impressiveness the groups themselves
are often implicated,--but by suspension of the voice and a maintenance
of the vocal organs in their previous position, before they suddenly
relax to form the opening sound of the first word in their next group,
rather than by the murmuring prolongation above described.

EXERCISE.--Read with suitable implication: (1) _O Tiber! father
Tiber! to whom the Romans pray, a Roman's life, a Roman's arms,
take thou in charge this day!_ (2) _But still the patriot, and
the patriot-bard, in bright succession raise, her ornament and
guard._

The nicety with which implication should be effected depends, like
exactness of articulation, upon the gravity, complexity, fervor, grace,
beauty, or other distinguishing and elevated quality of the thoughts and
sentiments contained in the words to be read. Common-place ideas are
couched, as a rule, in common-place language, and require no nice
discrimination of sounds, or other refinement of utterance, for their
full rendering; but in true poetry and impassioned prose implication is
no mean instrument of effectual interpretation.

The speaking voice, like the singing voice, is capable of utterance
through a considerable range of pitch--in highly cultivated voices, of
three octaves; in less highly cultivated voices, of one octave; but for
all voices, not perverted by bad habit, there are three or four notes,
of moderate height, upon which utterance is most easy and natural, and
most capable of great and sustained effort. These notes should be
selected as the =normal pitch= of discourse.

In speaking or reading, except in certain infrequent cases, the _whole_
of the breath expired from the lungs should be utilized in producing
=pure vocality=. Should any breath be spent in aspiration, or in
hissing, or in guttural enunciation, the vocality is said to be
=impure=. Impure vocality, it is true, has its own appropriate use, in
the representation of certain emotional states of the mind. Pure
vocality is heard naturally in the tones of children at play; but in
adults, through carelessness or injudicious education, it is often
wanting.

The mechanism of the voice is very complicated and not thoroughly
understood. It is a matter of common experience, however, that in the
utterance of tones of low pitch, whether speech tones or musical, the
voice seems to come from the chest rather than from the head; and, in
the utterance of tones of high pit