mildly around _cantonment_ and _rations_, and a score of others.

Next to authoritative books, the best models are to be secured from
the speech of authorities in each branch to which the term
specifically belongs. Thus the military leaders have made the
pronunciation of _oblique_ with the long _i_ the correct one for all
military usages. The accepted sound of _cantonments_ was fixed by the
men who built and controlled them. As it is not always possible for
the ordinary person to hear such authorities deliver such terms in
discourse one can merely say that a familiarity with correct
pronunciation can be secured only like liberty--at the price of
eternal vigilance.

Constant consultation of the dictionary and other books of recognized
reference value, close observance of the speech of others, scrutiny of
one's own pronunciation, mental criticism of others' slips, and
determination to correct one's own errors, are the various methods of
attaining certainty of correct delivery of word sounds.

Poise. When a speaker stands before an audience to address its members
he should be perfectly at ease. Physical ease will produce an effect
upon the listeners. Mental ease because of mastery of the material
will induce confidence in the delivery. Bodily eccentricities and
awkwardness which detract from the speech itself should be eradicated
by strenuous practice. Pose and poise should first command respectful
attention. The body should be erect, but not stiff. Most of the
muscles should be relaxed. The feet should be naturally placed, not
so far apart as to suggest straddling, not so close together as to
suggest the military stand at "attention."