aster of clear language may
be able to carry an audience with him in such a treatment. The
division in the conclusion between the backward glance and the forward
vision need not be equal. Here again the effect to be made upon the
audience, the purpose of the speech, must be the determining factor.
Notice how the two are blended in the following conclusion from a much
read commemorative oration.

And now, friends and fellow-citizens, it is time to bring
this discourse to a close.

We have indulged in gratifying recollections of the past, in
the prosperity and pleasures of the present, and in high
hopes for the future. But let us remember that we have
duties and obligations to perform, corresponding to the
blessings which we enjoy. Let us remember the trust, the
sacred trust, attaching to the rich inheritance which we have
received from our fathers. Let us feel our personal
responsibility, to the full extent of our power and
influence, for the preservation of the principles of civil
and religious liberty. And let us remember that it is only
religion, and morals, and knowledge, that can make men
respectable, under any form of government....

DANIEL WEBSTER: _Completion of Bunker Hill
Monument_, 1843

Conclusions are classified in general under three headings: 1.
Recapitulation; 2. Summary; 3. Peroration.

The Recapitulation. The first of these--recapitulation--is exactly
defined by the etymology of the word itself. Its root is Latin
_caput_, head. So recapitulation means the repetition of the heads or
main topics of a preceding discussion. Coming at the end of an
important speech of some length, such a conclusion is invaluable. If
the speaker has explained clearly or reasoned convincingly his
audience will have been enlightened or convinced. Then at the end, to
assure them they are justified in their knowledge or conviction, he
repeats in easily remembered sequence the heads which he has treated
in his extended remarks. It is as though he chose from his large
assortment a small package which he does up neatly for his audience to
carry away with them. Frequently, too, the recapitulation corresponds
exactly to the plan as announced in the introduction and followed
throughout the speech. This firmly impresses the main points upon the
brains of the hearers.

A lawyer in court starts by announcing that he will prove a certain
number of facts. After his pl