"In pronouncing the Liturgy with the pauses, accents (inflections), and emphasis recommended, there must be no apparent effort to produce effect, no appearance of being guided by art, nor indeed any consciousness of art, while the reader is in the actual performance of his duty: he must not then be balancing the inflection or weighing the emphases, but lose sight of the means, and trust entirely to the improved habit he has acquired for securing the end. . . . . A very slavish obedience to any prescribed mode of reading is not needful; and the truth is that as a large proportion of sentences may be modulated with strict propriety in more ways than one, a reader is scarcely master of his art who does not sometimes vary even from himself."-Smart. It must, however, be carefully remembered that this remark is to be applied solely to the modulation-not to those principal inflections which are prescribed by the construction of the sentence, and are therefore of a determinate character, and which cannot be changed without producing a change of meaning.

As the works of several writers on Elocution have acquired a considerable circulation, the following pages may fall into the hands of some readers who, being already well acquainted with the system of notation adopted in this work, will instantly understand all that the author intends. Even to such persons he trusts his notes may afford some advantage; for though such persons

may be very good readers, still they may not hitherto have examined the Liturgy with sufficient minuteness; and having been accustomed to hear it from their infancy, the true and full meaning of many passages may have been passed over without due consideration, and the different characters belonging to the different parts may, from constant repetition, have escaped their notice. A reference to the notes in this little book will show them those instances which demand the Minister's

peculiar care. Some readers may perhaps be unable to distinguish the difference of the inflections, or may find difficulty in applying them according to the notation. To such the present work may still be useful by its suggestions respecting the pauses, and the general manner of delivery suited to the several parts of the Service. And even if they should not agree with the author in the propriety of some of the directions, still they cannot fail to be benefitel by having been induced to enter upon a careful and minute examination of the ENGLISH LITURGY; concerning which the impartial and excellent Grotius (who was no member of, nor had any obligation to, our Church) has declared that it comes so near to the primitive pattern, that none of the Reformed Churches can compare with it. Another competent and impartial judge, a learned dissenter from our Church, has pronounced, that it is "a work almost universally esteemed by the devout

and pious of every denomination, and the greatest effort of the Reformation, next to the translation of the Scriptures into the English language."* The pious Minister who takes the pains to institute a fair comparison between our Book of Common Prayer and the Liturgies from which it was compiled, will be convinced that this is no exaggerated praise.

Let, then, this acknowledged superiority of our Liturgy form a powerful motive for not debasing it by a feeble or careless delivery. Culpable indeed must be our indifference if we pronounce in a cold and lifeless manner this sublime Ritual, so admirably adapted to kindle in our own hearts a sacred flame, which may quickly be communicated to the hearts of our congregations.

* See Dr. Adam Clarke's General Preface to his Edition of the Holy Scriptures, p. xxiv.

6.

INFLECTIONS OF THE SPEAKING

VOICE.

BEFORE explaining the system of notation adopted in the following pages to represent the inflections of the speaking voice, it may be necessary to notice some objections which may naturally arise. In doing so, let the original inventor, Mr. John Walker, the author of the Pronouncing Dictionary," be allowed to speak for himself. "It may perhaps be objected that an attention to the inflections of the voice when marked upon paper will be apt to embarrass the reader, whose mind ought to be entirely occupied by the sense of what he is reading. A similar objection might be made against punctuation, the utility of which is, however, generally admitted. The truth is that every novelty of plan is apt to perplex; and if we have learned an art in an imperfect manner, the means of facilitating a more perfect acquisition of it will at first retard our progress. This system of inflections is not intended for those who already read well. What help do they need who are