1900.] essays. 73 



of a speech he would rise on his loes and run his hands through 

 his hair and display other peculiarities. But his manner gave 

 pleasure to jury, audience and even judge. His imitators, 

 however, found nothing but ridicule whenever they exhibited 

 themselves in public. 



In contrast with Phillips and Everett I may mention Matthew 

 Arnold, who came to this country to deliver literary lectures. 

 His presence here was a literary event. I had the fortune to 

 hear his lecture on the relative value of the study of the classics 

 and of the sciences. His appearance and manner were melan- 

 choly and at best could only remind one of a country school boy 

 trying to exhibit his oratorical powers. 



Practice can be of no use except coupled with practical prep- 

 aration for addressing the audience. The aim should be to 

 know more about the subject than anyone to whom the speaker 

 addresses himself. The young student at first can do no more 

 than get the outline of the subject he wishes to follow and pre- 

 sent the facts. Then read to absorb by a process of assimila- 

 tion, a very good word unless it has been recently misapplied. 

 Though at the beginnino- he can give only the facts, there should 

 be at least a fresh arrangement of the subject matter and a 

 thorough knowledge of what has been said before on the subject. 

 Embellishment should come later. As a general thing, literary 

 quotations should be avoided, for quotation is a crutch which 

 must be used sparingly. Deduction or amplification of a quota- 

 tion is more effective than the quotation itself. 



In the beginning the speaker should seek to gain freer expres- 

 sion. This comes from style. Style is not a hothouse product 

 but a growth of experience and years. Poets, we are told, are 

 born, not made, and Byron and Bryant may be given us for ex- 

 amples. But young orators rarely gain prominence, for they 

 rely on declamation, which is really but a small part of oratory. 

 Burke's early efforts were not happy. Yet Macaulay places him 

 at the head of all orators, ancient and modern, and Lamartine 

 includes him among the first five orators of history ; Demos- 

 thenes, Cicero, Chatham, Burke and Mirabeau is his list. 

 Demosthenes gave his first great speech when he was thirty or 



