f acquiring effective elocution is by practise, of
not less than an hour a day, until the student has his voice and himself
thoroughly subdued and trained to get right expression."

_Lord Bolingbroke_

Lord Bolingbroke made it a rule always to speak well in daily
conversation, however unimportant the occasion. His taste and accuracy
at last gave him a style in ordinary speech worthy to have been put
into print as it fell from his lips.

_Lord Chatham_

Lord Chatham, despite his great natural endowments for speaking, devoted
a regular time each day to developing a varied and copious vocabulary.
He twice examined each word in the dictionary, from beginning to end, in
his ardent desire to master the English language.

_John Philpot Curran_

The well-known case of John Philpot Curran should give encouragement to
every aspiring student of public speaking. He was generally known as
"Orator Mum," because of his failure in his first attempt at public
speaking. But he resolved to develop his oratorical powers, and devoted
every morning to intense reading. In addition, he regularly carried in
his pocket a small copy of a classic for convenient reading at odd
moments.

It is said that he daily practised declamation before a looking-glass,
closely scrutinizing his gesture, posture, and manner. He was an earnest
student of public speaking, and eventually became one of the most
eloquent of world orators.

_Balfour_

Among present-day speakers in England Mr. Balfour occupies a leading
place. He possesses the gift of never saying a word too much, a habit
which might be copied to advantage by many public speakers. His habit
during a debate is to scribble a few words on an envelop, and then to
speak with rare facility of English style.

_Bonar Law_

Bonar Law does not use any notes in the preparation of a speech, but
carefully thinks out the various parts, and then by means of a series of
"mental rehearsals" fixes them indelibly in his mind. The result of this
conscientious practise has made him a formidable debater and extempore
speaker.

_Asquith_

Herbert H. Asquith, who possesses the rare gift of summoning the one
inevitable word, and of compressing his speeches into a small space of
time, speaks with equal success whether from a prepared manuscript or
wholly extempore. His unsurpassed English style is the result of many
years reading and study of prose masterpieces. "He produces, wherever
and whenever