Riis speak of his battle with the slums of New York, and to hear Judge Lindsey tell of his method of dealing with boys in the Juvenile Court of Denver. Now while it is not possible for students with lack of experience to treat these subjects as men would who have had experience, it is possible for them to find subjects of living interest, and treat them from the standpoint of thoughtful investigation.

Having selected the subject, then comes the work of gathering material. The student should first go to the best sources of information, the well-known authorities on the subject he has to deal with. He should read for facts, for full information in regard to the conditions and the principles involved, and always in search of food for his own best thought. Copious notes may be taken, but unless one desires to quote directly, notes should be taken in one's own language. It is a grievous mistake to use consecutive thought or consecutive expression without credit. This is plagiarism, which, besides being dishonest, is the source of much annoyance in oratorical contests. The student should remember that an oration is not a mosaic of stolen gems, but original thinking founded on critical reading. One to grow in mentality must not only gather thought from other sources, but must compare that thought with his own conception of the fitness of things. Observation, intelligent use of the eyes and ears, the attitude of interrogation, mental alertness and openmindedness are essential to power of thought, the basis of all good speaking.

As a working basis a few tentative divisions of the subject may be made. Notes may be gathered, most conveniently, perhaps, by what is known as the card system. Small cards or slips of paper are used, each for the development of a single idea, and when the work of collecting

material is through, the cards are shuffled into the order that seems most logical. Then follows the process of thought development in accordance with a better organized and more definite plan. But the main point in gathering material is to master the underlying principles, and to develop a spirit that is willing to deal fairly and squarely with facts and opinions. It is this candid dealing, and clear insight into the fitness of things, that develops purpose in the oration, without which nothing can be accomplished.

The material in hand, then comes the actual work of constructing the oration. The production proper should consist of the usual three parts: the introduction, the development, and the conclusion.

In the introduction the speaker should aim to get possession of the audience, and direct them into favor and coöperation. He must create a friendly disposition towards himself and his subject. The very first sentence should bear on the subject, and prepare the way for the central idea of the speech. Generalities such as might be used in many other introductions should be scrupulously avoided. To illustrate: In a student oration on "Gettysburg," delivered in a contest of the Northern Oratorical League, the first sentence gives a clue to the vital point of the speech. He says, "A century ago this world was a slaveholding world." It is plain that he intends to show that this battle played a great part in the downfall of slavery. What follows confirms this thought. "Throughout the earth there was not, and never had been, an important nation where the crack of the slave-whip was not heard. Today there is not a civilized nation on the globe where man can own his fellow-man." Each new sentence, then, should strengthen the speaker's hold on his audience,

his grasp of the subject, and make clear the course of the speech.

The purpose of the introduction should be to conciliate and arouse interest. Its length should be proportionate to that of the speech. It should not be drawn out so as to detain the audience from the discussion. In style it should be simple, concise, without figure or ornament. It should be neither argumentative nor persuasive, but rather narrative, historical, or expository. The first sentence should be short, and calculated to catch the ear; the last may be longer, and may connect the introduction easily and logically with the main discussion. Not infrequently the last part of the introduction takes the form of a partition of the subject. This may take shape in a question, or may be a more formal statement in a transitional paragraph. For example, in the oration on "Gettysburg," cited above, the conclusion of the introduction is as follows: "What were the principles there at stake, what is the history of that battle, and what its influence?” The parts suggested by the question become the main divisions of the speech.

The development of the oration usually hinges about two or three divisions thus set apart. There may be a greater number of parts, but for the average oration three parts will be found to be a convenient number: the first, we will say, historical in character; the second, a setting forth of the present conditions; the third, the outlook, in which it is always pleasing to the audience to have one take a hopeful view of things. Pessimism is poison to an audience or a judge.

The material of an oration should be so arranged that each idea will gain additional strength from those that precede it. The purpose of the speech should be kept steadily in view, and every step taken should aid in ac

complishing that purpose. In preparation the audience should be kept constantly in mind, and one should strive to impress his thought as though he were actually before the people, driving home his points. It is well for the student to write clear through his outline, or at least a division of it, at a single sitting. Then the speech may be laid aside for a time before the process of rewriting and polishing begins. He should strive to clothe his thought simply, in direct and pointed language, without pyrotechnics in thought or style.

The oration is essentially different in style from that of the essay. Certain phrases, parentheses, and qualifying expressions, common to essays, may be omitted from an oration, as they detract from the directness of the address. The essay is to be read at leisure, the oration is to be heard; the essay takes the form of explanation or statement of fact, the oration refers to facts without always stating them as facts, and draws the desired conclusions; the essay is directed primarily to the understanding, the oration to both the understanding and the will. The object of the speech is to secure action, and everything must bend to that end.

In structure one should strive for clearness, force, variety, and rhythm. The speech, if properly outlined, will proceed by paragraphs, each adding a block to the structure, and bearing directly on the end sought. By the use of proper transitional phrases, paragraphs may be bound together, and their relation to each other clearly shown. This is easily done by reference to the crucial phrase of the paragraph just finished, and to the vital point of the one in progress. Not only should there be transitional link-phrases to bind paragraphs together, but there should be link-words to bind sentences together within the paragraphs. If properly written, a sentence

grows in strength toward the end. The same may be said of the paragraph, of the division, and of the speech. While the beginning of the sentence is an emphatic point, the end should be more emphatic. Variety in sentence structure gives rest to the mind and is an element of force in expression. An intermingling of light and heavy syllables in due proportion gives rhythm to utterance, and is a relief both to the voice of the speaker and to the mind of the listener. But the element of rhythm may be carried to excess so as to destroy the directness of the address, and make it sound too much like a poem.

The conclusion should be the most persuasive part of -the speech. It should be the purpose in this part to bring into hurried review the main points set forth in the oration, and to urge them with great force of expression and appeal. It is the last opportunity to awaken the convictions and the conscience of the audience. It gives opportunity for appeal to the loftiest sentiments, and to reach the highest moral level of the address. The last sentence may be longer than the usual sentence, and may contain special beauty of thought and rhythm of expression.

The production having been completed, then comes the preparation for its delivery. It goes without saying that the words must not be in the way. The speech should be committed long enough in advance to become automatic, to require no effort of the mind to recall the lines. This verbal exactness is a valuable mental discipline, and ought to be more commonly cultivated.

The words once in mind, they should be given out so as to be perfectly understood by every auditor, all the time. One who comes to listen may forgive many other faults, but not the fault of indistinctness. But words must be clearly and accurately impressed upon the ear without a strained or unnatural effect. The voice should be directed