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1"It will be a favourite, I believe, from this hour," replied Crawford; "but I do not think I have had a volume of
2Shakespeare in my hand before since I was fifteen. I once saw Henry the Eighth acted, or I have heard of it from
3somebody who did, I am not certain which. But Shakespeare one gets acquainted with without knowing how. It is a part of
4an Englishman's constitution. His thoughts and beauties are so spread abroad that one touches them everywhere; one is
5intimate with him by instinct. No man of any brain can open at a good part of one of his plays without falling into the
6flow of his meaning immediately." "No doubt one is familiar with Shakespeare in a degree," said Edmund, "from one's
7earliest years. His celebrated passages are quoted by everybody; they are in half the books we open, and we all talk
8Shakespeare, use his similes, and describe with his descriptions; but this is totally distinct from giving his sense as
9you gave it. To know him in bits and scraps is common enough; to know him pretty thoroughly is, perhaps, not uncommon;
10but to read him well aloud is no everyday talent." "Sir, you do me honour," was Crawford's answer, with a bow of mock
11gravity. Both gentlemen had a glance at Fanny, to see if a word of accordant praise could be extorted from her; yet both
12feeling that it could not be. Her praise had been given in her attention; that must content them. Lady Bertram's
13admiration was expressed, and strongly too. "It was really like being at a play," said she. "I wish Sir Thomas had been
14here." Crawford was excessively pleased. If Lady Bertram, with all her incompetency and languor, could feel this, the
15inference of what her niece, alive and enlightened as she was, must feel, was elevating. "You have a great turn for
16acting, I am sure, Mr. Crawford," said her ladyship soon afterwards; "and I will tell you what, I think you will have a
17theatre, some time or other, at your house in Norfolk. I mean when you are settled there. I do indeed. I think you will
18fit up a theatre at your house in Norfolk." "Do you, ma'am?" cried he, with quickness. "No, no, that will never be. Your
19ladyship is quite mistaken. No theatre at Everingham! Oh no!" And he looked at Fanny with an expressive smile, which
20evidently meant, "That lady will never allow a theatre at Everingham." Edmund saw it all, and saw Fanny so determined
21not to see it, as to make it clear that the voice was enough to convey the full meaning of the protestation; and such a
22quick consciousness of compliment, such a ready comprehension of a hint, he thought, was rather favourable than not. The
23subject of reading aloud was farther discussed. The two young men were the only talkers, but they, standing by the fire,
24talked over the too common neglect of the qualification, the total inattention to it, in the ordinary school-system for
25boys, the consequently natural, yet in some instances almost unnatural, degree of ignorance and uncouthness of men, of
26sensible and well-informed men, when suddenly called to the necessity of reading aloud, which had fallen within their
27notice, giving instances of blunders, and failures with their secondary causes, the want of management of the voice, of
28proper modulation and emphasis, of foresight and judgment, all proceeding from the first cause: want of early attention
29and habit; and Fanny was listening again with great entertainment. "Even in my profession," said Edmund, with a smile,
30"how little the art of reading has been studied! how little a clear manner, and good delivery, have been attended to! I
31speak rather of the past, however, than the present. There is now a spirit of improvement abroad; but among those who
32were ordained twenty, thirty, forty years ago, the larger number, to judge by their performance, must have thought
33reading was reading, and preaching was preaching. It is different now. The subject is more justly considered. It is felt
34that distinctness and energy may have weight in recommending the most solid truths; and besides, there is more general
35observation and taste, a more critical knowledge diffused than formerly; in every congregation there is a larger
36proportion who know a little of the matter, and who can judge and criticise." Edmund had already gone through the
37service once since his ordination; and upon this being understood, he had a variety of questions from Crawford as to his
38feelings and success; questions, which being made, though with the vivacity of friendly interest and quick taste,
39without any touch of that spirit of banter or air of levity which Edmund knew to be most offensive to Fanny, he had true
40pleasure in satisfying; and when Crawford proceeded to ask his opinion and give his own as to the properest manner in
41which particular passages in the service should be delivered, shewing it to be a subject on which he had thought before,
42and thought with judgment, Edmund was still more and more pleased. This would be the way to Fanny's heart. She was not
43to be won by all that gallantry and wit and good-nature together could do; or, at least, she would not be won by them
44nearly so soon, without the assistance of sentiment and feeling, and seriousness on serious subjects. "Our liturgy,"
45observed Crawford, "has beauties, which not even a careless, slovenly style of reading can destroy; but it has also
46redundancies and repetitions which require good reading not to be felt. For myself, at least, I must confess being not
47always so attentive as I ought to be" (here was a glance at Fanny); "that nineteen times out of twenty I am thinking how
48such a prayer ought to be read, and longing to have it to read myself. Did you speak?" stepping eagerly to Fanny, and
49addressing her in a softened voice; and upon her saying "No," he added, "Are you sure you did not speak? I saw your lips
50move. I fancied you might be going to tell me I ought to be more attentive, and not allow my thoughts to wander. Are not
51you going to tell me so?" "No, indeed, you know your duty too well for me to--even supposing--" She stopt, felt herself
52getting into a puzzle, and could not be prevailed on to add another word, not by dint of several minutes of supplication
53and waiting. He then returned to his former station, and went on as if there had been no such tender interruption. "A
54sermon, well delivered, is more uncommon even than prayers well read. A sermon, good in itself, is no rare thing. It is
55more difficult to speak well than to compose well; that is, the rules and trick of composition are oftener an object of
56study. A thoroughly good sermon, thoroughly well delivered, is a capital gratification. I can never hear such a one
57without the greatest admiration and respect, and more than half a mind to take orders and preach myself. There is
58something in the eloquence of the pulpit, when it is really eloquence, which is entitled to the highest praise and
59honour. The preacher who can touch and affect such an heterogeneous mass of hearers, on subjects limited, and long worn
60threadbare in all common hands; who can say anything new or striking, anything that rouses the attention without
61offending the taste, or wearing out the feelings of his hearers, is a man whom one could not, in his public capacity,
62honour enough. I should like to be such a man." Edmund laughed. "I should indeed. I never listened to a distinguished
63preacher in my life without a sort of envy. But then, I must have a London audience. I could not preach but to the
64educated; to those who were capable of estimating my composition. And I do not know that I should be fond of preaching
65often; now and then, perhaps once or twice in the spring, after being anxiously expected for half a dozen Sundays
66together; but not for a constancy; it would not do for a constancy."
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