Will the New Year come to-night, mamma? I'm tired of waiting so; 'Tis empty still, oh! say, mamma, will the New Year come to- 4. SEMITONE. The progress of pitch through the interval of a half tone. It is called also the Chromatic melody, because it paints pity grief, remorse, etc.) It may color a single word, or be continued through an entire passage or selection: The New Year comes to-night, mamma, "I lay me down to sleep, I the Lord"-tell poor papa pray my soul to keep, If I"-how cold it seems, how dark, kiss me, I cannot see,The New Year comes to night, mamma, the old year dies with me. Miss Eager. The Semitone is very delicate, and must be produced by the nature of the emotion. An excess, when the mood or language does not warrant it, turns pathos into burlesque, and the scale may be turned from the sublime to the ridiculous by the weight of a hair. Strength, flexibility and melody of voice are of little worth if the judgment and the taste are defective. When reading is considered and treated as a branch of æsthetic culture, then, and not till then, will it be fully effective. When the beggar implores your alms, he knows full well that he must bring to his aid the melody of the semitone. We once passed four beggars upon Harlem bridge, the first said, Pity the blind!" the second, "Have mercy on the blind!" the third, "Help the blind!" and the fourth, "Give to the poor blind man!" All had the same tune, made up of semitonic slides, but when a policeman ordered them away, th melody was changed to diatonic imprecations. WAVES OR CIRCUMFLEX. SEMI-TONIC WAVE. Pity the sorrows of a poor old man. Irony. All this? Aye, more! Fret till your prouu neart break. Go, show your slaves how choleric you are, and make your bondman tremble. Must I budge? Must I observe you? Must I stand and crouch under your testy humor? FIFTH AND OCTAVE. Ridicule. You must take me for a fool to think I could do that. Irony. For mine own part. I shall be glad to learn of noble men. For Brutus is an honorable man. Irony. You meant no harm; oh, no! your thoughts are innocent; you have nothing to hide; your breast is pure, stainless, all truth. Antithesis. If you said so, then I said so. Let the gall'd jade wince, our withers are unwrung! +VI. GESTURE. I. POSITION OF THE HAND. 1. Supine; open hand, fingers relaxed, palm upward; used in appeal, entreaty, in expressing light, joyous emotions, etc. 2. Prone; open hand, palm downward; used in negative expressions, etc. 3. Vertical; open hand, palm outward; for repelling, warding off, etc. 4. Clenched; hand tightly closed; used in defiance, courage, threatening, etc. 5. Pointing; prone hand, loosely closed, with index finger cxtended; used in pointing out, designating, etc. 2. DIRECTION. 1. Front; the hand descending below the hip, extending horizontally, or ascending to a level or above the head, at right angles with the speaker's body. 2. Oblique; at an angle of forty-five degrees from the speaker's body. 3. Extended; direct from the speaker's side. 4. Backward; reversely corresponding to the oblique. The following examples have appeared in several works on Elocution-The New York Speaker and others. Despairing of furnishing better examples, I have taken the liberty to use them : R.. H. S. D. f. This sentiment I will maintain | with the last breath of LIFE. H. f. I appeal to you, sir, for your decision. A. f. I appeal to the great Searcher of HEARTS for the truth of what I ut ter. D. o. Of all mistakes | NONE are so fa tal as those which we incur through prejudice. H. o. Truth, honor, | Jus tice were his mo tives. A. o. Fix your eye | on the prize of a truly no ble am bi tion. D. & AWAY with an idea so absurd! H. e. The breeze of morning | wafted In cense on the air. A. e. In dreams thro' camp and court he bore | the trophies of a CON queror. D. b. AWAY | with an idea so abhorent to humanity! H. b. Search the records of the remotest an TI quity for a parallel to this. A. b. Then rang their proud HURRAH! R. H. P. D. f. Put DOWN | the unworthy feeling! H. f. Re STRAIN the unhallowed pro pen sity. D. o. Let every one who would merit the Christian name | re PRESS | such a feeling. H. o. I charge you as men and as Christians | to lay a re STRAINT on all such dispo si tions! A. o. Ye gods with HOLD your ven geancel D. e. The hand of affection | shall smooth the TURF for your last pil low! H. e. The cloud of adversity threw its gloom over all his PROS pects. A. e. So darkly glooms yon thunder cloud that swathes | as with a purple SHROUD Benledi's distant hill. R. H. V. H. f. Arise! meet | and re PEL your foe! A f. For BID it, Almighty God! H. o. He generously extended the arm of power | to ward off the blow. A. o. May Heaven a VERT the calamity! H. e. Out of my SIGHT | thou serpent! D. f. All personal feeling he de ros ited on the altar of his country's good. H. f. Listen, I im PLORE you, to the voice of rea son! D. o. Every personal advantage | he sur REN dered to the common good. H. o. WELCOME! once more to your early home! A. o. HAIL! holy Light! D. e. I utterly re NOUNCE | all the supposed advantages of such a station. H. e. They yet slept | in the wide a BYSS of possibility. D. f. Lie LIGHT ly on him, earth — his step was light on thee. H. f. Now all the blessings of a glad father LIGHT on thee! A. f. Blessed be Thy NAME O Lord, Most High. D. o. We are in Thy sight | but as the worms of the DUST! H. o. May the grace of God | abide with you for EVER. A. o. And let the triple rainbow rest | o'er all the mountain TOPS, D. e. Here let the tumults of passion | forever CEASE! H. e. Spread wide a ROUND the heaven-breathing calm Į A. e. Heaven | opened WIDE her ever during gates. A. f. AVERT O God, the frown of thy indignation! H. o. Far from OUR hearts be so inhuman a feeling. A. o. Let me not | NAME it to you ye chaste stars! H. e. And if the night have gathered aught of evil or concealed dis PERSE it. A. . Melt and dis PEL, ye specter doubts! |