The morning star and Catholic messenger. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1868-1881, 1874-02-01
Habits Of English Orators.
London Cor, to tbe New York Tim,

London Cor, to the New York Times1
Mr.. Bright has just written letter to a
young theological student in which he
gives his opinion ON the art of public
speaking. He is for extempore speaking
when man knows his subject and has a
gooa hoid OF It but for preacher who
has to deliver a sermon q week on the same
topic to the same people, q written sermon
| is, he says, almost Indispensable "only men
| of great mind, great knowledge aud great
power can do this with success" and he
wonders that any man can do it at all
| suggests, to think over what is to be said,
| and to form an outline in few brief notes.
He says he has never been in the habit of
writing out his speeches, certainly not
for more than thirty years past, the labor
Of writing being bad enough, and the
BILE. This statement must, however, be
taken with certain qualification. Mr.,
Bright, believe, does not write out all
his speeches, but he writes out the most
important and highly-worked passages
and gets them by heart. The rest he fills
amines his speeches carefully can tell BY
the great precision and point of the Lam
guage in certain parts what has been
-..:;:::sen and what snoken off, hand. All
his speeches are very carefully prepared.
but chiefly in his head. He goes over the
points he wishes to bring out for weeks,
and, perhaps, months, and broods over the
subject till it takes form and substance in
his mind. He has small slip Of letter
paper with notes on it of the points in
their order, and in the house of commons
I have often noticed him for hours before he
rose coming over his notes and rehearsing
passages with his eyes on the ceiling Mr..
Gladstone uses notes, but only for facts
and the order of his points, and trusts e1-
val Tn kha
Lord Palmerston always spoke extem-
pore, and scarcely ever condescended to
refer to q paper. His great speech, five
hours long, in the Don Pacifico debate
was delivered in this manner he had only
8 set of the dispatches before him in order
in dictations to private secretaries had
given him q mastery of precise and easy
language, but he was not q flowing speaker.
He thought q great deal more abont how q
speech would read than how it sounded at
the moment, and was determined not to
This made him hesitate occasionally. MI.
Lowe acquired, similar precision from die
tating leader articles for the Times. Mr..
Disraeh despises notes, except notes of
dates and other figures he prepares his
speeches spe with great care, planning them
speeches, though partly drafted before
hand, are not repeated from memory.
The late Lord Derby was an impulsive e1-
tempore speaker but his son writes his
speeches from beginning to end, and learns
them laboriously. Lord Granville speaks
off hand, and is very unequal in his style,
which is, for the most part, loose and slo-
venly. Lord Russell also trusts to the
words of the moment and this, imagine,
was the rule with all the speakers of the
last generation. Mr.. Horsman, I have
heard, writes his speeches many times
and then writing another with as many
improvements as he can think of. The
object is, of course, to procure a firm hold
on the subject generally, as we'll as on
hisS premeditated language. SO that he may
drop the latter if he chooses, and insert
anything that occurs to him.