born, not built. A wooden horse may amuse the children, but it takes a live one

to go somewhere.

 

It is not only impossible to lay down definite rules on this subject, but it

would be silly to try, for everything depends on the speech, the occasion, the

personality and feelings of the speaker, and the attitude of the audience. It is

easy enough to forecast the result of multiplying seven by six, but it is

impossible to tell any man what kind of gestures he will be impelled to use when

he wishes to show his earnestness. We may tell him that many speakers close the

hand, with the exception of the forefinger, and pointing that finger straight at

the audience pour out their thoughts like a volley; or that others stamp one

foot for emphasis; or that Mr. Bryan often slaps his hands together for great

force, holding one palm upward in an easy manner; or that Gladstone would

sometimes make a rush at the clerk's table in Parliament and smite it with his

hand so forcefully that D'israeli once brought down the house by grimly

congratulating himself that such a barrier stood between himself and "the

honorable gentleman."

 

All these things, and a bookful more, may we tell the speaker, but we cannot

know whether he can use these gestures or not, any more than we can decide

whether he could wear Mr. Bryan's clothes. The best that can be done on this

subject is to offer a few practical suggestions, and let personal good taste

decide as to where effective dramatic action ends and extravagant motion begins.

 

_Any Gesture That Merely Calls Attention to Itself Is Bad_