nigh to the house, he heard music and dancing. And he called to him one of the servants, and inquired what these things might be. And he said unto him, "Thy brother is come; and thy father hath killed the fatted calf, because he hath received him safe and sound.'

But he was angry, and would not go in: and his father came out and entreated. But he answered and said to his father, "Lo, these many years do I serve thee, and I never transgressed a commandment of thine: and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends: but when this thy son came, which hath devoured thy living, thou killedst for him the fatted calf."

And he said unto him, "Son, thou art ever with me, and all that is mine is thine. But it was meet to make merry and be glad: for this thy brother was dead, is alive again; was lost, and is found.” -New Testament.

LESSON II.

Hamlet's Instruction to the Players.

[Study in phrasing.]

Speak the speech, I pray you, as I pronounced it to you—trippingly on the tongue; but if you mouth it, as many of our players do, I had as lief the town-crier spake my lines. Nor do not saw the air too much with your hand, thus; but use all gently: for in the very torrent, tempest, and, as I may say, whirlwind of your passion, you must acquire and beget a temperance, that may give it smoothness. Oh! it offends me to the soul, to hear a robustious periwig-pated fellow tear a passion to tatters-to very rags-to split the ears of the groundlings: who, for the most part, are capable of nothing but inexplicable dumb shows and noise. I would have such a fellow whipped for o'erdoing Termagant :* it out-herods Herod. Pray you, avoid it. Be not too tame, neither, but let your own discretion be your *Termagant, the flend, and Herod, were evil characters in the popular "miracle plays.' They were acted in a most boisterous manner.

tutor. Suit the action to the word; the word to the action; with this special observance that you o'erstep not the modesty of nature: for anything so overdone is from the purpose of playing; whose end, both at the first and now, was, and is, to hold, as 'twere, the mirror up to nature;-to show virtue her own feature; scorn her own image; and the very age and body of the time his form and pressure. Now this, overdone or come tardy off, though it make the unskilful laugh, cannot but make the judicious grieve; the censure of which one, must, in your allowance, o'erweigh a whole theatre of others. Oh! there be players, that I have seen play, and heard others praise, and that highly, not to speak it profanely, that, neither having the accent of Christians, nor the gait of Christian, pagan, or man, have so strutted and bellowed, that I have thought some of nature's journeymen had made men, and not made them well-they imitated humanity so abominably.-Shakespeare.

LESSON III.

The Duel.

[For avoiding "sing-song" style of delivery.]

In Brentford town, of old renown, there lived a Mr. Bray,
Who fell in love with Lucy Bell, and so did Mr. Clay.

Said Mr. Bray to Mr. Clay: "You choose to rival me,

And court Miss Bell, but there your court no thoroughfare shall be.

"Unless you now give up your suit, you may repent your love;
I, who have shot a pigeon match, can shoot a turtle dove.
So pray, before you woo her more, consider what you do;
If you pop aught to Lucy Bell-I'll pop it into you."

Said Mr. Clay to Mr. Bray: "Your threats I quite explode;
One who has been a volunteer knows how to prime and load.
And so I say to you, unless your passion quiet keeps,

I, who have shot and hit bulls' eyes, may chance to hit a sheep's."

Now gold is oft for silver changed, and that for copper red;
But these two went away to give each other change for lead.
But first they sought a friend apiece, this pleasant thought to

give

When they were dead, they thus should have two seconds still to live.

To measure out the ground not long the seconds then forbore, And having taken one rash step, they took a dozen more. They next prepared each pistol-pan against the deadly strife, By putting in the prime of death against the prime of life.

Now all was ready for the foes; but when they took their stands, Fear made them tremble, so they found they both were shaking hands.

Said Mr. C. to Mr. B.: "Here one of us may fall,

And, like St. Paul's Cathedral now, be doomed to have a ball.

"I do confess I did attach misconduct to your name;

If I withdraw the charge, will then your ramrod do the same?" Said Mr. B.: "I do agree-but think of Honor's Courts!

If we go off without a shot there will be strange reports.

"But look, the morning now is bright, though cloudy it begun;
Why can't we aim above, as if we had called out the sun?"
So up into the harmless air their bullets they did send:
And may all other duels have that upshot in the end!

-Thomas Hood.

LESSON IV.

Charge of the Light Brigade.

Half a league, half a league,

Half a league onward,

All in the valley of death

Rode the six hundred.

"Forward, the Light Brigade!
Charge for the guns!" he said:

Into the valley of death
Rode the six hundred.

"Forward, the Light Brigade!"
Was there a man dismayed?
Not though the soldiers knew
Someone had blundered!
Theirs not to make reply;
Theirs not to reason why;
Theirs but to do and die:
Into the valley of death
Rode the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,
Cannon to left of them,

Cannon in front of them

Volleyed and thundered:

Stormed at with shot and shell,

Boldly they rode and well;

Into the jaws of death,

Into the mouth of hell,

Rode the six hundred.

Flashed all their sabres bare,

Flashed as they turned in air,
Sabring the gunners there,

Charging an army, while

All the world wondered!

Plunged in the battery-smoke,

Right through the line they broke:

Cossack and Russian

Reeled from the sabre-stroke,

Shattered and sundered.

Then they rode back; but not

Not the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,

Cannon to left of them,

Cannon behind them

Volleyed and thundered:

Stormed at with shot and shell,
While horse and hero fell,
They that had fought so well
Came through the jaws of death
Back from the mouth of hell,

all that was left of them-
Left of six hundred.

When can their glory fade ?
Oh, the wild charge they made!
All the world wondered.
Honor the charge they made!

Honor the Light Brigade

Noble six hundred !-Tennyson.

LESSON V.

The Discontented Pendulum.

[Study in phrasing and emphasis.]

An old clock, that had stood for fifty years in a farmer's kitchen, without giving its owner any cause of complaint, early one summer's morning, before the family was stirring, suddenly stopped. Upon this, the dial-plate (if we may credit the fable) changed countenance with alarm; the hands made a vain effort to continue their course; the wheels remained motionless with surprise; the weights hung speechless; each member felt disposed to lay the blame on the others. At length the dial instituted a formal inquiry as to the cause of the stagnation; when hands, wheels, weights, with one voice protested their innocence.

But now a faint tick was heard below from the pendulum, who thus spoke: "I confess myself to be the sole cause of the present stoppage; and I am willing, for the general satisfaction, to assign my reasons. The truth is, that I am tired of ticking." Upon hearing this, the old clock became so enraged that it was on the very point of striking.