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ftances of this kind may modify the aggregate of fonorous undulation, is ftarcely to be 

 doubted ; but Mr. Gough feems to have overlooked that modification, which may be 

 proved to be the diftinguifliing circumftance between tone and tone when they are in 

 unifon. If a toothed wheel be made to revolve very fwiftly with its teeth againft a fpring, 

 lyhich fliall ftrike each tooth in fucceflion, a mufical tone will be produced, which will be 

 more acute the fwifter the rotation. But this tone will differ accordingly as the material 

 of the wheel is itfelf difpofed to give a tone of greater acutenefs or gravity by each fingle or 

 individual ftrokc. If the fame note be afforded by a brafs and by a wooden wheel revolv- 

 ing on one axis, the charadler of each note will differ in the manner here flated. Or 

 more fimply, if a cord of thirty or forty feet in length, or Ihorter if more convenient, be 

 ftretched, and in this ftate flruck with the edge of the hand, the vibrations will be flow 

 enough to be counted, and will evidently appear to be of two kinds. When the firing is 

 ftruck near the end or bridge, a wave or undulation will be propagated to the other bridge, 

 and immediately return; which procefs will continue as long as the elafticity of the firing 

 can maintain the motion. The waves of this undulation will be larger or fmaller, the more 

 remote or the nearer the place of percufTion is to the bridge ; but the times of tranfmilTtoa 

 of the waves backwards and forwards along the firing will be invariable. The tone of 

 fuch a firing, fuppofing its dimenfions and tenfion to be fuch as would produce found, may 

 therefore be confidered as if the tone produced by the fyflem of waves were interrupted as- 

 often as the re-a6lion of each bridge caufes the retrograde motion of the fyflem; that is to fay, 

 it is afforded by a procefs fimilar to that of the experiment with the wheels, where the peculiar 

 found of a blow upon each tooth was incefPantly repeated and fufpended at regular intervals. 

 Now, the mufical acutenefs or gravity of the tone depends altogether on the time of thefe 

 intervals, and not at all on the nature of the found which is thus repeated ; but the cha- 

 radler of the tone is governed by this lafl circumilance. i\nd accordingly it is found by 

 thofe who make harpfichords, and other fimilar inflruments, that the chara<Sler of the tone 

 of the fame firing is wonderfully changed, accordingly as the jacks or hammers are made 

 to operate nearer to, or further from, the bridge. — 5. On the Benefits and Duties refulting 

 from the Inflitution of Societies for the Advancement of Literature and Philofophy. By the 

 Reverend Thomas Gifborne, M. A. — 6. On an Univerfal Chara(2;er. By James Anderfon, 

 LL.D. F.R.S. &c. By this letter, which bears date February 20, 1795, it appears that 

 the Doftor had then made confiderable progrefs in the invefligation of the means of writ- 

 ing language by chara£lers regularly conflrudled on thofe principles of iivental operation 

 which conftitute univerfal grammar, and do not require the intervention of found. To 

 thofe who have confidered this fubje£l, particularly with refpeil to the praflice of the Cbi- 

 nefe, whofe written words are known to reprefent, for the mofl part, things infbead of 

 words, and confequently are intelligible to nations who do not fpeak the fame language, the 

 prafticability of this fcheme will be a matter of no doubt. But whether the difficulties be 

 fuch as to operate more ftrongly againft its introdudlion in Europe than the immediate mo- 

 tives of convenience in favour of its reception, is a queflion which can only be decided by 

 minute and continued attention to the whole fubjeft. That thefe difficultie- are compara- 

 tively fmall, and would yield to the induflry of aftive and intelligent men, in the firft in- 

 flance, is fcarcely to 'ie doubted, provided the exertions of the firft promoters of this fcheme 

 were carried fo far as to afford a grammar, a didionary, and one or two well written intro- 



duftory 



