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of this kind is the speech of king John to Hubert, where he takes him aside, and tempts him to undertake the death of prince Arthur :

Come hither, Hubert! O my gentle Hubert,
We owe thee much; within this wall of flesh
There is a soul counts thee her creditor,
And with advantage means to pay thy love.
And, my good friend, thy voluntary oath
Lives in this bosom, dearly cherished.
Give me thy hand-I had a thing to say-
But I will fit it with some better time.
By heav'n, Hubert, I'm almost asham'd
To
say what good respect I have of thee.

Hub. I am much bounden to your majesty.

K. John. Good friend, thou hast no cause to say so yet,
But thou shalt have-and creep time ne'er so slow,
Yet it shall come for me to do thee good.

I had a thing to say,-but let it go;
The sun is in the heav'n, and the proud day,
Attended with the pleasures of the world,
Is all too wanton and too full of gauds
To give me audience. If the midnight bell
Did with his iron tongue and brazen mouth
Sound one unto the drowsy race of night;
If this same were a church-yard where we stand,
And thou possessed with a thousand wrongs;
Or if that thou could'st see me without eyes,
Hear me without thine ears, and make reply
Without a tongue, using conceit alone,
Without eyes, ears, and harmful sound of words,
Then in despight of broad-ey'd watchful day
I would into thy bosom pour my thoughts:
But, ah! I will not-yet I love thee well,
And, by my troth, I think thou lov'st me well.

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Hub. So well, that what you bid me undertake,
Though that my death were adjunct to my act,
By heav'n I'd do't.

K. John. Do I not know thou would'st?
Good Hubert, Hubert, Hubert, throw thine eye
On that young boy: I'll tell thee what, my friend,
He is a very serpent in my way,

And wheresoe'er this foot of mine doth tread,
He lies before me. Do'st thou understand me?
Thou art his keeper.

Hub. And I'll keep him so,

That he shall not offend your majesty.

K. John. Death.
Hub. My Lord ?

K. John. A grave.

Hub. He shall not live.

K. John. Enough.

I could be merry now.

Hubert, I love thee;

Well, I'll not say what I intend for thee :
Remember.

Shakespeare's King John, Act iii. Scene 5.

I have quoted so much of this fine passage, because I think almost every part of it affords an opportunity of practising to speak with force and energy upon a lower tone of the voice; for the whole scene may be considered as only an earnest whisper; but as this whisper must be heard by a whole audience, it is necessary, while we lower the pitch, to add to the force of the voice: this, however, is no easy operation, and none but good readers and consummate actors, can do it perfectly. It is no very difficult matter to be loud in a high tone of voice; but to be loud and forcible in a low tone, requires great practice and management; this, however, may be facilitated by pronouncing forcibly at first in a low monotone; a monotone, though in a low key, and without force, is much more sonorous and audible than when the voice slides up and down at almost every word, as it must do to be various. This tone is adopted by actors when they repeat passages aside. They are to give the idea of speaking to themselves, in such a manner as not to be heard by the person with them on the stage, and yet must necessarily be heard by the whole theatre. The monotone in a low key answers both these purposes. It conveys the idea of being inaudible to the actors with them in the scene, by being in a lower tone than that used in the dialogue; and by being in a monotone becomes audible to the whole house. The monotone, there-

fore, becomes an excellent vehicle for such passages as require force and audibility in a low tone, and in the hands of a judicious reader or speaker is a perpetual source of variety.

Rule IV. When we would strengthen the voice in a higher note, it will be necessary to practise such passages as require a high tone of voice; and if we find the voice grow thin, or approach to a squeak upon the high note, it will be proper to swell the voice a little below this high note, and to give it force and audibility by throwing it into a sameness of tone approaching the monotone. A speech of Titus Quintius to the Roman people, ironically encouraging them to the greatest excesses, is a good praxis for the higher tone of voice.

When you are to contend with us, you can seize the Aventine hill, you can possess yourselves of the Mons Sacer, the enemy is at our gates, the Esquiline is near being taken, and nobody stirs to hinder it. But against us you are valiant, against us you can arm with all diligence. Come on, then, besiege the senate-house, make a camp of the forum, fill the gaols with our chief nobles, and when you have achieved these glorious exploits, then at the least, sally out at the Esquiline gate with the same fierce spirits against the enemy. Does your resolution fail you for this? Go, then, and behold from our walls, your lands ravaged, your houses plundered and in flames, the whole country laid waste with fire and sword. Have you any thing here to repair these damages? Will the tribunes make up your losses to you? They will give you words, as many as you please; bring impeachments in abundance against the prime men of the state; heap laws upon laws; assemblies, you shall have without end; but will any of you return the richer from these assemblies? Extinguish, O Romans! these fatal divisions; generously break this cursed enchantment, which keeps you buried in a scandalous inaction. Open your eyes, and consider the management of those ambitious men, who, to make themselves powerful in their party, study nothing but how they may foment divisions in the commonwealth.

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There are few voices so strong in the upper notes as to be able to pronounce this speech with the spirit

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it demands; care must be taken, therefore, particularly in the ironical parts, to keep the voice from going too high, for which purpose it ought to approach to a monotone in the high notes required upon the words, against us you are valiant against us you can arm with all diligence; and particularly upon the questions, Does your resolution fail you for this? Have you any thing here to repair these damages? Will the tribunes make up your losses to you? And the same conduct of the voice must be observed upon the four succeeding ironical members.

But no exercise will be so proper to inure the voice to high notes as frequently to pronounce a succession of questions, which require the rising inflection of voice at the end. Such is that instance of a succession of questions, ending with the rising inflection, in the Oration of Demosthenes on the Crown. See p. 160.

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What was the part of a faithful citizen? Of a prudent, an active, and honest minister? Was he not to secure Euboea, as our defence against all attacks by sea? Was he not to make Boeotia our barrier on the midland side? The cities bordering on Peloponnesus, our bulwark on that quarter? Was he not to attend with due precaution to the importation of corn, that this trade might be protected through all its progress up to our own harbour? Was he not to cover those districts, which we commanded by seasonable detachments, as the Proconesus, the Chersonesus, and Tenedos ? To exert himself in the assembly for this purpose? While with equal zeal he laboured to gain others to our interest and alliance, as Byzantium, Abydus, and Euboea? Was he not to cut off the best and most important resources of our enemies, and to supply those in which our country was defective? And all this you gained by my counsels and my administration.

Leland's Demosthenes on the Crown.

It will naturally occur to every judicious reader, that this series of questions ought to rise gradually in force as they proceed, and therefore it will be necessary to keep the voice under at the beginning:

to which this observation may be added, that as the rising inflection ought to be adopted on each question, the voice will be very apt to get too high near the end; for which purpose it will be necessary to swell the voice a little below its highest pitch; and if we cannot rise with ease and clearness on every particular to the last, we ought to augment the force on each, that the whole may form a species of climax.....

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Rule V. When we would strengthen the voice in the middle tone, it will be necessary to exercise the voice on very passionate speeches by pronouncing them in a loud tone, without suffering the voice to rise with the force, but preserving all the energy and loudness we are able, in the middle tone of voice.

The challenge of Macbeth to Banquo's ghost, is a proper passage for this exercise of the middle tone of voice.

What man dare I dare:
Approach thou like the rugged Russian bear,
The arm'd rhinoceros or Hyrcanian tyger;
Take any shape but that, and my firm nerves
Shall never tremble. Be alive again,
And dare me to the desart with thy sword ;
If trembling I inhibit, then protest me show
The baby of a girl. Hence, horrible shadow,
Unreal mock'ry, hence!

Rule VI. When we have exerted the voice to the highest pitch, it will be necessary to bring it down to a lower, by beginning the succeeding sen, tence in a lower tone of voice, if the nature of the sen tence will permit; and if we are speaking extempore, it will be proper to form the sentence in such a manner as to make it naturally require a lower tone. A good praxis for recovering the voice when it is carried to its utmost pitch is the furious resentment and indignation of Posthumus against himself for giving credit to the infidelity of Imogen.

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