«4^ READ, RECITE IMPERSONATL =^ /< (^ AC^-j^ •1^ A HOW TO READ, RE(3ITE*pIMPEI(S0MT BY E. B. WARMAN, A. M. AUTHOR OF Principles of Pronunciation" in 'Worcesters Dic- tionary. Practical Orthoepy and Critique. Physical Training. Warman on the Voice. Etc. Etc. 'i4 Book is valuable not for the thought it contains, hut for that which it su^ff^sts." '*.*. * * t * *' CHICAGO: M. A. DONOHUE & CO. 407-429 Dearborn St. CD ro ■" Page. -•' Article A 100 '" Article The 100 Bible Reading 130 Bowing 105 Conjunctions 9S Declamatory vs. Natural 104 Dimness of Sight, Obscurity, Etc 84 Dropping The Tone 86 Emphasis 11 Exclamations 31 _^ Explanatory Sentences 91 Eye 79 ^ Eye Educated 80 £ Eye to Audienck 80 Eye ys. Eak 82 Fitting The Garment 87 Flexibility 59 Grammatical Period ys. Period ok Thought 48 Hesitancy 60 Hymn Reading 160 Immediately Connected Emphatic Words 64 Impersonation 72 Impersonation ys. Narration 73 Indiyiduality 101 INFLECTIONS 22 -^ Assuming ys. Asserting , 34 * Continuity 30 c _X Detached 26 (^ Falling Suspensiye 21 Grouped 26 Irony, Sarcasm, Etc 23 Q Opposition ok Meaning 23 I— Prospectiye 24 -r. HI ¥ V tA^ CONTENTS. Weakness vs. Strength 23 Will Asserted 25 Will Deferred 25 Interrogations 20 Interrogatory Sentences 17 Links of a Chain 58 Literalness 65 Mannerisms 102 Negatives 63 Parenthetical Sentences 94 Personal Grief 89 Poetry 52 Poises vs. Pauses 52 Projection of The Tone 85 Pulpit Eloquence 177 Punctuation vs. Pauses 45 Quotations 76 READING, RECITING and IMPERSONATING 68 Readings 70 Recitations 70 Impersonations 72 Sacrificing Nature 90 Soliloquies 77 Sound vs. Sense 103 STRESS 38 Radical 38 Median 40 Terminal 42 Thorough 44 Intermittent 44^ Compound 44 Subordination 16 Suspension 62 Tangible Objects 28 True and False Elocution 108 Unfamiliar Terms 98 Words That Echo The Sense 89 PREFACE. We present this treatise as the result of years of experience and observation ; not alone as the public reader upon the rostrum, but in those closer relations of teacher and pupil which serve to make these pages practical. Many years ago in the Boston University School of Oratory, that great and good man, the late Prof. Lewis B. Monroe, said to the author: "We do not leave this world till our time comes ; but if our work is unfinii^bcd , the mantle will fall on some one else, that he may complete it for us. You, nn' fi'iend, are espec- ially called to this branch of work, and you are sure of success, for your energy links with it the high ideal of the art j^ou represent. I have no fear that you will ever pander to the tastes of (5) 6 PREFACE. those who fail to discriminate between the true and the false. " This man — whom to know was to love — has passed " the bound of life where we lay our bur- dens dowm," and he has left " the cross " only to gain "the crown." His influence still remains, and ever ^vill remain, with his pupils, and more especially with those of us who were so favored as to be brought more completel}^ within his soul's radiation by a nearness of association not known in the class-room. To him the author is largely indebted for instruction, hints and suggestions dropped by the wa}-, which, added to his previous and later experience, he has endeavored to put in such form that "He w^ho runs may read." The question is often asked, " To what extent shall we carry the matter of expression in the school-room?" General school reading, of all grades, requires that heed should be given to the distinctive utterance of all the elements ; to the quality of the voice ; to the erect position of the body ; and PREFACE. to the training of the eye in looking up from the book. Make the scenes Hve again, at least make them suggestive, without striking attitudes or resorting to gesticulation. Reserve those things for oratorical contests and "commencements." Do not, however, go to the other extreme and think it merely necessary to call the words. Give them life and meaning. Reading without emotion is what drawing is to painting — merely an outline. Get into the atmosphere of the selection before you attempt to breathe it out on those around 3'ou. This may all be accom- plished without the much dreaded elocution entering the school-room. To the public reader, or speaker, there are three essential requisites which he should en- deavor to possess, 1. The thought should be under perfect control. « 2. The body should be under perfect control. 3. The voice should be under perfect control. This manual is intended to meet the re- quirements of the Brst essential element. Its 8 PREFACE. mission is to serve as an aid to the student in the analysis of thought, whether he is still with- in the walls of the school or college, or whether he has taken upon himself the responsibilities of the |:iilpit or of the rostrum or of the stage ; for one should never cease to be a student. Knowing that the books upon the subject of reading which flood the market to-day have only partially dealt with the principles of read- ing, of voice, and of gesture, combining them in one — frequently with numerous selections — we have concluded to devote these ■ps.ges exclusively to the practical principles of reading; with prac- tical applications of every rule given. There will, therefore, be nothing in this volume concerning voice culture or gesture, as we consider each of these of such value as to require such full and special treatment as we have given to this subject. In view of this fact and this need, we have in press a volume devoted exclusively to the voice — how to train it, and how to care for it; also, a manual devoted exclusively to gestures and PREFACE. 9 attitudes, and to the general bearing of the body, according to the Delsartean theory. These books, Hke the present one, will contain no se- lections, but will be purely practical, enabling the reader or speaker to place his voice and body under such perfect control that both will act in harmony with the spontaneous outbursts of nature, without causing the speaker to think of or make perceptible the mechanism necessary to produce the required rcsidts. This little volume will be found to be invaluable as a text- book for the student, for the teacher, and for the public reader or speaker. It will not only aid in divining the thought, but will be of use in clothing it with the proper expression. THE AUTHOR. HOW TO READ, RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. Reading, to be effective, should be natural ; not necessarily natural to the reader, but to the thought to be expressed. Read as you talk — but on the condition that you trdk well. It is essential that the reader should get into the atmosphere surrounding the author (or sug- gested by the selection) ere he attemps its ex- pressive rendering. There must Ijc //72pression before there can be CA'pression, otherwise the reading will be but the calling of words. We should not utter words as words, but thoughts as thoughts. Carefully consider the fundamental principles of ex^jression. The most important, and, con- sequently, the first to which youi: attention is invited, is EMPHHSIS. Every sentence contains one or more em- eu) 12 HOW TO READ, phatic words. In order to determine the same, you inust come en rapport with the author. A clear perception is essential to a good performance. How shall \ve determine the emphatic word in a sentence ? Rule. — The emphatic word is the thought word, 1. e., the word containing the principal thought. When the subject has been introduced, the new idea becomes the epiphatic word. There maybe some difference of opinion as to this new idea; hence w^e will offer two tests which w411 serve as true guides. TEST I. The emphatic word in a sentence is the one than can least of all be dispensed with and retain the thought. TEST n. The emphatic word — by transposing the words in a sentence — can be made the climac- teric ^vord. To apply these tests, we will quote a few lines from "Sale of Old Bachelors." RECITE AM) IMI'EKSONATE. 13 EXAMPLE I. " It seemed that a law had been recently made That a tax on old bachelors' pates should be laid." The Italicized words are the new ideas ; the thought words ; the words that cannot be dis- pensed with and retain the thought. We will make them the climacteric words. " It seemed that recently' had been made a law That on old bachelors' pates should be laid a tax." or, "That a tax should be laid on the pates of old bachelors." Suggestion. — When any paragraph or stanza is in dispute, place the same upon a blackboard, and underscore those words considered em- phatic ; also place therewith the marks of inflection which Avere given to the words when taken with the context. Erase all the other words ; those remaining should so completely contain the thought that, should any one enter the room, he would be able — by the words and inflections before him — so to comprehend the thought as to fill the ellipses with his own lan- guage, thus making the stanza or jDaragraph complete. Note. — Bear in mind that the stress should always be given to the accented syllabic of the emphatic word. 14 HOW TO READ, We will give another and an excellent method. Sug-g-estion. — While reading, imagine before you one partiallj^ deaf, so much so that it would necessitate making the ne-w ideas or thought words quite salient ; so salient that, were he to hear none other than the emphatic words and their respective inflections, he would have no difficulty in grasping the entire thought. This subject is of such importance that we will, herewith, make a practical application of this method. A pupil may insist upon emphasizing the word "pates," while another thinks it should be the w^ord "laid." Now call to your aid the deaf person. He hears law — tax — pates versus law — tax — laid Mark the result. Inasmuch as emphasis is is founded upon contrast, the deaf person will naturally seek a contrast to the w^ord pates ; hence it is not surprising to hear him say, " Wh}- did thej^ not make a law to put the * tax ' on some one's ' feet ? ' I wonder upon whose ' pates ' it was 'laid? ' " Or on the other hand he ma}' say — if "laid" is made emphatic — "they were RECITK AND IMPERSONATK. 15 ver>^ kind to have the 'law' signify that the 'tax' must be 'laid.'' I wonder why they did not thro\v\t ! " Another appHcationof the tests of emphasis may be found in the following h\'mn : EXAMPLE n. •' There is a fountain filled with blood. Drawn from ImmnffueVs veins." We have marked the emphatic words ; the new ideas ; the words that cannot be dispensed with and retain the thought. In nine tenths of cases the emphasis in second line is placed on the w^ord " veins." The blood implies the veins ; the word veins can be wholly dispensed with, with- out detriment to the thought, TEST. Fountain — blood — Immanuel versus Fountain — blood — veins. The question naturally arises, "What is to be done with the words that are not wholly essen- tial to the expression of the thought ? " They should be subordinated. 16 HOW TO READ, SUBORDINATION. Rule. — Whatever is subordinate in meaning, should be subordinate in pitch. EXAMPLE. The words following "law," tax," "bachelors," and the words following "fountain" and "Immanuel," should be subordinated. The main cause of the lack of good reading in our public schools is due, largely, to either a lack of know^ledge when to subordinate certain ideas, or the inahiUty so to do. We may know what are the subordinate ideas, yet be unable to vocally control them. There is but one way out of this difficulty, and in securing that we shall be able to remove one of the greatest stumbling-blocks from the path of reading; viz., monotony and, consequently, lack of expression. Rule. — The emphatic word should be taken out of the level of all subordinate words, either preceding or succeeding it. The tendency is to let the emphatic word slip directly off from the level of the preceding vv'ords. We vv^ill take, for example, one of the lines previously quoted, and diagram it as it should be given. kliClTE AND IMPERSONATE. 17 EXAMPLE. 1 111%, Drawn from '^ instead of ^-s. Drawn from Immamicl's veins. The endeavor to emphasize the word from the level of the preceding ones will bring some unimportant word to the notice of the hearer, thus making the wrong word emphatic, and thereby wholly destroj'ing the sense. By mak- ing a slight poise in the voice just preceding the accented syllable of the emphatic word, it will not be difficult to make that word quite salient; and when this is done, the subordinate ideas will readily drop to their places, and will be dis- tinctly heard without detracting from the thought word. We will give another illustration, which will not only serve as a test of emphasis, but will make cL-ar all the preceding points, besides introducing the rule for interrogations. INTERROGATORY SENTENCES. Zenobia has been arraigned by hor people on the charge of ambition. She acknowledges the 28 HOW TO READ, charge, saying: " I am charged with pride and ambition. The charge is true and I glory in its truth." The second "truth " is here an old idea, and, as such, is subordinated to "glory." "And I glory in its truth." 'And I % <> But we pass to the sentence of which we spoke, as including all the preceding rules, and we will illustrate the one of interrogations. EXAMPLE. " Does it not become a descendant of the Ptolemies and of Cleopatra?" Considering the fact that she is known by her people to be a descendant of the Ptolemies and of Cleopatra, that thought becomes subor- dinate to another which is expressed in just one word. Let us look at it a moment. The ques- tion hinges wholly upon the fact of such pride and ambition becoming a descendant of such royal blood. Hence that one word "become" will serve as a test — such as may satisfactorily KECITli AND IMPERSONATE. 19 be given to all cm]jhalic words— to prove that. The emphatic word is ^ 1 . The thought word. 2. The new idea. 8. The word that cannot be dis- pensed with. 4-. Tlie word that the deaf man must hear. 5. The word that can be made climacteric. G. The word to which all others are subordinated. We will diagram it, and thus illustrate the fact: l.c'""'"c.,, "Does it not 'e.5c, ■^rjcj. ^tit ^tc. Thus the word "become" — by being closely joined to the preceding thought — may be so spoken as to give the whole idea. It can be made the climacteric word by transposition, which will in no way interfere with thethought, or with the inflection. EXAMPLE. A descendant of the Ptolemies and of Cleopatra does it not become ? 20 HOW TO READ, What ! give it a falling inflection when it can be answered by yes or no ? Decidedly so in this case, or in any case where the question is not asked for information, or where the answer is predetermined in the mind of the questioner. INTERROGHTIONS. Rule. — If you defer to the will or knowledge of others, as in preceding example, give a rising- infection. If 3'ou nssert your own will, give a falling inflection. By the latter inflection, Zenobia did not admit of any doubt in the matter, and by her imperativeness did not allow her people to ques- tion it a moment, but asserted her will Avith such dignity and grace as to have them readiU^ coincide with her. This method of handling the interrogatorv sentences is of inestimable value : 1. To the teacher when conducting a school. 2. To the minister when addressing a con- gregation. 3. To the laMwer when appealing to a jur\'. 4. To the politician ^vhen haranguing the masses. RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 21 EXCLflMfiTIONS. E:x.clamatory sentences, like interrogatives, are governed in their inflections by the matter of assertion or deference. In addressing the Deity, there should always be deference; in speaking of the Deity, there should alwa^'s be reverence. Rule. — When speaking to any one, give a ris- ing" infiQction ; when speaking of any one, give a falling inflection . EXAMPLE 1. "Jesus! lover of my soul! " EXAMPLE II. "Jesus! the dearest iiamc on earth! " EXA.MPLK III. *' I, an itehing palm !" EXAMPLIC IV. "Chastisement!" We will next consider the subject of inflec- tions, and present oiu- diagrams, and ex])lan- ations thereof: 22 Inflections. < HOW TO READ, INFLECTIONS. Opposition of meaning requires opposition of inflection. Weakness vs. Strength. Irony, Sarcasm, etc. V A Prospective (doubt) / Retrospective (positive) \ Will deferred. / Will asserted. \ Grouped, (three or more thoughts)/ /\ Detached, (three or more thoughts) \ \ \ Falling suspensive. V Continuity. — .- — -^ Assuming vs. Asserting. V A / Interrogations. / \ Exclamations. / \ RECITK AND IMPERSONATE. 23 Opposition of Meaning. Opposition of Inflections. Rule. — Whenever there is contrasted mean- ing, there should be contrasted inflection. EXAMPLE. (" Poor Little Jim.") "The cottage was a thatched one, the outside, etc. V But all within that little cot," etc. Weakness vs. Strength. Rule. — The continuous use of rising inflection is indicative of weakness — either nientalh" or physically — on the part of the reader or speaker. Strength, courage, firmness, etc., are character- ized b}^ the falling inflection. EXAMPLE. A beggar asks for alms. He defers to the will or knowl- edge of the person addressed, and it \v\\\ invariablj' be with the nsing inflection. "Give nic a penny?" But when Shj'lock wants his bond, he asserts his will and manifests his strength. T stay here on my dond. Irony, Sarcasm, Etc. RlTLE. — All expressions of irony and sarcasm are given cither with a rising or with a falling 24 HOW TO READ, circumBex, dejjendent wholly upon the nature of the context. EXAMPLE. Indeed. Indeed. Prospective vs. Retrospective. Rule. — In the expression of a thought, the fundamental part of which is wrapt in doubt, the uncertainty should be expressed by a rising inflection ; but the positiveness, or cer- tainty, should be expressed by the falling inflection. example. (" Paul Revere's Ride.") " For suddenly all his thoughts are bent On a shadowy something far away, Where the river widens to meet the bay. — A line of black that bends and floats ... >> On the nsmg tide, like a bridge of boats. " *' The word " something^^ is emphatic, but as he does not know Avhat that "something" is, the doubt or prospective situation causes a ris/n^ inflection. But he does knowthsit he sees a line of " black " and that it has the appearance of ^^ boats,'' in consequence of which decision or RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 25 positii^cncss, it should be read with the falling- inflection on these words. The words " Far away where the river widens to meet the bay " — are explanatory, and should be treated as such, making them wholly subor- dinate to the rest of the thought, not even borrowing color from the secrecy of what pre- cedes or succeeds. EXAMPLE. NO. 2. " The Face against the Pane." " Four ancient fishermen In the pleasant autumn air, Came toiling up the sands, ^ . . With something in their hands, — Two bodies, stark and white." The doubt, as in the preceding example, is expressed in the word *^ somctln'ng-^^ by giving it the rising- inflection, while the positivcncss is asserted as soon as it is discovered what that something is ; hence the fulling inflection is placed on the word "bodies." Tl 77/ Deferred, Will A sscrted. Rule. — When deferring to the will or knowl- edge of others give the rising in/leetion ; when 26 HOW TO READ, asserting- your own will, give a /aZ/iw^ inflection. This rule has previoush^ been given when dealing \vith the interrogatives, but is used at all times in deciding points of deference or will. EXAMPLE. ( ' ' Ride of JennieMcNeal ' ' ) Carleton. " Madam, please give us a bit to eat ? " A British officer, and a dozen or more dra- goons, enter the house of a lad^^ and her daughter, who are living on neutral ground. They want something to cat and intend to have it. The officer therefore asks for it with a fall- ing- inflection. Were he to give the rising inflec- tion, he would defer to her will, and might be refused. It is imperative, commanding, and, wnthal, gentlemanl3^ Thoughts Grouped and Detached. Rule. — Consider carefully as to whether the author had all the thoughts in his mind at time of writing the hrst one of a series, or whether they suggested themselves separately. If the former, then they should be grouped and so ex- pressed by giving a rising inflection on all hut RECITH AM) IMPERSONATE. 27 the last. If the thoughts were taken sepa- rately then i\ falllni^ infleetion should be given to each. In our diagram it will be observed that we have placed three inflections opposite each of these forms, signif3'ing thereby three thoughts or objects. It may be three words or three clauses, generally treated as a series. Our rule will apply to any number. VCc choose three for the sake of convenience. "EXAMPLE. (Tell's Address to the Alps.) " O sacred forms, how prr)ii(l you look ! How high you lilt your liciuls into the sk\'! ^ > ^ How huge you arc, how mighty, nnd how free! Ye lire the things that tower, that shine; whose smile Makes glad, — whose frown is terrible ; whose forms, etc." As Tell gazed upon the mighty Alps, it is beyond controversy that these thoughts of "proud, high, huge, mighty, free" were one by one suggested to him, and from the fullnessof his heart he exclaimed them, not r/cclaimed them. Inasmuch as we deal with thoughts as with tangible objects we may by the use of tangible objects more clearly illustrate the principle. 28 HOW TO READ, TANGIBLE OBJECTS, ETC. Thoughts grouped and thoughts detached. Hold up some object, — a book, for instance. Ask the pupils to tell you what you hold in your hand. They will answer, with a falling inflec- tion, "a book." Take up another object — a slate. Repeat the question, and they will again answer, with a falling inflection, "a slate." Present still another object — a pencil. They will answer you a third time, or any number of times that the articles are taken separately, with a falling inflection, "a pencil." This illustrates thoughts when taken separately. Hold all the objects at one time in the hand, in the same order, and repeat the question. The answer will iuihesitatingl3^ be given with a rising inflec- tion on the first tw^o and a falling on the last — a book, a slate and a pencil. This illustrates thoughts grouped, all being in the mind of the speaker or writer at the time the first one of the series is expressed. Falling Suspensive. This inflection is of the utmost importance to the reader or speaker. It is entirely distinct- RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 29 ive from the intense falling inflection, or falling inflection proper. When a thought is complete, and you desire to impress it upon your hearers, it is best to give the intense falling inflection, following it with an appropriate pause. But there are \vords and clauses, the effectiveness of which would be utterly destroyed were you to give the intense falling inflection, or wovdd T)e greatly weakened Avere you to give the rising inflection. Rule. — Where it is desired to impress b\' an infection, yet, Iiokl the mind of the hearer in readiness for continuous thought, while dwell- ing on other parts of the picture that make up its entiret\', it will be necessary to give the fall- ing inflection sufficient to impress, but suspend it just when leaving it, in order to impress \t and retain the attention. EXAMPLE. ("Revolutionary Rising.") — T. B. Read. " And now before the open door — The warrior priest had ordered so — The enlisting trumpet's sudden rorir • Rang through the chapel, o'er rind o'er, Its long, reverberating blow ; 30 HOW TO READ, So loud and clear, it seemed the ear Of dustj' death must wake and hear. And there the startling drum and fife Fired the living with fiercer life ; While overhead, with wild increase, Forgetting his ancient toll of peace, The great bell swung as ne'er before. It seemed as it w^ould never cease ; And everj'- word its ardor flung From off its jubilant iron tongue Was, War! War! War!" Not an intense falling inflection should be given throughout this entire stanza. The whole scene is one of continuous action. The trumpet continues its blowing; the reverberations con- tinue in the chapel ; the drum and fife continue to " stir the living with fiercer life ; "the bell, " as if it Avould never cease," continues its warlike and thrilling vibrations. Continuity. Closely allied to the falling suspensive "nflec- tion is ^vhat may be termed continuity. Though unlike, in the absence of a downward slide, it is always continuous. It is generally a rising inflection, though sometimes a monotone. RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. . 31 Rule. — Continuity is expressed by the sug-- gestiveness of the words intended to impress the hearer, with either continuous sound or motion. Were the falHng intieetion to be given, espec- ially on the marked words of each of the follow- ing examples, it would arrest the thought in the mind of the listener, thus producing a very unsatisfactory result. EXAMPLES. A ligbt hammer, as in Dicken's " Cheerful Locksmith." " Tink, tink, link, clear as a silver bell!" The waves, as in " The Face against the Pane." " And the breakers on the l>each Making moan, making moan." The wind, as in " Paul Reverc's Ride," "Seeming to \vhis])er — all is wfll." The trees, as in " The Face against the Pane." "The willow-tree is blown To and fro, to and fro." A dock, as in " The Old Clock on the Stairs." " Forever — never ! Never — forever ! A bell, as in " Rising in 177G." 32 HOW TO READ, " And every -word its ardor flung From off its jubilant iron tongue Was, wTTr! War! A\'ar!" The inflections have a most marked influence upon an audience. You may drive the thought home, you may leave it to the decision of others, or, h^- the use of this last inflection, the continuity* in the mind of the reader \vill secure the same continuity in the mind of the hearer. ThoLigh the speaker's voice has ceased, the in£ection causes the ham- mer to continue its cheerful tinkling; the -waves their moaning-; the \vincl Its sighing; the willow- tree its impressiveness of human form and suffering. "Till it seems like some old crone ^ Standing out there all alone? With her woe ! Wringing, as she stands, Hergannt and palsied hands." The clock continues its ticking, \vhich is ever indicative of " Moumfulness or glee, Even as our hearts maj' be." RECITE AM) IMPERSONATE. 33 The Jjcll continues its ringing, whether its sound is that of "The mellow wedding bells, The loud alarum bells, The tolling of the bells," or whether it is sendinjjj forth its particuhir creed , " Salvation's free! we tell I \vc tell ! " or breathing the notes of " War ! " We \vill cite one more example of continuity produced b3^ the reader in speaking of the clock, even where it is removed from the words the clock seems to utter. " It echoes along the vacant hall. Along the ceiling, along the flot)r." The reader should, by his inflections and tones, be able to take the hearer through all the old rooms, and breathe ui)on him the joy or sadness, as the case may ])e, and, in the use of the inflection of continuity, the ticking of the clock shoidd not cease, mentally, during the rendering of any portion^of tlic poem. In th'r rendition of the above lines, we shoidd distinctly 34 HOW TO READ, near it as it seems to fill the hall with its vibra tions. The reader \vill find that a judicious use, fullness and continuity of the liquids (/ nd r) and nasals {m, n, and ng) will add greatly to the charm of reading. We do not wish to be understood as introducing a false elocution; /. e., playing with the voice, but we desire that ther.. should be a natural suggestiveness that w/i bring the picture vividly before A^our hearers. The general tendenc}^ is to slight these nasal elements. Give to every element its due quan- tity and quality; no more, no less. Interrogations — See page 20. Exclamations — See page 21. Assuming vs. Asserting. Rule. — What has been accepted as a univer- sal fact should not be asserted hy a falling inflec- tion as though it were unknown, but given with a circumflex, or, at times, a rising inflection, thus assuming that your hearers possess the knowledge. RKCITF, AND IMPERSONATE. 3C) FXAMPLE NO. 1. (" Evening at the Farm.") — /. T. Trowbridge. "The striiw's in tlic slack, the ha^' in the mow; " We expect to find just such a condition of things on every well regulated rarm; hence theie should be no assertion made by giving an in- tense falling inflection on " stack " and " mow," for 3'ou should assume that your hearers know this to be true. EXAMPLE NO. 2. (Ride of Jennie McNeal.") — Carleton. " Piiul Revere was a rider bold ; Well has his valorons deeds been told. Sheridan's ride was a glorious one ; Often it has been dwelt upon. But why should men do all the deeds On which the love of a patriot feeds ? Hearken to nic while I reveal The dnshinjT ride of Jennie McNeal." Instead of asserting, as is often done bv public readers, that Paul Revere was a rider bold, and that Sheridan's ride was a glorous one, 3^ou should acknowledge that your hearers are cognizant of these facts. The falling inflec- tion given to "bold" and "glorious" has the 36 HOW TO READ, effect of misleading your hearers, for it gives them the impression that they are to hear more concerning these men, whereas neither the men nor the deeds are again mentioned. The names "Revere" and "Sheridan" are brought in marked contrast with "Jennie McNeal's ;" hence the reader should give a circumflex on the last syllable of "Revere," and the first s^'llable of "Sheridan,"— the accented sjdlables, — and a sus- pensive inflection on "bold" and "glorious." The author asks in tones of sarcasm, (always expressed by circumflex) "But why should men do all these deeds?" He does not intend that we should put any stress on deeds, but on men as contrasted with the heroine. By assuming- the knowledge of the audience concerning these men, there Vv^ill be no assertion made till the heroine is introduced. The foregoing includes all practical rules on inflection. We would, however, advise that the ear be sufficiently trained to recognize the vari- ous forms. A few moments daily, in the prac- tice of examples given b)' the teacher, Avill be found to be very beneficial. RECITK AND IMPERSOKATE. 3*7 Take Italian A (i'l) and give a falling in flection, each time from a higher joitch — .ah ah .ah . ah ah Take the same from a rlsiiii^ inflection, each time from n higher pitch — ah. ahi ah. ah. ah. Teach the fcilling circumflex A by beginning with a rising ah /, then a falling ah\ , then join them A . Also teach rising circumflex V by beginning with a falling //// \, then a rising ah /, then Join them V . 38 HOW TO READ, STRESS. Emphasis is simply force. Stress is the man- ner of applying that force. You may emphasize the right word, but may not emphasize it rightly ; i. e., not give it the proper stress ; stress also includes the special quality of voice. There are six forms of stress, known by the following names and characters : In Reading. In Music. 1 Radical (initial). > Explosive. o ■w Median (middle). o Swell. 3 Terminal (final). < Crescendo. 4 Thorougti (through). = Organ tone 5 Compoimd. X 6 Intermittent (bro ken). _. _ — _ Tremolo. RHDICflL STRESS. Rule (1) The radical stress (as the sign or character > indicates) is somewhat explosive in its nature. It may be used in lig'ht or conversa- toinal reading, and, when judiciously done, lends life and sparkle to what would otherwise be dull, thus giving clearness and decision to the utterance. It is also used in abrupt or startling emotion, and in the expression of positive convictions. RKClTi; AM) IMPERSONATE. 39 EXAMPLE I. " Give us, O give us the man who sings at his work." EXAMPLE n. Exert your talents and distinguish youself, and don't think of retiring from the world until the world will be sorry that you retire. EXAMPLE III. N V >. " To arms! to arms! to arms! they cry, Grasp the shield and draw the sword; Lead us to Phillippi's lord: Let us conquer him or die! " Great care should be taken, in the use of this stress, to avoid the tendency-- to the high, Hght, narrow, contracted tones so often used upon the platform when addressing large audiences, thinking it necessary to raise the pitch of voice, instead of increasing the po wer. The prevailing school-room tone is a fair sample of the radical stress misapplied. The voice being pitched so high as to make it cold and disagreeable in its quality, being but a statement of facts, without any heart element in it, and much less vitality. *0 HOW TO READ, This arises, largely, from the fact that the schools develop the mental, at an expense of the moral (heart) and vital (bodily) growth. MEDIflN STRESS. Rule. — The Median Stress (as the charac- ter O indicates) is caused by a swelling- and gradual diminishing of the voice on tht accented svllahle of the yvord. EXAMPLE. O, precious hours. O, golden prime. This stress represents the moral or heart element, and should penetrate all others. A mere statement of facts, being exclusively mental, is of itself cold and heartless. The purely mental deals with details, but the moral and vital never. EXAMPLE. "Flower in the crannied \vall ; I pluck you out of the crannies; RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 41 Hold you here root and all, in my hand, Little flower— but if I could understand What )'()u are, root and all, and all in all, I should know what God and man is." The tendency in school reading is to give the entire emphasis in this stanza by the use of rad- ical stress. By so doing there is a coldness per- vading it, a lack of the heart element, so that, when the word "understand " is emphasized, it is done in such a way as to lead one to think that the reader desires to understand through the head, exclusive of the heart. Your under- standing and knowledge of God should be through the heart as well as the head. By the use of this median stress we are brought in more direct S3'mpathy with the author and the speaker. This stress should Ijc used in all selections of an emotional nature. Its use in conversation shows culture and refinement; the lack of it is very marked. The use of tlior- ough stress is a sure indication of a lack of re- finement. EXAMPLK II. " ir/;o was her father? Who was her mother? 42 HOW TO READ, Had she a sister? Had she a brother? Or was there a dearer one Still, and a nearer one Fet, than all otAer?" TERMINfli: STRESS, Rule. — The terminal stress — as the character (<) indicates, is abrupt at the close of the sound. It is vital in its nature. It is well illus- trated by the furious bark of a dog when pre- ceded b}^ a deep growl. It is as opposite to that of the mental as is the bark of a large dog to that of the little snapping cur. The one clearly represents the vital tone — terminal stress — by its breadth, and the force given at the end; the other as clearly represents the mental tone — radical stress — by its narrowness, and the force at the beginning-. EXAMPLE L 1 . " Blaze, with your serried columns, I will not bend the knee." EXAMPLE II. 2. " But out upon this halt-faced fellowship." RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 43 These three essential forms of stress require special attention before illustrating the three that are less used in general reading. We desire to impress more clearly and forcibly the different degrees of pitch and quality of voice represented by the radical, median and terminal stress. These three forms of stress, qualities of voice, and the effect produced by each may be well illustrated by a pyramid, thus: Stress. Quality of Effect upon Voice. an Audience. Radical. / \ Mental. Disputatious Median. /_ \ Moral. Emotional. Terminal. / \ Vital. Antagonistic The intellectual power is of the mind. The moral power is of the soul. The vital power is of the body. Inasmuch as The intellect is cold. The heart is warm. The passions are fiery. the reader should Move the passions. Touch the heart. Interest the mind. 44. now TO READ, THOROUGH STRESS. Rule. — The thorough stress of tone, as the character (=^=) indicates, is fullness and stead- iness, used in calling or shouting to such a distance, as to necessitate a prolonged or sus- tained volume of voice. EXAMPLE I. Boat ahoy! EXAMPLE II. "Forward, the Light Brigade! "' Charge for the guns ! " COMPOUHD STRESS. Rule. — The compound stress — as the charac- ter ( >< ) indicates — is composed of the radical and terminal stress. It is closely allied to the circumflex, and it is used in similar expressions. example. " Hath a dog money ? " mTERJVLITTENT STRESS. Rule. — The intermittent stress — as the char- acter ( ) indicates — is a broken or RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 45 tremulous quality of voice. It may be used with great effect in the delineation of character, when representing old age or in the expression oi grief. EXAMPLE I. " Pity the sorrows of a jKior old man, Whose trembling limbs have borne him to your door." EXAMPLE II. "Swift to be hurled— Anywhere, anj' where Out of the world!" PUNCTUATION vs, PAUSES. Points in writing and pauses in speaking, are often at variance. Points belong to the grammatical construc- tion, pauses to the delivery. "Every selection, prose or poetry, has two sets of punctuation marks ; one visible, the other invisible ; one made by the printer, the other by the reader." Those made by the reader are called pauses of thought, and shotdd occur wherever the thought demands a pause. No rule can be given as to the length of the pause, 46 HOW TO READ, as it may not always be rendered in the same manner by the same reader : so entirely does it depend upon the occasion, the surroundings, and the spirit of the reader, when giving ex- pression to the thought. RHETORICAL PHUSE Rule. — Rhetorical pause is made either before or after the utterance of an important thought; if made before, it awakens curiosity and excites expectation as to that which follows ; if it is made after, it carries the mind back to that which has already been said. EXAMPLE. — (Sheridan's Ride.) " And the ware of retreat checked its course there because The sight of the master compelled it to pause." To read it as punctuated, not a pause till end of second line, would require more care in regard to the breath than to the sense, for the latter would be wholly obscured. The emphasis should be on the words "wave of retreat"— as a phrase word — and on the word "checked," making the first rhetorical pause at the word "checked," thus carrying the mind back to what RKCITE AND IMPERSONATE. 47 has been said; this part of the picture is com- plete in itself, and should be expressed with the tailing suspensive inflection. Place a rhetorical pause after the wo "master," carrying the .lind more directly • the hero. Follow this closely with a full media-i stress on the word "compelled," expressing it m such a manner as to show the strong compuL sion. It will be found that the words Italicized, if given with the proper stress and pause or. each, will tell the entire storj'. Let it be borne in mind that a rhetorical pause will have bu< little weight unless the pause be filled witK thought. It is only by this continuity o) thought on the part of the reader that he can control the thought in the mind of the hearer. Punctuation is essential to the grasping ot the thought of the author; nothing more. By the punctuation you, as students, per- ceive \hy the pauses you, as readers, interpret. EXAMPLE I. Woman without her man is a brute. EXAMPLE IL Let the toast be dear woman. 48 HOW TO READ, We need the punctuation in the above, to guide us as to the interpretation. They were read by the president of a banquet as though punctuated thus : — 1. " Woman without her man, is a brute." 2. " Let the toast he, dear woman ! " but they should be read as follows : — 1. Woman ! without her, man is a brute. 2. Let the toast be — Dear woman! "The influence of our system of grammat- ical punctuation, as ordinarily taught, is a cor- ruption of natural delivery." The old method of counting so many at a comma, so many at a colon, etc., was no more apt to destroy the sense of the reading than is the yet prevailing method of causing the voice always to fall at a period or always to rise at a comma. Grammatical Period vs. Period of Thought. Rule. — When the end of the climax in thought is reached — no matter in what part of a sentence — the period should be placed there in the delivery of that thought. RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 'i'J EXAMPLE I. 1. " I'm nearer my home to-day Than ever I've been before. " The words marked are the emphatic ones. One of the three words will receive the strongest emphasis. If the couplet were given in its isolated form, the main emphasis would fall on the word "home," — the new idea. The word " before " being wholly superfluous to the thought, should receive no stress what- ever, and the period in thought will occur directly following the strongest emphatic word. The word "been" includes "before," as you could not have "been" unless it was "before." Transpose the sentence, and it will be found that the inflection and emphasis is in no way changed. I'm nearer to-daj' than ever I've been before to my home. Thus it will be seen that where you make your emphatic pause you should make your decided inflection, irrespective of the grammat- ical pause. 50 HOW TO READ, EXAMPLE n. "The affrighted air with a shudder bore, Like a herald in haste to the chieftain's door. The terrible grumble and rumble and roar." The tendency is to pause at the word "bore because there is a comma there : a pause, how^- ever sHght, would utterly destroy the sense. Who ever heard of a shudder bore ? The words "with a shudder" are parenthetical; also the entire line which follows. The words "grumble, rumble and roar" are the object of bore; hence, in thought, these words should be connected as closely as possible. The words "with a shudder," and "like a herald in haste to the chieftain's door," are ad- verbial phrases. They should be placed on a diiferent voice level than the words "bore," and "grumble and rumble and roar."^ We will diagram it as it should be read : — "The affrighted air — bore — the terrible," etc., ("with a shudder") ("like a herald," etc.) EXAMPLE m. "And louder yet into Winchester rolled The roar of that red sea uncontrolled." RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 51 Again we have a parenthetical phrase — "into Winchester." There is a comma at uncon- trolled, yet it is right at this point where the period of thought occurs. The word "uncon- trolled" should have full force on the threesylla- ables, accumulative to the last, and an intense falling inflection on the last, as this word is the very key-note of the poem. There was a battle raging, and as the master was away, it was iincontroUccl , and this is the thought that should be impressed by proper CA'pression. EXAMPLE IV. " As he thought of the stake in that fiery fray, And Sheridan, twenty miles away." Although there is a period after the last word "away," and that word is the last one of a stanza, it should not have a falling inflection. The second a should be prolonged, and the voice suspended — not rise. No stanza should end with a falling inflection till the one next to the last. So long as there is continuous action ex- pressed, so long should the inflection be suspen- sive. The reciter should not allow the horse to stop from the time he leaves Winchester till — 52 HOW TO READ, "By the flash of his eye and his red nostrils play, He seemed, to the whole great army to say — I have brought you Sheridan, all the way From Winchester down to save the day." It was in consequence of this method of ren- dering the poem that we received from Gen'l Sheridan this high compHment : — " This was the first time I was ever affected by this poem. Why 1 was on the old black charger again, and he never stopped till he got there.'' POETRY. The most essential principle to be considered in the reading of poetry is Poises vs. Pauses. Rule. — In the reading of poetry, as of prose, pause only where the sense demands it. Instead of pausing at the end of a line, only make a delicate poise, which is caused by slightly swell- ing the word, making a pivot of it, on which you turn to the next line. This will enable you to preserve the rhythm without destroj'ing the sense. RECITE AXD IMTERSONATE. 53 EXAMPLE I. (" An Order for a Picture") " Alway and alway, night and morn, Woods upon woods, with fields of corn Lying Ix^tween thcni — not quite sere. And not in the full, thick, leafy bloom. When the wind can hardlj' find breathing room Under its tassels." There should be no pause, but a poise on the words ' 'corn and room . ' ' By this mode of reading we will not mar the beauty nor the smoothness. In the reading of the beautiful h3'mn, " I love to tell the storj'," the following lines should be read without a pause, but with one continuous stream of voice, modulated in accordance with the thought. EXAMPLE II. " More wonderful it seems Than all the golden fancies Of all our golden dreams." In order to impress the reading of poetr>' according to the sense, instead of pausing at the end of every line, we cite the following • EXAMPLE III. 3. " Evcr>' lady in the land Has twenty nails upon each hand Five and twenty on hands and feet. This is true, and no deceit." 5-i HOW TO READ, Pause at the end of the second Hne, and the statement is not true. Poise at the end of first and second Hnes and pause where the marks are drawn in the following repetition, and then the statement is true. " Every lady in the land • Has twenty nails | upon each hand Five 1 and twenty on hands and feet This is true, and no deceit," "Whatever difficulties we may find in reading prose, they are greatly increased when the com- position is in verse, and more particularly if the verse be rhyme. The regularity of the feet, and the sameness of sound in rhyming verse, stronglj^ solicits the voice to a sameness of tone; and tone, unless directed by a judicious ear, is apt to degenerate into a song, and a song, of all others, is the most disgusting to a person of just taste. ' ' If, therefore, there are few who read prose with propriety, there are still fewer who succeed in verse ; they either want that equable and har- monious flow of sound which distinguishes it from loose, unmeasured composition, or they have not a sufficient delicacy of ear to keep the harmonious smoothness of verse from sliding RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 55 into a whining chant ; nay, so agreeable is this chant to many readers, that a single and natural delivery of verse seems tame and insipid, and much too familiar with the dignity of the language. "So pernicious are had habits in every exer- cise of the faculties, that they not only lead us to false objects of beauty and propriety, but at last deprive us of the very power of perceiving the mistake. "For those, therefore, whose ears are not just, and are totalh' deficient in a true taste for the music of poetry, the best method of avoiding this impropriety is to read verse exactly as if it were prose ; for though this may be said to be an error, it is certainly an error on the safer side. To say, however, as some do, that the pronunciation of verse is entirely destitute of song, and that it is no more than a just pro- nunciation of prose, is as distant from truth, as the whining chant wc have been speaking of, is from poetic harmony. "Poetry without song is a body without a soul. The tune of this song is, indeed, difiicult to hit ; but when once it is hit, it is sure to give the most exquisite pleasure. It excites in the 56 HOW TO READ, hearer the most eager desire of imitation, and if this desire be not accompanied by a just taste or good instruction, it generally substitutes the turn ti, turn ti, as it is called, for simple, elegant, poetic harmony. "It must, however, be confessed, that elegant readers of verse often verge so nearly on what is called sing- song; without falling into it, that it is no wonder that those who attempt to imitate them, slide into that blemish which borders so nearly on beauty. The truth is, the pronunciation of verse is a species of reading very distinct from the pronunciation of prose ; both of them have nature for their basis ; but one is common, familiar and practical nature; the other beautiful, elevated and ideal nature; the latter as different from the former as the elegant step of a minuet is from the common motions in walking "Accordingly, we find, there are many who can read prose Avell, who are entirel}" at a loss for the pronunciation of verse; for these then we will endeavor to lay out a few rules, which may serve to facilitate the acquiring of so desirable an accomplishment. " The sense of an author ought always to be RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 57 enforced to the utmost, let the harmony be what it will. Reading should be a compromise between sense and sound. Obscurity is the greatest possible defect in reading, and no har- mony will make amends for it. But if the sense of a passage be sufficiently clear, it seems no in« fringement on the rights of the understanding to give this sufficiently clear sense or harmoni'^^s utterance. " In pausing, ever let this rule take place: Never to separate words in any case That are less separable than those you join : And, which imports the same, not to combine Such words together, as do not relate So closely as the words you separate." Though many, many j-^ears have rolled by since these words were written in "Walker's Klemcnts of Elocution" they are no less true now than then (1811). In the same valuable little treatise we find a few words quoted from the noted Sheridan. "If the author has so united the preceding and following lines in verse as to make them real prose, why is a reader to do that which the 58 HOW TO READ, author has neglected to do : and indeed seems to have forbidden by the nature of the com- position? " THE LINKS OF R CHAIN. In the reading of prose or poetry, so long as the sense does not require a pause, let the words or s^dlables represent the links of a chain. Rule. — Keep the chain unbroken unless the breaking thereof is demanded by the sense, or, will add hnpressiveness to the thought. The emphatic \vord represents the large link. The whole movement should be gliding and graceful, the words being poured, as it were, in a contin- iious stream. There should, however, be modu- lation in the tones, for at times we want the clear ripple of the mountain brook, and again as '* rolls the Oregon." EXAMPLE I. (Very Light). " Alway in the old romances that dear Archie read to me." EXAMPLE IL (Very Full and Sustained). "Hear me, ye walls that echo'd to the tread of either Brutus." The foregoing examples offer a fine contrast in the tones of the voice ; the former is sweet, RECITK AND IMPERSONATE. 59 pure, bright and flexible, representing the links of a s/7rer chain ; while the latter is firm, strong, enduring and unyielding, characterized by a steadiness representing a heavj', iron chain. Both are in compliance with the rule, though the latter is an example of sustained force. FLEXIBILITY. To aid one in accomplishing this object we offer three very valuable suggestions, working, as they do, conjointly. Rule. — Aim all the tone forward. Keep the lips moving. Cause the words to blend. There is too much reading and speaking back in the throat, scarcely opening the mouth, having too little movement of the lower jaw. This causes the throat to contract and become tired, causing hoarseness and weariness, where- as, if the effort were brought to the lips, the throat would soon expand in proportion to the volume of voice required. To obviate this difficulty wc would suggest that a few moments of exercises be given daily 60 HOW TO READ, to mechanical reading; /. e., using the lips freely in the utterance of every element ; using them to exaggeration, as if to make every element dis- tinctly heard at a distant point. Do not speak the w^ords loudl3% but distinctly and pleasantly. This exaggerated movement will not lead to mouthing ; but, day by day it will assert itself and bring about the desired results without making apparent the mechanism that was essential in accomplishing the object. Place every word where you can bite it, and the tone where you can taste it. HESITANCY— fiS AN ART. There is an art in hesitancy, if it is made at the right time and in the right manner. But, bear in mind it is a hesitancy of art, not of nature. Rule. — Hesitate in the giving of special epochs in history ; also in little incidents thrown in by the author, which same should be so deftly handled by the narrator as to cause an audience to think them impromptu. EXAMPLE I. " Listen, my children, and you shall hear Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere, On the eighteenth of April in seventy-five " BECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 61 Hesitate slightly after the word "on" — dwelling on the sound of n — as though trying to recall the day of the month. Hesitate again after the word "April," in the effort to recall the year. In like manner prolong the n in the word " in " just before the word "seventy-five." In this way it will destroy the usual tendency (in such selections) to declaim the thoughts, or simply calling the words without giving thera any expression. Selections of this character — in fact, all selec- tions — should be read, not as though they were committed, but as if the thoughts were born at the moment of giving them utterance. EXAMPLK 11. (" The Emigrant's Story.") — Tro whriclge. "After making our beds — that is, jusl spreading our blankets On the dry ground — we stood, the mother and 1, lor a long while, Hand in hand, that night, and looked at our si.\ little shavers, All asleep in their nests, either in or under the wagon — " A slight hesitancy after the words " that is," will add much to the naturalness of the expres- 62 , HOW TO READ, sion. From the same selection we have another illustration. EXAMPLE ni. "Just then I saw something white gleam, Rushed for it, tore through the brush: and there, Sir, if you'll believe me, In a rough pen of trees, slung about in the carelessest fashion. Safe in the midst of 'em, only the tongue smashed up and the canvas Damaged a trifle — Excuse me, I never could get through the story, Just along here, w^ithout being a little mite womanish! — " Hesitancy should precede and succeed the words "excuse me;" also precede the word "womanish." The audience should be actually puzzled as to whether the words following the word "trifle" w^ere those of the author or of the narrator. SUSPENSION. Rule. — When the mind of an audience can be held in suspense, either by the voice or by the manner — if appropriately applied — it will be found to have great and desirable effect. RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 63 EXAMPLE I. ("Ride of Jennie McNeal.") — Carleton. "One night when the sun had crept to bed, And rain clouds lingered overhead, And sent their surly drops as proof To drum a tune on the cottage roof, Close after a knock at the outer door, There entered a dozen dragoons, or more." A certain secrecy and fear should permeate this entire stanza, until the curiosity of the au- dience has reached the highest point of the cli- max, then halt after the ^vord "entered," thus bringing about the desired eifect by the aid of the suspense. NEGATIVES. There is a ver>^ prevalent fault among readers and speakers ; /. c. to emphasize all negatives — no, none, not, never, etc. Negative sentences are the same as affirma- tive ones so far as emphasis is concerned. Rule. — Avoid emphasizing a neg-at/i-e element unless it is intended as a direct negation, ex- pressed or implied; or is reiterated with a speeial view to emphasis. 64 HOW TO READ, EXAMPLE I. " Lead us not into temptation." By placing the emphasis on the word "not," implies that He intended to lead us into temptation. EXAMPLE II. — "While overhead, with wild increase, Forgetting its ancient toll of peace, The great bell swung as ne'er before — It seemed as it w^ould never cease ;" The emphatic word in the last line is "cease ;" the word " never" is not a direct negation. EXAMPLE III. " I never would lay down my arms — never, never, NEVER!" In this case the negative element — the word "never" — is reiterated for special force, and should receive emphasis with each utterance. IMMEDIATELY CONNECTED EMPHATIC WORDS. Rule. — Two immediately connected emphatic w^ords or thoughts should not be given on the same voice level, or pitch. If there are three or RECITE AND IMTERSONATE. ()."> more, the tliird mny 1)c i)laced on the same level with the first, but under no circumstances should it be on the same level as the preceding one. EXAMPLE I. "Never, never, never." EXAMPLE II. " To arms, to arms, to arms," they cry. EXAMPLE III. " Arm ! Arm .' it is — it is — the cannon's opening roar." LITERfiLNESS. Rule. — Avoid calling such special attention to words as will cause the mind to be centered on purely Jiternl translation. Bear in mind that it is only the mental tone or radical stress that deals with the details. EXAMPLE I. "So they fell on their hasty sii^jpir with zeal." By placing any stress upon the word "fell," would be to invite special attention to the fall- ing and mrdvc it appear that the}- //tcmZ/rfell on their supper. The emphatic word is *' zeal." 66 HOW TO READ, EXAMPLE II. " A brave woman strained her eyes. ' Avoid the radical stress on the word "strained," lest you destroj' the beauty of the picture. As this brave woman stood on the coast of Wales watching a storm-tossed vessel, there was no 7/tera/ straining of the e^'es. EXAMPLE III. "Soft ej'es looked love to eyes which spake again." To give this Avord " soft " in the radical stress and thereby invite special attention to the word, would be to speak of the eyes as if thcA' were soft to the touch — putty eyes. The whole line is expressed bj' the moral tone and median stress. This tendenc\^ of literalness also manifests itself in dealing with number. EXAMPLE IV. " A thousand hearts heat happily." Hot just a thousand, but a great many. EXAMPLE Y. " A hundred hands flung up reply, A hundred voices answ^ered ' L' " t Ki:ciTi: AMI iMi'FRsoxATr:. 67 There may have been more or less than a hundred. It is the ^ewera/ thought that should be expressed. Nor did the hands literally /ling up reply ; nor should the reader try to express a hundred or more voices \vhen giving expression to their answer "I." It is the spirit, not the reality, that is required. EX.VMPLI-: VI. " Hurrah, hurrah for Sheridan! Hurrah, hurrah for horse and man! " How often we hear the words "hurrah, huiTah " given as though they Avere shouted by a myriad of voices. When "he dashed down the line mid a storm of huzzahs " is the time the actual hurrahing took place, but the "hurrah" given in the last stanza is an after consideration, and entirely' out of the strong spirited scene in which the narrator has been a participator. These are the grand results, and should in no way borrow of the declamatory and heroic narration, but should be expressed as the soul- felt feeling of the author. If you insist u|)on shouting" hurrah," shouL tlie whole stanza, and thus be consistent. HOW TO READ, READING, RECITING AND IMPERSON- flTING. A very great distinction should be made in reference to these three forms of rendering a selection. How few readers read. The majority recite. To be a good reader is a ver^^ great accomplish- ment, and it is of more practical benefit than reciting. There are man}' selections \vhich are much more effective as a reading than as a recitation. In our rule for each st^de of rendering will be found, we think, all the thought necessarv' to the distinguishing of the three forms, and sufficient instruction for the rendering of the same. We desire, however, to saj^ a word in reference to the reading versus reciting in our public schools. It should be made a pleasant and profitable exercise of the day. "Words fith' spoken are like apples of gold in pictures of silver." It is not merely for the sake of correct pronunciation, correct emphasis, inflections, etc., but, added to these, the soul of the reader shoulct commune with the soul of the author; hence this class of reading should not be soulless, — as so muc': of it is. RKCITK AND IMPERSONATK. 69 Just a word in reference to "Poet's Day" and "Commencement" — especially the former. Why recite everything ? Some of the real gems of our poets are completely obscured by the reciter, whereas, were they read, they would shine forth in all their beauty; but it is too often the case that they are hidden or their beauty marred by the awkwardness of the one who stands up to "speak his little piece," — aw^kward when standing still, more awkward when moving about. Ah, but your pupils make prctt}^ gestures and strike beautiful attitudes? These may be appropriately given for recita- tions, but not for readings. Readings recpiire no gestures. Then for " Poet's Day " or " Com- mencement," we would suggest an occasional reading to relieve the monotony — and the audience. Think of the relief to the teacher in preparing the vselection for the pupil, in preparing the pupil for the selection, and preparing both for the audience. The gems will be the brighter by the contrast with the recitations, — to sa\' nothing of time saved, labor saved, patience saved to the already worn out teacher. 70 HOW TO READ, REfl-DINGS. Rule. — Readings are selections of didactic nature, requiring no gestures. The book from which the reading is given, should be held easily and gracefully in the hand or should he upon the stand or reading desk. EXAMPLES. "Poor Little Jim." — Edward Farmer. "Sandalphon." — H. W. Longfellow. " An Order for a Picture." — Alice Cary. These and all selections of a similar nature will be brought more vividly to the mind of the audience when the reader does naught to at- tract to himself, and thereby detract from the thought. By observing this caution and following the rule for readings, the recitations \vill be the more effective by the contrast. RECITATIONS. Rule. — Recitations require gestures and atti- tudes in proportion to the nature of the same ; if heroic, they should be vigorous. RECITE AXD IMPERSONATE. 71 EXAMPLES. "Sheridan's Ride." — T. Buchanan Read. "Barbara Freitchic." — /. G. Whittier. "The Polish Boy." — Ann S. Stephens. "Como." —Joaquin Miller, In the above list, "Sheridan's Ride" is the most purely a recitation, — a descriptive, heroic recitation. "Barbara Freitchie" may be read; if read, no gestures should be made other than with the Qycs. "The Polish Boy," is a reading, recitation, and impersonation combined. It is properly classed inidcr recitations, or impersonations; it would be very difficult to make it a reading, as the dramatic situations would not be so strong, yet there are portions of it that could be read with telling effect. "Como" may be read or recited, but more properly recited with the impersonations included. 72 HOW TO READ, IMPERSONATIONS. Rule. — Impersonations are purely dramatic, requiring gestures and attitudes. EXAMPLES. 1. Hamlet's Soliloquies. 2. Macbeth's Soliloquies. 3. Letter Scene — Macbeth. 4. Dagger Scene — Macbeth. ^ 5. Sleep-walking Scene. — Macbeth. 6. Cassius' Speech on Honor. 7. " One Daj^ Solitary"— /. T. Trowbridge. 8. "The Old Major"— Srei Harte. 9. " Tell's Address to the Alps." Gestures and attitudes should be very spar- ingly used and wdth the utmost discrimination in all soliloquies. (See Soliloquies.) Where a recitation and impersonation are combined, we should only suggest the imperson- ation, but, as in the nine examples under this heading, the impersonations should be complete; i. e., the impersonator should fully identify him- self with the character he is portraying. Whenever we say "only suggest," we mean that if you were at times a narrator, and at RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 73 Other times an impersonator as in "Barbara Freitcliie" \vc would have you suggest the heorine and Stonewall Jackson. Nothing is more ludicrous than to hear a lady try to impersonate the voice of Stonewall Jackson, — unless it is to hear a gentleman try to im- jjcrsonate the voice of Barbara Freitchie. In " The Polish Boy " the voice of the mother, the boy, the ruffians, should onh' be suggested. IMPERSONHTION vs. NfiRRflTION. A prevalent fault exists, not only in the school-room, but upon the platform, in which the reader gets the impersonator and the narra- tor confounded. There are very few professional readers who are exempt from this fatdt : then it is not strange that we find it in the school- room. Rule. — In nil reading; not excepting Bible reading, composed of narration and impersona- tion, the narrator should not impersonate nor even suggest the impersonation when speaking of the character, but 0/7/r.whcn sjieaking as the character. 74 HOW TO READ, EXAMPLE I, " 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 coitntry's flag,' she said." Give the first two lines with all the spirit and animation required for such a heroic selection, but reserve the action (leaning from the windo^v and shaking the flag) until you have begun voicing the quotation; /. e., when she speaks; then "suit the action to the word." EXAMPLE II. " And he folded his arms as he stood there alone, As calm, and as cold, as a statue of stone." Do not fold the arms w^hen reading these lines; wait till Shamus O'Brien speaks. EXAMPLE III. " With folded arms and clouded brow. He mutters forth his grievance now." Do not fold the arms nor cloud the brow until you, as the character, begin muttering forth his grievance. RRCITK AND IMPERSONATE. 75 EXAMPLE IV. Then Agrippa said unto Paul: "Thou art permitted to speak for thyself." Tlicn Paul stretched forth his hand and answered for himself: " I think myself happy, King Agrip]).'i, because I shall answer for myself this day before thee," etc. A variety should be given to Scripture read- ing, as to all other kinds of reading, /. e., the voice and manner should be consistent with the thought. In the example just cited, the reader should bring this court scene before the people, simply by the tones of voice, not b}^ dramatic situations, gestures or attitudes. He should suggest the king and Paul, making a distinction in the voice and general bearing of each, and both of these representations should differ from the conversational reading tone of the narrator. EXAMPLE V. Haifa league — half a league, Haifa league onward, All in the valley' of death Rode the six hundred. "Forward the Light Brigade! Charge for the guns I " he said. " The words " Half a league" are spoken i»v the narrator, not the comnumder, hence should 76 HOW TO READ, not be given as a command, but in aspiration; the narrator is looking upon the scene after the battle. It is given in the past tense; the narrator does not say rides the six hundred, but rode the six hundred. The foregoing examples suffice to sho w^ that much care must be exercised in the distinctive portrayal of character. QUOTATIONS. Rule. — In all selections combining narration and impersonation, the narrator should make a distinct pawse previous to and immediately fol- lowing t\\Q quotations. Examples may be found by referring to num- bers 1, 4 and 5, just cited. This pausing, to which we refer, gives ample time to the narrator and audience to get into the atmosphere of the impersonation. The words " she said " and "he said " (exam- ples 1 and 5) should be so subordinated to the quotations, and still so separated from them, that they would drop into utter silence, were they not necessary to the rhythmical order and poetic measure. RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. A writer of poetry has poeticlicense ; a reader of poetr}' has a reader's hcense. It is often that •♦■he reader makes the poem ; it is often that the Acciter mars it. Longfellow has said " Of equal honor with him who writes a grand poem, is he who reads it grandly." If yon were reading from Poe's "Raven" "Wretch," I cried "thy God hath sent thee"— You have a license to substitute the words "Ah wretch'' in place of "I cried." The words "I cried" if repeated aloud, would take you and your audience, for the moment, out of the atmosphere that surrounds the impersonator. He is addressitig himself, not the raven ; hence the words " ah wretch " are in keeping with the character, and maj^ be given as part of the quo- tation without interfering with the metrical accent or the cujihon}'. SOLILOQUIES. A soliloquy is the musing of the heart, but it is spoken aloud as a dramatic necessity. RULK. — Solilquize in a manner to be heard, but not as if intending to be heard. The tone of voice depends upon the relation of theimperson- 78 HOW TO READ, ated, to the scenes and circumstances that were at the time surrounding him. Gestures should be sparingly used, and with the utmost dis- crimination. The eye should never rest upon the audience ; yet as a rule should be kept in such a position as to be seen b^^ them ; for the eye is the pivot of all expression. EXAMPLE I. Hamlet's soliloqu}' "To be or not to be," is not char- acterized by that secrecy and general feeling which pervades Macbeth's soliloquy: " If it were done." The former is in contemplation of se//^destruction ; the latter contemplates the destruction of another. The famous dagger scene of Macbeth takes on a still different tone from either of the pre- ceding ones, as the increase of fear, added to mental conflict, causes greater aspiration of the voice. The beautiful soliloquj^ "Rock me to sleep, mother," furnishes us an illustration of a more quiet and meditative st^de, and requires a tone especially suited to the "sick soul and the world's weary brain." We have, also, as an illustration, KIvCITi: AM) IMPERSONATR. 7D the grand and impressive poem from the pen of Mr. J. T. Trowbridge: '' One Dny Solitary:' This is the soliloquy' of a young man in prison. He goes to his cell apparently unconcerned as he talks to the jailer, but his soliloquy is unlike almost any other in the language. There are mental and moral and vital conflicts, ^vhich bring in play a great variety of tones. His eye, like his mind, Avanders ever and anon to the far- away scenes of his home anil his childhood, and thereby causes the introspective aspect of the eye. THE EYE. The action of the eye is not only essential as regards a solilociuy, but it forms an imjiortant part in general reading. We will place this sul)ject in three divisions, following each with the respective suggestions. Eye educated. Eye to the audience. Eye vs. ear. 80 HOW TO READ, Eye Educated. The eye should be so educated in reading, that it will go ahead of the words to he expressed, in order to anticipate the thought with its corresponding emphasis and inflection. Reading may be likened to going up or down stairs. You will be sure to stumble, or at least to halt, if you place 3'our eye upon the step at the same time 3^ou place j'our foot there. You should not have 3'Our e3^e upon the word you are uttering, but train it to look ahead. Suggestion. — Open a book and close it quickly, and see how much the eye can catch at a glance. Daniel Webster used to discipline the mind and the eye at the same time, by placing a book on a large table, and, walking around it, he would pass the book, without vStopping, and "takein," by a single glance, enough thought to repeat till he again reached the book ; and, continuing his walk, he would continue his talk uninterrupt- edly. Eye to Audience. By following the previous suggestion, you will be enabled to glance up from the book RECITU AND IMPERSONATE. 81 or M. S., and thereby produce a much greater effect upon 3'our hearers. You can so train the eye that, in openinij a book to a selection with which you are wholly unfamiliar, you will be able to look steadily' at the audience during the delivery of, at least, one-half the thought. Sup- pose you, as a hearer, are unfortunate enough to sit where a stove-pipe, or pillar, or a tall per- son, obstructs A'our view of the speaker, why do you move j'our head to see the speaker? You can hear him, and 3'ou can discern by his tone of voice if he is in earnest. You watch him awhile, but if he does not lift the eye and occa- sionally look steadily at the audience, you will soon lose your interest, and the aforesaid ob- struction is no longer o1)jectionable. The youngest child in school, by the applica- tion of this suggestion : /. c, looking up from the book, will change the ordinary monotonous, meaningless, stereotyped, school-room reading- tone, into a jileasant conversational one. We speak of the benefits of this suggestion after years of observation and continuous practical application. 77;/s tendency to rend down in the hook, has a tendency io wnke one read and speak down in the throat. 82 HOXV TO READ, Suggestion. — Imagine ^-^ou are standing before a school, or an audience, with a box of presents to be given to them indi\'idually. You naturally look into the box for the presents, but j-ou do not think of handing them out with downcast eves. You will, instead, if you have any heart in the matter, not onl}^ look at the person to whom you hand the present, but your counte- nance will change as you hand out each article. Your book or M. S., is the box, your thoughts are the presents. Inasmuch as 3^our e^-^e reaches down to obtain the thought, it should look up and at the person addressed ; as the hand is the agent that conveys the tangible object, the voice is the vehicle of the thought, and your expres- sion should vary with the varied thoughts. Eye vs. Ear. The eye and ear bear a close relation to each other. The eye should not follow in the direction of the object to \vhich you are listening. It \vill not only make indistinct the picture which you ^vish to present, but will change the color as you change the tone of voice. Coloring in reading may be described as the different KKCITIC A.Vn INrPKRSON'ATR. P3 phasCvS of eniotioniil expression in the voice. You should use rin artist's precision in the laying on of tints, and in the grouping of objects. When you are listening, the attitude of the body has a corresponding mental attitude, and the voice will l)e lower and more in sympathy with the subject. EXAMPLi:. ("The Face against the Pane.") "The hcii veils arc vciiicil with tire! And the thumler, how it rolls! " The prevailing tendency is to cause these thoughts to be exjjressed on the same level, thereby making no difference between the seeing and the hearing. The public reader generally looks in the direction of the thimder, as he does in the direction of the lightning. In so doing he is hearing with his eyes. Turn the eye and head from the soimd, as if you were listening to it instead of seeing it; and, without any effort on your part, your voice will naturall}' drop to a lower ke^', and be more in sympathy with the sidiject. Things imseen shotdd not be expressed with so clear a voice as things seen. 84 HOW TO READ, DliVLNESS OF SIGHT. Rule. — Dimness of sight requires a corres- ponding dimness of voice. In cases of doubt, secrecy, fear, moral impurity, darkness, death, etc., the tone of voice, while wholly governed by succeeding and preceding thoughts, should generally be lacking in the purer qualities, drop- ping more toward the louver and aspirated tones. EXAMPLE. " One nlglit, wlicn the sun had crept to bed, And rani clouds lingered overhead, And sent their surly drops as j^roof To drum a tune on the cottage roof, Close after a knock at the outer door. There entered a do/;cn dragoons, or more." The conflict of doubt, fear, secrecy, etc., should continue through the word "entered," then by use of a rhetorical pause, thus keeping the hearer in suspense, 3-011 will emerge from the tone of secrecy and doubt into a tone of posi- tiveness and clearness, and you will emphasize the word "dragoons" with an intense falling inflection. The period of thought immediately follows RECITIv AM) IMIMCRSONATK. 85 the word "dragoons." Transpose it and 3'ou have "There entered a dozen, or more dra- goons." PROJECTION OF THE TONE. Rule. — Aim the tone at some distant point, and during eaeh complete thought keep it there. It Avill be found that the high tones being more jJcnetrating, rec[uire less i)usli than the lower ones. Talk to those lartiiest Irtim you, not shout, and thus avoid making it im pleasant for those who are near you. You will find that it is the low notes that require the i)ush. Every tone of voice should be directed against the hard palate, and allowed to reverberate or reflect to the pharynx, but shoidd not hcqin in the pliarynx. I5y observing this precaution, much of the lK)arseness and weariness may be prevented, as the throat will expand insteadof contract. Avoid sending only a/)tjrt of the tones to a distance, and allowing the others to fall at your feet. This method of speaking or reading is what we term " dropping of the tone." It is a prevalent fault. 86 HOW TO READ, DROPPING OF THE TONE. Rule. — Let there be direct waves of the voice; avoid spattering. Your voice should flow as freel}^ as an un- broken stream of water from a pitcher. When the stream of voice is jerky or broken, it is like the stream of water were you to pass your hand back and forth through it. Readers and speakers make it very tiresome for their auditors when the effort is such as to require the straining of the ear. Cause your hearers to be rest/u/ instead of rest/ess. You should deal with thoughts as j^ou deal with tangible objects. Suggestion. — A teacher or reader may see the full force of this by standing at the desk, or upon a platform, and say : " There are some circulars that I \vould like you to take home with 3^ou." Instead of handing them to the individuals as they are seated before you, throw them. Some will reach those who are sitting in the front rows ; the remainder w^ill fall short of their destination. By 3^our manner of distribution you have intimated that if they want them they can come and pick them up. So it is with your KKCITi; AM) IMI'KKSONATt;. 87 thoughts. Your voice should convey your thoughts to every one in the room, and in such an appropriate manner as to induce the hearers to accept them. The quaHty of 3'our voice is just as essential as the quantity. The audience should not only be a])le to hear and understand, hut by the cjuality of your voice, be induced to listen. Fittinj^ the Gurtncnt. In all reading or reciting it is quite important that you make the garment a ]ierfcct fit. Rule. — Have 3'Our tone proportionate to the object to be described, and the sentiment to be expressed. Do not represent small, insignificant things with a full, deep tone, nor present grand objects or ideas with naiTow tones. A large garment on a small jierson, or vice versn, would be no more lial)le to attract atten- tion and i)ossibly ridicule, than would the use of a large tone to describe a small object, or a ismall tone to describe a large object. 88 HOW TO READ, EXAMPLE. " Roll on, thou deep and dark blue ocean, roll! Ten thousand fleets sweep over thee in vain." The reader should have some idea of the grandeur of these objects, and should express the thoughts by a full orotund tone. He should not merely call the words and give utterance to them as though he were describing a duck pond filled with the miniature boats of children. To bring this more vividh^ to the mind of the reader, Avhether in the school-room, or at the reading desk, we will give the following Illustration. Take a marble in your fingers and shoot it across . the floor, exclaiming in a full, orotund tone, "Roll on, thou little marble, roll!" The inconsistency will at once be apparent, A^et it is no more so than describing or addressing a large object with a small tone. There is a class of elocutionists who alwa^'S carry their sign with them; they use the orotund tone on all occasions ; they are a peculiar but prevailing type — though, by no means, a prototype. RKCni, AM) IMI'KRSONATE. 89 PERSONAL GRIEF. In the rciulerinj^ of pathetic selections or l)iithctic scenes the tone of personal grief is a fault, and it will excite either pity or contempt for the speaker. It is the lachrymose tone. The voice in such cases, is too narrow, and draws the attention to the speaker rather than to the character he wishes to present. The speaker should be only the medium, and the tone should be broad enough to include all mankind who are in like sorrow or affliction. RuLH. — Keep back 3'our tears though it may require a struggle ; the tears should but tinge the tones of the voice and then the struggle to overcome your emotion will overcome your audience and oblige them to feel your sorrow. Your words will thus act as an avenue, or as an agent, for their grief as well as 3'ours, and for this reason the tone should be broad. WORDS THHT ECHO THE SENSE. RuLK. — Words which have a certain signifi- cnncc peculiar to themselves should receive due attention and an appropriate stress, in order to give them the correct expression. 90 HOW TO READ, EXAMPLE I. Hard, soft, iron, gold, warm, cold, lovable, hateful, disgusting, enchanting, and words of a similar nature, come under this heading. EXAMPLE IL Beautiful, should be full of beauty. Pitiful, should be full of pity. EXAMPLE III. "If I should die to-night, My friends would look uijon my quiet face Before they laid it in its resting j^lace. And deem that death had left it almost fair; And, la3'ing snoAv-white flowers against my hair, Would smooth it down with tearful tenderness, And fold niA- hands with lingering caress. Poor hands, so empty and so cold to-night." In the rendering of the foregoing stanza, the median stress should be employed in the expres- sion of all emphatic Avords except "empty; "the very character of this word does not admit of fullness, but expresses itself b}'- its regretful cmntiness. This stanza also furnishes a fine A illustration of emphasis vs. stress, or force vs. quality. KECITE ANt) IMTEKSONATE. 1)1 EXPLANATORY SENTENCES. Aluch oC our reading is marred by too little heerl being given to cxplanator\' sentences. It is not that they are slighted, but on the contrary, arc made too prominent. RuLii. — An cxphiniitory sentence should take the snmc inflection as that \vhich it explains. A void giving the same pitch. EXAMPLE. "The ocean old, Centuries old, Strong as youth, nnd as iiiicoiitrolled, Paces restless to and fro, ITp and down the sands of ;tiold." The second and third lines are explanatory, and shoidd be taken out of the level of the first and fourth lines which belong on the same level. Although the second and third lines arc both explanatory, they should not a])i)car on the same level. The following diagram, will illustrate the relation of the lines to each other as regards the pitch of the voice. 1. "The ocean old, 4. Taces restless to ami fro, 3. Strong as youth and as inieontrolled, 2, Centuries old, 5. Up and down the sands of gold." 92 HOW TO READ, Read as numbered, both as to the pitch of the voice and the numerical order; /. e., number 4, should be on the same voice level as number 1, and number 5 as number 3. The more emotional the thought, the lower becomes the pitch of the voice ; but as the mind is addressed as distinguished from the emotions, the most injportant parts should be higher in pitch. EXAMPLE. " An old clock that had stood for hftv years in a fanner's kitchen, early one snmmer's morninii^, without <^iving any warning, suddenly stopped." This stanza appeals more to the intellect than to theemotions. It should be read as numbered, and as to the voice levels. 3. Early one summer's morning, 1. An old clock 5. Suddenly stoj)])ed. 2. That had stood fur fifty years in a farmer's kitchen, [4-. Without giving any warning, It will be observed that the subject and pred- icate are on the same leyel ; hence they should be given with the same pitch. The tendency to give explanatory sentences too much prominence is still more clearly shown RECITK ANI' IMPKRSONATK. 93 in prose readings. We have chosen poetical selections because they are more generally used in public reading, and the poems from \vhich we quote are more or less familiar to the school- room readers. In Mark Twnin^s description of European Guides, we have a good illustration of explana- tory sentences. In school, this selection is wholly rend — no action taking place; that is right, as also the reading of the explanatory sentences, if ajipropriately done; /. e., taken out of the level of the preceding and succeeding thought. But the platform reader should wholly f)mit the explanatory' sentences, because he should explain them by his actions. In all places where it speaks of the doctor or the guide doing thus and so, the reader should not speak of it and then do it, l)ut should do it without speaking of it. The explanatory sentence acted by the reader should not be voiced by him ; but ;/' voiced, as is sometimes the case in poetry, it should receive no action. Poe's "Raven" furnishes us a fme example of this. All the cxjjlanatory sentences arcessen- tial to the rhythmical order, and to the com- 94 HOW TO READ, pleteness of the picture. The reader should speaA of these things, but should not do them. He is speaking of a time in the past when he was ** nodding, nearly napping." It is not now. "Here I opened wide the door." He does not open it now. "Straight I \vheeled a cushioned seat." He should not wheel it now. These are all past tense, and are explanatory of what he did then. These \\\\\ all be much more impress- ive if the "nodding" and the "napping," the "walking" and the "wheeling" are left to the vivid imagination of the audience. They will thus be drawn more to the spirit of the selection than to its mechanism ; they will feel him as he suffers no\v, and see him as he suffered then. PflRENTHETICflL SENTENCES. Rule. — Parenthetical sentences, like explana- tory ones, are taken out of the level of the preceding- thought, and are dealt with the same as the explanatory sentences with the exception that, inasmuch as they do not explain, they can be entirely dropped without detracting from the thought. KKCITK AM) IMI'KKSONATK. 95 EXAMP-LE. In the wigwam with Nokomis With those gloom_v guests that watched her, With the famine and the fever, She was lying, the beloved, She the dying Minnehaha. " Hark ! " she said, " I hear a rushing, Hear a roaring and a rushing, Hear the Falls of Minnehaha. Calling to me from the distance." "No, my child ! " said old Nokomis, " 'Tis the night wind in the pine-trees! " " Look ! " she said, " I see nu- father Standing lonely at his door way. Beckoning to me from his wigwam In the land of the Dacotahs! " "No, my child ! " said old Nokomis, " 'Tis the smoke that waves and beckons." The parenthetical sentences, "she said" and "said old Nokomis " are entirely imnecessary to the rendition of the thought. Nokomis and Minnehaha have both been mentioned as being in the tent. It does not require an expert to be able to distingush between the voice of a d^'ing young woman and a heathful grandmother. It may be argued that these parenthetical sentences are essential to the poetic measure. It is so in many cases, but not in this, as tha pause will be 96 HOW TO READ, more effective, and less likely to break in upon the scene and destroy the spirit of the selection, than if utterance "were given to that which does not add to the effect nor to the clearness of the thought. In a conversation with Mr. Long- fellow concerning this poem, he said to us. "I cannot say what form of writing to call ' The Famine : ' it is not exactty blank verse, and I question whether it is really poetr3\ It has a peculiarity all its o^vn. The omissions j^ou make are perfecth" admissible, and they do not, in the least, detract from the thought, but on the contrary, preserve the continuitj'." SHCRIFICING NATURE. Rule. — Sacrificing- nnture for the saA-e of the effect produced on an audience is both wrong and inartistic. EXAMPLE I. And the onW word there spoken. Was the wliispered \vord, " Lenore! " This I wliispered, and an echo Murmured back the word, "Lenore!" RKCITi: AND IMPERSONATE. U7 Did you ever hear an echo to a whisper? We never did, save by an elocutionist — with whom all things are possible. The effect may be very pleasant to an audi- ence to hear the \vord " Lenore " whispered, and then hear an echo given to the whispered word — if it were possible, — but we can assure 3'ou it is not natural. The word "whispered" should not be taken in its literal sense, and even if it were, it should be narrated. You are merely telling of something that has occurred, not something that is occurring. EXAMPLK II. "And the wind About the ciivcs of the cottapc Sobs .-md jjfricvcs." It is neither necessary nor natural that the reader should so far impersonate the wind as to do the sobbing and grieving, however pleasant (?) it nia3' he to an audience. We are aware that such selections take — take wind ; but wind3' readers and reciters are not artists. 98 HOW TO READ, UNFHMILmR WORDS OR TERMS. Rule. — In speaking an unfamiliar name, word or term make sufficient pause before and pause after the thought, to give your hearers time to comprehend the same. When one is obhged to make an effort to catch a word or phrase that was lost in conse- quence of the reader violating the foregoing rule, the succeeding thought will also be lost; hence the interest slackens. EXAMPLE. " For lo ! along the river's bed A mighty ej'gre reared its crest." The "word "eygre" (a-gur) should come under this rule. Ministers should guard against this fault in reading the Biblical names of persons, rivers, cities, etc., with \vhich the congregation may not be wholly conversant. CONJUNCTIONS. Rule. — All conjunctions (and, but, etc.,) should be passed over lightly unless thej^ are in- tended as aids to a rhetorical pause, or to be RECITE ANU IMPERSONATE. 99 emphasized in consequence of contrast. They are not always unimportant, hence require very judicious handling. EXAMPLE. "One Day Solitary." —J. T. Trowbridge. "Here I am at the end of my journey. And — well, it ain't jollj', not so very! — I'd like to throttle that sharp attorney." EXAMPLE n. "The Emigrant's Story." — /. T. Trowbridge. "Then the wind took us, and — Well, the next minute I found myself," etc. EXAMPLE TIT. "Just as I am ! without one plea (1st plea) But that thy blood was shed for me, (2d plea) And that thou bidst me come to thee." "Without one plea" — except the two given: hence "one" is not intended to be taken literally, but the same as if written " without any plea," etc. The word "and" should be emphasized and followed b3' a rhetorical pause. loo HOW TO READ, EXAMPLE IV. I said you or he, not you and he. THE ARTICLE R. Do not obscure the article A nor do not speak it so clearly as to invite special attention to it. Rule. — Speak the "a" as you would in hastily repeating the alphabet. The " a, " when emphaized , should have its long sound ; i. e. its name sound. In all other cases it should be the long sound of " a " slightly touched. It should never drop to the sound of u. This is slovenly. The article should always be pro- nounced v^ith the noun as though it were apart of it; i. e., a boy, should be pronounced the same as the words above, about, amid, again, etc., when they are correctly given. One would not think of saying ubeceda'rian for abecedarian, yet we seldom hear any thing but umer'ucun for amer'ican, — the long " a "and the short " a " obscure ; /. e., slightly touched. I THE ARTICLE THE. Rule. — T-h-e is pronounced the. Teach a child that t-h-e is pronounced the, KECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 101 but that he must not put any more force upon it than upon any other unaccented word. The result will be that when the article immediately^ precedes a vowel, he will give the" e "the sound of long " c " slightly touched , and if the " e " immed i- atel3^ precedes a consonant, the vocal organs will readily adjust themselves unconsciousl3' to the child for the sound of the next position below long "c" ; /. c, i (thi). But once teach the child that t-b-c is sometimes thu, and our word for it, it will be thu very last time you will hear the or till. VOWEL EXAMPLES. (The). Thearm3% The evil. The 'idea. Thcoecan. The union. The aetor. The enemy. The Indian. The oddest. The upper. CONSONANT EXAMPLES. (ThO. The bad. The cold. The dot. The flow. The good. Thehi-^h. The jar. The lad. The May. The night. The pay. The (juinee. The ray. The sun. The tar. The ■'nne. The willow. The vokc. The zebra. INDIVIDUALITY. The tencbcr in the public school, the //?- structor for the pulpit, for the rostrum or for 102 HOW TO READ, the stage, should alw^ays aim to preserve the individuality of the pupil. Rule. — Avoid teachinghy imitation. " Borro\\^ed individuahties, Hke borrowed garments, seldom fit." The full power of a pupil can never be devel- oped by imitation. It is often the case that a pupil possesses greater native talent than his teacher. The instructor should be keen enough to observe this, and master enough to touch the right springs of action for the pupil. By this imitation teaching, otherwise excellent minis- ters, orators and readers have been shorn of their native power. The^-- cannot'soar upon the wings of eloquence, as is often their want and need, because they have unfortunately fallen in- to the hands of one who adopted the profession of teaching, but was never adopted by it. Such a teacher lacks adaption. He attacks the man's mannerisms, and with his professional shears he clips the wings of the bom eagle. Mannerisms. Mannerisms are quite frequently, the great power of an orator. RECITE AND IMPERSONATE. 103 The true teacher will readily discriminate between those that add strength to the speaker and those that clog the wheels of his progressive nature. Allow him to keep the former, 1)ut aid him to gradually lay b}- the latter. Impress upon your pujiils in the school-room, and of whatsoever calling, that anything which detri- mentally attracts to the individual, is liable to detract from the thought. We would prefer defectiveness to affectation. Sound vs. Sense. Rule. — Do not mistake volume of voice for intensity of expression. The loudest tones are not rdways the most soul stirring. The clock with the loudest tick is not always the best. "It is the empty wagon that makes the most noise." The more intense the emotional expression, the lower should be the pitch of the voice; the more intense the mental, the higher should be the pitch of the voice. EXAMPLE. "Tcll's address to the .Mps." 104 HOW TO READ, This may be shouted as an exercise for the voice, but when the soul is put in it, the voice will lower in proportion to the "impress of divine awe." Here again, in sound vs. sense, we have the same type of elocutionist as the one who gets the garment to large for the object. DECLHMHTORY vs. THE Ni=ITURflL. Rule. — Avoid taking a higher pitch when it is increased force that is needed. EXAMPLE. " Cassius' speech on Honor" should not be declaimed as though Cassius -were speaking to a man a hundred feet away, and as thoiigh Cassius had -written it down to speak at Brutus the first time he met him. Have the tone, the volume of voice, the general character, consistent with the sense. There are two schools of elocution as there are two schools of acting. The declamatory school gives every word as if it \vere committed to memory, and the gestures and attitudes are con- spicuous by the conscious effort of the performer. The natural school gives every thought as if it were born at the moment and uttered for the RECITK AM» IMPERSONATE. lOo first time; the gestures and attitudes though quite profuse do not invite special attention as the}-- are not given as though the performer were conscious of them — and he should not be — yet, Avhen attested b}"- the philosophy of expression thc}^ are correct, because they were sponta- neous ; the mechanism not being visible. BOWING. This, of course, is not done in school reading, but is reserved until the essay, the oration or the declamation is given. We are all familiar with the stereot\'ped bow ; it has been the same for ages ; it asserts itself upon the platform with the public reader or speaker. We would not be so cruel as to rob the school- boy or school-girl of this privilege and pleasure, for they, as well as the audience, often get more satisfaction from the bow than from any- thing else. It is our intention to speak a word concern- ing its significance and appropriateness as relating to the rostrum. The i)ublic speaker or reader has no more cause to make a bow, than has tlic minister, — save in response to applause. In case of 106 HOW TO READ, applause, he has an acknowledgement to which he must respond in return for something ren- dered him. It is very rude not to return a bow. An audience never does. It is true, it may be a compliment to the speaker that the people are present ; but he should make it a compliment to them that he is there. If he is a master of his subject, they become indebted to him ; if he is not a master, he has no right there. If one still insists upon following the fashion, or has need to bow as an acknowledgment, we offer the following: make a graceful bow by merely in- clining the head. True, this is cold, but it is in keeping with a cold reception ; nevertheless, it is respect of the highest order and in harmony with the dignity of your position. If, however, you meet with a warm reception, you should, in proportion to its heartiness, return your heart-felt appreciation by inclining the body from the waist, — in so doing you incline the heart as well as the head. Do not drop the head so low as to hide the e^-^es. Keep them steadily fixed upon the audience, or the bow will be of such a nature as to bring you within the realm of humiliation — a positioi] RECITH AM) IMI'IiKSONATi;. 107 which should never be taken by a speaker. Be not pompous, but firm ; keep a reserve of power in your voice, in your attitudes, and in your general bearing. TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION. As " There are loves and loves," so there are readers and readers. It is an error to suppose that every one can become a good reader. Readers, like orators, are born, not made. It is essential to have constantly before us the highest type of manhood and womanhood as our ideal; to be possessed of the finest sensibilities ; to be thorough students of human nature ; else how could we interpret such characters. Our greatest orators, ministers, readers and public speakers are those wdiose words shine right through a clean, pure, white soul — aj', breathing, as it were, the very breath of the Divine. Two questions naturally arise here: First, is it to be understood that these qualities cannot be acquired? Second, if one possesses these (108) TRUK AND FALSI': KLOCl'TIO.V. ^(j 1-ALSIi liLOCUTlON. 121 the art, ])rol)ably has never read a line in public and, what is more, cannot even call the words; has a voice throaty, possibh^ nasal, withal; does not know what a gesture means ; can only make a few motions and those of a pump- handle nature; has not firmness enough to even stand erect before an audience; lacks ideality and individuality, and never dreams of sublim- ity; such a one, with these and many other faidts halving finished a course of ten lessons, and being invited to pass an evening with friends, is imi)ortuned to read, and the an- nouncement that he does not yet feel competent so to do is received with astonishment. What, ten lessons, and not able to read ? Would you think of asking a ]nipil at the completion of ten lessons in either vocal or in- strumental music to entertain friends? Is not the one just as reasonable a demand as the other? Is it not strange that, while multitudes are industriously striving to learn the art of singing, it a])pcars not to be known tliat the art of reading and speaking demands ecpially 122 TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION. patient study, and is vastly more useful when attained ? Are you aware that in the use of the human voice you are learning to play upon the most delicate and difficult instrument in the world ? Simple, 'tis true, but all the greater for its simplicity. No heart so hardened that may not be touched by its melodies. Reading is both a science and an art. "Science is a knowledge of facts and forces ; art is the intellectual and manual power to control such forces for the gratification and benefit of mankind. Science is the embodiment of intellectual discoveries ; art is the archangel which puts theory into practice for the world's permanent good." The highest art is to conceal art. "To hold the mirror up to nature." Nature should never be sacrificed for the sake of effect. (See page 96). Let us study nature in its various forms and learn to appreciate an jirtist, whether he be on the stage or platform, and it w^ill be but a short time till acting and reading of this order ^vill receive its true and due merit, and the ranter will have had his day. The word elocution has TRl'K AND FALSE ELOCUTIOiN. 123 become so perverted that we have now come to look upon an elocutionist as one who plays with his voice; /. c, the more noise the moreelo- cution, thcrcb}' falling into the very common error of mistaking volume of voice for intensity of exprCvSsion. (See page 103). The very root of all oratory is to gain the S3'mpath3^ of your audience, and this is done, in a great degree, by the tone of voice; and the voice, to be thoroughly sympathetic, must have the heart element in it. "True eloquence con- sists in not only feeling a truth j^ourself, but in making those \vho hear you feel it." There are three channels through which every vocal ex- pression must pass in order to be effectual and serve for proof as to whether the speaker is in SA'mpathy with his subject, viz., mental, facial and vocal, and will be expressed in this order. Words from the mind are but the mind made audible, and the tone of voice \vill therefore vary \vith ever}' wave of thought or fcx^ling. Every sentence should be fraught with meaning; but the speaker should so control his voice 3s tQ ^^24. TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION. address his hearers in such a manner that they will be conscious of a reserved power, a force behind the actual expression, which thej^ feel, but cannot measure. In the rendering of what is pathetic, personal grief is a fault, and excites either pity or contempt for the speaker. We must feel the grief that takes in all mankind. (See page 89). The greater the grief, the deeper, and more nearly inexpressible, when it does have vent, the result is not mereh^ a bubbling over at the lips, but a bursting forth as though the very heart would break. Our control over an audience is in proportion to our control over ourselves. There is proba- bly no word in the English language that will better conve^^ our meaning — though more ex- pressive than elegant — than " slopping over." Artemus Ward said of George Washington, "He never slopped over." The application of this remark in reading is this; however pa- thetic the selection, try to master your grief instead of idlowing it to master 3^ou. Fhis ver3^ inward struggle of the emotions will give you a TRUE AM) KALSE EI.OC TTH >N. ILT) power over an audience that can never be hail if you allow the tears perfect freedom ; in other w^ords, tinge your voice with the sadness of your heart, and in proportion as you have pre- viously- acquainted \'Ourself with the voice in its varied moods, 3'ou will express greater or less emotion. Do not mistnke this word emotion. We frequenth^ have a great deal of motion, with little or no emotion. Emotion is a moving- out, not of the limbs merely, but of thought and feeling from the heart. Every movement that does not add to the effect will f/ctmct therefrom, whether it be of the head, hand or foot. Thus, many men mistake motion for emotion, and are thus led to believe that perspiration is inspira- tion. " Simplicity is the basis of all excellence." Though much stress has been laid upon the voice, let us not lose sight of the fact that the positions of the body affect the tone of voice, and that you will also find them harmonizing, thereby- showing very clearly, so to speak, the attitude of the mind . This is well illustrated bv one under the in- 120 TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION. fluence of liquor; the body becomes limp, the tongue ceavses to act with neatness and pre- cision, thereby destroying the best articulate effect, and the voice takes on the vital tone and harmonizes with the body in its lack of support. (An illustration is here given by the speaker) One may readily perceive the harmony exist- ing between the physical and vocal expressions. Another example in which you all may have had some experience; viz., endeavoring to speak pleasantly while you are looking cross, or vice versa, neither of which it is possible to do. Another very prevalent fault among readers and public speakers, is that of dropping the tone. (See page 85). We deal with thoughts as we deal with tangible objects. There comes to mind a certain pastor in a distant city who never gave his thoughts to his congregation, but kept his eye steadily fixed upon a favorite place in the ceiling, and there he lodged all his thoughts; at least, such was the supposition, for they were never heard of afterward. TRTTI-: AM) I'KI.SK IC LOCUTION. 127 Again : A fault in which nearly every reader must admit of possessing his share, viz., person- ating where there is merely narrative. (See page 73). Let us now "come to the quick and the heart of the matter" bj'- asking ourselves wh\' we do not have better reading and a better apprecia- tion of correct reading. Because of ignorance of the so-called professors of their art. The public, also, are in a great measure responsible. We must admit there are teachers of elocution and public readers in many of our cities who have but a mere smattering of the art they pro- fevSs to teach. Charlatans exist in ever}- profes- sion. Anything genuine avIII have many counterfeits and the counterleiters will receive patronage and meet with a certain degree of success so long as the public remain in ignorance of what constitutes the true elements essential to correct reading and teaching; therefore public tnste not being sufficiently cultivated accounts, in a great measure, for the scarcity of good readers, or more properly, perhaps, Llie preva- 128 TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION. lence of bad ones. If those who hear such readers and teachers would learn to discriminate between the true and the false, the standard of the one would be raised, and the other seek its level. The true reader and teacher is a representa- tive in a profession second to none in the world ; a profession, which, when thoroughly taught, includes in that teaching much that tends to make life grander, nobler, and to fit us for the higher walks of life. To the reader is given an opportunity of wielding an influence the power of which is often greater than that of the min- ister of the gospel. One is able in a public read- ing to reach a class of individuals who never come within the pale of the church, and it is only a statement of facts to say that this class embraces many grand, noble men and women. True, practical elocution and true, practical religion go hand in hand ; for all public reading should be elevating- in its character; should have as its object the exalting of what is good and the supiDression of what is evil. To do this TRrK AM) I"A[,SK ELOCUTION. 129 it is not necessary to be an "Aunty Doleful." The masses, we nrc aware, call for comedy; then let us present a good class, but not all comed}'. Let us present the dark and the bright side of the i)icturc, that b\' the contrast greater good may b/C done. How many a sad heart has l)ccii cb.ccrcd by the presentation of a good comedy, and how many a youth, rushing head- long to destruction, has been checked and caused to rellect, l)y the portra^'-al of a character so like his own. Wliat sermons lie in such selections as "The Bridge of vSighs," "The Actor's Storv%" " The Vagabonds," " One Day Solitary-," " Beau- tiful Snow," "Why a Boot-black sold his Kit," "Betsey and I are out," "How Betse3' and I made U]i," etc. Let us ask ourselves, " Did God ever make a heart that woiddnot respond if the right chord were touched?" What a pleasant thought to know that it lies within the province of a reader, many times, to touch a chord that has long been mute. Allow us to cite but two of many instances coming directly xmder the notice of the writer of this article, he serving 130 TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION. as the humble instrument thereof. On one occasion, the reading of the last two named selections, " Betse^^ and I are out" and "How Betsey and I made up," was the means of re- uniting a familj^ that had been separated seven years. At another time the recital of the poem, "One Day Solitary-," touched the heart of many a convict who'sa\v in its portrayal but a reflex of himself, and the ultimate good may never be known except to Him who reads our inmost thoughts. We shall never forget the Iook of the most hardened criminal within those prison walls, as he sat before us with folded arms during the impersonation of this poem. He watched us steadily with unflinching ej^e, from beneath those black, massive, shaggy eyebrows, while ever and anon his hand ^vould steal nervously to his cheek. For what ! For what ? To brush away a tear. Ay, a tear that he would not willingl}'- have shed for the ^vorld, for, as he glanced hastily at his comrade on either side, a bright light shot quickh^ athwart those swarthy TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION. I3l features, when he recognized the same act in them. A}^ on that occasion, one ^vord bedimmed many an eye that had long been strange to tears, and softened many a heart that the world would call cold and indifferent ; that one word w^as " Mother; " and, as it was uttered, many a head bent low, and who can tell the many varied scenes of life that passed before them in quick succession in panoramic view ? What M^ord in the T^nglish language associates with it so much of tenderness, gentleness, forgiveness, as "Mother." Then what are we to glean from these facts ? That while we entertain, we should also in- struct. The reader in the course of the evening should paint for an audience at least one picture of good influence in suchamanner that it would hang on memory's walls for years, perhaps forever. The reader should not leave an im- pression of himself, but of the characters and various scenes which lie represents to you. When you leave an entertainment, ask your- 132 TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION. selves, as a test of its merit, in addition to the enjoyment of the passing hour, was it elevating in its cha,racter ? Do j'ou carry away with 3'ou anything that will make A^our heart lighter, your path brighter, your resolutions of char- acter more firm ? Jf not, it has not been \vholly a success. The reader should be encouraged in this class of reading b^^ the public not being satisfied \vith mere sho\v. We especiall^^ refer to costume readings. Thej- are verA^ good of their kind and in their way, but should never be recognized on the reading platform proper. No reader who is an artist in his profession will ever have occasion to resort to \vigs or costum- inof. He who does so has not vet reached averv high standard as a reader, though he ma3' be excellent in his specialty. It is said that ' ' charity covereth a multitude of sins; " ay, so do hand- some wardrobes, costumes and wig, cover a multitude of elocutionary sins. They may please the eye, but they fail to win the ear. It were better if readers would get into the atmos- phere of the selections and think less of getting TRIM-; AND FALSE ELOCUTION. 133 into the wardrobe. No two persons ever see a statue or painting exactly the same, but through the eye as it has been educated. The })crsoii of culture and refinement looks upon a statue and sees only that which is suggestive of high art, while the person of low order and de- graded tastes, looking through flaming eyes of passion, sees naught that is suggestive of purit^^ Though the statue ma}^ be the same in both cases, the ej^es being diiferenth^ educated, behold a different statue. So it is with the characters the reader portrays. If he but voice the words of the author, the audience will clothe the char- acters to suit their individual tastes, but if he clothes it, he compels them to look at it as he presents it ; /. c., according to his conception, no matter how inconsistent it may be with theirs. Even in so-called character readings, it is only the business of the reader to clothe the thought b^' giving it the proper expression, and leave the costuming to the varied tastes and imagina- tions of the audience. Costuming belongs to the stage and not to 134 TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION'. the platform, except where one makes a speciaitv of impersonating some well known characters of our own day. Some of us have seen and heard a reader of Shakespeare, who would faith- fully and satisfactorily portray to an audience the tenderness of a Juliet, the pathos of an Ophelia, and the terrible passion of a Lear, and all this without change of costume or use of a wig. Many of you, undoubtedly, have had the pleasure of listening to the readings of the late Charlotte Cushman, \vho \vould paint, in vivid colors, the entire tragedy of Macbeth, while she would remain sitting at the reading desk — a fine example of reserved pow^er. Are you aware that more and better talent is required to be- come a good versatile reader than a star actor ? While an actor for an evening portraj^s but one character, and that with the assistance of costuming, scenic effect, and other, sometimes equally attractive actors, the reader stands alone, without costuming, without scenic effect, without any but imaginary characters to draw- out his power, and presents to an audience, by TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION. 135 his voice and action, all kinds and conditions of character, scenery of varied description, etc., and all this so effectually, that you at once for- get the reader and are yourselves living amid those scenes and walking and talking with those characters. To sum it all up, a certain French writer has so well expressed it: "The actor is only the soloist in the orchestra, the reader is the whole orchestra.''^ Many of you, doubt- less, have heard readers, whom, by their elocu- tionary vociferations, you ^vould pronounce a whole brass band — not much of a compliment to the band, either. Whenever you hear an actor or a dramatic critic speak disparagingly of elocution as a cjualification essential for the stage, you may rest assured he is either preju- diced or does not know of what tnie elocution consists. Decliiinatory and mechnnicnl readers^ like declamatory and mechanical actors, are abominable. A true reader will make a true actor. Hear what a New York dramatic critic — who is not predjudiced — has to say upon the subject. Writing of a certain actor and actress, 136 TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION. he says, "They are thoroughh^ trained, they know the principles of their art, a \erj different thing from knowing the business; the}^ paA^ laudable attention to one supremeh' important point recklessly disregarded upon our stage, viz., ■ — Elocution.^^ When we consider the deficiencies of many of our readers and actors; i. e., their limited knowledge of their profession, sureh' it is not unjust to cite, as a parallel case, that of the man who had acknowledged that he had never been to school, but boasted that he had met the children on the way to and from. " Whatever is ^vorth doing at all is worth doing Avell." When a man chooses his profession, or as it should be, when a profession chooses the man, he should be willing to give his life ^vork to it. One thought more, and that briefl^^ stated. We must not expect general good reading until we have more knowledge of it in our public schools. Bad habits acquired in childhood in the performance of the mereh^ mechanical act of sounding printed words, without the ideas that i TRin: AND FALSE ELOCUTION. 137 they are intended to convey, are the foundation of bad readers in after life; the words going in at the eve, and coming out at the mouth with- out passing thrc:)ugh the intelligent inind. There is no branch of education more needed and yet more neglected tlian reading. As "edu- cation does not consist in the possess/o/?, merely, but in the application of knowledge," and that application must have a medium, and that me- dium is generally the voice, then hoAV can we place too much stress u]ion the teachings of true elocution ? Let us accord, then, to a master of this art the highest ]ilace in one of the highest profes- sions, because of his worth to the world at large; remembering at rdl times that a man is not estimated "l)y what the world gives to him, but by what he gives to the world ; " and add to this the fact that "our highest hapjiiness is reflex ; it is that which comes back to us from the joy we have given others." It has been our endeavor in the foregoing, to invite thinking minds to look at the subject in its true light; 138 TRUE AND FALSE ELOCUTION. and our conclusions are that we must have a higher standard of reading and teaching, and that the duty of securing this result devolves upon teacher, reader and hearer. BIBLE RIADINQ. " So they read in the hook in the law of Ood distinctly and nave the itense and caxused the people to understand the reading."— Nehemiah 8-8. We are aware that we are stepping on sacred ground, in consequence of which we anticipate many of the objections that will be raised, but it is our i)urpose to meet them fairly and squareh'. Our object is a wortln' one, hence we apprehend no charge of irreverence, feeling assured that whatever means ma3' be used, will be fully justified by the end in view. At the very first step on the road of investi- gation we are met by the question, — "Is the Word of God to be read as any other book?" Our answer is, "yes and no." Yes; it requires all the shades of feeling to be expressed in a manner consistent with the thought. We are to be governed by the same 140 BIBLE READING. law of emphasis and inflection, as in the reading of other books. We should endeavor to make the scenes live again. No ; ^ve should not invest scripture reading wnth such characterization as we would in the portrayal of Shakespearean personages ; we should suggest, rather than imitate. Give the sentiment, but tone it down. The tones maybe the same in kind but should be less in degree. In the reading of the Bible, the minister should not forget that he is a reader — not an actor. Gestures are not called for in Bible reading. Even in the most impassioned discourses, the tones of voice should be adequate for the expres- sion of all emotions. The minister — in reading the Bible — stands as reporter and auditor, and he should read with a feeling of moral force and interpretation. He should not stand aloof, for he is a man of like passions with us. In sacred w^ritings there are two voices — the Divine and the human. We are very well aware that there is a strong BIBLE RICADING. 1 1.1 prejudice existing against throwing any expres- sion in I?i1ile reading. We are thoroughly convinced of this by the indiflferent man'icr ' -» which it is so often read ; only partialh' c>i< prejudice, perhaps, and partially to lacl. oi study. AVe would like to impress upon minis- ters, the fact that "The goodness of a man's cause can not palliate his careless neglect of its advocacy." i$abbath after Sabbath, as we sit in our pew, ^ve hear words of admonition from the minister, and ever linked therewith the consolation that " It is never too late to begin." Wc now have the floor, and we desire to talk to the minister. To the young man wc wish to offer words of comfort and encouragement, as he is about to launch, or may have just launched, on the min- isterial sea. We also desire to point out the dangerous shoals upon which his 1)rother's barque has so often been stranded, and in some cases totally wrecked. To those advanced in years and in experience. We desire to say to them what they have so 142 BIBLE READING. often said to us, " It is never too late to begin.'' We would like to point all earnest workers directh' to the Bible for their instruction con- cerning the reading of the Bible. " So they read in the book, in the law of God distinctU^ and gave the sense, and caused the people to understand the reading." The foregoing ^vords may be found in Nehe- miah, 8tli chapter and 8th verse. They einbod}' much that appertains to the subject of such reading as is required at the sacred desk. Alark you, that at the ver^- onset, we draw a line between reading and reciting. " So the\' read in the book ; " they did not recite from the book. The innnner in which they read should be im- pressed upon ever\^ man who takes upon himself the responsible office of reading to others the Word of God. How man\' of our ministers, to-da3% read either the Bible or the hymns dis- tinctly. Fewer still are the^^ who read in such a manner as to '^ cause the people to understand the reading." To cause them to understand, BinLK READING. I4.3 implies an act on the part of the reader, be^'ond that of distinct utterance. The words are vehicles of thought, hence they should not go emptj^ to the hearer but be well ladened. A word, as we view it upon the printed page is, of itself, cold and meaningless. Do we realize the value of our spoken language ? What is it that causes one speaker to be more inter- esting than another? You ma}^ say it is his manner. What is that manner? Is it to be found in the v^^ords which he utters, or in the manner of uttering them ? You will imhesitat- ingly say it is in the manner, and the manner is in the man, not in the matter. To illustrate this we will cite a very old inci- dent, but none better can be used to serve our purpose. When the Bishop of London asked the great actor Betterton — "Why is it that night after night you sway your audiences at will, moving them to laughter (^r to tears, while for the most part a'OU are dealing with fiction ; and yet, those same persons will sit so utterl3'- rmmoved when listening to discourses from the 144 BIBLE READING. pulpit, though instead of fiction, we are speak- ing the mighty truths of the gospel ? ' ' The great tragedian said, "We speak fiction as though it were truth, but 3'ou speak truth as though it were fiction." Let us look again at the word upon the printed page. Every word possesses three forms of life. It has its e^^e-life, its ear-life, and its soul-life. Its ejx-life is its orthography ; its ear-life is its orthoepy ; its soul-life is its signifi- cance or expression. How many public speakers there are who never invest their language with the soul inspiring element. A meeting was held a short since in our resident cit}^ to raise mone3^ for " The Home for the Friendless." Many were the speeches made by learned men, who thought more of their dic- tion than of the great needs of the hour. No special enthusiasm had been aroused, no response worthy of mention had resulted. The evening was far spent, and the case looked hopeless, when an elderly gentleman arose and spoke but three \vords, — "Homeless, friendless. BIBLK READING. moneyless." They were soiil-felt words. They thrilled the audience. The result was almost magical. Was the power in the words, or in the manner of expressing them ? True it is, they were w^ell chosen words and proved to be the most active agents that could be, or at least had been used. Suppose he had spoken them unfeelingly — "Homeless, friendless, mone3dess." The result would naturally be, "Is that so? That's too bad ! " In this case only the head, not the heart, w^ould respond. The last speaker fully realized the fact that to get hold of the purse-strings, he must first get hold of the heart-strings. Instead of words as words, it was thoughts as thoughts. How much thought do 3-011 suppose the minister gave to his scripture lesson when he misplaced the emphasis in speaking of obeying the conniKuul to "get the ass and saddle him." He said, they got the ass and saddled him. On another occasion he showed forth a pre- dominant characteristic of his nature when 146 BIBLE READING. reading the sentence, " They sat at the table and did eat." His nature was made manifest by saying, " They sat at the table and did eat." It seems to tis that even greater care is needed in the reading of the Bible, than in the reading of any other book. To more fully impress the law of emphasis and inflection upon the reader of the Bible, ^\t will cite one or two cases outside of the sacred writings. Even in the treatment of this subject, we have taken the liberty to intersperse the same with anecdotes, for the reason that "sometimes an anecdote will make plain what an argument would fail to satisf\^" Imagine our surprise when listening to the reading of Marco Bozarris, to hear the words " Come in consumptions ghastly form " read in full strong tones, as follows: "Come in, con- sumptions ghastly form." On another occasion an actor, essaying the role of lago, desiring to show to his fellow- actors and to the audience that he was a man I niBLE READING. 147 of some originality, when speaking to Othello in reference to Cassio's honesty (which he very much doubted) and which should have been voiced in the form as given by Shakespeare, /. c, "Honest, my lord?" he, to the surprise and amusement of all, turned the interrogatory into an exclamator\' sentence " Honest ! my Lord ! Sometime since we had the pleasure of listen- ing to a noted divine in Boston with whom we were deeply impressed by his reading of the Bible and of the hymns, the earnestness of his prayer, and the able discourse so ably presented. During the discourse he said, "I often attend the theatre, and I wish to emphasize the legiti- mate theatre ; i. e., where I can witness the in- terpretation of human nature as depicted in Shakespeare, and has been so grandly por- trayed bj' such men as Booth, Barrett and McCullough. When I return to mj' home, I take up m3' Bible and exclaim, O, that Ave ministers would spend the same amount of time, labor and study, on this grand, old book of books, that 148 BIBLE READING. the actor does upon that one book — Shakes- peare. Not only that we may the better under- stand it, but that we may enable others to understand it." These words, my friends, fell from the lips of a grand and good man. Too much stress cannot be laid upon the careful study necessary for effective reading of the Bible. Hepworth, Chapin, Beecher and others might be mentioned as examples of those who have given special stud}^ to Bible Reading, Hymn Reading and Pulpit Eloquence. Hepworth is said to be a biblical reader of great reputation ; that his reading of the storj' of Daniel in the lion's den, is one "of wonderful vividness. Chapin drew^ immense audiences, man3^ of whom were drawn thither, largely by his own soul-inspiring rendition of the hymns. There are a great many ministers who draw very largely by their rendition of the hymns, but it is a drawing something akin to that of the den- tist. It is a painful operation in the absence ninLIC KEAUING. 14-9 of art. It liccomes rending vs. rendering. Beecher's voice was onee very defective, but he overcame the defect by proper elocutionar}' drill when he was a young man. He often reverted with ardent delight to his old asso- ciations and his shouting in the woods. Let young men emulate the example set by these men of ])Ower and may they go forth earnesth' with a determination to give diligent heed to those requirements essential to correct and effective reading. It is praise worth}- in nny young man to strive honorably- in anj' honorable profession, for the highest place in that profession. What actor is content in remaining in a mediocre position? Then what minister should be? The grander the mission, the greater should be the ambition. The higher one attains in a calling, the greater are his possibilities of doing good. The more time the minister devotes to the study of the reading of the Bible the more will he find of its hidden truths and beauties. Mrs. Siddons, of the eighteenth century, after 150 BIBLE READING. making herself famous in her grand conception and portrayal of Lady Macbeth, said — "I have not yet finished the study of the part." These words were spoken at the expiration of thirty years of only such study as a true artist will give. Joe. Jefferson — whose name has become im- mortalized by his characterization of "Rip. Van Winkle" — is as true an artist as treads the boards of the American stage. Nothing can be more in accordance with nature, than the manner \vith which he invests his words and his actions. Yet, he emplo3's nature's hand-maid, art, in all that he does, and thus illustrates that higher art, which conceals art. He studied faithfully during the greater part of five years to acquire a particular inflec- tion, when in a certain portion of the plaj', he had occasion to call to him, his little daughter Mena. What incentives these examples should be to our young men in any calling — a worthy calling — to do well whatsoever they attempt. We cite BIBLE READING. 151 these true examples of the pulpit and of the stage, beeause the^'- arc true examples. They illustrate an art second to none in the world. Art and nature should so commingle that the line of distinction is not discernible. A man stepped into a bank in Cincinnati and presented a check to be cashed. He was a stranger, hence was informed that he must be identified. He said to the clerk, " Whj', do you not know me? " " No, sir, of course I know of you very well, but l)y what means am I to rec- ognize 3'ou as Joe Jefferson ? " He looked at the clerk a moment, and then in an instant, began to let his thoughts play with and among those noble and mobile features, until the clerk saw Rip Van Winkle appearing before him. Jefferson looked at him a moment, and then slightly turning as if to leave, he said "Don'd know me I don'd know me! veil, I vill call Schneider, my dog, he knows me." It is needless to say, the check was cashed. Was that Joe Jefferson ? W:is it the man ? It was the man and manner and art. 152 BIBLE READIGN. When a simple narrative in the Bible is read, it should be with just that simplicitj^ illustrated by this great man in his great character. Sim- ple but effective. There are portions of the Bible that require great passion, great force, intense sorrow, and overwhelming J03', to be expressed through that great medium — the human voice. Read each part in a manner consistent with the part. If it is Paul before Agrippa, make us to see Paul and Agrippa, or what is better still, make us to feel the presence of these men. Suggest the power with which Paul spoke to that King — i. e., the reserved power. If it is Christ in the garden of Gethsemane, or upon the cross, suggest the anguish commingled with the resignation. It can only be suggested ; no mor- tal can do more. If it is in the nature of a colloquy as that carried on between the blind man and the Jews and the Pharisees and the parents of the blind man, then that picture should be vividly brought before us, by the reader suggesting the various ones in their respective doubts and inquiries; but by no BIBLE RKADING. I'.l means should lie endeavor to imitate them. That woukl be dramatic action misapplied. It is such elocution that has barred the true teacher of the art, from our schools, colleges and seminaries. When one is reading jo^^ful thoughts from the Bible they should be read in a joyful manner, in a tone apjiropriate to the thought. If you say "Make a jo3'ful noise unto the Lord;" do not whine it as much as to say— you make a joyful noise if you can. /ean't. I have nothing to be joyful for. If 3'ou read " The Lord is my Shepherd I shall not want," make it appear so by the manner in which you read it, instead of causing us to doubt your faith by 3'our doleful expression. True it is, the Bible is the most difficult of all books to read aloud ; then why should not the minister devote much time to the study thereof. Many a man spends his entire forces upon his sermon, making no preparation for the Bible- reading or for the hymn-reading. The reading of the Bible and of the hvmns is to the sermon 154 BIBLE READING. what the tilHng of the soil is to the seed. There is no \vonder Avhy the seed that is sown, falls so often upon barren soil, because the indiffer- ence manifested by the preacher in his reading is felt and even forced upon the congregation. Ever}^ minister impels, compels or repels. We find a special dif&cult^^ in the reading of the Bible, arising from its division into verses, and its very incorrect and imperfect punctuation. You will find it necessar}' to over-look the printed signs and introduce your own pauses according to the requirement of the composition. It should be read so that the listener ma3' be unable to discover, by your voice, where a verse begins or ends, unless the thought being voiced, is complete. The sense does not require this breaking up into verses, but on the contrary' it is purely arbitrar^^ It does not exist in the original, but was adopted in the translation, merely for the convenience of reference, and for chanting. We have heard men make as bungling mis- takes in the pulpit Avhcn reading the Bible, as did niBLE READING. 155 the ])rc.si(lcnt of a banquet one night when read- ing or announcing the various toasts. The first ^vas — "Let the toast he, clear Avoman." But the gentleman who responded, said, "Let the toast be — dear woman ! " At the conclusion of this response the presi- dent announced another. " Woman, without her man, is a brute.'' He re-read it with greater emphasis ** Woman, without her man is a brute.'' A gentleman arose and said that he did not view woman in that light, and while he had no faidt to find with the words used, he must take exceptions to the manner in which they were read. He said he did not think "Woman without her man, is a brute" but he would say, "Woman! withowt her, man is a brute." You will perceive that the latter reading makes man the brute instead of the woman. Well, what does all this signify? Simply a matter of punctuation. Punctuation serves as a guide to the author's idea, but should not always be regarded in the delivery of the thought. While there is no 156 BIBLE READING. punctuation in the Bible from beginning to end, 2. c, in the original, there is in every language an idiom peculiar to itself, and one must under- stand that idiom before he can give to the^vords their proper significance. This brings us to a very important step con- cerning Bible reading. The assertion \ve are about to make may find many opponents ; if so, we trust \ve ma^^ at least be credited with the expression of honest convictions. Ever}^ educated minister is expected to kno\v his Greek Testament and his Hebrew Bible. This he must do or rely Avholly upon comment- ators — before he can intelligently preach to in- telligent people. We believe that none other than an edu- cated man should ever take upon himself the responsible position of expounding the scriptures to an intelligent congregation. Any man may preach — after a fashion — but it may simply be an essay on some subject found in the Bible and for which he has chosen a text. He reads the text as his foundation, but in BIBLE READING. 157 manA' casCvS it is the last we hear of it. Can a man read the Bible as punctuated and read it correctly as to the sense ? Impossible. There are thoughts cut in twain that should be linked (See Genesis ir chapter, IG verse) and there are thoughts linked that should be separated. What light can an uneducated minister thro\v upon the following sentence, the very pinictua- tion of which causes two renderings thereof, re- sulting in a separation of churches, erecting a barrier l)et\veen the mother-church and those that have succeeded her? We will read the passage two ways. "Verih', veriK^ I saN' unto you, this J^rthou shalt be with me in Paradise." " Verih', verily T say unto you this day, thou shalt be with me in Paradise." The change of punctuation in the foregoing, has no more effect upon the change of thought, than in the two renderings of the following Shakespearean quotation. 158 BIBLE READING. "There is a Divinity which shapes our ends, rough-hew them as we will." There is a Divinity which shapes our ends rough, hew them as we will. One needs to be an intelligent expounder of the Bible, because some people read it literally. Think of the old lad}- who called upon her pas- tor saying. — " I am quite svire I cannot live with John any longer. I've tried every way I could to keep peace." "M}^ dear sister, j^ou must not give up. Whatever he may say or do, you should not provoke him, but you should 'heap coals of fire upon his head.' " "Coals of fire upon his head? Oh no! you don't know him. Why that will never do one bit of good." " Have you tried it my sister?" "No, no. I never tried coals of fire, but I've tried hot water. ^^ In closing the subject of Bible reading we wish especially to impress the fact that the greater the position one occupies, the more will niBLE READING. 159 he be called to account for his opportunities. Whatever may be the talents given to men in other callings, the ministry surely possesses its full quota, and he who occupies a position there- in, shall be held accountable for the use or the abuse thereof, and among these the one of Bible reading is of no little moment. HyjviJN RI/iDIJNQ. Hymn Reading seems to receive much less attention than Bible reading which means no attention at all. Hymns are not alwa^'s poetry, but prose in rh3^thmical form with ends of lines to rhyme. There are few ministers \vho do moi-e than simply g'lance at a hymn, and the manner in which they are generally read, would lead one to suppose that they are not even favored with the glance. There is only one reason that ^ve can give for this neglect, j. e., the minister sees no sense in the h3'mn he is reading, consequenth' sees no sense in reading it differentl3^ To such a one we would say, that which does not add to the effect, will surel}^ detract therefrom, and for this reason we claim, that unless care and study are given to the reading of the hj^mns, it were much (160) HYMN KKAUINC. 161 better not to read thcni at all. It is a waste of time. If about so much time must be utili;icd, let it be done in that which is much more agree- able and profitable to the congregation, and in that which will bring forth more of the spirit of devotion from the pastor. How utterly absurd it is for a minister to read an entire hymn of five stanzas — unless he reads it with the spirit — and at the conclusion thereof say to the congregation — "You will please omit, in singing, the 3d, 4th and Gth stanzas." 'Twere better had he omitted, in read- ing, the 1st, 2(1, 8d, 4th and 5th stanzas. In- deed it were far better, in a devotional sense, for his good and for that of his congregation, to simply announce the hymn and let the choir and the congregation utilize the time in singing. The latter will have a restful influence while the former has a restless iriflucnce. There is too much form in the ])uli)it, too much shell to crack before getting at the meat. The congregation becomes weary before the minister begins his sermon ; hence it cannot be 162 HYMN READING. expected to have its desired effect. The prayer — possibh' the praj-ers — the scripture lesson and the singing ma^^ all be essential to get the pas- tor and people in sj^mpathy with each other, and in sj^mpathy ^vith the occasion. They are links of a chain, all of which have a special value, and to these may be added the In^mn reading if it is well done ; if not, it is the weak link and mars the effect of all, no matter howstrongmay be the remainder of the chain, as we all know that "No chain is stronger than its weakest link. ' ' Every minister should carefully' pave his way to his sermon, but he should not expect, if he takes his people over cobble-stones to have them in condition to enjoy or be benefited by the potion he has so carefully-, earnestly and prayer- fully prepared for them. Hymns should be wisely chosen. They may contain a thought that will serve as an anchor to some storm-tossed soul, that has but drifted into what will prove to be the harbor for a sin- sick and turbulent spirit. Why are h3^nms read ? The origin of hj'mn HYMN READING. 163 reading grew out ofn necessity. It dates back to many years ago when hymn books were scarce, choirs unknown, and church organs existed only in the fertile imagination of some inventive genius. It was then that the. pastor or deacon possessed about the only hymn book in the church, and from this he read the hymns — not for any expression, not with any partic- ular expression, but with and for a purpose; viz., that all might hear, and that all might sing. He gave them two lines at a time — " All hail the power of Jesus' name Let angels prostrate fall." "Sing." And the}- did sing, and thoroughly enjoyed the singing as they sang with the spirit of devotion. The jntrpose for which the hvmns were read was accomplished, but to-day, hymn reading is wholly unnecessary, fraught with many drawbacks, and should l)e wholh- aban- doned unless they are read with a desire to express the thought, to impress the thought, and to inspire the congregation. In any case, studv is requisite and it has its reward. The 1G4 HYMN REAOIXC. minis cer chooses the hymn to suit his theme, and he should make of it what it is capable of— a vakiable acquisition in the preparation of his people for his sermon. Hymns are divided into several classes, and vshould be read according to the individual class. When the minister has chosen his hymns, his next step should be to ascertain to which class each hymn belongs; i. e., supplication, medita- tion, exhortation, narration. A hymn may include all these modes of expression. If the hymn is in the form of a supplication, then the minister should supplicate; /. e., the words should not bespoken to the congregation but for the congregation and for himself. As an illustration of this class, w^e have the hymn — " My faith looks up to Thee, Thou Lamb of Calvary ! " An example of the meditative style may be found in those soulful w^ords " I'm nearer my home to-da3' Than ever I've been before." HYMN KICAnrNO. In the reading of this hymn, the minister acts as a month-piece for the entire congregation. By i)lacing himself into a meditative mood, he can the better bring his people into the same state of fccHng. He should, by his reading, im- press upon all his hearers, thiit they are " Nearer the bound of life where they lay their burdens down," that all are "Nearer leaving the cross, nearer gaining the crown." While he includes the congregation, he should take care, that by his reading he does not exclude himself As an example of exhortation, we would refer a'OU to the joyful coronation in which all are exhorted to participate. " All hail the power of Jesus' name Let angels prostrate fall." In the narrative style of reading, we will furnish two examples which are in marked con- trast with each other. What darker scene can l)e depicted to a con- gregation than that of midnight on a mountain ? and what is more calcidated to touch the sj'mpathctic heart, than to tell of the anguish 166 HYMN READING. of that "man of sorrows" Avho was pleading, ay pleading alone ? There are gardens of Gethsemane all over the world ! There are mountain brows that be- come darker ! There are stars that becoine dim ! There are always souls that are pleading that the cup may pass from them, but like Him of old, they, too, must drink of its bitterness, even to the dregs. Such a sorrow-ing soul ma}' be found in nearly every congregation. Then with what care should the minister read the hymn " Tis midnight! and on Olive's brow The star is dimmed that lateh- shone ; Tis midnight ! In the garden now The suffering Savior pra3's alone." Then again, the minister has the prixalege of changing the dark and turbulent waters to the song of joy, as heard in the clear ripple of the mountain brook when he tells us of " The old , old story," for " More vi^onderful it seems Than all the golden fancies Of all our "olden dreams." IIVMX READING. 1G7 " I love to tell the story! It did so much for me ! And that is just the reason I tell it now to thee." Suppose wc invest the reading with the result of only ear-life and ej'^e-life! By omitting the soul-lile, as in the case of nine out of every ten hymn-readers, what would be theeffectupon a congregation ? We should like to voice a few lines that you may the better judge " I love to tell the story ! It did so much for me! And that is just the reason I tell it now to thee." Is that the reason? Does the soul shine forth through its windows and assure us that we are in sympathy with the thought ? No, not when reading it in such a soul-less manner. We may tolerate carelessness and heartlcss- ness of expressions in society, but at the sacred desk it is unpardonable. Among other faults that exist in hymn-read- ing is what elocutionists term "inflectional tunc," more gcncrrdly known as "sing-song." IQg HYMN READING. Such reading is common Avitli children for it originates with the nursery rhymes. The pecuHar jingle given to the lines, makes it attractive to the child, and is an aid in memor- izing. We trace the same song through school, even in giving the multi])lication table. Whenever 3^ou hear that sing-song manner, whether in the nursery, in the school-room, or in the pulpit, you will he perfecth^safe in accept- ing it as a sure indication of the absence of thought, at least the absence of all expression of thought, which, of itself, marks the absence of impression. As proof of this, stop the boy when he is singing his multiplication-table of 2's, and ask him to tell j^ou the result of two times six. You will observe that you have placed an ob- struction on the track that causes him to halt, or throws him completely off. Before he is posi- tively assured of the result he wanders back to the beginning, and either mentally or in an undertone he repeats his song till he reaches the number called for. The thought has never been HYMN READING. ITiO impressed, he has simply learned the words through an imitative process. Again, if you desire to number a class of twenty or more having each, in turn, call his number, 3'ou will find, in the majority of cases that as soon as they enter the teens they will begin to sing- the numbers, thus : — 1-2-3, etc. We w^ill carry this sing-song through another grade on its way to the adult in poetry -reading, and to the minister in In-mn-reading. Pass through thehallsof many of our schools of to-day, and listen to the class in oral spelling. You will scarcely need to slacken your pace, in fact you need not enter the building, for the untrained voice is very penetrating. Listen ! The teacher gives the class thunder — to spell. I " ^ Thun I t h u thun d c Tliun der. I der. dcr Bar bar ous. r r b a b a bar bar ous us Bar bar us. Surely it is bar-bar-ous. 170 HYMN READING. Why even the teacher strikes the same notes every time, but not always in the same gentle (?) way. Is it any wonder that the innate sweetness of many of our lach^ teachers — but we wall stop right there, and remind you that we are talking of hymn-reading or hymn-singing. This unnecessary prolongation and sing-song of w^hich we have spoken is verj^ objectionable and disagreeable even in the school-room, and much more so in the pulpit. Faults are largely manufactured in the pri- mary grades of our public schools. What may be excusable in a child, is not always permissible in a man. We would like to suggest a motto for the minister to have framed and placed in his study as a constant reminder of his need to stud^^ the hymns, and lay by the faults of childhood. We will take our motto from the scriptures : ' ' When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child ; but when I became a man, I put away childish things," HYMN READING. 171 Let us look for a moment and see to what extent this ineffective and r/cfectiue hymn read- ing is found among our ministers; /. c, this tendency to sing-song. " There is a fountain filled with blood, Drawn from Immanuel's veins, And sinners plunged beneath that flood Lose all their gTjilty stains." Ta ta ta ta, ta ta ta Ta ta ta ta, ta ta This reading finds its counterpart — though not in measure — in the familiar nursery rhyme. "Dickory, dickorj-, dock, The mouse ran up the clock. The clock struck one And down it run Dickor}', dickory, dock." The last word in every line of the hymn is generally pushed over the pulpit to the floor with such force that it is quite suggestive of a combative element. You will obsers'e that there is no thought expressed when reading a hymn in that manner ; for, unimportant words are made jirominent, 172 HYMN READING. and important words lose their significance. The word veins has nothing to do with the thought, and is necessary only for the rh^^ming. Then again, ho\v often such reading mater- itilly chfingcs the sense of a h3'mn b}' completely breaking a thought in twain. To illustrate, — " Just as I am ! wiLlioiit one plea But that thy l:)loofl was shed for ine And that thou bidst me come to thee." By reading this hymn with a falling inflection on plea, assures us that he has no plea, not even one. "Just as I am ! Without one plea." Whereas, we are informed in the lines immed- iately follo^ving, that there are two pleas. 1st — " But that thy blood was shed for me, 2d — "And that thou bidst me come to thee. Hence the falling inflection at the end of the first line completely destroys the sense, and in fact makes a statement that is untrue. The falling inflection comes on the word "am," as that is a statement of itself, the conditionsheing an a/ter consideration. IIVMN KICAUINO. J 7.-] Closely rillied to the error of a falling inflec- tion at the end of each line is the very prevalent fault of al\va3's pausing iit the end of a line in poetry. A pause should he made only when the sense demands it, and onl}' where the sense demands it. Tr3'ing to preserve the rhyme by the pause is done at the expense of the thought, and some- times of the truth. This pausing versus sense reminds us of a young man who was called upon in class, to rise and read a stanza, the concluding lines of which were : — "And wlu'ii llic wiinl l)lc\v It rocked litr ])uiiy mansion. The last syllable of the last word did not ajjpear upon the same line as the first syllable, so the j'oung man stopped where the line stopped. "Anil when tlio wind l)lc\v It rocked licr pnny man." After taking his seat, he saw the rest of the word and thinking the remaining sA'llable to be 174 HYMN READING. two words he sprang to his feet, ssLjing, sigh on ; thereby makmg as much of the Hne as possi- ble. He expressed as much thought as is often given in hymn reading. Before leaving this branch of the pulpit work we wish to point out one more error in hymn reading, and in fact, in the reading of all poetry. It is slovenliness, arising from laziness and carelessness ; the result of which is not the most desirable, especially in sacred or solemn writ- ings. We will cite a number of instances that need no comments. ->! " Heaven with hosannas ] rings." not Heaven with hosanna's rings. "What it utters is it's only stock and store." not What it utters is its only stockin store. " We'll stand the storm, it won't be long We'll anchor by and by." n(Jt We'll lank her by and by. HYMN KKADINC. J < ;* "One sweetly sulcniii thought Comes to nie o'er and o'er." not Come stoo mc o'er and o'er. " Let nic sec then what there at is. lUlt Let nic see then what the rat is. "His father's heart was awed with grief." not His father's heart was sawed with grief. We trust that the examples just cited may impress upon the minister the need of more care and stud}' in the reading of his h^'mns. It is more essential that we mind the thought, than that wc mind the printed pauses. The printed ])auses govern the thought to the interpreter but the unseen pauses govern the thotight ironi the intcr])reter. " Kuskin gives us a word of encourage- ment In' sa3ing: — "If I could have a son or daughter jjossessed of but one accomplishment in life, it should be that of good reading." I'jQ HYMN READING. During the latter years of the life of Ralph Waldo Emerson, it was our pleasure and honor to meet him many times, and many were the cheering words that fell from his lips; while from his pen we record the following, from \vhich we gain fresh inspiration. "A good reader sum- mons the mighty dead from their toinbs and makes them speak to us." We trust that the few hints given on Bible reading and hymn reading may prove suffi- ciently suggestive to awaken an interest and determination that will prove highly beneficial to pastor and people. We will next invite your attention to a few practical thoughts concerning the third and most important part of the minister's public work. Rible reading and hymn reading are but the steps to Pulpit Eloquence. PULPIT ZLOgUZNGL Eloquence is just as essential at the sacred desk, as it is at the bar of justice or upon the rostriun. We do not tliink it is too much to sa^' that eloquence may be considered the biisines.H of the churcli, though it is too often considered only an accom])lishnient, and thus becomes orators' instead. The very business of the minister is to talk, and to talk so as to ]iersuadc ; that, is what we term eloquence. To persuade he must be heard, and to be licard lie must talk so as to please the ear while informinu^ the mind ; then he is what we term an orator. lie may have great ])ower in his eloquence, he will have great power, Ijut he will have <^Tc;itcr power if he uses nature's hand-maid, oratory, (as eloc[uence is nature). (177) 178 PULPIT ELOQUENCE. 'Twere better that he have eloquence without oratorj% than oratory without eloquence. The pulpit speaker differs from all others in the fact that he is not open to answer, therefore he has it all his own ^vay. He speaks not merely as a man offering his ow^n opinion to others, but as one \vho bears a message from a higher authority. Moreover he may assume that his congregation are in substantial agree- ment with him, consequently he has no need to prove his title. He is l)efore them of his own right and they acknowledge him to be their teacher. More than that, the subjects of which the preacher treats, are of the mightiest moment to all his hearers ; the highest and the humblest have an equal interest in the world against w^hose temptations he warns, and in the heaven to whose joys he invites. There is not a lumian weakness or a virtue, not a passion or a sentiment, that does not come legitimately within the sphere of his discourse. Whatever is nearest and dearest to us, whatever we most desire or most dread, all ITI.IMT EI.OQUENCK. 17'.) that is known ruul .-ill that is unknown, tlie busy present and the rrj-cat dark future arc his to wield at his will — for winning, for deterring, for detracting, for terrifN'ing. He can persuade or excite or awe his hearers at his pleasure. He may resort to all \vonders of art and of nature for illustrations; and if he comprehends the grandeur of his iTiission,he has the stimulous of consciousness, that with God's blessing, the Nvords he utters will save souls. There is many a good faithful minister who is often disheartened l)ccause he does not meet an3'' response to his most earnest and heart-felt appeals. He feels that he is a faithful laborer in the Master's vineyard ; hence is the more sur- prised that his efforts are so fruitless. Such a one belongs to a large class of ministers wlio forget that llicy must lay liold of every means of improvement and helpfulness that comes within reach. It is the duty of every ministv.'r to Adly jjre- pare himself not only in divining the thought, but to seek the best mode of giving it utterance. 180 i'ULPIT ELOQUENCE. Not only pauses, emphasis, and inflections need much care, but voice and bod3^ should be under perfect control. The voice too often proves a barrier in the way of a speaker's access to the minds and hearts of his audience. The voice is a God-given gift. It is a power in the pulpit, a great power for good and one which we see exercised outside the pulpit \vith great effect. It is a power which God has given to be used to His glory, and the minister can no more neglect its use and cultivation than he can properly neglect any other gift from His hand. The human voice has been made to reach the heart by its melodies, and to stir it up by its thrilling vibrations. It is the very trumpet of the truth, and by its certain sounds, we arm ourselves for the battle. We might as well say that we despise the ear for its office of carrying the sound, as to under- value the manner in which those sounds are made. We are well aware that there is much preju- dice to contend with when we speak of eloquence pri.riT n.oocKNCK. 181 in the ])ulpit. Let us look again at that word eloquenee and see what it imphcs. Eloquence is the act of placing opinions be- fore men in tlie manner most conducive to persuasion and conviction. We do not mean to imply b}' this that these opinions arc placed before men only, nor do we imply that women are out of the realm and hopelessly be\'^ond per- suasion and conviction. Worcester defines eloquence as " The art of clothing thoughts in such language, and of uttering them in such a manner, as is adapted to produce conviction and persuasion." Webster tells us that " Eloquence is the ex- pression or utterance of strong emotion, in a manner adapted to excite correspondent emo- tions in others." Worcester includes oratory and elocution in his definition, while Webster holds stricth' to eloc[uence. You can teach oratory and elocution but you cannot teach elo(iuence. Those who are gifted with eloquence should not neglect getting all 182 PULPIT ELOQUENCE. helpful aid from the art of oratory. It may perhaps be objected here, that sacred truth needs no art to enforce it, no ornament to set it off, that the apostles were artless and illiterate men ; and yet tlie^- gained the great end of their mission — the conviction of multitudes, and the establishment of their religion ; that therefore there is no necessity for this attention to deliver3^ in order to qualify the preacher for his sacred office, or to render his labors successful. To this, we a,ns\ver, the apostles were not all artless and illiterate. St. Paul, the greatest and most general propagator of Christianity is an eminent exception. He could be no mean orator who confounded the Jews at Damascus (Acts, 9-22) ; made a prince, before whom he stood to be judged, confess that he had almost persuaded him to be a convert to a religion everyAvhere spoken against (Acts, 26-28 and 28-22) ; threw another into a fit of trembling as he sat upon his judgment seat (Acts, 24-25) : made a defense before the learned court of areopagus, which gained for him a convert of a member of the PULPIT ELOQUEN'CE. 1S3 court itscir(Acts,17-34-) ; struck a whole people with such admiration that the}' took him for the god of clo(iucnce (Acts, 14-12) ; and gained him a place in Longinus' list of famous orators." A great manv ministers are honest in their belief that whom the Lord callethHe also(jiudi- fieth. Either they are mistaken in the origin of the call, or they are qualilied only in proportion to their capacity to receive. Such ministers quote Paul as being the ver}'- personification of all defects of vocal utterance and ph\^sical pre- sentation. True, he had defects and great ones, and he had art enough and eloquence enough to almost cover or obscure them. What greater proof do we want of this assertion than that contained in the London Spectator, No. 633. "It was with no small pleasure I lately met with a fragment of Longinus, which is jircscrvcd as a testimony of thiit author's judgment, at the beginning of a manuscript of the New Testa- ment in the Vatican Librar3^ After that author has numbered up the most celebrated orators among the (h*ecians, he says : ' add to these 184. PULPIT ELOQUENCE. Paul of Tarsus, the patron of an opinion not 3'et {ully proved.' ' But a great many of our worthj^ divines claim that what we call eloquence is not elo- quence, nor oratory, but the Hol3^ Ghost. And they father claim that if a man has the Holy Ghost he is all powerful and needs no outside agencies or aids. If the Holy Ghost were all sufficient, and every true minister possessed it, as every true minister should, inasmuch as God is no respecter of persons, then the whole world would or could be converted in an incredibly short time. There are men who delude them- selves w^ith this idea, but whose lives are so in- consistent and who so defile the temple that God has given them for the indwelling of the soul, that they have no right to expect greater results, and they must surely know that the Holy Ghost has no affinity for unclean habita- tions. There are many others who claim to have this power ever with them, yet will in no way endeavor to improve their manner of delivery. Every minister is an instrument in the hands ITLIMT KLOQUENCE. 185 of the Supreme being and it is his l^ounden dutv to keep himself in the liest working order. If, as an instrument, he becomes dull or gets rusty, he becomes comparatively useless, and he alone is responsible. 'Tis true "The clergy bear the messages of God in earthen vessels, but that is no reason why they should display their mereearthiness." Let it ever be borne in mind that truth, even truth when repulsively arrayed, repels rather than attracts the himgry soul. There are many orators in the pulpit who are not eloquent. Their orator\^ gets away with them, but it does not get away with any one else, especially with the sinners. You may begin to think that ministers are a very peculiar class of people. No ; no more so than the people to whom they preach. There are congregations that will not be satisfied un- less their pastor is on the juni]) every moment and pounds the dust out of the jnilpit cushion every Sunday. Talk to those ])e()i)lc of art, of reserved power? They would appreciate art in 186 PULPIT ELOQUENCE. its quiet but forcible manner, about as much as did the man from the rural districts, \vlio, when in the city "was seized with the toothache. He called upon a dentist to have his tooth ex- tracted. This was done quickly and artistically^ to the great astonishment of the patient. He was still more astonished when informed that the charges for this skilful work was 50 cents. " What ! 50 cents ? Why the tooth was out be- fore I knew it. There's a man out our way who drags you all arotmd the room for half an hour before he'll let go and he only charges a quarter." Every minister should conform to his sur- roundings. If he is preaching to intelligent and highly educated audiences his manner and mat- ter should be of the highest order. Should he be called to go among a class of men who belong to the lower stations in life, he should descend to that station in such a manner as not to lower himself but to elevate them. His terms of expression must be more simple, his vehicles of thought less polished, but he need not couch PULPIT ELOQUENCE. 187 his language in uncouth terms, hut he must ex- press himseir in a manner that will appeal more to the heart than to the head, more to the emotions than to the imdcrstanding. As an engine backs down to a train, so must the min- ister go down to such a peoole, then like the engine, he should be able to move as he wills. Many ministers miss the mark and shoot right over the heads of the people. This misapplication is well illustrated b\^ an incident in the life of the late John B. Gough. He used to allude to it as misdirected eloquence. He addressed a large comiKiny of miners in Pennsylvania, on the subject of temperance, but secured very few signers to the pledge. When Mr. Gough had concluded his speech, the over- seer of the mines asked him if he would be will- ing to listen to one of the miners — a convert to temperance — speak a few words to the bo^'s. Mr. Gough replied in the affirmative, though the over-seer assured him that the language of the speaker might be somewhat rough and mi- cultured. The miner arose, came forward took 188 PULPIT ELOOUENCE. his place on the stand, and looking at his swarthy comrades as if he were nroud of them, said : — * His speech was the speech of true, native eloquence, imembellished Ijj' oratory. Mr. Gough has often remarked that one such speech as that given by the miner, was worth fift}- such as be had just given; /. e., for such an occasion. The miner appealed to the heart and his words found lodgment. Mr. Gough appealed to the head and the words rebounded. Mr. Gough's mode of intellectual travel was far too polished and too fast for them. He passed them almost without a passenger with his express train and parlor car ; but the miner was \vell patronized wnth the old freight train and caboose. That miner was good in his place, but he could not have filled the place of John B. Gough. There is a class of ministers who are akin to * This being given wholly from nienior3' and never having been written by Mr. Gough or myself, the vi'ords need not neees- sarilj' be given in the body of this treatise. Thej' must be hea,rd, not read, to be appreciated. PULPIT ICLOOUENCE. 189 a class of elocutionists. They spring up mush- room-like and in their sudden development they flash, meteor-like before the people. They are good of their kind and among their kind, but their rough and uncouth manners and general illiteracy are more or less repulsive to an edu- cated and refined audience. A powerful sermon was once preached on justifiable anger, using as a text: " I am fear- fully and wonderfulh' made; " reading the Wv)r(l made, as if it were innd. The minister argued that it was right to get mad, because the Bible says; — "I am fearfully and wonderfully mad." Another minister preached on "skin-worms" from the passage of Job ;" after my skin, worms shall destroy my flesh." He asserted that Job had "skin-worms" because he spoke of the skin-worms destroying his flesh. Another preached very fervently on the sin of pla^'ing marbles, because tlie Savior said : "Marvel not my l)reaLhern" — he, reading it *' mnrblc not." Still another made an attack upon llie 190 PULPIT ELOCjUEXCE. Knight Templars endeavoring to prove that no Knight could enter Heaven for the Bible was very clear on that point, saying that "There shall be no night there." We know of a minister in Iowa, but a very short time since, who claimed that he could fulh' demonstrate that there was such a thing as less than nothing. Turning to the black-board — he was preaching in a school-house — he drew a cipher thereon ; and, looking at his audience he exclaimed ^^ there, is nothing;" then with a wonderful degree of intelligence (?) he proved his assertion hj placing a sm.aller cipher inside of the larger one, and with a triumphant air exclaimed, ^^ there, is less than nothing." The congregation looked at the ciphers on tht black- board, then at the cipher on the platform, and they admitted that the undeniable living evi- dence stood before them, jjroving conclusively that there is something less than nothing. We believe that every man may exert a power over certain of his felloAvs, but a man to be a leader must, of necessity, be in advance of m.PIT ELOQUENCE. 101 those whom he would lead ; hence we assert that it is preposterous for men of no education or refinement, to stand before cultured and intelligent audiences, and endeavor to enlighten them on the mighty truths of the gospel. Thc}-^ may be good, earnest, whole-souled men, who are thoroughly iminied with the spirit of their Avork, and ma^'- be doing well with the knowl- edge they have, but they must bear in mind that the stream cannot rise above its sourcfe. It was this class of ministers we had in view when we said, under the subject of Bi1)le reading, that every minister should know his Greek Testament and his Hebrew Bible. It is only an enlightened man who can enlighten. These men who so suddenly ai)i)ear before the thinking world, will as suddenly r//.sappear if they are of sudden growth. That which matures cpiickly, decay's readily. It takes an oak a hundred years, perhaps, to get its growth, but a cabbage requires but three months, perhaps less. There is not anything on the face of the earth that is of any worth, any impor- 192 PULPIT ELOQUENCE. tance, any value, that is not long in coming to niattirit3\ He who appears to accomplish it in some sudden inspiration — if it be lasting — Is only bringing to the notice of the world, some force, some thought, some power that has been hidden, preparing itself underground, or beneath appearance, perhaps, for man 3- years. The centurv^-plant will bloom in a few days, but it takes a centur\^ for it to get readj^ to bloom." We believe that the minister of to-day, should have a thorough training in a theological seminary. We have heard the most absurd statements made from the pulpit, in consequence of a lack of biblical knowledge, and too often those statements have proved a stumbling block in the way of a seeker after truth. The theological course will not make a min- ister, any more than the college will make a scholar. We think the theological seminaries are often at fault in receiving men whom they know can never be successful in the ministr3% but \vill, in- stead, clog the wheels of Christain progress, PULPIT ELOQUENCE. 193 and be an elephant on the hands of the unfortu- nate Christian community u])on whom they must be saddled. Those men whose office it is to accept or refuse, should be as honest and conscientious, as was the chairman of a Scotch presb^'ter}' before whom a 3'oung man appeared as a candi- date for the ministr3\ The 3'oung man had worked for 3^ears at broom-making and had achieved a reputation therein. His case was carefully considered by the presbyterj', and the chairman in due time waited upon the 3'oung man, saying, "My brother, the Lord calls some men to the ministry, some to the farm, some to one place, some to another, according to their ability-. \Vc have concluded that the Lord has given you a special call — for broom-making. Maj'' His blessing rest upon you." When we are called n])c)n to pass our judgment upon applicants for the rostrum, or for the stage, we think we are able to judge as to the abili*-y of the applicant. Were we not conscientious in the matter we might fill our lyi PULPIT ELOQUENCE. coffers with that, the love of which is ' 'the root of all evil," but we could never uproot the evil we had done. It may be, however, that our presbyters are, actuated by the same motives as those of the old lady who made it a rule never to turn away a beggar as unworthy fearing she might wrong one who was worthy. There is many a man fitted for the pulpit, who never Jits the pulpit. There is many a man fitted for the pulpit who is better fitted for the plougJi. There is many a man at the plough who might be a pozver in the pulpit. Parents too frequently o'er step their rights, or at least make serious mistakes in forcing a child into a profession or trade, for which he has no liking, no ability. You are probably familiar with the illustration so often cited in support of this argument: — A young man was a born machinist and he might have become as famous as Edison, had he been allowed to follow the bent of his genius. Hungry for anything in the shape of a machine upon which he might be I « PULPIT ELOQUENCK. 19J! allowed to look. But his father, 1)y a strong hand, put him through a theological seminary and made a stupid minister of him." There is a great responsibility resting upon those who are called upon to pass judgment. 'Twas hut a few weeks ago that a friend of ours, a D. D. said to us, " The worst thing lever did in my life was to encourage or rather per- suade the Rev. to enter the ministry." We knew the reverend gentleman of whom he spoke, and wc knew him as a noted author, a brilliant thinker, a polished orator, a minister who drew, by his many (pialities, thousands of people every Sabbath ; and they were as intel- lectual a peo])le as ever assembled under one roof. He always gave them a treat, but it Was wholU' an intellectual treat. lie was, as we have said, an orator, but he was not eloquent. He brought his goods from the mental store- house, for his soul was dark and the cobwebs of lust and deceit had gathered around it. He was a man of great possibilities. We predicted his downfall, and he did fall; ay, "Fell like the 196 PUI.PIT ELOQUENCE. snowflakes from Heaven to Hell." Hehasdone much by his voice and his pen, and yet would any one venture to say that he was at anytime acted upon by the Holy Ghost ? We take the same view of the ministry as we do of our bodies, /. e., God permits many a mar to be ill, but he does not necessarily will it. God permits many a man to occupy a pulpit, but he does not necessarily will it. When you are ill you must lay hold of those means that will restore you. A minister may be ill or lame in his professional office, and it is his duty to lay hold of every means within his power to make himself more worthy the calling. While he labors earnestly in so carefully preparing the matter, he should not neglect the manner in which that matter is to be presented. In the Pennsylvania Law Journal we find the following thought which is apropos to this subject. "How many a jur}^ has thought a speaker's argument without force, because his manner was so ; and have found a verdict against law and against evidence, because they IMI,IMT KLOQITENCE. 197 had ])ccn cliarnicd into delusion by the potent fascinatit)n of some ^j^ifted orator." If the lawyer can use this power in the de- fense of wrong; surely the minister should no ': hesitate to use it in the defense o^ right. We often hear the objection raised that rul. s of oratory will cramp one in his expressions. As well may 3-011 sa\' that the rules of grammar interfere with the fluency of speech. Hence we assert that "this prejudice against the study of orator}' is as unreasonable as the prejudice against the study of grammar, or rhetoric, or logic. The orator need be no more troubled with his rules, than is the grammarian who, in conversation, talks correcth' without mentally parsing every sentence he utters." Wendell Phillips was a most polished speaker and as idl know, a most powerful one. When questioned as to the secret of his ])ower he re- plied : — "It is the burning love of truth in my heart that must come out." He did not rely wholly upon his native pov^^er, but used art to enforce the truth, yet no one ever saw the art. 198 PULPIT ELOQUENCE. When listening to his eloquence. You could but observe his quiet manner, and would wonder ofttimes at the greatness of his powder. Try to turn from him when he was thus manifesting that reserved power and you would find he had woven about you a chain so subtle and ^-et so strong, that you were held as if entranced. He seldom gesticulated, but wdien he did it carried the more force in consequence of its infrequency, and the thought that impelled it. When he spoke in tones of sarcasm in his bitter denuncia- tions of the wrong enacted in his da^^ he struck fearlessly and yet, even in this, he used his art, for he never did his work clumsily nor did he use a blunt instrument, but he stabbed with a stiletto. He said what he meant and he meant what he said. In order to inspire the minister to greater zeal in his grand work \ve ^vill cite an incident in the life of Lacordaire — once well known in Paris. In order to preach a most effectual sermon on the crucifixion of the Savior, he had a rude PULPIT Kl.OOl KNCIv. 199 cross erected in tlie1)asemcnl of his rectory. To this cross he attached himself and remained in solitary thought, suspended eight hours He then passed directly to the sanctuary' without rest or nourishment, and delivered one of the most eloquent and tlirilling discourses ever heard in Notre Dame. True, this was for an unusual occasion, and he chose this unusiud jjreparation in order to be equal to the occasion. There are various ways of presenting a ser- mon. One may be obliged to use his manu- script, another only notes or a skeleton, another may extemporize, while still another may be gifted as a memoriter. Each style may have its special points of excellence, as each of these avenues of expression will have some advan- tages, some drawbacks. None but a fluent speaker should ever try to extemporize. His hesitation is much more ob- jectionable than his manuscript. One must draw the distinction betAveen ii^intj^ his manu- script and abusing it. The speaker should at 200 PULPIT ELOQimNCE. least, be familiar enough with it not to be en- slaved to it. It is a patient and forgiving congregation who will listen to a man Avho preaches with down-cast eyes. No gestures should be made w^hen the eyes are not free from the manuscript. iVeither gestures nor attitudes should be thought of at the time of making them. Pre- vious study should put the body under such joerfect control that all gestures and attitudes should be but the spontaneous outburst of nature. Unless one is graceful by natuie, he should be made so by art, but he should forget his teaching the moment he steps before the public. If it has not become a part of him, 'twere better that it depart from him. "The best gestures I have ever known," says one, " are those I did not perceive." Before leaving this branch of our subject we desire to turn the Delsartean telescope upon our good patured brother. By this grandest of all systems we are brought face to face with man as he is. Everv- PULPIT ELOrjUENCE. 201 man, in every station in life, possesses a three- fold nature, — the mental, moral iind vital. A perfectly developed individual is a rarit^^ ; hence we will fmd one of these three elements pre- dominatinjj^. Thus we find three tyiJcs of ministers. The mental element predominating gives us a cold, critical, methodical minister. The moral ele- ment predominating gives us the warm hearted, social, congenial minister. The vital element predominating gives us the fiery, robust, wide-awake, broad-shouldered, broad-natured minister. The mental minister emerges from his study in a cold, intellectual atmosphere, as if he had just come from a refrigerator, and he gives his people facts, — cold, stubborn facts. His whole discourse is cold, critical, analytical, lie preaches from the head and he jircachcs to the head, but he is the t^'pical minister for man}' of our st^dish city churches, as the pastor is required to do all the thinking and all the praj'ing and the people all the paying. 202 PULPIT ELOOUKNCE. Such churches never swell their numbers unless it be the result of some evangelist who comes along for the good of the cause, and revives the pastor and the people. These mental ministers never make an}- con- verts, for that requires /jeart-work, not head- -work, and heart-work is out of their calibre. We often wonder w^hat such a minister would do if he were to stumble over a convert. It is more likely the convert would stumble over him. The vital minister is a man full of animal magnetism, and though he gets many an erring one to forsake his evil ways, he is apt to rel^rtoo largely at times, on that outward strength, in consequence of which, sinners are driven into the fold, and the result is not always desirable, for men thus acted iipon have a re-action, and they leap the bounds and become the so-called moral men of the world. The moral minister; /. c, the heart minister is the one for young men to emulate. Such a one has more or less of the vital element. Wt do not wish to be tmderstood as speaking dis- paragingly of the vital nature. No, indeed. We admire it,but do not want it to be the predomi- nating element. A good, l)ig heart — big ex])resses so much more than large — wants, and mUvSt have a good hig place in \vhich to live. The moral minister is one who !s ever actuated by the noblest impulses from the heart nature. He is truh' a Christian; /. c, CVhrist- like, never allowing an occasion to pass b}- unheeded if good can be done. He does not confine his work to the Sabbath and to the church, l)ut, his is an every-day religion. His preaching takes hold of men and keeps ho' \ of them. Ever}' minister should l)c true to nature, then he may be said to be truly dramatic. Art is an aid not a hindrance to nature. Every child is dramatic. A better type of the dramatic never walked the earth than the Savior; no man ever spake as this man. The term drrimntic is often confounded witli tlie term theatrical, hence the prejudice existing. ,,04- PULPIT ELOQUENCE. During one of the lecture tours of the late John B. Gough, he was waited upon by a church committee — who were more fastidious than wise — and was requested by them to be kind enough to avoid his usual theatrical manner, as the church-members \vere very mtich opposed to any such mannerisms. Mr. Gough appeared licfore that sedate audience ; but in order not to be theatrical — as they understood the term — he avoided being dramatic as he understood that term, hence v^as not natural. He stood, or tried to stand during his discourse, perfecth^ still. Just im- agine such a nature as his being quiet when he was speaking on the subject of intemperance, and especially as he recalled his seven years of worse than Avasted life. There he stood with his whole soul on fire, and sending forth such words as should have burned their \vay into the very souls of his hearers : but the fire was smothered, because he was restricted in his soul- ful expressions. He began his talk, however, with his arms PULPIT ELOQUENCE. 2(>r> ajiparcntly jjinioncd to his side, 1)ut, ever and anon, the thought would try to express itself other than vocally and his arms would rise, but as quickly- would he drop them as he thought of his admonition by that committee. We will en- deavor to give you a practical illustration of a man thoroughly aroused on his subject, wholh' free from his manuscript, and battling with his emotions lest thej-- should assert their rights. This was Mr. Gough's attempt to avoid being dramatic. What was the result? His hearers ^vere disappointed and they were re- sponsible for it. He did not sustain the fame that had preceded him. Not long after, he was requested to return to the same people and repeat his lecture by giving it in his usual manner; in other words, they were anxious to listen to John B. Gough, for even when he was restricted the}' caught a glimpse and felt the glow of the latent fire that burned in the bosom of that eloquent man. 20P PULPIT ELOQUENCE. Let as encourage true dramatic power, and discourage ail vain pomp and show. ^ We abominate, from the very bottom of our elocutionary soul, anything that approaches theatrical mouthing and spouting and bluster, and the more so when it is practiced at the sacred desk. On the other hand we have no defense to make for the feeble, sicklj^ silh^ mum- bling and inefficiency of him who struts his little hour in the pulpit to the disgust of all common- sensed people; and above all, may we be saved the punishment so often inflicted upon congre- gations who are obliged to listen to one who pours forth his strains in sanctimonious meas- ure. Such tones are false, and falseness is mockery. There should be reverence in the man. in the subject, in the occasion. Do not mistake the term« bathos and pathos. We do not blame the public for being preju- diced a.arainst orator^^ and elocution when wrong i'^.eas are inculcated by tneu who shovtirJ have more judgment. Within a few weeks it was our paint al pnv- PIXI'IT KLOQIEXCE. 207 ilege to listen to three noted divines of elocu- tionary and oratorical renown. They were men of high positions and high salaries. We believe in, and advocate, true elocution ; but we believe it is not true art unless it places the minister back of the truth. He should stand behind the cross and let it complctel3' o'er shadow him. The three men of renown to whom Ave re- ferred, took every occasion to show themselves, placing themselves by their profuse and mean ingless gestures and attitudes, or motionSj where they seemed to say, — look at me never mind the cross. I do not wish to impress ur>'^ you what was said, but that /said it. One of the three, fulh' illustrated this facr for he impressed us with the idea that he was desirous of having all the congregation know his name, lest many would never know the great personage who stood l)efore them, and to whom the}- had the honor of listening. We had not long to wait for the confirmation of our suspicions, for soon the minister in question, 208 PULPIT ELOQUENCE. soared awaj^ on the wings of oratory — not eloquence — and when he had reached the dizzy height upon which was enthroned his name, he touched it as if by a magic wand, and brought it forth, emblazoned in all the grandeur and the glory of self-illumination. Truly, there is a wide distinction between eloquence and oratory. Every minister should make of himself all that he can for the good of the cause, but should not use the cause for self exaltation. Bishop Andrews in a recent confer- ence in Indiana said : "You have no business to be a bad preacher. Seize some fragment of divine truth and hold it in 3^our mind shaping it, pondering it, until you can present it from your deepest soul. You have not simply to preach the truth, you must preach it adroitly. State felicitously those things which you say, put them into as attractive a dress as jovl can. The teaching man must be a knowing man. Every minister should be like a most perfect and pellucid glass, through which one sees not the PULPIT ELOQUENCE. 209 glass nor thinks of it, hut only the objects at which he looks." A minister should get into the atmosphere of his work, ere he attempts to breath it out upon those around him. We would like to write this w^ord before every hymn, every scripture lesson, every sermon. If a minister is kindly spoken to by some mcinber of his congregation, or by his wife — or some other man's wife — of some fault that is fixing itself upon him in the way of a habit that will prove detrimental, he should receive such admonition with thankfulness, for the habit will ever assert itself. A president of a theological seminary was giving a parting word to a class of seniors, and he illustrated, unconsciously, the force of habit. He said : " I desire to impress upon you the necessity of great care concerning habits of any kind that may rob you of your power. Should a habit fasten itself upon j^ou ere you are aware of its detrimental effect, if you are (Ictermined to be no longer enslaved by it, you need not be. 210 PULPIT ELOQUENCE. It is l3ut necessary to employ your will, for," said he: — "I speak from experience. In my younger days when I was preaching I used to have the habit of bringing my hand down on my head whenever I emphasized a word. I resolved to quit it, and I did quit it and I've not done it from that day to this." (Bringing his hand unconsciously down on his head, as in days of yore.) Every man has his mannerisms, and the greatest mistake of the elocutionist is his lack of discrimination in his endeavor to remove them. Many a naturally good speaker has, unfor- tunately, fallen into the hands of an inexper- ienced or judgment-lacking teacher, in conse- quence of which his wings are clipped with the professional shears, and he can no longer soar upon the \vings of eloquence; whereas, he might have been an eagle in the oratorical world. The true teacher will readily discern between the mannerisms that are a power, and those that are at all detrimental. Mannerism is PIUIMT ELOQUENCE. iiik ^jower, and the more marked it is, the more marked is the individuality. Mannnerisms should be natural and unstudied; they should belong to and be a part of one's self, for " Bor- rowed mannerisms, like borrowed garments seldom fit." What is beconmiing in one man may be very unbecoming in another. Make the very best of what you have and let the world know that you are alive; and, when you are dead, make that equally apparent by the fact of being missed. In conclusion let us urge upon all ministers and all who aspire to the ministry', that greater importance should lie placed on Bible reading, hymn reading and pulpit eloquence. Lose not an opportunit3', nor an occasion for improve- ment. Cull the sweetness from every flower along your pathway. Take into 3'our life all the purity and strength and grandeur of which it is capable ; then let your sovd expand until vts genial rays shall be felt on every hand. " Reach out and touch the pulse of the world aboutyou, and its thrill will irive vou life and usefulness. 1^ X UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY This book is DUE on the last date stamped below nro 2 1946 OCT 2 6 1951 i OAM & DEC 2 6 11 ■*FEB4 1970 OI9GHM6E4liiL FormL-9-15m-7,'35 iPNIVERSlTY Of CA AT LOS ANGELLa hLA. ^' 3 1158 00666 4444 UCSOUTHrR^''r ■•■W FACILITY AA 000 409 667 3 ■^r;rA.-^<'aiiuKirnKX--^-irmaMrr.:':-,iiaw