The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1872-12-29


There lie one defect in the American ed
ucation, or rather in American character,
and that is our young people do not learn
to converse well. They think-they act
when aroused they are eloquent-bat
they seldom converse we'll. The boy is
taught to declaim-to store his mind with
those ideas that will instruct aud even
move the multitude-but very rarely to
converse with ease and elegance. The girl
is disciplined to sing, and play, and dance,
aud sit gracefully. She is even prepared
for those womanly duties of the nursery
and the household. Her moral powers are
cultivated likewise in this country so that
she becomes q useful, benevolent, amiable
being. But she is not taught to converse.
.She can't talk enough" says the crusty
old bachelor; "pray, do not teach her, to
auy greater degree, the use of her tongue"
Talking is not conversing. There Is no
deficiency in the for mer with our girls. To
talk, and to talk well, are very different.
The latter requires ease, tact, seIf-coni-
dence, good sense, a well-conducted educa-
Uion, o desire to please, an amiable temper.
In neither sex should conversatio con-
high-hown defamation, or above the ben
dition of the hearers. The voice should
be modulated to the subject, and never
raised to an oratorical pitch. The style
should be easy, natural, playful, if the &C.
casion requires it, with NO strained and far
fetched attempts, at wit or glitter.
There are occasions when the very es-
sence of entertaining and successful COLI
versation consists in being good listener,
and in drawing out others upon those top
les about which you know they can furnish
information. We have said before, that
che great secret of pleasing consists in
making others pleased with themselves.
1t is 80 in conversation. To be good lis
tener is one of the secrets of conversation
al power. 1t is said that Daniel Webster
remarked that he never was in any sensi-
BILE mans company quarter OF an hour,
but what he learned something. He had
the tact of drawing them out on subjects
with which they were familiar, and in this
way gained information himself, and made
others pleased with him.
When girls think too much Of their beau
ty, they are very apt to forget that the
powers of conversation are needed to
please. Beauty may strike q severe bio W
on the heart, but it requires conversational
powers to follow up tho blow and render it
effective. A plain woman who converses
well will soon cause the want of beauty to
he forgotten by her powers of entertain
ment. Mime De Stael HOistein was an exceed
lngIy pIaIu woman Dot such were her con-
versatIupat talents That Byron declar d
LtlaS she could talk down her face in u
uuarter OF an hour and be felt to be posi-
lively beautiful.
But tho question occurs, how can this
Do er bc acumlredF lC needs some native
confidence and SO much good Judgment 10
Law the LIQUIDATION Tor It. INSTRUCTORS can |
create 1t, by always requiring their pupils |
to give their ideas of theIr lessUus III their |
own language, aud not in the words of the |
text book. Parents, too, can early begin !
40 encourage their children to converse on
sensible topics, by calling out their Opin-
ions. All should learn to converse.