10 
will, alfoy be found of moft. efpecial im- 
portance to all perfons whofe profeffional 
er public duties call for the emphatic 
exertions of the elocutionary powers. To 
fuch perfons, therefore, I-have no doubt 
that the difcovery will be highly accep- 
table; and I proceed accordingly, to the 
quotation. of Mr. Gough’s letter. 
SIR, 
‘STHE fpirit of inquiry, and the valuable 
obfervations which enriched your 
Je&ture on the education of the voice, en- 
courage me to offer a few fatts and reflec- 
tions to your confideration, The naked 
truth is imply this, I am vain enough to 
imagine myfelf able to improve your theory 
of the power of the human voice; and as 
the improvement demonftrates the propriety 
of the rules which you have given to facili- 
tate the attainment of this accomplifhment, 
= have ventured to trouble you with the 
following thoughts on the fubject. 
The egrefs of the voice is generally fup- 
pofed to be confined to the aperture of the 
iips 3 but any perfon may convince himfelf, 
that this notion is ill founded, by a fimple 
experiment. Let him place the tip of his 
finger upon his breait or the fide of his fore- 
head when he is fpeaking, and the fenfe of 
touch will inform him immediately, that 
the vibrations of the larynx are not reftricted 
to the compafs of the windpipe, but extend 
to the more diftant parts of the head and 
cheft, which vibrate in conjunction with 
the primary organs of voice. In fact the 
upper moiety of the fpeaker’s body becomes 
an extenfive field of found, refembling a 
drum, every member of which vibrates as 
aft as a ftroke is imparted to the parchment 
severing by the drumftick. Experierte 
thews, that a ftxed quantity of percuflive 
force produces founds, poflefling greater or 
lefs powers, according as this force is per- 
mitted to aét upon greater or lefs portions 
of vibrating furface. The notes of a cla- 
rionet can fill a circle a mile in diameter ; 
but if the reed, or mouth-piece, be made 
to found, when difunited from the tube, 
jt cannot be heard at the diftance of one 
hundred yards; though this inftrument 
evidently produces vibrations in the latter 
inftances, which are equal to thofe it pro- 
duced in the former. 
Let us now fubftitute the larynx in place 
of the mouth-piece; alfo, let the cheft, 
together with the head, reprefent the trunk 
of the clarionet; and this eafy tranfition, 
from art to nature, explains the method 
whereby the power of the voice is increafed : 
for it difcovers the phyfical caufes upon 
which the fecret depends. ‘This method 
confifts chiefly in contraGting the upper ex- 
tremity of the. windpipe, fo as to make the 
mufcles of the larynx ref&t ftrongly upon 
the breath, during its efeape from the lungs. 
In this manner a quick fucceilion of powerful 
Mr. Thelwall and Mr. Gough on the Voices 
[ Feb. Ty 
vibrations is produced 5 and thefe impulfes 
pervade the fuperior moiety of the fpeaker 
‘with a power proportionate to their primitive 
force. The upper part of his body is then 
cenverted into an automatic clarionet; the 
effect of which, in refpect of diftance, arifes 
in part from the mufcular ftrength of the 
larynx; and is derived partly from the 
magnitude of that portion of his body, which 
vibrates in company with the primary or- 
gans of voice. 
I have now compleated the outline of 
my theory, by enumerating the phyfical 
principles which aé& in conjunttion, fo as to 
enlarge the power of the voice. Should the 
talk of comparing my opinion with faéts 
appear worth purfuing, you may eafily con- 
firm or refute the theory by making the 
comparifon : for my part, I fhall take notice 
but of one incident of the kind; and this is, 
the circumftance of powerfui whifpering, 
which you mention in your le€ture on the 
education of the voice. Aétors differ from 
other men, as they ufe their endeavours oc- 
cafionatly to make their whifpers intelligible 
tothe multitude. This effort is exaéted by 
the nature of the profeffion, which requires 
certain fecrets of the drama to be commu- 
nicated to the audience apparently in the 
language of fecrecy. The perfon who withes 
to acquire this difficult attainment, will, 
probably, find the accomplifhment: of his 
enterprize facilitated by making a_ proper 
ule of the following facts, Firft, if a body 
is forced to vibrate in confequence of. its 
connexion with another already in a ftate 
of vibration, the greateft eftect will be pro- 
duced when the two bodies are in unifon. . 
Second, the vibratory faculty of the cheft 
may be altered by varying the preffure of 
the mufcles belonging to this part of the 
human frame; in the fame manner that the 
vibratory faculty is changed in a drum by 
altering the aétion of the braces; It follows 
from thefe properties of tranfmitted found, 
that the man will whifper with the greateft 
effe& who can put his head and cheft into 
unifon with his larynx; when it is in a 
ftate of extreme relaxation. 
You very juftly obferve, that the fcience 
is yet in its infancy, which teaches the art. 
of giving power to the'voice by a judicious 
management of the vocal organs. Should 
the preceding attempt advance the infant one 
ftep towards maturity, the defign of the pre- 
fent letter will be anfwered.” 
Middlefhawy Iam, &c. 
Nov. 4, 1803. Joun Goucu. 
To the obfervations of Mr. Gough on 
the fonorous vibrations of the fibres of 
the chef, I have only to add, that, fince 
the receipt of his letter, I have tried his 
hypothefis, by the teft which he fug- 
gefts, beth in. private experiment and 
during my public exertions; that, to me 
at leaft, thofe experiments have appeared- 
futhciently 
