SUMATRA. 
are caft In fets regularly tuned to ijiirdsj fourth, fifrfi, and oftavc, and 
often fervc as a bafe, or under part, to the caiintang. The Jooleen is 
the Malay flute. The country flute is called ferdum. It is made of 
bamboo, is very imperfed^ having but few flops, and refembley mucH 
an inflrument defcribed as found among the people of Otahcitc* A 
Angle hole underneath, is covered with the thumb of the left hand, and 
the hole nearefl the end at which it is blown, on the upper fide, with a 
finger of the fame hand. The other two hoJes are floi t with tiae tight 
hand fingers. In blowing they hold it inclined to the right fide. They 
have various inflrumencs of the drum kind, particoiarly thofe caUed 
tinkahy which are in pairs, and beaten with the hands at each end. f hey 
are made of a certain kind of wood hollowed out, covered wirh dried 
goat fkins, and laced with fpUt rattans. Ir is difficult to obtain a pro- 
per knowledge of iheir divifion of the fcale, as they know nothing of it 
m theory. The interval we call an o^lavc, feems to be divided with, 
them into fix tones, without any intermediate femirones, which mufi 
confine their mufic to one key. It confifts in general of but few note^ 
and the third is the interval that moft frcqnently occurs. Thofe who 
perform on the violin, ufe the fame notes as in oirr divifion,, and they 
tune the inflrument, by fifths, to a great nicety. They are fond of 
playing the o<ftave, but fcarce ufe any other chord. The Sumatra n tunes, 
very much refemble, to my car, thofe of the native Irilb, and have ufur 
ally,, like them^_ a flat thirds 
