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TAHTINI TASSO. 



lion souls, residing i-hit-lly in the southern provimvs, 

 in stationary habitations, ami or<-iipii-d with agri- 

 culture: they are peaceful and industrious in their 

 habits. Some Tartar colonies are distributed among 

 the Russian villages in the governments of Oren- 

 burg, Kasan and Tobolsk, and several hordes are 

 independent allies of Russia. The Russian Tartars 

 consist of several branches; the Tartars proper, 

 the Nogays, the Bashkirs, the Kirghises, Yakoutes, 

 and Teleutes. The Tartars proper are descendants 

 of the two great hordes which the successors of 

 Gengis Khan established in Siberia and on tin- 

 Volga. They comprise the tribes of Kasan, Astra- 

 chan and Taurida. They still preserve the peculiar 

 national physiognomy. The true Tartar is well 

 formed, of middle size, slender, with small, but 

 lively and expressive eyes, and of decent and even 

 dignified demeanour: he is frank, kind, hospitable, 

 peaceful, courageous, fond of instruction and of the 

 arts, agriculture and mechanical occupation. The 

 females are not without grace and beauty. About 

 one fifth of these Tartars have embraced the Chris- 

 tian religion ; the rest are Mohammedans. Some 

 of them still live in tents, and lead a wandering 

 life. The Siberian Tartars have intermixed with 

 other races, and lost much of their national peculi- 

 arity: some of them are stationary, and cultivate 

 the ground ; but the most of them are nomads : 

 they are either heathens or Mohammedans. The 

 Nogay Tartars, who dwell on the Cuban and the 

 Volga, and in some other districts, are Mohamme- 

 dans, and chiefly lead a wandering life : they are 

 much inferior to the Tartars proper in civilization 

 and personal appearance. The Bashkirs are in a 

 still lower condition : they wander in summer, and 

 dwell in villages and wooded huts in winter. (See 

 Bashkirs.") The Kirghises, who inhabit the great 

 steppe of Orenburg, breed cattle, live in tents, are 

 Mohammedans, and resemble the true Tartars more 

 nearly than the last mentioned tribes. (See Kirg- 

 hises.') The Yakoutes and Teleutes are few in 

 number, lead a wandering life, worship idols, and 

 are altogether in a low state of civilization. The 

 Buchanans, who are found in Russia, live in cities 

 and villages, and are industrious workmen. See 

 Turcomania, and Usbecks. 



TARTINI, GIUSEPPE, an Italian musician and 

 composer, a native of Pirano, in the province of 

 Istria, was born in 1692. His father gave him an 

 expensive education, with the view of qualifying 

 him to follow the law as his profession, and had 

 him also instructed in all the accomplishments of a 

 gentleman. Among them music was not forgotten ; 

 but it was not till a secret marriage alienated from 

 him the affections of his friends, that he thought of 

 making it conducive to his support. An ecclesias- 

 tic, connected with the family, procured him a 

 situation in the orchestra of his convent, where an 

 accident discovering his retreat, matters were at 

 length accommodated, and he was enabled to settle 

 with his wife at Venice. Here the example of the 

 celebrated Veracini excited in him the strongest 

 emulation ; and be is said to have retired to Ancona 

 for the sole purpose of being able to practise on the 

 violin in greater tranquillity than circumstances al- 

 lowed him to enjoy at Venice. While thus occu- 

 pied, he discovered, in 1714, the phenomenon of 

 " the third sound," i. e. the resonance of a third 

 note when the two upper notes of a chord are 

 sounded ; and, after seven years' practice, obtained 

 the situation of leader of the orchestra in the cathe- 

 dral of St Anthony nt Padua. In this capacity he 



continued to act till death, with increasing reputa- 

 tion, and declining, i'roin devotion to his patron 

 saint, many advantageous offers both from Paris and 

 London. A singular story is told respecting one 

 of his most celebrated compositions. One night 

 he dreamed that he had made a compact with the 

 devil, and bound him to his service. To ascertain 

 the musical abilities of his associate, he gave him 

 his violin, and desired him to play him a solo, which 

 Satan executed in so masterly a manner, that Tar- 

 rim, awaking in the ecstasy which it produced, and 

 seizing his instrument, endeavoured to recall the 

 delicious sounds. His efforts were so far effectual 

 as to produce the piece generally admired under the 

 name of the Devil's Sonata : still the production 

 was, in his own estimation, so inferior to that 

 which be had heard in his sleep, as to cause him to 

 declare that, could he have procured a subsistence 

 in any other line of life, he should have broken his 

 violin in despair, and renounced music for ever. 

 Besides his musical compositions, Tartini was the 

 author of several treatises on the science. His 

 death took place at Padua in 1770. 



TARTSCHE; a round shield, formerly much in 

 use with the Turks. Perhaps the word is of 

 Slavonic origin, as it still has this signification in 

 Russian and Polish. 



TARTUFFE; the chief character in Molirrc-'a 

 best comedy, first played, in 16G4, before Louis 

 XIV. Tartuffe is a hypocrite ; and the word is at 

 present used to designate such, not only in French, 

 but also in other languages. Some say that the 

 character of Tartuffe depicts the confessor of Louis 

 XIV., father Lachaise, whom Moliere once saw eat 

 ing truffles (in French, tartuffes) with great relish. 

 Others say that the poet, being at the house of the 

 nuncio, saw two monks praying, apparently very 

 devoutly, when a Savoyard entering with truffles 

 to sell, the two monks exclaimed, with great enthu- 

 siasm, O signore, tartvffi I tartvffi I The latter 

 version does not seem probable. Molie're had al- 

 ready many enemies among the clergy, lawyers and 

 physicians ; and all the fools and bigots were against 

 the public performance of Tartuffe. Two years 

 Moliere applied in vain for permission to the court, 

 the papal legate, the prelates, &c. At length per- 

 mission was obtained; but just as the curtain was 

 about to rise, it was prohibited again, of which 

 Molie're pointedly informed the public himself with 

 these words, referring to the president of the parlia- 

 ment '. Monsieur le president ne vettt pas yu'on le 

 jove I At length, in 1669, Moliere succeeded in 

 bringing the play on the stage ; and for three months 

 Tartuffe was performed uninterruptedly a suffi- 

 cient proof of the justice of its satire. 



TASCH; Turkish for stone, in many geographi- 

 cal names. 



TASSO, BERNARDO, a distinguished epic and 

 lyric poet, whose fame has, however, been eclipsed 

 by that of his son Torquato, was born at Bergamo, 

 in 1493, and was of an ancient and noble family. 

 His education was conducted with great care ; and 

 he not only cultivated the lighter literature, but 

 devoted himself to the study of politics. He had 

 already become known as a poet throughout Italy, 

 when Guido Rangone, general of the pope, and a 

 patron of learning, took him into bis service, and 

 employed him in managing the most difficult nego- 

 tiations with Clement VII. at Rome, and Francis 

 I. in France. Bernardo subsequently entered into 

 the service of Renata, duchess of Ferrara, but soon 

 left her court, and went first to Padua and then to 



