and diligent habit of writing will surely be of more effect than meditation and consideration itself; since all the arguments relating to the subject on which we write, whether they are suggested by art, or by a certain power of genius and understanding, will present themselves, and occur to us, while we examine and contemplate it in the full light of our intellect; and all thoughts and words, which are the most expressive of their kind, must of necessity come under and submit to the keenness of our judgment while writing; and a fair arrangement and collocation of the words is effected by writing in a certain rhythm and measure, not poetical, but oratorical."

Doctor Channing, in suggesting the use of the pen, says: "We doubt whether a man ever brings his faculties to bear with their whole force on a subject until he writes upon it. By attempting to seize his thoughts, and fix them in an enduring form, he finds them vague and unsatisfactory, to a degree which he did not suspect, and toils for a precision and harmony of views, of which he never before felt the need.'

One should aim to acquire a wide vocabulary. There is intrinsic pleasure in the study of words and their finer shades of meaning. The consciousness of a thorough mastery of language, too, gives confidence to the speaker, while adding force and accuracy to his utterance. Webster's masterly style is due in large measure to his daily habit of studying the dictionary. For rhetorical and oratorical improvement, one should read and closely analyze the writings of the best authors, then endeavor to write out in one's own words what has been read. Reading aloud every day passages from the masters of oratory will gradually cultivate an oratorical style.

4. Originality. The development of originality does not preclude one from studying the language and thoughts of others. What is read, however, must be sifted through a man's own mental processes before he can truthfully call it his own. Lowell says: "That thought is his who at the last expresses it the best."

The test of originality is whether the thoughts we receive from others are uttered again unchanged, or are assimilated, changed, and amplified in the process. Professor Esenwein suggests as some of the sources of originality:

1. Original minds are observers of nature. About us everywhere are thousands of facts and things waiting to be observed.

2. Original minds have learned to think consecutively. This is simply the ability to think and reflect systematically.

3. Original minds cherish the companionship of great thoughts. In a few great books one will find the epochmaking thoughts of all ages and a close contact with them will fertilize and animate his own mind.

4. Original minds dare to be themselves. Despite the martyrdom, the loss of popularity, or temporary sacrifice, a man must be willing to stand upon his own feet.

An orator must necessarily gather his thoughts from many sources, but originality lies in clothing them in a new dress or giving them a fresh representation. Such thoughts must bear the stamp of individuality.

5. Imagination. An orator must be able to portray scenes and pictures with his voice and language. This ability to represent objects and events not present to the senses is the image-making power.

Doctor Neff places a high estimate on this faculty. He says:

"Whether the images are produced by direct observation, by conversation, by reading, or reflection, this imaging faculty is the central power of man, and out of it will spring forth all the marvelous and, at present, unconceived achievements of the future. Upon it depends the destiny of each individual man or woman now on earth. Here in this silent workshop of the human brain is formed in microscopic miniature all the originals of man's outward doings. Here is the home of genius and the secret of life's failures. In this chamber murder is first committed, or the holiest acts of charity first performed. All virtue was born here and all vice here first took shape. And because these were first mentally enacted they were afterwards performed outwardly. Every act is twice performed, and the second doing is the child of the first."

This subject properly belongs to psychology, but a few suggestions are offered here: A study of the works of imaginative writers and poets will stimulate and develop this faculty. The Bible is replete with imagery and should be carefully read and pondered. The books of Job and Isaiah are particularly recommended. The material for the imagination should be the best obtainable, and therefore selected with care and deliberation. The aim should constantly be to secure images that are complete and symmetrical and to furnish the necessary details of a mental picture with skill and rapidity. A study of the sciences, particularly astronomy, is recommended as giving scope for the cultivation of the imagination.

6. Personal Magnetism. This subtle power of attraction is a quality possessed by few persons. It is a potent influence in swaying and moving an audience, and is associated with geniality, sympathy, frankness, manliness, persuasiveness and an attractive personal appearance. There is a purely animal magnetism, which passes from speaker to audience and back again, swiftly and silently. This magnetic quality is sometimes found in the voice, in the eyes, or may be reflected in the whole personality of the speaker. The human eye as "the window of the soul" is one of the most effective and direct means of communication between man and man.

7. Logical Instincts. A successful orator should be able to instinctively arrange his thoughts in clear and logical order. The various parts should be linked together in obvious and logical relationship. There should be the necessary vivacity, earnestness, and progressiveness, and all tendency to "dryness" carefully avoided. Models having this logical instinct, such as Demosthenes, Cicero, Burke, and Webster, should be closely studied. If necessary spend six months in studying a great speech, taking it apart, seeing how it is put together, and analyzing it in all its details.

8. Figures of Oratory. A public speaker should have a practical knowledge of the principal figures of oratory, sometimes called figures of emphasis. These are: 1. Antithesis. 2. Rhetorical Repetition. 3. Recapitulation. 4. Climax. 5. Accumulation. 6. Interrogation. 7. Exclamation. 8. Command. 9. Denunciation. 10. Appeal to Deity. 11. Vision. 12. Prediction. 13. Egoism. 14. Isolation.

MORAL

1. Religion. A truly successful orator must be a religious man-that is, one of Godward bearing. This will put upon his utterance the unmistakable stamp of honesty and sincerity, so that men will instinctively believe in him.

2. Character. Character and reputation are not synonymous. One is what a man is, the other what people believe him to be. Doctor Conwell names four essentials in the character of a public speaker: 1. Reputation, in the better sense of what a man truly is. 2. Good sense, or zeal with knowledge. 3. Expert acquaintance with his subject, or evidence of special research and superior knowledge. 4. Philanthropy, or a sincere interest in the welfare of an audience and a desire to move them to action.1

Henry Ward Beecher in his "Yale Lectures on Preaching" says: "A minister ought to be entirely, inside and out, a pattern man; not a pattern man in abstention, but a man of grace, generosity, magnanimity, peaceableness, sweetness, tho of high spirit and self-defensory power when required; a man who is broad, and wide, and full of precious contents. You must come up to a much higher level than common manhood, if you mean to be a preacher.'

3. Sympathy. Nervous, sensitive, diffident natures frequently produce the best speakers, as these qualities are common to the sympathetic temperament. This faculty when developed enables one to enter whole-heartedly into the lives and interests of others. The ability to direct the mind at will into emotional channels and instantly arouse appropriate feeling, is of great value to any speaker. 1 Russell H. Conwell, Oratory, pp. 21, 22.