drink in the free and fresh inspirations of nature and art; and, by unremitting daily exercise, to give expansion to his chest, and strength and freedom of play to his lungs.

"We see him again, when the tempest comes on, hurrying to the least-frequented parts of the Piræus or Phalerus; and while the deafening thunders roar around him, and the deep and stirring eloquence of many waters expands and fills his soul, lifting his feeble and stammering voice, and essaying to give it compass, and flexibility, and power, while he talks with the thunder as friend to friend, and weaves his garland of the lightning's wing.'"

Reading aloud and recitation," says ANDREW COMBE, "are more useful and invigorating muscular exercises than is generally imagined; at least, when managed with due regard to the natural powers of the individual, so as to avoid effort and fatigue. Both require the varied activity of most of the muscles of the trunk to a degree of which few are conscious till their attention is turned to it. In forming and undulating the voice, not only the chest, but also the diaphragm and abdominal muscles, are in constant action, and communicate to the stomach and bowels a healthy and agreeable stimulus."

ELOCUTION.

LOCUTION is the delivery of extemporaneous or written composition. We say of elocution, it is good or bad; clear, fluent, or melodious; though it is often used as nearly synonymous with eloquence, the act of expressing thoughts with elegance and beauty.

We purpose, in this TREATISE, to present all necessary directions, rules, and exercises, under the four general divisions RESPIRATION, ORTHOËPY, EXPRESSION, and RECITATIONS IN VERSE.

I.

RESPIRATION.

SKILLFUL management of the breath in utterance is the first essential to good reading and speaking. To avoid marring sentences, and losing the force of the leading ideas, the breath must be drawn or gathered at intervals of the period when the voice is only suspended for a moment. By this management the lungs may always have a sufficient. stock of air for carrying on the longest sentence, without improper interruptions.

It is a good practice for the student, after inhaling a full breath, to repeat the cardinal numbers rapidly, up to eight, a number of times. By practice, he may soon make his breath hold out till he has counted eight, twelve times. Another valuable exercise is, after a full inhalation, to trill r continuously, as long as possible, on the same key; up and down the musical scale a number of times, observing the regular intervals; and through several passages of music. We quote the following remarks and directions from an excellent Manual by RUSSELL and MURDOCK:

"FUNCTION OF BREATHING.-The organs of voice, in common with all other parts of the bodily frame, require the vigor and pliancy of muscle, and the elasticity and animation of nerve, which result from good health, in order to perform their appropriate functions with energy and effect. But these indispensable conditions to the exercise of the vocal organs, are, in the case of most learners, very imperfectly supplied. A sedentary mode of life, the want of invigorating exercise, close and long-continued application of mind, and, perhaps, an impaired state of health, or a feeble constitution, prevent, in many instances, the free and forcible use of those muscles on which voice is dependent. Hence arises the necessity of students of elocution practicing

physical exercises, adapted to promote general muscular vigor, as a means of attaining energy in vocal functions; the power of any class of muscles being dependent on the tone of the whole system.

"The art of cultivating the voice, however, has, in addition to the various forms of corporeal exercise practiced for the general purpose of promoting health, its own specific prescriptions for securing the vigor of the vocal organs, and modes of exercise adapted to the training of each class of organs separately.

"The results of such practice are of indefinite extent; they are limited only by the energy and perseverance of the student, excepting, perhaps, in some instances of imperfect organization. A few weeks of diligent cultivation are usually sufficient to produce such an effect on the vocal organs, that persons who commence practice with a feeble and ineffective utterance, attain, in that short period, the full command of clear, forcible, and varied tone.

"Gymnastic and calisthenic exercises are invaluable aids to the culture and development of the voice, and should be sedulously practiced when opportunity renders them accessible. But even a slight degree of physical exercise, in any form adapted to the expansion of the chest, and to the freedom and force of the circulation, will serve to impart energy and glow to the muscular apparatus of voice, and clearness to its sound.

"There is, therefore, a great advantage in always practicing some preliminary muscular actions, as an immediate preparation for vocal exercise. These actions may be selected from the system of preparatory movements taught at gymnastic establishments; or they may be made to consist in regulated walking, with a view to the acquisition of a firm, easy, and graceful carriage of the body, with appropriate motion of the arms and limbs; in the systematic practice of gesture, in its various forms, for the purpose of obtaining a free, forcible, and effective use of the arm, as a natural accompaniment to speech; or in the practice of

attitude and action combined, in the most vivid style of lyric and dramatic recitation, so as to attain a perfect control over the whole corporeal frame, for the purposes of visible expression.

"Some preliminary exercises, such as the preceding, having been performed, and a sufficient period for rest and tranquil breathing having elapsed, the next stage of preparatory action may be as in the following directions:

"1. Attitude of the Body, and Position of the Organs.Place yourself in a perfectly erect, but easy posture; the weight of the body resting on one

foot; the feet at a moderate distance, the one in advance of the other;1 the arms akimbo; the fingers pressing on the abdominal muscles, in front, and the thumbs on the dorsal muscles, on each side of the spine; the chest freely expanded and fully projected; the shoulders held backward and downward; the head perfectly vertical.

"2. Exercises in Deep Breathing. -Having thus complied with the preliminary conditions of a free and unembarrassed action of the organs, draw in and give out the breath very fully, and very slowly, about a dozen times in succession. Let the breath

FIG. 3.

ing be deep and tranquil, but such as to cause the chest to rise fully, and fall freely, at every effort.

1 Position.-The object in view, in this apparently minute direction, is to secure perfect freedom and repose of body. A constrained or a lounging posture is utterly at variance with a free, unembarrassed use of the voice, or the production of a

clear and full sound. While the position of the above figure differs from the description here given, having all of the advantages and being one of the leading positions in Calisthenics, it is recommended, as preferable.

"3. Exercise in Effusive, or Tranquil Breathing.-Draw in a very full breath, and send it forth in a prolonged sound of the letter h. In the act of inspiration, take in as much breath as you can contain. In that of expiration, retain all you can, and give out as little as possible, merely sufficient. to keep the sound of h audible. But keep it going on, as long as you can sustain it. In this style of respiration, the breath merely effuses itself into the surrounding air.

"The strength of the individual must be left to regulate the frequency with which this exercise should be performed, in succession; half a dozen times will suffice at first.

"4. Exercise in Expulsive, or Forcible Breathing.Draw in a very full breath, as before, and emit it with a lively, expulsive force, in the sound of h, but little prolonged; in the style of a moderate whispered cough. The breath, in this style of expiration, is projected into the air. Repeat this exercise, as directed in the statement preceding.

5. Exercise in Explosive, or Abrupt Breathing.-Draw in the breath, as already directed, and emit it with a sudden. and violent explosion, in a very brief sound of the letter k, in the style of an abrupt and forcible, but whispered cough. The breath is, in this mode of expiration, thrown out with abrupt violence. Repeat this exercise, as before directed.

"6. Sighing.-Sighing, as a natural effort, designed to relieve the lungs and accelerate the circulation, when depressing emotions or organic impediments cause a feeling as if the breath were pent up, consists in a sudden and large inspiration, and a full, strong, effusive expiration. In vocal training, it becomes a most efficacious means of free, unembarrassed respiration, and, consequently, of organic energy and of full voice. It should be repeated as the other exercises, and practiced both through the nostrils and the mouth; the former being its gentler, the latter its more forcible form. It should be practiced, also, in the tremulous style of inspiration, in which the sigh resembles a series of prolonged and subdued sobs.

"7. Sobbing.-Sobbing, as an instinctive act, consists in a