General principles must be had from books. In conversation you never get a system.

Knowledge is of two kinds. We know a subject ourselves, or we know where we can find information upon it. When we enquire into any subject, the first thing we have to do is to know what books have treated of it.

SAMUEL JOHNSON.

THE STAR SPEAKER.

VOCAL CULTURE.

AN exhaustive analysis of the subject is not attempted in the following pages; nor does the student need this; he only needs a few practical directions to aid him in getting the mastery over his voice and in acquiring a distinct conception of the various styles of composition by the aid of appropriate examples. Under each division are appended appropriate exercises for practice, and with them it is hoped these directions will be found sufficient for the purpose.

No book can supply the place of the living teacher. To the student nothing can make up for the want of judgment and taste; without these, he cannot hope to become an eloquent reader and speaker; with them, by attention. to vocal culture, he will experience but little difficulty. Strength and smoothness of tone are too often regarded as the gift of nature. True, nature may favor many in this respect; but any one whose organs of speech are not defective may, by proper exercise and attention, acquire a deep, full, clear, resonant voice.

DIVISIONS."

QUALITY.

PURE TONE.

Pure Tone is free from any harsh, guttural, aspirated, nasal, or oral tone, and is made with a less expenditure of breath, and with less fatigue, than any other.

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The essentials to purity of Tone are, deep breathing, control of the muscles of the throat regulating the vocal organs, and a free opening of the mouth.

A great cause of impurity of Tone is the expulsion of too much breath. To test its purity, in this respect, hold the back of the hand within an inch or two of the mouth while uttering the sound, and if a current of air from the mouth is perceptible by the hand, the tone is not pure.

Pure Tone is used in unimpassioned discourse; in the expression of light and agreeable emotions; and in sadness or grief when not mingled with solemnity.

Example.

Oh, young Lochinvar is come out of the west,-
Through all the wide border his steed was the best;
And save his good broadsword he weapon had none,-
He rode all unarmed, and he rode all alone.
So faithful in love, and so dauntless in war,
There never was knight like the young Lochinvar.

OROTUND QUALITY.

Orotund is a mode of intonation directly from the larynx, which gives fullness, clearness, and strength. It is the highest perfection of voice, and is used in solemn, pathetic, energetic, and vehement forms of expression. The Orotund usually admits of three degrees, designated, according to the intensity of the emotion: Effusive, or the language of solemnity and pathos; Expulsive, or the language of earnest declamation; Explosive, or the language of intense passion.

Orotund is used to express whatever is grand, vast, or sublime.

Examples.

1. O thou that rollest above, round as the shield of my fathers! whence are thy beams, O Sun! thy everlasting light?

VOCAL CULTURE.

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2. I would call upon all the true sons of New England to co

operate with the laws of man and the justice of Heaven.

3. Rise, like a cloud of incense from the earth!
Thou kingly spirit, throned among the hills,
Thou dread ambassador from earth to heaven,
Great hierarch! tell thou the silent sky,
And tell the stars, and tell yon rising sun,
Earth, with her thousand voices, praises God.

ASPIRATED QUALITY.

Aspirated Quality is not purity of tone, but consists in an excessive expulsion of breath in uttering sounds, making the sounds partly vocal and partly aspirate. It is used in intense fear.

Examples.

1. While thronged the citizens, with terror dumb,

Or whispering with white lips-"The foe! they come! they come!"-Byron.

2. How ill this taper burns!

Ha! who comes here?

Cold drops of sweat hang on my trembling flesh, My blood grows chilly, and I freeze with horror! 3. Have mercy, Heaven! Ha! soft,

"Tis but a dream.

But then so terrible, it shakes my soul.

GUTTURAL QUALITY.

Guttural Quality also is opposed to purity of tone, and consists of a mode of utterance which seems to come through an obstructed throat. It is the language of hatred, contempt, and loathing.

Example.

Thou slave! thou wretch! thou coward!

Thou little valiant, great in villainy!

Thou ever strong upon the stronger side!

Thou fortune's champion, thou dost never fight