith — z. !9 How to Practice. — Take right foot position. With arms at side and perfectly relaxed, carry the arm through the Initial movement, letting it unfold in the required direction, and terminating with a quick turn of the hand at the wrist, with the fingers well extended. Prac- tice each series (commencing with the front) and in each direction — giving the descending first in the Series. Go through each, first with the r. h., then with the 1. h., then with b. h., and finally with the right, left and both hands alternately. In each, repeat three to five times. The descending movements are made at about forty- five degrees below the horizontal line, and the ascending at the same angle above. Do not spread the fingers, but let them and the thumb retain their most natural position. The movements to the zenith (z) will be found the . most difficult to execute with grace. Give them thus : Commencing with Initial Movement, carry the right hand through a double curve represented by an elong- ated S reversed, terminating directly overhead, and, as in the other movements, with a quick turn of the hand at the wrist. The left hand is carried through a similar curve repre- sented by an elongated S, but not reversed. Then give the same with both hands. In the last, it will be found that the face is, as it were, enclosed in an oval frame by the upper half of each of the curves. This idea, though a little far-fetched, will, at least, serve as a help to get the required movement. These, as well as the other movements in Calisthenic Gesturings, are a little exaggerated as gestures, to counter- act the too-prevalent tendency toward straight lines. 20 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. In the "backward oblique Series," there are no "both hand " gestures. Counting "one" for the right, "two" for the left, and " three " for both hands in the practice of exercises through the different directions will add precision, and help to time the movements when several are practicing together. After a degree of proficiency is acquired in these exer- cises, the following sentences, that call for gestures in each of the different directions, may be practiced as a means for encouraging application and versatility. RIGHT HAND SUPINE. Terminate the gestures with the hand well opened, the inner edge of the hand inclined a little downward, and with the fingers and thumb in their natural positions — neither pressed together nor spread apart. A partially closed or cramped hand weakens the gesture. In the following examples, the words printed in italics^ and not indicated with " notations of gesture," are to be gestured at the discretion of the pupil. When the nota- tion of the "hand " is omitted, the supine (s.) is under- stood. Front Series — r. h. f.: i. See the prize that lies before thee. d. 2. I extend to you the hand of friendship. h. imp. 3. The noonday sun looked down, and saw — not one. 4- Give me liberty, or give me death. Oblique Series — r. h. o.: i. Be firm in the cause; d. 2. trust none but friends ; h. 3. let your aims be high ; a. 4. and your watchword, liberty. Lateral Series — r. h. 1.: 1. I acknowledge the charge. d. " 2. Bring in all the evidence you desire ; h. 3. let the light of day shine in upon my deeds ; 4. for heaven knows I am innocent of crime. Backward-oblique Series— r. h. b. o.: 1. Let the dead Past bury its dead ! d -. Act — act in the living Present ! Heart within, and God o'erhead ! 2. Free as the torrents are that leao our rocks, and h. ploiv our valleys, without asking leave. 3. Look on that narrow stream, a silver thread, high on a. Imp. the mountain's side. 2 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 4. Honor the charge they made, Honor the Light Brigade, Noble six hundred ! BOTH HANDS SUPINE. Front Series — b. h. f.: 1. Speak, mother, speak ! lift up thy head. d. 2. What was Caesar, that stood upon the bank of that stream ? A traitor, bringing war and pestilence into the heart of that country. h. 3. God pity them! God pity them, wherever they a. may be. 4. Awake, arise ! or be forever fallen. Oblique Series — b. h. o.: 1. Shall we now contaminate our fingers with base d. bribes, 2. And sell the mighty space of our large honors, for h. so much trash as may be grasped thus? 3. Thy voice sounds like a prophet's word, And in its hollow tones are heard The thanks of millions yet to be. a. 4. Arm, arm ! it is — it is the cannon's opening roar. GESTURE. 23 Lateral Series — b. h. 1.: 1. I wash my /lands of the whole affair. d. 2. And is this all the world has gained by thee, h. Thou first and last of fields ! king-making victory ? 3. But one sun lights the day \ By night, ten thousand shine. a. 4. Rise, fathers, rise ! 'tis Rome demands your help. RIGHT HAND PRONE. The primary signification of the Prone Hand is Super- position — one thing above another. But in a broader sense, it is associated with Repressive Emotion and Un- desirableness. It is often used in the expression of sadness and grief, and sometimes in scorn. The latter, however, generally employs the Vertical Hand. The antithesis of the two hands, Supine and Prone, might be expressed as follows : The Supine Hand permits, the Prone, rejects ; the Su- pine impels, the Prone restrains ; the Supine is open, frank, genial ; the Prone is aversive, somber, evasive. The Prone Hand is less frequently, employed than the Supine ; but, to facilitate its use, the same series in Calis- thenic Gesturings should be practiced, and with due care as to the difference in the turn of the hand at the com- pletion of the gesture. In the Supine Hand, the ictus is made with the turn of the fingers toward the back of the 24 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. hand ; in the Prone, the gesture terminates with the turn of the fingers toward the palm.. Front Series — r. h. p. f.: i. Dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return. d. 2. Stay thy impious hand ! h. 3. Ye gods, withhold your wrath ! a. Oblique Series — r. h. p. o. : 1. It was this morning that the sun rose bright upon his hopes, — it sets upon his grave. d. imp. 2. Peace, dreamer ! thou hast done well. h. 3. The stars went out, and down the mountain gorge a. the wind came roaring. Lateral Series — r. h. p. L: 1. The wind died away into a perfect calm. d. 2. And the death-angel flaps his broad wing o^er the wave. h. 3. So darkly glows yon thunder-cloud, ind. That swathes, as with a purple shroud Benledi's distant hill. ind. 25 Backward-oblique Series — r. h. p. b. o.: i. But she, With the flash of a glance, had shown to me The wretch I was, and the self I still d. Might strive to be. 2. Away! slight man. h. 3. His voice was heard amid the thunderings of Mount Sinai. BOTH HANDS PRONE. Front Series — b. h. p. f. : 1. I saw the corse, the mangled corse ! d. 2. On horror's head, horrors accumulate! h. 3. And, having wound their loathsome track to the top of this huge, mouldering monument of Rome, hang hissing at the nobler man below ! Oblique Series : — b. h. p. o. 1. Sons of dust, in reverence bow ! d. 2. The veil of night came sloivly down. h. 3. Hung be the heavens with black ! 26 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Lateral Series : — b. h. p. 1. i. When a great and good man dies, the people are overwhelmed with grief. d. 2. Sorrow mantles the whole earth. h. 3. Let the triple rainbow rest o'er all the mountain tops. Besides the Supine and Prone Hands, there are the following : THE VERTICAL HAND. The signification of this Hand is partly embodied in the Prone ; but a close analysis of the two shows a difference. The prone hand puts down, puts under. The vertical repels, puts away. 1. Back, back ! I say ! Face me not, villain. v.h. 2. The face of the Lord is against them that do evil. v. o. a. 3. Avaunt ! and quit my sight ! V. 1. h. 4. Away, away ! and follow me not ! v.b. o.h. BOTH HANDS VERTICAL. To the front , denotes abhorrent repulsion or fear ; to the oblique, the same, but more general — the danger less 27 imminent ; to the sides, expansion, disruption, dispersion. The preparation for most of the lateral vertical hand gestures, is the crossing of the hands over the breast, with palms turned outward. i. The gate is burst; a ruffian band . V. o. h. Rush in, and savagely demand, With brutal voice and oath profane, The startled boy for exile's chain. 2. Angels and ministers of grace, defend us. v.o. a. 3. Bursts the wild storm of terror and dismay. v. 1. h. THE INDEX HAND. The Index Hand, as its name implies, indicates. It not only points out and designates particular per- sons and objects, but, analogically, calls attention to par- ticular ideas. While the Open Hand is used to extend the idea, the Index Hand is used to limit it. Compare the following : 1. Let us examine the whole subject before us. b. h. o. h. 2. Now let us look more closely at this particular point. THE CLINCHED HAND. If we consider Emphasis as consisting of the three degrees, — emphasis, special emphasis, and extreme 28 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. emphasis, — then the Open Hand would denote the first, the Index Hand the second, and the Clinched Hand the third . The last is employed in very emphatic asser- tion, in fierce, denunciation, and in vehement express- ion of the more violent passions of the mind. i. Let us do, or die ! cli. 2. Thy THREATS, thy MERCIES I DEFY ! cli. 3. You blocks, you stones, you worse than senseless cli. rep. things ! Both hands clinched intensifies the expression. 1. And I'll taunt you with my latest breath, and fight r. h. cli. you till I die. b. h. cli. 2. I've had wrongs to stir a fever in the blood of age, And make the infant's sinews strong as steel. b. h. cli. 3. The strength of brass is in your toughened sinews. b. h. cli. 4. The compassion of an assassin who feels a mo- di.; mentary shudder as his weapon begins to cut. b. h. cli. HANDS CLASPED. [Fingers interlaced and closed.] The Clasped Hands is the language of distress. The hands are employed thus in supplication, earnest entreaty, agony, and in despair. They are brought to the breast, carried up, down, out, or in any direction the emotion dictates or impels. i. For heaven's sake, Hubert, let me not be bound ! cla. f. h. 2. O, my son Absalom / my son, my son Absalom / cla. f. h. imp. Would God I had died for thee, O, Absalom, my son, cla. f. a. cla. f. h. my son ! cla. f. d. HANDS FOLDED. In this the fingers of the right hand are all placed be- tween the thumb and fingers of the left, the thumb of the right hand crossing that of the left. This position of the hands is regarded as expressing humility and self-abasement, and is sometimes used in very earnest sacred address. The Folded Hands may also be used for the same purposes as the Clasped Hands. WRINGING HANDS. The wringing of the hands denotes the deepest despair. The movement is often accompanied by writhings of the body. i. Nor man nor God will heed my shrieks! All's lost ! 3© VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. HANDS CROSSED ON BREAST. This is not the folding of the arms, as given in the positions of the Arms at Rest. The hands are placed flat on the breast — the right hand crossing the left. This position of the hands expresses humility, veneration and sacred avowal. i. For us, and for our tragedy, Here stoopi?ig to your clemency, We beg your hearing patiently. 2. In thee, O Lord, do I put i7iy trust. 3. I acknowledge my transgressions. HANDS APPLIED. In this, the palms are placed together in front of the breast, the extended thumb and fingers of one hand ex- actly covering the thumb and fingers of the other, — used in prayer and adoration. It is the position of the hands given by painters and sculptors to children in the attitude of prayer. Hence it is employed to denote the petitions of the innocent. Under Significant Gestures, will be given other posi- tions and uses of the hands. The gestures assigned to the right hand may also be executed with the left, but the right is always given the preference in single gestures. The province of the left hand is, first, to designate persons or objects situated at the left of the speaker; second, to be employed alternately with the right, to de- note opposite or contrasted ideas, persons or things ; and third,, to be used with the right when both are required simultaneously. In regard to direction, the speaker should avoid "literal and mechanical exactness." " The graces of gesture are simplicity, smoothness and variety.'' These depend largely upon the flexibility and strength of the muscular system. Strength is not incompatible with ease and grace, though many exercises of the heavier gymnastics are cal- culated to develop strength and hardness of muscle at the expense of flexibility. "Rigidity of muscle and stiffness of body destroy graceful action." Preparation for the Gesture, is often of more importance than the gesture itself. In grand and lofty ideas, the arms move slowly and take a wide sweep. If the thought be sharp and passionate, the m6vements of the arms are correspondingly straight and angular. Carrying the hand gracefully and skillfully from one position to another in a series of gestures where each preceding gesture is the preparation for the one that fol- lows, requires much careful practice before the highest excellence can be reached. Each should be appropriate to the particular idea it helps to express, and the passage from one into the other should be in a natural series, and made with as much significance, grace and precision as the language will admit. There is a peculiar gesture, that may be used in some cases with marked effect, called the opening shake. — The arm and Index Hand to the front moves, at the 32 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. elbow and wrist, up and down through a gradually less- ening arc, but increasing in rapidity to the conclusion of the sentence, and closing with an abrupt and short stroke of the whole arm. i. Who distinctly and audaciously tells the Irish peo- ple that they are not e?ititled to the same privileges as Englishmen ? " Gesture is that part of Elocution which appeals to the eye." Since it relates to Position and Poise, as well as to Movement, the positions of the reader and speaker should always be in harmony with the character of the thought. The movements in gesture should be characterized by ease and grace, and they should always be made in per- fect accord with an untrammeled nature. Particular forms of gesture must not be regarded as absolute. As in modulation and emphasis, the exact method of ex- pression may vary with different speakers, and with the different moods of the same speaker. The temperament, habits and manerisms of the individual may have much to do with the frequency or the infrequency of gesture. Those accustomed to gesture too much or shift their po- sition too frequently, should be restrained in their action until the fault is corrected. A good exercise for this is to recite with energy, but without moving the arms or changing the position, selections that require consider- able gesture. Those inclined to gesture too little should enter more fully into the spirit of the recitation, and both encourage and create dispositions towards increased action. 33 MISCELLANEOUS EXAMPLES. In the following sentences, the student should use his own judgment as to what is right or best in the way of gesture. This will help to encourage and develop an intelligent and cultured individuality in physical express- ion, that no student of elocution can afford to ignore. These, and the other exercises in gesture, will help the diligent student to at least an approximate attainment of that high ideal in which art becomes nature. Nowhere is the old motto "ars celare artem" so applicable as in the department of physical expression. The at- tainment of "the art to hide the art," is the consum- mation of all elocutionary practice. i. Up with my banner on the wall, — The banquet board prepare ; Throw wide the portals of my hall, And bring my armor there ! 2. Then each at once his falchion drew, Each on the ground his scabbard threw, Each looked to sun, and stream, and plain, As what they ne'er might see again ; Then foot, and point, and eye opposed, In dubious strife they darkly closed. 3. But yesterday, the word of Caesar might Have stood against the world ; now lies he there, And none so poor to do him reverence. 4. I will not do them wrong, I rather choose To wrong the dead, to wrong myself, and you, Than I will wrong such honorable men. 34 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 5. His life was gentle ; and the elements So mixed in him, that Nature might stand up, And say to all the world, " This was a man. 6. They reeled, shook, staggered back, Then turned and fled. 7. Must I budge? Must I observe you? Must I stand and crouch under your testy humor ? 8. I saw the- breast that had nourished me, trampled by the hoof of the war-horse ; the bleeding body of my father flung amidst the blazing rafters of our dwelling. 9. Look on that narrow stream, a silver thread high on the mountain's side. Slenderly it winds, but soon is swelled by others meeting it, until a torrent, terrible and strong, it sweeps to the abyss, where all is ruin. 10. And so, fellow-gladiators, must you, and so must I, die like dogs. 11. As some tall cliff that lifts its awful form, Swells from the vale, and midway leaves the storm. Though round its breast the rolling clouds are spread, Eternal sunshine settles on its head. 12. Liberty unsheathed his sword, necessity stained, victory returned it. 13. Who brands me on the forehead, breaks my sword, Or lays the bloody scourge upon my back, Wrongs me not half so much as he who shuts The gates of honor on me — turning out The Roman from his birthright ; and, for what ? To fling your offices to every slave ! 35 i4- Ye guards of liberty, I'm with you once again ! I call to you With all my voice ! — I hold my hands to you To show they still are free ! 15. I care not how high his situation, how low his character, how contemptible his speech ; whether a privy counselor or a parasite, my answer would be a blow ! 16. One touch to her hand and one word in her ear, — When they reached the hall door where the charger stood near ; So light to the croup the fair lady he swung, — So light to the saddle before her he sprung. 17. Hence from my sight ! Thou Satan, get behind me ! Go from my sight ! I hate and I despise thee. 18. And this man Is now become a god ; and Cassius is A wretched creature and must bend his body If Csesar carelessly but nod to him. 19. The bride kissed the goblet, the knight took it up; He quaffed off the wine, and he threw down the cup. 20. He knew me, smiled faintly, gasped and died ; — the same sweet smile upon his lips that I had marked, when, in adventurous boyhood, we scaled the lofty cliff to pluck the first ripe grapes and bear them home in childish tri- umph. 21. If ye are beasts, then stand here like fat oxen, waiting for the butcher's knife ! If ye are men, follow me ! 36 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 22. I see you stand like greyhounds in the slips, Straining upon the start ; — the game's afoot; Follow your spirit ; and, upon this charge, Cry, Heaven for Harry, England, and St. George ! 23. Oh, visions of glory ! How dazzling they seem ! 24. Avert, O God ! the wrath of thy indignation ! • 25. Flashed all their sabers bare,' Flashed as they turned in air, Sabering the gunners there, Charging an army, while All the world wondered ; Plunged in the battery smoke, Right through the line they broke ; Cossack and Russian Reeled from the saber stroke Shattered and sundered ; Then they rode back, but not, Not the six hundred. Avoid too frequent gesturing. The temperament of the speaker, the spirit of the language, and the nature of the occasion, must determine the degree of physical expression that would be appropriate. Avoid too frequent repetitions of the same gesture. Do not mistake grimace for facial expression. Facial gymnastics may be practiced with profit to make flexible the muscles of the face, as exercises in calisthenics for the purpose of adding elasticity and grace to the move- ments of the body and limbs. But the means must not be mistaken for the object and end of the practice. The features, as with all the other aids to physical ex- pression, must be shaped from within — not from without. SIGNIFICANT GESTURES 37 In true expression, they are prompted by the thought and feeling. The attainment of grace, versatility, appropri- ateness and spontaneity in gesture should be the student's highest endeavor, as it is the crowning excellence in phys- ical expression. SIGNIFICANT GESTURES. Without the hand, no eloquence. — Cressolius. Some strange commotion Is in his brain ; he bites his lip and starts ; Stops on a sudden, looks upon the ground, Then, lays his finger on his temple ; straight Springs out into fast gait ; then, stops again, Strikes his breast hard ; and anon, he casts His eye against the moon ; in most strange postures We have seen him set himself,— Shakespeare, All gestures are relatively significant, just as all thought is relatively emphatic. But what are understood as Sig- nificant Gestures, are those actions, movements or mo- tions in physical expression that have a common origin and an almost universal meaning, They are an inheri- tance from the past, — a legacy we will surely bequeath to those who follow us. They comprise the "traditional stage business " on the theatre of life, to be enacted by generations yet unborn. Gesture, as already stated, ' : s pantomime language — appealing to the eye. The more significant movements and attitudes in gesture constitute a universal language known and read by all. The Egyptians symbolized language by a hand placed under a tongue. 38 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. A forcible or significant gesture often conveys a clearer, idea of the thought thus expressed, than the written or spoken word representing the thought. The infant, long before it knows the meaning of words, interprets the meaning of a frown or smile. Entire dramas were enacted by the ancients with the aid of pantomime alone. These pantomimists were under- stood not only by the Romans, but by foreigners as well. Roscius challenged Cicero that he could express the same idea in more ways by gesture, than the great Roman orator could by words. No less true in oratory than in drama, is the homely saying, "Actions speak louder than words." The following are a few of the more important gestures regarded as significant. Since they are almost self-ex- planatory, the simple enumeration and the brief explana- tions given will be found all that is necessary to a clear understanding of them. The Head. — Quintillian says, "As the head gives the crowning grace to the whole body, so does it principally contribute to the expression of grace in delivery." The poise of the head should be natural — not held erect nor allowed to droop. Its normal position in the attitude of grace is a slight inclination toward the side of the "standing foot." Its movements are suited to the character of the thought and emotions, and are made in perfect harmony with the other physical expressions. The head, to a slight degree, imitates the movements of the hands, and indicates the direction of the step. In fact, a motion of the head, unaccompanied by any other gesture, is considered ungraceful. SIGNIFICANT GESTURES. 39 Shame, Grief and Humility are indicated by the hanging down of the head. Arrogance and Pride, by its being thrown back and a little to one side. Firmness and Courage, by holding it in an upright and firm position. Affirmation and Permission, by the forward nod. Negation and Dislike, by the shaking and tossing of the head back. Languor and Diffidence is implied by the head being allowed to droop or incline to one side. Dislike and Horror is indicated by the averted head. In Attention, the head leans forward ; in Listening, the ear is turned to the front. The Eyes. — The eyes, with their adjuncts, the eye- brows and eyelids, are capable of the most subtle expres- sion. Their power and significance are greater than all the other features combined. "A single look more marks the internal woe, Than all the windings of the lengthened 'oh! ' Up to the face the quick sensation flies, And darts its meaning from the speaking eyes. Love, transport, madness, anger, scorn, despair And all the passions, all the soul is there." The orator and reader who fails to avail himself of the help which comes from the look, and the varied emotions, which the eye may express, can never feel the electric thrill that vibrates between the speaker and hearer. Through the sense of sight, we seem to have the power of "touching each other at a distance." The eyes should be directed to the face of the audience. As a general 40 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. thing, they precede a gesture, and return immediately to the hearer, that the emphasis by voice and action may be augmented by the look. In reading, the eyes should leave the page as often and as long as possible without losing the place. They should be trained to gather at a glance, the whole of each clause or phrase ; and as often as it is safe, the reader should deliver the words looking at the audience. The best time to take the eyes from the book, is near the close of a sentence. The period pause will enable the eyes of the reader to return to the page and catch the be- ginning of the next sentence. The following are some of the most significant uses of the .eyes. In Prayer, the eyes are raised. In Sorrow, they weep. In Anger, they burn. Scorn is expressed by the averted eyes when accom- panied by the other facial means. In Grief or Shame, they are cast down, turned away or hidden. Doubt and Fear cause the eyes to be cast in various directions. In Meditation and Thought, they are fixed on va- cancy. Dr. Austin, in his "Chironomia" says : "As much of the mind is discovered by the countenance, and particularly through the win- dows of the eyes, so all men examine the countenance and look in- to the eyes of those from whom . they have any expectations, or with whom they are to have any important intercourse or deal- ings. Nay, the very domestic animals learn thus to read the hu- man countenance, and the dog is found to look for his surest and most intelligible instructions into his master's eyes." Notwithstanding the late Francois Delsarte contended that the SIGNIFICANT GESTURES. 4 1 eyes themselves, apart from any of the other features, do not ex- press the emotions, but only indicate the direction of the objects that excite the emotions, yet all the other great masters of the Art of Expression hold views on this subject antagonizing those of the great French teacher. Scientists, too, like Chas. Darwin, regard Delsarte as^in error on this point. The Arms and the Hands. — The significance of the Arms and Hands is more marked, and their use of more frequent occurrence than that of all the other means for physical expression combined. Especially is this true in Oratory. Besides the more general uses of the arms and hands heretofore given in the exercises for drill, the following are what elocutionists regard as especially significant in in the expression of certain emotions. Pain or Distress is indicated by placing or pressing the hand upon the head. Shame or Sorrow, upon the eyes. Silence, upon the lips. An Appeal to Conscience or a Declaration of Love, by placing the hand on the breast over the heart. Deep Affliction and Mental or Physical Distress is expressed by both hands pressed in the same position. In Joy the hand is waved. In Dislike and Contempt, flourished. In Friendship, the arms are extended, and sometimes received. The fingers of the right hand placed in the palm of the left, denotes fixing a point, — used in argument. Carried from the lips outward means throwing a kiss. This movement also signifies a giving out or sending forth words in cordiality and candor. 42 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. The Body. — The body in its different attitudes and positions expresses different emotions and conditions of the mind, and thus has its significance in the communi- cation of thought. Resolution and Courage holds the body erect. Pride throws it back. Condescension and Compassion takes a stooping posture. Reverence and Respect is denoted by a bending of the body. Polite recognition, by bowing. Great Humility and Abasement, by utter prostration. The Lower Limbs. — Obstinacy and Bravery are indi- cated by the firmness of the lower limbs. Desire and Courage, by the attitude or act of advanc- ing. Timidity and Weakness, by the bended knees or un~ steadiness of the limbs. In Dislike and Fear, they shrink and retire. In Terror, they start. In Authority and Anger, they stamp. In Submission and Prayer, they kneel. Imitative Gestures may sometimes be employed with good effect in graphic description and in comic styles. The foregoing exercises and instructions in Physical Expression, comprise but a portion of this great depart- ment of Elocution ; but what are given are fundamental, and will be found more than ample for the limited time which the student of elocution generally deems practica- ble to devote to this branch of the subject. ORGANS OF SPEECH. 43 ORGANS OF SPEECH. The study of Elocution presumes some knowledge of the Organs of Speech. Certainly the cultivation and preservation of the voice cannot be so well and so surely effected without such a knowledge, as it can with it. And for the correction of faults in breathing, in the pro- duction of tone, and in articulation, it is not only important, but essential, that a knowledge of the organs of speech be possessed by those who wish to correct such faults in themselves or in others.. The Organs of Speech comprise the Breathing Organs, which furnish and control the breath ; the Vocal Organs, which convert the breath into tone, and which give to voice its various characteristics, such as fullness, resonancy, purity and other qualities ; and the Articula- tor Organs that manufacture the tone and breath into articulate elements of speech. The Breathing Organs. — Of the muscles and organs that furnish and control the breath, the follow- ing are the most important : 1. The Diaphragm, a muscle separating the viscera from the lung cavity. It forms the floor of the chest and the roof of the viscera. 2. The Abdominal Muscles, extending across the abdomen and the waist in front. 3. The Costal, and Intercostal Muscles (from costa, a rib), which are attached to the ribs, and in conjunction with the abdominal muscles and the diaphragm, aid in *4 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. the elevation and depression of the short ribs. This movement is most noticeable in the panting of the tired horse. 4. The Pectoral Muscles, so called from their extend- ing over the pectus or chest. 5. The Thorax, or the cavity, containing the lungs. 6. The Lungs, with their numerous air-cells and tubes all connected and terminating in two tubes — one from each lung, called, 7. The Bronchi, which also join, forming the large tube known as, 8. The Trachea or Wind-pipe. The Vocal Organs. — The Vocal Organs comprise the Larynx or Voice Box, and the Resonance Chambers. The Larynx is situated at the top of the trachea, and consists principally of the following parts : i. The Thyroid Cartilage, composed of two parts, called allce, or wings, which are joined together in front, and form the prominence known as Adam^s Apple. Below this and connecting it to the trachea is, 2. The Cricoid Cartilage, so called from its resem- bling a seal ring — the seal or large portion extending backward, forming the base of the larynx and the founda- tion for the attachment of, 3. The Two Arytenoid or Pyramid Cartilages, which are movable upon their bases, and are employed in approximating or bringing together, 4. The two Vocal Ligaments, which are also called "vocal chords," but more properly, " vocal bands." ORGANS OF SPEECH. 45 The Vocal Ligaments are thin, semi-circular mem- branes, with straight, firm, elastic edges, that approach each other when tone is to be produced.. The outer circular edges are attached to the inside of the larynx. The anterior or front ends of their straight edges are fastened at a common point near the base of the Larynx ; the posterior end of each is attached to the apex of an Arytenoid Cartilage. By the movement of these " pyramid " cartilages upon their bases, the vocal bands are adjusted so as to form a small narrow opening through which the breath passes, and in passing causes the edges of the bands to vibrate. The vibrations produce tone or voice. The pitch of the tone depends chiefly upon the tension of the bands ; and the loudness, upon the strength of their vibrations ; while the fullness, resonancy and volume of the voice depends upon the size and passivity of the resonance chambers, the freedom and elasticity of the vocal ligaments, and the pressure of the supporting air- column, and especially upon the "passive-activity," (a carelessly-careful condition), of all the parts employed in the production of tone. 5. The Glottis. Properly, this is the opening between the vocal bands, but the entrance to the larynx, or its en- tire cavity, is more commonly known by this name. The rim of the glottis forms the upper border of the larynx, the entrance to which is guarded by, 6. The Epiglottis. This is a tongue-shaped cartilage that shuts upon the rim of the glottis whenever we swal- low, thus closing the passage-way to the lungs and pre- venting strangulation. It is attached to a U shaped bone (the os hjoides), to which the tongue is also joined. 46 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. The hyoid is " a floating bone," not forming a part of the skeleton, and is chiefly employed in keeping the parts at the base of the tongue in place. The ordinary condition of the Epiglottis is a position in which it rests against the base of the tongue, allow- ing free inhalation and exhalation of the air in its pas- sage to and from the lungs through the glottis. It is like a trap-door held open by springs that must be pulled upon to be closed. In the act of swallowing it shuts from the front back- ward, allowing the food and saliva to pass safely over the top of the larynx into the oesophagus or " gullet." This act is also accompanied by an elevation of the uvula and soft palate, thus closing the entrance to the nasal passage and preventing food from passing in that direction. Though a useful sentinel, keeping guard over the glottis, in the production of tone the Epiglottis is often a mis- chievous meddler. Any contraction of the muscles about the base of the tongue, or those of the jaw or neck, is apt to contract the muscles that control the action of the epiglottis, causing it partially to close the entrance of the larynx. This has the effect of producing the throaty tone so often heard in uncultivated voices. In fact, it is one of the most common faults in the production of tone. This contraction of the throat is commonly caused by ner- vousness, embarrassment, or undue excitement or haste on the part of the speaker. The habit of cramping the throat is often thus formed until it becomes a "second nature," — very difficult to break up. Hence, an avoidance of any contraction about the throat, is the first essential condition in the proper pro- duction of tone either for speaking or singing. The other vocal organs are, ORGANS OF SPEECH. 47 The Resonance Chambers, comprising, 1. The Trachea, a hollow tube below the larynx; 2. The cavity within the larynx ; 3. The Pharynx or back mouth ; 4. The Mouth proper ; 5. The Vestibule of the nose ; and, 6. The Nasal cavities. The walls that enclose all these variously shaped cham- bers have a delictae ' lining called the mucous membrane, the healthy condition of which has much to do with clear- ness and other qualities of voice. It is within these several cavities that the tone produc- ed by the vibration of the vocal bands is resounded, add- ing much to the various characteristics an'd qualities of of the voice, such as fullness, volume, resonancy, etc. The Resonance Chambers serve the same purpose to the vocal ligaments, that the body of the violin does to the violin strings, or the tube of the clarionet to the tongue of that instrument. There would be but little loudness or character produced by the vibration of the violin strings detatched from the instrument, whatever might be their tension or however great their agitation. It is owing to their position on the body of the violin and the manner of their connection, that the attuned strings of that won- derful instrument are enabled to give forth the sweetest sounds that human mechanism can execute, sounds that almost vie with those produced by that still more won- derful instrument — that divine mechanism — the human Organs of Articulation. — The Articulatory organs are all situated above the larynx. They comprise, 48 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. i. The Hard Palate, or roof of the mouth ; 2. The Soft Palate, forming, with the Uvula, a pendant veil or curtain at the passage-way between the mouth and pharynx ; 3. The Tongue : 4. The Teeth; 5. The Lips ; and, 6. The Walls of the Nose. These are the parts that manufacture, out of the tone and breath, articulate elements of speech. Thus, for example, the element represented by b, is made by obstructing the tone with the compressed lips ; m, by diverting the sound thus formed into the nasal ca- vities, and /, by the sudden separation of the compressed lips, causing a percussive explosion of the breath. By a similar manipulation of tone and breath, with the tip of the tongue pressed against the upper gum of the front teeth, the articulate elements, represented by d, n, and t are produced. So with the back surface of the tongue, brought in contact with the soft palate in the back part of the mouth, the elements symbolized by g, (hard), ng (as in ring) and k, are articulated in like manner. Other explanations of the action and uses of the organs of speech will be given under the respective heads of Breathing, Voice Culture, and Articulation. Since the limitation of knowledge upon any subject of science is inversely to the amount of investigation and study given to the subject, it is to be hoped that the stu- dent of elocution will not confine his knowledge of the Anatomy of the organs of speech to the brief descriptions and explanations given in this manual, but that the little here given will induce him to study the subject as treated BREATHING EXERCISES. 49 in the large anatomical books and charts, and also to avail himself of the use of the laryngoscope, by means of which the vocal bands may be seen in action. BREATHING EXERCISES. The proper development and control of the Breathing Organs, and the correct use of the breath in the ■ produc- tion of tone, are the first and most essential conditions to success in the study and practice of Elocution. No substantial progress can be assured the student who does not give early and special attention to the exer- cises in Breathing. Breath is the chief source of power. It is the "lumber- yard of the orator " — the rough material out of which speech is manufactured. But it is not so much the amount of breath that is de- sirable, as the manner in which it is used. Here, econ- omy is better than quality. Nothing will so soon bank- rupt a voice, as prodigality of breath. CALISTHENIC BREATHINGS. Success in the control of breath depends largely upon the strength and flexibility of the muscles of the waist, particularly the abdominal muscles. What is known as Abdominal or Waist Breathing, is regarded by the best voice culturists and physiologists, as the only correct and normal method. The canary in its cage, the cat on the 50 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. rug, the babe in the cradle, and the red-man in his na- tive wilds, all teach us that the abdominal breathing is nature's method. If you are uncertain what this is, practice the following breathing exercises and notice what takes place at the waist in front : — First, empty the lungs. Then slowly and continuously sip in the air between the partially compressed lips, until the lungs are well filled. You will observe an expansion, or pressing forward at the waist. Then, let out the breath through the compressed lips, as slowly and gently as it was taken in. You will now notice the abdominal muscles relaxing and gradually giving way. This action is essential to correct breathing. The diaphragm, or floor of the lung cavity is lowered during the process of the inhalation of the breath, and raised in the exhalation. The exercise given above may be practiced with great benefit in the following manner. Blowing and Sipping the Breath. — With the hands on the hips, elbows and shoulders well back, and fingers placed upon the abdominal muscles, first empty the lungs by> blowing the air steadily and forcibly through a quill tooth-pick, or any other small tube, held tightly between the lips. Then fill the lungs by sipping the air in through the quill with as much force as you can. This is one of the very best exercises for strengthening the diaphragm and abdominal muscles. Full and Deep Breathing. — With hands in the same position, first exhaust the lungs, pressing the fingers tightly upon the waist in front, and stooping forward a little ; then, while straightening up, fill the lungs slowly, taking in the breath through the nos- trils, until every air-cell is filled. Retain the breath BREATHING EXERCISES. 5 I a short time, and as slowly exhale it. This may be re- . peated several times. While retaining the breath, it is a good practice to pat the chest, waist and sides, by a quick and flexible stroke with the flat of the fingers. If any of the breathing exercises produce dizziness, stop and rest, and then try again. The Same With Audible Expulsion. — A good variation of the above exercise, is to expel the breath audibly, allowing it to impinge on the walls of the throat, or, more particularly, on the rim of the glottis. Practice with different degrees of force. Deep Breathing While Walking may be practiced with great profit in the following manner : With the hands resting on the muscles of the waist, expel the breath while walking, say, five steps ; keep the lungs empty during another five ; inflate them during five more, and retain the breath while walking another five steps ; making one inhalation and one exhalation for every twenty steps. This exercise may be repeated several times daily. Many other calisthenic breathing exercises might be given, but these will be found sufficient. Great impor- tance is attached to emptying the hmgs first in all of the foregoing exercises, that the waist muscles may take their proper action in the inhalation. Remember that the muscles at the waist contract in expelling the breath, and expand in taking it in. The breathing organs may be compared to the old- fashioned fire-bellows. The wind-pipe is the nozzle, the chest, the body of the bellows, and the abdominal and other muscles of the waist, the handles. Now, in work- 52 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. ing the fire-bellows, you would not take hold of the body, but the handles. So the human bellows should be worked, not by the muscles of the upper chest, but by those of the waist — the handles. If the habit of breathing through the nostrils be not already formed, establish it at once. Nothing is so det- rimental to the throat and lungs as habitual breathing through the mouth. The nose is nature's filter. In it the atmosphere is warmed, and the dust and other im- purities strained from the air in its passage to the lungs, thus preventing many throat and lung troubles. Pro- fessor Tyndall says that if he could leave the world a legacy, he would embody it in the words, "Keep your mouth shut." Catlin, the great English physiologist says, "Shut your mouth and save your life." If you find that you sleep with your mouth open, practice clos- ing it tightly upon retiring, and keep it closed as long as consciousness remains. This will soon break up one of the worst habits of which you can be guilty. ELOCUTIONARY BREATHINGS. In speech the breath is utilized in its passage from the lungs. However important the correct inhalation of the breath may be in elocution, its exhalation is of still greater concern, as quality and control of voic depend most largely upon the manner in which the breach is managed in its passage from the lungs. Particular at- tention should therefore be given to the follow- ing exercises. There are three ways of letting out the breath in speech — the effusive, the expulsive, and the ex- plosive. BREATHING EXERCISES. 53 Effusive Breathing. — Inflate the lungs as directed in the calisthenic breathing exercises. Then, with the hands on the hips and fingers pressing gently on the mus- cles of the waist at the sides in front, and with mouth well but gently opened, slowly let out the breath, as soft and as long as possible, making such a sound as is heard in a seashe'll held to the ear. When this sound flows out smoothly, it shows that the student has full control of the breathing. But if the breath be rough or jerky, careful and continued practice will be necessary to correct the fault. Vary the exercise by intoning o on the notes of the musical scale, as soft, smooth and long as possible. This is a good practice for the development of purity of tone. Expulsive Breathing. — Inflate the lungs, then, by a forcible, but steady contraction of the abdominal muscles, shove out the breath, giving the sound of the aspirate h. Practice this several times, but discontinue if it makes you dizzy. Vary the exercise by giving "who," in a forcible whisper, (taking breath after each word), thus : who, who, who. Then whisper the first two, and voice the last, thus: who, who, who. Next whisper the first and speak the last two, thus : who, who, who. Lastly speak all three with the same action as that used in giving the whisper : who, who, who. Do not try to give the words in a pure tone of voice; let them be "breathy." It is not a vocal, but a breathing exercise. Next give the long vowels i and o each several times, in a full, resonant and affirmative tone. As an application of Expulsive Breathing in speech, practice the following sentence, with the same resonance and fullness of voice with which the vowels were given. "Rise, fathers, rise! 'tis rome demands your help." 54 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Explosive Breathing. —Take a full deep breath, and with a strong and sudden contraction of the abdominal muscles, give the aspirate h in an explosive whisper. Then in the same manner the syllable hoo (po as in foot) thus: hoo, hoo, hoo. Vary this practice as with "who" in the preceeding exercise, thus : hoo, hoo, hoo ; hoo, hoo, hoo ; hoo, hoo, hoo. The following, given in a forcible whisper, is a good practice, and one of the best for strength- ening the lungs : flow far/ how sad! — exhausting the lungs on far and sad. It is tiresome and should not be practiced long at a time. Then give the same words in a forcible half whisper, or aspirated tone. Next give the vowels a, e and ow with great force and abruptness. Then embody them in the following words, giving the words with the proper degree of force, and with the required expression, thus : Thou slave ! thou wretch ! thou COWARD ! VOICE CULTURE. 55 VOICE CULTURE. Give me its varying music, the flow of its free modulation. * * * * * * * ^ ^t -- * * •*• * * Our organ can speak with its many and wonderful voices. Play on the soft lute of love, blow the loud trumpet of war, Sing with the high sesquialtro, or, drawing its full diapason, Shake all the air with the grand storm of its pedals and stops. — W. W. Story. A good voice is essential to good elocution. A poor voice may be made good, and a good voice still better, or even excellent, by proper culture. Were the possibilities of voice improvement adequately appreciated, more at- tention would be given to this department by students and teachers of elocution. Instead of being the most neglected branch, it would come to be the most import- ant. James E. Murdoch, teacher, author and actor, says : "In an experience extending over forty years, I have been brought to the conviction that voice culture is what is most needed in the study of elocution." And it is the experience of every other teacher and student who has given the subject that close and careful attention which it deserves. No substantial progress in the cultivation of the voice can be made until a practical knowledge of the production of tone be acquired. This presumes a proper degree of strength, flexibility and control of the muscles of the waist. What is known as the abdominal or diaphragmatic breath- ing is Nature's method for the inhalation and exhalation of the breath, and is the one in which the air-column is best sustained and controlled in its passage through the larynx. 56 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. The first and most essential requirement for the correct production of tone, is a condition of relaxation and free- dom about the throat. All effort must be transferred from the throat to the muscles of breathing. The con- trolling consciousness should be to speak through the throat, and not with it. By doing so the sound will then "lay hold of the throat " and not the throat hold of the sound, as is too often the case. The relaxation of the museles about the throat — especially those of the jaw and epiglottis — will render impossible that "throaty voice," so disastrous to good speaking, and which is as painful to the hearer as it is hurtful to the speaker. This, as well as most of the other faults in the produc- tion of tone, may be corrected, and a pure, resonant and agreeable voice developed by an intelligent and patient practice in right methods. While all the exercises given under articulation, modu- lation and expression will be helpful for the culture and development of the voice, the following are specially ad- apted to that purpose, and will be found particularly beneficial for correcting the worst faults in the produc- tion of tone. These suggestions and directions are as important to the student of singing as to the student of elocution, and the exercises which follow will be found as valuable to the one as to the other. A short practice in full, deep breathing should precede each vocal exercise. Since the use of certain terms cannot be avoided in the explanation of exercises in voice culture, it becomes necessary to define them here. VOICE CULTURE. 57 Time relates to duration. Its elements are Quantity^ Movement and Pause. Quantity relates to the duration of voice upon an ele ment, syllable or word. Movement, to the degree of rapidity with which the words are uttered. It includes Pause, which refers to the suspension of the voice be- tween words, sentences and paragraphs. Quality relates to kind of voice. There are two kinds- — Pure and Impure. In Pure quality, all the breath emitted in the produc- tion of tone is vocalized. In impure quality, the tone is more or less mixed with unvocalized breath. Pure quality may be subdivided into, i. Simple Pure, used in cheerful conversation and in light styles of reading and speaking ; and, 2. Orotund, a full, round and resonant tone, employed in expressing grand thoughts, deep feelings, and holy emotions, — such as sublimity, courage, veneration, rever- ence and awe. Impure quality comprises, i. The Aspirate or WmspeR, in which there is little or no vocality. It is used to denote secrecy and caution, and is employed in horror and fear. 2. The Pectoral or "Chest Tone," which reverber- ates in the larynx and trachea. It is given on the lower notes of the voice, and is employed in solemnity and to 58 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. denote the supernatural. Anger, scorn and despair, in their milder forms, also employ this kind of voice. 3. The Guttural quality, which is a very harsh and throaty tone. It is most significant in revenge, and is employed in intense anger, scorn and rage. Various combinations of the above are employed in mixed emotions, and are frequently designated by such names as aspirated pectoral, asp. orotund, asp. guttural, pectoral orotund, asp. pect. orotund, etc., but their desig- nation is generally more perplexing than useful, and their consideration should be relegated to the larger treatises on elocution. Pitch relates to the degree of elevation or depression of the voice. In music, it refers to the particular place in the scale on which tone is sounded. In elocution it relates to the general or prevailing pitch in speech. In voice, pitch depends upon the number of vibrations made by the vocal ligaments in their production of tone. The number of vibrations increases with the pitch, doubling with each octave. An Octave comprises five whole and two half tones, and includes seven notes known by the syllables do, re, me, fa, sol, la, si, and the repetition of the first {do), com- pleting the octave. PRODUCTION OF TONE. Pure Tone. — 1. Prolong in the musical voice in as soft and pure a tone as possible. Commence on " C," or on any note in about the middle pitch, prolonging the VOICE CULTURE. 59 sound with the same degree of loudness on each note within an easy compass of the voice, and at the same time intently listening to the tone produced that you may detect any imperfection in its quality. This will educate the ear as well as the voice, an important matter, as that organ gives us the highest standard, and at the same time is the only practical guide as to quality, pitch and movement. In this exercise, never force the voice into a higher or lower pitch than it can easily reach, and always keep the tone pure, smooth and agreeable. "Whenever the voice breaks into a rough, aspirated, throaty or other disagreeable quality, stop at once ; then let go the muscles of the throat, drop the jaw, let the tongue lie flat and perfectly relaxed, take a comforta- ble breath, and begin again. 2. In a pure and resonant voice, give ah on the same notes as in the above exercise. Let each tone be preced- ed by a full breath taken in by the expansion of the ab- dominal muscles. Commence gently, gradually in- crease the sound to the middle, and as gradually diminish it to a delicate finish. Remember to control the voice by the muscles of breathing, and not with the throat, and have the increase and diminish of the tone equal. In all these exercises for the improvement of the voice, it should be the constant aim of the student to transfer the effort from the throat to the waist — from the organs of vo- cality to the organs of breathing. If possible, let him forget he has a throat, thinking only of the correct action of the abdominal muscles and of the quality of the tone produced. The tone should always be pure and reso- nant, and the action of the waist-muscles gentle and yet firm, gradually increasing in their contraction with the demand for increased fullness and loudness. 60 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 3. Vary the above exercise by shoving out the voice with energy on the first part of the sound, and letting it gradually diminish to a close. Instead of "ah," give the seven monophthong vowels in the order found in the Table of Elementary Sounds. Commence on middle "C," as in the exercises just given, and run to the " C " above, giving each succeeding vowel on a higher pitch, thus : e, a, a, ah, aw, 0, 00, e. A repetition of ", as in barb, curb, bulb, web, sob. deed, dude, made, goad, bade, gag, rug, lag, give, gauge, judge, jet, jam, cage, seige. valve, vim, vale, live, wave. thither, thine, breathe, scythe, zone, zigzag, whizz, maze, size, azure, treasure, leisure, vision, usual. as in maim, me, come, room, home, nine, now, never, lane, on. ding-dong, bang, singing, slung. Liquids. — 31. 1, as in lull, shall, lily, toll, bell. 32. r (rough), as in run, roll, drum, trill, roar. 33. r (smooth), " war, car, clear, fair, were. 2 I. d, 22. Sj 23- j(dzh), ■ 24. T, 25- th, 26. z, 2 7- xii, asa 28. 7 s. — III, as 29. n 5 30. H^ ? Coalescents. — 34- W 5 35- >5 Explo dents. — 36. 37- 38. 39- ch (tsh) as in we, wire, wait, was, won. " yew, yawl, your, yellow, yes. as in peep, putty, spite, spurn, stop. " tight, hat, teeth, hate, tear. " kick, whack, kite, luck, wreck. ), " church, charm, fetch, touch, wretch. Continuants. 40. f 5 as ir 41. th, a 42. S, « 43- Sh, " 44. h ? a 45- wh. (hw), 72 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. as in fief, fife, cough, staff, life. thick, thumb, thirst, mouth, breath, sense, pass, miss, seem, hiss, shame, pshaw, lash, bush, hush, hence, hie, ho, howl, here, as in which, why, when, where. The Dipthongs are each formed by the union of a short and long monophthong element as follows : (i) 5 bv the union of 16, and 1. (Pi), " " 17, " 1. (011)5 " " 16, " 7. (11), " " 12, " 7. It will be noticed that the first element in each com- bination is abrupt and short, and that the last is long and obscure. Combinations of Elements. In the practice of Tables II. and IV., following, — 1. Prolong the monophthong and diphthong vocals in the combinations, in a full, smooth and musical voice, — first in the " monotone " and then in the " swell," and each in three degrees of pitch — the middle, high and low. Practice first down the columns and then across. The prolongation of the vowel in the monotore may be indicated thus : Be-e-e-e-e, ba-a-a-a-a, &c. ; and in the swell thus : Be — E — e, ba — A — a, &c. 2. Give the same combinations in the speaking voice in a full, resonant and affirmative tone — running the voice down to the lowest note of its compass. Pronounce the syllables in a free and natural manner, such as would ARTICULATION. 7 3 be used in an earnest but dignified reply to an unwelcome question. 3. Then give the syllables alternately in the rising and falling slides, as in asking and answering a question, in a very earnest manner, letting the voice slide from near- ly the lowest to the highest pitch of its compass in the question, and from nearly the highest to the lowest 'in the answer. In order to be sure of the right inflection, it may be necessary for some to give the syllables first in connection with such words as " did you say " and "no, I said," thus: Did you say be? No, I said ba. After sufficient practice, drop the " Did you say," and "Yes, I said," giving the syllables above in the same manner as when using the words. The exercise may be varied by giving both inflections continuously on the same syllable. 4. An excellent practice involving many of the ele- ments of vocal expression, such as pitch, force, stress, climax, transition, inflection, &c, is the following : Commence on a low pitch and in subdued force, and give each syllable with the falling slide, increasing the pitch and force to " boo," and hold this on the slide into a low pitch ; then, after a marked pause, give the last four combinations in the monotone, in long quantity, in a low- er pitch and on the descending scale, making the ca- dence-slide on the syllable " bu," thus : boo bo baw ba bi ba boi ba bow be bu 74 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. The interest and profit of the above exercise may be much enhanced by giving the syllables forming the cli- max series with increasing earnestness, and then adding an expression of solemnity to the syllables given in the monotone. 5. In combining the subvocals and aspirates with the short vocals, give the latter with percussive force in a clear and ringing sound. In the practice of Tables III. and V. bring out the subvocals and aspirates very distinctly. A good practice, but a difficult exercise, is to give the subvocals, in the combinations, with both the rising and the falling slides. All the tables of combinations below should he prac- ticed until thoroughly mastered. £ o >, £ o ""> (UrtrtcjrtOO ._ O O 3 .-,rtc3030 £ o >. £ o ^ (UrtrtoSrtOO ._ O O 3 ._aJ0riri03C co££££££££ £ £ £ £ £££;;£££> "3 « £ O >^ £ O 5^ ^^22222 •- g 2 S .~^£ O <^ co rt -O^rtrtrtOO .-,00" ._^ £ o ^Cn CJcirtrtrtCO ._ O O 3 .-,- ^ o ^ ^ , £ O 55 lo (UrtrtrtrtOO ._ O O 3 .-aiUririODO Si £ O ^ £ O *^"3- (UrtrtrtrtOO ._, O O 3 .— rt rt O 3 O ^M>>>>>>>> >>>> >>>>>>>> U ^ £ o >, £ c . £/ (U rt rt rt _rt ^O ^O .^OO _3 ._ , £ O n Q rt rt rt rt O O ._ O O 3 ._,> £ O W m , £ c O OrtrtrtrtOC .„ O O 3 ._oortrt030 < NJ3J3J3^^J^J2 ,0-0-0,0 ,0-0-0-0,0-0-0.0 w«-~-£~o -">,£„ o uHrirtdriOO ._T O O 3 .-T-.(DcSgScjcjOO .2 OOP .P C bO £ M r C W uo ^ M M M) M W) C ^ObAcppp^PO rj .3 P P c^CCGCCC 1 fOCUrtrtcjcjOO .p O O' P .HU(DaJn!030 £ P p P ON G C ■i £ O .5 P £ £ c P C P M P rt a! aS ctf Z O O G 3 .P O ■v rt rt O P c X> r* 6 P g g £ g O _j £ 5 g £ £ £ £ g g g N P (U a Oj S cd O O .p '5 p ""' CU c rt O £ p -p ^ 'n N N N &E O p: N p S3 N SJ rP N rP $ w n > K > > « ^ >>>>£> o ;> .^;p> ^>>>>>>o SOa3rtd'rtOO .POOP .POJOJrtcSOPO .-p-* o o p :p-' o b/D.PJ E p" U ~ > _r _r !^ ~ g p - r P -o -o P3 2 ,0. £ ._ p o h^ OcjrtrtrtOO .-OOP ._a>OrtCv$OPO ^^-^^ o , ,Jh O r^^P -tiOortcsOai; <} K>. 00 d\ o' « « eo 4 lovo noo" ds VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. « !£?€ * £ i 6 £ S I ^ £ S ■* -g^^^^^^o ^^■^OJrtrtrirtOO .£ O O 3 .SiaJOrtcjOPO ^ "3- en ajrtrtcirtCO ,2 o O a .~0;> g w ^ if* in v> w vi v, O ^l-wDrtcirtrtOO .i£ o O 3 .£^^<^_ t+ _i^i + _< H _t*_<+-iO ^sTi-<^artrtrtrtOO .1=1 O O 3 h5^ ^ M _^^t^MM^^O g: ro^i U rt d ri rt O O .-3:003 .'3a)a)cjci030 '. rO+jDrtrtrtrtOO .-3. O O 3 .-jjiUricj030 > " -. p - a ~o ^ c a a ^ a o o^^— n aa&ao«&o ptj CO Oh ctf c3 O 3 O m ^3 J a 8=9. SI g~°l: c *Ss=SfgsJ "a;rtO-04=„ C-i y/cl. — orb'd, sobb'd, ebb'd, prob'd. The child moaned and sobbed itself to a gentle sleep. foclst. — prob'dst, stabb'dst, fib'dst, snubb'dst. Thou snubb'dst and stabb'dst him to the quick. 1)1. —blow, bubble, blue, trebble, blaze. I bubble into eddying bays, I babble on the pebbles. 80 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. folz. — pebbles, gabbles, roubles, stubbles. His troubles followed fast in the footsteps of his foibles. blst. — humbl'st, nibbl'st, babbl'st, troubPst. Hence ! thou troubVst me with vain requests, bid. — disabPd, trembl'd, doubl'd, dissembl'd. 'Tis but the fabVd landscape of a lay. bldst. — stumbl'dst, disabl'dst, nibbl'dst, gabbl'dst. TrembVdst thou at what was but the shad- ow of a ghost? br. — breeze, brought, bridge, breath, bride. Break, break, brtak, At the foot of thy crags, O Sea ! bz. — robs, webs, fibs, rubs, robes, sobs. Beneath the Cyprus boughs the wind sobs a sad requiem o'er his grave. bst. — rob'st, snubb'st, bobb'st, fibb'st. ProVst thou the wound of a broken heart ? dl. — candle, kindle, waddle, meddle. The brazen trumpets kindle rage no more. did. — saddl'd, coddl'd, riddl'd, muddl'd. A single look, his smouldering hate kindVd to a rage. didst. — addl'dst, peddl'dst, fiddl'dst, waddl'dst. Thou fondVdst the viper which stings thee to death. dlz. — bundles, handles, trundles, meddles. What a great fire a little blaze kindles. DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. 8 1 dlst. — saddl'st, peddl'st. fiddl'st, kindPst. Bird of the sun, in thy upward flight thou dwindVst to a speck. dll. — sadd'n, gladd'n, sodd'n, ridd'n, gard'n. Silent and sudden within the gard'n the lightning's flash revealed the enveloping dark- ness. dlld. — sadd'nd, wid'nd, broad'nd, madd'nd. Madd'nd with drink, he did a deed a life of love could not undo. dliz. — burd'ns, hard'ns, sadd'ns, ward'ns, madd'ns. Bear ye one another's burdens. dr. — dread, dream, drink, drawl, meand'ring. Hear ye the deep dreadful thunder, peal on peal, afar ! dst. — didst, hadst, mad'st, add'st, could'st. When thou didst hate him worst, thou lov'dst him better Than ever thou lov'dst Cassius. dtli. — breadth, width. The width or breadth equals the length. dtliS. — widths, breadths. Three widths of one made four breadths of the other. dz. — adz, buds, wads, leads, loads. Buds, birds, fields and woods, are country charms that cheer the heart. dzh. — wedge, badge, judge, pledge, fudge. "Pledge with wine, — pledge with wine," cried the thoughtless Harvey Wood. 82 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. dzlifl. — pledg'd, forg'd, manag'd, smudg'd, gaug'd. Evil habits forg'd the fetters he could never break. fl. — flay, ruffle, flow, fling, flutter, trifle. At every trifle^ scorn to take offence. fid.— -rifl'd, baffl'd, shuffl'd, sniffl'd, waffl'd. The muffVd drum told the time had come For the hero to lay down his life. fldst. — stifl'dst, baffid'st, ruffld'st, trifl'dst. Thou baffld'st in vain, the cause we'll main- tain, For our country, for truth and for God. flz. — raffl's, muffl's, waffl's, truffl's, whiftTs. Trifl's trouble more than double What we greater griefs can bear. fist. — tritfl'st, baffl'st, shuffl'st, ruffl'st. If thou stiff? st thy conscience, the whip of remorse will lash thee back to obedience. fn. — soft'n, sliff'n, rough'n, oft'n. Kind words will offn pluck the barb from envy's arrow, and soffn the obdurate heart. fuel. — deaf'n'd, stiff'n'd, soft'n'd, rough'n'd. The loud winds soft rid to a whisper low. flia. — soft'ns, deaf'ns, stiff'ns, rough'ns. Prosperity deafns the ear to pity's call. fir. — free, fright, from, freckle, fresh. Francis French was too much frightened to offer assistance, fs. — chiefs, laughs, puffs, whiffs, nymphs. He laughs best who laughs last. DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. 83 fsf. — scoff'st, puff st, miff'st, cough'st, stuff'st. Laugh' st thou, Lochiel, my^vision to scorn ? ft. — reft, soft, waft, tuft, left. Waft, waft, ye winds, His story. . ftlftS. — fifths, twelfths. Two-fifths and three-twelfths make thirty-nine sixtieths. fts. — lifts, wafts, shifts, crafts, tufts. Death lifts the veil that hides a brighter sphere. ftst. — lift'st, waft'st. O'er the desert drear thou waft'st thy waste perfume. gd. — rigg'd, leagu'd, begg'd, flogg'd. The little ant lugg'd and tuggd its tiny load o'er many a straw and stone. gflst. — fagg'dst, flogg'dst, begg'dst, lugg'dst, Laggard, why lugg'dst thou thy load, and why lagg'dst thou behind? gl. — gleam, glide, eagle, glove, bugle. Mid the glisten and glamour of glory Rejoice if thou humble canst keep. gld.— juggl'd, haggl'd, struggl'd. He was inveigVd into a trap bated with a bribe. gldst. — mingl'dst, strangl'dst, singl'dst. Why smuggl'dst thou that which was thy bane? g'Iz. — eagl's, struggl's, haggl's, juggl's. At the bugl's shrill blast the eagl's took flight. 84 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. gist. — struggl'st, haggl'st, mingl'st. Thou haggl'st over a penny as if it were a pound. gT. — great, grow, growl, grizzly, grub. The Grey Riesling is a grape grown for wine. gz. — gigs, flogs, dregs, bugs, logs. In rags he tugs and lugs the bags, nor lags till he has filled the brig's hold. gst.— wagg'st, begg'st, digg'st, flogg'st.- Thou begg'st in vain, no pity melts his heart. kl. — click, cling, buckle, cliff, truckle. Klingle, klangle,klingle, far down the dusky dingle, The cows come slowly home. kid. — circl'd, twinkl'd, buckl'd, sparkl'd. He buckl'd them fast to his shoulder and hip. kldst. — twinkl'dst, sparkl'dst, sprinkl'dst. Thou shackl'dst the arm that would strike the blow for freedom. klz. — knuckl's, circl's, sparkl's, truckl's. The eye twinkl's the joy that thrills the soul, and it flashes the hate that holds the heart in thrall. klst. — buckl'st, freckl'st. encircl'st. Thou tackPst more than thy match when thou tickl'st me. DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. 85 kll. — black'n, deac'n, tok'n, falc'n. The licit n clings to the broltn rocks on the bleak and desolate shore. klld. — black'n'd, wak'n'd, dark'n'd. He await rt d from a delusive dream that drove him to despair Itlldst. — heark'n'dst, lik'n'dst, black'n'dst. Thou beck'ttdstme the way I should go. kllZ. — dark'ns, thick'ns, falc'ns, tok'ns. He left me tok'ns of lasting friendship, kll*t. — wak'n'st, heark'n'st, beck'n'st. Thou aw alt it st within me a warmer sym- pathy. kr. — chromo, chronicle, crank, crisp. Whv crouch and crawl like a crafty ser- pent. k*. — stake's, stick's, lock's, croak's. Ye mouldering relics of departed years. list. — shak'st, look'st, wak'st, next. And many a holy text around she strews. kt. — sect, walk'd, rock'd, work'd. He track d the game to the cavern lair, But lacftd the courage to enter there. kts. — respects, acts, sects, subjects, facts. It gilds all objects, but it alters none. kt*t. — work*dst, thank'dst, lik'dst, act'st, mock'st. Thou acfst the manly part when thou mocltdst not at facts. 86 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Ifo.— Albert, filbert, bulb, Elbe, Alb. The river Elbe glides smoothly o'er its peb- bly bed. lbs. — Albs, bulbs. The gladiolus bulbs root and bloom with the warmth of early spring. Id. — toil'd, toll'd, gild, gold, guild. The youth's wild and melancholy look told what aiVd him. Idz. — wilds, folds, fields, builds, molds. The rising sun gilds the mountain tops. Idst. — wield'st, fill'dst, hold'st, shield'st, told'st. Wield' st thou thy sword for liberty ? If.— pelf, wolf, elf, gulf, self. You wronged yourself to write in such a case. If 8. — sylphs, elfs, gulfs, Guelphs, delfs. The sylph's cavern and the wolfs cave are side by side. 1ft. — engulf'd, ingulf'd. The fated ship is engulf d by the angry waves. 1ft li. — twelfth, twelfths. Twelve twelfths and a twelfth equals one and one twelfth. ldzll'd.-bilg'd, indulg'd, bulg'd. He indulg'd his wit and lost his friend. Ik. — milk, bulk, elk, sulk, bilk. And the silken, sad, uncertain rustling of each purple curtain. Iks. — silks, elks, whelks, bilks. He was whipped till whelks rose criss- crossed upon his ebony back. DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. 87 lkst.— sulk'st, milk'st. Thou miWst the kine at early dawn. llit. — milk'd, mulct. He will mulct the poor man of his life-long earnings. lm. — elm, film, helm, realm. Up with the helm and pull for your lives. Intel. — whelm 'd, film'd. He overwhelm 'd me with his kindness. llllS. — films, elms, realms, overwhelms. He sought for rest in realms beyond the skies. lllist. — overwhelm'st, film'st. Thou overwhelm 'st them with the whirlwind. « In. — stol'n, fall'n, swoll'n. A stol'n kiss the mother pressed on baby's cheek. lp. — help, pulp, whelp. The gods help those who help themselves. Ips. — Alps, pulps, whelps, helps. The fearless, faithful guide helps the trav- eler up the Alps. lpst. — scalp'st, help'st. Thou helfst me now in vain. lptst. — help'dst, holp'dst, scalp'dsf Thou scalp'dst the scalper of his ill-gotten gains. Is. — pulse, else, dulse, false. Joy quickens the pulse, but sadness retards it. 1st. — filFst, rul'st, fall'st, dwelPst. Thou filVst existence with thyself alone. 88 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. It. — wilt, dwelt, moult, guilt. We try this quarrel, hilt to hilt. th.— stealth, filth, wealth. Wealth does not always bring happiness and health. It lis. — tilths, healths. He drank our healths from the crystal spring. Its. — halts, melts, faults, bolts. A friendly eye could never see such faults. ltst.— bolt'st, melt'st, halt'st, stilt'st. Thou meltst with pity at another's woes. lv. — delve, solve, valve, shelve. Resolve to live a life that will not shame thy friends. Ivd. — envolv'd, shelv'd, resolv'd. The miner delv'd for the hidden ore. lvs. — elves, wolves, valves, shelves. Man resolves, and re-resolves, then dies the same. lvst. — dissolv'st, involv'st, solv'st. Thou involv'st the firm, and then dissolv'st the partnership. lz. — pulls, steals, palls, tolls, calls. Old age steals upon us unawares. Ill fist. — flam'dst, bloom 'dst, illum'dst, nam'dst. Thou doom'dst thy lover to a life of misery. mfs. — lymphs, triumphs, nymphs. The nymphs in triumph dance in festive glee. DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. 89 Hip*. — dumps, damps, lamps, bumps, limps. He stamps his mind upon the lettered page. mpst. — limpst, thumpst, stampst. Thou dampst their zeal and stampst defeat upon their cause. mz. — seems, psalms, gems, comes, tomes. Seems, madam ! nay 'tis ; I know not seems. 111*1. — dream'st, tam'st, seem'st, doom'st. Thou seem'st to be an angel of light. lilt. — contempt, prompt, stamp'd. Be prompt on duty's call. mtst. — tempt'st, prompt'st, stamp'd'st. Thou prompfst the warrior to a deed of fame. nd. — plann'd, plan'd, end, mind, sound. With heart and hand together stand as a firm, united band. ndz. — bonds, blends, sands, finds, bounds. Fate binds him with iron bands. ndst. — send'st, ground'st, moan'd'st, tim'd'st. Thou found' st me an enemy, thou leavest me a friend. ng. — singing, longing, swinging, ringing. Ding-dong dell ! exulting, trembling swell the bells. ngdst.— wing'dst, hang'dst, twang'dst, wrong'dst. Thou wrong'dst me to think I had aught against thee. 90 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Ilg'Z, — sings, songs, wings, lungs, fangs. The Angel of Peace scatters blessings from her dewy wings. ligst. — hang'st, long'st, bring'st, bang'st. . Thou bring'st me good tidings from over the sea. llg*tll§. -length, lengths, strength, strengths. Short views we take, nor see the lengths be- hind. Ilgks. — links, franks, sinks, danks, bunks. My father ! methinks I see my father. ngkst.-think'st, thank'st, wink'st. Oh, deeper than thou think 'st, I have read thy heart. ngkt. — thank'd, cincture, blank'd, flunk'd. They rank'd me below my merits. nglits. -adjuncts, precincts. He left the warm precincts of the cheerful day. Ildzll. — plunge, hinge, flange, range. Possessions vanish and opinions change. ndzlftd. -plung'd, chang'd, reveng'd, fring'd. If you would be reveng'd on your enemies, let your life be blameless. IIS.— dance, bounce, mince, tense, lance. In search of wit, some lose all common sense. n$t. — against, canst, fencd, winc'd. Thou canst not ? and a king ! DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. 9 1 lit* It. — lunch, bench, flinch, launch. Flinch not from duty, though the task be hard._ Iltsht. — blanch'd, lunch'd, trench'd, stanch'd. He wrenched the chain, tho' all in vain, For the firm links held him fast, lit .-plant, tent, fount, sent, blunt. He went to the mint to see money made, not spent. lltllS. — months, tenths, hyacinths, plinths. Hyacinths bloom in the months of spring. lit*. — tents, wants, events, plants, flints. Man wants but little here below, nor wants that little long. lltst. — hunt'st, want'st, taunt'st. Hunfst thou the wild gazelle? HZ e — plains, moons, moans, lens, vanes. Though slow of reward, merit wins in the end. pi. — pluck, plod, plumes, ample, ripple. The plowman homeward plods his weary way. pld. — trampl'd, tippl'd toppl ; d, dappl'd. The dimpled cheek of the child wore an an- gel's smile. pldst. — rippl'dst, peopl'dst, rumpFdst. Thou trampVdst the worm that harmed thee not. plz. — mapl's, appl's, toppl's, stippl's, stapl's. Age on their temples shed her silver frost. 92 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. plst. — trampl'st, rippl'st, sampl'st, toppl'st, tippl'st Thou sampVst the tap, and then toppVst to thy miserable home. pild. — rip'n'd, op'n'd, deep'n'd, happ'n'd, sharp'n'd. Within this peaceful valley the golden rip- ples of the rip'rid grain make glad the heart of the peasant. pilS. — op'ns, happ'ns, rip'ns, cheap'ns. The combat deepens, — on, ye brave ! pr. — pride, proper, prune, print, prey. Prompt to relieve, the prisoner sings his praise. p§. — tips, tops, props, tapes, mops. Thought droops and stops as the eyes grow heavy with sleep. pst* — top'st, prop'st, heap'st, shap'st, hoop'st. Thou slapplst the child thou should'st have kissed. pt. — wept, slipp'd, stop'd, supp'd, stopp'd. The little one wept itself to sleep. pts. — intercepts, accepts, precepts.- The father's precepts, the dutiful son obeyed. ptst. — hop'd'st, accept'st, intercept'st. Accept st thou the commission offered thee? pths. — depths. From the depths of despair, the sor- rowing soul is lifted on the wings of love. rl>. — herb, verb, orb, curb, garb. Curb thy tongue, for its barVd words stick where they strike. DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. 93 rbd. — orb'd, curb'd, garb'd, disturb'd. No reveille disturbed his slumbers ; for he slept the sleep of death. rbclst. — barb'dst, orb'dst, curb'dst, disturb'dst. Thou curb'dst well the gallant steed thou strod'st. l*t>Z. — barbs, verbs, orbs, disturbs. The orbs of night in the winter's sky shine clear and bright. rbst. — absorb'st, barb'st, curb'st, disturb'st. Thou absorb'st our precious time by trivial talk. rdz. — words, birds, cards, chords, herbs. The silver cords of friendship' may unite many hearts which the golden cords of love dare not entwine. rdst. — reward'st, herd'st, sjuard'st. Thou regard' st whom thou reward'st. rfs. — serfs, dwarfs, turfs, scarfs. Dwarfs and pygmies shall to giants rise. rgz. — bergs, icebergs, burgs. The icebergs float from the Arctic seas. rdzh. — surge, forge, enlarge, gorge, emerge. From out the gorge sweeps the wild tor- rent to the verge of the precipice. rdzlld. — urg'd, charg'd, merg'd, forg'd. So they beat against the State House, So they surged against the door. rks. — barks, corks, works, larks, storks. He marks ihe tracks of the wounded by the crimson trails in the snow. 94 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. rkst* — mark'st, work'st, bark'st, cork'st. Mar&stXhou the spot where the hero died? rkt. — work'd, mark'd, lurk'd, fork'd, jerk'd. He work'd his way to the topmost round of the ladder of fame. rktst. — bark'dst, work'dst, fork'dst; lurk'dst. Thou lurk'dst round our haunts like a mer- cenary spy. rid. — curl'd, snarl'd, whirl'd, furl'd, world. Round the chieftain's head the war-cloud curl'd. rldsf • — -hurl'dst, snarl'dst, furl'dst, whirl'dst. Thou furl'dst thy sails in the harbor of bliss, 1'ldz. — worlds. Worlds unseen, the eye of faith ex- plores. Flz. — hurls, pearls, snarls, twirls, churls. The glittering pearls of the sea are not to be compared with the priceless pearls of thought. Filld. — arm'd, charm'd, form'd, harm'd, Arm'd say you? Arm'd, my lord. rilldsf. — form'dst, storm'dst, charm'dst, worm'dst. Thou charm'dst the maid whose ear was not proof against flattery's wiles. rniZ. — charms, forms, storms, terms. Truth storms the citadel of falsehood, and accepts no terms but unconditional surrender. mist. — form'st, charm'st, storm'st, alarm'st. Thou charm'st me with thy silver-tongued speech. DIFFICULT COMBINATOINS. 95 1-111 til* — warmth. What warmth of feeling is in thy golden words. I'iicl. — scorn'd, earn'd, burn'd, warn'd. We were warn'd of our danger in time to escape, rildst.— burnd'st, turnd'st, scorn'd'st, warn'dst, learn'dst. Thou learn'dst thy lesson well, though thou scorn 'dst to confess it. 1*11 Z. — spurns, darns, morns, mourns, urns. As the sun sets, the leaden cloud turns to burnished gold. l'ps. — carps, warps, sharps, thorps, harps. We hanged our harps upon the willows. l*|>t.— - warp'd, usurp'd, harp'd. Wealth usurp'd the throne where intellect long had ruled. rs, — scarce, purse, fierce, source, farce. Costly thy habit as thy purse can buy. l>ll. — marsh, Kershaw, harsh. Kershaw's island is in San Francisco Bay. l*st. — verst, vers'd, pars'd, first, cours'd. The Russian treads his weary versts o'er fields of snow. PSts. — thirsts, worst's, bursts. A flood of glory bursts from all the skies. rts. — marts, hurts, courts, parts, flirts. All are but parts of one stupendous whole. rtst. — smarts't, hurts't, parts't, girt'st, report'st. O jealousy, thou parfst the hearts that should be ours. 96 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. l'tll. — worth, north, forth, birth, hearth. From north and from south they came forth to defend their hearths and homes. rtllS. — earths, worths, hearths, births, fourths. The earth's productiveness is in excess of possible consumption. rtsll.— arch, perch, porch, search, larch. Slowly the bright procession went down the gleaming arch, And my soul discerned the music of the long triumphant march. Ftsllt. — march'd search'd, parch'd, perch'd. Pygmies are pygmies still, though per elf d on Alps. TV. — serve, carve, nerve, starve, swerve. He who has the nerve never to swerve from duty, may carve his name high up on the pin- nacle of fame. FVd. — preserv'd, nerv'd' starv'd, carv'd. Had I but served my God with half the zeal I served my king, he would not in mine age Have left me naked to mine enemies. FVdsf . — curv'dst, swerv'dst, carv'dst, preserv'dst. Thou preserv'dst me from mine enemies. FVZ. — nerves, starves, swerves. The fool serves his body, but starves his mind. FVSt. — curv'st, carv'st, preserv'st. Thou serv'st me well, thou nerv'st my arm for the fight. DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. 97 rz. — stars, wars, bars, tears, stores, starves. His fears were the children of a violated conscience. sf. — sphinx, sphere. Within my sphere, I am as secret as the Sphinx. sill*. — shrill, shriek, shrine, shrink, shrunk, shrank. He shrank from the shrill shriek of the un- shriven, who wildly wailed and wept before the shrine. *li. — skill, scald, scold, scamp, scull, scum. The scamp sculled the boat away and left me to scud home on foot. skr. — screams, scratch, scrawl, screen, scringe, scribe. Across the scraggy edge he drew the screech- ing file. sliS. — tasks, masks, frisks, desks, asks. He basks in the sunshine of fortune, for his tasks of life were well done. *k*t . — mask'st, frisk'st, bask'st, tusk'st. Ask'stihou to whom belongs this valley fair? $kt. — task'd, frisk'd, ask'd, tusk'd, bask'd. He risked his own, another's life to save. sl. — whistle, slow, rustle, slick, bustle, slash. The thistle-down slowly floats on the sum- mer air. slti. — whistPd, wrestl'd, tussl'd, jostl'd, bustl'd. NestVd in a quiet valley, the peaceful ham- let looked the home of the fairies. 98 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. sis. — bristles, bustles, trestles, thistles, nestles. In our tussles with Fate, she often jostles our conceit out of us, and hustles common sense in. slst. — rustl'st, jostPst, nestl'st, bristl'st, bustl'st. Thou wrestVst bravely with thy faults. SIM. — smote, smile, small, smash, smack. The smooth waters smoother grow, As the sunset smiles upon the lake. Slid. — glist'n'd, moist'n'd, list'n'd, less'n'd. We listened to the mocking bird singing as the dew moistened the grass. HZ.— -list'ns, moist'ns, giist'ns, pers'ns. "Farewell !" moist ns many an eye. list, — less'n'st, list'n'st, hast'n'st. Thou hast rt st homeward without delay. SJJ.— speed, span, spell, grasp, lisp, hasp. Then clasp me round the neck once more. spl. — splendid, splutter, spleen, split, splash. The full moon rides in splendor thro' the midnight sky. spi*. — spring, sprung, sprain, spray, sprig. The cold spray turns to ice as it touches the colder sprigs of the overhanging branches. sps. — gasps, hasps, lisps, clasps, rasps. He shudders, gasps ; Jove help him ; so, he's dead. spt. — lisp'd, clasp'd, grasp'd. He lisp'd the words he should have spoken. St. — stay, still, stamp, list, last, lost. Hast thou a charm to stay the morning star ? DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. 99 Str. — strength, strut, stroll, strive, strown. They have strewn their beds with roses, but they will lie down on thorns, sts. — blasts, rusts, casts, mists, tastes, boasts. Wastes and deserts ; not waste sand des- erts. stst. — last'st, list'st, boast'st, tast'st, toast'st. Thou wasfst thy breath to no purpose. tllll. — strength'n, length'n. Live temperately if you would lengthen your days. Ill lid. — length'n 'd, strength 'n'd. Spend not thy length? n'd years in vain, tlilldst. -length 'n'dst, strength 'n'dst. Palsied is the arm thou strength? n'dst. tllllZ. — strengthens, length'ns. He lengthens the hour in vain. tllS. — youths, faiths, truths, swaths, wreaths. He sheaths the sword that ne'er was drawn in vain. till". — thrum, thrill, throb, thrush, throttle. Soft is the thrill that memory throws across the soul. tilt. — betroth'd. She was early betroth 'd 'to the man she loved. tlicl. — seeth'd, sooth'd, bath'd, loath'd, breath'd. They bath'd his heated brain, and sooth'd his frantic fears. tllZ. — breath's, bath's, tith's, scyth's, loath 's. She loath 's the very sight of him. IOO VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. tlittt. — writh'st, smooth'st, breath'st, bath'st. O guilt ! thou bath'st the world in tears. tlldst. — breath'dst, writh'dst, smooth'dst. Thou smooth'dst my pathway down the hill of life. tl. — rattle, whittle, bottle, title, cattle, throttle. Rattle his bones over the stones. tld.— prattl'd, bottl'd, rattl'd, throttl'd. The child prattVd on while the mother's heart was torn with grief. tldst. — startl'dst, bottl'dst, rattl'dst, throtti'dst. Thou startl'dst the sleepers from their gen- tle slumbers, tlz.— battl's, titl's, bottl's, turtl's, rattl's. At the thought of her, how the blood man- tles to his cheek. tlst. — battl'st, throttl'st, startl'st. Thou throttl'st the demon intemperance and savest thy life. tn. — light'n, batt'n, kitt'n, rott'n, mitt'n. Blessings bright n as they take their flight. tlld. — sweet'n'd, whit'n'd, mitt'n'd, bright'n'd. His heart light' n'd at the thought of her he soon would see. tnz. — whit'ns, kitt'ns, mitt'ns, light'ns. The snow whitns all the trees and fields. tr. — truth, trim, tread, glitter, brighter, theatre. The train from out the castle drew. tsh. — church, charm, chime, chubby, touch, wretch. He heard the chit-chat of the chubby chil- dren dear. DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. IOI tsllt. — match'd, watch'd, touch'd, fetch'd. He touch 'd a chord that thrill'd all hearts with joy. tshtst.-touch'dst, parch'dst, snatch'dst. Thou touch y dst his wounded heart, ts. — huts, fates, bets, lots, lights. Ten censure wrong, for one who writes amiss. t*t. — start'st, shout'st, sitt'st, sport'st, smart'st. Thou start'st at trifles. vd. — believ'd, liv'd' lov'd, brav'd, starv'd, sav'd. He liv'd the life his conscience approved. vdst.— deserv'dst, liv'dst, believ'dst, deceiv'dst. Believ'dst thou what the prophets told thee? vl. — grov'l, shov'l, ev'l, shriv'l. Why grov'l in the darkness of evil, when the light of truth is so near? vld. — shrivl'd, shovl'd, grovl'd. The shrivl'd heart of the miser has no place for pity. vldst. — grovTdst, shovTdst. The worm that grov'l' dst in the earth, On fairy wings will cleave the sky. vlst. — driv'l'st, shovTst, ravTst, shrivTst. Thou trav'l'st a long journey to reach the Mecca of thy heart. viz. — ev'ls, lev'ls, shov'ls, driv'ls, bev'ls. Love lev'ls all ranks. Vll. — driv'n, ev'n, sev'n, shriv'n, crav'n, striv'n. The horse was driv'?i seventy-seven miles. 102 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. VHZ, — ov'ns, crav'ns, ev'ns, sev'ns, heav'ns. The heav'ns declare the glory of God. Tilth. — sev'nth, elev'nth. At the elev'nth hour you came, though called at the seventh. VZ. — sheaves, waves, gloves, groves, saves, lives. Leaves have their time to fall. TSt. — liv'st, sav'st, prov'st, starv'st, shov'st. Thou prov'st thyself equal to the occasion. ZI1. — crims'n, froz'n, emblaz'n. Look on that crims'n field which mocks the purple clouds above it. Zlld. — blazn'd, seas'n'd, reas'n'd, pris'n'd. The emblaz'n'd banners flaunted on the breeze. Z11Z. — seas'ns, pris'ns, reas'ns, impris'ns. Thou hast all seas'ns for thine own, O Death ! znst. — seas'n'st, emblaz'n'st, impris'n'st. Thou emblaz'n'st his name high on the scroll of fame. Table VI is a list of the Vowel Sounds, with the diacritical marks as used in Webster's Dictionary. DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. 103 TABLE VI. 1. a, as in ale, may, fate, fame. 2. a, " add, map, fat, back. 3. a, " air, fair, wear, tear. 4. a, " arm, aunt, palm, laugh. 5. a, " ask, glass, ant, branch. 6. a, " all, swarthy, talk, law. 7. a, " what, wallet, was, yacht. 1. e, as in eve, eke, mete, believe. 2. e, " end, fetch, web, deck. 3. e, " ere, there, where, ne'er. 4. e, " eight, prey, feign, heinous. 5. e, st earn, terse, pert, serve. 1. 1, as in ire, bind, thrive, wise. 2. 1, " ill, pity, fit, finish. 3. i, " police, marine, pique, retrieve. 4. 1, u irksome, firm, bird, whirl. 1. 6, as in ode, note, hold, no. 2. 6, " odd, lock, docile, rob. 3. 6, " other, won, son, brother. 4. 6, " order, storm, born, horse. 5. p, u move, prove, whom, lose. 6. o, " bosom, wolf, woman, Wolsey. 1. u, as in (y)use, lute, elude, presume. 2. 11, " us, hush, bud, muddle. 3. 11, " urn, furl, lurk, murmur. 4. Uj " rude, prune, rural, true. 5. u, " push, put, bullet, full. 1. y, as in my, fly, gyve, try. 2. y, " nymph, lily, lyric abyss. 104 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. There are several vowel sounds not recognized by the dictionaries in the "key to pronunciation," such as "a" in many, says, again and saith; "e" as in pretty, and "ee" in been; "o" in work, worth, worship, worse, &c, and "o " in women ; " u " in busy and in bury ; and " y " in myrrh, myrtle, &c. But these play such an insig- nificant part in pronunciation, that they are very properly regarded as exceptional sounds, and not entitled to rec- ognition. In the rapid enunciation of syllables and words, many of the long vowel sounds become obscure. The gliding movement, so important to the melody of speeeh, makes this necessary. The obscured vowel generally tends to- ward a corresponding short vowel. A.s, for example, a obscured tends towards e ; e, towards I ; a, towards a ; 6, towards rl, and 6b, towards o'o, &c. In Table VI, it will be seen that there are dif- ferent vowels representing the same sound. The follow- ing is a list of the exact equivalents : a=e; a=e ; a=6; e=i; e=i=u; i=y ; 1= f ; 6= u; o=u= 6b ; o=u=oo. There are also many equivalents of the vowel sounds formed by vowel combinations, but as this is not a text- book on orthography, their tabulation is purposely omitted. ANALYSIS OF WORDS. [Analysis, Syllabication, Accent and Pronunciation.'} One of the best means for correcting a faulty articula- tion and improving a good one, is the exercise of the voice and the organs of articulation in the analysis of words, as follows : DIFFICULT COMBINATIONS. 105 r. Divide the word into its syllables by pronouncing each syllable separately. 2. Divide each syllable into its elements, giving each element very distinctly three times ; then combine the elements and pronounce the syllable thus formed with precision, proceeding with each syllable of the word in the same way. 3. Next, place the accent upon the syllable to which it belongs, and repeat the word several times, exagger- ating the accent in order to counteract the too common fault of pronouncing words with too little accent. If there is a "secondary " accent, give it with the degree of emphasis which its relative importance demands. Ac- cent is to the syllable in the word, what emphasis is to the word in the sentence. 4. Last, pronounce the word several times very dis- tinctly and slowly, giving to each element its due amount of sound. Then repeat the pronunciation over and over with the same degree of accuracy, but increas- ing the rapidity at each repetition. Whenever the student finds a word difficult to articu- late or pronounce, it should be analyzed and practiced as directed above. The best readers will come across such words now and then, so that no one gets beyond the neces- sity — at least the possibility of benefit — of such thor- ough-going practices in articulation. To the list given below, the student can add for him- self such words as he may find most difficult to articulate or pronounce correctly. A good practice is to write the word on the black- board or on paper, and then write it underneath, separated into its syllables. The sounds of the vowels should then io6 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. be indicated according to the markings given in Table VI. An "obscure" vowel sound, (and there are many found in words,) may be marked with the sign of the vow- el to which it most nearly corresponds in sound. The silent letters may be canceled by drawing a line diago- nally across them. The following analyses will serve as models for black- board practice. Personification. Boundary. Per-son-i-fi-ca-ti(sh)6n Boun-da-ry Though • Company Phthisic though com-pa-ny ph\.hls-lc bade wire vehemence which history solicitously been contempt gradually wrestled really etymologically glass hospitable recapitulation again mischievous superciliousness truly accuracy allegorically laugh ignorant particularly evening anemone accompaniment iron regularly unintelligibility VOWEL SOUND PRACTICE. The following sentences, embodying words containing each of the vowel sounds, should be carefully studied, that they may be read with the significance and expres- sion intended by the language. The words printed in italics and containing the vowel under consideration, VOWEL SOUND PRACTICE. 1 07 should be given with special accuracy and distinctness, but not, necessarily, with greater emphasis. 1. The spangled heavens, a shining frame, Their great original proclaim, 2. Incensed with indignation, Satan stood. 3. The strong-felt passion bolts into the face ; The mind untouched, what is it but grimace ? 4. Follow brave hearts ! — This pile remains, Our refuge still from life and chains. 5. There was racing and chasing on cannobie Lee. 6. — All beggared, save in tears Wherewith I daily weep an old man's fate. 7. The cot may for the palace change — The palace for the cot. 8. From Hell Gate to Gold Gate And the Sabbath unbroken, A sweep continental And the Saxon yet spoken ! 9. No matter how well the track is laid, No matter how strong the engine is made, When you find you are running the downward grade, Put down the brakes. 10. Whatever day makes man a slave, takes half his worth away. a 1. Cosmopolitan rivers, Mississippi, Missouri, That travel the -planet like Jordan thro' Jewry. IOS VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 2. It rests with me, here brand to brand. Worn as thou art, to bid thee stand. 3. We hold our greyhound in our hand, Our falcon on our glove ; But where shall we find leash or band For dame that loves to rove ? 4. E'en in our ashes live their wonted fires. 5. The traveler from his native land, The veriest wanderer 'neath the sun, When from his glass of life the sand, Has nearly its full volume run, Turns to the land that gave him birth, Though banished from his mind for years, And sighs to see that spot of earth That knew his childhood's smile and tears. 6. None but himself can be his parallel. 7. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone. It is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. 8. Small feet were pattering, Wooden shoes clattering, Little hands clapping, And little tongues chattering Like fowls in a farmyard when barley is scattering. a. 1. He dares not touch a hair of Cataline ! 2. The rose is fairest when 'tis budding new. 3. Comrade, enough ! sit down and share A soldier's couch, a soldier's fare. 4. From her fa,ir and unpolluted flesh May violets spring. VOWEL SOUND PRACTICE. 1 09 5. Flashed all their sabres bare, Flashed as they turned in air. 6. Tumultuous grandeur crowds the blazing square, The rattling chariots clash, the torches glare. 7. I will feed fat the ancient grudge I dear him. 8. The fashion wears out more apparel than the man. 9. The monk, with unavailing cares Exhausted all the Church's prayers. 10. u Fair, fair, and golden hair," Sang a lone mother while weeping, " Fair, fair, with golden hair, My little one's quietly sleeping. " 11. Farewell \ a long farewell to all my greatness. 1. Better be Where the extinguished Spartans still are free, In their proud charnel of Thermopylae, Than stagnate in our marsh. 2. How often have I paused on every charm, The sheltered cot, the cultivated farm. 3. Oh ! pardon me, thou bleeding piece of earth. 4. Hark ! I hear the bugles of the enemy. They are on their march along the bank of the river. 5. With fruitless labor, Clara bound And strove to staunch the gushing wound. 6. Where deserts lie down in the prairies ' broad calms, Where lake links to lake like the music of psalms. IO VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 7 . The paths of glory lead but to the grave. 8. Hearts, like apples, are hard and sour, Till crushed by Pain's resistless power. 9. He laughs best who laughs last. 10. False wizard, avaunt\ I have marshalled my clan, Their swords, are a thousand, their bosoms are one. 1. Then the poor exiles, every pleasure past, Hung round the bowers, and fondly looked their last. 2. The besieged city was at its last gasp. 3. On with the dance! Let joy be unconfined. 4. The oak-tree struggling with the blast, Devours its father tree, And sheds its leaves and drops its mast, That more may be. 5. The milk-haired heifer's life must pass That it may fill your own, As passed the sweet life of the grass She fed upon. 6. From hand to hand life's cup is passed Up Being's piled gradation, Till men to angels yield at last The rich collation. 7. Distance lends enchantment to the view. 8. His shield is rent and his lance is broken. 9. The lantern gleamed through the glancing snow, On his fixed and glassy eye. VOWEL SOUND PRACTICE. 10. Forth from the pass in tumult driven Like chaff "before the winds of heaven, The archery appear. i . All day and all night, It is rattle and clank, All night and all day, Smiting space in the flank. 2. The falcon preys upon the finch, The finch upon the fly. 3. Aurora, now, fair daughter of the dawn, Sprinkles with rosy light the upland lawn. 4. How small, of all that human hearts endure, That part which laws or kings can cause or cure. 5. And Nature made a pause, an awful pause, Prophetic of her end. 6. The Universal cause Acts not by partial, but by general laws. 7. It was not one fault alone, That brought him low. S. To where the stage, the poor, degraded stage, Holds its warped mirror to a gaping age. 9. These taught us how to live; and (oh ! too high The price for knowledge) taught us how to die. 10. Where the warbling waters flow. 1 . What! has the yacht sunk ? -2. The warrior took that banner proud, And it was his martial cloak and shroud. 112 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 3. Into Hiawatha's wigwam Came two other guests. 4. Gentlemen, we are at the point of a century from the birth of Washington, and what a century it has been ! 5. True hope is swift, and flies with swallow's wings ; Kings it makes gods, and meaner creatures kings. 6. A weary night she stood to watch The battle-dawn up-roll. 7. Oh ! what a rogue and peasant slave am I ! 8. The providence that's in a watchful state Knows almost every grain of Plutus' gold. 1. The best laid schemes o' mice and men, Gang aft a-gley, And lea'e us naught but grief and pain, For promised joy. 2. " Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend / ' I shrieked, upstarting. 3. Be what ye seem, — seem what is best. 4. There is a reaper, whose name is Death, And with his sickle keen, He reaps the bearded corn at a breath, And the flowers that grow between. 5. When shall I, frail man, be pleading ? Who for me be interceding, When the just are mercy needing ? 6. Oh, Thou that driest the mourner's tear, How dark this world would be, If, when deceived and wounded here, IVe could not fly to Thee. VOWEL SOUND PRACTICE. 113 Cleon is a slave to grandeur — Free as thought am I ; Cleo?i fees a score of doctors — Need of none have I. Now the wild rose blossoms o'er her little green grave, 'Neath the trees in the flow'ry vale. When she had passed it seemed like the ceasing of exquisite music. From seeming evil still educing good. "Sleep soft, beloved," we sometimes say ; But have no power to charm away Sad dreams that through the eyelids creep. 1. But never doleful dream again Shall break the blessed slumber when He giveth His beloved sleep. 2. Lest men suspect your tale untrue, Keep probability in view. 3. The Grave, dread thing ! Men shiver when thou'rt nam'd. 4. It was like a message from the dead. Mr. Owen took the letter but could not break the envelope on account of his trembling fingers. He held it towards Mr. Allen. 5. The chest contriv'd a double debt to pay, A bed by night, a chest of drawers by day. 6. Our steps te?id homeward. 7. Let us then with ourselves solemn conference hold, Ere sleep's silken fetters our senses enfold. 114 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 8. My conscience is my crown, Contented thoughts my rest ; My heart is happy in itself, My bliss is in my breast. 9. Anon His swift pursuers from heaven's gates discern The advantage, and descending, tread us down. 1 o. The next night It came again, with a great wakening light, And showed the names whom love of God had blessed, And lo ! Ben Adhem's name led all the rest. 1. A form more fair, a face more sweet, Ne'er hath it been my lot to meet. 2. Where are the mighty ones of ages past, Where are the dead ? 3. The dead reign there alone. 4. Howe'er it be, it seems to me, 'Tis only noble to be good. 5. And no man knows that sepulchre, And no man saw it e'er, For the angels of God upturned the sod, And laid the dead man there. 6. Mad from life's history, Glad to death's mystery Swift to be hurl'd — Anywhere, anywhere, Out of the world. VOWEL SOUND PRACTICE. 115 7. Their name, their years, spelt by the unlettered muse, The place of fame and elegy supply. 1. The very horses knew his weight. 2. The snow-white signals, fluttering, blending, Round her like a veil descending. 3. They fell a prey, that unlucky day, to the Wisconsin regiment. 4. Does the Bey of Algiers drink whey ? 5. How, scanning each living temple, For the place where the veil is thin, We may gather, by beautiful glimpses, Some form of the God within. 6. The undaunted, but baffled troops fell an easy prey to the enemy. 1. The quality of mercy is not strained. 2. His early career was full of vicissitudes. 3. Life's a warning That only serves to make us grieve. 4. Earth to earth, and dust to dust. 5 . Truth crushed to earth shall rise again ; The eternal years of God are hers. 6. To err is human ; to forgive, divine. 7. And she thinks through its swerve By the telegraph nerve. Il6 VOICE GULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 8. The pearl that worldling's covet, Is not the pearl for me. 9. Bertha bought herself a jwgr* dress. 10. Doomed for a certain term to walk the night. 11. Sir, I know the uncertainty of human affairs. 1 1. Conscript Fathers, / do not rise to waste the night in words. 2. And he has never written line. Nor sent you word, nor made you sign To say he was alive ? 3. He once was kind! And / believed 'twould last — how mad ! — how blind! 4. He knows / stay. Night after night in loneliness to pray For his return ! 5. There's a thrill in the air Like the tingle of wine, Like a bugle-blown blast When the scimiters shine, And the sky-line is broken By the Mountains Divine ! 6. Idleness is a fruitful cause of vice and crime. 7. Of all the vices that conspire to blind Man's erring judgment, and misguide his mind, What the weak head with strongest bias rules Is pride, the never-failing vice of fools. 8. Ring out wild bells to the wild sky, The /lying cloud, the frosty night ; VOWEL SOUND PRACTICE. 117 The year is dying in the night; Ring out, wild bells, and let him die. ^ The Intermittent Stress is a trembling of the~Voice caused by intense feeling. In music, it is known as the "tremor" and the "tremolo." It is employed in grief, pity, weakness, tenderness, ecstasy, and in excessive de- grees of malignant passions. 1 . Ah ! life is a journey of wearisome hours, That the rose of enjoyment but seldom adorns ; And the heart that is soonest alive to the flowers, Is always the first to be touched by the thorns. Anon. 2. Pity the sorrows of a poor old man, Whose trembling limbs have borne him to your door, Whose days are dwindled to the shortest span ; Oh ! give relief, and Heav'n will bless your store. TJios. Moss. 3. Dear master, I can go no further, O, I die for food ! Here lie I down, and measure out my grave. Farewell, kind master. Shakespeare. 164 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 4- O, My God ! can it be possible I have To die so suddenly ? So young to go Under the obscure, cold, rotting, wormy ground ! To be nailed down into a narrow place ; To see no more sweet sunshine ; hear no more Blithe voice of living thing ; muse not again Upon familiar thoughts, sad, yet thus lost, — How fearful ! Shelley. 5. " Oh, master ! make my father free ! " — " Him and thyself, my noble boy ! " Warmly the painter cried. Susan Wilson. 6. "Why wouldst thou leave me, O gentle child ? Thy home on the mountain is bleak and wild." " O green is the turf where my brothers play, Through the long, bright hours of the summer day; They find the red cup-moss where they climb, And they chase the bee o'er the scented thyme, And the rocks where the heath-flower blooms they know- Lady, kind lady, oh, let me go ! " Mrs. He mans. 7 . O the banks of the Lee, the banks of the Lee, And love in a cottage for Mary and me ! I know not how love is happy elsewhere, I know not how any but lovers are there. Burns. Farewell the tranquil mind ! farewell content ! Farewell the plumed troop, and the big wars, That make ambition virtue ! Oh, farewell ! Shakespeare. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 1 65 9. Oh ! this spleen swells upwards to my he"art, And heaves for passage ! Down, thou climbing rage, Thy element's below. Where is my daughter? Shakespeare. 10. Call me their traitor! Thou injurious tribune ! Within thine eyes sat twenty thousand deaths, In thy hands clutch'd as many millions, in Thy lying tongue both numbers, I would say, Thou liest, unto thee, with a voice as free As I do pray the gods. Shakespeare. 1 1 . Happy ! Very, very happy ! You see I weep, I am so happy ! Tears Are signs you know, of naught but happiness ! When first I saw you, little did I look To be so happy! Clifford ! /. Sheridan Knowles. 12. Oh, if I could only make you see The clear blue eyes, the tender smile, The sovereign sweetness, the gentle grace, The woman's soul, and the angel's face That are beaming on me all the while, I need not speak these foolish words : Yet one word tells you all I would say, — She is my mother : You will agree That all the rest may be thrown away. Alice Cary. I 66 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. LAUGHTER. Laughter employs the abrupt stresses. It is as capa- ble of development and culture as the other means of expression. Not only may individual laughter be en- couraged and improved, but through practice different kinds may be learned for purposes of personation. Laughter — earnest, hearty laughter — is a health-promot- ing exercise, and one of the best means for strengthening the lungs. As a preparatory practice, review exercise "8," page 62. A tabulated arrangement of the different kinds of laughter is given below, and may be practiced as follows : First, simply as a vocal drill, then with full expression of hearty laughter. The opening vowel should be pro- longed obscurely, and the syllable repeated six or more times in quick succession, as shown in the table below. rABLE VII. I e hi hi hi hi hi hi ! 2 a he he he he he he ! 3 a ha ha ha ha ha ha ! 4 a ha ha ha ha ha ha ! 5 a ho ho ho ho ho ho ! 6 hu hu hu hu hu hu ! 7 ho ho ho ho ho ho ! No. 1, in the above table, represents the "giggle." The syllables in this laughter should be given in a high pitch and a light quality of voice. Nos. 2, 3, 4, and 6, may be called models, of which No. 4 is especially open and hearty. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 1 67 No. 5, represents a coarse, uncultured laugh that is known as the "horse laugh," or boorish laugh. No. 7, when given in a close, contracted, husky voice, represents the laugh of the miser. When given in the aspirated orotund quality and on a low or very low pitch, it is the sepulchral or ghostly laugh. Laughter, however, depends largely upon the quality of voice for significance and expression, and it is by no means limited to the above syllables, but it sometimes accompanies the syllables and words of an en- tire sentence. The following selections should be read with the ani- mation and laughing expression which the sense requires. 1. Sir Harcourt fallen desperately in love with me? With me ! That is delicious ! Ah — ha ! ha ! ha ! I see my cue. I'll cross his scent — I'll draw him after me. Ho ! ho ! won't I make love to him ? Ha ! — Here they come to dinner. I'll commence my operations on the governor immediately. Ha ! ha ! ha ! how I will enjoy it ! Boucicault 2. Ye'll be nowt but skeen and boans, if you stop here long eneaf. Haw ! haw ! haw ! Dickens. 3. 'Twas but last week I rode a day's sport after twen- ty couple of hounds — staunch tartars as ever barked or run a course — took a flying leap across a stream — dashed through two quicksets, and leaped three five-barred gates ! We started Reynard before eight — had a view-halloo by ten — tallyho ! ho, ho ! At eleven we took to the water — we plunged after — crossed the Thames — up the hill — 1 68 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. down the valley — over hedge, ditch, and gate we go, helter, skelter ! At twelve the whole pack close in with him — you might cover them with a tablecloth — and we killed him exactly at nineteen minutes, three seconds af- ter one ! -R. /. Raymond. 4. When lads and lasses merry be, With possets and with junkets fine ; Unseen of all the company, I eat their cakes and sip their wine ! And, to make sport, I puff and snort : % And out the candles I do blow : The maids I kiss, They shriek — Who's this ? I answer nought but ho, ho, ho ! 5. There's not a hag Or ghost shall wag, Or cry, 'ware goblins ! where I go ; But Robin I Their feats will spy, And send them home with hoo, hoo, hoo ! 6. " What are you looking at Oliver ? At all those handkerchiefs? — There are a good many of 'em, ain't there? We've just looked 'em out ready for the wash. Ho, ho, ho ; — 6b hoo, hoo, hoo ! " Dickens. INFLECTION. Changes in pitch are made in two ways, by skip and by slide. The former is technically called the discrete , MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 1 69 the latter the concrete movement of the voice. The dis- crete predominates in Music, the concrete in Speech. In elocution, the slides of the voice are called inflections, and are the principal means by which the lights and shades of thought and feeling are expressed. The rising and falling slides are capable of innumera- ble combinations. The rising inflection appeals, the falling asserts. The rising defers to the judgment of the person addressed, the falling declares the judgment of the speaker. The rising inflection^ is marked thus ( ' ), the falling, thus ( N ). The union of these two gives the falling cir- cumflex ;lhe union of the falling and the rising; inflections gives the rising circumflex. The union of the falling and the rising circumflexes gives the compound rising circumflex ; the union of the rising circumflex and the falling circumflex gives the compound falling circumflex. It will be noticed that the final direction of the slide determines the name of the inflection. The slides of voice vary in length from a half tone to an octave or more, depending on the degree of energy. No absolute or infallible directions can be given^for the employment of inflection, but tne following may serve as GENERAL RULES. — I. Positive ideas take the falling slide. II. Negative and conditional ideas take the rising slide. 170 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. EXAMPLES UNDER FIRST RULE. 1. False Wizard, avaunt v ! I have marshaled my clan N ; Their swords are a thousand^, their bosoms are one N ! 2. Silence v that dreadful belP ! it frights the isle From her propriety\ 3. Strike^ ! — till the last armed foe expires v ; Strike^ ! — for your altars x and your fires N ; Strike N ! — for the green graves of your sires ; God\ and your native land v ! K Hal leek. 4. Be just x and fear not\ Let all the ends thou aim'st at be thy country's', Thy God's \ and truth's N ; then if thou fall'st, O Cromwell, Thou falPst a blessed martyr \ Shakespeate. EXAMPLES UNDER SECOND RULE. I . Not from the grand old masters 7 , Not from the bards sublime 7 ,. Whose distant footsteps echo Through the corridors of Time 7 . Longfelloiv . 2. 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 below' ; nor could I regard him as a safe counselor in MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 171 the affairs of this government, whose thoughts should be mainly bent on considering, not how the union should be preserved", but how tolerable might be the condition of the people, when it shall be broken up and destroyed. Webster. 3. If we fail, it can be no worse for us'. 4. I will wait for you in the corridor, if you do not stay too long'. MISCELLANEOUS EXAMPLES. i. It is in studying as in eating, — he that does it gets the benefit^ and not he that sees it done. 2. Not that I loved Caesar less', but Rome more'. 3. Not enjoyment 7 , and not sorrow', Is our destined end or way 7 , But to act, that each to-morrow Find us farther than to-day \ Longfellow . 4. Whence the wind blows, where the wind goes, Hither and thither and whither — who knows v ? Who knows x ? Hither' and thither 1 ' — but whither 7 — who knows' ? /. F. Waller. 5. Who was her father' ? Who was her mother ? Had she a sister 7 ? Had she a brother 7 ? Or was there a dearer one Still, and a nearer one Yet, than all other ? Hood- 172 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 6. We ? Ha ! ha ! you hear, My liege ! What page, man, in the last court grammar Made you a plural ? Count, you have seized fhe hireling"'. — Sire, shall I name the master' ? Bulwer. 7. How many waste their lives and fritter away their manhood and womanhood in the everlasting query, "What'll they think?" It arranges all their household, fashions their drawing-rooms, their feasts, their equipage, their garments, their sociality, their religion, their every- thing ! Poor hampered souls ! Society abounds in such. Men are often enough of the lot, but women oftener. They have lost all desire to be independent. It is how will the Priggses look at it, that determines them. They must do just as the Priggses do. Out upon the Priggses and all their retinue. Let us have done with "What'll they think? " and bury it with the corpses of the bowing, scraping, cringing, and fawning of feudal days and universal slave ages. Anon. Cadence is a fall of the voice in reading or speaking made either by skip or slide, generally by the latter. The term is usually applied to that descent of the voice at the end of a sentence which denotes completeness of sense. The length of the skip or slide in cadence is determined (as with the other inflections) by the nature of the thought and the energy and earnestness of the expression. The cadence or "full stop " in reading is not limited to the grammatical sentence, but when the sense is suf- MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 1 73 ficiently complete is often made at the end of a clause or an auxiliary sentence. 1. One, two, three, four, five. One, two, three, four, five, six, seven. 2. Heaped upon the floor, to form a kind of throne, were turkeys, geese, game, brawn, great joints of meat, sucking pigs, long wreaths of sausages, mince-pies, plum- puddings, barrels of oysters, red-hot chestnuts, cherry- cheeked apples, juicy oranges, luscious pears, immense twelfth-cakes, and great bowls of punch. Dickens 3. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suf- fering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. 4. He shudders — gasps — Jove help him — so he's dead ! 5. One Country, one Constitution, one Destiny. 6. I was born an American, I \We an American, I shall die an American. 7 . But oh, what damned minutes tells he o'er, Who dotes, yet doubts ; suspects, yet strongly loves ! 8. , He sinks into thy depths with bubbling groan, Without a grave, unknelled, uncoffin'd, and unknown. 9. Give thy thoughts no tongue, Nor any unproportion'd thought his act. Be thou familiar, but by no means vulgar. The friends thou hast and their adoption tried, Grapple them to tby soul with hoops of steel. Shakespeare. 174 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. , TIME. As already defined, Time relates to duration. Its el- ements are Quantity, Movement and Pause. QUANTITY. Quantity relates to the duration of voice upon an ele- ment, syllable, or word. Practice the following words in different degrees of pitch and with varied force and inflection. Long Quantity. — eve serene meteor tame nature favorite care staircase parentage palm plaza armament awe always awkwardly home homeward potato prove toothache voodooism tide tyro iodine poise jointure voyager thou coward outlawry new future utilize Short Quantity. — it pretty pitying pen revel fretfulness earth perfect terminal ant cattle canvassing task fasten craftily fop folly pottery cup dusty buttercup foot brooklet womanly MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. ■ 175 MOVEMENT. Movement relates to the degree of rapidity with which the successive words in the sentence are delivered. It is dependent upon Quantity and Pause. Slow.— 1. Some, o'er the tongue the labored measures roll, Slow and deliberate as the parting toll ; Point every stop, mark every pause so strong, Their words, like stage processions, stalk along. Lloyd. 2. Thou unrelenting Past ! Strong are the barriers round thy dark domain, And fetters, sure. and fast, Hold all that enter thy unbreathing reign. Thou hast my better years, Thou hast my earlier friends — the good — the kind, Yielded to thee with tears — The venerable form — the exalted mind. Bryant. . O thou Eternal One ! whose presence bright All space doth occupy, all motion guide — Unchanged through time's all-devastating flight ! Thou only God — there is no God beside ! Being above all beings ! Mighty one, Whom none can comprehend, and none explore ! Who fill's t existence with Thyself alone — Embracing all, supporting, ruling o'er, — Being whom we call God, — and know no more. Thy word created all, and doth create ; Thy splendor fills all space with rays divine ; 176 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Thou art, and wert, and shall be ! Glorious ! Great ! Light-giving, life-sustaining Potentate ! God ! thus alone my lowly thoughts can soar, Thus seek Thy presence — Being wise and good ! Midst Thy vast works admire, obey, adore ; The soul shall speak in tears of gratitude. Derzhavin . 4. Lord, thou hast been our dwelling-place in all gen- erations. Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God. Psalms. Moderate.- Lowliness is young ambition's ladder, Whereto the climber-upward turns his face ; But when he once attains the upmost round, He then unto the ladder turns his back, Looks in the clouds, scorning the base degrees By which he did ascend. Shakespeare In the lexicon of youth, which fate reserves For a bright manhood, there is no such word As— fail. Buhner. * There is a tide in the affairs of men, Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune ; Omitted, all the voyage ot their life Is bound in shallows, and in miseries. Shakespeare MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. I 77 4. Because half a dozen grasshoppers under a fern make .the field ring with their . importunate chink, whilst thousands of great cattle, reposed beneath the shadow of the British oak, chew the cud and are silent, pray do not imagine that those who make the noise are the only in- habitants of the field. Burke. Quick. — 1 . Quick ! man the life-boat ! See yon bark That drives before the blast ! There's a rock ahead, the night is dark, And the storm comes thick and fast. Can human power in such an hour, Avert the doom that's o'er her ? Her mainmast's gone, but she still drives on To the fatal reef before her, The life-boat ! Man the life-boat ! 2. Now you see the water foaming all around. See how fast you pass that point ! Up with the helm ? Now turn ! Pull hard ! quick ! quick ! quick ! pull for your lives ! pull till the blood starts from your nostrils, and the veins stand like whip-cords upon your brow ! Set the mast in the socket ! hoist the sail ! ah ! ah ! it is too late ! Shrieking, cursing, howling, blaspheming • over they go. Gough. 3. Hear the sledges with the bells — Silver bells — What a world of merriment their melody foretells ! How they tinkle tinkle, tinkle, In the icy air of night ! 178 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. While the stars that oversprinkle All the heavens, seem to twinkle With a crystalline delight. Poe. Haste thee, nymph, and bring with thee Jest and youthful jollity, Quips, and cranks, and wanton wiles, Nods, and becks, and wreathed smiles, Such as hang on Hebe's cheek, And love to live in dimple sleek ; Sport, that wrinkled care derides, And Laughter holding both his sides. Come, and trip it as ye go On the light fantastic toe. Milton. 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 fleet. Longfellow . Away ! — away ! and on we dash ! Torrents less rapid and less rash. Away, away, my steed and I, Upon the pinions of the wind, All human dwellings left behind ; We speed like meteors through the sky, When with its crackling sound the night Is chequer'd with the northern light. Byron. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 1 79 PAUSE. Pause is the rest or cessation of voice, separating words, clauses, and sentences in reading and speaking, to render thought and feeling more intelligible and more impressive. The grammatical construction of language is indicated by marks of punctuation ; the rhetorical construction by pauses. Between these is a correspondence which makes the punctuation marks a general, but not an absolute guide in reading. The longer pauses are usually made where these marks occur ; but pauses are often made where they do not occur, though generally of shorter du- ration. Since Pause and Movement are elements of Time, the length of the pause is determined by the rate of the movement : Slow movement calling for long pauses, and rapid movement for short pauses. RHETORICAL PAUSE. The Rhetorical Pause is a term applied to those pauses which generally occur where there are no grammatical separations. The more important of them are made, First, where there is a sudden interruption or change in the thought or emotion; Second, where words are omitted to avoid repetition, to give terseness to the expression, or to shorten the line in metrical composition; and, Fourth, where the pause is made before the utterance of important thought to excite curiosity or expectancy ; or after to give the hearer time to grasp the full meaning of the emphatic idea. l8o VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. i. If it live in your memory, begin at this line : let me see ; let me see, — The rugged Pyrrhus, like the Hyrcanian beast, — 'Tis not so;— it begins with "Pyrrhus." Shakespeare. 2. Ay, sir, but while the grass grows, — the proverb is something musty. 3. And those who rode foremost in its field at morning — where are they now ? 4. Unpleasant ! — well, I should smile — I mean I should weep. 5. Some — place the bliss in action, some — in ease; Those call it pleasure, and — contentment, these. 6. He plunged, he crossed, and Rome was free — no more ! 7. Hush ! — silence along the lines there. 8. The scarf on his breast — she who placed it there would shrink but to touch it now. 9. Thou art thyself thine enemy : The great ! — what better they than thou ? As theirs, is not thy will as free? Has God with equal favors thee Neglected to endow ? True, wealth thou hast not — 'tis but dust : Nor place — uncertain as the wind; But that thou hast, which with thy crust And water may despise the lust Of both — a noble mind. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 151 io. Her neck is bared — the blow is struck — the soul is passed away! The bright — the beautiful, is now a piece of bleeding clay! 1 1 . Low, murmuring sounds along their banners fly, " Revenge or death! " — their watchword and reply. 12. O God! what emotions the speaker awoke; A mortal he seemed — yet a deity spoke ; A man— yet so far from humanity riven; On earth — yet so closely connected with heaven. Mrs. Welby. 13. Put out the light, and then — put out ^flight? If I quench thee, thou flaming minister, I can again thy former light restore, Should I repent me; but once put out thine, Thou cunning'st pattern of excelling nature, I know not where is that Promethean heat That can thy light relume. Shakespeare. There is a cessation or rest of the voice that some- times occurs in poetic verse called the CESURAL PAUSE. 1. Hope springs eternal | in the human breast. 2. Pealed their first notes 1 to sound the march of time. 3. On beds of green sea-flowers | thy limbs shall be laid, Around thy white bones | the red coral shall grow; Of thy fair yellow locks | threads of amber be made, And every part suit f to thy mansion below. Dimond. 152 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. In the reading of metrical composition, avoid a sing- song movement of the voice. While there is a rhythm in poetry that should be observed, the sense should never be sacrificed to the measure. grouping. — Grouping of thought is a vocal analysis that holds about the same relation to spoken language as grammat- ical analysis does to written. The elements with which Grouping is chiefly concerned are Pitch, Pause, Time and Stress. By means of these, the leading and subordinate ideas of the sentence may be given their relative value. The leading thought or state- ment should be placed, as it were, in the foreground of the rhetorical perspective ; the less important in- the more remote or middle-ground ; and the least important or " parenthetic " ideas in the background of the rhetor- ical perspective. To show the value of this principle, and the import- ance of " rhetorical analysis " to correct reading and speak- ing, read the following sentence, first, with uniform empha- sis, pitch and time, and without pause, and note the con- fusion of ideas. Then read it with the required empha- sis, pause, &c, as indicated. It was the owl that shrieked the fatal bell-man Which gives the stern'st good-night. It was the owl that shrieked, the fatal bell-man, Which gives the stern'st good- night '. Practice the following examples until every shade in the expression of the thought and feeling is clearly brought out. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 1 83 1 . Perhaps you may have seen, some day, Roses crowding the self-same way, Out of a wilding, way-side bush. Alice Cary. 2. The oak one day addressed the reed : — To you ungenerous indeed Has nature been, my humble friend, With weakness aye obliged to bend. La Fontaine. 3. But knowledge to their eyes her ample page, Rich with the spoils of time, did ne'er enroll ; Chill penury repressed their noble rage, A.nd froze the genial current of the soul. Gray. 4. Yet, by your gracious patience, I will a round, unvarnished tale deliver Of my whole course of love. Shakespeare. 5 . Yet this is Rome, That sat on her seven hills, and, from her throne Of beauty, ruled the world ! Yet we are Romans ! Why, in that elder day, to be a Roman, Was greater than a king ! Shakespeare. 6. The atrocious crime of being a young man, which, with so much spirit and decency, the honorable gentle- man has charged upon me, I shall neither attempt to pal- liate nor deny. Pitt. I #4 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 7. Forth march'd the chief, and, distant from the crowd, High on the rampart raised his voice aloud. As the loud trumpet's brazen mouth from far, With shrilling clangor sounds th' alarm of war ; So high his dreadful voice the hero rear'd ; Hosts dropp'd their arms, and trembled as they heard. Pope's Homer. 8. She never told her love, But let concealment, like a worm i' the bud, Feed on her damask cheek. Shakespeare. 9. Nature to each allots his proper sphere, But that forsaken, we like comets err, Toss'd through the void, by some rude shock we're broke, And all our boasted fire is lost in smoke. Congreve. 10. Care to our coffin adds a nail, no doubt; And every laugh so merry draws one out. 11. In Macbeth, for the sake of gratifying his own enormous and teeming faculty of creation, Shakespeare has introduced two murderers ; and, as usual in his hands, they are remarkably discriminated ; but, though in Macbeth the strife of mind is greater than in his wife, the tiger spirit not so awake, and his feeling caught chiefly by contagion from her — yet, as both are finally involved in the guilt of murder, the murderous mind of necessity is finally to be presumed in both. De Quincey. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 1 85 12. And, Douglas, more I tell thee here, Even in thy pitch of pride, Here, in thy hold, thy vassals near, (Nay, never look upon your lord, And lay your hand upon your sword,) I tell thee, thou 'rt defied ! Scott. 13. Go, preach to the coward, thou death-telling seer, Or, if gory Culloden so dreadful appear, Draw, dotard, around thy old wavering sight, This mantle, to cover the phantoms of fright. Campbell, EMPHASIS. Emphasis, in its widest signification, comprehends the various vocal means by which thought and emotion are made significant and impressive. Emphasis is given in the following three ways : I. by force. — Back to thy punishment. II. BY TIME.— He gave one long lingering look behind. III. BY SLIDE. 1. I come to bu'ry' Caesar, not to prai /v se him . 2. 0' s , cer'tainly\ the elections are coming on . 3. Thou fortune V champion, thou dost never fight / But when her humorous lady ship is by To teach thee safe / ty x ! 1 86 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. The above means for giving emphasis are generally used in conjunction, and when so used, one of them usually predominates and characterizes the emphasis. Force predominates in impassioned thought. Time, in the expression of solemnity, awe, sublimity, reverence, endearment, &c, and to denote long time and great distance. Slide predominates in contrasted ideas, in irony, rid- icule, &c, and generally in scorn. The practical application of the foregoing rules and principles will be found in the following sentences. 1 . Roiise, ye Romans ! ROUSE, ye slaves ! 2 . From every hill, by every sea, In shouts proclaim the great decree, " All chains are burst, all men are free! Hurrah, hurrah, HURRAH! " 3. The war is inevitable, and let it come! I repeat it, sir, LET it come ! 4. Come, consecrated Lictors, from your thrones ; Fling down your scepters; take the rod and axe, And make the murder, as you make the law! 5. Cry " Havock! " and let slip the dogs of war. 6. Arm, gentlemen, to arms! for I have thrown A brave defiance in King Henry's teeth. Now, by my sword, I will kill all his coats; I'll murder all his wardrobe piece by piece, Until I meet the king. Shakespeare. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. * 1 87 Up, and away ; Our soldiers stand full fairly for the day. He loosed the steed — his slack hand fell — upon the silent face He cast one long deep troubled look, then turned from that sad place ! Mrs. He mans. Soldier, rest ! thy warfare o'er, Sleep the sleep that knows not breaking ; Dream of battle-fields no more, Days of danger, nights of waking. In our isle's enchanted hall, Hands unseen thy couch are strewing, Fairy strains of music fall, Every sense in slumber dewing. Scott. See, how she leans her cheek upon her hand ! O, that I were a glove upon that hand, That I might touch that cheek ! Shakespeare . O Romeo, Romeo ! wherefore art thou Romeo ? 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 ! Byron. VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. « And louder yet into Winchester rolled The roar of that red sea uncontrolled, Making the blood of the listener cold, As he thought of the stake in that fiery fray, And Sheridan twenty miles away! T. B. Read. The time is long past, and the scene is afar, Yet, when my head rests on its pillow, Will memory sometimes rekindle the star That blazed on the breast of the billow. Moore. We live in deeds", not years v ; in thought\ not breath' ; In feelings \ not in figures on a dial'. We should count time by heart throbs. He most lives Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best. B y alley 's Festus. They come, and to my beard they dare To tell me now, that I, Their own liege lord and master born — That I — ha ! ha ! — must die ! A. G. Greene. For he made me mad To see him shine so brisk, and smell so sweet, And talk so like a waiting gentlewoman, Of guns, and drums, and wounds—heaven save the mark- And telling me the sovereign'st thing on earth Was spermaceti — for an inward bruise. Shakespeare. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. I 69 18. "Thou art a cobbler', art thou 7 ?" " Truly, sir, all' that I live by is with the awl" '." 19, "Very well, ma'am, very well ! So a husband is to have no influence — no authority ! " " Authority^' ? No"\ to be sure ! If you wanted author- ity'"' over me, you should have adopted'*" me, and not married" me ; I am sure you were old' x enough." R. B. Sheridan. ANTITHESIS. x\ntithesis relates to words and sentiments contrasted or opposed in meaning. The antithesis of ideas is brought out by emphasis,;ac- cording to the rule already given for " contrasted ideas." Emphasis by modulation or slide characterizes the expres- sion of antithetic thought. A change of inflection gen- erally occurs in the emphasis of ideas opposed in mean- ing. The contrasted idea is sometimes implied. Striving to better, oft we mar what's well. The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings. Give it an understanding, but no tongue. I mus*t be cruel, only to be kind : Thus bad begins, and worse remains behind. Oar new heraldry is — hands, not hearts. Love looks no: with the eyes, but with the mind, And therefore is wing'd Cupid painted blind. They jest at scars who never felt a wound. I90 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 8. Friendship was in their looks, but in their hearts there was hatred. 9. There is misery in want, and danger in excess. 10. " In God's name, what art thou ?" " A man, as you are." " But not, as I am, royal." " Nor you, as we are, loyal." 11. " Thy voice is thunder, but thy looks are humble. ' " My voice is now the king's, my looks mine own." 12. " If you are hired for meed, go back again, And I will send you to my brother Gloster ; Who will reward you better for my life, Than Edward will for tidings of my death." Shakespeare. 13. You will find it less easy to uproot faults than to choke them by gaining virtues. 14. A maiden's wrath has two eyes — one blind, the other keener than a falcon's. 15. The storm that rends the oak, uproots the flower. 16. My stupor was almost a heaven ; My waking, almost a hell. 17. Man cannot make — but may ennoble fate, By nobly bearing it. So let us trust, Not to ourselves, but God, and calmly wait Love's orient out of darkness and of dust. Oiven Meredith. 18. Love lights more fires than hate extinguishes, And men grow better as the world grows old. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 191 19. When I was out of society, I was paid light for being seen ; when I went into society, I paid heavy for being seen. 20. They follow an adventurer whom they fear, and obey a power which they hate ; we serve a monarch whom we love, a God whom we adore. R. B. Sheridan. 21. I feel the impulse — yet I do not plunge ; I see the peril — yet do not recede ; And my brain reels — and yet my foot is firm. Byron. 22. It was midnight when I listened, And I heard two voices speak ; One was harsh, and stern, and cruel, And the other soft and weak. Adelaide A. Proctor. EMPHATIC REPETITION. When words are repeated for the sake of emphasis, they should be given with increased energy at each repe- tition. 1 . Seize, seize the traitor ! 2. Weapons, weapons, weapons ! 3. Help, Marcus, HELP ! You would be noble : help him, young and old ! 4. Peace, peace, peace ; stay, hold peace ! 5. Rise ! oh RISE ! Sound, sound, that all the universe may hear ! 192 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. O horror ! horror ! HORROR ! Tongue cannot conceive, nor name thee ! Shakespeare. Alas ! alas ! I know not : Friend and foe together fall, O'er the dying rush the living : Pray, my sisters, pray for all ! Whittier. Vain, vain ! give o'er. Half a league, half a league, Half a league onward, All in the valley of Death Rode the six hundred. Tennyson. Rise, rise ! even now thy father comes, a ransomed man, this day ! Mount thy good horse ; and thou and I will meet him on his way. „ Mrs. Hemans. I tell you that which you yourselves do know — Show you sweet Caesar's wounds, poor, poor dumb mouths, And bid them speak for me. Shakespeare. Off, off, you base and hireling pack ! Room, my lords, room ! The minister of France Can need no intercession with the king. Bultver. O ! base, base, base ! This pardons Herod in the eye of heaven. Sir, I won't hear a word, not a word ! not one word! MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 1 93 15. Gentlemen may cry peace, peace, but there is no peace. 16. If I were an American, as I am an Englishman, while a foreign troop was landed in my country, I never would lay down my arms ! — never ! never ! never ! Lord Chatham. Climax is an arrangement of thought in which the suc- cessive ideas rise in importance towards the close of the sentence. The members of the series which compose the climax, may be words, phrases, or sentences. Each successive member should be given with increased energy and ear- nestness, the last member of the series receiving the greatest emphasis, when the "climax " is said to be reached. The rule for climax applies, to a certain extent, to Am- plification and Enumeration, illustrations of which are included in the following examples : DARE NOT must no t, grant I will not, your wish. 1. We have yet many forced marches to make ; ene- mies to vanquish ; laurels to gather ; and INJURIES TO AVENGE ! Napoleon. 194 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 2. Each hour dark fraud, Or open rapine, or PROTECTED MURDER, * Cry out against them. 3. Friendship was its inhabitant ; love was its inhab- itant ; domestic affection was its inhabitant ; liberty was its inhabitant ! — all bounded by the stream of the Rubicon. Knowles. 4. Then came a cloud of smoke, and out of the cloud came the lightning, Out of the lightning thunder ; and death unseen ran before it. Longfellow. 5. Your dearest interests, your own liberties, the Con- stitution itself, totter to the foundation. 6. Patricians ! They have pushed me to the gulph : — I have worn down my heart, wasted my means, Humbled my birth, bartered my ancient name, For the rank favor of the senseless mass. Craly. I have no ancient birth, no heraldry, — No motley coat is daubed upon my shield; I cheat no rabble, like your charlatans, By flinging dead men's dust in idiot's eyes; I work no miracles with buried bones; Yet, if I stooped to talk of ancestry, I had an ancestor, — mine was Adam. To wake the soul by tender strokes of art; To raise the genius, and to mend the heart; To make mankind in conscious virtue bold, Croly. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 1 95 Live o'er the scene, and be what they behold: For this the tragic muse first trod the stage, — Commanding tears to stream through every age. 9. Thus, by his genius and his jack-knife driven Ere long he'll solve you any problem given; Make any jim-crack, musical or mute, A plough, a coach, an organ or a flute; Make anything, in short, for sea or shore, From a child's rattle to a seventy-four; Make it, said I? — Ay, when he undertakes it, He ; ll make the thing and the machine that makes it. Pierpont. 10. What! attribute the sacred sanction of God and Nature to the massacres of the Indian scalping-knife, — to the cannibal savage, torturing, murdering, devouring, drinking the blood of his mangled victims. Such hor- rible notions shock every precept of religion, every sen- timent of honor, every generous feeling of humanity ! Lord Chatham. 1 1 . The cloud capp'd towers, the gorgeous palaces, The solemn temples, the great globe itself, Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve, And like this insubstantial pageant faded, Leave not a rack behind. Shakespeare. 12. Call me their traitor! — Thou injurious tribune ! Within thine eyes sat twenty thousand deaths, In thy hands clutch'd as many millions, in Tny lying tongue both numbers, I would say Thou liest, unto thee, with a voice as free As I do pray the gods. Shakespeare. I96 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 13. Days, months, years, and ages shall circle away, And still the vast waters above thee shall roll; Earth loses thy pattern, forever and aye; O, sailor boy! sailor boy ! peace to thy soul. Dimond. 14. The gases gather to the solid firmament, the chemic lump arrives at the plant, and grows ; arrives at the quadruped, and walks ; arrives at the man, and thinks. Emerson. 15. I found France rent asunder; The rich men despots, and the poor banditti; Sloth in the market and schism in the temple; Brawls festering to rebellion; and weak laws Rotting away with rust in antique sheaths. I have recreated France; and, from the ash Of the old feudal and decrepit carcass, Civilization, on her luminous wings, Soars, phcenix-like, to Jove! Sir E. Bulwer Lytton. SIGNIFICANCE OF MODULATION AND EM- PHASIS. The study of the following sentences will show the im- portance of proper modulation and the correct placing of emphasis. Many of the punctuation marks are purposely omitted. 1. The man who is in the daily use of alcoholic li- quors if he does not become a drunkard is in danger of losing his health and character. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 1 97 2. She wished she had not heard it, yet she wished That heaven had made her such a man. 3. The dog would have died if you hadn't cut his head off. 4. Your honor is right and I am wrong as your honor usually is. 5. Where is the man ? There he is madam drunk as you behold. 6. Yet all said he was an excellent man. 7. Hang out the banners on the outward wall the cry is still they come. 8. If Moses was the son of Pharaoh's daughter then Moses was the daughter of Pharaoh's son. 9. There is a divinity that shapes our ends Rough-hew them how we may. 10. I give to you sir a puppy the one you asked for. 1 1 . Thou foundest me an enemy, thou leavest me a friend. 12. The wicked flee when no man pursueth but the righteous is bold as a lion. 13. He moves a god resistless in his course, And seems a match for more than mortal force. 14. A fellow in a market town Most musical cries razors up and down. 1 5 . My hand will rather The multitudinous seas incarnadine Making the green one red . 190 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. 16. How fleet is a glance of the mind Compared with the speed of its flight The tempest itself lags behind And the swift winged arrows of light. 17. The king himself has followed her When she has walked before. > 18. But this circumstance averted the dangers that threatened him and made him sad. 19. The judge in passing sentence on John said that he was not guilty. 20. Pain has not caused him thus to feel but sorrow. 21. He had a patient lying at Death's door Some three miles from the town ; it might be four. 22. Thersites calls Ajax the idol of idiot worshipers. 23. He tenderly led from the court-room Himself the guilty child. TRANSITION. Transition is the name given to those abrupt changes in pitch, force, time and quality, employed for expression in reading and speaking. An important application of Transition, is in the passing from one character to another in personation. Its effective use implies proper control of voice in all the essentials of elocution. I. So stately her bearing, So proud her array, The main she will traverse forever and aye. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 1 99 Many ports will exult at the gleam of her mast! — Hush! hush! thou vain dreamer! this hour is her last! Mrs. Browning. At first a universal shriek there rushed, Louder than the loud ocean, like a crash Of echoing thunder; — then all was hushed, Save the wild wind and the remorseless dash Of billows. Byron. The combat deepens. — On, ye brave, "Who rush to glory or the grave! Lo! anointed by heaven with vials of wrath, Behold, where he flies on his desolate path! Now, in darkness and billows, he sweeps from my sight; Rise! rise! ye wild tempests, and cover his flight! Tis finished. Their thunders are hushed on the moors; Culloden is lost, and my country deplores ! Campbell. " Halt! " — the dust-brown ranks stood fast; " Fire!" — out blazed the rifle-blast. It shivered the window, pane and sash, It rent the banner with seam and gash. Quick, as it fell from the broken staff, Dame Barbara snatched the silken scarf; She leaned far out on the*window-sill, . And shook it forth with a royal will. " Shoot, if you must, this old gray head, But spare your country's flag," she said. A shade of sadness, a blush of shame, Over the face of the leader came; The nobler nature within him stirred VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. To life at that woman's deed and word. " Who touches a hair of yon gray head Dies like a dog! March on! " he said. Whittier. They fought like brave men, long and well, They piled the ground with Moslem slain, They conquered — but Bozzaris fell, Bleeding at every vein. Halle ck/ A light on Marmion's visage spread, And fired his glazing eye: With dying hand above his head He shook the fragment of his blade, And shouted " Victory! — Charge, Chester, charge! On, Stanley, on!" Were the last words of Marmion. Scott. " Accursed be the faggots, that blaze at his feet, Where his heart shall be thrown, e'er it ceases to beat, With the smoke of the ashes to poison the gale " — — "Down, soothless insulter! I trust not the tale; For never shall Albion a destiny meet So black with dishonor — so foul with retreat." Campbell. " By the God that made thee, Randolph, Tell us what mischance hath come! " Then he lifts his riven banner, And the asker's voice is dumb. Ay t oiin. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 20 1 10. "When Venice and Rome keep their new jubilee, When your flag takes all heaven for its green, white and red, When you have a country from mountain to sea, When King Victor has Italy's crown on his head, [And I have my dead.) What then ? Do not mock me. Ah! ring your bells low, And burn your lights faintly. My country is there, Above the star pricked by the last peak of snow, My Italy's there, with my brave civic pair, To disfranchise despair. Mrs. Browning. u. If you should transfer the amount of your reading day by day from the newspapers to the standard authors — But who dare speak of such a thing. Emerson. QUALITY. For definitions of the different qualities of voice, see pages 57 and 58. Examples for practice are given below. How sweet the chime of the Sabbath bells! Each one its creed in music tells, In tones that float upon the air, As soft as song, and pure as prayer; And I will put in simple rhyme The language of the golden chime. My happy heart with rapture swells Responsive to the bells — sweet bells. VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. How sweet the moonlight sleeps upon this bank! Here will we sit and let the sound of music Creep in our ears; soft stillness and the night Become the touches of sweet harmony. Sit, Jessica: look how the floor of Heaven Is thick inlaid with patines of bright gold; There's not the smallest orb which thou beholdest But in his motion like an angel sings, Still quiring to the young-eyed cherubims: Such harmony is in immortal souls; But whilst this muddy vesture of decay Doth grossly close it in, we cannot hear it. Shakespeare. Roll 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 A shadow of man's ravage, save his own, When, for a moment, like a drop of rain, He sinks into the depths with bubbling groan, Without a grave, unknelled, uncoffined, and unknown. 4. O thou that roll'st above, round as the shield of my fathers! W T hence are thy beams, O sun! thy everlasting light ? i. "Hush! silence along the lines there !" he mut- tered, in that wild, absent tone, as though speaking to the dead ; " silence along the lines ! not a word — not a word, on peril of your lives ! Hark you, Montgomery ! we will MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. ■ 203 meet in the center of the town : — we will meet there in victory, or die ! " Geo. Lippard. 2. Lo ! now the night is coming. The mist is gather- ing on the hill. The fox steals forth to seek his quarry, and the gray owl sweeps whirling by, rejoicing in the still- ness. 3. A-ha ! the veil ! the veil, — it was empoisoned ! 4. Ah, we creep round a ledge On the world's very edge, On a shelf of the rock Where an eagle might nest, And the heart's double knock Dies away in the breast — We have rounded Cape Horn ! Grand Pacific, good morn ! B. F. Taylor. 5. My dream was lengthened afier life : — Oh ! then began the tempest to my soul ! With that, methought, a legion of foul fiends Environed me, and howled in mine ears Such hideous cries', that, with the very noise, I trembling waked, and, for a season after, Could not believe but that I was in hell ; Such terrible impressions made my dream ! Shakespeare. 6. And not in vain he listened : " Hush ! — what's that ? ' I see — I see :— Ah no ! 'tis not — yet 'tis — Ye powers ! It is the — the — the : — Pooh ! the cat. 7 . Yet half I hear the parting spirit sigh, " It is a dread and awful thing to die ! ">— 204 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Mysterious worlds untraveled by the sun, — Where Time's far-wandering tide has never run, — From your unfathomed shades, and' viewless spheres, A warning comes, unheard by other ears. 8. How like a fawning publican he looks ! I hate him, for he is a Christian ; But more, for that, in low simplicity, He lends out money gratis, and brings down The rate of usance with us here in Venice. If I can catch him once upon the hip, I will feed fat the ancient grudge I bear him ! Shakespeare. IMITATIVE MODULATION. The correspondence between sound and sense is, per- haps, more marked in the English Language than in any other. The sound and modulation of the words — the elements themselves — -have a significance that every ora- tor and actor appreciates, and seeks to make effective in the communication of thought and feeling. Give each of the following words in that quality sug- gested by its meaning. Rough, smooth, light, thin, heavy, tough, brittle, husky, harsh, chuckle, quick, slow, cluck, crash, splash, whiz; boom, patter, rumble, groans, tinkle, bellow, buzz, bub- ble, bells, tolls. The following sentences are good illustrations of lim- itative Modulation, and will be found excellent for prac- tice. I. Down the rough slope the ponderous wagon rijigs ; Through nestling corn the hare astonished springs ; Slozu tolls the village clock the droivsy hour ; The partridge bursts away on zvhirring wings. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 205 Hark ! how the sign-board creaks ! The blast howls by ! Moan ! moan ! A dirge swells through the cloudy sky ! The shard-borne beetle with its drowsy hums Hath rung night's yawning peal. On a sudden open fly The infernal gates, and on their hinges grate Harsh thunder ! There crept A little, noiseless noise among the leaves, Born of the very sigh that silence heaves. And her step was light and airy As the tripping of a fairy ; When she spoke, you thought each minute, 'Twas the trilling of a linnet ; When she sang, you heard a gush Of full-voiced sweetness like a thrush. /. F. Waller. Ay de mi ! — Like echoes falling Sweet and sad and low, Voices come at night, recalling Years and years ago. Idem . Through moss and through brake It runs and it creeps, P'or a while, till it sleeps In its own little lake. And thence at departing, Awakening and starting, It runs through the reeds, And away it proceeds, 2o6 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Through meadow and glade, In sun and in shade, And through the wood-shelter, Among crags in its flurry, Helter skelter, Hurry-skurry. Son they. 9. 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, rough verse should like the torrent roar. When Ajax strives some rock's vast weight to throw, The line too labors, and the rocks move slow ; Not so when swift Camilla scours the plain, Flies o'er the unbending corn, and skims along the main. Pope. RHYTHMUS AND MELODY. Rhythmus and Melody are important factors in the expressive rendering of poetry and well written prose. Rhythmus is mainly dependent upon accent ; Melody, upon modulation. Rhythmus is not "sing song" — a common fault in the reading of poetry that should be avoided. It is that gliding movement noticeable in well spoken language, that gives melody to speech. Rhythmus and Melody are further explained and illus- trated under their more practical heading. MEASURES OF SPEECH. The alternate heavy and light action of the voice run- ning through all speech, is caused by a regular actio?i MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 207 and reaction of the larynx, a phenomenon peculiar to all muscular effort. In the case of the larynx, it is produced " by a slight but decided action between the thyroid and cricoid cartilages, which occasions an alternate tension and relaxation of the vocal cords." In words, we recognize it in the accented and unaccented syllables ; in sentences, in the percussive and remiss action of the voice in what may be called speech-words. A speech-word may be one word or several words over which the voice is carried by a single impulse. The percussive action of the voice corresponds to ac- cent ; the remiss action to unaccent, as illustrated in the words and sentences below. The former is marked thus (*) ; the latter thus (-). 1 . in'-ter-est * _ _ in -ter-est-ed * _ _ _ in -ter-est- ed-ness * _ _ _ _ a. Land-of-the | west. * _ _ * 3. Down in the | valley the I distant lights | quiver, | Gilding the | hard frozen | face of the | river. Measure of Speech reveals the close analogy existing between speech and song. Rhythmus, as seen, divides language into speech- words of about equal lengths, corresponding to measure 2 05 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. in music. The percussive action of the voice, as with accent in music, falls upon the first syllable of the speech- word or measure. The pauses in speech correspond to the rests in music. The practice of exercises in Measure of Speech will encourage and develop a gliding movement, that will counteract the tendency toward pronouncing the words of a sentence as though they were separate and of equal importance. In the following exercises, the rests are represented thus (7), and the measures are separated by the "bar" ( I ), as in music. 1 . 7 On I Linden | 77 | when the | sun was I low | 7 All I bloodless J 77 | lay the un- | trodden | snow | 77 j 7 And I dark as | winter | 7 was the | flow 7 Of I Iser I rolling | rapidly. | 77 | 77 | * _ * _ * _ *__ 7 But J Linden | 77 | saw an- | other | sight | 7 When the j drum | beat | 7 at | dead of | night | 7 Com - I manding | fires of | death | 7 to | light j I 77 I 7 The I darkness | 7 of her | scenery. 2 - O, 7 I green was the | corn | 7 as I | rode on my | way, | 7 And I bright was the | dew | 7 on the | blossoms of | May, | MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 209 7 And I dark was the | sycamore's | shade to be- | hold, | 7 And the | oak's tender | leaves | 7 were of | em'rald and [gold. 3. 7 I I sift the I snow | 7 on the | mountain be- | low | 7 And the | great | pines | groan a- | ghast ; 77 | 7 And J all the | night | 7 'tis my | pillow | white, | 7 While I I sleep in the | arms of the | blast . 4. 7 But I here's a | parchment | 7 with the | seal of | Caesar; 177 1 7 I I found it I 7 in his | closet; | 77 | 7 'tis his | will; | 77 177 I Let but the | commons | hear | 7 this | testament, | 77 | 7 (Which, j pardon me, ) 7 I | do not | mean to | read) — 177 I 77 [ And they would | go \ 7 and | kiss | dead 7 | Caesar's | wounds, ,| 77 I 7 And [ dip their | napkins j 7 in his | sacred [ blood; | 77 I Yea, I 77 j beg a | hair of him | 7 for | memory, | 77 | 7 And I dying, | 77 | mention it within their | wills, | 77 I 7 Be- I queathing it j 7 as a | rich 7 | legacy, | Unto their | issue. 5. O, I 7 that my | heart must for- | ever | 7 be | sighing! | 77 1 O, j 7 that the | hopes of my | youth | 7 must be | dying! | 77 I 77 I Sunshine and | shadow | 7 with | shadows in- | creasing; | 77 I Joy mixed with | sorrow | 7 the | sorrows ne'er ,| ceasing. I 77 I 77 ! 2IO VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Why will the | clouds in my \ sky | 7 be so | lowering? | 77 | Why will the | skies not be | clear J 7 after | showering ? I 77 I 77 I Echoes I 7 my | soul | 7 not a | hint to these | queries; | 77 | Questions on | questions | 7 my | troubled 7 | heart 7 | wearies, j 77 i 77 I O, I 7 that the | clouds | 7 from my | heaven | 7 would | open! j 77 j O, I 7 for some | love-laden | dove | 7 with | love's 7 | token! 6. 7 My I ancestors | came from old j Sparta, | 7 and I settled a- | mong the | vine-clad | rocks | 7 and citron | groves of | Cyra- | sella. | 7 7 | 7 7 | 7 My | ear- ly I life I 7 ran | quiet as the | brooks | 7 by | which I I sported ; | 77 | 7 and | when | 7 at | noon, | 7 I | gathered the | sheep | 7 be- | neath the | shade, | 7 and I played upon the | shepherd's | flute, | 7 there was a | friend, | 7 the | son of a | neighbor, | 7 to | join me in the I pastime. | 77 j 77 | 7 We | led our | flocks to the I same | pasture | 7 and par- | took to- | gether | 7 our I rustic | meal. 7. 7 And he | showed me a | pure | river of | water of I life, I 77 I clear as j crystal, | 7 pro- | ceeding | out of the I throne of | God and of the | Lamb. | 77 | 77 I 7 In the I midst of the | street of it, | 7 and on | eith- er I side of the | river, | 7 was | there the | tree of | life, I 7 which I bare | twelve | manner of | fruits, | 7 and I yielded her | fruit | every | month : | 77 | 7 and the | leaves of the | tree | 7 were for the | healing of the | na- tions. MODULATION AND EXPRESSION. 21 £ 8. Then read from the treasured volume The poem of thy choice, And lend to the rhyme of the poet The beauty of thy voice. 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 . 9. Gone, art thou, Marion, Marion Moore ! Gone, like the breeze o'er the billow that bloweth; Gone, like the rill to the ocean that floweth; Gone, as the day from the gray mountain g^eth, Darkness behind thee, but glory before. Jas. G. Clark. 10. Now the world slopes away to the afternoon sun — Steady one ! Steady all ! The down grade has begun. Let the engines take breath, they have nothing to do, For the law that swings worlds will whirl the train through. Steams of fire from the wheels, Like flashes from the fountains ; And the dizzy train reels As it swoops down the mountains : And fiercer and faster As if demons drove tandem Engines " Death " and "Disaster ! " From dumb Winter to Spring in one wonderful hour ; From Nevada's white wing to Creation in flower ! December at morning tossing wild in its might — A June without warning and blown roses at night ! Benj. F. Taylor, 212 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. STYLE. The Colloquial constitutes the basis of all other styles. It is the golden thread that runs through the warp and woof of speech. It is to this that the attention of the student should first be called. More practice is needed in the colloquial style of read- ing and speaking than in any other. There is far too much declaiming in the declamatory, too much of the dramatic in drama, and not enough talking anywhere. |^In impassioned expression, the colloquial may be lost for awhile, like some of the streams of California, to reap- pear farther down the channel of thought. In many of the paragraphs given below, in which the colloquial predominates, other styles that contribute to the mixed emotions frequently appear, and should not be ignored. The Colloquial prevails in the Narrative, the Descrip- tive, the Didactic, and in Dialogue and Drama, it The Parliamentary and Declamatory styles predominate in Deliberative Address, in Recitation and in Oratory. In the portrayal of the Passions, the Dramatic style prevails, and is largely characterized by "Action." Personation is the representing of different characters. Its scope comprises and utilizes all the different styles employed in vocal and physical expression. In exemplifying the various styles, the student should first study each selection until the general spirit — the pervading thought and emotion of the passage — is well understood and /f learning o'er, Counts but the sands on ocean's boundless shore ; Victory, if gained, is gained by battles fought, Not by the numbers, but the forces brought. What boots success in skirmish or in fray, If rout or ruin, following, close the day ? What worth a hundred posts, maintained with skill, If, these all held, the foe is victor still ? He who would win his cause, with power must frame Points of support, and look with steady aim ; Attack the weak, defend the strong with art, Strike but few blows, but strike them to the heart ; All scattered fires but end in smoke and noise,— The scorn of men, the idle play of boys. Keep, then, this first great precept, ever near ; Short be your speech, your matter strong and clear ; Earnest your manner, warm and rich your style, Severe in taste, yet full of grace the while ; So may you reach the loftiest heights of fame, And leave, when life is past, a deathless name. Judge Story. SELECTIONS- The Hero of Lake Erie. [This poem and two others by the same author appear in print for the first time, having been purchased and copyrighted for Voice Culture and Elocu- tion, with rights reserved by the author.] John Maynard stood at the steamer's wheel; A common sailor, but true as steel. Looking for heroes, you'd pass him by Unless you happened to catch his eye, That lens of the soul where one looks through To find if, or not, a man will do To leave at a post when danger is rife, And stand there firm at the Cost of his life, — And then you'd agree, with Captain "Dan," That rough John Maynard was just the man. Lake Erie was calm, the sky was clear: The steamer sped, as the fallow deer Darts through the grass on the prairie old: 'Twas life on deck, but death in the hold. Little the joyful passengers knew, As song rolled out o'er the water blue, The echo sent back from the distant shore Was^grief s applause and death's encore. 238 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. The captain stood by the engineer; His face turned pale with a sudden fear: A burst of smoke — no need to inquire, That crackling noise — " The steamer's on fire!" Full quickly now his firm orders came: " Do all you can to keep back the flame! Give all the steam the engine will stand: Our only hope is to make for land! John Maynard !" "Aye, aye ! " "To the nearest shore ! Stand firm by the wheel as never before ! The steamer's afire ! On you I depend To save these souls ! — Will you stand to the end ?" " Aye, aye, sir ! " John's words were ever few — 'Tis always the case with men that do. And still the captain's commands came loud, And rang out clear o'er the wailing crowd : " All passengers out on the for'a'd deck ! We'll do our best to keep it in check, — Shut passages up, all hatchways close : Stand by, my good men, and man the hose ! " The passengers rush to the figure-head, As if in flight from some terrible dread — Close crowding up where there's little room : Clinging despair on the neck of doom. All hands have come up from down below ; Their battle short, a moment or so. " The engine runs without engineer," The captain said, "but some one must steer : Will you stand firm ? " John made no reply : He would not speak without his " Aye, aye ! " He thought of home that held all his joy ; READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 239 His fond wife holding her bright-eyed boy, With fat arms clinging to mother's neck, But ready for romps at his father's beck : Two loves outweighing the world to him ; — What need to die ? 'Twas an easy swim ; He'd not be missed in the thick, black smoke ; — His hand e'en slipped from the tiller spoke : ' Shall I stand here and give up my life, And leave to want, my baby and wife, — Far worse to me than to stand and burn ? " But some voice whispered : " 'Tis now your turn.*' Through rifts in the smoke those faces plead ; He thinks of Him once willing to bleed ; The voice of the captain pleads once more : ' Will you stand firm till we reach the shore ? " All breathless wait his final reply — It comes at last, sailor-like : " Aye, aye ! " ' Be calm ! " said the captain, " wail no more ! A hero stands there — yonder the shore ; Have faith in him, though you can't see through The thick, black smoke, yet he'll die {or yon ! There's no greater taith beneath the sky Than that I place in Maynard's 'aye, aye.'" ' Beneath the deck 'twas a fiery maze, Like some great furnace all ablaze ; While hot smoke rose in its awful gloom, As if to conceal that pilot's doom. With one spot free where passengers stand, The fiery demon rushes for land.- The tiller-house like a furnace grew ; — The smoke gives way, as the flames burst through The upper deck and go roaring aft, 240 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Then slowly creep up against the draft, Like unbent sails crawling up the mast, Till pilothouse is enveloped at last. The wheel' and engine stop at the shore, That hero's " Aye, aye ! " — hushed evermore. He stood there firm at the heated wheel, He stood there firm till he felt the keel Grate in the sand of the shallow shore — Till human flesh could stand it no more ; And falling down on his funeral pyre, His soul went up in chariot of fire. Jehovah, the Captain, called him on high ; — John Maynard obeyed with his last, "Aye, aye ! " Fred Emerson Brooks. The Tell-Tale Eye. A main fact in the history of manners is the wonderful expressiveness of the human body. If it were made of glass, or of air, and the thoughts were written on steel tablets within, it could not publish more truly its mean- ing than now. Wise men read very sharply all your pri- vate history in your look and gait and behavior. The whole economy of nature is bent on expression. The tell-tale body is -all tongues. Men are like Geneva watches with crystaj faces which expose the whole movement. The face and eyes reveal what the spirit is doing, how- old it is, what aims it has. The eyes indicate the an- tiquity of the soul, or, through how many forms it has . already ascended. Man cannot fix his eye on the sun, and so far seems READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 24 1 imperfect. In some respects, the animals excel us. The birds have a longer sight, beside the advantage by their wings of a higher observatory. A cow can bid her calf, by secret signal, probably of the eye, to run along, or to lie down and hide itself. The jockeys say of certain horses, that "they look over the whole ground." The out- door life, and hunting, and labor, give equal vigor to the human eye. A farmer looks out at you as strong as the horse ; his eye-beam is like the stroke of a staff. An eye can threaten like a loaded and leveled gun, or can insult like hissing or kicking ; or, in its altered mood, by beams of kindness, it can make the heart dance with joy. The eye obeys exactly the action of the mind. When a thought strikes us, the eyes fix, and remain gazing at a distance. There is no nicety of learning sought by the mind which the eyes do not vie in acquiring. "An ar- tist," said Michael Angelo, "must have his measuring tools not in the hand, but in the eye ; " and there is no end to the catalogue of its performances, whether in in- dolent vision, that of health and beauty, or in strained vision, that of art and labor. Eyes are bold as lions, — roving, running, leaping, here and there, far and near. They speak all languages. They wait for no introduction ; they are no Englishmen ; ask no leave of age or rank ; they respect neither poverty nor riches, neither learning nor power, nor virtue, nor sex, but intrude, and come again, and go through and through you, in a moment of time. What inundation of life and thought is discharged from one soul into another, through them ! The glance is natural magic The mysterious communication established across a house between two entire strangers, moves all the springs of wonder. The communication of the glance is in the greatest part not 242 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. subject to the control of the will. It is the bodily symbol of identity of nature. We look into the eyes to know if this other forms another self, and the eyes will not lie, but make a faithful confession what inhabitant is there. The revelations are sometimes terrific. The confession of a low, usurping devil is there made, and the observer shall seem to feel the stirring of owls, and bats, and horned hoofs, where he looked for innocence and sim- plicity. The eyes of men converse as much as their tongues, with the advantage, that the ocular dialect needs no dic- tionary, but is understood all the world over. When the eyes say one thing, and the tongue another, a practiced man relies on the language of the first. If a man is off his center, the eyes show it. You can read in the eyes of your companion, whether your argument hits him, though his tongue will not confess it. There is a look by which a man shows he is going to say a good thing, and a look when he has said it. Vain and forgotten are all the fine offers and offices of hospitality, if there is no holiday in the eye. How many furtive inclinations are avowed by the eye, though dissembled by the lips. There are eyes, to be sure, that give no more admission into the man than blueberries. Others are liquid and deep, — wells that a man might fall into ; — others are aggressive and devouring, seem to call out the police, take all too much notice, and require crowded Broadways, and the security of millions, to protect individuals against them. The military eye I meet, now darkly sparkling under cler- ical, now under rustic brows. Tis the city of Lace- dsemon ; 'tis a stack of bayonets. There are asking eyes, asserting eyes, prowling eyes ; and eyes full of fate, — some of good, and some of sinister, omen. The alleged READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 243 power to charm down insanity, or ferocity in beasts, is a power behind the eye. It must be a victory achieved in the will, before it can be signified in the eye. 'Tis very certain that each man carries in his eye the exact indica- tion of his rank in the immense scale of men, and we are always learning to read it. A complete man should need no auxiliaries to his personal presence. Whoever looked on him would consent to his will, being certified that his aims were generous and universal. R. W. Emerson. The Field of Waterloo. Stop ! — for thy tread is on an empire's dust ! An earthquake's spoil is sepulchered below ! Is the spot marked with no colossal bust ? Nor column, trophied for triumphal show ? None : but the moral's truth tells simpler so. As the ground was before, thus let it be, — How that red rain hath made the harvest grow ! And is this all the world hath gained by thee, Thou first and last of fields ! king-making victory ? 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 thousand 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 ! 244 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Did ye not hear it ? — No ; — 'twas but the wind, Or the car rattling o'er the stony street : On with the dance ! let joy be unconfined, No sleep till morn, when youth and pleasure meet To chase the glowing hours with flying feet — But hark ! — that heavy sound breaks in once more, As if the clouds its echo would repeat ; And nearer, clearer, deadlier than before ! Arm ! arm ! it is ! — it is the cannon's opening roar ! Within a windowed niche of that high hall Sat Brunswick's fated chieftain ; he did hear That sound the first amidst the festival, And caught its tone with Death's prophetic ear; And when they smiled because he deemed it near, His heart more truly knew that peal too well Which stretched his father on a bloody bier, And roused the vengeance blood alone could quell: He rushed into the field, and, foremost fighting, fell! 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 loveliness; And there were sudden partings, such as press 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 morn could rise ? And there was mounting in hot haste; the steed, The mustering squadron, and the clattering car, Went pouring forward with impetuous speed, And swiftly forming in the ranks of war; And the deep thunder, peal on peal, afarj READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 245 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!" And wild and high the " Cameron's gathering" rose! The war-note of Lochiel, which Albyn's hills Have heard — and heard too have her Saxon foes: — How in the noon of night that pibroch thrills, Savage and shrill! But with the breath which fills Their mountain-pipe, so fill the mountaineers With the fierce native daring, which instills The stirring memory of a thousand years; And Evan's, Donald's fame rings in each clansman's ears. And Ardennes waves above them her green leaves, Dewy with nature's tear-drops, as they pass, Grieving — if aught inanimate e"er grieves — Over the unreturning brave — 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! 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 stern array; The thunder-clouds close o'er it, which, when rent, The earth is covered thick with other clay,. Which her own clay shall cover — heaped and pent, Rider and horse — friend, foe — in one red burial blent ! Byron. 246 voice culture and elocution. The Sunset of Battle. The shadows of evening are thickening. Twilight closes, and the thin mists are rising in the Valley. The last charging squadron yet thunders in the distance ; but it presses only on the foiled and scattered foe. For this day the fight is over ! And those who rode foremost in its field at morning — where are they now ? On the bank of yon little stream, there lies a knight, his life-blood is ebbing faster than its tide. His shield is rent, and his lance is broken. Soldier, why faintest thou ? The blood that swells from that deep wound will answer. It was this morning that the sun rose bright upon his hopes — it sets upon his grave. This day he led the foremost rank of spears, that in their long row leveled when they had crossed their foe's dark line — then death shouted in the onset ! It was the last blow that reached him. He has conquered, though he shall not triumph in the victory. His breastplate is dinted. His helmet has the traces of well-dealt blows. The scarf on his breast — she would shrink but to touch it now who placed it there. Soldier, what will thy mistress say ? She will say that the knight died worthily. Aye, rouse thee, for the fight yet charges in the dis- tance ! Thy friends are shouting — thy pennon floats on high. Look on yon crimsoned field that seems to mock the purple clouds above it ! Prostrate they lie, drenched in their dark red pool ; thy friends and enemies ; the dead and dying ! The veteran, with the stripling of a day. The nameless trooper, and the leader of a hundred hosts. Friend lies by friend. The steed with his rider. And foes, linked in their long embrace — their first and last — READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 247 the gripe of death. Far o'er the field they lie, a gorgeous prey to ruin ! White plume and steel morion ; saber and yataghan ; crescent and cross ; rich vest and bright corselet : — we came to thefight, as we had come to a feast- ing ; glorious and glittering, even in death, each shining warrior lies ! His last glance still seeks that Christian banner ! The cry that shall never be repeated, cheers on its last charge ! " Oh, but for strength to reach the field once more ! to die in the foe's front ! " Peace, dreamer ! Thou hast done well. Thy place in the close rank is rilled ; and yet another waits for his who holds it. Knight, hast thou yet a thought? bend it on Heav- en ! The past. Ms gone; the future lies before thee. Gaze on yon gorgeous sky ; thy home should be beyond it ! Life, honor, love — -they pass to Him that gave them. Pride, that came on like ocean's billows — see round thee how it lies mute and passive. The wealthy here are poor. The high-born have no precedence. The strong are powerless ; the mean, content. The fair and lovely have no followers. Soldier ! she who sped thee on thy course to-day, her blue eyes shall seek thee in the conquering ranks to-morrow ; but they shall seek thee in vain ! Well ! . thus it is thou shouldst have died ! — worth all to live for. Wouldst thou be base to have thy death a blessing ? Proud necks shall mourn for thee. Bright eyes shall weep for thee. They that live envy thee. Death ! glory takes out thy sting. Warrior ! aye, the stream of that rill flows cool ; but thy lip no more shall taste it. The moonlight that silvers its white foam, shall glitter on thy corselet, when thy eye is closed and dim. Lo ! now the night is com- ing. The mist is gathering on the hill. The fox steals 248 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. forth to seek his quarry, and the gray owl sweeps whirling by, rejoicing in the stillness. Oh, soldier ! how sweetly sounds thy lady's lute ! how fragrant are the dew-sprinkled flowers that twine round the casement from which she leafls ! that lute shall enchant thee, those flowers shall delight thee — no more. One other charge ! Soldier, it may not be. To thy saint and thy lady commend thee ! Hark to the low trumpet that sounds the recall ! Hark to its long note ; sweet is that sound in the ears of the spent and routed foe ! The victor hears it not. When the breath rose that blew that note, he lived ; its peal has rung, and his spirit has departed. Heath ! thou shouldst be the soldier's pillow ! Moon ! let thy cold light this nightfall upon him ! But, Morning ! thy soft dews shall tempt him not ! the soldier must wake no more. He sleeps the sleep of honor. His cause was his country's freedom, and her faith. He is dead ! The cross of a Christian knight is on his breast ; his lips are pressed to his lady's token. Soldier, farewell ! Rain on the Roof. When the humid shadows gather over all the starry spheres, And the melancholy darkness gently weeps in rainy tears, 'Tis- a joy to press the pillow of a cottage chamber bed, And listen to the patter of the soft rain overhead. Every tinkle on the shingles has an echo in the heart, And a thousand dreamy fancies into busy being start ; And a thousand recollections weave their bright hues into woof, As I listen to the patter of the soft rain on the roof. READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 249 There in fancy comes my mother, as she used to years agone, To survey the infant sleepers ere she left them till the dawn. I can see her bending o'er me, as I listen to the strain Which is played upon the shingles by the patter of the rain. Then my little seraph sister, with her wings and waving hair, And her bright-eyed, cherub brother — a serene, angelic pair — Glide around my wakeful pillow with their praise or mild reproof, As I listen to the murmur of the soft rain on the roof. And another comes to thrill me with her eyes' delicious blue, I forget, as gazing on her, that her heart was all untrue ; I remember that I loved her as I ne'er may love again, And my heart's quick pulses vibrate to the patter of the rain. There is naught in art's bravuras that can work with such a spell, In the spirit's pure, deep fountains, whence the holy passions well, As that melody ot nature — that subdued, subduing strain, Which is played upon the shingles by the patter of the rain. Coates Kinney. Cesar Crossing The Rubicon. A gentleman, Mr President, speaking of Caesar's be- nevolent disposition, and of the reluctance with which he had entered into the civil war, observes, " How long did he pause upon the brink of the Rubicon ? " How came he to the brink of that river ! How dared he cross it ! Shall private men respect the boundaries of private prop- erty and shall a man pay no respect to the boundaries of his country's rights? How dared he cross that river ! Oh, but he paused upon the brink ! He should have perished upon the brink ere he had crossed it ! Why did he pause ? Why does a man's heart palpitate when he is on the point 250 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. of committing an unlawful 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 ! 'Twas that made Caesar pause upon the brink of the Rubicon. Compas- sion ! What compassion ? The compassion of an assassin, that feels a momentary shudder as his weapon begins to cut ! Caesar paused upon the brink of the Rubicon ! What was the Rubicon ? The boundary of Caesar's province. From what did it separate his province ? From his coun- try. Was that country a desert ? No ; it was cultivated and fertile, rich and populous ! Its sons were men of gen- ius, spirit and generosity ! Its daughters were lovely, sus- ceptible, and chaste ! Friendship was its inhabitant 1 Love was its inhabitant ! Domestic affection was its in- habitant ! Liberty was its inhabitant ! All bounded by the stream of the Rubicon ! What was Caesar, that stood upon the bank of that stream? A traitor, bringing war and pestilence into the heart of that' country. No won- der that he paused — no wonder if, his imagination wrought upon by his conscience, he had beheld blood instead of water, and heard groans instead of "murmurs ! No won- der, if somegorgon horror had turned him into stone upon the spot ! But, no ! — he cried, " The die is cast ! " He plunged ! — he crossed ! — and Rome was free no more ! Knowles. readings and recitations. 25 i The Life-Boat. Quick ! man the life-boat ! See yon bark That drives before the blast ! There's a rock ahead, the night is dark, And the storm comes thick and fast. Can human power in such an hour, Avert the storm that's o'er her ? Her mainmast's gone, but she still drives on To the fatal reef before her. The life-boat ! Man the life-boat ! Quick ! man the life-boat ! hark ! the gun Booms through the vapory air ; And see ! the signal flags are on, And speak the ship's despair. That forked flash, that pealing crash, Seemed from the wave to sweep her : She's on the rock, with a terrible shock, And the wail comes louder and deeper. The life-boat ! Man the life-boat ! Quick ! man the life-boat ! See — the crew Gaze on their watery grave : Already, some, a gallant few, Are battling with the wave ; And one there stands, and wrings his hands, As thoughts of home come o'er him ; For his wife and child, through the tempest wild, He sees on the hights before him. The life-boat ! Man the life-boat ! Speed, speed the life-boat ! Off she goes ! And, as they pulled the oar, From shore and ship a cheer arose, . 25 2 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. That rang from ship to shore. Life-saving ark ! yon fated bark Has human lives within her ; And dearer than gold is the wealth untold, Thou'lt save, if thou canst win her. On, life-boat ! Speed thee, life-boat ! Hurrah ! the life-boat dashes on, Though darkly the reef may frown ; The rock is there — the ship is gone Full twenty fathoms down. But, cheered by hope, the seamen cope With the billows single-handed : They are all in the boat ; — hurrah ! they're afloat ! And now they are safely landed By the life-boat ! Cheer the life-boat ! The Miner's Reverie. Where the rocks were gray and the mountains steep, And the gulch below was dark and deep, Where the gnarled pines in their rugged pride Loomed gloomily up on either side; W T here the manzanitas lay crooked and thick, Where once was heard the shovel and pick; Where the shadows lay heavy upon the rocks, — There lies half-buried the old sluice-box. While lazily through, the water glides, Gently washing its mouldering sides, Sides that once were muddy and dim, From the yellow dirt that, was cast within. Across the stream on the gravel-heaps, READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 253 The agile squirrel silently leaps, And the crested quail, twittering drops For his evening drink, in the old sluice-box. Oh, many a day with weary hand Have I tossed in its bed the glittering sand, And dreamed, as I leaned on its rotting side, Raking the depths of its turbid tide, Of father's gray hairs and dear mother's smile, And loved ones at home who were waiting, the while, The wanderer's return ; but Time sneeringly mocks At the days I toiled at the old sluice-box. From the moss-grown rock on which I lean, I gaze down into the sluggish stream — The face that I see has graver grown, And my voice, it seems, has a soberer tone, • And the wanton winds with my hair at play, Show to me now that my locks are gray. But my spirits were light, my hopes were high, In those happy days, — alas ! gone by, And I could welcome again the rough hard knocks At mining once more at the old sluice-box. Use and Misuse of Words. Rhetoric is not a knack, and fluency is not expression. The crop of ready writers, of correct writers, of elegant writers, of writers capable of using words in every mode but the right one, is already sufficiently large to meet the current demands for intellectual husk, chaff and stub- ble. The tendency of the time to divorce the body of words from the soul of expression, and to shrivel up Ian- 254 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. guage into a mummy of thought, would seem to need the rein rather than the whip. The most cursory glance over much of the "literature " of the day, so called, will indicate the peculiar form of marasmus under which the life of language is in danger of being slowly consumed. The first condition of true expression is an effort of mind, which restrains rather than stimulates fluency. The ease with which accredited maxims derived through the ear can be attached to words which have been decoyed through the same populous thoroughfare, offers a desper- ate temptation to avoid the trouble equally of thinking and expressing. All moralizing and all preaching are ineffective which do not thus strike through the understanding directly at the will, and purify and invigorate the sources of moral and religious action. But to do this requires a face-to- face knowledge of the truth to be driven home, — vivid inward experience poured out in living, breathing, palpi- tating words. What is really wanted, therefore, "to facil- itate the expression of ideas," is something which will facilitate the conception of ideas. What is really wanted "to assist in literary composition," is a true philosophy of expression, founded on a knowledge of the nature and operation of the mind, and of the vital processes by which thought incarnates itself in words. Expression, direct or suggestive, is thought in the words or through the words, and not thought and the words. Thought implies two elements, the subject thinking and the object thought. When the process of thinking reaches that de- gree of intensity in which the object of thought is seen in clear vision, — when the thinking mind comes into direct contact with the objective thing or idea it has "felt after" and found, the words which it then weaves into the visible READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 255 garment of its mingled emotion and conception are words surcharged and flooded with life, — words which are living things, endowed with the power, not only to communicate ideas, but convey, as by spiritual conduct- ors, the shock and thrill which attends their conception. Instead of being mere barren signs of abstract notions, they become media through which the life of one mind is radiated into other minds. They inspire as well as inform ; invigorate as well as enlighten. Such language is the spiritual body of the thinker, which never dies or grows old, but has a relative immor- tality on earth, and makes him a contemporary with all succeeding generations ; for in such language not only are thoughts embodied, but words are ensouled. Every writer whose aim is not to appear, but to be, and who directs his powers to the expression of what he really is, succeeds, at least, in making himself readable ; for such a writer urges no opinions which have not been do- mesticated in his own understanding, testifies to no facts which are not realities to his own consciousness, and uses no words which he has not earned the right to use by testing their conformity to his own impressions or in- sight. And it is curious how flexible language becomes when a writer's vocabulary is thus limited by his intel- lectual character, and with what ease a few words do the whole business of expression. A presiding personality, indeed, acts as a magnet ; all related words come tripping to it, as if eager and glad to leave their limbo of generality and to form part of a new organism ; to feel through their shrunken veins the flow and throb of fresh, warm blood, and to partake in the rapture of individual existence. The language really be- 256 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. comes alive, and thus, too, books attain the power to live. All others, after a few convulsive efforts, die and are forgotten, or are known only to the antiquary who prowls among the cemeteries of letters, reading inscriptions on tombstones. E. P. Whipple. The Courtship of Larry O'Dee. Now the widow McGhee And Larry O'Dee Had two little cottages out on the green, With just enough room for two pig pens~between. The widow was young and the widow was fair, With the brightest of eyes, and the brownest of hair; And it frequently chanced when she came in the morn With the swill for the pig, Larry came with the corn; And some of the ears that he tossed with his hand, In the pen of the widow was certain to land. One morning, said he, ' Och! Misthress McGhee, It's a waste of good lumber, this running two rigs, Wid a fancy petition betwane our two pigs." ' Indade, sure it is! " answered Widow McGhee, W T ith the sweetest of smiles upon Larry O'Dee, ' And thin it looks kind o' hard-hearted and mane, Raisin' two friendly pigs so exsaidingly near, That whinever one grunts, thin the othei can hear, And yet kape a cruel petition betwane." ' Shwate Misthress McGhee," Answered Larry O'Dee, ' If ye fale in yer heart we are mane to the pigs, READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 257 Ain't we mane to oursilves to be running two rigs ? Och, it made me heart ache when I paked thro' the cracks Of me shanty lasht March at yez swingin' yer ax, Wid yer purty white hands just as red as a bate, (Though I really must say that yez handled it nate) A sphlitten yer kindlin' wood out in the shtorm, Whin one little stove it would kape us both warm." ' Now piggy," said she, ' Larry's courtin' o' me, Wid his delicate, tender allusions to you : So now yez must tell me just what I must do ; For, if I'm to say ' yes,' shtir the swill wid yer shnout, But if I'm to say ' no,' yez must kape yer nose out. Now Larry for shame ! to be bribin' a pig, By a tossin' a Handful o' corn in his shwig ! " ' Me darlint, the piggy says yes ! " answered he, — And that was the courtship of Larry O'Dee. Tell's Apostrophe to the Alps. Ye crags and peaks, I'm with you once again! I hold to you the hands you first beheld, To show they still are free. Methinks I hear A spirit in your echoes answer me, And bid your tenant welcome to his home Again! — O sacred forms, how proud you look! How high you lift your heads into the sky! How huge you are! How mighty, and how free! Ye are the things that tower, that shine, — whose smile Makes glad, whose frown is terrible, whose forms, Robed or unrobed, do all the impress wear Of awe divine. Ye guards of liberty, 258 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. I'm with you once again! — I call to you With all my voice! — I hold my hands to you, To show they still are free. I rush to you As though I could embrace you! Scaling yonder peak I saw an eagle wheeling near its brow O'er the abyss: — his broad-expanded wmgs Lay calm and motionless upon the air, As if he floated there without their aid, By the sole act of his unlorded will, That buoyed him proudly up. Instinctively I bent my bow; yet kept he rounding still His airy circle, as in the delight Of measuring the ample range beneath And round about; absorbed, he heeded not The death that threatened him. I could not shoot— Twas liberty! — I turned my bow aside, And let him soar away! Knowles. Napoleon Bonaparte. If Napoleon's fortune was great, his genius was trans- cendent ; decision flashed upon his counsels ; and it was the same to decide and to perform. To inferior intel- lects, his combinations appeared perfectly impossible, his plans perfectly impracticable ; but., in his hands, simplicity marked their development, and success vindi- cated their adoption. His person partook the character of his mind — if the one never yielded in the cabinet, the other never bent in the field. Nature had no obstacles that he did no t surmount — space no opposition that he did not spurn . READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 259 and, whether amid Alpine rocks, Arabian sands, or polar snows, he seemed proof against peril, and empowered with ubiquity ! The whole continent of Europe trembled at beholding the audacity of his designs, and the miracle of their execution. Skepticism bowed to the prodigies of his performance ; romance assumed the air of history ; nor was there aught too incredible for belief, or too fanciful for expectation, when the world saw a subaltern of Corsica waving his imperial flag over her most ancient capitals. All the visions of antiquity became common places in his contemplation ; kings were his people nations were his outposts ; and he disposed of courts, and crowns, and camps, and churches, and cabinets, as if they were the titular dignitaries of the chess-board ! Through the pantomime of his policy, fortune played the clown to his caprices. At his touch, crowns crumbled, beggars reigned, systems vanished, the wildest theories took the color of his whim, and all that was venerable, and all that was novel, changed places with the rapidity of a drama. Even apparent defeat assumed the appear- ance of victory — his flight from Egypt confirmed his destiny — ruin itself only elevated him to empire. Amid all these changes he stood immutable as adamant. It mattered little whether in the field or the drawing-room, with the mob or the levee, wearing the Jacobin bonnet or the iron crown — banishing a Braganza, or espousing a Hapsburg — dictating peace on a raft to the czar of Russia, or contemplating defeat at the gallows of Leip- sic — he was still the same military despot ! Phillips. 260 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Rienzi's Address to the Romans. I come not here to talk. You 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 beams Fall on a slave ; not such as swept along By the full tide of power, the conqueror led To crimson glory and undying fame : But base, ignoble slaves ; slaves to a horde Of petty tyrants, feudal despots, lords, Rich in some dozen paltry villages ; Strong in some hundred spearmen ; only great In that strange spell — a name. Each hour, dark fraud, Or open rapine, or protected murder, Cry out against them. But this very day An honest man, my neighbor — there he stands — Was struck — struck like a dog, by one who wore The badge of Ursini ; because, forsooth, He tossed not high his ready cap in air, Nor lifted up his voice in servile shouts, At sight of that great ruffian ! Be we men, And suffer such dishonor ? men, and wash not The stain away in blood ? Such shames are common : I have known deeper wrongs ; I, that speak to ye, I had a brother once — a gracious boy, Full of gentleness, of calmest hope, Of sweet and quiet joy : there was the look Of heaven upon his face, which limners give To the beloved disciple. READINGS AND RECITATIONS, 26 1 How I loved That gracious boy ! Younger by fifteen years, Brother at once, and son ! He left my side, A summer bloom on his fair cheek, a smile Parting his innocent lips. In one short hour, That pretty, harmless boy was slain ! I saw The corse, the mangled corse, and then I cried For vengeance ! Rouse, ye Romans ! rouse, ye slaves ! Have ye brave sons ? Look in the next fierce brawl To see them die. Have ye fair daughters ? Look To see them live, torn from your arms, distained, Dishonored ; and if ye dare call for justice, Be answered by the lash ! Yet this is Rome, That sat on her seven hills, and, from her throne Of beauty, ruled the world ! Yet we are Romans ! Why, in that elder day, to be a Roman, Was greater than a king ! and once again — Hear me, ye walls, that echoed to the tread Of either Brutus ! ones, again, I swear, The eternal city shall be free. Miss Mitford. Women All at Sea. There is no subject on which woman is more hopeless- ly afloat than on matters relating to marine architecture. Such knowledge doesn't stick in her brain. The captain who attempted to teach nauticalism to a party of ladies on a yacht, not long since, fared as follows : Lady No. i. — Now, Captain, what is a sloop? Captain. — A sloop has but one mast. 262 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. L. — (Pointing to a schooner) — Is that a sloop ? C. — No; that is a schooner. A sloop has but one mast ; a schooner has two, as you see. Now, remember sloop, one mast ; schooner, two. L. — Certainly. How many masts has a ship ? C— Three. L. — How many masts did you say a sloop has? C. — One. Sloop, one mast ; Schooner, two ; ship, three. L. — (Pointing to a sloop) — Is that a schooner ? C. — No ; that's a sloop. Sloop, one mast ; schooner, two ; ship, three. L. — Oh yes, I remember. Isn't that a pretty schooner ? C. — That's not a schooner. That's a ship. Don't you see it has three masts ? L. — Oh, yes. Isn't that a big schooner lying at the wharf, there ? C. — Schooner ? Now, how many masts has that ves- sel? L.— Three. C. — Well, what has three masts ? L. — A sloop. C. — Sloop ! Sloop has one mast, I tell you ; schooner, two ; ship, three. Lady No. 2. — Why, Jane, how stupid you are. A schooner always has one mast. L. — '(Chatty, and quite oblivious of stupidity) — What is a brig? C. — A brig has two masts and is rigged like a ship, with square sails. Lady No. 2.— Jane, look at this brig coming along. C. — That's a schooner ; don't you see two masts. Sloop, one mast ; schooner, two masts ; ship, three masts. READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 263 L. — Are those schooners there with three masts? C— Yes. L. — I thought you said a schooner had but one mast ? C. — Two ! two masts ! Sloop, one mast ; schooner, two ; ship, three. L. — But that schooner has three masts. C. — Well, it is a three-masted schooner. L. — Then a schooner can have any number of masts? C. — No ; sloop, one mast ; schooner, two, sometimes three masts ; and a ship, three masts. L. — I'm sure I can't make it out. It's awfully puzzling. What is a barque? C. — (Unable any longer to popularize nautical science, falls back on technical expression.) Vessel with two masts, ship-rigged, and one mast sloop-rigged ; square sails on 'the fore and main-mast, and fore and aft sails on the mizzen. L. — Mizzen ! What is a mizzen ? C. — Last mast aft. L. — Aft! What's the aft? C. — The stern, madam. L. — Oh, I'm sure I can't make it out. Is that a sloop there? (Pointing again to a schooner.) C. — No ; it's a schooner. Sloop, one mast ; schooner, two ; ship, three. L. — How many masts has a man-o'-war ? C. — Three. L. — Well, what's the difference between a man-of-war and a smack? C. — (Groans and is silent.) L. — What are those sticks across the masts of that schooner, Captain ? C. — That's not a schooner ; schooner, two masts : 264 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. ship, three ; .sloop, one. That's a ship. Those are the yards which hold the sails. L.— Oh ! C. — (Encouraged.) Now the first yard on the fore- mast is the fore yard. The second is the fore topsail yard ; the third is the fore gallant yard. L. — What is that yard sticking straight out of that little schooner? C. — Great Scott ! That's not a schooner, it's a sloop. Sloop, one mast ; schooner, two ; ship, three. What you called her yard is her mast. Lady No. 2. — Certainly, Jane. How stupid you are ! Captain, what are the names of the other masts on that schooner's yards you were pointing out to us ? C. — (Internally) . Lady No. 2. — Captain where are the lubbers? C. — (Wishes he could tell her.) Up there on that ships masts near the tops. L. — (Looking attentively at a schooner.) — Near the top of the masts of that sloop ? C. — No, no ; further down. Where the futtock shrouds are fastened. No, no ; not that vessel. A schooner has no lubbers, ( mentally) except this one, and they're on deck. L. — (Whose interest in the locating of lubbers suddenly ceases.) — Isn't that a pretty ship sailing along ? C. — Ship ! That's an old tub of a schooner ma'am. Schooner, two masts ; ship, three ; sloop, .one ; I tell you. L. — Can a sloop have two masts ? C. — Sloop, one mast ; schooner, two ; ship, three. Lady No. 2. — How many masts has a ship, Captain? C. — Ship, three masts ; schooner, two ; sloop, one. L. — Yes. I know. Schooner, one— no, two masts ; sloop, two — no, three ; ship one. There ! — JV, Y. Graphic, readings and recitations. 265 Cassius Against Cesar. Honor is the subject of my story. — I can not tell what you and other men Think of this life; but for my single self, I had as lief not be, as live to be In awe of such *a thing as I myself. I was born as free as Caesar; so were you; We have both ted as well; and we can both Endure the winter's cold as well as he. For, once upon a raw and gusty day, The troubled Tiber, chafing with her shores, Caesar said to me — Darest thou, Cassius, now Leap in zvith me, into this angry flood, And swim to yonder point ? — Upon the word, Accoutred as I was, I plunged in, And bade him follow: so, indeed he did. The torrent roared; and we did buffet it With lusty sinews; throwing it aside And stemming it, with hearts of controversy. But ere we could arrive the point proposed, Caesar cried — Help me, Cassius, or I sink. I, as .Eneas, our great ancestor, Did from the flames of Troy upon his shoulder The old Anchises bear, so, from the waves of Tiber Did I the tired Caesar: and this man Is now become a god; and Cassius is A wretched creature, and must bend his body, If Caesar carelessly but nod on him. He had a fever when he w T as in Spain, And, when the fit was on him, I did mark 266 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. How he did shake; 'tis true, this god did shake; His coward lips did from their color fly; And that same eye, whose bend doth awe the world, Did lose his luster; I did hear him groan; Aye, and that tongue of his that bade the Romans Mark him, and write his speeches in their books, Alas ! it cried — Give me some drink, Titinius, As a sick girl. Ye gods! it doth amaze me, A man of such ieeble temper should So get the start of the majestic world, And bear the palm alone. Why, man, he doth bestride the narrow world, Like a Colossus, and we petty men Walk under his huge legs, and peep about, To find ourselves dishonorable graves. Men at some time are masters of their fates: The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings. Brutus, and Ccesar ! What should be in that Caesar? Why should that name be sounded more than yours? Write them together, yours is as fair a name; Sound them, it doth become the mouth as well; Weigh them, it is as heavy; conjure with them, Brutus will start a spirit as soon as Ccesar. Now in the name of all the gods at once, Upon what meats doth this our Caesar feed, That he hath grown so great? Age, thou art shamed! Rome, thou hast lost the breed of noble bloods! When went there by an age, since the great flood, But it was famed with more than with one man ? READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 267 Now is it Rome indeed, and room enough, When there is in it but one only man. Oh! you, and I have heard our fathers say, There was a Brutus once that would have brook'd The eternal devil to keep his state in Rome, As easily as a king. * Shakespeare. Marullus to the Roman Populace. Wherefore rejoice, that Caesar comes in triumph ? What conquest brings he home ? What tributaries follow him to Rome, To grace in captive bonds his chariot-wheels? You blocks, you stones, you worse than senseless things ! O, you hard hearts, you cruel men of Rome ! Knew ye not Pompey ? Many a time and oft Have you climb'd up to walls and battlements, To towers and windows, yea, to chimney-tops, Your infants in your arms, and there have sat The live-long day, with patient expectation, To see great Pompey pass the streets of Rome ; And when you saw his chariot but appear, Have you not made a universal shout, That Tiber trembled underneath her banks, To hear the replication of your sounds, Made in her concave shores ? And do you now put on your best attire ? And do you now cull out a holiday ? And do you now strew flowers in his way, That comes in triumph over Pompey's blood ? Begone ! 268 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. v Run to your houses, fall upon your knees, Pray to the gods to intermit the plague That needs must light on this ingratitude ! Shakespeare . Sounds. The whistle of the locomotive penetrates my woods summer and winter. I watch the passage of the morning cars with the same feeling that I do the rising of the sun, which is hardly more regular. The train of clouds stretching far behind and rising higher, going to heaven while the cars are going to Boston, conceals the sun for a minute and casts my farther field into the shade. At evening, the distant lowing of some cow in the hori- zon beyond the woods sounds sweet and melodious. The whippoorwills chant their vespers for half an hour, sing at intervals throughout the night, and are again as musical as ever just before and about the dawn. When other birds are still, the screech-owls take up the strain. I am also serenaded by a hooting-owl. Near at hand you could fancy it the most melancholy sound in Nature. It reminds me of ghouls, and idiots, and insane howlings. But now one answers from far woods in a strain made really melodious by distance. I rejoice that there are owls. Let them do the idiotic and maniacal hooting for men. Their sounds are admir- ably suited to the swamps and twilight woods which no day illustrates, suggesting a vast and undeveloped nature which men have not recognized. They represent the stark twilight and unsatisfied thoughts which all have.. Thoreau. readings and recitations. 269 Voices of the Wildwood. "Voices of the Wildwood," written for Voice Culture and Elocution, is an example of onomatopeceia versification, and is founded upon the legend of "Deirdre." As I was straying through a wood, All dark and dense and wild, I came upon a palace wall. And found myself beguiled By the bubbling notes of innocence, — The laughter of a child. Safe was she within her world, And I was just outside ; A fairy child she seemed to me, It cannot be denied ; For she was calling flocks of birds, That came from far and wide. A merry, trilling cry Came o'er the palace-wall : " Ha ! ha ! ha ! here am I ! . Why, don't you hear me call ? Come, froggy, birdlings, squirrel, too ! Don't you hear me calling you ? " Ha ! ha ! ha ! come this way, You darlings, every one ! I'm broken-hearted, quite, to-day, The clouds are o'er the sun." Then rose a suddden sound of glee, " Sweet ! well ? what d'ye think o' me ? " Brightly. m m Sweet! Well, what d'ye think o' me' 270 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. " Oh, meadow-lark, you darling dear, You're always first to speak, Come, rest upon my shoulder here, And press against my cheek." And then she sang most merrily : " Sweet ! well ? what d'ye think o' me ? " Brightly. m m =* : 1 j — p m Sweet ! Well, what d'ye think o' uu " Old froggy, down there, wet and cool, Now, what have you to say ? Are you happy in your pool, And how d'ye feel, to-day ? " The frog his sweetest tone now tried, ■But " Ugly ! Ugly ! " hoarse he cried. " I'm sorry ! " then responded she, Yet laughing at the jest, " Oh, faithful wood-dove ! answer me ! Whom do you love the best ? " The bird puffed out his purple sheen, And cooed, " My queen ! my queen ! my queen ! " You frisky squirrel on the wall, Have you no message, say ? Some message from the tree-tops, tall, To lonesome Deirdre ? " The squirrel sat with tail up-curled, And cried, " Come up and see the world ! " ' Oh, tiny bird with nodding head, What fate is waiting me ? Shall my true love and I be wed ? READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 2 7 I Oh ! what is Fate's decree ? " The brown bird moaned as he sang above, " Farewell, my love ! farewell, my love ! "' P- Fare - well, my love - I turned away, I had no choice, For I could not bear to stay, And hear the sobs of that childish voice, The child in her sad dismay. And the brown bird moaned in the tree above : " Farewell, my love ! farewell, my love ! " P- Fare-well, pp. my love ppp inztn /_tt tt J Fare - well. my love - Ella Sterling Cummins. *May be heard in the high Sierras, a species of fly-catcher, 272 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. A Similar Case. Jack, I hear you've gone and done it,- Yes, I know ; most fellows will ; Went and tried it once myself, sir, Though you see I'm single still. And you met her — did you tell me, Down at Newport, last July, And resolved to ask the question At a soiree? So did I. I suppose you left the ball-room, With its music and its light ; For they say love's flame is brightest In the darkness of the night. Well, you walked along together, Overhead the starlit sky ; And I'll bet — old man, confess it — You were frightened. So was I. So you strolled along the terrace, Saw the summer moonlight pour All its radiance on the waters, As they rippled on the shore, Till at length you gathered courage, When you saw that none was nigh — Did you draw her close and tell her That you loved her ? So did I. Well, I needn't ask you further, And I'm sure I wish you joy. Think I'll wander down and see you When you're married — eh, my boy ? READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 273 When the honeymoon is over And you're settled down, we'll try — What ? the deuce you say ! Rejected, you rejected ? So was I. The Study of Nature. The history of humanity, in its efforts to understand the Creation, resembles the development of any individ- ual mind engaged in the same direction. It has its in- fancy, with the first recognition of surrounding objects ; and, indeed, the early observers seem to us like children in their first attempts to understand the world in which they live. But these efforts, that appear childish to us now, were the first steps in that field of knowledge which is so extensive that all our progress seems only to show us how much is left to do. In this country there is a growing interest in the study of Nature ; but while there exist hundreds of elementary works illustrating the native animals of Europe, there are few such books here to satisfy the demand for information respecting the animals of our land and water. We are thus forced to turn more and more to our own investiga- tions and less to authority ; and the true method of obtain- ing independent knowledge is this very Method of Cuvier's, comparison. The education of a naturalist now consists chiefly in learning how to compare. If he have any power of gen- eralization, when he has collected his facts, this habit of mental comparison will lead him up to principles, anfl to the great laws of combination. It must not discourage us that the progress is a slow and laborious one, and the results of one lifetime after all very small. It might seem 274 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. invidious, were I to show here how small' is the sum total of the work accomplished even by the great exceptional men, whose names are known throughout the civilized world. But I may at least be permitted to speak disparag- ingly of my own efforts, and to sum up in the fewest words the result of my life's work. I have devoted my " whole life to the study of Nature, and yet a single sentence may express all that I have done. I have shown that there is a correspondence, between the succession of Fishes in geological times and the different stages of their growth in the egg, — this is all. It chanced to be a result that was found to apply to other groups and has led to other conclusions of a like nature. But, such as it is, it has been reached by this system of comparison, which, though I speak of it now in its application to the study of Natural History, is equally important in every other branch of knowledge. By the same process the most natural re- sults of scientific research in Philology, in Ethnology, and in Physical Science are reached. And let me say that the community should foster the purely intellectual efforts of scientific men as carefully as they do their ele- mentary school and their practical institutions, generally considered so much more useful and important to the public. -For, from what other source shall we derive the higher results that are gradually woven into the practical resources of our life, except from the researches of those very men who study science, not for its uses, but for its truth ? It is this that gives it its noblest interest ; it must be for truth's sake, and not even for the sake of its usefulness to humanity, that the scientific man studies Nature. The application of science to the useful arts requires other abilities, other qualities, other tools than his; and therefore I say that the man of science who follows READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 275 his studies into their practical application is false to his calling. The practical man stands ever ready to take up the work where the scientific man leaves it, and to adapt it to the material wants and uses of daily life. L. Agassiz. The Petrified Fern. In a valley, centuries ago, Grew a little fern-leaf, green and slender, Veining delicate, and fibres tender ; Waving, when the wind crept down so low. Rushes tall, and moss, and grass' grew round it, Playful sunbeams darted in and found it, Drops of dew stole in by night and crown'd it. But no foot of man e'er trod that way ; Earth was young and keeping holiday. Monster fishes swam the silent main, Stately forests waved their giant branches, Mountains hurled their snowy avalanches, Mammoth creatures stalked across the plain : Nature revelled in grand mysteries, But the little fern was not of these, Did not number with the hills and trees ; Only grew tfnd waved its wild, sweet way, None ever came to note it day by day. Earth, one time, put on a frolic mood, Heaved the rocks, and changed the mighty motion Of the deep strong currents of the ocean, Moved the plain and shook the haughty wood, Crushed the little fern in soft, moist clay, Covered it and hid it safe away. 276 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. O the long, Ions: centuries since that day. O, the agony ! O life's bitter cost Since that useless little fern was lost ! Useless ? Lost ? There came a thoughtful man, Searching Nature's secrets, far and deep ; From a fissure in a rocky steep He withdrew a stone, o'er which there ran Fairy pencillings, a quaint design, Veinings, leafage, fibres clear and fine, And the fern's life lay in every line ! So, I think, God hides some souls away, Sweetly to surprise us, the last day. An Incident at Sea. While on my return from Europe, about mid way of the Atlantic, it was my good fortune to behold a sight of transcendent beauty that few persons have ever seen. Our good ship was under full sail, with a light breeze that bore her lazily along over a gentle sea. The last rays of a gorgeous sunset had faded from the sky, and darkness closed gently down upon the bosom of the deep. Leaning against the windward taff-rail, my mind gradually became wrapped in a meditation born of that profound loneliness ^vith which only night upon the ocean inspires one. The helmsman stood silent at the wheel : the officer paced his lone and measured tread ; the lookout reclined lazily near the shrouds, anxiously longing for the " eight bells " that brings relief to a tire- some watch. No sound was heard, save now and then the creak of the cordage, or the occasional sough of the water against the vessel's prow. But the whisperings of READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 277 these light waves seemed to make the silence even more profound. Slowly aroused from my reverie, I became conscious of a gentle light that overspread a portion of the eastern sky. A single spot on the horizon grew more golden, and the upper limb of the moon peered above the ocean's edge, followed by the round shield of the full orb that shot her beams across the surface of the silent deep. From our lonely ship to her smiling face lay a tempting highway, paved with shimmering gold. Just as Luna lifted herself above the horizon, a distant ship, before unseen, sailed calmly and majestically into view, and remained for a moment stamped like a sil- houette upon the broad golden surface. It was too grand to be only pretty, too exquisitely beautiful to be merely sublime. For a few moments I stood like one en- tranced, gazing in silent rapture upon the most wonderful sight that nature ever painted for mortal eyes. But while I looked, slowly and silently the vessel moved from off the golden disk, and mysteriously passed into the obscur- ity whence she came, — like a beautiful picture of the mind that comes, we know not whence, and goes we know not where. Other scenes may fade, the names of old-time friends be forgotten, but never from memory's page shall be erased that beautiful picture of the full moon, so lightly resting upon the ocean's edge, and the ship in full sail covering her disk. Nor shall the recollection ever grow dim of how my heart in profound gratitude and joy, was lifted from that sublimely radiant sight in nature, up to nature's God. Wm. 2. J? oss. 278 voice culture and elocution. Grandpa's Nap. Old Age sat by the hearth-stone, That slab hard by the tomb, Slow weaving faded menvries Upon his worn out loom. Fast as he wove the fabric, It vanished in the air ; The warp and woof were faded, Like to the old man's hair. Anon he drops the shuttle And lays his pipe away — The thread, a hair soon broken, The thread is silver gray. " Here, grandpa, take your darling And rock her in your lap ; You both look rather sleepy And need your mid-day nap." And soon they both are dozing ; His cheek to her he bends ; Young May and old December ! The year nods at both ends. Fresh bud by withered flower ; Old silver with new gold ; Old Time his hour-glass holding ; That's what the picture told. A knock — " Come in dear neighbor, The nodding's just begun, So don't disturb my babies." " I thought you had but one ! " READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 279 " O, yes ! we have two children ; See those two cradles there, With pillows soft and cushioned, And rockers each a pair. And both rock on the hearth -stone, The home's unwritten page — Each holds for us a baby But diffring in their age. One's empty in the night-time, The other through the day, For grandpa takes, with Edna, His nap no other way." And so these women chatted, As none but women can, Till, through the open door-way, Walked in the husband-man. He kissed the good wife fondly, Gazed on the sleeping pair, Till love-tears choked his looking, Then shook the old arm-chair. " Come, grandpa ! Wake up, grandpa ! My turn for Edna now. " Then wiped the perspiration From off the old man's brow With kerchief, but unconscious The moisture there was cold ; Then tried to lift the baby ; But grandpa kept his hold. The sun falls through the casement Upon his silver hair, 28o VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. A path he followed upward, Hard after his last prayer. As if to take her with him, He clasped his Edna dear ; But old men are forgetful, He left her nodding here. There's crape upon the hearth-stone, There's crape upon the door, There's crape upon the arm-chair That holds him nevermore. Fred Emerson Brooks. Marmion Taking Leave of Douglas. The train from out the castle drew ; But Marmion stopped to bid adieu — " Though something I might 'plain," he said, 1 Of cold respect to stranger guest, Sent hither by your king's behest, While in Tantallon's towers I stayed — Part we in friendship from your land, And, noble earl, receive my hand." But Douglas round him drew his cloak, Folded his arms, and thus he spoke : ' My manors, halls and bowers, shall still Be open, at my sovereign's will, To each one whom he lists, howe'er Unmeet to be the owner's peer. My castles are my king's alone, From turret to foundation-stone — The hand of Douglas is his own ; READINGS AND RECITATIONS. ■ And never shall in friendly grasp The hand of such as Marmion clasp ! '" Burned Marmion's swarthy cheek like fire, And shook his very frame for ire, And — " This to me ! " he said ; ' An 't were not for thy hoary beard, Such hand as Marmion's had not spared To cleave the Douglas' head ! And first I tell thee, haughty peer, He who does England's message here, Although the meanest in her state, May well, proud Angus, be thy mate ! And, Douglas, more I tell thee here, Even in thy pitch of pride, Here, in thy hold, thy vassals near,' (Nay, never look upon your lord, And lay your hands upon your sword,) I tell thee, thou'rt defied ! And if thou saidst I am not peer To any lord in Scotland here, Lowland or Highland, far or near, Lord Angus, thou hast lied ! : ' On the earl's cheek the flush of rage O'ercame the ashen hue of age ; Fierce he broke forth : "And darest thou, then, To beard the lion in his den — The Douglas in his hall ? And hopest thou hence unscathed to go ? No, by Saint Bride ot Bothwell, no ! Up drawbridge, grooms ! — what, warder, ho ! Let the portcullis fall." VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Lord Marmion turned — well was his need — And dashed his rowels in his steed ; Like arrow through the archway sprung, The ponderous gate behind him rung ; To pass, there was such scanty room, The bars, descending, grazed his plume. The steed along the drawbridge flies, Just as it trembled on the rise : Not lighter does the swallow skim Along the smooth lake's level brim : And when Lord Marmion reached his band, He halts, and turns with clenched hand, A shout of loud defiance pours, And shakes his gauntlet at the towers ! Scott. Extract from a Lecture on Thackeray. Vanity Fair ! What a wonderful work of art ! Where, in the world of literature, will you meet its equal ? Witty, brilliant, satiric, hard, wicked, fascinating, it is as if the actual " Vanity Fair " had flitted over its transcriber's page and left its impress there. The novel shows how hollow the whole world is — how fickle, how unhappy, how transitory, how full of sham and whatever else that is unprofitable and unsatisfying. Yet, like the world, the book is singularly alluring ; but it is an unpleasant story that is told. There is a taste of the bitter after its perusal ; ashes are strewn over it ; it reminds us of the old song in Bulwer's Last of the Barons — " Foul is fair, and fair is foul ; " but if it were not all this, it could not be just what it purports to be — a transcript of life. The title — Vanity Fair — while it does not add to the READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 283 value of the story, has a telling force, nevertheless, prov- ing sufficiently how much, after all, there is in a name ; for, imagine some other, and you would detract from the perfectness of the whole, as well as from the ingenious selection of the author. Who that has read, can easily forget the characters in this remarkable work ? It has often been observed that Thackeray has neither heroes nor heroines in his books, and the full title of the tale under consideration runs : "Vanity Fair — A Novel with- out a Hero" — without a hero perhaps, not, certainly, without a heroine. Who could oppose Becky Sharp's claim ? See the care, solicitude, minute concern, amount- ing almost to affection, on the part of the great novelist . for this, his greatest conception. It is no sign of in- feriority that Thackeray designedly makes Becky con- sistent throughout, although she is a woman. Is it a fault or a merit in Thackeray's novels that we admire the wicked people and endure the good? Cer- tainly the master of fiction does make all his bad characters clever, both men and women, and his good ones stupid. This fact might be urged in weighing Thackeray's claims as one of the greatest novelists. G. S. Mead. Catiline's Defiance. Conscript Fathers, I do not rise to waste the night in words; Let that Plebeian talk; 'tis not my trade; But here I stand for right, — let him show proofs, — For Roman right; though none, it seems, dare stand To take their share with me. Ay, cluster there! Cling to your master, judges, Romans, slaves ! 284 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. His charge is false; — I dare him to his proofs. You have my answer. Let my actions speak! But this I will avow, that I have scorned, And still do scorn, to hide my sense of wrong! Who brands me on the forehead, breaks my sword, Or lays the bloody scourge upon my back, Wrongs me not half so much as he who shuts The gates of honor on me, — turning out The Roman from his birthright; and, for what? To fling your offices to every slave! Vipers, that creep where man disdains to climb, And, having wound their loathesome track to the top Of this huge, mouldering monument of Rome, Hang hissing at the nobler man below! Come, consecrated Lictors, from your thrones; Fling down your scepters; take the rod and axe, And make the murder as you make the law! Banished from Rome! What's banished, but set free From daily contact of the things I loathe? "Tried and convicted traitor!*' Who says this? Who'll prove it, at his peril, on my head? Banished! I thank you for 't. It breaks my chain! I held some slaclv allegiance till this hour; But now my sword's my own. Smile on, my Lords! I scorn to count what feelings, withered hopes, Strong provocations, bitter, burning wrongs, I have within my heart's hot cells shut up, To leave you in your lazy dignities. But here I stand and scoff you! here, I fling Hatred and full defiance in your face! Your Consul's merciful. — For this, all thanks. He dares not touch a hair of Catiline! READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 285 "Traitor!" I go; but, I return. This — trial! Here I devote your Senate! I've had wrongs To stir a fever in the blood of age, Or make the infant's sinews strong as steel. This day's the birth of sorrow! This hour's work Will breed proscriptions! Look to your hearths, my Lords! For there, henceforth, shall sit, for household gods, Shapes hot from Tartarus! — all shames and crimes! Wan Treachery, with his thirsty dagger drawn; Suspicion, poisoning his brother's cup; Naked Rebellion, with the torch and axe, Making his wild sport of your blazing thrones; Till Anarchy comes down on you like night, And Massacre seals Rome's eternal grave. I go; but not to leap the gulf alone. I go; but, when I come, 't will be the burst Of ocean in the earthquake, — rolling back In swift and mountainous ruin. Fare you well! You build my funeral-pile; but your best blood Shall quench its flame! Back, slaves! I will return. Croly. Against Employing Indians in War. Who is the man that, in addition to disgraces and mis- chiefs of our army, has dared to authorize and associate to our arms the tomahawk and scalping-knife of the sav- age ? — to call into civilized alliance the wild and inhu- man savage of the woods ; to delegate to the merciless Indian the defence of disputed rights ; and to wage the horrors of his barbarous war against our brethren ? My Lords, these enormities cry aloud for redress and punish- 286 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. ment ; but, atrocious as they are, they have found a de- fender in this House. " It is perfectly justifiable," says a noble Lord, "to use all the means that God and Nature put into our hands." I am astonished, shocked, to hear such principles confessed, — to hear them avowed in this House, or even in this country ; — principles equally un- constitutional, inhuman, and unchristian ! My Lords, I did not intend to have trespassed again upon your atten- tion ; but I cannot repress my indignation — I feel myself impelled by every duty to proclaim it. As members of this House, as men, as Christians, we are called upon to pro- test against the barbarous proposition. " That God and Nature put into our hands !" What ideas that noble Lord may entertain of God and Nature, I know not ; but I know that such abominable principles are equally abhor- rent to religion and humanity. What ! attribute the sacred sanction of God and Nature to the massacres of the Indian scalping-knife, — to the cannibal savage, tor- turing, murdering, devouring, drinking the blood of his mangled victims ! Such notions shock every precept of religion, every sentiment of honor, every feeling of humanity ! These abominable principles, and this more abominable avowal of them, demand most decisive indignation ! I call upon that Right Reverend, Bench, those holy min- isters 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 law of this learne'd Bench, to defend and support the justice of their country ! I call upon the Bishops to in- terpose the unsullied sanctity of their lawn ; upon the judges, to interpose the purity of their ermine, to save us from this pollution ! I call upon the honor of your READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 287 Lordships to reverence the dignity of your ancestors, and to maintain your own ! I call upon the spirit and hu- manity of my country, to vindicate the national character! I invoke the genius of the Constitution ! Lord Chatham. The Frog and the Frenchman. When the grass comes slowly creeping O'er the meadows, in good keeping With the spring, Then appears the early peeper, Who, to lull the wanton sleeper, 'Gins to sing. Formerly, he used to sail By the motion of his tail, When pollywog ; But he lost that institution, In the course of evolution To the frog. Such a cunning little fellow, With his breast a greenish-yellow, He will go Tuning up that voice unfailing, As young roosters, when first tailing, Try to crow. On a lily-pad he'll teeter, And maintain he sings much sweeter Than a bird ; A canary — the last feather, Washed away by rainy weather, Takes his word ; So absurd. VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. When he grows a little sweeter, Epicurean frog-eater Always begs That his deft and agile henchman Will go catch this tender Frenchman, For his legs. So he hies him to the pond, Or the eddy just beyond, In the creek, — Where he finds the full-grown frog, Basking on a cosy log ; Hear him speak : " Greek meets Greek ! Chug-a-reek ! " I'm suspicious of your nation, Though I like your conversation : Parlez-vons ; But if you are not polite, sir, I'll jump quickly out of sight, sir, Entre notis ! Chug-a-roo ! " Do you think, O, simple sinner, You will catch a Sunday dinner With a bug ? Regardez ! begin to banter With ' red rag ', I'm gone instanter ; Chug-a-rug ! Chug-a-rug I " Shrug your shoulders well, monsieur, There's no use to make detour, I know your game. I'm content to parlez-votis, READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 2 If my broken French will do, But I'll keep an eye on you, All the same, Ckug-a-rame ! ' Like the Premiere Danseuse, A fat frog is of no use, Save his limb : So like 'sprinter ' on his pegs, I had better stretch my legs, Nice and trim, For a swim. Chiig-a-rim \ In the brink Don't you think ? Chup-a-rink ! Chug-a-rink ! Chug-a-rink ! 11 Were I cooked and on a plate, You would have a tete-a-tete, Avcc amour With fair lady vis-a-vis ; Two is pleasant company, Always spoiled by number three. So, Bonjour ! " " Ze same to you ! " " Taisez vans ! " " Par bleu ! " " Chug-a-roo Hu-hu hoo ! " F? ed Emerson Brooks. 290 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Col. Baker as an Orator. The style of Col. Baker was lofty and grand, but never stereotyped. As his passions ran the whole gamut of human feeling, and his learning touched the entire field of thought, so his style was that of no man — but the excellences of all men. He had the magical influence of Caesar. He had the fascination of Pericles. He was vehement in gesture, like Brougham and Mirabeau. His impetuous eloquence swept away all opposition. Before him men stood dumb. Those who came to cavil, to question, to interrupt, remained to listen in silence, and went away convinced. His speeches were poems ; his words were music ; his thoughts were thunderbolts. His was not poverty of ideas flaunting gay trappings of words. His very voice with thoughts seemed pregnant. He spoke to the common conscience. He kept his feet on fact, but he painted his pictures with Greek fire that burned them upon the memory. There were others that made arguments hard to answer, but his arguments no- body ever wanted to answer. He was lofty and majestic like Burke and Chatham. He had the inspiration of Patrick Henry, the polish of Edward Everett, and in his withering denunciations, was the equal of his Eastern rival, Wendell Phillips. In his arsenal he carried every weapon of offense and defense. Wit and humor, fancy and imagination, sarcasm and irony, logic and rhetoric, were playthings in his hands, and upon proper occasions, he could use each with the skill of a master. When he touched upon the themes of Liberty, and Union, his eyes blazed, his whole frame READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 29 1 quivered, he looked like a god. His sentences lost the flow of Chatham's rounded period. They became short and epigrammatic. Every word was flame, every sentence seemed forced from a molten lake within. Clara S. Foltz. Freedom. I Delivered in 1861.] Long years ago I took my stand for Freedom, and where the feet of my youth were planted, there my man- hood and my age shall march. And for one, I am not ashamed of Freedom. I know her power. I rejoice in her majesty. I walk beneath her banner. I glory in her strength. I have seen her again and again struck down on a hundred chosen fields of battle. I have seen her friends fly from her. I have seen her foes gather around her. I have seen them bind her to the stake. I have seen them give her ashes to the winds, regathering them that they might scatter them yet more widely. But when they turn- ed to exult, I have seen her again meet them face to face, clad in complete steel and brandishing in her strong right hand a flaming sword red with insufferable light. I take courage. The people gather around her. The gen- ius of America will yet lead her sons to Freedom ! Are you ashau.ed to march in the procession of Free- dom? Shall reproach, shall malignant slander, shall base misrepresentation make you hesitate ? For me at least, no. A thousand times, no ! I love Freedom better than slavery. I will speak her words. I will listen to her mu- sic. I will acknowledge her impulses. I will stand be- neath her flag. I will fight in her ranks. And when I 292 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. do so, I shall find myself surrounded by the great, the wise, the good, the brave, the noble of every land. If I could stand for a moment upon one of our high mountain tops, far above all the kingdoms of the world, and see coming up, one after another, the bravest and the wisest of the Ancient warriors, and statesmen, and kings, and monarchs, and priests, and be permitted to ask their opinion on this theme, with a common voice, and in thunder tones, reverberating through all lands and echo- ing down the ages, they would cry, " Liberty ! Freedom ' The Universal Brotherhood of man ! " I join that shout ! I swell that anthem ! I echo that cry forever and forever ! E. D. Baker. The Golden Gate. Down by the side of the Golden Gate The city stands ; Grimly, and solemn, and silent, wait The walls of land, Guarding its door as a treasure fond ; And none may pass to the sea beyond, But they who trust to the king of fate, And pass through the Golden Gate. The ships go out through its narrow door, White-sailed, and laden with precious store — White-sailed, and laden with precious freight, The ships come back through the Golden Gate. The sun comes up o'er the Eastern crest, The sun goes down in the golden West, And the East is West, and the West is East, And the sun, from his toil of day released, Shines back through the Golden Gate. READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 293 Down by the side of the Golden Gate — The door of life, — Are resting our cities, sea-embowered, White-walled, and templed, and marbled-towered — The end of strife. The ships have sailed from the silent walls, And over their sailing the darkness falls. O, the sea is so dark, and so deep, and wide ! Will the ships come back from the further side ? ' Nay ; but is there no further side," A voice is whispering across the tide, — ' Time, itself, is a circle vast, Building the future out of the past ; For the new is old, and the old is new, And the true is false, and the false is true, And the West is East, and the East is West, And the sun that rose o'er the Eastern crest, Gone down in the West of his circling track, Forever and ever is shining back Through the Golden Gate of life." O soul ! thy city is standing down By its Golden Gate ; Over it hangs the menacing frown Of the king of fate. The sea of knowledge so neam'ts door, Is rolling away to the further shore — The orient side, — And the ocean is dark, and deep, and wide ! But thy harbor, O, Soul ! is filled with sails, Freighted with messages, wonder tales, From the lands that swing in the sapphire sky, Where the gardens of God in the ether lie. If only the blinded eye could see, 294 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. If only thy deaf-mute heart could hear, The ocean of knowledge is open to thee, And its Golden Gate is near ! For the dead are the living — the living the dead, And out of the darkness the light is shed ; And the East is West, and the West is East, And the sun from his toil of day released, Shines back through the Golden Gate. Madge Morris. Feminine Pity. I know nothing in the world tenderer than the pity that a kind-hearted young girl has for a young man who feels lonely. It is true that these dear creatures are all com- passion for every form of human woe, and anxious to al- leviate all human misfortunes. They will go to Sunday- schools through storms their brothers are afraid of, to teach the most unpleasant and untractable classes of little children the age of Methuselah or the dimensions of Og the king of Bashan's bedstead. They will stand behind a table at a fair all day until they are ready to drop, dress- ed in their prettiest cloaks and their sweetest smiles, and lay hands upon you, to make you buy what you do not want, at prices which you cannot afford ; all this as cheer- fully as if it were not martyrdom to them as well as to you. Such is their love for all good objects, such their eagerness to sympathize with all their suffering fellow- creatures ! But there is nothing they pity as they pity a lonely young man. [The Poet at the Breakfast Table.'] Holmes. READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 295 * Bernardo Del Carpio. The warrior bowed his crested head, and tamed his heart of fire } And sued the haughty king to free his long-imprisoned sire ; " I bring thee here my fortress keys, I bring my captive train, I pledge thee faith, my liege, my lord !— O! break my father's chain ! " " Rise, rise ! even now thy father comes, a ransomed man, this day ! Mount thy good horse ; and thou and I will meet him on his way." Then lightly rose that loyal son, and bounded on his steed, And urged, as if with lance in rest, the charger's foamy speed. And lo ! from afar, as on they pressed, there came a glittering band, With one that 'midst them stately rode, as a leader in the land ; " Now haste, Bernardo, haste ! for there, in very truth, is he, The father whom thy faithful heart hath yearned so long to see." His dark eye flashed, his proud breast heaved, his cheek's hue came and went ; He reached that gray-haired chieftain's side, and there, dismount- ing, bent ; A lowly knee to earth he bent, his father's hand he took — What was there in its touch that all his fiery spirit shook ? That hand was cold — a frozen thing — it dropped from his like lead! He looked up to the face above — the face was of the dead ! A plume waved o'er the noble brow — the brow was fixed and white ; He met, at last, his father's eyes — but in them was no sight ! Up from the ground he sprang and gazed ; but who could paint that gaze ? 296 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. They hushed their very hearts, that saw its horror and amaze — They might have chained him, as before that stony form he stood ; For the power was .stricken from his arm, and from his lip the blood. " Father ! " at length he murmured low, and wept like child- hood then : Talk not of grief till thou hast seen the tears of warlike men ! He thought on all his glorious hopes, and all his young renown — He flung his falchion from his side, and in the dust sat down. Then covering with his steel-gloved hands his darkly mournful brow, " No more, there is no more," he said, " to lift the sword for now ! My king is false — my hope betrayed ! My father — O ! the worth, The glory, and the loveliness, are passed away from earth ! " I thought to stand where banners waved, my sire, beside thee, yet ! I would that there our kindred blood on Spain's free soil had met ! Thou wouldst have known my spirit, then — for thee my fields were won ; And thou hast perished in thy chains, as though thou hadst no son.' Then, starting from the ground once more, he seized the monarch's rein, Amid the pale and wildered looks of all the courtier train ; And, with a fierce, o'ermastering grasp, the rearing war-horse led, And sternly set them face to face — the king before the dead : " Came I not forth, upon thy pledge, my father's hand to kiss? — Be still, and gaze thou on, false king ! and tell me what is this ? The voice, the glance, the heart I sought — give answer, where are they? READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 297 If thou wouldst clear thy perjured soul, send life through this cold clay ! " Into these glassy eyes put light —be still ! keep down thine ire! Bid these white lips a blessing speak — this earth is not my sire — Give me back him for whom I strove, for whom my blood was shed ! Thou canst not ? — and a king ! — his dust be mountains on thy head ! " He loosed the steed — his slack hand fell — upon the silent face He cast one long, deep, troubled look, then turned from that sad place. His hope was crushed, his after fate untold in martial strain — His banner led the spears no more, amid the hills of Spain. Mrs. Hemans. The Funny Story. It was such a funny story ! how I wish you could have heard it, For it set us all a laughing from the little to the big ; I'd really like to tell it, but I don't know how to word it, Though it travels to the music of a very lively jig. If Sally just began it, then Amelia Jane would giggle, And Mehetable and Susan try their very broadest grin ; And the infant Zachariah on his mother's lap would wriggle, And add a lusty chorus to the very merry din. It was such a funny story, with its its cheery snap and crackle, And Sally always told it with such dramatic art, That the chickens in the door-yard would begin to " cackle-cackle, As if in such a frolic they were anxious to take part. It was all about a — ha ! ha ! — and a — ho ! ho ! ho ! — well really, It is — he ! he ! he ! — I never could begin to tell you half 290 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Of the nonsense there was in it, for I just remember clearly It began with ha ! ha ! ha ! ha ! and it ended with a laugh. But Sally — she could tell it, looking at us so demurely, With a woe-begone expression that no actress would despise ; And if you'd never heard it, why you would imagine surely, That you'd need your pocket-handkerchief to" wipe your weeping eyes." When age my hair has silvered, and my step has grown unsteady And the nearest to my vision are the scenes of long ago, I shall see the pretty picture, and the tears will come as ready As the laugh did, when I used to ha ! ha ! ha ! ha ! and — ho ! ho ! ho! Josephine Pollard in Scribner of 1878. The Isle of Long Ago. O, 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 a surge sublime, As it blends with the Ocean of Years. How the winters are drifting, like flakes of snow, ■ And the summers, like buds between; And the year in the sheaf — so they come and they On the river's breast, with its ebb and flow, As it glides in the shadow and sheen. There's a magical isle up the river Time, Where the softest of airs are playing; There's a cloudless sky and a tropical clime, And a song as sweet as a vesper chime, And the Junes with, the roses are staying, READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 299 And the name of that Isle is the Long Ago, And we bury our treasures there; There are brows of beauty and bosoms of snow — There are heaps of dust — oh! we loved them so! — There are trinkets and tresses of hair. There are fragments of song that nobody sings, And a part of an infant's prayer; There's a lute unswept, and a harp without strings, There are broken vows and pieces of rings, And the garments our dead used to wear. There are hands that are waved, when the fairy shore By the mirage is lifted in air; And we sometimes hear, through the turbulent roar, Sweet voices we heard in days gone bafore, When the wind down the river is fair. O, remembered for aye be the blessed Isle, All the day of our life till night — When the evening comes with its beautiful smile, And our eyes are closing to slumber awhile, May that "Greenwood" of Soul be in sight! B. F. Taylor. On the American Revolution. They tell us, sir, that we are weak, unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house? Shall 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 300 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot? Sir, we are not weak if we make a proper use of those means which the God of nature hath placed in our power. Three millions of people, armed in the holy cause of liberty, and in such a country as that which we possess, are invincible by any force which our enemy can send against us. Besides, sir, we shall not fight our battles alone. There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations, and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone — it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, sir, we have no election. If we were base enough to desire it fc it is now too late to retire from the contest. There is no retreat but in submission and slavery. Our chains are forged. Their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston ! The war is inevitable, and let it come ! I repeat it, sir, let it come ! It is vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry peace, peace, but there is no peace. The war is actually begun ! The next gale that sweeps from the North 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 have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery ? Forbid it, Almighty God ! I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death ! Patrick Henry. READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 3c I Tell on His Native Hills. Oh, with what pride I used To walk these hills, and look up to my God, And bless him that the land was free. 'T was free — From end to end, from cliff to lake 't was free ! Free as our torrents are that leap our rocks, And plow our valleys, without asking leave ! Or as our peaks, that wear their caps of snow In very presence of the regal sun ! How happy was it then ! I loved Its very storms. Yes, I have sat In my boat at night, when, midway o'er the lake, The stars went out, and down the mountain gorge The wind came roaring . I have sat and eyed The thunder breaking from his cloud, and smiled To see him shake his lightnings o'er my head, And think I had no master save his own ! On yonder jutting cliff — o'ertaken there By the mountain blast, I've laid me flat along, And while gust followed gust more furiously, As if to sweep me o'er the horrid brink, And I have thought of other lands, whose storms Are summer-flaws to those of mine, and just Have wished me there — the thought that mine was free Has checked that wish, and I have raised my head, And cried in thraldom to that furious wind, Blow on ! — this is the land of liberty ! Knvwles, 302 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. The Two Professions. [Abridged from original MS. for Voice Culture and Elocution.] " Margaret ! Margaret ! ! Margaret ! ! ! Oh, dear ! I hope the Lord will give me patience to bear with that girl, and bring her up in the way she should go. She is given over to the Evil One, I fear ! " Deacon Gray closed his Bible with a bang, and arose to his feet to go in search of his wayward daughter. Just then the sound of a rich, full, musical voice came floating down from the attic chamber of the farmhouse, and the deacon paused in the centre of the old-fashioned sitting room, with both hands uplifted in holy horror, while he listened to the sound of — [Here introduce song.] " May the Lord keep me from punishing that girl ac- cording to her wickedness," groaned the deacon, as he called out again, " Margaret ! Margaret Gray ! You unregenerate hussy, come here this minute." " Yes, father." " What was that, that you was a screeching just now?" he asked, his voice trembling with passion. "A song from ," she answered, "is it not lovely ? " "Shut up, child of iniquity," he roared. " Yes, father." " I believe you are given over to hardness of heart, and depravity of mind. I have prayed for you, labored with you, and even chastised you, Margaret, but you are growing worse every day. I was away from home yes- READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 303 terday, attending a meeting of our associated laborers for foreign missions. I left old Parker to finish cradling that wheat, — did he work all day ? " "Why, father, the work was done, and you yourself said that it would take a young man a day and a half to do it." "That's not the question. I want to know if he worked all day." "No; but /did. I knew the poor old colored man had a sick wife at home, who has no care, except such as he can bestow upon her. So I worked with all my strength, that he might enjoy a few hours free from toil, and you be none the poorer, father." "That's enough J I shall pay him for three quarters of a day ! " "Oh, father !" " Shut up ! You would encourage idleness in niggers, would you ? May the Lord give me patience with such a sinful, disobedient child." Margaret sang no more that day, and at evening she wended her way to the miserable hut which the colored man called his home. As her eyes became accustomed to the darkness, she beheld the form of the old man crouched upon the floor beside the wretched couch, whereon lay the emaciated form of his dying wife. " O Miss Marget ! Is dat you ?" he said in trembling tones. "She's a'most gone, a'most gone, honey. De golden gates is unlocked, and it seems as if dese yer ole blind eyes kin see de angels peepin' froo." " Sing ! sing ! sing !" It was the feeble whisper of the dying one. " Yes, yes, ole woman, I will. I'll sing one o' dem glory tunes yer likes so well." Choking back his grief 304 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. and nerving himself by a mighty effort for the task, the stricken husband sang. [Introduce negro church melody. J " Oh, its dark and cold, so cold. I wish de good Lord would take me by the hand," murmured the dying lips. Margaret clasped the black, withered hand in hers, and then her full, rich voice, tremulous with feeling, flooded the wretched hovel like a deluge of sunshine. Lead, Kindly Light. Lead, Kindly Light, amid th' encircling gloom, Lead Thou me on! The night is dark, and I am far from home, Lead Thou me on! Keep Thou my feet, I do not ask to see The distant scene; one step enough for me! So long Thy power hath led me, sure it still Will lead me on, O'er moor and fen, o'er crag and torrent till The night is gone, And with the morn those angel faces smile, Which I have loved long since and lost awhile. As the notes died away, a dead silence fell upon the scene. It was the solemn hush of the presence of death, broken only by the subdued sobs of the weeping husband. "Oh, it's dark and cold!" murmured the sufferer. "But hark ! Listen, honey ! I hear music... Don't yer hear it ? Oh 'tis de music of de angels, and dis yer room is growing light. I'se almost over now ; de water ob de ribber isn't cold any mo'. Oh chile ! it's easy "nough ter die dis way. Cos yer brought dem angels in hyar wid yer when yer come. Dere ! I see dem buful angels. READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 305 Good-by ole man — don't stay long behind cos I knows ye'll suffer hyar. Good-by, Miss. May de Lord 'ward you for your goodness — good by good ." The following morning, Margaret was astir, early as usual. Before long her father's voice was heard, "Mar- garet ! Margaret !" "Yes, father !" " Margaret, there is one thing I want to talk to you about, and I mean every word I say. It is time that you was doing something for yourself, the harvesting is almost over and your mother can do all the work that is to be done about the house. I think you had better go into some factory or take a school for the winter." " I have already decided what to do father — I shall go upon the stage." " What ! go upon the stage ; become one of those abandoned wretches who are a disgrace to humanity ! who never go to church, read a Bible, or utter a prayer ! Never ! No child of mine shall ever be reckoned among that vile hoard ! Take back your words, or leave my house." " Father, I cannot." " Then go ! Never enter these doors again ! Never call me father ! Never dare look upon my face even in its coffin." There were a few whispered words of endearment be- tween Margaret and her mother, and then the daughter left the room, and soon quitted the place which she called home, but which her tyrant father had rendered hateful to her. * - Five years passed, and Deacon Gray lay upon his death- bed. The ministers and all the prominent members x>f 306 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. the church had visited him, trying to comfort and console him. Still, the old man was not happy. It was night. All was quiet in and about the old farm- house, save the whistling of the November wind, and the monotonous, measured, waving protest of the old kitchen clock, which said plainly in- the dying man's ear : " Take back — take back — your words — take back — take back— your words — call back — your child — Marg'ret — Marg'ret." " Wife ! Wife ! " he called out, unable to endure the tor- ture which his remorseful thoughts inflicted upon him. The patient watcher arose from her seat, and bent over him. Wife, I've been a faithful churchman." "Yes, husband, you have, indeed." "But somehow that thought doesn't satisfy me now. I've been harsh and cruel to you, wife." "Oh, no, no, don't think about that, husband. No one is perfect. I dare say I tried your patience." " And there was Margaret — poor child, I drove her from her home, when I should have been her best friend, next to you, wife. Don't say a word. There's no excuse for me. She was always a better Christian than I was, and I knew it too, but I wanted to have my own way — I wanted to think for her — I wanted her to think as I did. I forgot that she could not be ruled in that way. Hark ! Listen ! Don't you hear? Call back — Marg'ret — Call back — Marg'ret ! " " It is- only the ticking of the clock, husband." "Yes, it is something more than that; it is conscience — conscience ! Oh, if I could hear her sing once more ! I wouldn't care what she sang — and I told her never to look upon my face again, living or dead ! O, Margaret — Margaret — my child — my child — forgive — forgive — for- READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 307 give! It's growing dark, wife. Is that your hand? Why, how soft and fair it seems — I could almost fancy it was her hand. God help me — and forgive me. Sing, Margaret — sing, my child — I have never heard any music since I drove you from your home." Softly, sweetly, and tremulously, there arose upon the midnight stillness the sound of a sweet voice singing : [Sing, "Jesus, Lover of my Soul. "J A peaceful smile stole over the features* of the dying man, and, as the sound of the last note died away, he raised his arms feebly. "Margaret, my child," he whispered. "Father, dear father." "Forgive me, Margaret." "As I hope for forgiveness when I am leaving this earthly body, dear father." "Kiss me, my child." The loving arms of the faithful daughter were twined about the neck of the parent whom she had found for the first time in her life. Her lips were pressed to his, and when she disengaged herself from his embrace, his hands fell heavily by his side, a feeble sigh fluttered from his breast, and Deacon Gray — was dead ! The Lost Sheep. De massa ob de sheepfol', Dat guard de sheepfol' bin, Look out in de gloomerin' meadows Whar de long night rain begin — So he call to de hirelin' shepa'd, " Is my sheep, is dey all come in ? " " Oh," den says the hirelin' shepa'd, 308 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. " Dey's some dey's black an' thin, An' some dey's po' ol' wedda's, But de res' dey's all brung in." Den de massa ob de sheepfoP, Dat guard de sheepfol' bin, Goes down in de gloomerin' meadows, Whar de long night rain begin — So he le' down de bars of de sheepfol', Callin'sof, "Come in, come in." Den up tro' de gloomerin' meadows, Tro' de col' night rain an' win'^ An' up tro' de gloomerin' rain-pat, War de sleet fa' pie'cin' thin, De po' los' sheep ob de sheepfol,' Dey all comes gadderin' in ; De po' los' sheep ob de sheepfol', Dey all comes gadderin' in. Sallv Pratt Maclean. The Murderer's Secret. Providence hath so ordained, and doth so govern things, that those who^break the great law of heaven by shedding man's blood, seldom succeed in avoiding discovery : A thousand eyes turn at once to explore every man, every- thing, every circumstance, connected with the time and place ; a thousand ears catch every whisper ; a thousand excited minds intensely dwell on the scene ; shedding all their light, and ready to kindle the slightest circumstance into a blaze of discovery. Meantime, the guilty soul cannot keep its own secret. It is false to itself ; or rather it feels an irresistible im- READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 309 pulse of conscience to be true to itself. The secret which the murderer possesses, soon comes to possess him. And like the evil spirits of which we read, it overcomes him, and leads him whithersoever it will. He feels it beating at his heart, rising to his throat, and demanding disclos- ure. He thinks the whole world sees it in his face, reads it in his eyes, and almost hears its workings in the very silence of his thoughts. It has become his master. It betrays his discretion, it. breaks down his courage, it con- quers his prudence. When suspicions from without be- gin to embarrass him, and the net of circumstances to en- tangle him, the fatal secret struggles with still greater vio- lence to burst forth. It must be confessed, it will be confessed ; there is no refuge from confession but suicide ; and suicide is confession. Webster. A Psalm of Life. Tell me not in mournful numbers, Life is but an empty dream ! For the soul is dead that slumbers, And things are not what they seem. Life is real ! Life is earnest ! And the grave is not its goal : 1 Dust thou art, to dust returnest," Was not spoken of the soul. Not enjoyment, and not sorrow, Is our destined end and way. But to act that each to-morrow Find us farther than to-day. 3IO VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Art is long, and time is fleeting, And our hearts, though stout and brave, Still, like muffled drums, are beating Funeral marches to the grave. 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 ! Trust no Future, howe'er pleasant ! Let the dead Past bury its dead ! Act ! — act in the living Present ! Heart within, and God o'erhead. Lives of great men all remind us We can make our lives sublime, And, departing, leave behind us Footprints on the sands of time ; Footprints, that perhaps another, Sailing o'er life's solemn main, A forlorn and shipwrecked brother, Seeing, shall take heart again. Let us, then, be up and doing, With a heart for any fate ; Still achieving, still pursuing, Learn to labor and to wait. Longfelloxv . READINGS AND RECITATIONS. Sprinkling the Streets. Mr. Trevelyan, who lives on Court street, has had trouble already with his garden hose. Since the intro- duction of the Holly water system, it has been the delight of Mr. Trevelyan to turn himself into a pipeman at sun- set, and, with his garden hose, sprinkle the thirsty street with the clear, cool waters of the mighty Mississippi. Miss Norah Donavan, a young lady who is connected with the culinary department of Mr. Trevelyan 's house, and is also superintendent of the dormitories and general overseer of carpets, had often watched, as her duties would permit, this process of cooling down the streets at eventide, and she had been heard to wish that this duty might be entrusted to her. She finally framed her wish in a direct petition, and last evening she entered upon the active duties of her new office. When Miss Donavan took the nozzle from the hands of her master, it was pointed almost directly at the middle of the street, and Miss Donavan conscientiously retained it in this position, while her whole frame was convulsed with delight. Presently there came dashing down the street, in a light, open phaeton, two happy young people. In vain the male young person shouted : "Hi, there, I say! turn her off!" and in vain the female young person shrieked, and essayed to hide behind a parasol no larger than a water lily. Miss Donavan only stared at them, and wondered if peradventure they might be crazy, and when they passed through the torrent, they came out on the other side very sad, very silent and very damp, not to say limp. 312 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Then the gentleman who lives next door came out and called to her as he approached, intending to instruct her how to shut off the deluging stream, or turn it aside when any one approached. But Miss Donavan, hearing him call her name, said, "Sorr?" and turned about and faced him with the nozzle doing its level best, wide open and a fire pressure on. He turned with the first shot and fled for his own door, the cooling stream following him every inch of the way, like an angel of mercy in disguise. But by the time he reached the door, he was so thoroughly drenched that his suspenders mil- dewed. Then a North Hill street car came rattling down — an open, summer car, just crowded with people coming in from a picnic at Sunnyside — and when they heard the driver shout, and then dodge and then swear, they saw their fate and Miss Donavan, and just howled, and wailed, and screamed, and tried to get behind each other, and crept under the seats, and some of them even jumped off the car; and all of them, by their frantic gestures, wild shrieks, and singular behavior, impressed Miss Donavan with the idea that they were dreadfully drunk. The street car passed on, and when it was beyond the line of Mr. Trevelyan's garden stream, the dryest man in that car could have put out a conflagration by simply leaning back against the house that was burning, and before the car reached the next corner there were four well-defined suits for damages fixed up against Mr. Trevelyan. By this time Miss Donavan was pretty thoroughly con- vinced that the manipulation of a garden hose required that judgment and liberal education and shrewd insight into men and motives, that belong only to the aristocratic READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 313 classes, and she determined to resign her position forth- with. She went into the hall, carrying the nozzle with her, and spre'admg desolation and dismay wherever she went. " Whist ! " she shouted, as the torrent drenched the hat-rack ; " Murther ! " she howled, when it knocked the globe off the hall lamp. "Misther Trevelyan !" she shrieked, "where on the wide world is the sthopper? " and then she bent over the irrepressible nozzle and essayed to stop it with her finger. The howl of dismay that followed this attempt brought the startled family up into the hall, and in less than three minutes every seat in the house was taken, standing room all gone, and the play declared a success. Ode on the Passions. When Music, heavenly maid, was young, While yet in early Greece she sung, The passions oft, to hear her shell, Thronged around her magic cell, Exulting, trembling, raging, fainting — Possessed beyond the Muse's painting. By turns Jthey felt the glowing mind Disturbed, delighted, raised, refined : Till once, 'tis said, when all were fired, Filled with fury, rapt, inspired, From the supporting myrtles round They snatched her instruments of sound ; And, as they oft had heard apart Sweet lessons of her forceful art, Each — for madness ruled the hour- Would prove his own expressive power. 314 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. First, Fear, his hand, its skill to try, Amid the chords bewildered laid — And back recoiled, he knew not why, • Even at the sound himself had made. Next, Anger rushed : his eyes on fire, In lightnings owned his secret stings — With one rude clash he struck the lyre, And swept with hurried hands the strings. "With woful measures, wan Despair — Low, sullen sounds his grief beguiled ; A solemn, strange, and mingled air : 'Twas sad, by fits — by starts, 'twas wild. But thou, O Hope ! with eyes so fair, What was thy delighted measure ? Still it whispered promised pleasure, And bade the lovely scenes at distance hail. Still would her touch the strain prolong ; And from the rocks, the woods, the vale, She called on Echo still through all her song : 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. And longer had she sung — but, with a frown, Revenge 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, he beat The doubling drum with furious heat ; READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 315 And though, sometimes, each dreary pause between, Dejected Pity at his side, Her soul-subduing voice applied, Yet still he kept his wild, unaltered mien ; While each strained ball of sight seemed bursting from his head. Thy numbers, Jealousy, to nought were fixed ; Sad proof of thy distressful state ! Of differing themes the veering song was mixed : And now, it courted Love; now, raving, called on Hate. With eyes upraised, as one inspired, Pale Melancholy sat retired ; And from her wild, sequestered seat, In notes by distance made more sweet, Poured through the mellow horn her pensive soul ; And, dashing soft from rocks around, Bubbling runnels joined the sound. Through glades and glooms the mingled measure stole, Or o'er some haunted stream, with fond delay, Round a holy calm diffusing, Love of peace and lonely musing, In hollow murmurs died away. Rut, oh ! how altered was its sprightlier tone, When Cheerfulness, a nymph of healthiest hue, Her bow across her shoulder flung, Her buskins gemmed with morning dew, Blew an inspiring air, that dale and thicket rung, The hunter's call, to Faun and Dryad known ! The oak-crowned sisters, and their chaste-eyed queen, Satyrs and sylvan boys were seen, Peeping from forth their alleys green : Brown Exercise rejoiced to hear, And Sport leaped up, and seized his beechen spear. 316 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Last, came Joy's ecstatic trial ; He, with viny crown advancing, First to the lively pipe his hand addressed : But soon he saw the brisk awakening viol, Whose sweet entrancing voice he loved the best. They would have thought, who heard the strain, They saw, in Tempe's vale, her native maids, Amid the festal-sounding shades, To some unwearied minstrel dancing ; While as his flying fingers kissed the strings, Love framed with Mirth a gay fantastic round : Loose were her tresses seen, her zone unbound, And he amid his frolic play, As if he would the charming air repay, Shook thousand odors from his dewy wing. Collins. Liberty and Union. While the Union lasts, we have high, exciting, gratify- ing prospects spread out before us, for us and our chil- dren. Beyond that, I seek not to penetrate the veil. God grant, that in my day, at least, that curtain may not rise ! God grant that on my vision never may be opened what lies behind ! When my eyes shall be turned to be- hold 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 feuds, or drenched, it may be, in fraternal blood ! Let their last feeble and lingering glance rather behold the gorgeous ensign of the republic, now known and hon- ored throughout the earth, still full high advanced, its READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 317 arms and trophies streaming in their original luster, not a 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 delus- ion and folly, "Liberty first and Union afterwards; " but everywhere, spread all over in characters of living light, blazing on all its ample folds, as they float over the sea and over the land, and in every wind under the whole heavens, that other sentiment, dear to every true Ameri- can heart — Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable ! Webster. Wolsey's Fall. 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 honors 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 the root, And then he falls, as I do. I have ventured, Like little wanton boys, that swim on bladders, These many summers in a sea of glory, 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. Vain pomp and glory of this world, I hate ye ! I feel my heart new opened ; oh ! how wretched Is that poor man that hangs on prince's favors ! There is, betwixt that smile he would aspire to, 318 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. That sweet aspect of princes and their ruin, More pangs and fears than wars or women have ; And when he falls, he falls like Lucifer, Never to hope again. Spartacus to the Gladiators. Ye call me chief ; and ye do well to call him chief who, for twelve long years, has met upon the arena every shape of man or beast the broad empire of Rome could furnish, and who never yet lowered his arm. If there be one among you who can say that ever, in public fight or private brawl, my actions did belie my tongue, let him stand forth, and say it. If there be three in all your company dare face me on the bloody sands, let them come on. And yet I was not always thus— a hired butcher, a savage chief of still more savage men ! My ancestors came from old Sparta, and settled among the vine-clad rocks and citron groves of Cyrasella. My early life ran quiet as the brooks by which I sported ; and when, at noon, I gathered the sheep beneath the shade, and played upon the shepherd's flute, there was a friend, the son of a neighbor, to join me in the pastime. We led our flocks to the same pasture, and partook together our rustic meal. One evening, after the sheep were folded, and we were all seated beneath the myrtle which shaded our cottage, my grandsire, an old man, was telling of Marathon and Leuctra ; and how, in ancient times, a little band of Spartans, in a defile of the mountains, had withstood a whole army. I did not then know what war was ; but my cheeks burned, I knew not why, and I clasped the knees of that venerable man until my mother, parting READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 319 the hair from off my forehead, kissed my throbbing temples, and bade me go to rest, and think no more of those old tales and savage wars. That very night the Romans landed on our coast. I saw the breast that had nourished me trampled by the hoof of the war horse ; the bleeding body of my father flung amid the blazing rafters of our dwelling ! To-day I killed a man in the arena ; and, when I broke his helmet clasps, behold ! he was my friend. He knew me, smiled faintly, gasped, and died — the same sweet smile upon his lips that I had marked when, in ad- venturous boyhood, we scaled the lofty cliff to pluck the first ripe grapes, and bear them home in childish triumph ! I told the pretor that the dead man had been my friend, ■ generous and brave ; and I begged that I might bear away the body, to burn it on a funeral pile, and mourn over its ashes. Ay! upon my knees, amid the dust and blood of the arena, I begged that poor boon, while all the assembled maids and matrons, and the holy virgins they call Vestals, and the rabble, shouted in derision, deeming it rare sport, forsooth, to see Rome's fiercest gladiator turn pale and tremble at sight of that piece of bleeding clay! And the pretor drew back as I were pollution, and sternly said : " Let the carrion rot ; there are no noble men but Romans ! " And so, fellow- gladiators, must you, and so must I, die like dogs. O, Rome ! Rome ! thou hast been a tender nurse to me. Ay ! thou hast given, to that poor, gentle, timid shepherd-lad, who never knew a harsher tone than a flute- note, muscles of iron and a heart of flint ; taught him to drive the sword through plaited mail and links of rugged brass, and warm it in the marrow of his foe : — to gaze into the glaring eye-balls of the fierce Numidian lion, even 320 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. * as a boy upon a laughing girl ! And he shall pay thee back, until the yellow Tiber is red as frothing wine, and in its deepest ooze thy life-blood lies curdled ! 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 lily fingers pat your red brawn, and bet his sesterces upon your blood. Hark ! hear ye yon lion roaring in his den? Tis three days since he tasted flesh ; but to-morrow he shall break his fast upon yours — and a dainty meal for him ye will be ! If ye are beasts, then stand here like fat oxen, wait- ing for the butcher's knife ! If ye are men, — follow me ! Strike down yon guard, gain the mountain passes, and there do bloody work, as did your sires at old Ther-' mopylse ! 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 ? O, com- rades ! warriors ! Thracians ! — if we must fight, let us fight for ourselves! If we must slaughter, let us slaughter our oppressors ! If we must die, let it be under the clear sky, by the bright waters, in noble, honorable battle ! E. Kellogg. If We Knew. If we knew the woe and heartache Waiting for us down the road, If our lips could taste the wormwood, If our backs could feel the load ; Would we waste the day in wishing For a time that ne'er can be ? Would we wait with such impatience For our ships to come from sea ? READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 32 1 If we knew the baby fingers. Pressed against the window pane, Would be cold and stiff to-morrow, Never trouble us again ; Would the bright eyes of our darling Catch the frown upon our brow ? Would the print of rosy fingers Vex us then as they do no now ? Ah, those little ice-cold fingers ! How they point our memories back To the hasty words and actions Strewn along our backward track ! How those little hands remind us, As in snowy grace they lie, Not to scatter thorns, but roses, For our reaping by and by. Strange we never prize the music Till the sweet-voiced bird has flown ; Strange that we should slight the violets Till the lovely flowers are gone ; Strange that summer skies and sunshine Never seem one-half so fair, As when winter's snowy pinions Shake their white down in the air. Lips from which the seal of silence None but God can roll away, Never blossomed in such beauty As adorns the mouth to-day ; And sweet words that freight our memory With their beautiful perfume, Come to us in sweeter accents Through the portals of the tomb. 32 2 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Let us gather up the sunbeams, Lying all around our path ; Let us keep the wheat and roses, Casting out the thorns and chaff ; Let us find our sweetest comfort In the blessings of to-day ; With a patient hand removing All the briars from our way. The Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaklava. Half a league, half a league, Half a league onward, All in the Valley of Death Rode the Six Hundred. "Forward, the Light Brigade! Charge for the guns!" he said: Into the Valley of Death Rode the Six Hundred. "Forward, the Light Brigade!" Was there a man dismayed? Not though the soldier knew Some one had blundered: Theirs not to make reply, Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die': Into the Valley of Death Rode the Six Hundred. Cannon to right of them, Cannon to left of them, Cannon in front of them, Volleyed and thundered. READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 323 Stormed at with shot and shell, Boldly they rode and well; Into the jaws of Death, Into the mouth of hell, Rode the Six Hundred. Flashed all their sabres bare, Flashed as they turned in air, Sabring the gunners there, Charging an army, while All the world wondered. Plunged in the battery smoke, Right through the line they broke; Cossack and Russian Reeled from the sabre-stroke, Shattered and sundered. Then they rode back, but not, Not the Six Hundred. Cannon to right of them, Cannon to left of them, Cannon behind them, Volleyed and thundered. Stormed at with shot and shell, While horse and hero fell, They that had fought so well Came through the jaws of Death Back from the mouth of, hell, All that was left of them, Left of Six Hundred. When can their glory fade? O the wild charge they made ! All the world wondered. 3^4 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. Honor the charge they made! Honor the Light Brigade, Noble Six Hundred. Tennyson. Quarrel Scene Between Brutus and Cassius. Cassius. That you have wronged me doth appear in this : You have condemned and noted Lucius Pella For taking bribes here of the Sardians ; Wherein my letters, praying on his side. Because I knew the man, were slighted off. Brutus. You wronged yourself to write in such a case. Cas. In such a time as this, it is not meet That every nice offense should bear his comment. Bru. Let me tell you, Cassius, you yourself Are much condemned to have an itching palm ; To sell and mart your offices for gold To undeservers. Cas. I an itching palm ? You know that you are Brutus that speak this, Or, by the gods, this speech were else your last. Bru. The name of Cassius honors this corruption, And chastisement doth therefore hide his head. Cas. Chastisement ! Bru. Remember March, the ides of March remember. Did not great Julius bleed for justice' sake? What villain touched his body, that did stab, And not for justice ? What, shall one of us, That struck the foremost man of all this world But for supporting robbers — shall we now Contaminate our fingers with base bribes, READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 325 And sell the mighty space of our large honors For so much trash as may be grasped thus ? I had rather be a dog, and bay the moon, Than such a Roman. Cas. Brutus, bay not me ; I'll not endure it : you forget yourself To hedge me in ; I am a soldier — I, Older in practice, abler than yourself To make conditions. Brn. Go to ; you're not, Cassius. Cas. I am. Bru. I say you are not. Cas. Urge me no more ; I shall forget myself ; Have mind upon your health ; tempt me no further. Bru. Away, slight man ! Cas. Is't possible ? Bru. Hear me, for I will speak. Must I give way and room to your rash choler ? Shall I be frighted when a madman stares ? Cas. Oh ye gods ! ye gods ! must I endure all this ? Bru. All this ? ay, more : Fret till your proud heart break ; Go show your slaves how choleric you are, And make your bondmen tremble. Must I budge ? 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 laughter, When you are waspish. Cas. Is it come to this? Bru. You say you are a better soldier : Let it appear so ; make your vaunting true, 326 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. And it shall please me well : for mine own part, I shall be glad to learn of noble men. Cas. You wrong me every way ; you wrong me, Brutus ; I said an elder soldier, not a better : Did I say better ? Bru. If you did, I care not. Cas. When Caesar lived, he durst not thus have moved me. Bru. Peace, peace ; you durst not so have tempted him. Cas. I durst not ? Bru. No. Cas. What? durst not tempt him? Bru. _ For your life you durst not. Cas. Do not presume too much upon my love • I may do that I shall be sorry for. Bru. You have done that you should be sorry for. There is no terror, Cassius, in your threats ; For I am armed so strong in honesty, That they pass by me as the idle wind, Which I respect not. I did send to you For certain sums of gold, which you denied me; — For I can raise no money by vile means : By heaven, I had rather coin my heart, . And drop my blood for drachmas, than to wring From the hard hands of peasants their vile trash By any indirection. I did send To you for gold to pay my legions, Which you denied me : was that done like Cassius? Should I have answered Caius Cassius so? When Marcus Brutus grows so covetous, To lock such rascal counters from his friends, Be ready, gods, with all your thunderbolts — READINGS AND RECITATIONS. 327 Dash him to pieces ! Cas. I denied you not. Bru. You did. Cas. I did not : — he was but a fool That brought my answer back. — Brutus hath rived my heart ; A friend should bear his friend's infirmities ; But Brutus makes mine greater than they are. Bru. I do not, till you practice them on me. Cas. You love me not. Bru. I do not like your faults. Cas. A friendly eye could never see such faults. Bru. A flatterer's would not, though they do appear As huge as high Olympus. Cas. Come, Antony, and young Octavius, come, Revenge yourselves alone on Cassius ; For Cassius is aweary of the world : Hated by one he loves ; braved by his brother ; Checked like a bondman ; all his faults observed, Set in a note-book, learned and conn'd by rote, To cast into my teeth. Oh, I could weep My spirit from mine eyes ! — There is my dagger, And here my naked breast ; within, a heart Dearer than Plutus' mine, richer than gold : If that thou be'st a Roman, take it forth ; I, that denied thee gold, will give my heart : Strike, as thou didst at Caesar ; for, I know, When thou didst hate him worst, thou lov'dst him better Than ever thou lov'dst Cassius. Bru. Sheathe your dagger : Be angry when you will, it shall have scope ; Do what you will, dishonor shall be humor. Oh Cassius, you are yoked with a lamb 328 VOICE CULTURE AND ELOCUTION. That carries anger as the flint bears fire ; Who, much enforce'd, shows a hasty spark, And straight is cold again. Cas. Hath Cassius lived To be but mirth and laughter to his Brutus, When grief and blood ill-tempered vexeth him ? Bru. When I spoke that, I was ill-tempered too. Cas. Do you confess so much ? Give me your hand. Bru. And my heart too. Cas. Oh Brutus !— Bru. What's the matter? Cas. Have you not love enough to bear with me, When that rash humor, which my mother gave me, Makes me forgetful ? Bru. Yes, Cassius ; and, henceforth, When you are over-earnest with your Brutus, He'll think your mother chides, and leave you so. Shakespeare. The Flag of our Union. A song for our banner ? The watchword recall Which gave the Republic her station: ' United we stand — divided we fall ! " It made and preserves us a nation ! The union of lakes — the union of lands — The union of States none can sever — The union of hearts — the union of hands — And the Flag of our Union' forever ! Geo. P. A ■ w; llSSSuL? C0 NGRESS '■■■■■■IILi 0027249 794