tian, then the sincerity of his half-persuasion would give the antithetic emphasis on "me," as if he had said to St. Paul: "Thou art a Christian, and thou almost persuadest me, also, to be one."

Another of what might be considered as the sincere utterances of the king could be expressed by placing the chief emphasis on "almost" and "persuadest." This would show the profound feeling of Agrippa, and the troubled condition of his mind, under the eloquent appeal of the apostle.

From these we might pass to the study of the passages as expressing irony, whether relating to the manner of conversion, the character of the proud king himself, the time taken in persuading him, or whatever additional thoughts might be involved in the discussion. Each reader must adopt the interpretation which seems most reasonable to him; only let him have some decided opinion, if possible, and express that, or else adopt none, and avoid any accent in reading which would bias the minds of his hearers.

In addition to the principles of interpretation, we find doctrine rightly or wrongly presented by the expression of the emphasis. In the first chapter of St. John's Gospel, if the primary purpose be to declare the divinity of the Word by His co-equality with the Father, then the emphasis is misplaced upon the words "with" and "was." If, however, this is not the chief thought of the Evangelist, then the emphasis may fall upon the little words. The first reading suggested above would give us the emphasis as follows:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." By the second interpretation the accent would be as given here:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

These suggestions would apply to several of the verses following the one quoted above. In the words, "The world was made by Him," the emphasis would seem to fall

properly upon the pronoun rather than upon the preposition.

And in the passage, "Without Him was not anything made that was made," the emphasis lies with greater force upon "made" than upon was."

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The reading of the Decalogue is emphatic throughout, and any suggestion of feebleness in the utterance implies insufficient authority. If we take the Third Commandment, for example, and read it without emphasis, we shall see how unsuggestive the language becomes, and how easy, not to say natural, a thing it would be for the listener to make light of the Law. How different is the effect when the voice of stern authority emphasizes the words "vain" and "guiltless" with full force and deliberate pausing!

As already suggested, it is apparent that the study of emphasis, to be fully exhaustive, would lead us through almost every passage of the Prayer-Book, the greater part of the sacred Scriptures, and all the utterances of the pulpit. The treatment of the subject in this place can, therefore, be only fragmentary and suggestive.

Passages of Scripture for Study in Emphasis.

The "Emphatic Tie," which is the tying of the voice in the connected passages by a return to the same force, pitch, etc., after the interruption of a parenthesis or the like:

:

1. "For as many as have sinned without law, shall also perish without law and as many as have sinned in the law, shall be judged by the law, || (for not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified. For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: which showed the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the meanwhile accusing, or else excusing, one another :) || || in

the day when God shall judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ according to my gospel."-Rom. ii., 12-16.

2. "It is not expedient for me doubtless to glory. I will come to visions and revelations of the Lord. I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, (whether in the body, I cannot tell; or whether out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth ;) such an one caught up to the third heaven. And I knew such a man, (whether in the body, or out of the body, I cannot tell: God knoweth ;) How that he was caught up into paradise, and heard unspeakable words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter."-II. Cor. xii., 1–4.

Further Suggestions in Emphasis.-The fundamental principles of emphasis are so associated with the true rendering of the meaning that it seems almost superfluous to state that, in the critical study of the language for expression, some knowledge of the original Hebrew or Greek is essential. Of course, the profounder and more accurate the scholarship, the more certainly will the true reading rightly represent its labors. But it will be found that such knowledge is not all that is involved. For we have to take as our text the received version, and we are liable, even then, to misrepresent the teaching of a given passage. E. g., in St. Luke, xxiv., 25: “O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!" A false emphasis not only subverts, but contradicts, the meaning, and makes it appear that the disciples were fools for believing what the prophets had spoken. The proper way of pronouncing the words is represented as follows: "O fools, and slow of heart to believe | all that the prophets have spoken!"

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Other illustrations may be given to mark the same principle.

"Determined to sail by Ephesus"; the emphasis should here be given on "by," not on "Ephesus."-Acts, xx., 16. "Saw in a vision evidently, about the ninth hour of the day;" emphasize "evidently."-Acts, x., 3.

"And there were two other | malefactors led with Him to be put to death"; emphasize "other," and pause.—St. Luke, xxiii., 32.

"They found Mary and Joseph, | and the babe lying in a manger."- St. Luke, ii., 16. A pause is not unfrequently heard after "babe," so as to class it with "Mary and Joseph."

The following may be explained by marks of emphasis: "Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh."—Col. iii., 22.

"And they that have believing masters, let them not despise them, because they are brethren."-I. Tim. vi., 2.

"Wherefore, remember that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision | in the flesh made by hands."-Eph. ii., 11.

"For then would they not have ceased to be offered ?" -Heb. X., 2.

"Because gréater is hé that is in you than hé that is in the world."-I. John, iv., 4.

"And he spared not to take of his own flock."-II. Sam. xii., 4.

"They took Him even as He was in the ship."-St. Mark, iv., 36.

"Take heed to thyself that thou offer not thy burnt offering in every place that thou seest: but in the place. which the Lord shall choose in one of thy tribes, there thou shalt offer thy burnt offerings."-Deut. xii., 13, 14.

The following note was given to the author by a former professor of Hebrew at the Berkeley Divinity School:

"In Is. liii., 4, Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows, etc.,' attention is directed in the Hebrew to the subject He,' the pronoun being there expressed for emphasis."

The following are some of the passages that the author has heard read with erroneous emphasis. They are printed

as they ought to be pronounced, the error consisting in disregarding the emphatic words:

"But to this man will I look."-Is. lxvi., 2.

"He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he cut off a dog's neck; he that offereth an oblation, as if he offered swine's blood; he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol."-Is. lxvi., 3.

"Therefore I said, Surely these are poor; they are foolish: for they know not the way of the Lord nor the judgment of their God. I will get me unto the great men, and will speak unto them; for they have known the way of the Lord and the judgment of their God; but these [i.e., also] have altogether broken the yoke and burst the bonds."Jer. v., 4, 5.

"Now that He ascénded, what is it but that He also descended fírst into the lower parts of the earth? He that descended is the same also that ascénded up far above all heavens, that He might fill all things."-Eph. iv., 9, 10.

There is here no play upon the initial syllables of the words "ascended" and "descended," the antithesis being upon the height and depth.

CHAPTER XIII.

MELODY.

THE musical effect in the sustained delivery of some speakers is imparted largely by the rhythmical flow of voice. The pleasing impression of the recurrence of emphatic syllables in graduated successions of "time" is one of the graces of speech. When it is excessive, it is destructive to forcible and manly utterance; and when it is wanting the style is rendered harsh and brusque to the ear.

Practice upon passages of verse where the melody is