The tones of the voice indicate the tone of the
mind; but the temper itself may finally yield to a graceful and gentle
form of expression. It is not probable that we shall ever give due
attention to the cultivation of the human voice for speaking, reading,
and singing. This is an invaluable accomplishment in man. Many of us
have listened to New England's most distinguished living orator, and
felt that well-known lines from the English poets derived new power, if
not actual inspiration, from the classic tones in which the words were
uttered.
A cultivated voice in woman is at once the evidence and the means of
moral power. As the moral sensibilities of the girl are more acute than
those of the boy, so the moral power of the woman is greater than that
of the man. Many young women are educating themselves for the business
of teaching; and I can commend nothing more important, after the proper
ordering of one's own life, than the discreet and careful training of
the voice. It is itself a power. It demands sympathy before the
suffering or its cause is revealed by articulate speech; its tones awe
assemblies, and command silence before the speaker announces his views;
and the rebellious and disorderly, whether in the school, around the
rostrum, or on the field, bow in submission beneath the authority of its
majestic cadences. It is hardly possible to imagine a good school, and
very rare to see one, where this power is wanting in the teacher.
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