SONGS. 283 



we have already remarked, was a subject taken up 

 by the earlier naturalists * ; and most of their obser- 

 vations have been confirmed and extended by John 

 Hunter, Girardi f, Vicq d' Azyr J, Malacarne , Ba- 

 ron Cuvier||, and Ranzani^f. Amongst other curious 

 tacts, it is stated in Clayton's Letters from Virginia, 

 that Dr. Moulin discovered that in birds, contrary to 

 what takes place in man and in quadrupeds, there is 

 almost a direct passage from one ear to the other, so 

 that, if the drum (tympanum) of both ears be pierced, 

 water, when poured in, will pass from the one to the 

 other. There is no spiral shell (cochlea), but a small 

 passage which opens into a cavity formed by two 

 plates of bone, that constitute a double skull all 

 round the head. The outer plate of bone is sup- 

 ported by many hundreds of small thread-like 

 columns, or rather fibres. Now this passage was 

 observed to be much larger in singing-birds than in 

 others that do not sing, so very remarkably so, that 

 any person to whom the difference has once been 

 shown, may easily judge by the head what bird has 

 the faculty of singing, though he may be otherwise 

 ignorant of its habits**. We have not seen any 

 notice of this singular circumstance by any other 

 inquirer. 



The remarks of Syme upon this subject are ap- 

 propriate, and, so far as we know, correct. " The 

 notes,'* he tells us, " of soft-billed birds are finely 

 toned, mellow, and plaintive; those of the hard-billed 

 species are sprightly, cheerful, and rapid. This dif- 

 ference proceeds from the construction of the vocal 

 organs. Asa large pipe of an organ produces a 



* See page 225, et seq. f Oposcoli Scelti di Milano, viii. 88. 



J Mem. Acad. des Sciences, pour 1779. 



Mem. della Societa Ital. iv. 18. || Anat. Comp. iv. 454. 



H Elem.di Zoologia, iii. 1. p. 35,4to. Bologna, 1821. 



** Miscellanea Curiosa, iii. 291, 



