3. Can he desert me thus? He knows I stay
Night after night, in loneliness to pray
For his return, and yet he sees no tear!
No! no! it can not be-he will be here.

4. I have known deeper wrongs;-I that speak to ye,
I had a brother once-a gracious boy,
Full of all gentleness, of calmest hope,

Of sweet and quiet joy,--there was the look
Of heaven upon his face, which limners give
To the beloved disciple. How I loved
That gracious boy! Younger by fifteen years,
Brother at once, and son! He left my side,
A summer bloom on his fair cheek, a smile
Parting his innocent lips. In one short hour
That pretty, harmless boy was slain!

5. And, oh! to see the briny tears fast hurrying down her cheek, As she offered up the prayer, in thought; she was afraid to speak, Lest she might waken one she loved far better than her life,— For she had all a mother's heart, had that poor collier's wife. With hands uplifted, see, she kneels beside the sufferer's bed, And prays that He would spare her boy, and take herself instead. 6. Alas! my noble boy, that thou shouldst die!

Thou, who wert made so beautifully fair!
That death should settle in thy glorious eye,
And leave his stillness in this clustering hair!
How could he mark thee for the silent tomb,
My proud boy, Absalom!

7. I love it! I love it! and who shall dare
To chide me for loving that old arm chair?

I've treasured it long as a sainted prize;

I've bedewed it with tears and embalmed it with sighs; 'Tis bound by a thousand bands to my heart,

Not a tie will break, not a link will start;

Would you know the spell? a mother sat there!
And a sacred thing is that old arm chair.

When the student can give with correct and vivid expression the examples under radical stress and intermittent stress, his voice will be under sufficient control to enable

him, with but little practice, readily to command all the other forms of stress, and most of the pleasing, impressive, and affecting intonations of the voice.

QUANTITY.

Quantity, or time, in elocution means the measure of sounds, syllables, or words with regard to their duration.

The syllables and words capable of receiving the longest quantity and the most musical expression, are those which contain open vowel and liquid, or nasal subvocal sounds.

LONG QUANTITY.

Let the following words be pronunced with varying degrees of force, but always prolong them to the utmost extent possible without changing their character or giving them in a manner the least akin to a drawl: War, law, scorn, all, form, green, feel, thee, shame, blaze, pain, wail, dare, care, swear, air, star, arm, charm, barn, no, home, lone, soul, moan, roll, hold, go, you, soon, moon, fool, ooze, room, cool, file, mine, sire, joy, toil, coin, toys, bow, our, foul, round, down, new, dew, pale, rain, fail, dream, keen, calm, view, etc.

Practice on these words at first by gradually increasing both the force and the quantity on each word until you are able to dwell upon it either by the rising or the falling inflection, without any artificial tone, at least twice as long as it would be proper to dwell upon the word in quiet conversation. Sometimes practice increasing the quantity in subdued, plaintive, and solemn tones.

Take each of these words and make it the emphatic word of at least three short sentences: one declarative, one interrogative, and one exclamatory, and exercise on these sentences for the purpose of obtaining the power of develop

ing the quantity of the emphatic words. The exercise will be profitable, not only as an exercise in quantity, but also in emphasis, modulation, and expression.

Dignity and force of delivery depend much on the power of swelling and protracting the open vowel sounds, and such of the subvowels as admit of long quantity. All of the examples given under slow movement are suitable examples for practice in long quantity, and those given under quick movement in short quantity.

EXAMPLES IN LONG QUANTITY.

1. Mr. President, I shall enter on no encomium upon Massachusetts-she needs none. There she is,-behold her, and judge for yourselves. There is her history-the world knows it by heart.

2. Though many and bright are the stars that appear

In the flag by our country unfurled;

And the stripes that are swelling in majesty there,
Like a rainbow adorning the world,

Their lights are unsullied as those in the sky,
By a deed that our fathers have done;

And they're leagued in as true and as holy a tie,
In their motto of "Many in one.".

3. There is often sadness in the tone,
And a moisture in the eye,
And a trembling sorrow in the voice,
When we bid a last good-bye;
But sadder far than this, I ween,

That sat on her seven hills, and from her throne
Of beauty ruled the world! Yet we are Romans.
Why, in that elder day, to be a Roman

Was greater than a king! And once again—
Hear me, ye walls, that echoed to the tread
Of either Brutus!-Once again, I swear,
The eternal city shall be free.

5. Oh, with what pride I used

To walk these hills, and look up to my God,

And bless him that the land was free. 'Twas free-
From end to end, from cliff to lake, 't was free!—
Free as our torrents are that leap our rocks,
And plow our valleys, without asking leave!
Or as our peaks, that wear their caps of snow
In very presence of the regal sun!

6. Stand! the ground's your own, my braves!
Will ye give it up to slaves?

Will ye look for greener graves?

Hope ye mercy still?

What's the mercy despots feel?

Hear it-in that battle peal!
Read it on your bristling steel!

Ask it-ye who will.

7. It is in vain to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry peace, peace; but there is no peace. The war is actually begun. The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms!

8. O Liberty! O sound once delightful to every Roman ear. sacred privilege of Roman citizenship-once sacred, but now trampled upon.

1.

EXAMPLES IN SHORT QUANTITY.

Brutus. Hear me, for I will speak:

Must I give way and room to your rash choler?

Shall I be frightened when a madman stares?

Cassius. O ye gods! ye gods! must I endure all this?
Brutus. All this! ay, more: fret till your proud heart break;

Go show your slaves how choleric you are,

And make your bondsmen tremble. Must I budge?
Must I observe you? Must I stand and crouch
Under your testy humor? By the gods,
You shall digest the venom of your spleen,

Though it do split you; for, from this day forth,
I'll use you for my mirth, yea, for my laughter,
When you are waspish.

K. N. E.-6. ·

2. Ye stand here now like giants, as ye are! The strength of brass is in your toughened sinews; but to-morrow some Roman Adonis, breathing sweet perfume from his curly locks, shall with his lily fingers pat your red brawn, and bet his sestérces upon your blood. Hark! hear ye yon lion roaring in his den? 'Tis three days since he tasted flesh, but to-morrow he shall break his fast upon you, and a dainty meal for him ye will be!

3. So you will fly out! Can't you be cool, like me? What good can passion do? Passion is of no service, you impudent, insolent, overbearing reprobate! There, you sneer again! Don't provoke me! You rely upon the mildness of my temper! you do, you dog! You play upon the meekness of my disposition! Yet, take care! the patience of a saint may be overcome at last! But, mark! I give you six hours and a half to consider this. If you then agree, without any condition, to every thing on earth that I choose, why, confound you! I may in time forgive you; if not, s'death! don't enter the same hemisphere with me! don't dare to breathe the same air or use the same light with me! but get an atmosphere and a sun of your own! I'll strip you of your commission! I'll lodge a five and three-pence in the hands of trustees, and you shall live on the interest! I'll disown you! I'll disinherit you! and, hang me! if I ever call you Jack again!

MELODY.

Melody relates to the melodious utterance of words in speech. No other vocal qualifications or attainments of a reader, an actor, or an orator, will so win and retain attention, or give so much pleasure to the ear as a rich musical voice, and a melodious utterance.

To obtain a better command of melody of speech, practice upon passages which require long quantity, subdued force, and long pauses. Words which are best suited for practice in long quantity are of that class which are accented on open vowels, and terminate either with open vowels or subvowels; of the sub-vowels, the nasals and the liquids admit of the longest and most melodious vanish.