The production of the proper effect necessitates placing in the foreground, with full expression, what needs emphasis, and throwing back with monotony or acceleration parts that do not need emphasis.  It requires slighting subordinate, unimportant parts, so that one point is made and one total impression given.  This results in that flexibility and lightsomeness of the voice, which is one of the most important features in the telling of the tale.  The study of technique, when controlled by these principles of vocal expression, is not opposed to the art of story-telling any more than the painter’s knowledge of color is opposed to his art of painting.  To obtain complete control of the voice as an instrument of the mind, there is necessary:  (1) training of the voice; (2) exercises in breathing; (3) a knowledge of gesture; and (4) a power of personality.

(1) Training of the voice.  This training aims to secure freedom of tone, purity of tone, fullness of tone, variety of volume, and tone-color.  It will include a study of phonetics to give correct pronunciation of sounds and a knowledge of their formation; freeing exercises to produce a jaw which is not set, an open throat, a mobile lip, and nimble tongue; and exercises to get rid of nasality or throatiness.  The art of articulation adds to the richness of meaning, it is the connection between sound and sense.  Open sounds are in harmony with joy, and very distinct emotional effects are produced by arrangements of consonants.  The effect created by the use of the vowels and consonants in The Spider and the Flea has already been referred to under “Setting.”  The open vowels of “On, little Drumikin!  Tum-pae, tum-t[=oo]!” help to convey the impression of lightsome gaiety in Lambikin.  The effect of power displayed by “Then I’ll huff and I’ll puff, and I’ll blow your house in,” is made largely by the sound of the consonants ff and the n in the concluding in, the force of the rough u of huff and puff, and the prolonged o in blow.  The effect of walking is produced by the p of “Trip, trap,” and of varied walking by the change of vowel from [ui] to [ua].  The action of “I have come to gobble you up,” is emphasized and made realistic by the bb of gobble and the p of up.  Attention to the power of phonics to contribute to the emotional force and to the strength of meaning in the tale, will reveal to the story-teller many new beauties.

(2) Exercises in breathing.  Training in breathing includes exercises to secure the regulation of proper breathing during speech and to point out the relation between breathing and voice expression.  The correct use of the voice includes also ability to place tone.—­Findout your natural tone and tell the story in that tone.—­Many of the effects of the voice need to be dealt with from the inside, not externally.  The use of the