8 4 3 



THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



survival of the fittest, is made admirably 

 clear by the graphical method of plotting 

 the scale on paper; using the logarithms of 

 the intervals for magnitudes. By the same 

 method the complexities of the chromatic 

 scale and of equal temperament are made 

 easily comprehensible to careful reading. 



After briefly considering the questions of 

 time and form (Chapter XIII.) the structure 

 of music (Part III.) is taken up. What use 

 is made of the scales whose origin is traced 

 in Part II. ? What is due to natural laws, 

 what to aesthetical influences ? The posi- 

 tion taken with regard to melody does not 

 seem as strong as it might be. " The earli- 

 est forms of music probably arose out of the 

 natural inflections of the voice in speaking." 

 This is Spencer's theory. It is not men- 

 tioned that Darwin combats this, placing 

 the origin of melody in the love-songs of 

 man's early ancestors, before speech began ; 

 or that Helmholtz attributes the expressive- 

 ness of melody to its motion, which trans- 

 lates into vocal ordinates, as it were, the 

 varying intensities of the emotions. It is 

 shown in the " American Naturalist " (April, 

 1879, "Animal Music," etc.) that if the over- 

 tone structure of sounds has impressed it- 

 self upon the internal ear, the most easy 

 progression of a melody will be along the 

 intervals existing between overtones, viz., 

 octaves, fifths, fourths, etc. This offers a 

 much more natural basis for melody and 

 scale origin than the theory of Helmholtz, 

 repeated by Mr. Pole, according to which a 

 certain connection is established between 

 notes, an octave, a fifth, etc., apart by the. 

 mind's recognition of their possessing com- 

 mon overtones. This is a psychological, 

 not a physiological basis. 



In treating harmony, the natural element, 

 viz., the rough beating of dissonant tones, 

 is given due emphasis, and the dominance 

 of aesthetical arbitrariness over this natural 

 element fully shown. The fallacy of the 

 argumenlum, ad aurcm, so much used by 

 theoretical musicians, is exposed. In the 

 simplest elements of music the ear has no 

 doubt been the guide, but the appeal to the 

 ear is often carried too far. " We approve 

 certain tilings not because there is any 

 natural propriety in them, but because we 

 have been accustomed to them, and have 

 been taught to consider them right," and 



vice versa with our disapprovals. Chapter 

 XVIII. greatly simplifies thorough bass by 

 analyzing all the chords into their binary- 

 components, and investigating the harmonic 

 character of these ; not assuming in the 

 usual way that every chord must have one 

 root, but accepting Rameau's more rational 

 view that there may be two. The last three 

 chapters comprise harmonic progressions 

 and counterpoint simply treated, and a good 

 summary of the whole book. 



The only improvements that could be 

 wished are that the radical importance of 

 the physical basis had been more firmly in- 

 sisted upon, for, whatever may be the after- 

 changes, this basis permeates and controls 

 everywhere ; and that the aesthetic influence 

 had not been made to seem so entirely an 

 incalculable matter of chance. This influ- 

 ence has laws of its own, and has been 

 quite successfully investigated by James 

 Sully in the two chapters of his " Sensation 

 and Intuition " entitled " The Aspects of 

 Beauty in Musical Form," and " The Nature 

 and Limits of Musical Expression." These 

 chapters, written in a most quiet and unas- 

 suming way, are rich in penetrating analysis 

 made in full sympathy with the artistic side 

 of music, yet with all the exactness and 

 fertility of the scientific method. A brief 

 showing of their trend would have enriched 

 Mr. Pole's work, and have made his treat- 

 ment more complete. 



Laboratory Teaching ; or, Progressive 

 Exercises in Practical Chemistry. 

 By Charles Loudon Bloxam, Professor 

 of Chemistry in King's College, London ; 

 in the Department of Artillery Studies, 

 Woolwich ; and in the Royal Military 

 Academy, Woolwich. Fourth edition, 

 with Eighty-nine Illustrations. Phila- 

 delphia: Lindsay & Blakiston. Pp.261. 

 Price, $1.75. 



The name of Professor Bloxam is the 

 best assurance of the merit of this volume. 

 The book does not presuppose any knowl- 

 edge of chemistry on the part of the pupil, 

 and does not enter into any theoretical 

 speculations. It dispenses with the use of 

 all costly apparatus and chemicals, and is 

 divided into separate exercises or lessons 

 with examples for practice to facilitate the 

 instruction of large classes. The method 

 of instruction followed has been adopted by 



