Vickipedia

ROUGE ET NOIR (Fr. ‘red and black’), TRENTE-UN (’thirty-one’), or TRENTE ET QUARANTE (’thirty and forty ‘), is a modern game of chance, which is played by the aid of packs of cards on a table covered with green cloth. The table is of a form similar to that shown in the figure. It is divided into four portions, each marked in the center with a diamond, the diamonds being alternately red and black; and these quarters are further separated, two and two, by bands which cross the table at its narrowest part. At the end of the table are a series of concentric bands painted of a yellow color (not represented in the figure). The game is played as follows : one of the tailleurs (or dealers, who manage the table, take charge of the bank, and keep an eye on the players) takes up his position at one side of the table, opposite to the croupier (another tailleur), and unseals, in the presence of the players, six packs of cards, which are first counted, then shuffled by several tailleurs, and returned to the first tailleur, who presents them to one of the players to be cut. This is performed by the insertion of a blank card in any part of the pack, which is then adjusted, and the game proceeds. Each player must stake his money on some one of the four chances, denominated noir, rouge, couleur, and I’inverse, which will be afterwards explained.

After the stakes have been laid on the table (those for the noir being laid on either of the quarters marked with a black; and those for the rouge, on either of the quarters marked with a red diamond; those for the ‘ couleur ‘ on one of the transverse bands; and those for the ‘ inverse’ on one of the yellow circles at the end of the table), the tailleur takes a handful of cards from the top of the pack, and deals first for the noir, taking one card after another from the top of the handful and placing them on the table side by side, till the number of pips on them amounts to more than 30, when he stops. He then deals out another row in a similar manner for the rouge, till, as before, the number of pips amounts to more than 30. In reckoning the number of pips, the ace is counted as one, the other plain cards according to the number of pips, and the court-cards 10 each. It will thus be seen that the number to which each of the two rows of cards amounts, must be more than 30 and not more than 40. If the value of the first row is nearer 31 than that of the second, then the first row, or noir, wins, if the contrary is the case, then the second row, or rouge wins. Couleur wins if the first card tabled by the tailleur is of the winning color; thus, for instance, if the first card laid down is a ‘ spade ‘ or ‘club,’ noir wins; but if the first card dealt be not of the winning color, then inverse wins, and couleur loses. Two (and no more) of the four chances can be winning chances at one time; and the winning players have their stakes increased by an equal sum from the bank, and then withdraw their stake and winnings, while the stakes of the losers are raked by the tailleurs to the bank in the center of the table. When the value of the first, or noir-row, is equal to that of the second, or rouge-row, it is a refait, and the dealer must commence to deal anew from the cards remaining in his hand; when the refait occurs, the player may either withdraw his stake, or stake on a different chance, with the same or more or less money as he thinks proper.

The game of Rouge et Noir would be an even one between the players and the bank, were it not for the following regulation : When the points dealt for the noir and the rouge each amount to 31 (’ un refait de Trente-et-un ‘) the half of all the stakes on each of the chances belongs to the bank, and this the players may either pay or have their stakes ‘ put in prison,’ the next deal determining whether they shall belong to the bank or be restored to the player. If a second doublet of 31 occurs in the deal immediately succeeding, the stakes which were in prison are diminished by one half, which goes to the bank, and the other half is ‘put into the second prison,’ from which it requires two successive winnings of the player to regain them. The chance of ‘ un refait de trente-et-un’ is about once in 64 deals.

This game superseded Faro (q. v.), and Biribi in France about 1789, but along with Roulette (q. v ), was forbidden by law in 1838.

PAIN is an undefinable sensation, of the nature of which all persons are conscious. It resides exclusively in the nervous system, hut may originate from various sources. Irritation, or excessive excitement of the nervous system, may produce it; it frequently precedes and accompanies inflammation; while it sometimes occurs in, and seems to be favored by, a state of positive depression, as is seen in the intense pain which is often experienced in a limb benumbed with cold, in the pain which not unfrequently accompanies palsy, and in the we’ll known fact, that neuralgia is the common result of general debility. Hence, pain must on no account be regarded as a certain indication of inflammation, although it rarely happens that pain is not felt at some period or other in inflammatory diseases. Moreover, the pain that belongs to inflammation, differs very much, according to the organ or tissue affected; the pain, for example, in inflammation of the lungs, differs altogether in character from that which occurs in inflammation of the bowels, and both these pains from that occurring in inflammation of the kidneys.

Pain differs not only in its character, which may be dull, sharp, aching, tearing, gnawing, stabbing, &c., but in its mode of occurrence; for example, it may be flying or persistent, intermittent, remittent, or continued. It is not always that the pain is felt in the spot where the cause of it exists. Thus, inflammation of the liver or diaphragm may cause pain in the right shoulder, the irritation caused by stone in the bladder produces pain at the outlet of the urinary passage; disease of the hip-joint occasions pain in the knee, disease of the heart is often accompanied with pain in the left arm, and irritation of the stomach often gives rise to headache. Pain is differently felt by persons of different constitutions and temperaments, some persons being little sensitive to painful impressions of any kind, while others suffer greatly from slight causes. There even seems to be national differences in this respect; and before the introduction of chloroform, it was a matter of common observation that Irishmen were always more troublesome subjects for surgical operations than either Englishmen or Scotchmen; and the negro is probably less sensitive to pain than any of the white races.

Although in most cases we are to regard pain merely as a symptom to be removed only by means which remove the lesion which occasions it, there are cases in which, although it is only a symptom, it constitutes a chief element of disease, and one against which remedies must be specially directed. As examples of these cases, may be mentioned neuralgia, gastralgia, colic, dysmenorrhoea, and perforation of the intestines; and in a less degree, the stitch of pleurisy, which, if not relieved, impedes the respiration, and the pain of tenesmus, which often causes such efforts to empty the lower bowel, as seriously to disturb the functions of the intestine, and to exhaust the strength.

For the methods of relieving pain, the reader is referred to the articles on the different diseases in which it specially occurs (as colic, neuralgia, pleurisy, &c.), and to those on chloroform, ether, indian hemp, morphia, narcotics, opium, &c.

PERFE’CTIONISTS, or BIBLE COMMUNISTS, popularly known us FREE-LOVERS, or preachers of Free Love, a small American sect who are equally remarkable for the doctrines which they hold, and for the unfaltering way in which they curry them out in practice. The founder of the sect. John Humphrey Noyes, was born at Brattleborough in Vermont, 11th September 1811, and practised as a lawyer. He then studied theology at Andover and Yale, and became a Congregationalist preacher. He soon adopted new views, and lost his license to preach. The opinions of St. Paul, he held, had been completely misconceived by all the Christian churches; all our ecclesiastical organizations were accordingly blunders. He believed that Christ, on his second advent ‘ in the spirit,’ in 70 A.D., abolished the old Law, and closed the reign of sin which began with Adam; and that he lias thenceforth set up His kingdom in the hearts of all willing to accept His reign. For such persons, there was no longer an}’ law or rule of duty; neither the Mosaic code, nor the Sermon on the Mount, nor the ordinances or institutions of civil society, were binding upon them; they were a law unto themselves; they were free to do as they pleased, but—with exceptions which, however, could not invalidate an eternal truth—under the influence of the Divine Spirit which dwelt in them, they could only do that which was right.

His early efforts at establishing a church, made at New Haven, were very discouraging, but he was more successful at Putney He and his converts, men and women, with their children, put their property into a common stock; they gave up the use of prayer, all religious service, and the observance of the Sabbath; those who were married renounced their marriage ties, and a ‘ complex marriage ‘ was established between all the males and all the females of the ‘ Family.’ To get rid of the inconveniences which had been found attendant upon the exercise of Christian liberty, Noyes had set up a new principle, viz., sympathy, by which the individual will was to be corrected, which practically imposed, upon individuals the duty of deferring to the feelings and opinions of the brethren. He now taught that the Family was wiser than the individual, who might stray from the path of grace; that the individual was erring when he differed from the Family; and that the inclinations of individuals must be submitted to the opinion of the Family.

Having dispensed with law, he set up public opinion as a controlling power in its stead; and free criticism of one another by the members of the society became an important feature of his system. Quarrelling, however, broke out among the members: their differences were brought before the law courts; and when the details of the Family system became known, the people of Putney made the place too hot for the Perfectionists. Then establishment was broken up; but a portion of the Putney Family —about fifty men, as many women, and about the same number of children—soon established themselves in a new home, in the sequestered district of Oneida, in the state of New York. Among the things which first drew attention to the Putney Family was a controversy which Noyes maintained with the leaders of another society of P. established at Oberlin. The P. were divided upon the question, whether of the two leading features of their system, the profession of holiness and the right of Christian liberty, the one or the other was the more important—some were ‘ Liberty-men,’ others ‘ Holiness-men.’ Noyes took up the controversy on behalf of the latter.

At Oneida Creek, the new ‘Family ‘ purchased about 600 acres of forest-land, and proceeded to bring it under cultivation. They have made it one of the most productive estates in the Union; they have also established manufactures of various kinds; and in the course of 30 years, they have become a prosperous, and even a wealthy community of about 250 persons, who live together in a state of great harmony and contentedness. Being already sufficiently numerous, the ‘ Family ‘ has to reject frequent applications which are made for admission to membership. A similar society has been established at Wallingford. Their neighbors have become accustomed to the P. and their ways, and let them live in peace. On settling at Oneida, the controlling function of criticism was strengthened by being made more systematic; and a regard for the common good, grown strong through habit, has made persons who disavow all laws perfectly submissive to the unwritten laws of public opinion.

In the smallest, as well as in important affairs, the Perfectionist practises submission to the opinion of his brethren : in small matters, he usually gathers it by consultation with some of the older members of the body; important ones are submitted to the ‘Family’ at their evening meetings. All are busy; and they work as hard for the general interest as men do in the hope of enriching themselves. The men wear no particular garb, but usually dress like the country people around them; the women have their hair cut short, and parted down the center; abjure stays and crinoline; wear a tunic, falling to the knee, and trousers of the same material; a vest, buttoning high towards the throat; and a straw hat. The ‘ Family ‘ lias breakfast at six o’clock, dinner at twelve, and the evening-meal at six in the afternoon; the more advanced of its members abstain from animal food; they drink no beer, and only a weak home-made wine; and like most of the new American sects, they will have nothing to do with doctors. The women are allowed a good deal of influence.

While all the males and females of the ‘ Family ‘ are united by a ‘complex marriage,’ their intercourse—which, in theory, is unfettered by any law—is, in practice, subject to a good deal of regulation. Like everything else, it is subject to the opinion of the society, and certain principles have been so steadily applied to it, that they have gained the force of laws. First, there is the principle of the ascending fellowship. There should be contrast, the P. say, between those who become united in love. That there should be difference of temperament and of complexion has, they say, been well ascertained by physiologists. They hold that there should be a difference in age also, so that the young and passionate may be united to those who have, by experience, gained self-control. In virtue of this principle, the younger women fall to the older men, and the younger men to the older women. A second principle is, that there should be no exclusive attachment between individuals; a third, that persons should not be obliged to receive the attentions of those whom they do not like; and lastly, it is held indispensable that connections should be formed through the agency of a third party—because, without this, the question of their propriety might be withdrawn from criticism, and also, because this affords a lady an easy opportunity of declining.

The human heart, the P. say, is capable of loving any number of times, and any number of persons at the same time, and the more it loves the more it can love. The system of the ‘ complex marriage ‘ is therefore suitable to, while monogamy imposes a restriction upon, human nature; and they believe that marriage will be spurned by the churches as soon as they get rid of the false notion of the essential sinfulness of love. They are confident that, when they have worked out a few details, still incomplete, their system will be perfect, and that it will, before long, be imitated throughout the length and breadth of America. There are four things, according to Noyes, necessary to the organization of a true family : (1) the reconciliation of its members with God; (2) their salvation from sin; (3) recognition of the brotherhood and equality of man and woman; (4) community of labor and its fruits; and communism can only prosper when the previous conditions exist. The P. hold that for reconciliation to God and salvation from sin nothing is necessary but faith; let a man believe that he is reconciled to God, and his sins are immediately washed away.

PAINTING (HOUSE), is one of the useful arts, combining much that is artistic with much that is absolutely necessary. The primary object of painting houses, or parts of them, either internally or externally, is to preserve them from decay—to cover the parts liable to suffer from exposure with a durable composition. That now used is made of ground white-lead mixed with linseed oil. This produces white paint, which forms the basis of all others. The various colors given to it are produced by the grinding of pigments (or stainers) along with the white-lead. The commonest of these are ochres (yellow and red earths), lampblack, Venetian red, umber, Prussian blue, chrome, vermilion, &c. Substances called driers are also mixed with the paint, such as spirits of turpentine, boiled oil, litharge and sugar of lead ground in oil. Paint may be laid on any material—stone, wood, iron, and plaster being the most usual in buildings. It has the effect of preserving these, by filling up the pores in them, and forming a coating on which the moisture of the atmosphere does not act. The paint is laid on in several coats or layers, each being allowed to dry before the next is applied. The usual number of coats for new wood or plaster varies from three to six. Five coats form a good and lasting protection from the weather. Plain painting is generally finished with a coat prepared with a mixture of oil of turpentine, which takes off the gloss from the paint, and leaves the surface quite mat or dead. This is called flatting.

A very common form of decoration in all ages has been to imitate the veins or colors of marbles, and the grains or marks of growth of various woods. In modern times, these arts form a separate branch of house-painting, some men being grainers, others marblers, &c. The mode in which these imitations are produced is by forming a grounding of several coats of plain paint—usually four —and applying the coloring coat over this. In marbling, the coloring matter is marked and veined with feathers, in place of brushes; and in graining, steel combs are used. When the surface is dry, it is protected with one or more coats of copal varnish.

Besides painting, the decorater uses paper-hangings for adorning the walls of houses. These are applied to the walls with paste. Size-coloring is also used; the coloring matter in this case being mixed with strong Size (q. v.) in place of oil; but this has the disadvantage of being easily acted on by moisture. It is often used for the ceilings of common rooms, and for the walls of kitchens and servants’ apartments, being much cheaper than oil-paint. In ancient times, in Greece and Rome, wax was used for mixing the colors with; but although there are many very fine specimens of Roman paintings still preserved on the walls of the houses of Pompeii, the mode in which these decorations were applied is not now known.

READING AND SPEAKING. Reading is the delivery of language from writing; speaking is the utterance of spontaneous composition. Reading is merely mechanical when words are intelligibly but unimpressively delivered; and it is oratorial in effect when the sentiment proper to the utterance is expressed by pauses, tones, emphasis, &c. Recitation from memory is another form of reading, the matter being delivered from a mental transcript. This mode is highly favorable to oratorical effect, but it is limited in application, and untrustworthy where exactness of phraseology is important. Speaking from spontaneous composition is the highest form of oratory. The qualities requisite for these are very different.

To read well involves a perfect understanding of the construction of sentences, and ability to analyse complex forms of composition, and discriminate between essential and expletive words; it also involves a nice perception of the qualities of modulation, and their relation to expressiveness, together with ability to regulate the voice so as exactly to suit the sound to the sense. The study of the art of reading is thus valuable as a means of improvement in composition, as well as for its influence in refining the taste, and exercising all the faculties of perception, expression, and adaptation.

In good reading, the thoughts of the writer must first be taken into the reader’s mind, and then delivered as the writer himself might have uttered them immediately on their conception. Children, when set to read language above their comprehension, are of necessity merely mechanical readers; and in this way they acquire habits of unintelligent reading, which are seldom perfectly thrown off in after-life. In silent reading, or the perusal of language for our own information, we gather the sense as we proceed, and correct misapprehensions by reflection; in reading aloud for the information of others, we must perfectly comprehend the matter before we utter it, so as to avoid misleading the hearer. A practised reader can, no doubt, exercise sufficient prevision at the time of reading, by keeping his eye in advance of his utterance, to read any ordinary composition fairly at first, sight; but for public reading this would be insufficient. Whatever is to be read in public should first be well studied in private. The reader thus knowing definitely what he has to express, will give forth no uncertain sounds, and his manner will have the freedom of memoriter delivery, without the disadvantage of its constraint upon the mind. His whole attention will be concentrated on the object of his reading, the effective conveyance of the-matter and spirit of the composition. The presence of the book before him will be necessary chiefly to give confidence, and prevent the possibility of rambling. The eye. assisted by memory, will take in clauses and even sentences at a glance, so that it may be freely raised during utterance.

If the eye of a reader is fixed on the book, be seems to be perusing it for his own information; but if he looks his hearers in the face, as, with due preparation, he should be able to do, his delivery may have all the qualities of spontaneous oratory, and be to the hearers speaking rather than reading. This effectiveness is rarely exemplified, because the requirements for public reading are so little understood, and so habitually neglected in our systems of education. The tameness, monotony, and rythmical singsong so generally associated with reading, have created a prejudice against the use of ‘paper’ in pulpit addresses, in consequence of which, in some churches, the practice of reading sermons is discountenanced, while in others it is positively interdicted. The quality of sermons, as compositions, is seriously impaired under such circumstances; but the cure for bad reading—against which the prejudice is directed—is good reading. All men cannot be orators, but all maybe taught to read oratorically; and were students systematically trained in this art, the services of the church would be rendered far more attractive and influential. In the absence of this training, preachers are the most ineffective of public speakers; and discourses prepared to be delivered from memory are among the meanest species of literary compositions.

The chief points of difference between ordinary reading and the utterance of spontaneous composition, are the uniform force and time, and continuative tones of the former, as contrasted with the reflective breaks and varying modulations and emphases of the latter. The speaker feels what he wishes to say, and he conveys with definiteness the felt relation of each word to the idea which is dominant in his mind. Expletive and explanatory phrases are given parenthetically; ellipses, interpolations between grammatically related words, similes, quotations, and all other elements of rhetorical style, are indicated by changes of modulation; and the point of every sentence is made unmistakably apparent. The reader sees all the parts of a sentence level to his eye, and he is apt to deliver them with a corresponding indiscriminativeness of manner; either without variety of time, tone, and stress, or with mere alternation of force and feebleness, or the equal indefiniteness of emphasis on every phrase.

The first requisite for effective reading is a clear conception of the author’s intention, together with such a command of the voice as may enable the reader to express that one meaning to the exclusion of all other possible meanings. For every cluster of words is like a many-sided crystal, which may be made to throw light from any of its facets, according as one or another of them is present uppermost. The most prominent word in the utterance of a sentence is not necessarily the most important grammatical word, but that which is new in reference to the context; and such words as are already before the mind—whether directly stated, inferentially included in former expressions, or otherwise implied—are pronounced with subordinateness of manner. Thus, in the following lines:

 

The quality of mercy is not strained,

It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven

Upon the place beneath. It is twice blessed:

It blesseth him that gives and him that takes.

 

If the first line were read independently, it would be emphasized as follows:

 

The quality of mercy | is not strained;

 

but if read in connection with the preceding context, the emphasis would be different. Thus:

 

Portia. Then must the Jew have mercy.

Shylock. On what compulsion must I ? Tell me that.

 

‘ Mercy’ and the ‘ compulsion ‘ of mercy being thus already before the mind, the chief point in Portia’s reply will now be:

 

The quality of mercy is not strained, It droppeth, &c.

 

But, as to ‘drop’ is the natural characteristic of ‘rain,’ and as rain always falls ‘ from heaven,’ and necessarily ‘ upon the place beneath,’ these implied words will be pronounced subordinately, thus:

 

It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven

Upon the place beneath.

 

Bearing in mind, further, that mercy is of necessity ‘ blessed,’ the reader will proceed:

 

It is twice blessed :

 

and as the object of the speech is to solicit mercy, he will give prominence to the word that advances the suit. Thus:

 

It blesseth him that gives, and him that takes.

 

On this principle, the reader shows that he has, in his own mind, performed the writer’s process of thought, and so made the language which he interprets virtually his own. But in order to express with definiteness the thoughts and sentiments thus adopted, the reader must have the instrument of expressiveness perfectly under control. His voice should have no more predisposition to any particular tune than the flute or violin of a musician. Tones have an inherent value, which is above and independent of language, so that assertive construction may be made to convey interrogative meaning, and interrogative language may have assertive or imperative force. The modulations of the voice unravel all the complexities of composition, separating words from their immediate context, or connecting them with others from which they are most widely separated in the sentence. Thus, in the following lines:

 

Slowly and sadly we laid him down,

From the field of his fame fresh and gory,

 

the clause ‘ fresh and gory,’ is, by relative modulation, shown to refer to ‘him’ in the preceding line, and not to the nearer words ‘fame’ or ‘field.’ So, also, in the following passage: ‘ And they came with haste, and found Joseph and Mary, and the babe lying in a manger.’ Here the series,’ Joseph and Mary |and the babe’ is divided by a modulation of the voice, so as to show that the last word ‘babe’ is alone the grammatical antecedent to the clause ‘ lying in a manger.’ From such illustrations it will be obvious that good reading involves close thinking, and that the governing qualities of tone demand accurate appreciation and careful culture.

The tones of the speaking voice are all more or less inflected, in which respect they differ essentially from singing tones, which are level, and only varied in pitch. The term ‘ modulation,’ as understood by elocutionists, has reference to the general pitch of the vocal inflections in a passage. The inflections themselves are all either rising or falling. The rising turn of voice carries on the hearer’s attention to what is to follow—the falling turn directs attention to what has gone before; the former asks, or appeals to the hearer—the latter affirms or enjoins from the speaker; the former is negative—the latter is positive. Simple inflections rise or fall directly from their accentual pitch to their termination,. and the range of the inflection may have any extent, from less than a semitone to more than an octave. The strongest rising tones are expressive of interrogation, incredulity, or entreaty! and the strongest falling tones of affirmation, assurance, or command. Compound inflections unite the two vocal movements-falling before a rising termination, and rising before a falling termination—with one accentual impulse; and the effect of this opposition of tone is to add to the expressiveness of the termination a suggestion or inference in accordance with the expressiveness of the commencing turn. Thus : ‘ Not one,’ with compound rising tone, implies ‘ but more.’ ‘ Even one,’ with compound falling tone, implies ‘and not more.’

The emphatic force of tones depends on their accentual pitch in relation to that of preceding tones, as well as on the extent and the direction of the inflection. The amount of possible variety in these degrees is exceedingly great, but the peculiar expressiveness of individual modes of inflection is definite, traceable to systematic principles, and of limited extent, depending principally on three qualities—

 

1. Rising or falling accent as well as termination; as

 

Cónstánt, Cònstànt.

 

2. Rising or falling accent with opposite termination: as

 

Cŏnstant, Cônstànt.

 

3. Accent higher or lower than preceding pitch; as

 

	die? To		To		dream.
To		sleep.		sleep? Perchance to

 

These three sources of vocal variety the student of elocution should have under ready and perfect control.

The art of elocution has received comparatively little attention in modern times. The value of a good delivery is certainly not less now than it was among the orators of ancient Greece and Rome; but the assiduity with which the art was cultivated by the latter, and the estimation in which it was held by them, presents strong contrast to the negligence and apathy of modern speakers in regard to delivery. This fact is not easily accounted for; the influence of elocution being such, that an inferior address well delivered never fails to create a stronger impression on an audience, than the most masterly composition that lacks the graces and enforcements of effective utterance and action.

The model for effective reading is to be found in the ordinary style of animated conversation. The speaker’s tones are not governed by the laws of punctuation, or by formal grammatical periods. Every clause in a sentence is, to the speaker, a period. The most complex sentence is only an aggregation of correlative sentences, each of which is a separate act of thought, and should be delivered as such in reading, as it always is in speaking. Modulation will show the relation of each part to the whole, but inflection should at the same time show each part to be in itself complete, as the statement of a distinct though subordinate fact or circumstance.

The rules which some elocutionists have laid down for the reading of sentences, are clearly at variance with this natural principle of intonation, and they lead to an artificiality of manner which is at best a pedantic tune. The formal arrangements of inflections, which have been gravely prescribed for ‘ simple’ and ‘ compound,’ ‘commencing’ and ‘concluding’ serieses, ‘penultimate’ and ‘ante-penultimate ‘ clauses, &c., have done much to discourage students from paying proper attention to the art of elocution, and have almost justified the denunciations of some authors, who have declared elocution to be altogether unworthy of study. Thus, Archbishop Whately, in his disgust at the jerking alternations of ups and downs prescribed in elocutionary rules, counsels students to have nothing to do with rules, but simply to be ‘ natural.’ To be natural, however, is to follow those laws or principles which undoubtedly are to be deduced from the operations of the voice in spontaneous speaking; and these must be studied by all who would be ‘ natural’ in practising the art of reading. In elocution, as in painting and in every art, the highest attainment of the finished artist is to be natural.

Nature and art are not opposites; the former is the end of the latter; the latter the means to the former. To be natural does not ‘come by nature,’ but by art; and ‘ art itself is nature.’ Elocution, therefore, is none the less ‘ natural’ that it must be studied as an art; and the study of this art is not justly to be condemned, whatever condemnation may be due to the errors of elocutionists.

To acquire a natural style of reading, the chief point to be attended to is the logical clausing of sentences, so as to present, with separate completeness to the hearer’s mind, every fact and every associated circumstance, whether principal or subordinate. Punctuation is not a sufficient guide for this purpose; it will sometimes even mislead. Thus, in the following sentence from Macaulay’s Essay on Milton: ‘Even when a system has been formed, there is still something to add, to alter, or to reject’—the logic of the sentence is not brought out by the punctuation. The reader should make a modulative break after the word ‘ something,’ where no comma is placed, and he should, notwithstanding the separating commas, unite the three subsequent clauses by a modulative tie, to show their expletive nature, and the equal relation of each of them to their common antecedent. Thus: ‘There is still something | to add, to alter, or to reject.’

In the following sentence from the same Essay, no comma occurs, but the reader will nevertheless divide the period into at least three modulative clauses: ‘ The blaze of truth and liberty | may at first dazzle and bewilder | nations which have become half blind in the house of bondage.’ Here the first section contains the subject of the sentence, the second the predicate, and the third the object, with its dependent clauses. It is to be observed that the object ‘nations’ is separated from its governing verb ‘bewilder,’ only because the former is itself the governing antecedent to a new but subordinate sentence.

These illustrations are sufficient to show that the clausing of sentences for effective reading is dependent on a different principle from that which regulates punctuation.

Nor is any particular mode of vocal inflection necessarily associated with any of the marks of punctuation. This is particularly to he noted in connection with the sign of interrogation. The position of this mark, too, at the end of a period often misleads readers into an unnatural tone. The interrogative part of the sentence may not extend beyond a single clause, and this may be followed by many clauses within the same period. The mark of interrogation would therefore be better placed at the beginning of a sentence. But, as above shown, interrogative language may sometimes require for its just expression any one of all the tones in the gamut of speech. Thus : ‘ Will you ?’ if pronounced with a simple rising tone, this question asks or appeals; and with an extended range of inflection, it expresses doubt or surprise. But the form of words does not necessitate the rising tone. Thus : ‘ Will you ?’ If pronounced with a simple falling turn, the question expresses desire or expectation on the part of the speaker; and with an extended range of inflection, it conveys more or less of authoritative injunction. The same question may legitimately, also, take either of the compound forms of inflection. Thus: ‘ Will you ?’ If pronounced with a compound rising turn, it infers some cause of opposition or hindrance; and with an extended range of inflection, insinuates more or less of threatening or penalty. With a compound falling tone, thus : ‘ Will you ?’ it suggests more or less of defiance and contempt, according to the pitch of the commencing turn, and the extent of the concluding inflection.

The principles of vocal expression, clausular pronunciation, emphasis, &c., as above sketched, apply equally to speaking as to reading; but it is in connection with the latter chiefly that they require to be studied, as they are generally applied instinctively in spontaneous speaking, even by those who are most enslaved by vicious habits in reading. The management of the voice, however, should be more than an instinct to the orator; and there is much in the philosophy of vocal expression that will be studied with equal advantage by both speakers and readers.

Extemporaneous speaking is greatly assisted by a good habit of elocution, and it is at the same time strongly conducive to the formation of such a habit. The deliberate utterance which weighs every phrase, gives the mind time to revolve its ideas, and choose the most effective words for their expression; and the evolution of a continuous train of thinking in coherent sentences compels deliberation and guarded delivery. But while the grandest triumphs of oratory are thus to be achieved, the requisites for success are such that great orators must ever be few iii number. The ancient rhetoricians describe their model speaker as one who is accomplished in all knowledge, and esteemed for every virtue, and who has devoted more than the average duration of human life to laborious preparation; for they held that the oratorical faculty could not attain its full development and influence until hoary hairs had added the venerableness of age to a reputation for learning, sagacity, and unimpeachable morality.

Speaking from memory admits of the application of every possible element of effectiveness, rhetorical and elocutionary; and in the delivery of a few great actors, the highest excellence in this art has been exemplified. But speaking from memory requires the most minute and careful study, as well as high elocutionary ability, to guard the speaker against a merely mechanical fluency and thoughtlessly rhythmical utterance. This mode of delivery is therefore only appropriate to special efforts, for which due preparation can be made. Otherwise, memoriter delivery—as of sermons composed and learned at the rate of one or two every week—is altogether incompatible with excellence either of matter or of manner.

That the art of reading, which is on all accounts worthy of the highest position among the exercises of students for the oratorical professions, should be so utterly neglected in our systems of education, is a reproach to the enlightenment, of our age; and it is especially a scandal to our universities, in which the examples of the famous orators of antiquity, and the lessons of their experience, are so fully known, yet practically dishonored.

PA’GING-MACHINE. Several machines have been inside for paging books and numbering banknotes, cheques, railway-tickets, and other similar papers. The great object of these machines is to prevent the chance of error or fraud by making it impossible that a page, cheque, &c. can be abstracted or lost without detection. Messrs. Waterlow and Sons of London perfected an ingenious machine, by which pages of books, such as ledgers and other commercial books, and banknotes, &c., are numbered in regular succession. The numbers are engraved on metal rowels, usually of steel or brass. A series of these rowels are so arranged, that when the machine is worked, the numbers must be impressed on the paper in regular succession from 1 to 99,999; and it is impossible to produce a duplicate number until the whole series has been printed. The instrument is made to supply ink to the types, so that it may be locked in such a manner as to admit of being worked without the chance of its being tampered with.

An extremely ingenious modification of this machine has been perfected by M. Auguste Trouillet of Paris, under the name of ‘ Numerateur Mecaniqua,’ which is not only more simple, but admits of wider application; for it not only pages books and numbers notes, tickets, &c., but can also be used for numbering bales and other packages of merchandise. The instrument has six rowels, on each of which is a set of engraved numbers, so arranged, that their revolutions produce in regular succession the required numbers, by the action of a lever which moves horizontally, and supplies the type with ink as it moves backwards and forwards.

WHI’MBREL (Numenius phœopus), a bird of the same genus with the Curlew (q. v.), and much resembling it inform, plumage, and habits, but of smaller size, and with a bill considerably shorter in proportion. The female, which is larger than the male, is about eighteen inches in length, the bill being about three inches and a half. The plumage of the W. is of a bright ash color, with streaks of brown on the neck and breast. The W. is a very widely distributed bird, being found from the north of Africa and of India to the arctic regions of Europe and Asia. It occurs also in Japan. It is a bird of passage, and visits Britain chiefly in the course of its spring and autumn migrations. A few whirnbrels breed in Shetland; but the number is diminishing, the eggs being in great request as a delicacy. The flesh is also highly esteemed.

A’NUS, THE, AND ITS DISEASES. The term anus is applied by anatomists to the lower or (in the case of animals) the posterior aperture of the intestinal canal; the rectum terminating externally in the anus. With regard to its anatomy, it is sufficient to state that it is kept firmly closed on ordinary occasions by the external and internal sphincter muscles, the former of which contracts the integument around the opening, and, by its attachment to the coccyx behind, and to a tendinous center in front, helps the levator ani muscle in supporting the aperture during the expulsive efforts that are made in the passage of the faeces or intestinal evacuations; while the latter or internal sphincter, is an aggregation of the circular muscular fibres of the lowest part of the rectum, and acts in contracting the extremity of the tube. The main function of the levator ani muscle is expressed in its name, it being the antagonist of the diaphragm and other muscles which act in the expulsion of the fasces. The integument around the anus lies in radiating plaits, which allow of its stretching without pain during the passage of the faeces; and the margin is provided with a number of sebaceous glands, which, in some of the lower animals, secrete strongly odorous matters. See ANAL GLANDS. Infants are occasionally born with an imperforate anus, or congenital closure of the rectum. In the simplest form of this affection, the anus is merely closed by thin skin, which soon becomes distended with the Meconium (q. v.). More complicated cases are those (1) in which the gut terminates some distance above the seat of the anus in a blind sac or pouch; (2) where the rectum terminates in the bladder, &c. Fortunately, the closure by a layer of skin is far the most common form of imperforate anus, and the little patient is at once relieved by a very simple surgical operation. If, however, no treatment be adopted, which is too often the case, in consequence of a popular delusion that the affection is incurable, the abdomen becomes distended and hard, vomiting comes on, the vomited matters soon assume a faecal smell, and the infant dies in a few days, either from exhaustion or rupture of the intestines.

Spasm of the Sphincter Ani is by no means a rare affection; it is characterized by violent pain of the anus, with difficulty in passing the fasces. On attempting an examination, the muscle feels hard, and resists the introduction of the finger. It usually occurs in sudden paroxysms, which soon go off; but sometimes it is of a more persistent character. Its causes are not clearly known, and although most surgeons regard it as a special affection, some consider that the spasm is not a disease in itself, but merely a symptom of some slight excoriation or ulceration.

Suppositories containing opium or belladonna introduced during the period of relaxation, are sometimes of use; and if there are ulcers, they must be specially treated. Ulceration occurring as a breach of surface at one or more points around the anus, but not extending within the orifice, is by no means uncommon in persons who are not attentive to cleanliness, and especially in women with vaginal discharges. Strict attention to cleanliness, the patient being directed to apply warm water to the parts at least twice daily with a sponge (which after each operation should be carefully rinsed out), and one or two applications of the solid nitrate of silver, followed by black-wash, will effect a speedy cure. If the ulcer is seated partly without the anus and partly within the rectum, the distress is much more severe, and the treatment often requires the use of a knife. Fissure of the anus is a term applied to an affection consisting in one or more cracks, excoriations, or superficial ulcerations, situated between the folds of the skin and mucous membrane at the verge of the anus, and only slightly involving the rectum. They give rise to intense pain during the passage of the evacuations, and for some hours afterwards to great discomfort, smarting, and itching. The treatment to be adopted is to endeavor to procure regular and somewhat soft evacuations, and to sponge with warm water immediately afterwards, the parts being dried with a soft cloth. One or two applications of solid nitrate of silver will sometimes cure the disease; and an ointment of oxide of zinc, or one containing chloroform, will sometimes serve to allay the irritation and heal the parts.—Pruritus ani, which simply means intense itching and irritation of this part, is perhaps rather to be regarded as a symptom of certain morbid changes rather than as a special disorder; but as it is a very common affection, and is productive of much suffering it must not be passed over. It is often associated with an unhealthy state of the intestinal secretions, or with simple constipation; with a congested state of the mucous membrane; with a disordered condition of the womb; with the presence of thread-worms in the rectum, &c.; and it is peculiarly common in persons whose occupations are sedentary. The affection is often much aggravated by the patient’s being unable to refrain from scratching the parts, which leads to excoriations, ulcerations, thickening of the skin, &c. The symptoms are usually most severe when the sufferer begins to get warm in bed. If the affection arise from worms, or a loaded state of the large intestines, enemata and purgatives will give immediate relief. If unhealthy excretions exist, attention must be paid to the diet, and the occasional administration of a pill containing a grain of calomel and four grains of watery extract of aloes, together with the local application of soap and water to the parts, will often stop the itching. If there are any cracks or ulcers, nitrate of silver must be applied until they heal. To prevent the reappearance of these sores, the patient should bathe the parts night and morning with a strong solution of alum. An ointment composed of a drachm of calomel and an ounce of lard is strongly recommended by Mr. Smith of King’s College Hospital, when other means have failed; who also states that the daily introduction of a well-oiled bougie, made of black wax, will sometimes succeed in very obstinate cases. The other principal affections of the anus are Fistula, Piles, and Prolapsus, which are discussed in special articles.

ANTISEPTICS (anti, against, septikos, causing putrefaction) are substances which prevent or arrest putrefaction and analogous fermentive changes. It has been proved that Putrefaction (q. v.), fermentation of grape-juice (vinous fermentation), of milk, (lactic fermentation), and many, though probably not all other fermentations, depend upon the presence of microscopic vegetable organisms (see GERM THEORY). To prevent these processes, then, it is necessary either (1) to exclude these organisms altogether ; (2) to interfere with conditions which permit of their development; or (3) to destroy their vitality.

(1) These organisms, or their germs, are present in ordinary air; but it has been shown by Pasteur, Tyndall, Lister, Roberts, and others, that if air be filtered through cotton wool, or (if moving slowly) through a fine bent tube, it may be allowed to come in contact with putrescible substances, if these themselves contain no living organisms or germs, without causing putrefaction. This method, however, has had no important practical applications.

(2) Their growth may be arrested (a) by a low temperature. Thus large quantities of fresh meat are imported from America, and even Australia and New Zealand, in chambers cooled to near the freezing-point. Carcases of the long extinct mammoth, with the flesh still present, have been found in the ice-cliffs of Siberia. The longer time that meat, milk, &c., keep in cold than in hot weather is familiar. (b) By absence of moisture. Thus, if the contents of an egg be thrown out on a plate, and thoroughly dried in an oven, the whole becomes of a hard, horny consistence, and may be kept in this state for years. If soaked in water, it will soon begin to putrefy. In the same way meat may be kept fresh by thoroughly drying it. The preservation of fruits, &c., in strong syrup is an example of a similar action.

(3) The vitality of these organisms may be destroyed (a) by heat; e.g., meat and other eatables can be preserved for an indefinite time if they are boiled and hermetically sealed while still hot in tin vessels (see PRESERVES); (&) by various chemical substances. Some of the most important are common salt and saltpeter, used in curing fish, pickling meat, &c.; alcohol, in preserving zoological specimens, vegetable essences, fruits, &c.; sulphurous acid, boracic acid, and arsenious acid; many salts, as chloride of zinc (Burnett’s solution, q. v.), permanganate of potash (Condy’s fluid, see under MANGANESE), sulphate of copper (blue vitriol) corrosive sublimate, nitrate of silver; chlorine (given off by chloride of lime), iodine, iodoform (CHI₃), glycerine, boroglyceride (C₃H₅Bo₃), eucalyptus oil, thymol, creasote, carbolic acid, salicylic acid, tannic acid, quinine, the patent preparation ’sanitas,’ charcoal (both vegetable and animal), dry mould, used in the earth-closet system (see SEWAGE EARTH-CLOSET). All these substances act directly or indirectly as poisons to the organism-which produce putrefaction, &c.; most of them are either poisonous or very unpalatable to man, and cannot therefore be used in preserving food. Many of them are, however, used in the arts to arrest the decomposition of putrescible substances; e. g., in the manufacture of size for writing-paper from scraps of hides, sulphite of soda or antichlore, containing sulphurous acid, is added; hides are preserved by salt, or, when tanned, by tannin, a compound of tannic acid; timber is found less liable to decay if charged with an antiseptic, such as sulphate of copper, chloride of zinc, corrosive sublimate, or creasote. It is placed in a steam-box, so that the air contained in its pores is replaced by steam; the whole casing is then closed tight, and allowed to cool; the steam condenses and leaves a vacuum in and around the wood. If one of these substances is then introduced, it finds its way into the innermost pores of the timber (see also WOOD-PRESERVING). ,

But next to the preservation of food, the most important purposes for which antiseptic methods and substances are used, are the prevention of infectious diseases, and the treatment of wounds.

The properties of the infectious matter of infectious disease are closely analogous to those of the organisms that lead to putrefaction, &c.; and even in cases where its organic nature has not been proved (see GERM THEORY), can be rendered inert by a proper use of A., or by exposure to a high temperature. Thus anything that has come near the patient suffering from an Infections disease, and discharges from his person, can be made harmless by carbolic acid, chloride of zinc, or some other antiseptic; his bedding is roasted in an oven at a temperature of 212° P. or more; the room where he has been treated is fumigated with chlorine or sulphurous acid; and so the disease is prevented from spreading. This is, in fact, one of the chief aims of medical practice at the present day (see disinfectants).

Many of the evil effects which follow wounds and surgical operations are due to the presence of organisms (see PYAEMIA); and the effects of their antiseptic treatment, introduced by Mr. Lister, have been marvelous (see CARBOLIC ACID.).