THE SOUND OF BELLS. 



299 



music that the wind gives its utterances. There is scarce- 

 ly a sound that ear of man has heard which is not im- 

 itated in the forest, by day or by night. The thunder of 

 waterfalls, the roar of cars over city pavements, the clatter 

 of machinery, the rattling fire of distant musketry, the 

 tramp of men on the march, singly, in squads, in masses, 

 the shouts of mobs, the huzzas of political meetings, the 

 low hum of conversation, the tones of single voices speak- 

 ing slowly, the prattle of children, the wails of sickness 

 and suffering, the far-off shout of a well-known voice — 

 these are but a few of the innumerable sounds which are 

 to be heard in the forest when the wind rises or falls. 



Every one has heard of the strange sound which travel- 

 ers on the Eastern deserts report, the sound of church- 

 bells pealing over the lonesome sands. I heard that 

 sound once on the Arabian desert, and have described it 

 elsewhere. I heard it once in an American forest. I 

 awoke at midnight from deep sleep and lay awake listen- 

 ing to the wind, when suddenly the bells began to sound. 

 It was as if six or eight heavy bells were ringing at a dis- 

 tance, precisely as the fire-bells of New York sometimes 

 sound to one on a vessel in the lower bay. Sleeping by 

 my side was one who had heard the same sound with me 

 on the desert. I heard it for full ten minutes, then sat 

 up to listen, and my movement woke the sleeper. 



"What is the matter?" 



"Nothing. Only listen and tell me what you hear." 



" I hear the bells !" 



Clearly there was no mistake of imagination about it, 

 and we heard them for some minutes longer, until they 

 died away in the louder rush of the wind among the 

 branches of the trees that were close above us. 



The vibrations of the air which produce certain sounds 



