upon the throne of judgment, from whose face heaven and earth fhall fly away; whofe voice fhall pronounce on the wicked the dreadful fentence, " Depart, ye curfed;" and whose breath fhall blow up the unquenchable flame, in which rebellious angels and men fhall be irrecoverably fwallowed up and deftroyed.

It may, perhaps, be objected here, that facred truth needs no ornament to fet it off, no art to enforce it. That the apostles were artless and illiterate men; and yet they gained the great end of their miffion, the conviction of multitudes, and establishment of their religion. That, therefore, there is no neceffity for this attention to delivery, in order to qualify the preacher for his facred office, or to render his labours fuccefsful.

To all this the answer is ready, viz. First, the apostles were not all artless and illiterate; St. Paul, the greatest and moft general propagator of Chriftianity, is an eminent exception. He could be no mean orator, who confounded the Jews at Damascus +, made a prince, before whom he stood to be judged, confefs, that he had almost perfuaded him to become a convert to a religion every where spoken against §; threw another into a fit of trembling as he fat upon his judgmentfeat ; made a defence before the learned court of Areopagus, which gained him for a convert a member of the court itfelf; ftruck a whole people with fuch admiration, that they took him for the god of eloquence ++; and gained him a place in Longinus's lift of famous orators. Would the coldferved-up monotony of our English fermon-readers have produced fuch effects as these? But, farther, the apostles might very well fpare buman accomplishments; having what was worth them all, viz. the Divine gift of working miracles; which if our preachers had, I should not have much to say about their qualifying themselves in elocution. But, as it is, public inftruction is the preacher's weapon, with which he is to combat infidelity and vice. And what avails a weapon, without kill to wield it?

Rev. xx. 11.

+ Aas ix. 22.

Acts xxvi. 28. xxviii. 22.

Aas xxiv. 25. Acts xvii. 34. ++ Acts xiv. 12.

It was with no fmall pleasure, I lately met with a fragment of Longinus, which is preferved, as a teftimony of that critic's judgment, at the beginning of a manufcript of the New Teftament in the Vatican library. After that author has numbered up the most celebrated orators ⚫ among the Grecians, he fays, "Add to thefe Paul of Tarfus, the pa"tron of an opinior not yet fully proved." Spect. No, 633.

Medicines the moft falutary to the body are taken with reluctance, if naufeous to the tafte. However, they are taken. But the more neceffary phyfic for the foul, if it be not rendered fomewhat palatable, will be abfolutely rejected. For we are much lefs prudent in our care for the most valuable part of ourselves than for the least. Therefore the preacher. ought, above all other public fpeakers, to labour to enrich and adorn, in the moft matterly manner, his addreffes to mankind; his views being the moft important. What grand point has the player to gain? Why, to draw an audience to the theatre. The pleader at the bar, if he lays before the judges and jury, the true fate of the cafe, fo as they may be moft likely to fee where the right of it lies, and a juft decifion may be given, has done his duty; and the affair in agitation is an eftare, or, at most, a life, which will foon, by courfe of nature, be extinct. And of the Speaker in either boufe of parliament, the very utmoft that can be faid, is, that the good of his country may, in great measure, depend upon his tongue. But the infinitely important object of preaching is, the reformation of mankind, upon which depends their happiness in this world, and throughout the whole of their being. Of what confequence is it, then, that the art of preaching be carried to fuch perfection, that all may be drawn to places of public inftruction, and that those who attend them may receive benefit! And if almoft the whole of preaching be delivery, how neceffary is the study of delivery! That delivery is incomparably the most important part in public inftruction, is manifeit from this, that very indifferent matter well delivered will make a confiderable imprefion. But bad utterance will defeat the whole effect of the nobleft compofition ever produced.

While exorbitant appetite, and unruly passion within, while evil example, with alluring folicitation without (to fay nothing of the craft and affaults of the grand enemy of man

I deny not, that the theatre is capable of being made a school of virtue. But it must be put under regulations, other than we have ever yet seen it; and thofe too various to be specified here; fo numerous are the particulars which want reformation, much more being at prefent wrong than right.

And

"A proof of the importance of delivery," fays Quintilian, “ may "be drawn from the additional force which the actors give to what is "written by the best poets, fo that what we hear pronounced by them gives infinitely more pleafure, than when we only read it." again, "I think, I may affirm, that a very indifferent fpeech, well fet "off by the fpeaker, fhall have a greater effect, than the beft, if deßitute "of that advantage."-Quint. Init, Orat. p. 441. "Documento funt vel fcenici, &c."

kind) while thefe invite and enfnare the frail and thoughtless into guilt; fhall virtue and religion hold forth no charms to engage votaries? Pleafure decks herself out with rich attire. Soft are her looks, and melting is the sweetness of her voice. And must religion prefent herself with every disadvantage? Mut the appear quite unadorned? What chance can she then have in competition with an enemy fo much better furnished with every neceffary invitation and allurement? Alas! our preachers do not addrefs innocents in paradife, but thoughtlefs, and often habituated finners. Mere cold explaining will have but little effect on fuch. Weak is the hold, which reafon has on most men. Few of mankind have able heads. All have bearts; and all hearts may be touched, if the fpeaker is mafter of his art. The bufinefs is not fo much to open the understanding, as to warm the beart. There are few, who do not know their duty. To allure them to the doing of it is the difficulty. Nor is this to be effected by cold reafoning. Accordingly, the fcripture orators are none of them cold. Their addreffes are fuch as hardly any man can utter without warmth. "Hear, O heavens! Give ear, O "earth! To thee, O man, I call; my voice is to the fons of "men. As I live, faith the Lord, I have no pleasure in "the death of the wicked; but rather that he turn from "his wickedness, and live. Turn ye, turn ye. Why will ye die? O Jerufalem, Jerufalem! thou that killeft the prophets, and stonest them who are fent unto thee! How "often would I have gathered thy children, as a hen "thereth her brood under her wings, and ye would not. "Hadft thou, in this thy day, known the things which "belong to thy peace!-But now they are hid from "thine eyes."

ga

It is true, the preacher is carefully to avoid oftentation; he is not to preach himself; but Chrift. But at the fame time he is to" ftir up every gift that is in him; to cry "aloud, and not to fpare; to lift up his voice like a trum"pet; to reprove, correct, and inftruct; to be inftant in "feafon and out of feafon; to become (innocently) all things " to all men," confequently to become an orator, if men are not to be affected by fimple unadorned truth, however weighty.

What can the people think of the fincerity of the preacher, who is cold and languid in his public inftructions, while he is as warm and zealous as other men, in the defence of an inconfiderable part of his property? Would he plead as calmly for his life, as he does with his people in the caufe of virtue and religion? Coolness in a matter of the laft importance,

and

and about which one is really in earnest, is fo unnatural, as to be hardly practicable. Therefore Cicero takes it for granted, that Callidus could not have addreffed the fenate in fo indifferent and unanimated a manner, if what he wanted to perfuade them to believe had not been mere fiction. And, Demofthenes, when one came to him, begging, that he would plead his caufe, against a perfon who had ufed him cruelly, of which usage he gave Demofthenes a very cold and unanimated account, could not believe, that he had been fo injured; till, upon his fignifying his fufpicion, the man was roused to fome warmth; and then the orator was convinced, that his complaint was well founded, and immediately undertook his defence †.

If it should be faid by preachers, "The people will be as "much offended with us, if we overact our part, as they are "now indifferent about attending our miniftry; so that it will "avail nothing to ftudy a more lively delivery;" to this I muft beg leave to answer; that there is no reafon to fear any thing from it. Because a manner of preaching may be ufed, which shall have ten times more life and vivacity in it, than the prefent, and yet (if it be not unnatural, or incorrect) be very fafe from all danger of exceeding due bounds as to vivacity and force. And, farther, we do in fact observe, that no preacher is admired (I do not mean by the mob, but by people of education) whofe delivery is dull and unanimated; let his matter be awhat it will.

Left any reader should think, I have been too fevere upon the deficiencies of men of facred characters, as to delivery, either in leading the devotions of the people, or in inftructing them in their duty; I will add, by way of apology for what I have faid, fome paffages, to the fame purpose, from the SPECTATOR.

"SIR,

"The well reading of the common prayer is of fo great importance, and so much neglected, that I take the liberty "to offer to your confideration fome particulars on that fubject. And what more worthy your obfervation, than this? A thing fo public, and of fo high confequence. It "is indeed wonderful, that the frequent exercise of it should "not make the performers of that duty more expert in it. "This inability, as I conceive, proceeds from the little care "that is taken of their reading while at School, where, when

Tu iftuc, M. Callidi, nifi fingeres, fic ageres? +Plut. in vit. Demofth.

Cic. Brut. p. 181. Tom. 1.
"they

"they are got into Latin, they are looked upon as above "English, the reading of which is wholly neglected, or, at "leaft, read to very little purpose, without any due ob* fervation made to them of the proper accent and manner "of reading. By this means they have acquired fuch ill "habits, as will not eafily be removed."

The writer of the letter then goes on to mention the advantage he himself found, from being led in his devotions by an elegant performer of the fervice at St. James's Garlick-hill church.

My eyes and my thoughts," (fays he) "could not wan"der as ufual; but were confined to my prayers.-The "confeffion was read with fuch a refigned humility, the

absolution with fuch a comfortable authority, the thankf "givings with fuch a religious joy, as made me feel those "affections of the mind in a manner I never did before. To « remedy, therefore, the grievance above complained of, I "humbly propose, that this excellent reader, upon the next, and every annual affembly of the clergy at Sion College, and all other conventions, fhould read prayers before them. For then those, that are afraid of ftretching their mouths, and spoiling their foft voices, will learn to read with clearness, loudness and ftrength. Others, who af"fect a rakish, negligent air, by folding their arms, and lolling "upon their book, will be taught a decent behaviour. Thofe "who read fo faft, as if impatient of their work, may learn "to speak deliberately. There is another fort, whom I call

Pindaric readers, as being confined to no fet measure. These "pronounce five or fix words with great deliberation, and the "five or fix fubfequent ones with as great celerity; the first "part of a sentence with a very exalted voice, and the latter "very low. Sometimes with one fort of tone, and imme"diately after with a different one. These gentlemen will "learn of my admired reader an evenness of voice and delivery. And all, who are innocent of these affectations, but read with fuch an indifferency, as if they did not un"derftand the language, may be informed of the art of reading movingly and fervently; how to place the emphasis, and give the proper accent to each word, and how to vary "the voice according to the nature of the fentence. There "is certainly a difference between reading a prayer, and a gazette. Thefe are often pretty claffical fcholars, and would think it an unpardonable fin to read Virgil, or Martial, with as little tafte, as they do Divine service." Spect. No. 147.

And