would or the
slamming of a door of an office.

In the second place the speaker runs the graver risk of not making
clear and emphatic the purpose of his speech. He may have been quite
plain and effective during the course of his explanation or argument
but an audience hears a speech only once. Can he trust to their
recollection of what he has tried to impress upon them? Will they
carry away exactly what he wants them to retain? Has he made the main
topics, the chief aim, stand out prominently enough? Can he merely
stop speaking? These are quite important aspects of a grave
responsibility.

In the third place--though this may be considered less important than
the preceding--the speaker gives the impression that he has not
actually "finished" his speech. No one cares for unfinished articles,
whether they be dishes of food, pieces of furniture, poems, or
speeches. Without unduly stressing the fact that a speech is a
carefully organized and constructed product, it may be stated that it
is always a profitable effort to try to round off your remarks. A good
conclusion gives an impression of completeness, of an effective
product. Audiences are delicately susceptible to these impressions.

Twenty-two centuries ago Aristotle, in criticizing Greek oratory,
declared that the first purpose of the conclusion was to conciliate
the audience in favor of the speaker. As human nature has not changed
much in the ages since, the statement still holds true.

Speakers, then, should provide conclusions for all their speeches.

Although the entire matter of planning the speech belongs to a later
chapter some facts concerning it as they relate to the conclusion must
be set down here.

Relation of the Conclusion to the Speech. The conclusion should
reflect the purpose of the speech. It should enforce the reason for
the delivery of the speech. As it emphasizes the purpose of the speech
it should be in the speaker's mind before he begins to plan the
development of his remarks. It should be kept constantly in his mind
as he delivers his material. A train from Chicago bound for New York
is not allowed to turn off on all the switches it meets in its
journey. A speaker who wants to secure from a jury a verdict for
damages from a traction company does not discuss presidential
candidates. He works towards his conclusion. A legislator who wants
votes to pass a bill makes his conclusion and his speech conform to
that purpose. In all likelihood, his