THE

RHETORICAL READER.

RHETORICAL READER;

CONSISTING OF

CHOICE SPECIMENS OF ORATORICAL COMPOSITION,

IN PROSE AND VERSE.

PRECEDED BY A

COPIOUS OUTLINE OF GESTURE;

AND

MR. WALKER'S RULES OF ELOCUTION,

IN WHICH ARE POINTED OUT THE

PAUSES, EMPHASES, AND INFLECTIONS SUITABLE TO EVERY
VARIETY OF SENTENCE,

Late Teacher of Elocution in the Perth Academy, and University of St. Andrew's
and Compiler of the "Juvenile Elocutionist," "Rhetorical Dialogues,"

"Sacred Epic Poetry," &c.

Fifth Edition.

Delectando pariterque monendo.-HORACE.
C'est le ton qui fait la musique.-ROUSSEAU.

LONDON:

PUBLISHED BY CHARLES H. LAW;

AND SOLD BY

E. STANFORD, 6, CHARING CROSS.

1862.

Adv. Bil.

LONDON:

C. F. HODGSON, PRINTER, 1 Gough square, FLEET STREET.

PREFACE

TO THE SECOND EDITION.

MR. WALKER is distinguished from all preceding teachers of Elocution, by his having reduced the Art to a Science. Before his time, this necessary branch of education was taught by imitation only, and without any regard either to`rule or principle. Even Mr. Sheridan, the immediate predecessor of Mr. Walker in this interesting portion of polite literature, has neglected to give one rule for the correct modulation of the voice in any given sentence. Mr. Sheridan's "Lectures," and his "Art of Reading," both afford much useful information; but they contain no analysis of the voice, and are wholly silent on the subject of inflexion. Now, upon inflexion depends all beautiful and effective enunciation. A reader may pronounce every separate word of a sentence correctly-he may fully conceive the meaning of his Author, and pay a sufficient attention to emphasis; but unless he observe, and can execute, the necessary inflexion, the full beauty of the period will not be elicited. Take, for example, a sentence from the Liturgy."Enter not into judgment with thy servant, O Lord! for in thy sight shall no man living be justified." Now, any reader of tolerable capacity would very properly place the emphatic impulse upon the second adjective pronoun "thy;" but, unless he also give the possessive particle the rising inflexion of the voice, and accompany this inflection with a considerable pause, he will fail to communicate to his hearers the high antithetic beauty of the prayer, namely, "in thy supreme, august, omnipotent comprehension, shall no man living be justified." Mr.