Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations, also, of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth.

There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire out of his mouth devoured: He bowed the heavens, also, and came down ; and darkness was under his feet;-and he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: yea, he did fly upon the wings of the wind."

18th PSALM,

6-10th VERSES.

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was without form and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the And God said, let there be light,' and there was light." GENESIS, 1st and 3d VERSES.

waters.

NOTE. The above extracts, save the first, are examples of the sublime, as well as of Monotone.

XI. MODULATION.

In Modulation are comprehended all the various inflections of which the voice is capable. It may, indeed, be termed the soul or witchery of eloquence; for through its medium the sense is charmed, the imagination taken prisoner, and the most obdurate softened and relaxed. The effect of Modulation upon the heart must ever be acknowledged, as long as the human ear can drink the harmony of its sounds. To attempt a system of accurately teaching this delightful power, would be indeed vain and futile ;* nothing but being possessed of

* Mr. Walker, and others, have made very ingenious remarks typified on paper, on the inflections of the human voice; but a just knowledge of the true causes which produce those inflections, will preclude the necessity of any study on the subject, save of the rules to be found in this, and similar books, and of a just conception, as has been above stated, of the author's meaning, which conception will impart the true feeling, and out of that feeling, will arise the natural, and, consequently, the proper inflection, which marks on paper can never correctly convey. Mr. Walker's own words, give cre dence to these observations. In his preface to the third Edition of his Rhetorical Grammar, he says, "The sanguine expectations I had once entertained, that this analysis of the human voice, would be received by the learned with avidity, and applause, are now over; I have almost worn out a long life in laborious exertions, and though I have succeeded, beyond expectation, in forming readers, and speakers, in the most respectable circles in the three kingdoms, yet I have

a chastely correct ear, sensibly alive to the good feelings of nature, being perfectly master of your subject, and letting it fully and exclusively occupy your mind, can ever enable you to attain modulation. In

stead of paying attention to the different heights, and keys which are said to produce modulation, but which in reality modulation gives even a name to, it is here recommended to every speaker, to commence his subject in a tone sufficiently audible to be perfectly heard; then he can rise, and afterwards fall, as sense and feeling, in conjunction with the rules of this essay and the five inflections of the voice dictate. Those who are possessed of the requisites already mentioned, will find in the following, fit exercises of modulation; but the student will have much to do before he can be capable of reading or reciting, with any prospect of success, such surpassing efforts of poetic genius.

Examples.

O thou that with surpassing glory crown'd
Look'st from thy sole dominion, like the God
Of this new world; at whose sight all the stars
Hide their diminish'd heads; to thee I call,
But with no friendly voice, and add thy name,
O Sun, to tell thee how I hate thy beams,
That bring to my remembrance from what state
I fell, how glorious once above thy sphere;
Till pride and worse ambition threw me down,
Warring in heav'n against heav'n's matchless King.
Ah wherefore! he deserv'd no such return
From me, whom he created what I was,
In that bright eminence, and with his good
Upbraided none; nor was his service hard.
What could be less than to afford him praise,
The easiest recompense, and pay him thanks,
How due! yet all his good prov'd ill in me,
And wrought but malice; lifted up so high
I'sdain'd subjection, and thought one step higher
Would set me high'st, and in a moment quit
The debt immense of endless gratitude,

So burdensome still paying, still to owe,

but my pronunciation. When I have explained to them, the five modifications of the voice, they have assented and admired, but so difficult did it appear to adopt them, especially to those advanced in life, that I was obliged to follow the old method,-read as I read."

Forgetful what from him I still receiv'd;
And understood not that a grateful mind
By owing owes not, but still pays, at once
Indebted and discharg'd; what burden then?
O had his pow'rful destiny ordain'd
Me some inferior angel, I had stood

Then happy; no unbounded hope had rais'd
Ambition. Yet why not? Some other power
As great might have aspir'd, and me, though mean,
Drawn to his part; but other pow'rs as great
Fell not, but stand unshaken, from within
Or from without, to all temptations arm'd.
Hadst thou the same free will and pow'r to stand?
Thou hadst: Whom hast thou then, or what to accuse,
But heav'n's free love dealt equally to all?

Be then his love accurs'd, since love or hate,
To me alike, it deals eternal woe.

;

Nay curs'd be thou; since against his thy will
Chose freely what it now so justly rues.
Me miserable! which way shall I fly
Infinite wrath, and infinite despair?
Which way I fly is hell; myself am hell
And, in the lowest deep, a lower deep
Still threat'ning to devour me opens wide,
To which the hell I suffer seems a heaven.
O then at last relent: Is there no place
Left for repentance, none for pardon left?
None left but by submission; and that word
Disdain forbids me, and my dread of shame
Among the sp'rits beneath, whom I seduc'd
With other promises and other vaunts
Than to submit, boasting I could subdue
Th' Omnipotent. Ah me, they little know
How dearly I abide that boast so vain,
Under what torments inwardly I groan,
While they adore me on the throne of hell,
With diadem and sceptre high advanc'd,
The lower still I fall, only supreme
In misery: Such joy ambition finds.
But say I could repent, and could obtain,

By act of grace, my former state; how soon

Would height recall high thoughts, how soon unsay

What feign'd submission swore? ease would recant
Vows made in pain, as violent and void.

For never can true reconcilement grow

Where wounds of deadly hate have pierc'd so deep:
Which would but lead me to a worse relapse,
And heavier fall: So should I purchase dear
Short intermission bought with double smart.

From granting he, as I from begging peace:
All hope excluded thus, behold instead
Of us outcast, exil'd, his new delight,

Mankind created, and for him this world.
So farewell hope, and with hope farewell fear,
Farewell remorse: All good to me is lost;
Evil be thou my good: By thee at least
Divided empire with heav'n's King I hold,
By thee, and more than half perhaps will reign;
As man ere long, and this new world shall know.

TWAS at the royal feast, for Persia won
By Philip's warlike son.

Aloft in awful state,

The godlike hero sat

On his imperial throne.

His valiant peers were plac'd around,

Their brows with roses and with myrtles bound,
So should desert in arms be crown'd.

The lovely Thais by his side,

Sat like a blooming eastern bride,
In flower of youth and beauty's pride.
Happy, happy, happy pair!
None but the brave,

None but the brave,

None but the brave, deserve the fair.
Timotheus plac'd on high,

Amid the tuneful choir,

With flying fingers touch'd the lyre:
The trembling notes ascend the sky,
And heavenly joys inspire.

The song began from Jove,
Who left his blissful seats above;
Such is the power of mighty love!
A dragon's fiery form bely'd the god;
Sublime on radiant spheres he rode.

*

When he the fair Olympia press'd,

*

MILTON.

And stamp'd an image of himself, a sovereign of the world.

The list'ning crowd admire the lofty sound;

A present deity, they shout around;

A present deity; the vaulted roofs rebound.

With ravish'd ears the monarch hears,
Assumes the god, affects to nod,

And seems to shake the spheres.

The praise of Bacchus, then, the sweet musician sung;
Of Bacchus, ever fair and ever young.

Sound the trumpet; beat the drums;
Flush'd with a purple grace,

He shows his honest face:

Now give the hautboys breath-He comes! he comes!
Bacchus, ever fair and young,

Drinking joys did first ordain;

Bacchus' blessings are a treasure ;
Drinking is the soldier's pleasure:
Rich the treasure;

Sweet the pleasure;

Sweet is pleasure, after pain.

Sooth'd with the sound, the king grew vain

Fought all his battles o'er again;

And thrice he routed all his foes, and thrice he slew the slain.
The master saw the madness rise;

His glowing cheeks, his ardent eyes;
And while he heaven and earth defy'd,
Chang'd his hand and check'd his pride
He chose a mournful muse,

Soft pity to infuse:

He sung Darius, great and good,
By too severe a fate,

Fall'n, fall'n, fall'n, fall'n,
Fall'n from his high estate,
And welt'ring in his blood:
Deserted at his utmost need
By those his former bounty fed,
On the bare earth expos'd he lies,

With not a friend to close his eyes

With downcast look the joyless victor sat, Revolving, in his alter'd soul,

The various turns of fate below;
And now and then, a sigh he stole,
And tears began to flow.

The mighty master smiled to see,
That love was in the next degree:
'Twas but a kindred sound to move;
For pity melts the mind to love.

Softly sweet, in Lydian measures,
Soon he sooth'd his soul to pleasures
War, he sung, is toil and trouble;
Honor but an empty bubble;

Never ending, still beginning,
Fighting still, and still destroying.
If the world be worth thy winning,
Think, oh, think it worth enjoying!
Lovely Thais sits beside thee:

Take the good the gods provide thee;
The many rend the skies with loud applause;