134 MEMOIR OF THOMAS BEWICK. 



join their society, but I sometimes dined with 

 them at their annual, cheerful dinner. I was 

 never fond of public dinners or dining parties ; 

 and I think I would not have partaken with them 

 had I not been tempted to do so by way of hearing 

 their songs, with which I felt much charmed, but 

 particularly with the Scotch songs, with which one 

 of the members, Walter Cannaway the carver and 

 gilder, used so highly to delight the company on 

 these occasions. He, according to my notions, 

 was the best singer I ever heard. I have always 

 been more charmed with the human voice, when 

 well attuned, than with any instrumental music 

 whatever ; and his voice was extremely good. He 

 could in a natural tone go to the highest and the 

 lowest pitch, with his pauses, his shakes or 

 quavers, all in time. Many others, perhaps, might 

 have as good a voice, and as correct an ear for 

 music as he, and would have been equally as 

 charming had they not been spoiled by the 

 fashion they had got into to please the surfeited 

 tastes of coxcombical connoisseurs and a vitiated, 

 aping public. I have ever been much disgusted 

 to hear and see these spoiled performers, quaver- 

 ing and spinning out their unnatural falsetto 

 voices until almost spent. It showed well how 

 long-winded these kind of performers were, but 

 I never could sit to hear any of them ; as it 

 appeared to me to be anything but music, or 

 music run mad. 



On my first going to business, I had an oppor- 

 tunity of sometimes hearing musical concerts. My 

 master belonged to a musical society held at 

 Moore's in the Close, and when I had any message 

 to take to him, I was commonly invited to remain. 



