13. Laborious And Impetuous Motion. With many a weary step and many a groan Up the high hill he heaves a huge round stone: The huge round stone, resulting with a bound, Thunders impetuous down, and smokes along the ground. 14. Language Compared To An Organ. O, how our organ can speak with its many and wonderful voices!— Play on the soft lute of love, blow the loud trumpet of war, ,' Sing with the high sesquialtro, or, drawing its full diapason, Shake all the air with the grand storm of its pedals and stops. 15. Boisterous And Gentle Sounds. 16. The Witches' Caldron. For a charm of powerful trouble 17. Power Of The English Language. Now clear, pure, hard, bright, and one by one, like to hail- syllables, Dance the elastic Dactylics in musical cadences on; Now, their voluminous coil intertangling like huge anacondas, Poll overwhelmingly onward the sesquipedalian w&rds. X. STYLE. THE first and most natural use of the voice is in common conversation; and the ability to read as a cultivated person talks is the foremost accomplishment of a reader. The test to be applied in reading the conversational stvle is this: Would a listener know whether you were reading or talking? The narrative and descriptive styles are next in regard to fluency, and should be read as a person would tell a story with the design to make it interesting to his auditors. The didactic style is more difficult, as there is constant danger of falling into dullness and monotony of manner. It must be read as if earnestly and sympathetically teaching truth to the hearers. The style of public address varies with the nature of the occasion which gives rise to it, from a familiar and colloquial manner to a more formal and dignified utterance. It must be free from all mannerisms; and if circumstances demand loudness of voice, it must not be at the sacrifice of a sweet and agreeable quality. The declamatory style is that of the orator on great public occasions. All the vocal effects are, so to speak, magnified. The tones are more full and powerful, the inflections more decisive, the manner more imposing than in ordinary utterance. Dramatic and emotional expression require all the varied resources of which the voice is capable;—" with this special observance, that you o'erstep not the modesty of nature." I. Conversational. 1. "A fine mdrning, Mr. Linkinwater," said Nicholas, entering the office. "Ah!" replied Tim, "talk of the country, indeed! What do you think of this now for a day,—a London day,—6h ?"— "It's a little clearer out of town, "said Nicholas. "Clearer?" echoed Tim Linkinwater, "you shall see it from my bed-room window." "You shall sec it from mine," replied Nicholas, with a smile. "Pooh! pdoh!" said Tim Linkinwater, "don't tell me. Country! Ndnsense. What can you get in the country but new-laid eggs and fldwers? I can buy new-laid eggs in Leadenhall market any morning before breakfast; and as to flowers, it's worth a run up stairs to emell my mignonette, or to see the double wallflower in the Lack-attic window, at No. 0, in the court." "But hark! I hear him coming, The outside latch was lifted, They heard him calling, "Mother," He stamped his feet in the entry, 3. "He has been very extravagant."—"Ah, sir, he has been very unfortunate, not extravagant."—" Unfortunate! Ah, it's the same thing. Little odds, I fancy. For my part, I wonder how folks can be unfortunate. I was never unfortunate. Nobody need be unfortunate, if they look after the main chance, /always looked after the main chance."—" He has had a large family to maintain."—"Ah! married foolishly; no offence to you, ma'am. But when poor folks marry poor folks, what are they to look for? you know. Besides, he was so foolishly fond of assisting Sthers. If a friend was sick, or in jail, out came his purse, and then his creditors might go whistle. Now if he had married a woman with money, you know, why then. . ." BTngo, why, Bingo! hey, hey—here, sir, here . . . II. Light Narrative. In this wheelbarrow." So then I was blind-like To what he had a-working in his mind-like, And mounted for a passenger inside; And coming to a puddle, pretty wide, He tipped mc in, a-grinning back behind-like. So when a man may come to me so thick-like, And shake my hand where once he passed me by, And tell me he would do me this or that, I can't help thinking of the big boy's trick-like, And then, for all I can but wag my hat And thank him, I do feel a little shy. 2. I had a piece of rich, sweet pudding on my fork, when Miss Louisa Friendly begged to trouble me for part of a pigeon that stood near me. In my haste, scarce knowing what I did, I whipped the pudding into my mouth, hot as a burning coal! It was impossible to conceal my agony; my eyes were starting from their sockets! At last, in spite of shame and resolution, I was obliged to drop the cause of my torment on my plate. The mountain and the squirrel III. Narrative and Descriptive. 1. A friend called on Michael Angelo, who was finishing a statue; some time afterwards he called again; the sculptor was still at his work; his friend, looking at the figure, exclaimed, "You have been idle since I saw you last." "By no means," replied the sculptor; "I have retouched this part and polished that; I have softened this feature and brought out this muscle; I have given more expression to this lip and more energy to this limb." "Well, well," said his friend, "but all these are trifles." "It may be so," replied Angelo, "but recollect that trifles make perfection, and that perfection is no trifle." 2. At the conclusion of the American Revolution, Dr. Franklin, the English ambassador, and the French minister, Vergennes, dicing together at Versailles, a toast from each was called for and agreed to. The British minister began with: "George IIL—who, like the sun in his meridian, spreads a luster throughout and enlightens the world." The French minister followed with: "The illustrious Louis XVI.—who, like the moon, sheds his mild and benignant rays on and influences the globe." Our American Franklin then gave: "George Washington, Commander of the American Army—who, like Joshua of old, commanded the sun and moon to stand still, and they obeyed him." 3. Patrick Henry, who gave the first impulse to the ball of the Revolution, introduced his celebrated resolution on the Stamp Act, in the Virginia House of Burgesses, in 17G5. As he descanted on the tyranny of that obnoxious act, he exclaimed: "Caesar had his Brutus; Charles the First his Cromwell; and George the Third "— "Treason !" cried the Speaker; "Treason! Treason! Treason!" re-echoed from every part of the house. It was one of those trying moments which are decisive of character; but Henry faltered not for an instant; and rising to a loftier attitude, and fixing on the Speaker an eye flashing with fire, continued,—" may profit by these examples: if this be treason, make the most of it." 4. We walked along the road and saw a white and hospitablelooking house. The door stood open, and a young mother sat and wept over her dying child. A small boy was standing by |