232 EVOLUTION OF BIRD- SONG 



appear surprising when we consider the imitative 

 powers of the best singers, and the frequency of 

 human music in their haunts. The field -labourer 

 whistles ; from villages issue louder, though not 

 always sweeter, musical sounds ; throughout the 

 year music is heard in country towns. It appears also 

 that our musical scale is of remote origin, and that 

 for thousands of years the intervals which we now 

 employ have been wafted from musical instruments 

 used by men to the ears of listening birds. On 

 3rd December 1890, according to the Daily News 

 of the following day, Mr. T. L. Southgate delivered 

 to the students of the Royal Academy of Music an 

 address on ancient Egyptian musical instruments, 

 and especially in relation to some flutes 3000 

 years old, then recently taken from a tomb at 

 Kahun. Mr. Southgate, "admittedly one of the 

 greatest of living authorities upon the subject of 

 ancient musical instruments," proved in his address 

 how abundantly music was employed by the ancient 

 Egyptians. Two of the flutes were in a sufficient 

 state of preservation to be played. " Performed 

 upon by Mr. J. Finn, they gave practically the 

 exact notes of our diatonic scale, thus proving 

 in every sense of the term to actual demonstration 

 that our scale was known to the Egyptians many 



