$50 
E flatter myfelf, to mankind, renders me 
foliciteus to \obtain. 
Thefe coaliderations induce me to poft- 
pone, till the end of the enfuing autumn, 
my propoftd eftablifhment in the -neigh- 
bourhcod of London, for the cure of Ime 
pediments of Speech, and my Leétures in 
the Metropolis on the Science and Pri&tice 
of Elocution.. In the mean time, I fuf- 
pend a while my journey to Prefton (where 
arrangements for my Lectures are already 
made; in the neighbourhood of which I 
fhall probably refide during the fummer 
months) to devife fuch means of prepara- 
tory announcement as may facilitate the 
accomplifhment of the end propofed. Your 
liberally condu&ted and widely-circulated 
Milcellany is, of courfe, upon this occafion, 
the firft vehicle that prefents itfelf to 
my recolle&ion; and I flatter, myfelf 
that your readinefs to promulgate every 
new difcovery, and your zeal tor the im- 
provement of every practical {cience will 
difpofe you to give infertion to this decla- 
ration of the feafon and objeéts of my pur-- 
pofed undertakings. That thefe may be 
more particularly underftood, and the at- 
tention of f{cientific men direéted to the 
fubjeé&t, I fubjoin a brief abftraét of the 
extent and nature of my fcience, and the 
mode of illuftration ufually purfued. Jt 
was drawn up, for private circulation, at 
the requeft of a lady of fuperior endow. 
ments and extenfve connection ;—the in- 
telleétual mother of two of thofe pupils 
-who lately did‘:me fo much honour and 
acquired {o much credit to themfelves ;— 
but perhaps its brevity, which was the ob- 
ject principally aimed at, may render it as 
acceptable to the public, alfo, as any thing 
I could prepare upon the fubjeét. 
<< The object of my courfe of Le&tures 
on the fcience and practice of elocution 
is to explain ard illuftrate, in a popular 
way, the phyfiological and mufical prin- 
ciples upon which all graceful and harmo- 
nious utterance muft neceffarily depend ; 
and practically to elucidate the deport- 
ment and accomplifhments with which 
the higher efforts of oratorical delivery 
fhould be accompanied, 
«« In .the profecution of this plan, I 
find it neceflary to commence with an en- 
quiry into the ftru€ture and offices of thofe 
two difinét clafies of organs (the Vocal and 
the Eauuciative) which are employed in 
the production and variation of tunable 
founds, and in fuperadding to thofe founds 
the difcriminative charaéterifiics of literal 
and verbal expreflion. In explaining the 
functions of the latter of thefe, I neceffari- 
ly difeuls the anatomy of the elementary 
Letter trom Mr. Thelwall, - 
‘ [ May ly 
founds of Englith Speech, and the precif@ 
actions of the organs by which fuch ele~ 
ments are tormed. The laws of phyfical 
neceffity under which the organs att, 
come next into review: from the injudi- 
cious application of an overftrained voli- 
tion to which I trace the gradations of 
harfh and ungraceful utterance, and, from 
irregular and inconfiderate efforts for their 
counteraction, all. impediments of fpeeche 
This part of the fubject lcads me to an in- 
veftigation of the intimate conneétion be- 
tween phyfiological and harmonie {cience3 
the origin of our perceptions of mufical 
proportion, from the primary actions and 
reactions of the organ of vocal im- 
pulfe, and. the application of thefe impli-« 
cated {ciences to facility of utterance, to 
the improvement of the grace and harmo-~ 
ny of (peech, and to the removal of babi« 
tual impediments, Faéts, alfo, are intro 
duced relative to the practical application 
of the principles in queftion, and to the 
ftructure and efficacy of artificial organs, 
in thofe cafes of defe&tive conformaticn, 
which alone fhould be regarded as cafes of 
natural impediment. 5 OED 
‘“* Such are the effential elements of my 
¥y 
= 
Science ; though the affiftance of philo- — 
logy is occafionally appealed-to in the more 
critical parts of the inveftigation. From 
thefe origiaal ftems, a variety of intereft- 
ing confiderations neceffarily branch forth¢ 
—fuoh as the application of all the various 
contradiftin&tions of ordinary mufic.to the 
phenomena of f{peech; the infle&tions of 
acute and grave on the refpective fyllabless 
the adjuftment of the percuffive accent 5 
the. adaptation of the degrees of loud 
and foft to appropriate words ; of fwelk 
and fall to the refpective portions of fens 
tences ; of the ftoccato and the flurring 
ftyles to different combinations of fenti- 
ment and language; the objects and 
elements of idiomatic pronunciation ; 
the nature of vocal punctuation ; the feat 
and time of emphafes; and other parti-~ 
culars, of the extent, variety, and connec= 
tions of which it will mot perhaps be praes. 
ticable to give a more compreffed idea than 
is attempted in the titles of thirty fuccef+ 
five Lectures, fubjoined to the introduc+ 
tory difcourfe, recently printed for publi» 
cation.* 
‘<-Nor do F confine my inftructions to. 
the mere language of tone‘and enunciation; 
attitude arid demeanour have their fhare of 
my attention. Compofition, alfo, (whether 
in verfe ot profe) is too intimately con~ 
* T enclofe the account alluded to; if you. 
think it proper to be fubjoined, 
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