Royal Astronomical Society. 133 



as resulting from variations in their length and tension conjointly. 

 By applying to the chordae vocales the formulae of vibrating cords, 

 he traces the influence which is exerted on their movements by the 

 mucous membranes ; and finds that they obey, to a certain extent, 

 the laws of vibrating strings. 



The analogy between the action of the glottis and that of a reed is 

 next examined, and an opinion expressed that the movements of the 

 glottis in the vocalization of the sound, partake of the nature of the 

 reed, during the partial opening and shutting of the rima-glottidis. 



The author next investigates the acoustic relations between the 

 actions of the glottis and that of the vocal pipe, and the acoustic 

 effects of flexible membranous tubes on a column of air vibrating 

 within it, and finds that the structure of the trachea and of the soft 

 parts above and below the larynx is adapted to vibrate synchro- 

 nously with any note that may be formed in the larynx. The fal- 

 setto voice may be produced either by the partial closing of the 

 glottis, or by a nodal division of the vocal chords; the pitch of the 

 sound in the production of this peculiar modification of the voice, 

 being such that the column of air in the vocal tube is of the precise 

 length requisite to vibrate in unison with the larynx. The inquiry is 

 further extended to the sources of the various tones of the voice 

 in singing, such as the bass, tenor, contralto, and soprano ; together 

 with their subdivisions of barytone, mezzo-soprano, and soprano- 

 sfogato ; and to the places which they occupy in the musical scale. 

 Independently of the falsetto, the compass of the natural voice 

 rarely exceeds two octaves ; although in some cases, as in those of 

 Malibran and Catalani, it may extend even beyond three. The 

 voice in singing is modulated by the contraction or relaxation of 

 the velum, uvula and fauces. The author lastly adverts to the at- 

 tempts that have, at various times, been made by the Abbe Mical, 

 Faber, Kratzenstein, De Kempelin, Willis, Wheatstone and others, 

 to imitate articulate sounds by mechanism. 



Having thus examined the human voice as resulting from the 

 vibration of membranous ligaments, in obedience, first, to the laws 

 of musical strings ; secondly, to those of reeded instruments ; and 

 thirdly, to those of membranous pipes ; he arrives at the conclusion 

 that the vocal organs combine, in reality, the actions of each of 

 these instruments, and exhibit in conjunction, the perfect type of 

 every one of them. 



ROYAL ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY. 



[Continued from p. 60.] 



February 13, 1846. — Extracts from the Report of the Council of the 



Society to the Twenty-sixth Annual General Meeting. 



At the last annual meeting, the Astronomer Royal, then Presi- 

 dent, in announcing the reasons upon which the Council had awarded 

 the medal to Captain Smyth for his Bedford Observations, made 

 some remarks upon the difficulty which arose from the original ob- 

 servations not being before the Society, and concluded by expressing 



