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8. I cannot vouch my tale is true,
Nor say, indeed, 'tis wholly new;
But true or false, or new or old,
I think you'll find it fairly told.
A Frenchman, who had ne'er before
Set foot upon a foreign shore,
Weary of home, resolved to go

And see what Holland had to show.
He didn't know a word of Dutch,

But that could hardly grieve him much;

He thought, as Frenchmen always do,

That all the world could "parley-voo."-J. G. Saxe.

9. I know, the more one sickens, the worse at ease he is; and that he that wants money, means, and content, is without three good friends; that the property of rain is to wet, and fire to burn; that good pasture makes fat sheep, and that a great cause of the night is lack of the sun; that he that hath learned no wit by nature or art may complain of good breeding, or comes of a very dull kindred.-Shakespeare.

10. "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living soul." How wonderful is breath! It comes to us in the soft summer morning laden with the perfume of flowers; but ere it reaches us it has kissed a thousand scented leaves. The birds soar aloft in this mysterious ether, pouring their triumphal songs on its resonant bosom; and the butterfly and buzzing insect, "like winged flowers and flying gems," sparkle and shimmer in their dazzling beauty.

But, whether it brings upon its waves the mutterings of the coming storm, or the merry, ringing laugh of childhood-the awful booming of the heavy cannonade, or the silvery tones of the violin-it is air, such as we breathe. Oh! then let it become a thing of joy to us. Let us learn to make it a thing of beauty, wreathing embodied thoughts in vocal genus of purity and sweetness, that shall gladden the ears of all who listen.-Bronson.

11. External heat and cold had little influence on Scrooge. No warmth could warm, nor wintry weather chill him. No wind that blew was bitterer than he, no falling snow was more intent upon its purpose, no pelting rain less open to entreaty. Foul weather didn't know where to have

him. The heaviest rain, and snow, and hail, and sleet, could boast of the advantage over him in only one respect. They often came down" handsomely, and Scrooge never did.—

66

Dickens.

12.

Oh, tell me, where did Katy live?
And what did Katy do?

And was she very fair and young,
And yet so wicked, too?

Did Katy love a naughty man,

Or kiss more cheeks than one?

I warrant Katy did no more

Than many a Kate has done.-O. W. Holmes.

13. "And when the middle of the afternoon came, from being a poor poverty-stricken boy in the morning, Tom Sawyer was literally rolling in wealth. He had, beside the things before mentioned, twelve marbles, part of a jew's-harp, a piece of blue-bottle glass, to look through, a spool cannon, a key that wouldn't unlock anything, a fragment of chalk, a glass-stopper of a decanter, a tin soldier, a couple of tadpoles, six fire-crackers, a kitten with only one eye, a brass doorknob, a dog-collar-but no dog, the handle of a knife, four pieces of orange-peel, and a dilapidated old window-sash."Mark Twain.

14. Fill thou each hour with what will last;
Buy up the moments as they go :
The life above, when this is past,
Is the ripe fruit of life below.

For further practice, use exercises under Simple Pure Quality, Medium Pitch, Medium Force and Medium Rate. For selections adapted to Conversational Reading, see Elocutionist's Annual, No. 1, pages 49, 82 and 101; No. 2, pages 66 and 152; No. 3, page 42; No. 5, page 34.

CONVERSATION IN ITS RELATION TO READING.

a. ANALOGY.

With reference to Expression, Conversation may be defined the utterance of our own thoughts in our own words, to one or a few individuals.

Reading is the utterance of the author's thought in the author's words, to one or many individuals.

We use, in Conversation, the same voice or material, and the same forms of sound, and call into exercise the same thoughts, feelings and passions as in Reading.

The Cultivation of these powers for Conversation will give them cultivation for Reading, and inasmuch as we converse more than we read, it is at once apparent that we have in Conversation the greater opportunity for their cultivation.

b. DISTINCTION.

The distinction between Conversation and Reading is two: fold.

First.-Reading carries us beyond the province of Conversation, when it is addressed to a large collection of persons. This distinction involves the same consideration as the distinction between Conversation and Public Address, and will be treated under the next head.

Second.-The Second distinction is found in the mechanical difficulty of expressing the author's language as naturally as we do our own. We have observed that Conversation is the expression of thought in our own words. These words being chosen from our common vocabulary, are familiar to the organs of speech, and are, therefore, uttered without labored effort.

The same is true of conversational constructions. Such constructions are used as have become habitual to the

speaker, and the mechanical labor of their utterance is avoided. In Reading, words and constructions are often foreign to the habit of the speaker, and their expression must necessarily manifest, at first, the mechanism of their utterance. It is, therefore, necessary, in Reading, to give that practice to the language which will render the utterance as familiar as that of our common Conversation.

NOTE.-From the above, it is proper to observe that skill in reading at sight can be acquired only by the habitual use of the words in common usage, and by familiarity with the various styles of written language. This suggests the importance of a broad vocabulary in familiar speech and of much reading aloud from writers of good style.

C. MODELS.

It has been shown in the above discussion, that when the author's language has become as familiar as our own there will exist a perfect analogy between Conversation and Reading. It has also been previously shown that Conversation is the original and natural source of all true expression. We will, therefore, find in correct and natural Conversation the truest and purest models from which to copy in our Reading.

As the landscape or forest will furnish the painter original models for his art, so will Conversation furnish original models of sentiment, emotion and passion for the Reader's art. In reading, therefore, we should express the language of the author as we would utter the same language under the same circumstances in pure conversation.

NOTE 1.-In Impersonation, the Reader will necessarily depart from the basis of his own Conversation to the imitation of the character impersonated.

NOTE 2.-Intelligent Reading presupposes that the Reader comprehend the thought, and that in its expression he sympathize with the author's meaning; these requirements precede the expression of language under all circumstances.

CONVERSATION IN ITS RELATION TO PUBLIC ADDRESS.

a. ANALOGY.

Read carefully the corresponding discussion under the previous topic; it has the same force and bearing in the treatment of this division of the subject.

b. DISTINCTION.

Conversation and Public Address both concern the conveyance of thought to the individual.

The distinction consists only in the greater accuracy and intensity necessary in Public Address to overcome the obstacles of number and space.

This refers to the distinction between the delivery of the same sentence before the multitude, and its delivery to a single individual. Passages, differing in sentiment, will be expressed differently in Conversation, and will preserve a corresponding difference if delivered publicly..

ILLUSTRATION.

European guides know about enough English to tangle everything up, so that a man can make neither head nor tail of it. They know their story by heart,-the history of every statue, painting, cathedral or other wonder they show you. They know it and tell it as a parrot would, and if you interrupt and throw them off the track, they have to go back and begin over again. All their lives long they are employed in showing strange things to foreigners and listening to their bursts of admiration.-" Innocents Abroad"Mark Twain.

England may as well dam up the waters of the Nile with bulrushes as to fetter the step of Freedom, more proud and firm in this youthful land than where she treads the seques

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