OBSERVATIONS

ON THE

ART OF READING AND SPEAKING.

TH

HE art of reading with propriety, and speaking grace. fully, is a matter of fo much utility and importance to man, in the various departments of fociety, that it is greatly to be regretted, fo neceffary a part of education fhould be almoft totally neglected. That a general inability to read and fpeak with elegance prevails, is fully evinced both from private and public performances. The fource, from which this incapacity arifes, is either natural or artificial.

That the caufe of bad reading and fpeaking is not natural will appear evident by confidering, that there are few perfons, if any, who, in private difcourfe, do not deliver their fentiments with propriety and force, whenever they fpeak in earnest. Here then is an unerring standard fixed for reading and speaking justly and forcibly; which is to adopt the fame eafy and natural mode to read and speak publickly, as we use in private conversation.

This natural mode would certainly be adopted, were we not, in early life, taught a different way, with tones and cadences, different from those which are used in common converfation; and this artificial method is fub. ftituted instead of the natural one, in all performances at fchool, as well as in reading. To correct, in fome degree, this artificial manner, it will be neceffary to unfold. the real fources of our errors and faults in the art of reading partly arifing from the ignorance of inftructors, and partly from defects and imperfections in the very art of writing itself.

ART OF

fo. That they canns anfver he tones preceding paules and merous and various, accounting the emotions of the mind, or ach of which would require a prefented by fo fall a sunare used as ops. The mascall proper tones to their pung artificial tones to the flops, to thofe which are used in dif micolon, and colon, are proe; and only differ in point of one; whilft the period is markThe one confifts in an uniform in as uniform depreffion of the at difagreeable monotony, which reading, and which deftroys all aking.

fource of that unnatural manner effarily defeats all elegance and nd public reading and fpeaking, s, as naturally excites the tones ly taught to affociate with them, ords excites their pronunciation; eading will only ferve to confirm r which he has acquired.

the leaft inquiry, that the most roducing a good manner of reading due encouragement to a fuffil mafters, to teach that art by a rules inftead of leaving in old ft and moft ignorant of the confequence of whic either perverted by fal guide them, take up any man their way, or imperceptibly yi examples.

The principal objects to be attained by reading are three. 1. To acquire knowledge. 2. To affift the memory to retain this knowledge when acquired, and 3. To communicate it to others. The two firft are answered by filent reading; but to communicate knowledge to others, loud reading is neceffary. The structure of written language has been fufficiently regarded to anfwer the ends of acquiring knowledge and affifting the memory; but this written language is by no means calculated to answer the ends of reading aloud, as it contain no vifible marks, or articles, which are effential to a just delivery.

Had the art of writing a fufficient number of marks and figns to point out the variety of tones and cadences, the art of reading with propriety at fight, might be rendered as eafy and as certain, as finging at fight. But as the art of writing will probably never admit fuch a change, it is effential to point out, how the art of reading may be improved, whilft that of writing continues in its present ftate.

The general fources of that impropriety and badness of reading, which fo generally prevails, are the unskilfulnefs of masters, who teach the first rudements of reading the erroneous manner which the young scholar adopts, through the negligence of the matter in not correcting fmall faults at firft; bad habits gained by imitating particular perfons, in a certain tone or chant in reading, which is regularly tranfmitted from one clafs to another. Befides thefe, there is one fundamental error in the common method of teaching children to read, which gives a wrong bias, and leads the pupil ever after blindfold from the right path, under the guidance of falfe rules.

Inftead of fupplying by oral inftruction, and habit, any deficiency or error, which may be in the art of writing, with refpect to the paufes, and the refts of the voice, masters are negligent in perfecting their pupils in the right use of them, and in their mode of instruction, have laid down falfe rules, by the government of which, it is impoffible to read naturally.

The art of pointing, in its prefent ftate, has reference to nothing but the grammatical conftruction of fentences, or to the different proportion of paufes in point of time; through want of others, however, mafters have used the

pu

tops as marks of tones alfo. That they cannot answer this end is certain, for the tones preceding pauses and refts in difcourfe, are numerous and various, according to the sense of the words, the emotions of the mind, or the exertions of fancy; each of which would require a distinct, and cannot be reprefented by fo fmall a num. ber as four or five which are ufed as flops. The masters have given what they call proper tones to their pils in reading, by annexing artificial tones to the stops, which no way correfpond to those which are used in dif courfe. The comma, femicolon, and colon, are pronounced in the fame tone; and only differ in point of time, as two or three to one; whilft the period is marked by a different tone. The one confifts in an uniform elevation, and the other in as uniform depreffion of the voice, which occafions that difagreeable monotony, which fo generally prevails in reading, and which deftroys all propriety and force in fpeaking.

Here then is the chief fource of that unnatural manner of reading, which neceffarily defeats all elegance and gracefulnefs in private and public reading and fpeaking, for the fight of the flops, as naturally excites the tones which the pupil was early taught to affociate with them, as the fight of the words excites their pronunciation ; and thus the habit of reading will only ferve to coafirm him in the faulty manner which he has acquired.

It must be obvious on the leaft inquiry, that the most effectual method of introducing a good manner of reading, would be the giving due encouragement to a fufficient number of skilful mafters, to teach that art by a well digefted fyftem of rules instead of leaving it to old women, or the lowest and moft ignorant of mankind in the first rudiments; the confequence of which has been, that most boys are either perverted by falfe rules, or having no rules to guide them, take up any manner which chance throws in their way, or imperceptibly yield to the influence of bad examples.