Part Three.)
[Sidenote: _Slovenly speech._] Slovenly speech is a defect, and is opposite in kind and effect from the above. The consonants are not pronounced; and, to remedy it, practise to give consonants more force and precision, and pay attention to phrasing and emphasis.
[Sidenote: _Too rapid speech._] Speaking too rapidly is a defect, and results from too rapid thought. Put a restraint upon thought,--that is, control it,--and make the tongue move slower in consequence, being careful to phrase and emphasize well.
[Sidenote: _Too slow speech._] Speaking too slowly is also a defect, opposite in kind from rapid speech, and is caused by the mind moving too slowly in thinking. The remedy is to think faster, and urge the tongue to move quicker.
[Sidenote: _Stuttering._] When you have too slow thought and too rapid speech, you have stuttering; for the tongue keeps moving all the time while the thought is coming, and it repeats syllables or words. Make the mind of the stutterer move faster, and the tongue talk slower. In each of these last three defects, let the person who wants to cure it "know what you wish to say before you attempt to say it."
[Sidenote: _Stammering._] Stammering is caused by too much effort on the part of the person to make articulate sounds, and is usually the result of imitating some one who stammered, or formed gradually by habit of incorrect breathing, and from physical weakness. Stammerers make the attempt to speak, and the lips or tongue or jaw become immovable, or the words stick in their throat; and, because this takes place, they make great effort to overcome it. The more effort they make, the harder it is for them; and sometimes this leads to contortions and jerkings of body and limbs that are painful. To cure this takes a longer or shorter time, depending on the state of health, the length of time the habit has been in forming, the amount of jerking of limbs to which the stammerer is subject, and the care taken by the stammerer to practise much. A stammerer can be cured by teaching articulation thoroughly. (See Parts One and Two of this book; also Monroe's Fourth Reader.) Show every element separately, and the position the mouth takes to make it; then combine into syllables, then into words, then into phrases. Show the stammerer, that, the less the effort made, the easier will be the speaking. Impress upon the stammerer's mind, "Make no effort to speak," and the habit is to be overcome by long-continued practice and a thorough and complete training in articulation. When reading, be sure and read in phrases; that is, speak a phrase, as a long word, without pause. Stammerers, being usually feeble in health, should practise the physical and vocal gymnastics (Parts One and Two), and particularly the breathing exercises. When you have given the stammerer confidence, and he or she finds that talking is as easy as walking or singing, the cure is certain. There may be times of excitability or nervousness when stammering will return; but these times will be less and less frequent as health gets better and confidence grows, and finally will not return. Remember, stammerer, "make no effort." Be lazy, and even, at first, slovenly in speech, and cure is certain.
THE END.
* * * * *
MR. WALTER K. FOBES,
(Graduate of Boston University School of Oratory,)
IS PREPARED TO TEACH
Elocution in Private or Class Lessons,
Either at his room in Boston, his residence in North Cambridge, or private residences in Boston or vicinity. The private lessons are adapted to the wants of the pupil as reader or speaker, in the pulpit, at the bar, on the rostrum, on the stage, or in the parlor. The class lessons are designed to make pleasing, intelligent readers for the social or home circle.
Mr. Fobes will also accept engagements from
SCHOOLS, ACADEMIES, OR COLLEGES,
for courses of lessons designed to give a practical drill in the elements of good reading and speaking.
He is also prepared to cure
STAMMERING, STUTTERING, LISPING,
and other defects of speech, by a simple, natural method, and the use (when required) of Bell's Visible Speech.
A few engagements will be accepted for _PUBLIC OR PARLOR READINGS_.
149 A TREMONT STREET, Cor. of West St., BOSTON. Residence, Beach St., No. Cambridge, Mass.
* * * * *
"=Books that our Teachers ought to have on hand to SPICE UP with now and then.="--ST. LOUIS JOURNAL OF EDUCATION.
GEO. M. BAKER'S
READING CLUB and HANDY SPEAKER,
BEING
_Selections in Prose and Poetry_,
SERIOUS, HUMOROUS, PATHETIC, PATRIOTIC, and DRAMATIC. FRESH and ATTRACTIVE PIECES for SCHOOL SPEAKERS and READING CIRCLES.
In the words of the GOSPEL BANNER,--
_'From grave to gay, from lively to severe,' In poetry and prose a judicious mixture here; Beside outlandish dialects, full of words odd and queer, Which stir one's sense of humor as they fall upon the ear, Pleasant to those who read or speak as unto those who hear._
Published in Parts, each Part containing Fifty Selections. Paper Covers, 15 cents each. Printed on Fine Paper, and Handsomely Bound in Cloth, price, 50 cents each.
READING CLUB NO. 1.
"We have many readers and books that purport to furnish pieces for the use of amateur speakers and juvenile orators. But the great defect in nearly all of them is, that their selections are made from the same series of authors. We are surfeited _ad nauseam_ with 'The boy stood on the burning deck,' 'On Linden, when the sun was low,' 'My name is Norval!' or, 'My voice is still for war.' But in this volume, the first of a series, Mr. Baker deviates from the beaten track, and furnishes some fifty selections which have not been published before in any collection of readings. Mr. Baker has himself written many pieces for the amateur stage, and achieved a reputation as a public reader, so that he is eminently qualified by his own experience for the task of teaching others."--_Phil. Age._
READING CLUB NO. 2.
"Mr. Baker deserves the thanks of the reading public for his indefatigable endeavors in the field of light and agreeable literature. The selections are made with good taste, and the book will be of great value for its indicated purpose."--_New Haven Courier._
"In its adaptation to day schools, seminaries, colleges, and home reading, the work will be found very superior in its variety and adaptability of contents."--_Dayton (Ohio) Press._
READING CLUB NO. 3.
"This is one of those books that our teachers ought to have at hand to _spice up_ with now and then. This is No. 3 of the series, and they are all brim full of short articles, serious, humorous, pathetic, patriotic, and dramatic. Send and get one, and you will be sure to get the rest."--_St. Louis Journal of Education, Jan. 1876._
"The young elocutionist will find it a convenient pocket companion, and the general reader derive much amusement at odd moments from its perusal."--_Forest and Stream, N. Y., Jan. 6, 1876._
READING CLUB NO. 4. (_Just Ready._)
_Sold by all Booksellers, and sent by mail, postpaid, on receipt of price._ LEE & SHEPARD, Publishers, Boston.
Transcriber's Notes:
Obvious printer's errors have been repaired, other inconsistent spellings have been kept.
Words surrounded by _ are italicized.
Words surrounded by = are bold.
Small capitals are presented as all capitals in this e-text.
In this e-text, ['w] represents letter w with the acute accent above it as this symbol is not available in latin-1.
In this e-text, [`w] represents letter w with the grave accent above it as this symbol is not available in latin-1.
In this e-text, [vo] represents letter o with the caron (v-shaped symbol) above it as this symbol is not available in latin-1.