ACCOMPLISHED VOCALISTS. g3 



But tliis song was suggestive rather than positive ; 

 the robin produced all the melody, but it was a vague 

 melody. One could not be quite positive that every 

 turn was meant to be just what the musical mind de- 

 manded that it otight to be. 



Nature is always suggesting, but never complet- 

 ing ; she does not commit herself to measured tones 

 and exact musical phrases any more than she does to 

 exact primary colors. It is invariably that vagueness 

 of purport that renders her work fascinating, and in- 

 spires the artist to take hold of it and make the mean- 

 ing plain. 



There is no doubt in my mind that the robin tried 

 to touch as many tones of regular intervals as he 

 could. Certainly he had more excuse for errors 

 than the unmusical man who vowed that he could 

 always distinguish "My country, 'tis of thee," from 

 "Yankee Doodle." But who, pray, would call the 

 robin unmusical that could produce such a melody as 

 that I have transcribed ? Without interpretation, his 

 song, although jerky, agitated, and vague in meaning, 

 would still be perfectly musical. I have taken no 

 liberties with his triplets. 



But here is another specimen from a sprightly 

 musician who sang in a maple tree for a few min- 

 utes one day last June, just before my studio win- 

 dow (in Campton, E"., H.), and then disappeared 



