utterance in such a case, gives false prominence to an unemphatic word, and is mechanical, ungraceful, and pedantic.

In when, which, etc., as distinguished from wen, witch, etc., a brief h precedes a momentary oo before the w; as a slight and evanescent y-glide is interpolated between h and oo, in human, humid, etc. A different view of these two initial articulates is presented by Alexander Melville Bell, who classes them as the atonic, or voiceless, cognates of w and y.

THE NASAL SONANTS, PRECEDING THE SURD MUTES.

In camp, lump, imp, etc.; sent, tent, don't, etc.; ink, crank, sunk, etc., the nasal articulate is but a momentary glide from the vowel position to the position of the nasal element; when the sound is instantly checked, by complete closure at the place of obstruction and at the nasal exit. The articulative action is sharp and forcible, and the impression of mp, nt, ngk, is made, even without the vocule; which is, however, commonly added. In jumped, etc., there is heard the first part of p and the finish of t, even without special effort to enforce the p sound.

It is very difficult to make a clear difference between innocence and innocents, sense and cents. Between n and the following sibilant, in the former word of each pair, it is difficult to avoid a semblance of the t stop and opening.

CONSONANT GLIDES.

In the transition from articulate to vowel and from vowel to articulate, there is, unavoidably, a more or less perceptible glide, which it is well to note as a matter of fact, but in practice may be left out of the question. But when adjoining vowels belong to or form separate syllables, a smooth, distinct, and satisfactory enunciation requires nice attention to the articulating glides.

Vowel successions in word or phrase, as in mosaic, hiatus, Israel, aorta, aerial, aviator, aeronaut, co-ordinate, coequal, idea, create, Iowa, Ohio, Pompeii, dual, ruin, re-enforce, zoology; high-and low; flow-on, flow-ever; O-answer me; how-infinite in faculties; Oh,-I could drink the cup, etc., -are smoothly implicated, and still made syllabically clear, by the deft interpolation of the w-glide or the y-glide, according to whether the former of the two vowels points its vanish toward oo or ē. Great care must be taken not to make the obstruction so close that the glide becomes a distinct articulate, initial to the latter vowel.

In such successions as law of, idea of, sofa and piano, Iowa and Nebraska, a hiatus cannot be escaped, consistently with correct pronunciation and distinct syllabication. By some speakers, a distinct sound of r is thrust between the vowels; or, rather, the former vowel is changed to, or runs into, the ĕr-glide, so that the phrases become, lawĕr-of, ideer-of, sofĕr-and piano, Iower-and Nebraska. The hiatus is greatly preferable to such cockneyfied speech, but should be made as little noticeable as possible.

VOCAL GYMNASTICS.

To gain and keep a well-rounded, flexible, ready, and tireless voice; an ear that forehears, notes, recognizes, and criticizes; lips and tongue that are elastic, prompt, and accurate in their myriad actions and adjustments; a breath control that insures instant response to every dynamic demand of thought and feeling,-daily practice is imperative.

HOW LONG AT A TIME SHOULD THE BEGINNER PRACTICE?

While your voice is still unformed and your ear uncertain, at least an hour daily should be devoted to careful, observant practice; and two hours are better than one. Fifteen or twenty minutes at a time, at intervals through the day, is better than an unbroken task of sixty minutes. Work and rest help each other. If voice, organs, and interest keep their freshness, the more practice, the speedier the improveYou may well practice the livelong day, so long as you feel that you are doing well and getting good.

ment.

DOES THE EXPERT NEED TO PRACTICE?

After you have acquired a good voice and learned measurably how to use it, do not fondly presume that you have a fixed possession, without further care. Regard it rather as a precious accumulation, as a talent that you have improved and increased with much labor and care; and be encouraged to go on, until it grows near to your ideal of vocal perfection. That means that you decide to pay the price of lifelong daily practice; for your ideal will rise, and keep rising, higher always than your attainment.

But it costs less to keep and improve than to acquire, and fifteen to twenty minutes daily will serve, if that is all the time you can spare. Nobody is so busy that he cannot spare that much time; indeed, the busiest people, as I have found them, always have time to do a little more, if it is worth while.

FIND OUT YOUR WEAK POINTS.

Study minutely your voice and speech, making an inventory of good points and bad points. Is the pitch habitually too high? too low? Is the tone harsh? shrill? breathy? nasal? raucous? hollow? heavy? thin? Is the enunciation indistinct? slipshod? overprecise? mouthing? mincing? drawling? too staccato? Is the pronunciation good? bad? indifferent? pedantic? Is the melody monotonous? meaningless? capricious? formal? do you 'elocutionize?' Does your voice carry?—that is, does it carry words and syllables as far as the voice itself goes?

Work to keep and improve the good, to eliminate the wrong, to strengthen the weak, to supply the wanting.

All the exercises in the following pages of Vocal Gymnastics are salutary and necessary for every learner; but each learner should study his own especial needs, or his greatest need or needs for the time being, and practice mainly the exercises that best fulfill them.

A universal code, or scheme, of daily practice should cover the cardinal points and principles:-Breath control; projection of tone; the modes of utterance, effusion, expulsion, and explosion; vowel shaping; articulate nimbleness, precision, and energy; syllabication; time, force, pitch, and quality. Interspersed or supplementary practice in reading or reciting short didactic, forensic, dramatic, and poetic passages should be added.

For convenient reference, the elementary sounds are tabulated below, grouped as Tonics, Subtonics, and Aspirates. The Tonics are given in the order of the Murdoch Table.

*A Tonic, or, rather a sonant Glide; included in this group that it may be practiced as it usually occurs, as the vanish of the preceding Tonic.

A SCHEME OF DAILY PRACTICE.

We cannot always dispose of our time according to our wish or a set plan; but, if you aspire to artistic command of your voice, it should undergo daily systematic practice. No day should pass without at least an hour's faithful work.

Reading aloud, varied in mood and done for improvement, is always in order. A minute or two of shouting examples, 'as loud as you can bawl,' without shrillness, or hoarseness, or throat irritation, is a magnificent voice-builder; but should