hould be eschewed. The most dangerous time to smoke is
immediately after the close of a lecture. Then the cells are all exposed
from recent exercise, and it is positively wicked to so abuse them with
tobacco fumes when they have served you so well. It is equally wicked to
scald them with "straight" liquor. Any speaker who persists in either of
these habits will pay a heavy penalty. If these things must be done, at
least wait an hour or two after speaking.

All this is just so much more true of street speaking as the throat is
more exhausted by the louder tone.

When you have worked out your lecture, and are waiting for the hour to
strike, test its merit by this question: Does it contain enough valuable
information to make a distinct addition to the education of an average
listener? If you cannot affirm this, whatever merits otherwise it may
have, fundamentally, it fails. When the enthusiasm has worn off, your
audience should be able to decide that, in its acquaintance with modern
knowledge, a distinct step forward has been made. Anything else is
building on sand.

Always be firm, positive, courageous. First get a mastery of the
question, and then let your audience realize that you know what you are
talking about. The great merit of a certain speaker of long ago, seems
to have been that "he spake with authority." Remember truth is not
decided by counting heads, and if you are correct, even though the
majority, in some cases in your own audience, may be against you, they
will be obliged eventually to come to your position. True, in the
meantime you may be obliged to suffer a temporary eclipse, but this is
one of the permanent possibilities of the career of the real teacher.

Weigh carefully, investigate thoroughly, consult the authorities, be
sure of your ground and prepared to defend it against all comers, and
then--

"Plunge deep the rowels of thy speech,
Hold back no syllable of fire."

***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ART OF LECTURING***

******* This file should be named 30565.txt or 30565.zip *******

This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/3/0/5/6/30565

Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
will be renamed.

Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United St