Examples of commencing series.

  Wine’, beauty’, music’, pomp’, are poor expedients to heave off the load
  of an hour from the heir of eternity’.

  I conjure you by that which you profess,
  (Howe’er you came to know it,) answer me;
  Though you untie the winds and let them fight
  Against the churches’; though the yeasty waves
  Confound and swallow navigation’ up;
  Though bladed corn be lodged, and trees blown down’;
  Though castles topple on their warders’ heads’;
  Though palaces and pyramids do slope
  Their heads to their foundations’; though the treasures
  Of nature’s germens tumble altogether’,
  Even till destruction sicken’; answer me
  To what I ask’ you.

4.  A series of words or members which concludes a sentence is called a concluding series, and each member usually has the falling inflection.

Example of concluding series.

They, through faith, subdued kingdoms’, wrought righteousness’ obtained promises’, stopped the mouths of lions’, quenched the violence of fire’, escaped the edge of the sword’, out of weakness were made strong’, waxed valiant in fight’, turned to flight the armies of the aliens’.

Remark.—­When the emphasis on these words or members is not marked, they take the rising inflection, according to Rule IX.

Examples.

  They are the offspring of restlessness’, vanity’, and idleness’. 
  Love’, hope’, and joy’ took possession of his breast.

5.  When words which naturally take the rising inflection become emphatic by repetition or any other cause, they often take the falling inflection.

Exception to the Rule.—­While the tendency of emphasis is decidedly to the use of the falling inflection, sometimes a word to which the falling inflection naturally belongs changes this, when it is emphatic, for the rising inflection.

Examples.

  Three thousand ducats’:  ‘t is a good round sum’. 
  It is useless to point out the beauties of nature to one who is blind’.

Here sum and blind, according to Rule vi, would take the falling inflection, but as they are emphatic, and the object of emphasis is to draw attention to the word emphasized, this is here accomplished in part by giving an unusual inflection.  Some speakers would give these words the circumflex, but it would he the rising circumflex, so that the sound would still terminate with the rising inflection.

Rule VIII.—­Questions which can not be answered by yes or no, together with their answers, generally require the falling inflection.

Examples.

Where has he gone’?  Ans.  To New York’. 
What has he done’?  Ans.  Nothing’. 
Who did this’?  Ans.  I know not’. 
When did he go’?  Ans.  Yesterday’.

Remark.—­It these questions are repeated, the inflection is changed according to the principle stated under the Exception to Rule VII.