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=The Ontario Readers.=
THE
HIGH SCHOOL READER.
AUTHORIZED FOR USE IN THE PUBLIC AND HIGH SCHOOLS
AND COLLEGIATE INSTITUTES OF ONTARIO BY THE
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.
Toronto:
ROSE PUBLISHING COMPANY.
1886.
_Entered according to Act of Parliament of Canada, in the year one
thousand eight hundred and eighty-six, by the_ MINISTER OF EDUCATION
_for Ontario, in the Office of the Minister of Agriculture._
PRINTED AND BOUND BY
HUNTER, ROSE & CO.,
TORONTO.
PREFACE.
The selections in the HIGH SCHOOL READER have been chosen with the
belief that to pupils of such advancement as is required for entrance
into High Schools and Collegiate Institutes, oral reading should be
taught from the best literature, inasmuch as it not only affords a wide
range of thought and sentiment, but it also demands for its appropriate
vocal interpretation such powers of sympathy and appreciation as are
developed only by culture; and it is to impart culture that these
institutions of higher learning have been established.
Experience has shown that it is from their ordinary reading books that
pupils obtain their chief practical acquaintance with literature, and
the selections here presented have been made with this in remembrance.
They have been taken from the writings of authors of acknowledged
representative character; and they have been arranged for the most part
chronologically, so that pupils may unconsciously obtain some little
insight into the history of the development of the literary art. They
have also been so chosen as to convey a somewhat fair idea of the
relative value and productivity of authorship in the three great
English-speaking communities of the world--the mother countries, our
neighbours' country, and our own.
While a limited space, if nothing else, prevents the collection here
made from being a complete anthology, yet it does pretend to represent
the authors selected in characteristic moods, and (in so far as is
possible in a school book, and a reading text-book) to present a
somewhat fair perspective of the world of authorship. It may be said
that, if this be so, some names are conspicuously absent: McGee,
Canada's poet-orator; Parkman, who has given to our country a place in
the portraiture of nations; William Morris, the chief of the modern
school of romanticism; Tyndall, who of the literature of science has
made an art; Lamb, daintiest of humorists; Collins, "whose range of
flight," as Swinburne says, "was the highest of his generation." Either
from lack of space, or from some inherent unsuitableness in such
selections as might otherwise have been made, it was found impossible
to represent these names worthily; but as they are all more or less
adequately represented in the _Fourth Reader_, the teacher who may wish
to correct the perspective here presented may refer his pupils to the
pieces from these authors there given. It may be added, too, that
the body of recent literature is so enormous, that no adequate
representation of it (at any rate as regards quantity) is possible
within the limits of one book.
The selections in poetry, with but three necessary exceptions, are
complete wholes, and represent, as fairly as single pieces can, the
respective merits and styles of their authors. The selections in prose
cannot, of course, lay claim to this excellence; but they are all
complete in themselves, or have been made so by short introductions; and
it is hoped that they too are not unfairly representative of their
authors. In many cases they are of somewhat unusual length; by this,
however, they gain in interest and in representative character.
In some of the prose selections, passages have occasionally been
omitted, either because they interfered with the main narrative, or
because, as they added nothing to it, to omit them would be a gain of
space. In most cases these omissions are indicated by small asterisks.
All the selections, both in prose and in verse, have been made with
constant reference to their suitableness for the teaching of reading.
They are fitted to exemplify every mode of expression, except, perhaps,
that appropriate to a few of the stronger passions. It is not pretended
that they are all simple and easy. Many of them will require much
study and preparation before they can be read with that precision of
expression which is necessary to perfect intelligibility. The
chronological arrangement precludes grading; the teacher will decide
in what order the selections are to be read.
The introductory chapter is mainly intended to assist the teacher in
imparting to his pupils a somewhat scientific knowledge of the art of
reading. Of course the teacher will choose for himself his mode of
dealing with the chapter, but it has been written with the thought that
he should use it as a convenient series of texts, which he might expand
and illustrate in accordance with his opportunities and judgment.
Examples for illustration are indispensable to the successful study of
the principles described, and they should be sought for and obtained by
the teacher and pupils together (whenever possible they should be taken
from the READER), and should be kept labeled for reference and practice.
If the application of these principles be thus practically made by the
pupils themselves, they will receive a much more lasting impression of
their meaning and value than if the examples were given to them at no
cost of thought or search on their part.
To the teacher it is recommended that he should not be contented with
the short and necessarily imperfect exposition of the art of reading
therein given. The more familiar he is with the scientific principles
the more successfully will he be able to direct the studies and
practices of his pupils. Works on elocution are numerous and accessible.
Dr. Rush's _Philosophy of the Voice_ is perhaps the foundation of all
subsequent good work in the exposition of voice culture. Professor
Murdoch's _Analytic Elocution_ is an exhaustive and scholarly treatise
based upon it, and to the plan of treatment therein fully developed the
practical part of the introductory chapter has largely conformed.
The pleasing task remains of thanking those authors who have so kindly
responded to requests for permission to use selections from their works:
to President Wilson, for a sonnet from _Spring Wild Roses_, and for _Our
Ideal_; to Mr. Charles Sangster, for two sonnets from _Hesperus_; to Mr.
John Reade, for two poems from _The Prophecy of Merlin_; to Mr. Charles
Mair, for the scenes from _Tecumseh_; and to Professor C. G. D. Roberts,
for _To Winter_.
To Miss A. T. Jones, thanks are due for permission to use _Abigail
Becker_, recently published in the _Century Magazine_. The heroic acts
described in this poem seem so wonderful, so greatly superior to woman's
strength, even to human strength and endurance, to accomplish, that were
it possible to doubt its truthfulness, doubt one certainly would.
Nevertheless the poem is not only strictly in accordance with the facts,
it is even within and below them.
CONTENTS.
_(The Titles of the Selections in Poetry are printed in Italics.)_
NUMBER. TITLE. AUTHOR. PAGE.
I. King Solomon's Prayer and Blessing at the
Dedication of the Temple. HOLY BIBLE 33
II. Invitation. HOLY BIBLE 39
III. _The Trial Scene in the "Merchant of
Venice."_ SHAKESPEARE 40
IV. Of Boldness. BACON 53
V. _To Daffodils._ HERRICK 55
VI. Of Contentedness in all Estates and
Accidents. TAYLOR 56
VII. _To Lucasta, on Going to the Wars._ LOVELACE 61
VIII. Angling. WALTON 62
IX. _On the Morning of Christ's Nativity._ MILTON 67
X. Character of Lord Falkland. CLARENDON 76
XI. _Veni, Creator Spiritus._ DRYDEN 81
XII. _Lines printed under the Portrait of
Milton._ DRYDEN 82
XIII. _Reason_ DRYDEN 83
XIV. On the Love of Country as a Principle of
Action. STEELE 83
XV. The Golden Scales. ADDISON 88
XVI. Misjudged Hospitality. SWIFT 93
XVII. _From the "Essay on Man."_ POPE 96
XVIII. _Rule, Britannia._ THOMSON 101
XIX. The First Crusade. HUME 102
XX. _The Bard._ GRAY 111
XXI. On an Address to the Throne concerning
Affairs in America. CHATHAM 116
XXII. From "The Vicar of Wakefield." GOLDSMITH 127
XXIII. Meeting of Johnson with Wilkes. BOSWELL 133
XXIV. The Policy of the Empire in the First
Century. GIBBON 142
XXV. On the Attacks upon his Pension. BURKE 147
XXVI. Two Eighteenth Century Scenes. COWPER 155
XXVII. From "The School for Scandal." SHERIDAN 159
XXVIII. _The Cotter's Saturday Night._ BURNS 171
XXIX. _The Land o' the Leal._ LADY NAIRN 177
XXX. The Trial by Combat at the Diamond of
the Desert. SCOTT 179
XXXI. _To a Highland Girl._ WORDSWORTH 202
XXXII. _France: an Ode._ COLERIDGE 205
XXXIII. _Complaint and Reproof._ COLERIDGE 208
XXXIV. _The Well of St. Keyne._ SOUTHEY 209
XXXV. _The Isles of Greece._ BYRON 211
XXXVI. _Go where Glory Waits Thee._ MOORE 214
XXXVII. _Dear Harp of My Country._ MOORE 215
XXXVIII. _Come, ye Disconsolate._ MOORE 216
XXXIX. _On a Lock of Milton's Hair._ HUNT 217
XL. _The Glove and the Lions._ HUNT 217
XLI. _The Cloud._ SHELLEY 219
XLII. _On First Looking into Chapman's Homer._ KEATS 222
XLIII. _On the Grasshopper and the Cricket._ KEATS 222
XLIV. The Power and Danger of the Caesars. DE QUINCEY 223
XLV. Unthoughtfulness. DR. ARNOLD 227
XLVI. _The Bridge of Sighs._ HOOD 234
XLVII. _A Parental Ode to my Son._ HOOD 237
XLVIII. Metaphysics. HALIBURTON 239
XLIX. _Indian Summer._ LOVER 246
L. _To Helen._ PRAED 246
LI. _Horatius._ MACAULAY 247
LII. _The Raven._ POE 258
LIII. David Swan--A Fantasy. HAWTHORNE 262
LIV. _My Kate._ MRS. BROWNING 270
LV. _A Dead Rose._ MRS. BROWNING 271
LVI. _To the Evening Wind._ BRYANT 272
LVII. Death of the Protector. CARLYLE 274
LVIII. _Each and All._ EMERSON 282
LIX. Waterloo. LEVER 284
LX. _The Diver._ LYTTON 294
LXI. The Plague of Locusts. NEWMAN 299
LXII. _The Cane-bottom'd Chair._ THACKERAY 306
LXIII. The Reconciliation. THACKERAY 308
LXIV. _The Island of the Scots._ AYTOUN 315
LXV. The Gambling Party. BEACONSFIELD 321
LXVI. The Pickwickians Disport themselves on Ice. DICKENS 327
LXVII. _The Hanging of the Crane._ LONGFELLOW 336
LXVIII. Earthworms. DARWIN 342
LXIX. "_As Ships, Becalmed at Eve._" CLOUGH 346
LXX. _Duty._ CLOUGH 347
LXXI. _Sonnets._ HEAVYSEGE 349
LXXII. Dr. Arnold at Rugby. DEAN STANLEY 350
LXXIII. _Ode to the North-east Wind._ KINGSLEY 354
LXXIV. From "The Mill on the Floss." GEORGE ELIOT 356
LXXV. _The Cloud Confines._ ROSSETTI 359
LXXVI. _Barbara Frietchie._ WHITTIER 361
LXXVII. _Contentment._ HOLMES 364
LXXVIII. The British Constitution. GLADSTONE 367
LXXIX. _The Lord of Burleigh._ TENNYSON 370
LXXX. "_Break, Break, Break._" TENNYSON 373
LXXXI. _The "Revenge"._ TENNYSON 373
LXXXII. _Herve Riel._ BROWNING 378
LXXXIII. _Sonnet._ DR. WILSON 383
LXXXIV. _Our Ideal._ DR. WILSON 383
LXXXV. From the Apology of Socrates. JOWETT 384
LXXXVI. The Empire of the Caesars. FROUDE 389
LXXXVII. Of the Mystery of Life. RUSKIN 390
LXXXVIII. The Robin. LOWELL 397
LXXXIX. _The Old Cradle._ LOCKER 400
XC. _Rugby Chapel._ MATT. ARNOLD 401
XCI. _In the Orillia Woods._ SANGSTER 408
XCII. Morals and Character in the Eighteenth
Century. GOLDWIN SMITH 409
XCIII. A Liberal Education. HUXLEY 412
XCIV. _Too Late._ MRS. CRAIK 416
XCV. _Amor Mundi._ MISS ROSSETTI 417
XCVI. _Toujours Amour._ STEDMAN 418
XCVII. _England._ ALDRICH 419
XCVIII. _Rococo._ ALDRICH 420
XCIX. _Kings of Men._ JOHN READE 420
C. _Thalatta! Thalatta!_ JOHN READE 421
CI. _The Forsaken Garden._ SWINBURNE 422
CII. _A Ballad To Queen Elizabeth
of the Spanish Armada._ DOBSON 424
CIII. _Circe._ DOBSON 426
CIV. _Scenes from "Tecumseh."_ MAIR 426
CV. _The Return of the Swallows._ GOSSE 437
CVI. _Dawn Angels._ MISS ROBINSON 438
CVII. _Le Roi Est Mort._ MISS ROBINSON 439
CVIII. _To Winter._ ROBERTS 440
CIX. _Abigail Becker._ MISS JONES 442
SHORT EXTRACTS.
FIRST LINES. AUTHOR. PAGE.
He that cannot see well BACON 54
_Stone walls do not a prison make_ LOVELACE 55
When the heart is right BERKELEY 87
_It must be so--Plato, thou reasonest well_ ADDISON 92
_England, with all thy faults, I love thee still_ COWPER 154
_Now stir the fire, and close the shutters fast_ COWPER 158
_Oh, wad some power the giftie gie us_ BURNS 170
_Life! we've been long together_ MRS. BARBAULD 178
_Rough wind, that moanest loud_ SHELLEY 218
_There is a book, who runs may read_ KEBLE 233
_There is no great and no small_ EMERSON 245
_Wellington, Thy great work is but begun_ ROSSETTI 293
_Sacrifice and self-devotion_ LORD HOUGHTON 320
_Flower in the crannied wall_ TENNYSON 366
_It fortifies my soul to know_ CLOUGH 369
_And yet, dear heart! remembering thee_ WHITTIER 372
_There is no land like England_ TENNYSON 377
_The Summum Pulchrum rests in heaven above_ CLOUGH 382
Be of good cheer then, my dear Crito SOCRATES 388
_What know we greater than the soul_ TENNYSON 407
_That is best blood that hath most iron in't_ LOWELL 411
_Such kings of shreds have woo'd and won her_ ALDRICH 419
INDEX OF AUTHORS.
NAME. PAGE.
ADDISON, JOSEPH 88, 92
ALDRICH, THOMAS BAILEY 419, 420
ARNOLD, MATTHEW 401
ARNOLD, THOMAS 227
AYTOUN, WM. EDMONDSTOUNE 315
BACON, LORD (FRANCIS) 53, 54
BARBAULD, ANNA LAETITIA 178
BEACONSFIELD, LORD (BENJAMIN DISRAELI) 321
BERKELEY, BISHOP (GEORGE) 87
BIBLE, THE HOLY 33, 39
BOSWELL, JAMES 133
BROWNING, ELIZABETH BARRETT 270, 271
BROWNING, ROBERT 378
BRYANT, WILLIAM CULLEN 272
BURKE, EDMUND 147
BURNS, ROBERT 170, 171
BYRON, LORD (GEORGE GORDON NOEL) 211
CARLYLE, THOMAS 274
CHATHAM, LORD (WM. PITT) 116
CLARENDON, LORD 76
CLOUGH, ARTHUR HUGH 346, 347, 369, 382
COLERIDGE, SAMUEL TAYLOR 205, 208
COWPER, WILLIAM 154, 155, 158
CRAIK, DINAH MARIA MULOCK 416
DARWIN, CHARLES 342
DE QUINCEY, THOMAS 223
DICKENS, CHARLES 327
DOBSON, AUSTIN 424, 426
DRYDEN, JOHN 81, 82, 83
ELIOT, GEORGE (MARIAN EVANS CROSS) 356
EMERSON, RALPH WALDO 245, 282
FROUDE, JAMES ANTHONY 389
GIBBON, EDWARD 142
GLADSTONE, WILLIAM EWART 367
GOLDSMITH, OLIVER 127
GOSSE, EDMUND WILLIAM 437
GRAY, THOMAS 111
HALIBURTON, THOMAS CHANDLER 239
HAWTHORNE, NATHANIEL 262
HEAVYSEGE, CHARLES 349
HERRICK, ROBERT 55
HOLMES, OLIVER WENDELL 364
HOOD, THOMAS 234, 237
HOUGHTON, LORD (RICHARD MONCKTON MILNES) 320
HUME, DAVID 102
HUNT, LEIGH 217
HUXLEY, THOMAS HENRY 412
JONES, AMANDA T. 412
JOWETT, BENJAMIN 384
KEATS, JOHN 222
KEBLE, JOHN 233
KINGSLEY, CHARLES 354
LEVER, CHARLES JAMES 284
LOCKER, FREDERICK 400
LONGFELLOW, HENRY WADSWORTH 336
LOVELACE, RICHARD 55, 61
LOVER, SAMUEL 246
LOWELL, JAMES RUSSELL 397, 411
LYTTON, LORD (EDWARD BULWER) 294
MACAULAY, LORD (THOMAS BABINGTON) 247
MAIR, CHARLES 426
MILTON, JOHN 67
MOORE, THOMAS 214, 215, 216
NAIRN, BARONESS (CAROLINA OLIPHANT) 177
NEWMAN, CARDINAL (JOHN HENRY) 299
POE, EDGAR ALLAN 258
POPE, ALEXANDER 96
PRAED, WINTHROP MACKWORTH 246
READE, JOHN 420, 421
ROBERTS, CHARLES GEORGE DOUGLAS 440
ROBINSON, A. MARY F. 438, 439
ROSSETTI, CHRISTINA GEORGINA 417
ROSSETTI, DANTE GABRIEL 293, 359
RUSKIN, JOHN 390
SANGSTER, CHARLES 408
SCOTT, SIR WALTER 179
SHAKESPEARE, WILLIAM 40
SHELLEY, PERCY BYSSHE 218, 219
SHERIDAN, RICHARD BRINSLEY 159
SMITH, GOLDWIN 409
SOUTHEY, ROBERT 209
STANLEY, DEAN (ARTHUR PENRHYN) 350
STEDMAN, EDMUND CLARENCE 418
STEELE, SIR RICHARD 83
SWIFT, JONATHAN 93
SWINBURNE, ALGERNON CHARLES 422
TAYLOR, BISHOP (JEREMY) 56
TENNYSON, LORD (ALFRED) 366, 370, 373, 377, 407
THACKERAY, WILLIAM MAKEPEACE 306, 308
THOMSON, JAMES 101
WALTON, IZAAK 62
WHITTIER, JOHN GREENLEAF 361, 372
WILSON, PRESIDENT (DANIEL) 383
WORDSWORTH, WILLIAM 202
INTRODUCTORY.
The ability to read well cannot be attained without much pains and
study. For even a moderate proficiency in the art of reading two
requirements are essential: (1) A cultivated mind quick to perceive the
sequence of thoughts which the words to be read logically express, and
equally quick in its power sympathetically to appreciate the sentiment
with which the words are informed--the feeling, emotion, passion, which
pervades them--but which they suggest rather than actually portray; and
(2) a voice so perfected that its utterances fall upon the ear of the
listener with pleasing effect, and so flexible that it can be managed
skilfully to convey to him the full meaning and force of all the ideas
and sentiments formally expressed by the words or latent in them. Of
these two requirements the first is undeniably the more important; and
that training in the art of reading in which the close, persistent, and
liberal study of literature for its own sake has not proceeded _pari
passu_ with the requisite exercises for the development of the powers of
the voice and with the study of the principles of vocal interpretation,
has resulted in a meretricious accomplishment of very illusive value.
Nor will the special study and accurate mastery of a number of
individual selections give that readiness of mental apprehension which
is indispensable to a good reader. The ability quickly to recognize
word-forms and to utter them with ease, to catch the drift of ideas, and
to feel ready sympathy with change and flow in sentiment, is not to be
had without a long course of wide and varied reading. No one can become
a good reader by passing through, no matter how carefully, a set of
reading text-books merely. Pupils should be encouraged to read for
themselves. They should, of course, be guided in their selection of
reading matter, and they should be helped to acquire a taste for that
which is purest and most helpful in literature; but unless they form a
_habit_ of reading, and of reading thoughtfully and with precision, they
can never become good readers.
In oral reading, readiness and accuracy depend largely upon the
alertness and flexibility of the vocal organs, and to secure ease and
excellence in the working of their delicate mechanism much practice is
necessary. The pupil should persistently read aloud. A practice of this
sort, watchfully pursued, with a reasonable degree of self-discipline in
the correction or avoidance of errors, is helpful not alone in obtaining
a mastery of the reading art, and in mental culture,--it is equally
beneficial as a physical exercise. It will, however, be much more
efficacious of good, both of mind and of body, if pursued in accordance
with those principles of voice culture and of vocal interpretation,
which experience and special study have established.
But only a small proportion of all the reading that is done, is oral
reading. It is _silent_ reading that is universally employed as an
instrument of study, of business, of amusement. As a rule, however, very
little provision is made for the acquirement of a facility in silent
reading; this, it is thought, will result as a by-product of the regular
training in oral reading. Almost the reverse of this is true. Ease and
flexibility of articulation, quickness in catching the drift of ideas,
and readiness in varying the tones of the voice in the utterance of
words so as impressively to portray their latent sentiment,--all this is
possible with those alone to whom difficult word-forms, complex
sentence-structures, and the infinite variety and play of thought and
emotion, are more or less familiar through such a wide range of reading
as only the silent prosecution of it makes possible.
The art of oral reading, however, though not so generally needful as
silent reading, is still of great importance to everyone in respect of
its practical utility simply,--though few of those whose duty it is to
read aloud in public, do so either with accuracy or grace; as an
accomplishment which may be used to give pleasure to others, it is, when
perfectly possessed, not excelled by any other; so that as an
acquisition which puts one in a position of vantage either for
benefitting one's self or for bestowing delight or benefit upon others,
it is worth every necessary struggle for its attainment.
One of the most valuable results of oral reading when systematically
pursued as a school study, is the effect which it has in improving the
tones of the voice for ordinary conversation and discourse, and in
securing some measure of orthoepy as a fixed habit of utterance.
Conversational speech is notoriously slovenly. The sonority of our
vowels is lost, and their distinguishing qualities are obscured;
and with unnoticed frequency our consonants are either dropped or
amalgamated with one another. Yet, while amendment in these matters
is to be striven for, there is nothing that the teacher who wishes
to establish habits of orthoepy has to be more watchful in guarding
against, than bestowing upon his pupils an affected or mincing
utterance, all the more ludicrous and objectionable, it may be,
in that a certain set of words are pronounced with over-nicety,
while almost all others are left in a state of neglected vulgarity.
Too frequently the study of oral reading is pursued with reference
solely to the prospective public use of the art in the declamation of
prepared passages; and the elocution-master's science has been brought
into some discredit by wide discrepancies between the performances of
his pupils in their well-drilled and often hackneyed selections and
their ability to read unfamiliar pieces at sight. It is quite true that
voice culture is greatly aided by the close study and frequent rendering
of selections suitably chosen for the elocutionary difficulties which
they present; but it should never be forgotten that good reading, the
sort of reading which the schoolmaster should above all else endeavor to
make his pupils proficient in, implies the ability so to read a plain
account, a story, an oration, a play, or what not, _at sight_, with
absolute correctness as to pronunciation, with such clearness of
articulation and appropriateness of sentence utterance as will make it
perfectly audible and intelligible to one's auditors, and with such
suitable and impressive intonations as will put them in full possession
of those emotions which may be said to be the essence or spirit of the
piece;--and, moreover, to do all this with pleasure to one's hearers and
with ease to one's self. Now as comparatively few readers are ever
required to read in public, and as in the home-circle everyone ought to
read, it is plain that the first duty of the teacher of elocution is to
develop in his pupils a mastery of such a style of reading as is
appropriate to small audiences; and, _then_, if he have time and
opportunity, to extend and amplify the practice of his art so as to fit
such as are capable of fuller mastery of it to appear before greater
audiences. For though all voices are capable of being much improved
through cultivation, few only can be adapted to the requirements of
a large auditorium; and the care and attention which should be devoted
to the benefit of all should not be spent for the advantage merely of
the few.
And moreover, those practices and studies which voice culture and the
attainment of a knowledge of the principles of vocal interpretation
demand, may be pursued by all in common. That alone which is necessary
for the public reader or orator, is a more extended, and, perhaps, a
more earnest and thoughtful practice.
Although practices for the improvement of the voice cannot proceed far
without attention to the principles of vocal interpretation, and though
the study of the latter necessarily includes the former, yet for the
sake of clearness the elementary principles of voice culture may be
discussed separately from their application in the interpretation of
thought and sentiment.
With respect both to articulation and expression _the generic properties
of the voice are five_, namely: _Quality_, _Pitch_, _Force_, _Time_,
_Abruptness_. Of these properties there are, of course, many modes or
degrees, but the voice must, in every tone that it utters, manifest
itself in some mode or other of each; and it is the possibility of
infinite choice in the ways of combining the modes that gives to vocal
expression its infinite possibility of variety. The principles of voice
culture will be best understood, however, if these properties be
considered separately.
=Quality= has reference to the _kind_ of the voice in respect of its
smoothness or roughness, sonority or thinness, musicalness or harshness;
also in respect of the completeness of its vocality.
=Pitch= has reference to the degree of elevation or depression in what
is called in music the _scale_. It may be used specifically, in
reference to single tones or syllables (either as to their opening, or
as to their whole utterance), or generally, as descriptive of the
prevailing tone or note which the voice assumes in reading a sentence or
passage.
=Force= has reference to the power or intensity with which the sounds of
the voice are uttered. When force is used in the utterance of single
syllables, in whole or in part, it is spoken of as =Stress=.
=Time= is rate of utterance. It is used with reference both to single
syllables, and to phrases, sentences, and passages. In regard to single
syllables it is sometimes called =Quantity=. In the consideration of
time may be included that of _pauses_ and _rhythms_.
=Abruptness= has reference to the relative suddenness with which
syllables may be uttered. It may vary from the most delicate opening to
a forcible explosion.
Vocality depends upon respiration. All exercises, therefore, which are
effective in increasing the vigor, freedom, and elasticity of the
breathing apparatus, may be taken as initiatory steps in voice culture;
and, in moderation, they should be practised continually. Full, slow
inspirations followed by slow, and, as far as possible, complete
expirations; full, quick inspirations similarly followed; full
inspirations followed by sudden and forcible expirations; full, deep
inspirations, followed by slow, slightly but distinctly audible
expirations, as in deep sighing; these and similar practices may be
pursued. What is to be aimed at is to secure complete control of the
breath, especially to the degree that, with perfect deliberateness, it
can be equably and smoothly effused.
In all exercises where vocality is required it is best _first_ to use
the sound of _ae_, as in _far_, for in this sound the quality of the
human voice is heard in most perfection, and in uttering it the vocal
organs are most flexible and most easily adapt themselves to change. It
may be preceded by the aspirate _h_, or by some consonant, as may be
thought necessary.
In effective speaking or reading, _with respect to the abruptness and
rapidity of expiration there are three modes of utterance_: the
=effusive=, by which the voice is poured forth smoothly and equably, the
=expulsive= and the =explosive=. Of these three modes the effusive is by
far the most important, but the others, and especially the expulsive,
have their uses also. These modes will be illustrated in the following
exercise:
EXERCISE.--1. After a full and deliberate inspiration let the
expiration of the element _h_ be gently effected, until the
lungs are exhausted--the aspiration coming from the very depths
of the throat. Let this be repeated with the syllable _haeh_,
audibly whispered. This is _effusive_ utterance.
2. After a full and deliberate inspiration let the expiration of
the element _h_ be suddenly effected, the expiration being
continued until the whispering sound vanishes in the bottom of
the throat. Let this be repeated with the syllable _haeh_,
audibly whispered. This is _expulsive_ utterance.
3. Let the exercise be the same as in (2) except that the
expiration is to be much more forcibly effected, and completed
almost instantaneously. This is _explosive_ utterance.
In the cultivation of the voice either one of two ends is generally kept
in view--its improvement for speaking or its improvement for singing;
but progress may be made towards both ends by the same study, and those
exercises which benefit the singing voice benefit the speaking voice,
and _vice versa_. _The distinction between speaking tones and singing
tones should be clearly understood._ Musical tones are produced by
isochronous (equal-timed) vibrations of the vocal organs continued for
some length of time. Hence, a musical tone is a _note_, which may be
prolonged at will without varying in pitch, either up or down. A
speaking tone, on the contrary, is produced by vibrations which are not
isochronous; it is not a _note_, properly so called, and can not be
prolonged, without varying in pitch. Musical tones are _discrete_,--the
voice passes from pitch to pitch through the intervals silently. In
speaking, _every_ tone, however short the time taken in uttering it,
passes from one pitch to some other through an interval _concretely_,
that is, with continuous vocality; though, with respect to one another,
speech syllables, like notes in music, are discrete. This may be
exemplified by uttering the words, "_Where are you going?_" In singing
these words, they may be uttered on the same note, or on different
notes, or, indeed, with different notes for the same word; but the voice
_skips_ from note to note through the intervals. In speaking the words,
each is uttered with an inflection or intonation in which the voice
varies in pitch, but passes through the interval concretely; the
separate words, however, and the separate syllables (if there were any)
being uttered discretely. Musical utterance might be graphically
illustrated by a series of horizontal lines of less or greater length
succeeding one another at different distances above or below a fixed
horizontal line. In a similar notation for speech utterance the lines
would all be curved, to represent the concrete passage through the
various intervals. _It is the concrete intonation of every syllable and
monosyllabic word which gives to speech its distinctive character from
music._ Each syllable and monosyllabic word is called a =concrete=, and
_it is with the concrete in all its various possibilities of utterance
that voice culture has mainly to do_.
The intervals traversed by the voice in uttering the concrete are very
variable. Using the musical scale for reference it may be said that in
ordinary speech they are generally of but one, or, at most, two notes.
In animated discourse or passionate utterance the intervals may be
greater. For illustration, let the pronoun "_I_" be uttered in a tone of
interrogative surprise; a concrete with a rising interval will be the
result. The more the surprise is emphasized, especially if indignation
be conjoined with it, the greater will be the interval that the voice
passes through in uttering the concrete. If the word "_lie_" be given
immediately after the pronoun with the same intensity of feeling, the
voice discretely descends from the high pitch heard at the end of the
utterance of the pronoun, and in uttering the next concrete, again
ascends through an interval, of less or more extent according to the
emphasis which is imparted to it.
Again, in speech of sorrow, murmuring, piteous complaint, and the like,
concrete intervals of less extent than those used in ordinary discourse
are often heard. Thus, if the sentence "_Pity me, kind lady, I have no
mother_," be uttered with a plaintive expression, concretes with small
intervals will be distinctly noticeable; but it will be also noticed
that with respect to one another the syllables are discretely uttered,
just as in the sentence where the concrete intervals were much greater.
Without intending a scientifically accurate and rigid statement, it may
be said (again borrowing the terminology of music) that in ordinary
speech the concretes are uttered with intervals of a _second_, or at
most a _third_; that in very expressive or impassioned utterance
intervals of a _fifth_ or an _octave_ are frequently used; and that the
mode of progression from syllable to syllable is _diatonic_, that is,
not concretely, but discretely from tone to tone; and further, that in
plaintive language, the syllables are uttered concretely with intervals
of a _semitone_ only, but that the mode of progression from syllable to
syllable is still discrete.
Sometimes, but rarely, syllables are uttered _tremulously_, or with a
_tremor_; that is, with constituent intervals of less than a semitone,
uttered discretely in rapid succession, and passing, in the aggregate,
through an interval of more or less width. An exaggerated form of this
utterance may be heard in the neighing of a horse.
EXERCISE.--1. Utter the syllable _pae_ as a concrete, with rising
and falling intervals, severally, of a _second_, _third_,
_fifth_, and an _octave_; also with intervals of a _semitone_;
also with a _tremor_. Let the exercise be varied so as to
include many degrees of initial pitch. Use a diagram of a
musical staff for reference.
2. Read with exaggerated impressiveness, "_Am_ =I= _to be your
slave?_ =No!="
In the pronunciation of the letter [=a], as in _pate_, two sounds are
heard: the first is that of the name of the letter, which is uttered
with some degree of fulness; the second is that of _[=e]_ in _mete_,
but, as it were, tapering and vanishing;--in the meantime the voice
traverses a rising interval of one tone, that is, of a second. The
utterance of these two sounds, although the sounds themselves are
distinct, is completely continuous, from the full opening of the one to
the vanishing close of the other, and it is impossible to say where the
first ends and where the last begins. It is essential, however, to
consider them separately. The first is called the =radical movement=,
and the second the =vanishing movement=; and these together constitute
the entire concrete.
All the vowels do not equally well exemplify in their utterance a
_distinction of sound_ in their radical and vanishing movements, because
some vowel sounds are less diphthongal than others, and some, again, are
pure monophthongs; but _these two movements and the concrete variation
of pitch, the result of one impulse of the voice, are the essential
structure of every syllable_, and are characteristic of speech-notes as
contradistinguished from those of song.
When the radical and vanishing movements are effected smoothly,
distinctly, and without intensity or emotion, commencing fully and with
some abruptness, and terminating gently and almost inaudibly, the result
is the =equable concrete=. This of course may be produced with
intervals, either upward or downward, of any degree--tone, semitone,
third, fifth, or octave. It must be said, however, that some syllables,
and even some vowels, lend themselves more easily than others to that
prolonged utterance which is essential to the production of wide
intervals and the perfectness of the vanishing movement.
The equable concrete is the natural, simple mode of utterance; but under
the influence of interest, excitement, passion, and so on, the utterance
of the concrete may be greatly varied from this by means of _stress_, or
force applied to some part or to all of its extent. The different
variations may be described as follows:
(1) =Radical Stress=, where force is applied to the opening of the
concrete. (It should be said that a slight degree of radical stress is
given even in the equable concrete, producing its full, clear opening.)
(2) =Loud Concrete=, where force is applied throughout the whole
concrete, the proportion of the radical to the vanish remaining
unaltered.
(3) =Median Stress=, where force is applied to the middle of the
concrete, producing a swell, or impressive fulness.
(4) =Compound Stress=, where force is applied in an unusual degree
to each extremity of the concrete.
(5) =Final Stress=, where force is applied to the end of the concrete,
the radical stress being somewhat diminished in fulness.
(6) =Thorough Stress=, where force is so applied that the concrete has
the same fulness throughout.
EXERCISE.--With the syllable _pae_ exemplify the _equable
concrete_ and the several varieties of _stress_, using different
degrees of initial or radical pitch, and the various intervals
of the tone, semitone, third, fifth, and octave. The exercises
for the radical stress should be first aspirated, then repeated
with full vocality.
Besides the forms of the simple rising and falling intervals in which
the concrete is generally uttered, there is another form, called the
=wave=, effected by a union of these modes. It is of two varieties: (1)
where a rising movement is continued into a falling movement, called the
=direct wave=; (2) where a falling movement is continued into a rising
movement, called the =inverted wave=. Waves may pass through all
varieties of intervals, and may be either (1) _equal_, where the voice
in both members passes through the same interval; or (2) _unequal_,
where in one flexion the interval traversed by the voice is greater than
in the other.
EXERCISE.--With the syllable _p[=a]_ exemplify the different
kinds of _waves_, with the same variations of radical pitch,
interval, and stress, as before.
The elementary sounds of speech are of three natural divisions; the
_tonics_, the _subtonics_, and the _atonics_.
The =Tonics= are the simple vowels and diphthongs. They are of perfect
vocality; they admit the concrete rise and fall through all the
intervals of pitch; they may be uttered with more abruptness than the
other elements; and being capable of indefinite prolongation they can
receive the most perfect exemplification of the vanishing movement. They
may be said to be: _[a:]_, as in _all_; _ae_, as in _arm_; _[.a]_, as in
_ask_; _[)a]_, as in _an_; _[=a]_, as in _ate_; _a_, as in _air_;
_[=e]_, as in _eve_; _[)e]_, as in _end_; _e_, as in _err_; _[=i]_, as
in _ice_; _[)i]_, as in _inn_; _[=o]_, as in _old_; _oe_, as in _or_;
_[)o]_, as in _odd_; _[=u]_, as in _use_; _[)u]_, as in _up_;
_[=o][=o]_, as in _ooze_; _[)o][)o]_, as in _book_; _oi_, as in _oil_;
_ou_, as in _out_. (There are various ways of arranging and classifying
these.)
EXERCISE.--Exemplify generally the equable concrete, loud
concrete, radical stress, and median stress, with upward and
downward intervals, with clear, sharp openings, and with
gradually attenuated vanishes, upon each of the _tonic
elements_.
The =Subtonics= possess the properties of vocality and prolongation in
some degree, but much less perfectly than the tonics, and their vocality
(known as the _vocal murmur_) is the same for all. They are as
follows:--_b_, _d_, _g_, _v_, _z_, _y_, _w_ (as in _woe_), _th_ (as in
_then_), _zh_ (as _z_ in _azure_), j (as in _judge_, by some considered
not elementary), _l_, _m_, _n_, _ng_ (as in _sing_), _r_ (as in _ran_),
and _r_ (as in _far_). They can not, without great effort, be given an
abrupt opening, and so are not capable of much radical fulness, but from
their property of vocality they can receive, to a considerable degree,
an exemplification of the vanishing movement.
EXERCISE.--Utter the word _bud_ slowly, and detach from the rest
of the word the obscure murmur heard in pronouncing the first
letter: this is the _subtonic_ represented by _b_. Utter this
sound with different degrees of initial pitch, and with
different intervals, both downward and upward. Produce as full
an opening of the radical movement as possible, but do not
attempt to give it much stress. Obtain in every case a distinct
vanish. Be careful not to convert the subtonic into a tonic.
Proceed in a similar manner with the other subtonics. Then,
distinctly obtaining the subtonics, unite them severally with
the sound of _ae_, first forcibly, then more gently, producing
such syllables as _bae_, _dae_, etc., which may be rendered with
upward and downward intervals, and with different degrees of
initial pitch. Finally, with such syllables as _aeb_, _aed_, _aeg_,
_aev_, etc., exemplify all the varieties of stress.
The =Atonics= correspond with the first eleven of the subtonics as given
above, from which they differ almost alone in having _no_ vocality. They
are _p_, _t_, _k_, _f_, _s_, _h_, _wh_ (as in _when_), _th_ (as in
_thin_), _sh_, and _ch_ (as in _child_, by some considered not
elementary).
EXERCISE.--1. Form a list of such words as _pipe_, _tote_,
_kick_, _fife_, _siss_, etc., and severally utter them slowly,
holding the final element for a moment, and then letting the
breath escape suddenly; then, holding the initial letter firmly
for a moment let it come forcibly against the sound of the
remainder of the word, producing an abrupt opening, and radical
stress of the vowel concrete. 2. Aspirate strongly the atonics
as given above.
EXERCISE RECAPITULATORY.--1. Produce the syllable _pae_ in an
articulate whisper in all the different varieties of pitch,
interval, and stress. 2. Repeat with such syllables as _paw_,
_pooh_, _p[=o]h_, etc. 3. Utter these syllables (1) expulsively,
(2) explosively, with varying intervals both upward and
downward, and producing distinct and clearly attenuated
vanishes. 4. Select some passage of poetry involving passionate
thought, and read in articulated whispers, with appropriate
intonations, somewhat exaggerated, it may be. Let the intervals
and stresses be slowly and distinctly given. 5. Repeat the
exercise in a half whisper. 6. Next read the passage over
several times in pure vocality, without exaggeration, increasing
the strength of the utterance until it is as full and ringing as
possible. Care must be taken that the utterance is in reality
full and ringing, not sharp and hard. Let the pitch chosen be
not too high--as low as possible; and let the tones come mainly
from the chest and lower part of the throat.
NOTE.--In all the exercises care should be taken that they be performed
easily and naturally, with perfect deliberation and without undue force;
else they will be harmful rather than useful.
EXERCISE IN CONCRETE INTERVALS CONTINUED.--1. Read with
appropriate intonations: "_Did you say [a:], as in all?_"--"_No,
I said ae, as in arm_,"--producing in the emphatic syllables
suitable rising or falling intervals of _one tone_. Then repeat,
but with greater emphasis, producing intervals of a third, a
fifth, or an octave. Vary the sentences so as to include all the
tonic elements. 2. With each tonic element, severally, produce
first a rising and then a falling interval, each of a tone; then
intervals of a third, a fifth, and an octave. 3. Extend the
exercise so as to produce with each element, and with all the
various intervals, a series or succession of rising and falling
intervals, thus: _rising, falling, rising, falling_, etc. Use
the blackboard and the musical scale for illustration and
reference.
Syllables vary greatly in their capacity for prolongation, and in this
respect are classified into _immutable_, _mutable_, and _indefinite_.
=Immutable Syllables= are almost incapable of prolongation; they are
those which end in one of the abrupt atonic elements, _p_, _t_, _k_; as
_tip_, _hit_, _kick_; or in one of the abrupt subtonics, _b_, _d_, _g_;
as _tub_, _thud_, _pug_. Some syllables that so end, by virtue of tonic
or subtonic elements which they may contain, are capable of _some_
prolongation; for example, _warp_, _dart_, _block_, _grab_, _dread_,
_grog_. These are called =Mutable Syllables=.
=Indefinite Syllables= are capable of almost indefinite prolongation;
they are those which terminate in a tonic, or any subtonic except one of
the three abrupt subtonics, _b_, _d_, _g_; for example, _awe_, _fudge_,
_hail_, _arm_.
NOTE.--It must be remembered that when for the sake of exercise or
effect syllables are extended in time, they must be so uttered that
their identity is not impaired,--that is, their enunciation must be
free from mouthing.
As has been remarked before our pronunciation of vowels is notoriously
careless; but by a little attention anyone can easily free himself from
this reproach. Frequent practice in the accurate enunciation of the
tonic elements as given above, and a habit of watchfulness established
as to the orthoepy of those which are most easily obscured, in all words
in which they occur, will soon secure, if not a resonant, sonorous
utterance with respect to the tonic elements, at least a correct
pronunciation. But the correct and distinct pronunciation of the
subtonic, and especially of the atonic, elements, when they occur,
as is so frequent in English words, in combination, is not so easily
accomplished; and orthoepy, in this respect, as a _habit_, cannot be
secured without great care and incessant practice. For example, the
word _months_ is habitually pronounced by almost everyone as if it
were spelled _munce_. The following list for practice will afford
material to begin with; other lists should be prepared by the teacher.
_Plinth, blithe, sphere, shriek, quote, whether, tipt, depth, robed,
hoofed, calved, width, hundredth, exhaust, whizzed, hushed, ached,
wagged, etched, pledged, asked, dreamt, alms, adapts, depths, lefts,
heav'ns, meddl'd, beasts, wasps, hosts, exhausts, gasped, desks,
selects, facts, hints, healths, tenths, salts, builds, wilds, milked,
mulcts, elms, prob'd'st, think'st, hold'st, attempt'st, want'st,
heard'st, mask'st._
EXERCISE.--Utter the words in the above list in distinct
articulate whispers; then with vocality, softly and gently.
Avoid hissing and mouthing.
While, in reading, distinct enunciation is an excellence to be aimed at,
yet the words of a sentence should not be uttered as if completely
severed from one another. Every sentence falls naturally into _groups_,
the several groups being composed of words related in sense; and for
impressive reading the words of each group should be _implicated_, or
tied together. For example, in the line, _Once upon a midnight dreary,
while I ponder'd, weak and weary_, there are naturally three groups; in
the line, _The quality of mercy is not strain'd_, there is but one. In
these groups the terminal sound of each word is implicated with the
initial sound of the succeeding word. If the terminal sound is a tonic,
or a flowing subtonic, the implication consists of a gentle murmuring
prolongation of the terminal element coalescing with the initial element
of the next word; if the terminal element is a flowing atonic the
prolongation will not be accompanied by a murmur; but in either case the
vocal organs, while prolonging the sound of one word, prepare, as it
were, to begin the next. If the terminal element be one of the abrupt
subtonics the vocal murmur is difficult to produce, and in this case,
and also when the terminal element is an abrupt atonic, there is a
suspension of the voice for a time equal to that occupied by the
murmuring prolongation in the other cases; but the organs keep the
position which they have in finishing the one word until they relax to
take position for the utterance, with renewed exertion, of the opening
sound of the next.
It must be added that this implication is not confined to the component
words of a group; for the sake of impressiveness the groups themselves
are often implicated,--but by suspension of the voice and a maintenance
of the vocal organs in their previous position, before they suddenly
relax to form the opening sound of the first word in their next group,
rather than by the murmuring prolongation above described.
EXERCISE.--Read with suitable implication: (1) _O Tiber! father
Tiber! to whom the Romans pray, a Roman's life, a Roman's arms,
take thou in charge this day!_ (2) _But still the patriot, and
the patriot-bard, in bright succession raise, her ornament and
guard._