2. Never notify your hearers more than once, that you intend to stop.

We have known speakers to hang on to a subject after the uneasiness of the audience had become so apparent, that the speaker deemed it necessary to attempt a compromise by promising to stop in a little while. Others excite this feeling by a "lastly," followed by "in conclusion," and then ending only after a "finally," but to the great relief of the audience. "We should endeavor to go off with a good grace; not to end with a languishing, and drawling sentence; but to close with dignity and spirit, that we may leave the minds of the hearers warm; and dismiss them with a favorable impression of the subject, and of the speaker."

READING, OR DELIVERY.

1. Reading or Delivery includes all utterances of words. It may be considered as to the Reading Apparatus, the Management of the voice, and the Gestures.

2. The Reading Apparatus especially includes the walls of the chest, the lungs, the windpipe, and the mouth.

a. The Walls of the Chest are composed of the breast-bone, the ribs, and the upper part of the bones of the back, together with the ligaments that unite, the muscles that move, and the skin that covers them.

The walls of the chest by rising cause the inflation of the lungs with air, and by falling again cause its expulsion from the lungs.

b. The Lungs are minute air-cells, which serve the purposes of bellows in supplying air to the organs, used in producing sounds.

Caution. Very few persons breathe correctly; perhaps, not more than one in fifty! The general fault is, breathing too frequently, or inhaling too little breath at each inspiration. To remedy this, before dressing in the morning, raise the arms above the shoulders, and draw in as deep and full breathings as possible. This at first will cause giddiness, if your previous mode of breathing has not been correct. After resting, try it again. Try it every day. The lungs need this air-bath more, if possible, than the face and hands need the water-bath. Breathing in this way, when you feel disposed to cough, will very soon cold;" that dreadful pioneer of Consumption.

cure the

c. The Windpipe contains the muscles, on which the air in its outward passage produces the sounds.

NOTE.-Sounds, except in ventriloquism, can not be produced while the air is entering the lungs. Stuttering is caused by trying to speak while inhaling the breath. If a stutterer be cautioned not to attempt to speak while inhaling; or, to breath out when he wishes to speak, the worst case may be cured in a few hours.

The muscles, in the upper part of the windpipe and in the back por tion of the mouth, produce the sounds, or tones, and are called the Organs of Voice.

The lips, teeth, tongue, and forward portion of the mouth are called the Organs of Speech. By them the sounds are divided into shorter portions representing words.

In order to read well, great pains should be taken to secure a healthful and proper development of the Reading Apparatus. As an inducement to this, it should be borne in mind, that every exercise connected with reading, when properly directed, is healthful and life-giving.

3. The Management of the Voice refers to the Use of the Tones, to the Movements or Cadences, to the Emphases, and to the Accents, as these are affected by the sentiment expressed.

First. The Tones of the voice comprise its key or pitch, rhythm, and force.

a. The general varieties of the key or pitch are the Historic or Natural, the Emotional, and the Passionate.

I. The Historic Key is used in ordinary intercourse, or at least in such intercourse, as that which persons use without unusual excitement, or unusual listlessness.

1. Historic Key. It is a very fine day, Mrs. Brown!

II. The Key of the Emotions is used when persons are somewhat in earnest, yet without being very much excited.

a. When the emotions are unpleasant, or painful, the key is lower than the Historic; and hence, is called the Grave Key.

2. Grave Key. My brother is very sick, and we fear he will die.

b. When the emotions are pleasant, or cheerful, the key is raised above the Historic, and is called the Gay Key.

3. Gay Key. Come, let us have some merry sport

III. The Key of the Passions is used, when the speaker is very much aroused, or excited.

The difference between an emotion and a passion, as here used, is that an emotion is an excited feeling; while a passion is a feeling still more excited. According to this, the emotions and passions differ in degree, not in quality. A passion is an intensified emotion.

a. When the passion is of a painful, or severe kind, the key is below the Historic, and sometimes even lower than the Grave. If not lower, it is always stronger; hence, it is called the Intensified Grave Key.

4. Intensified Grave Key. "Speak of Mortimer?
Zounds! I will speak of him; and let my soul
Want mercy, if I do not join with him;

Yea, on his part, I'll empty all these veins,
And shed my dear blood, drop by drop, i' the dust,
But I will lift this down-trod Mortimer

As high i' the air, as this unthankful king

As this ingrate and cankered Bolingbroke."

b. When the Passion is joyous, the key is above the Historic and more intensified than the Gay Key; hence, it is called the Intensified Gay Key.

5. Intensified Gay Key. Ha! ha! ha! A capital joke! Capital! capital! Now give us another; I' faith! we're well met to-night, and a good time we'll have of it!

RULE. A Primary sentence should be read in the key required by its sentiment; its secondary, in a key slightly below; its sub-secondary, in a key a trifle below the secondary, &c.

4. The first quality of good Reading is that, which causes it to be fully and distinctly understood; the second is that, it instructs and moves the hearer.

5. In order to be understood, the speaker must attend to four things; loudness of voice, distinctness, slowness, and propriety of pronunciation.

a. In order to speak loud, it is only necessary to increase the force of the voice, not to raise its pitch.

b. Distinctness refers to the enunciation of the words, and to the articulation of the letters and syllables.

Words are badly enunciated, when they are spoken indistinctly, or when mispronounced. They are badly articulated, when their letters or syllables are improperly joined.

c. The faults of most young speakers, or readers, are; first, uttering the words with too great rapidity; second, raising the pitch instead of adding force to the voice; third, neglecting the emphases and accents.

6. Gesture includes attitude, position, and the motions of the hands.

a. The Attitude should be erect, easy, and free. In this respect, those, who speak without notes, have the advantage of those, who use them.

b. The Position should be taken at that point, which brings the most of the hearers before the speaker. The speaker may turn one quarter to the right, or to the left by bringing the right, or the left foot behind the other. Much change of place should be avoided if possible.

c. The Gestures should be easy and free. Avoid vertical motions with the hands. Practise gestures before a looking-glass, and criticise yourself; practise them also before a friend, or before an association, whose object is mutual benefit in criticising each other.

Let your dress be simple and neat. In addressing an audience, never wear gloves, if your hands are fit to be seen, and do not exhibit jewelry, unless you deal in it.

NOTE. It was a part of the original plan to introduce a full set of exercises in speaking, which subsequent reflection led us to omit; not because we deemed them unimportant, but because such exercises may be found in most of the numerous School-Readers. The pupils should be thoroughly and frequently exercised in them.

Finally. Study Nature. Observe the manner, in which persons act and speak in daily life. The Book of Nature is to one, who can read it, the great and true source of a knowledge of human actions and utterances. The Book of Grace is the best source, whence you can draw instruction as to the nature of the human soul, and the influences, which develop and form human character. To understand others, however, you must begin with studying yourself—your own intellects; for as these act, so you must assume are the actions of all other men's intellects produced.

We close the subject of Sentential Language, having come again to the place, whence we started; namely, knowing something you will need begin to think; thinking, you will desire to communicate; communicating, you will need the ability to use language; using language, you will be impelled to gain more knowledge; and gaining more knowledge, you will seek and also find new facilities and new beauties in the divine gift of language; and thus, each shall only and forever lead and assist you while attempting new conquests in the other. But in addition to this, let us say, be not satisfied with that improvement, which stops with yourself; as ye have freely received, so freely give, assured that "He that watereth others shall be watered also himself."

THE ORIGIN OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE.

THE English Language, in its present form, is comparatively of modern date; having been derived from several other languages, whose origin is lost in antiquity. It is probable, however, that they had a common origin; that is, are varieties or dialects of one Primitive Language.

Indeed, we know this to be true, because it is distinctly so stated by the sacred historian, and also a sufficient reason is given for destroying that sameness of speech in the account of the confusion of tongues at the tower of Babel. The sameness or similarities existing between the different languages and the fact that all of them point toward "the cradle of the human race" as their origin are the results, which must naturally have followed the causes stated in the biblical narration. Those varieties, with which we are directly concerned in tracing the origin of the English Language, are the Celtic, the Gothic, and the Greek.

Some knowledge of that portion of the history of these languages, especially of that describing the sentential forms,