UNIVERSITY DEBATING SOCIETY.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 575, 2 August 1909, Page 6

UNIVERSITY DEBATING SOCIETY.

.., PRESIDENT'S ADDRESS. , ; ;'• On Saturday evening, the Dean-of the Faculty, Professor Adamson, M.A LL'.B., whi> is Presideat of; the University. Debating delivered'an address at Victoria College, on ; "Some Hints on ■ Public Speatuig."-.. ■-.- : . : ."' '■'■. :■' ■ -! " : , '.','TKi purpose of your college training is tj teach you. to'think/-'.The use of a debating' society is. to.'.teach you'.to thiiik: on your feet. Utter, your words deliberately; learn to'-'speak.'slow; -' all- other graces follow =in their, proper'places. , . ■Take --'time'to', enunciate property, and'let yonr:words trickle .down ,oa your, hearers., Do, not \p6j3r , . out.;your;;sea-,-tences like &' mountain torrent/ put rather, let . th'eih "reach' ; the.' audience. as' the sea touches'the-shore." ■' ; '' ' -,' ■' '.' . ■ '.Th?. lecturer-'i thus : ; introduced his- subject, illustrating his- remarks- from his, own esperience;; as a • barrister, ■ and' by a reference' to the beat oratory. A. speaker had to , be olementary, for he , was always face to face with an audieuce.to.whbm tie subject was quite new and Unexplored. Unless he took care to'make, his. subject plain and simple, ib' see that'his audience was. grasping the points he was making, seeing in their mind's, oye the-word pictures with which be illustrated'■the .letterpress of .his'speech;' ho "would,"nave conveyed nothing to his hearers and ■ his ' efforts, to < instruct and persuade would,be in vain. " ■ ','■"■■ Fefr' person's*really understood, a new idea whea first they heard it, and it was therefore necessary, to . drive, home i points made with every figure of speech at command. The speaker had to make his meaning clear, peat (his/' thought; but,never himself, attracting, attention to his proposition' from 'various points of view: ■' , : :'• ■ '';".■'■ .' ~, The lecturer insisted on the .importance of style, and of making a speech or pleading a literary effort. The. advice of an eminent Judge ;was given, and Chesterfield's remarks on style quoted. "Tie eloquence of' Demosthenes, Cicero, Curran, Pitt, and. Gladstone was analysed, 1 and a' special reference was made to Bngbt's famous imagery, "The angel of''death' is abroad throughout the land., 1 You can almost hear his wings." Eloquence at bottom was a statement of facts. A,speaker should marshal his facts so that they, should speak "for themselves. The , lecturer advised his hearers to read the speeches of celebrated' orators, and to -commit a few of them; to memory,' especially the great speeches of Shakespeare, in particular Mark Antony's speech over, the dead body of Caesar, where would bo lound all the arts of mob oratory. .

In. conclusion; the following lines were quoted from the speech as summing up, in three lines, the art of public speaking:

I tell yon that which you yourselves do know, Snow you sweet Caesar's wounds—poor, poor ■ dumb mouths And bid them speak for me. i , .

The lecturer was accorded a hearty vote of thanks for.his address, which was listened to with'great interest. •.' ■ .'■ . At , the nest meeting'of the society, to be held on August 14, the , motion for discussion is: "That a" ; system, of compulsory military training should bo adopted in No* Zealand,"