Pleasing Voice Pays,
Business firms, too, are noticing the effect of their employees' voices on customers. Telephone operators are taught to speak in certain tones so that they can be heard distinctly. A carrying voice is more a matter of resonance than of volume. Telephone girls learn to lower their voices so that there is no confusion of sound even in a large exchange.
A few stores have taken up the idea of teaching clerks to speak in a distinct tone and with a pleasing manner. One large department store in New York City recently began to give its employees lessons in the speaking voice. At first, the management arranged the course after working hours, but the lessons are now being given in store time. This is pointed out by the speech association as significant because a business organization of this sort would not allow time out of the working day for employees to study if it were not regarded as a practical investment.
The usefulness of correct speech is well demonstrated, and it is equally apparent that Americans do not speak well. The average American is not altogether responsible, however, for his careless and reckless method of expressing himself. Few people have any opportunity to improve their speech except through imitating desirable qualities in the voices they hear. The speech association holds that children should be taught to talk correctly at school; that training in elocution and dramatics is not training in everyday speaking. The child who can recite "The Village Blacksmith" with all the necessary dramatic effects may whine or swallow his words in ordinary conversation. 