"flesh is heir to." The body is the seat of the appetites, the dwelling place of the mind, and the "temple of the soul.” Through this part of his being man reveals the phenomena of life which lasts while the heart beats and respiration continues. The gymnastic exercises and athletic sports so prominent in high-school and college life are a response to the demand that the Vital Nature be properly developed.

2. The Mental Nature is that part of the being through which man perceives, remembers, reflects, invents, reasons, and attains knowledge. It is presided over by the mind, which in turn has its seat in the brain. The manifestation of this nature is evident in all the mental activities. Its cultivation forms a large part of school and college education.

3. The Emotive Nature is that part of man's being through which his affectional or passional life is manifested. Through it he loves or hates, is sympathetic or bears antipathy, is loyal to his concepts of truth and duty or violates law, order, and morality. It is presided over by the soul, the cultivation of which is the aim of all spiritual education.

These three natures, the Vital, the Mental, and the Emotive, presided over by life, mind, and soul, and revealing sensation, thought, and feeling, all living and blending in one being, form the triangle on which the science of elocution, or, speaking more broadly, the philosophy of expression, is based. Through these three natures man receives all his varied and complex impressions, and through the elements of elocution responding to these natures he may hope to express his own thoughts and feelings and touch responsive cords in the life, mind, and soul of his audience. It then becomes our task in this volume to discover the elements of expression by testing their relation to Man's Triune Nature and showing their revelatory power in the art of expression.

CHAPTER II

THE VOCAL ORGANISM

The voice as an instrument consists of (1) Organs and (2) Muscles.

SECTION I. ORGANS

The organs of voice are (1) the Lungs, (2) the Trachea and Bronchi, (3) the Larynx, (4) the Pharynx, (5) the Nasal Cavities, and (6) the Mouth.

1. The Lungs constitute the bellows of the voice. Their function is to receive and supply air for the sustaining of life, and for the purposes of speech.

2. The Trachea and Bronchi form the air passages to the lungs and act as resonators for the voice. The flexible rings of cartilage which compose the Trachea, or windpipe, and the muscles which connect them, are capable of being distended or narrowed, lengthened or shortened, so as to affect materially the pitch and resonance of tone.

3. The Larynx, or voice box, is situated at the top of the Trachea. It consists of five cartilages. Some of these act as a

shield to the more delicate parts of the vocal instrument, and others lengthen or shorten, open or close, the vocal cords. These cords are two pearly white ligaments which are attached

to muscles at the side of the Larynx. The cords stand in a horizontal position across the voice box, and their thin inside edges vibrate as the air is sent over them from the lungs, and thus produce voice. In the production of pure tone the cords stand very close together, but in ordinary breathing they are wide apart, as shown in the accompanying figures.

4. The Pharynx is that part of the throat between the larynx and the nasal cavities. It may be seen when the mouth is well open, the tongue depressed, and the soft palate lifted. The dome of the Pharynx just back of the soft palate is one of the most important cavities of vocal resonance.

5. The Nasal Cavities are two irregularly constructed passages separated by a bony partition and having for their base the hard palate. They constitute the chief air passages in normal breathing, and act as resonators, giving ring and character to the voice. These cavities temper and filter the air we breathe and prevent dryness of the mouth occasioned by mouth breathing.

6. The Mouth contains the articulating organs, the tongue, the lips, teeth, and the palate. The dome of the mouth is one of the chief resonators of voice, and the soft palate at the back of this dome consists of a flexible fold which acts with the tongue in placing and shaping tone.

SECTION II. MUSCLES

The chief muscles used in voice production are (1) the Diaphragm, (2) the Abdominal Muscles, and (3) the Rib Muscles.

1. The Diaphragm is a heavy muscle which separates the chest from the abdomen. It stands like a vaulted arch, with the front side higher than the back. Its function is to contract and flatten in inspiration so as to enlarge the cavity of the chest, and to relax to its normal position in expiration so as to decrease the chest cavity.

2. The Abdominal Muscles form the front wall of the abdomen. This wall presses out as the diaphragm contracts, and moves back as the diaphragm rises. In quiet breathing the diaphragm and abdominal wall act and react alternately upon each other. At such times the abdominal muscles are only passively engaged; but in forcible expiration, as in coughing, laughing, or shouting, the muscles of the abdomen strike inward with great vigor.

3. The Rib Muscles are divided into the outer and the inner muscles. The outer muscles contract and lift the ribs out and up. The inner muscles, in forced expiration, draw the ribs down and in to the position of repose. In tranquil breathing the inner muscles are not actively engaged, as the ribs fall by their own weight.

SECTION III. RESPIRATION

Respiration is the process of drawing in and expelling the breath, primarily to sustain life and incidentally for the purposes of speech. The two acts are (1) Inspiration and (2) Expiration.

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FIG. 3. INSPIRATION 1, trachea; 2, sternum; 3, diaphragm; 4, abdominal walls

I. INSPIRATION

In Inspiration the process is as follows: (1) The diaphragm contracts and sinks. (2) The wall of the abdomen pushes forward.

(3) The ribs and sternum move out and up.

(4) The upper chest is expanded laterally and vertically (see Fig. 3).

As these four acts of inspiration progress the air rushes in to equalize the pressure and expand the lungs. Thus inspiration is an active process.

2. EXPIRATION

In Expiration the process is reversed : (1) The diaphragm relaxes and rises. (2) The wall of the abdomen is drawn in.

(3) The ribs and sternum move down and in.

(4) The upper chest sinks to its normal position (see Fig. 4).

Expiration may be active or passive. It is active in vigorous speaking, laughter, or coughing, when the expiratory muscles outrun the relaxation of the inspiratory muscles. It is passive in ordinary breathing, when the muscles, made tense in inspiration, relax suddenly to their normal position.

FIG. 4. EXPIRATION 1, trachea; 2, sternum; 3, diaphragm; 4, abdominal walls

3. METHOD OF BREATHING

The Law of Correct Breathing for voice production is as follows: In inspiration there should be an increase, in expiration a decrease, in the size of the waist and the lower part of the chest. The chest should begin to enlarge from its lowest depths. The depression of the diaphragm and the outward movement of the abdomen lower the floor of the chest and enlarge its vertical diameter. The outward and upward movement of the ribs and sternum enlarges the chest laterally and vertically.

The lungs are the bellows of the vocal apparatus, and the force should be applied around the waist, at the largest part of the bellows, the part farthest from the voice box. These parts are the most flexible, and, the bony structure of the chest being suspended from the shoulders, may be moved back and