The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1889-09-20
AMERICAN WoMEN's VOICES.
& Young English Diplomats Remark
Throat Gymnastics.

Young English Diplomats RemarK.
Throat Gymnastics.
Considerable discussion has been caused
by a remark of a young diplomat belong
ing to the English fisheries commission.
He said that he was much struck with
the facial and physical loveliness OF
American women, but that his sense of
the harmonious was Jared when they
spoke. s'Englishwomen's intonation is
musical, low, sympathetic, while that OF
the typical daughter of America is high,
somewhat harsh, and not grateful" lie
added that in repose the American
woman is more attractive than her
English sister; but that the latter IS more
agreeable in conversation.
Throughout the debate which this
candor has started their is no denial OF
the assertion that American women's
voices are often disagreeable and that
English women's intonatiOn is more
Ilelodious. But there is no proper effort
to get at the cause Of the difference.
There is an error in admitting that the
difference is due to higher pitch in this
country than in England. Any one who
has heard English women speaking with
total self-unconsciousness in their own
homes knows that they run to quite as
high a note as women of any other coun-
try; and that, in proportion as the spirit
is amiable the voice rises as naturally In
the gamut as the thermometer ascends
when the icy letters loosen the mercury.
Miss Terry's voice is perfectly natural on
4 tage, and when she is not tragic it
in p high key. Sontag was noted for
&.a g as ''futes lisp and nightingales
war. e." and both are at their best in
-a pitch.
Tho trouble lies not in the pitch, but in
.ha llIality of voice. When Lear said Of
ord lila, 'Her voice was over soft,
gentle and low, an excellent thing in
woman" it was quality, not pitch, he
correctly described. When Petruchio
says of Katherine, in flaming of the
Sl,rew," Think you a little din can
das mine ears2'' he describes again the
ofTensiveness in woman's voice, its noisi-
ness, not it's pitch. Chaucer knew that
''small voices, sweet entuned," were
s'tlo sweetest melody he ever heard;"
anC once again it is quality, not pitch,
hat is referred to. It is undeniable that
IN e American air all voices are more
E IS roughened by the catarrhal mala-
lies more disagreeable than dangerous.
.To IAN count too easily the singers we
have produced; and the moment a voice
G severed there is feverish anxiety to
get it out of the country before our
winds crack it in the throat. Few sing
sr= jorn or bred in Europe return, unless
Eu e1itraOrdinary cases of great laryngeal
pHs Dility, with as even or suave tonal-
itY s they bring out here.
he voices that are bred among us we
d. our best to destroy for musical quail
It's n either singing or speaking by the
eoc 1tionary antics of our schools. In
England, except among those who are
iattarly patrons of the public primary
schools, tuition outside the home in
childhood is all but unknown. The gov
erDess is tradition as immovable as the
house of lords or the judges wigs. The
room. The Glow voice is naturally and
sweetiy developed, because the lining of
the throat is not scraped by voice forcing.
Wien singing lessons begin the special
tiIubre of each voice is carefully watched;
and as rapidly as Indications suffice, it is
given the proper education for its natu-
raj register, be that high, low or medium
Meanwhile we have forty children in
large schoolroom; the teacher arranges
them in a row at the rear, and stands
herself at the front of the apartment,
AMI the child who reads loudest is the
highest in order Of merit. 1t is con-
Bidered particularly commendable if the
entire class can read in concert louder
than any other entire class in all the COM
petitive schools-competing for the ruin
of individual voice quality. The same
unscientific course is followed in music.
All sing the same register for years; all
are urged to shout and ''holler" in school,
When they are of an age to make battle
with the climate in its ugly moods they
can already say, as Falstaff did to the
chief justice, and more truly: 'tFor my
voice, have lost 1t with holloaing and
singing of anthems"
Doubtless, toe, mental composure has
much 10 do with the quality of the voice.
The eager of both sexes will shout or
scream. As the best conversers are also
the best listeners, the quality of voice
which goes SO far to make a good con-
verser is instinctively low and sympa-
thetic. The English girl learns in in
fancy that she is to speak only when
spoken to; that she is to reflect before
as little as possible that will antagonize
her lords and masters. The American
girl is accustomed from childhood to
speak on everything; to exercise spon-
taneity, if not independence; and the
ices resulting from the abuse of the good
ideas herein involved are loud voice,
harsh quality, and speech, followed by re-
Election, perhaps, but rarely preceded by
it. American girls, as rule, are poor
listeners. A dozen of them will speak all
together, and the highest pitch is often
reached in a competition to coerce atten-
ton.
Aside from climatic influence, not
easily overcome, whose effects, however,
can be mitigated, the disagreeable quality
IN American women's voices is due to
irrational throat gymnastics in childhood,
and to deficient mental composure ia
maturity Chicago Times.
a Bath in Washington.