number, as the comma, femicolon, colon, and full ftop. But if the verbal pause be admitted, there will be five, and a much more difficult ratio introduced as I have already fhewn. Befides, as was before observed, where verbal paufes take place, it is impoffible any regular proportion of time can be observed, words being formed of fuch different and unequal numbers of fyllables; and over these the compofer has no power: But it is not fo with regard to fentential paufes; for as the conftruction of periods, or verfes, and their different members, depend wholly upon the will of the compofer, it is in his power to make fuch a proportional ratio of the stops, as always to produce harmony.

THUS far then no language can appear to be built upon fimpler, eafier, or more regular principles. All our thoughts are communicated in sentences; fentences are compofed of words and pauses; words are made up of fyllables, and fyllables of letters. Sound is the effence of letters, articulation of fyllables, accent of words, and collections of words united by emphafis and divided by proper pauses, of fentences. And accent at the fame time that it conftitutes words,,

fettles their quantity, and prepares the way for due and proportional pauses. Thus words, confidered as the marks of our ideas, in the nature of coin, come from the mint with the clearest and plainest stamp; and are fitted in the best manner, for a ready and brisk circulation, in the commerce of difcourfe. I fhall now conclude this head with a few practical rules for the strict obfervation of the laws of accent; the neceflity of which, I hope, is by this time apparent my hearers.

to all

ALL perfons who pronounce English words properly, of courfe lay the accent right, as that is part of pronunciation; and never fail to do fo in converfation. But many, when they come to read or fpeak

7.

fpeak in public, tranfgrefs the rules of accent.

This arifes from a

miftaken notion in fome, that words are rendered more distinct to a large affembly, by dwelling longer upon the fyllables which compofe them; and in others, that it adds to the pomp and folemnity of public declamation, in which they think every thing ought to be different from private difcourfe. This has been chiefly the vice of the ftage, and has principally given rife to the diftinction of what is commonly called Theatrical Declamation, in oppofition to that of the natural kind; into an imitation of which many public speakers have been betrayed, and their manner called on that account Theatrical. Upon examination it would appear, that it arises chiefly from their dwelling upon fyllables that are unaccented, thro' a notion that it makes the words move more flow, ftately, and uniform, than the quicker and more spirited accents will allow. This was a fault which Shakespear complained of in his time, and which has not been thoroughly amended fince; tho' there have been fome late efforts towards it, and some progress made in it. The paffage alluded to in Shakespear is in the advice given to the player by Hamlet; where in laying down rules for a just delivery, he says, Speak the fpeech I pray you as I pronounced it to you, trippingly on the tongue; but • if you mouth it, as fome of our actors do, I had as lieve the towncrier fpoke my lines.' By trippingly on the tongue,' he means the bounding from accent to accent; tripping along from word to word, without refting on fyllables by the way. And by mouthing, is meant, dwelling upon fyllables that have no accent, and ought therefore to be uttered as quickly as is confiftent with distinct articulation; or prolonging the founds of the accented fyllables, beyond their due proportion of time. The leaft degree of faultinefs in this respect, gives an artificial air to language; inafmuch as it differs from the ufual, and what is commonly called, natural manner of utterance; 2nd is on that account, of all others, to be avoided moft by public

speakers;

speakers; whose business it is industriously to conceal art: And chiefly by players, whose office it is, in Shakespear's phrase,‹ to hold, as it

were, a mirrour up to nature.' It is true this vice does not prevail so much at prefent, as it has done in the memory of many perfons now living; when it was thought an impropriety, to have any thing resembling real life, in the representation of Tragedy; when men were neither to walk nor fpeak like human creatures; and had • neither the accent of Chriftians nor the gait of Chriftians, Pagans or men.' Some indeed may fay, like the player in Hamlet, we hope ⚫ we have reformed that indifferently amongst us;' to whom I fhould reply in Hamlet's words, O reform it altogether;' and give the fame earnest advice to all public fpeakers whatsoever; not only, on account of the artificial air before-mentioned which it gives to the utterance, but also as it changes the very genius of our tongue, and deprives it of that great source of distinctness, and proportion, which I have before explained. If any one pronounces the words fór-túne, in'-croac'h-men't, con'-jéctúre, gráti-túde, tómorrów, hap'pinéfs, patience; he does not utter words, at least not English words, but fyllables; which with us, are always tied together by an accent; as, fortune, incroachment, conjecture, gratitude, tomorrow, hap'piness, patience. And yet, this is an errour, which almost all perfons who speak with folemnity, run into, for want of knowing in what, true folemnity of delivery confifts. Which, tho' it may demand a flower utterance than ufual, yet, requires that the fame proportion in point of quantity be observed in the fyllables, as there is in mufical notes, when the fame tune is played in quicker or flower time. But of this I shall have occasion to speak more at large hereafter.

THE only rule, with regard to this head, neceffary to be observed by all public speakers, who can pronounce English properly, is to lay the accent always on the fame fyllable, and the fame letter of the fyllable,

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lable, which they ufually do in common discourse, and to take care not to lay any accent or ftrefs, upon any other fyllable. A rule fo plain and eafy, that nothing but a fectation, or bad habits, contracted from imitating others, can prevent its always taking place. And yet the want of knowing, or attending to this rule, is one of the chief fources, of the unnatural manner of declaiming, which is fo generally complained of, tho' few can tell exactly where the fault lies.

I SHALL only add upon this head, that there are few things in our language, fo regular, and well fettled, as the article of accent. It is true there are fome words that have occafioned many difputes about the feat of the accent, and have had their different partisans ; fuch as con'cordance or concor'dance, refractory or refrac'tory, cor'ruptible or corruptible, accen'ted or ac'cented; the accenting of these being doubtful, every man is at liberty to choose which he likes best; and in giving the preference, the ear beyond all doubt ought to be confulted, as to that which forms the most agreeable found, rather than an abfurd, pedantic rule, attempted to be laid down, that of throwing the accent as far back as poffible; which has no foundation in the genius of our tongue, and must frequently produce the most discordant sounds. And if any one who has the liberty of choofing, fhould prefer the found of con'cordance, to concórdance; refractory to refrac'tory, or corruptible to corruptible; he can not poffibly make any one form a better opinion of his judgment, but I am sure he will give those who have any skill in founds, a very bad one of his ear.

LECTURE

LECTURE IV.

Of EMPHASIS.

AVING treated of Accent, I now proceed to confider the

Η
H next head, that of Emphafis.

EMPHASIS, discharges in fentences, the fame kind of office, that accent does in words. As accent, is the link which ties syllables together, and forms them into words; fo emphafis, unites words together, and forms them into fentences, or members of fentences. As accent, dignifies the fyllable, on which it is laid, and nrakes it more distinguished by the ear than the reft; fo emphasis, ennobles the word to which it belongs, and prefents it in a stronger light to the understanding. Accent, is the mark which distinguishes words from each other, as fimple types of our ideas, without reference to their agreement or difagreement: Emphafis, is the mark which points out their feveral degrees of relationship, and the rank which they hold in the mind. Accent, addreffes itself to the ear only; emphafis, thro' the ear,. to the understanding, Were there no accents, words would be refolved into their original fyllables: Were there no emphasis, fentences would be refolved into their original words; and in this case, the hearer must be at the pains himself, first, of making out the words, and afterwards, their meaning: And as this could

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