h boy read, at a time, but a single verse of
the New Testament, or a single paragraph of the English Reader; the
'master' himself first reading a verse, or a paragraph, each time the
reading went around the class.

Well, the result was that all the boys acquired at least a distinct
articulation and a fluent utterance, properly sectioned off by their
minding the stops. Some of the boys, of whom I was one, had to read
aloud, at home, from other books. When I showed by my expression, or,
rather, by my want of it, that I did not understand what I was reading,
I was at once told so, the passage was explained and read to me, and I
had to read it again, to show that I had caught the meaning and the
proper expression. If I were required to read something which was
entirely new to me, my eye was exercised in running ahead of my voice,
and taking in what was coming, to the extent of a sentence or two, in
order to read with sufficient expression not to be stopped, as I was
very impatient of interruption, especially if I particularly enjoyed the
subject-matter.

When I look back upon these daily exercises in reading, at school and at
home, I feel that nothing could have been better at the time. There was
no such thing as 'speaking a piece,' with gesture, 'limbs all going like
a telegraph in motion,' and straining after effect. It was simply
careful, honest reading, with no attempt at make-believe of feeling. No
encouragement was given to any affectation of that kind; but whatever
impressed my listeners as genuine feeling and appreciation on my part,
was duly praised; and I was very fond of praise, and was stimulated by
it to do my best.

I fear that such reading has very much gone out of use, and that
untimely technical instruction has taken its place. Call on a college
student to read any prose passage extempore, and what is the result in
ninety-nine cases out of a hundred? Why, he will read it, _experto
credite_, in a most bungling way, with an imperfect articulation,
without any proper grouping or perspective; and if the passage be an
involved and long-suspended period, which his eye should run along and
grasp as a whole, in advance of his voice, he will be lost in it before
he get half way through it. He has had little or no practice in reading
aloud. He has 'parsed' much in the lower schools, but his parsing has
not resulted in synthesis (which should be the sole object of all
analysis), has not resulted in a knowledge of l