this your day of salvation, take counsel, not of prejudice, not of party spirit, not of the ignominious pride of a fatal consistency, but of history, of reason, of the ages which are past, of the signs of this most portentous time. Pronounce in a manner worthy of the expectation with which this great debate has been anticipated, and of the long remembrance which it will leave behind. Renew the youth of the state. Save property, divided against itself. Save the multitude, endangered by its own ungovernable passions. Save the aristocracy, endangered by its own unpopular power. Save the greatest, and fairest, and most highly civilized community that ever existed from calamities which may in a few days sweep away all the rich heritage of so many ages of wisdom and glory. The danger is terrible. The time is short. If this bill should be rejected, I pray to God that none of those who concur in rejecting it may ever remember their votes with unavailing remorse amidst the wreck of laws, the confusion of ranks, the spoliation of property, and the dissolution of social order.

VII

EXTEMPORE SPEAKING

To speak without manuscript does not imply lack of preparation. A man who essays to stand before an audience and address them without dependence upon notes, must have his speech very clearly and vividly imprest upon his own mind. Extempore speaking, to be successful, really demands greater labor and diligence than any other form of address.

It is undoubtedly true, as Bautain says, that "There are some men organized to speak well, as there are birds organized to sing well, bees to make honey, and beavers to build." Some men are naturally adapted to extempore speaking, while others because of timidity, mental sluggishness, or some other quality of temperament, are from necessity slaves to a manuscript. Possibly every man could eventually become an extemporaneous speaker, if he set deliberately and persistently about it, but unfortunately the written page serves as an easy escape from the more laborious method.

Extemporaneous address is the ideal form of delivery. Popular opinion has declared itself against the reading of a speech. A manuscript in the hands of a speaker acts as a wet blanket, an obstacle, or a prejudice between him and his hearers. In extempore speech a man is more real, spontaneous, and energetic. He looks at his audience and they look at him. A bond of sympathy and mutual interest is

established. They take pleasure in watching the operation of the speaker's mind, while he, in turn, has the opportunity to observe the effect of his words upon them. Lightning-like changes must often be made while the speech is in progress. When the speaker sees that a thought of his is not quite clear, or lacking in impressiveness, he may at once express it again in a new phrase, or with more telling emphasis. Possibly a man at the back of the hall, with his hand behind his ear serves as a warning to the speaker that he is not being distinctly heard. An inattentive auditor suggests the possibility that the speaker fails to make himself interesting. The snapping of a watch may be a polite hint that the speaker is speaking too long. For these and many other reasons an extempore speaker has a decided advantage over one who must, for the most part, keep his eyes glued to a manuscript. Moreover, an extempore speaker, being unhampered by notes, can give adequate force and precision to his voice and gesture. He can pause as often and as long as he thinks necessary to enforce his thought. It is not merely the memory that speaks, but his entire personality.

It can not too often be repeated that the speaker should write much. Skill and thrill of pen quickly communicate themselves to the voice. We have the authority of Cicero on this important subject. He says:

write as much as possible. and most excellent modeler

The chief point of all is to Writing is said to be the best and teacher of oratory; and not without reason; for if what is meditated and considered easily surpasses sudden and extemporary speech, a constant and diligent habit of writing will surely be of more effect than meditation and consideration itself; since all the arguments relating to the subject on which

we write, whether they are suggested by art, or by a certain power of genius and understanding, will present themselves, and occur to us, while we examine and contemplate it in the full light of our intellect; and all thoughts and words, which are the most expressive of their kind, must of necessity come under and submit to the keenness of our judgment while writing; and a fair arrangement and collocation of the words is effected by writing in a certain rhythm and measure, not poetical, but oratorical.

Cicero goes on to say that by means of practise in wriing, the language of a man, when required to speak on the spur of the moment, will resemble the accuracy and precision of his written style. In this practise of writing, however, the student should summon his audience before him in imagination, and frequently test what he has written by standing up and rendering it aloud. It is the business of the speech-maker not only to fit words to his thoughts, but to fit words to his mouth.

The chief danger of the extempore style is the tendency to be diffuse. A speaker should realize that there is a distinct advantage in leaving some things unsaid. The Lacedæmonians, we are told, knew the positive uses of the negation of speech, and by repression gained strength and intensity. Their public assemblies were short, and the audience invariably remained standing. An extempore speaker should know precisely what he intends to say, not the exact words, perhaps, but certainly the nature and order of ideas.

The chief objection to the use of manuscript is that the speaker usually reads his words, instead of speaking them. He reads too rapidly, in a uniform style, and often with no special regard for the immediate impression he is making.

He loses, too, in directness, in fire and enthusiasm, and in personal magnetism. "The vitality of thought," observes Bautain, "is singularly stimulated by the necessity of instantaneous production, by this actual necessity of selfexpression, and of communication to other minds.”

A great American orator was welcomed to London some months ago, where he was invited to address an influential society of that city. He was heralded as one of the most gifted speakers of the day, and a distinguished audience greeted him with unusual marks of enthusiasm. But as he stood before them, he took from his pocket a large manuscript, and proceeded to read his speech. Enthusiasm suddenly changed to disappointment, and when the speaker at last had finished, the unanimous feeling was that he had seriously blundered. Oratory can not reach the heart through the printed page. If a man reads his speech, the members of the audience conclude that they might themselves read it quite as well in the quiet of their own homes.

An extempore speaker should have a ready vocabulary. It matters not so much by what method he gets it, so long as it is large and varied. He may take words deliberately from his general reading, ascertain their meaning and proper usage, and incorporate them at once into his daily conversation. He may closely scrutinize the language of recognized speakers, or he may copy down in his own handwriting parts of masterpieces of eloquence, giving special attention to the use of words, phrases, idioms, and figures of speech.

One of the best exercises for the student of extempore speech is to accustom himself daily to make short speeches aloud, while he is alone, and put his ability to frequent test while gaining articulate flexibility. He may stand in his