4. Are you the person of whom he spoke?

5. Can the lâmb live in safety with the wolf? 6. "To arms! to arms! to arms'!" they cry.

7. Who knoweth the power of thine anger'? Even according to thy fear', so is thy wrath'.

8. Rōllōn, thou deep and dark blūe ocēan, rōll!

EMPHASIS.

Emphasis is the prominence given to a particular word or words in a sentence. This prominence may be given by the use of the rising, falling, or wave inflection, by a stress of the voice, a change of pitch, an unusual pause, or other means of drawing the attention to the word to be distinguished.

Emphatic words are generally indicated by italics; sometimes by small or large capitals; as, "To arms! To ARMS! TO ARMS!" he cried.

Emphasis is either absolute or antithetic.

EXAMPLES OF ABSOLUTE EMPHASIS.

1. The quality of mercy is not strained';
It droppeth as the gentle rain' from heaven'
Upon the place beneath'.

2. STRIKE' till the last armed foe' expires,
STRIKE for your altars' and your fires'.

3. How pleasant' the life of a bird' must be!

4. Every boy and girl in America has heard of George Washington'.

5. This', my lords', is a perilous' and tremendous' moment.

EXAMPLES OF ANTITHETIC EMPHASIS.

1. Homer was the greater genius; Virgil the better artist. 2. I come to bury' Cæsar, not to praise' him.

3. I fear not death', and shall I then fear thee'?

4. The wise' man is happy when he gains his own' approbation; the fool' when he gains the applause of others'. 5. They follow an adventurer' whom they fear; wě serve a monarch whom we love.

6. The king was dethroned, and his son enthroned.

7. Beauty' is like the flowers of spring'; virtue' is like the stars of heaven'.

8. If thine enemy hunger', give him bread' to eat; if he thirst', give him water' to drink.

PAUSES.

There are frequently pauses required by the sense, but not indicated by any punctuation marks; and sometimes the latter are used when little or no pause is requisite. The judicious use of the pause, both as to place and duration, gives peculiar expressiveness to reading.

The pause not indicated by any point, is called the rhetorical pause. Its position in the sentence to be read should be carefully studied. The following are a few general rules:

1. Pause after a subject consisting of several words; as, To practice virtue-is the sure way to gain it.

2. Pause after an emphatic word; as, Be thou a bruised— but not a broken-reed.

3. There should be a short pause before a relative clause; as, Such were the beautiful auspices--under which Maryland started into being.

4. There should be a short pause before an objective phrase or clause; as, The people of the United States have justly supposed that this policy was fully settled.

5. Also before or after words placed in contrast; as, Some place their bliss-in action, some-in ease, Those call it pleasure, and contentment-these.

MODULATION.

Modulation is a variation of the tones of the voice, as to pitch, force, quality, and time, in order to give adequate expression to the sentiments or emotions represented in the composition delivered.

Pitch may be high, low, or middle. It is high when the voice rises considerably above the tones of conversation, as in shouting or calling; low, when the voice falls below the ordi

1

nary conversational tones, as in very solemn discourse; middle, in conversation.

Force is the volume or loudness of the voice, in reading or speaking. It may be loud, moderate, or gentle.

Quality has reference to the kind of tone, as pure, orotund, guttural, aspirate, and tremulous.

Pure tone is clear and smooth; orotund is full and resonant; guttural is deep and harsh; aspirate is low and accompanied by harsh breathing; tremulous is plaintive, sorrowful, unsteady.

Time refers to rapidity of movement; it may be quick, moderate, or slow.

EXERCISES.
I.

[For Inflection.]

1. Hast thou entered into the springs of the sea'? Or hast thou walked in search of the depths'? Have the gates of death been opened unto thee'? Or hast thou seen the doors of the shadow of death'?

2. Hast thou entered into the treasures of the snow'? Or hast thou seen the treasures of the hail'? Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades', or loose the bands of Orion'? Canst thou bring forth Maz'zaroth in his season'? or canst thou guide Arctúrus with his sons'?

3. Canst thou bind the unicorn with his band in the furrow'? or will he harrow the valleys after thee'? Wilt thou trust him, because his strength is great'? or wilt thou leave thy labor to him'? Gavest thou the goodly wings unto the peacocks'? or wings and feathers unto the ostrich'?

4. Canst thou draw out Leviathan with a hook'? or his tongue with a cord which thou lettest down'? Canst thou put a hook into his nose'? or bore his jaw through with a thorn'? Wilt thou play' with him as with a bird'? or wilt thou bind' him for thy maidens'? Canst thou fill his skin' with barbed irons'? or his head' with fish-spears'?

5. Wilt thou hunt the prey for the lion'? or fill the appe

tite of the young lions'? Will the unicorn' be willing to serve thee', or abide by thy crib'? Hast thou an arm like God'? or canst thou thunder' like him' ?—Book of Job.

For additional exercises turn to the following pieces in the Reader: 1. Yorktown-Whittier....

2. Independence Bell-verse 3..

3. Speech of John Adams-Webster.

4. Warren's Address-Pierpont....

.p. 211 155

156

149

II.

[For Emphasis.]

Seems', madam! Nay, it is': I know not seems.

"Tis not alone my inky cloak, good mother',

Nor customary suits of solemn black,
Nor windy suspirations of forced breath,
No, nor the fruitful river in the eye,
Nor the dejected 'havior of the visage,
Together with all forms, modes, shows of grief,
That can denote me truly. These, indeed, seem,
For they are actions that a man might play;
But I have that within which passeth show,-
These but the trappings and the suits of woe.

A GOOD CONSCIENCE.

Shakspeare.

What stronger breastplate than a heart untainted?
Thrice is he armed that hath his quarrel just ;
And he but naked, though locked up in steel,
Whose conscience with injustice is corrupted.

TACT AND TALENT.

Shakspeare.

Talent is something', but tact is everything'. Talent' is serious', sober', grave', and respectable'; tact' is all that', and more too'. It is not a sixth sense', but it is the life of all the five'. It is the open eye', the quick ear', the judging taste', the keen smell', and the lively touch'; it is the interpreter of all riddles', the surmounter of all difficulties', the remover of all obstacles'. It

is useful in all places', and at all times'; it is useful in solitude', for it shows a man his way into' the world; it is useful in society', for it shows him his way through' the world.