This caution needs to be especially emphasized with reference to the use of amusing stories. It is almost fatal to the effectiveness of any speaker to have the reputation of being a "funny man." A laugh at the witticism of a speaker is sweet to his vanity, but if he pampers his vanity by feeding it too much on this kind of pabulum, he may discover when too late that men have come to regard him as a joker without serious purpose, and may finally think of him not only as a joker but as a joke. An amusing story now and then is allowable and, if it sharpens the point of an argument or illumines an idea, it may be helpful to the task of the orator, but he may easily indulge in so many stories of this nature as to make men think that he is a mere story-teller, that he speaks mainly to amuse. To tell funny stories is easy, but even those that laugh loudest at them may soon come to lose respect for the opinions of him who peddles the stories, and thus conveys the impression that they are his chief stock in trade.

CHAPTER XIII

ESSENTIAL QUALITIES OF ORATORICAL STYLE

IN GENERAL, it may be said that effective oratory has those qualities appropriate to strong, vigorous thinking, and manly, straightforward presentation of that thinking so as to drive it home to the apprehension and acceptance of the hearer. This means that its style must not be so elaborate as to be difficult to interpret offhand, while the speaker and, with him, the audience march on to the chosen goal. Consequently, its words will, as already noted, be mainly Saxon, short, clear,- the vocabulary of everyday speech, the language of the common people. Of course, the nature of the vocabulary, the construction, all the qualities of style will be determined. largely by the kind of audience- its culture, habits, interests, and by the nature of the subject of discourse But any audience, even an audience of scholars, will appreciate the simple, virile, homely language of everyday life, that wrestles with the thought and with them, like an athlete who, stripped of unnecessary clothing, struggles with them to make them see his thought as he sees it, and act accordingly.

Nouns and verbs are the strong words of language;

adjectives and adverbs are merely modifiers, to give shade and direction and limitation to the thought. A good rule for the user of language, then, is to cut out all such words not essential to the thought. For vigor, never use an adjective or an adverb, if you can help it. The multiplication of modifiers, instead of strengthening, weakens the style.

Another good law to observe is to seek suggestive words. The study of the derivation and history of words is very helpful to him who would use them with power. Make the vocabulary picturesque, robust, appealing to the imagination. Sometimes a single word will bring before the mind a whole event, a scene, a history, an argument.

All types of discourse will be found in oratory, and the language of all forms should be made familiar. Description, narration, exposition, argumentation,- the simplest prose, the sublimest poetry — all are tools of the orator, with which he needs to be familiar.

The main types of discourse that the orator will use are argument and exposition. But whatever the particular form at any place in the speech, the language should suit the thought. The argument of the orator is not the argument of the mathematician, who is satisfied with the mere intellectual demonstration of the truth of his proposition. It is not enough for him to show that two and two make four. He must make his two and two stand for something beyond the mere fact; it must mean something in life. It is not an end in itself, sought for

its own sake. The orator's logic is logic set on fire, or as someone has defined it, "oratory is the fusion of reason and passion." So, even when he speaks the language of argumentation, it is argumentation quickened, made alive.

A good style for the orator is based first of all upon strong, vigorous thinking, and is the outcome of such thinking. It does not exist for its own sake, but for the sake of the "object" for which the speech is made. Only as it furthers that "object" is it a good style. In the advancement of his controlling purpose, the orator is like an athlete running a race. He casts off every weight and runs with diligence the race that is set before him, and presses toward the goal- the end to which he desires. to lead his hearers. Every legitimate device, therefore, which will help him on his way is allowable. His language, consequently, will be so direct, so intense, so glowing with the force and fire of a man with a message that his whole mental, moral, and even physical attitude will give the impression that he has something to say, and that it is a matter of prime importance that he say it, and say it in such a way as to make his hearers see the truth as he sees it. It is hardly too much to say that any style that makes his thought clear and convincing to the understanding of his hearers, that moves their feeling, and that finally arouses and directs their wills, is, for him, a good style. This, of course, always on the assumption that his English is correct.