Orator's Touchstone

Whilst the greatest effort has been made to ensure the quality of this text, due to the historical nature of this content, in some rare cases there may be minor issues with legibility. The second conviction is, that the accomplishment of public speaking, instead of waving as a proud and attractive plume in the coronet of any peculiar class or profession, will soon become an universal attribute of the American people. Our faith in the justness of the first conviction, is founded on the fact that the instance is exceeding rare in which history, with her impartial pen, has recorded, or tradition, with its authentic voice, has reported, an example of any person failing to grasp the palm of eloquence, who aspired to it with a perseverance which never faltered, and who was endowed by nature with powers of a respectable grade.