352 APPENDIX. VI. 



I must own, I should rather suppose it to be 

 the latter, and for the following reasons. 



Lucr^etius says (and perhaps the conjecture 

 is not only ingenious but well founded) that the 

 first musical notes were learned from birds : 



" At liquidas avium voces imitarier ore 



" Ante fuit multo, quam laevia carmina cantu 



" Concelebrare homines possent, cantuque juvare." 



Now, of all the musical tones which can be 

 distinguished in birds, those of the cuckow have 

 been most attended to, which form a flat third, 

 not only by the observations of the harpsichord- 

 tuner I have before mentioned, but likewise by 

 those of Kircher, in his Musurgia. 



I know well that there have been some late 

 compositions, which introduce the cuckow notes 

 in a sharp third; these composers, however, 

 did not trouble themselves with accuracy in 

 -, imitating these notes, and it answered their 



purpose sufficiently, if there was a general 

 resemblance. 



Another proof of our musical intervals being 

 originally borrowed from the song of birds, 

 arises from most compositions being in a flat 

 third, where music is simple, and consists 

 merely of melody. 



The oldest tune I happen to have heard is a 



