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EXAMPLE. Our disordered hearts', our guilty passions', our violent prejudices', and misplaced desires', are the instruments of the trouble which we endure.

2d. A Concluding Series.

When the series ends the sentence, or forms complete sense, every particular in the series, except the last but one, should have the falling inflection; and, indeed, all should have it, if the closing member of the series is of sufficient length to admit a pause with the rising inflection, before the end.

EXAMPLE. Charity suffereth long', and is kind'; charity envieth not'; charity vaunt- . eth not itself; is not puffed up'; doth not behave itself unseemly`; seeketh not her own'; is not easily provoked'; thinketh no evil.

RULE IX.-Expressions of tender emotion, such as grief, pity, kindness, gentle joy, a gentle reproof, gentle appeal, gentle entreaty or expostulation, etc., commonly require a gentle rising inflection.

EXAMPLES.-Mary'! Mary'! do not do so'.

My mother'! when I learned that thou wast dead',
Say', wast thou conscious' of the tears' I shed'?
Hovered thy spirit o'er thy sorrowing son',
Wretch even then', life's journey just begun'?

I would not live alway'; I ask not to stay,
Where storm after storm rises dark o'er the way';
I would not live alway, thus fettered by sin';
Temptation without, and corruption within';—

Is your father' well', the old man' of whom ye spake'? Is he' yet alive'?

RULE X.-Expressions of strong emotion, such as the language of exclamation (not designed as a question), authority, surprise, distress, denunciation, lamentation, earnest entreaty, command, reproach, terror, anger, hatred, envy, revenge, etc., and strong affirmation, require the falling inflection.

EXAMPLES.-What a piece of work is man'! How noble in reason! how infinite in faculties! in action', how like an angel! in apprehension', how like a God'! My lords, I am amazed'; yes, my lords, I am amazed at his Grace's speech.

Woe unto you Pharisees! Woe unto you Scribes'!

You blocks', you stones', you worse than senseless things!

Go to the ant', thou sluggard'; consider her ways, and be wise'.

Jesus saith unto her, Mary'. She turned herself, and said unto him, Rabboni.

I tell you, though you', though all the world', though an angel from heaven' should declare the truth of it, I could not believe it.

I dare' accusation. I defy' the honorable gentleman.

I'd rather be a dog', and bay the moon', than such a Roman'.
CAS. O ye gods'! ye gods! must I endure all this'?

BEU. All this? ay', and more`.

NOTE.-When exclamatory sentences become questions they require the rising inflection.

EXAMPLES.-What are you saying'!— Where are you going'!

They planted by your care'! No! your oppressions planted them in America'.

THE CIRCUMFLEX OR WAVE.

RULE XI.-Hypothetical expressions, sarcasm, and irony, and sentences implying a comparison or contrast that is not fully expressed, often require a union of the two inflections on the same syllable.

EXPLANATION. In addition to the rising and falling inflections, there is what is called the circumflex or wave, which is a union of the two on the same syllable. It is a significant twisting or waving of the voice, generally first downward and then upward, but sometimes the reverse, and is attended with a sensible protraction of sound on the syllable thus inflected. It is marked thus: (^) as, "I may possibly go to-morrow, though I can not go to-day." "I did it myself, sir. Surprising'! You did it!"

EXAMPLES.-If the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner

appear?

I grant you I was down, and out of breath; and so was he.

And but for these vile guns, he would himself' have been a soldier'.

QUEEN. Hamlet', you have your father much offended.

HAMLET. Madam', you have my father much offended.

SHYLOCK. If it will feed nothing else, it will feed my revenge.

Hath a dog money'? Is it possible a cur can lend two thousand ducats'?

They tell us to be moderate; but they, they are to revel in profusion.

You pretend to reason'? You don't so much as know the first elements of reasoning. NOTE.-A nice distinction in sense sometimes depends upon the right use of the inflections.

EXAMPLES. "I did not give a sixpence'."

"I did not give a sixpence."

The circumflex on sixpence implies that I gave more or less than that sum; but the falling inflection on the same word implies that I gave nothing at all.

"Hume said he would go twenty miles to hear Whitefield preach" (here the circumflex implies the contrast), "but he would take no pains to hear an ordinary' preacher."

"A man who is in the daily use of ardent spirits, if he does not become a drúnkard', is in danger of losing his health and character."

The rising inflection on the closing syllable of drunkard would pervert the meaning wholly, and assert that, in order to preserve health and character, one must become a drunkard.

"The dog would have died if they had not cut off his head."

The falling inflection on died would make the cutting off his head necessary to saving his life.

A physician says of a patient, "He is better'." This implies a positive amendment. But if he says, "He is better'," it denotes only a partial and perhaps doubtful amendment, and implies, "But he is still dangerously sick."

THE MONOTONE.

RULE XII.-The monotone, which is a succession of words on the same key or pitch, and is not properly an inflection, is often employed in passages of solemn denunciation, sublime description, or expressing deep reverence and awe. It is marked with the short horizontal dash over the accented vowel. It must not be mistaken for the long sound of the vowels, as given in the Pronouncing Key.

EXAMPLES.-And one cried unto another, and said, Hōly, hōly, hōly is the Lord of hōsts. The whole earth is full of his glory.

Blessing, honor, glory, and power be unto him that sitteth on the throne, and to the Lamb forever and ever.

In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep fälleth on men, fear came upon me, and trembling which made all my bōnes to shake. Then a spirit passed before my face; the hair of my flesh stood up. It stood still, but I could not discern the fōrm thereof: an image was before my eyes, there was silence, and I heard a voice, saying, Shall mōrtal mãn be mōre just than God? Shāll a man be mōre pūre than his Māker?

IV. PRINCIPLES OF GENERAL APPLICATION.

The first and most important is, "Be sure you understand what you read, and endeavor to express the sentiments of the author as you would express the same if they were your own, and you were talking." No one can read well who does not fully adhere to this principle.

In the second place, those who would excel in reading should cultivate every manly and noble virtue; for no one can fully express noble sentiments unless he feels them. Counterfeit imitations will be detected. In the language of Dr. Blair: "A true orator" (and, we may add, a correct and effective reader) "should be a person of generous sentiments, of warm feelings, and of a mind turned toward the admiration of all those great and high objects which mankind are naturally forced to admire. Joined with the manly virtues, he should at the same time possess strong and tender sensibility to all the injuries, distresses, and sorrows of his fellow-creatures; a heart that can readily enter into the circumstances of others, and make their case his own."

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[NOTE. The small superior figures throughout this book refer to the Elocutionary RULES, of which the sentences thus marked are illustrations. See preceding pages. The small superior letters refer to the definitions at the end of the lesson.]

1. Is not this a beautiful picture'? What a fine, round, healthy, and noble face this child has'!" How bright are his eyes'!" His hair is soft and

curling. How round and full his arms are'!1o They are almost as white as the driven snow'.

2. Surely, this boy is the very picture of health and childish beauty. His frank and honest face tells us that he is happy. How much we can read in that face! He must have kind parents, who love him dearly.

3. And the young man the stranger, who so kindly takes the hand of this child-has not he a fine face too'?' He speaks gently to the child. You can see that in his very face. We can almost fancy that we hear him speak words of kindness. He has not an angry look. His face shows that he is a good young man.

4. And what season of the year do you suppose it is? Is it summer', or is it winter? How can you tell? Do you think the white in the picture is snow? Does it look cold and cheerless there'?1

5. If it were snow, would the boy be barefoot'?' Would his arms be bare'? Would he be without a hat or a cap on his head'? Would there be grass, and leaves, and flowers around him, if it were winter? Would he look so cheerful and happy, if he were standing barefoot in the snow?1

6. Have you ever heard the cold called pinching cold'? Why do we say it is pinching cold'?" Because severe cold seems to pinch up the face, and the hands, and all the parts that are exposed' to the chilly air. Does this boy look as though he were pinched with cold'? Does not his open, cheerful, sunny face show that it is summer-time'?

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