So

incorrectly? They do so merely from habit. much of the work of today is done indoors, and the greater portion of this by machinery, that men and women, finding that they can continue animal life without effort, take the road of least resistance, breathing only with the diaphragm when they have stairs to climb or are forced to run. When called upon to perform this unaccustomed work they discover that the undeveloped muscle fails to respond to their desire and that they are soon out of wind.

Nature Rules That You Lose the Faculty
You Don't Use

This is in accordance with the immutable law of Nature that decrees that he who does not use a faculty shall lose it. If one does not use his arms or legs, he loses all power over them; if he does not use his mental gifts, they are taken away from him; if he does not exercise the many tones that the voice contains, they will dwindle away until nothing but a monotone remains, and if he does not regularly employ his diaphragm, he loses control over it, and there only remains at his service such muscles as he is accustomed to exercise.

Remember, we get nothing for nothing. An effort must be made no matter what it may be that we wish to accomplish. Nature is lavish with her gifts, but she always exacts some effort on the part

of her children before they may partake of her bounty. She places the clear pool and the sparkling brook at the service of the wild animals, but she compels them to go to the water and drink when they would quench their thirst. She gives to all living creatures and beings a plenteous supply of air, but she decrees that they must exert themselves, so far as to accept the gift, before it can be theirs. Be wise enough to learn that you must cooperate with Nature if you would profit from her gifts, and then you will realize that in order to breathe fully and adequately some effort must be made to get your breathing apparatus in good working shape. Until this is done you will not be a complete human being.

Practice These Breathing Exercises

(1)- Stand erect with the weight of the body equally on both feet, draw a full breath into the lungs by expanding (pushing out) the abdominal muscles, thus drawing down the diaphragm. The lungs should then be full of breath. Now with a slow and gentle inward pressure of the abdominal muscles (caused by drawing in the abdomen), force the diaphragm upward and expel the breath. Draw the air into the lungs through the nostrils and expel the breath through the mouth.

(2) - Inhale as in the first exercise but expel the breath by a steady pressure of the abdominal

muscles that will push the breath into the air in a manner similar to that when one pants.

(3) - Fill the lungs with air as in the other exercises; and then with a quick stroke of the abdominal muscles and diaphragm shoot the breath into the air. This form of breathing is similar to an aspirated cough.

Practice these exercises night and morning, repeating each exercise five times at every period of practice for the first week, after which the number of times the exercises are repeated should depend on the increased strength of the breathing muscles

the stronger they become the longer may be the period of practice. Exercise judiciously, and be careful not to strain the muscles by overwork.

CHAPTER IV

THE MINIMUM ESSENTIALS OF SPEECH

What One Owes to Others and to Himself in Conveying Thoughts by Spoken Words

ANY people pay little attention to what they

MANY

say, and the majority of persons seem to be utterly indifferent as to how they utter what they carelessly throw out to others, but there is a limit beyond which this carelessness cannot be carried and the speaker remain intelligible.

The purpose of speech is to convey thought from one mind to another, and, in a broader sense, to influence the person addressed. The lesser purpose cannot be realized unless the speaker makes himself heard and understood, nor can the greater purpose be achieved without the ability of the speaker to convince and persuade. These, then, are the minimum essentials of speech, and every self-respecting man and woman should see that they are in possession of at least these essentials.

The first requisite is a voice that has sufficient carrying power to convey the message across the space that separates the speaker from the listener. Such a voice is the product of correct breathing and

proper vocalization, the best means for producing which were fully explained in previous chapters. The second requisite is full articulation, clear enunciation, and an accurate use of emphasis and inflection, as by these means only can messages be conveyed clearly by word of mouth. There is one other requisite, you must know what you are talking about.

Faults of Articulation Are Common
but Very Bad

Articulation means the joining of sounds so that they produce words. Medical men speak of the articulation of a skeleton. By that they mean the putting together of all the bones that constituted the frame of the animal. If any one bone is missing the skeleton cannot be articulated. So is it with words. All the sounds that are necessary to the making of a word must be pronounced, otherwise the word cannot be articulated. Take the word articulate, for example. If a sound is missing, the word cannot be spoken. Should you say, ar-tic-late, omitting the sound of u, it would not be the word articulate that you voiced. People, as a rule, are exceedingly careless in their articulation, and this is one of the main reasons why they fail to make themselves instantly understood.

Another form of failing to articulate is the placing of a sound in the wrong position, or the wrong