Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1907-09-26
THE HUMAN VOICE.
Some Eminent Men Who Have Pos
scssed Remarkable Vocal Gifts.

In many Of the communications pub
lished since the death of Richard Mans
field on the whole fairly we'll estimating
his talent and its limitations. the fcxibil-
ity and almost ventrioquial quality and
power OF his voice have been referred to.
But Mr.. Mansfield knew better than any
one else what his vocal gifts were and
with what marvellous moduatons or
varying emphasis ne could suggest by tho
tones that were at his command the
whole Eamut OF human emotions. He
also knew better than some of his critics
that the one weakness in his voice WAS
that which IL also a common failing OF
actors OF to-day. namely, frequent and
often prolonged indistinctness OF utter
ance. There were times when II seemed
almost as though Mr.. Mansfield mumhlcd.
being apparently as unable. If not as I'M
willing, was Henry Irving. to seek
distinctness of enunciation when produc-
ing the lower tones. the cultural or fire.
Quently tho most explosive accents, IN
dicating violent passion
Mr.. Caphas Brainerd, who is one of the
survivors of that brilliant company that
escorted Abraham Lincoln to Cooper
Union on February %. 1860. recalls the
unexpected and yet highly agreeable
change that took place in Llncoln's tone
OF voice after the first few paragraphs
Of that now traditional Grafton had been
delivered. His voice was high pitched
and It seemed at first as though it were
not an agreeable voice to hear throughout
an entire address. But after few mo-
ments Mr.. Lincoln modulated It, he APP
parcntly having been at first testing the
-
satisfied himself. tempered his tone to
that hall, so that after that every word
was heard. OF course. the instant COM
mand Mr.. Lincoln gained over that audi
ence. which. as a whole fairly well rep
resented New York's best intellectual
power. made It the easier for him to
speak with distinctness But it was evil
dent that he could have carried his voice
over or through even tempest of noises
exactly as Wendell Phillips did in Ros-
ton when mob threatened him with ply
steal assault
Probably the finest speaking voice ever
bestowed upon a son OF New York State
was that possessed by Gerrit Smith
famed as an abolitonist as the friend Of
John Brown, and man who when in
Congress possessed, not many north
ern men did at that time. the courage Of
conviction. But Mr.. Smith submitted TO
severe training. self imposed and self
practiced. His voice in its natural quail
ity was very deep. having almost the
pedal tones Of an organ, a quality which,
II not carefully disciplined, s very likely
TO Impair distinctness. Mr.. Smith in the
open air. upon the mountainside OF his
country home in central New York, test
ed his voice and trained It, until at last
he was as perfect a master of distinct!ve-
ness OF enIncation as he was of the
amazing power which would carry that
voice over and beyond a congregation of
5000 or moro assembled in the open air.
Wendell Phillips's voice was tenor
quality, plentiful in tone but he discover
ed when young man first contemplated
public speaking that its defect was lack
of distinctiveness of utterance. He train
ed himself as assiduOusly as any one who
ever studied for the operate stage finds
It necessary to do in order to reach sue
cess He at last mastered control Of his
vocal organ that he was able to speak
so that as great a hail as fremont Tenn
pie, Boston, packed to Its uttermost gal
lery. was nevertheless not too great to
muffle his voice. He spoke. too. without
apparent effort, seemingly not raising his
voice above the tone of familiar CONVEX
sation.
The late Senator Carpenter OF Wiscon-
gin possessed a voice Of singularly flute
like quality. 1t was rather thin, but by
diligent cultivation OF 1t he at last so
mastered It that no matter how large or
distant his audience was, his words car
ried like the tones of a musical instru-
ment to every nearer. In his younger
days Senator Frye OF Maine had to a high
degree this art OF distinct utterance, but
in his later years he seemed to his friends
somewhat indifferent to that unusual gift.
Holland in the Philadelphia Press,