SOUNDS FROM INANIMATE NATUllE. 29 



and darkness of the night for their peculiar influence on 

 the mind. 



It is evident that the charm of all these sounds pro- 

 ceeds from the imagination. A person who has not 

 cultivated this faculty is dead to a thousand pleasures 

 from this source, that form a considerable portion of the 

 happiness of the man of superior intellect. Music has 

 no advantage over other sounds, except in its greater 

 power to act upon the imagination. To appreciate the 

 charm of musical notes, or to perceive the beauty of an 

 elegant building or of splendid tapestry, requires but 

 little mental culture. But to be susceptible of pleasure 

 from what are commonly regarded as indifferent sounds, 

 or indifferent sights, is the meed of those who have 

 cherished the higher faculties and the better feelings of 

 their nature. To such persons the world is full of sug- 

 gestive sounds as well as of suggestive sights, and not 

 the whisper of a breeze or the murmur of a wave but 

 is in unison with some chord in their memory or their 

 imagination. 



