1800.) 
ftrain, with its duration exprefled by the 
{wing of a pendulum, as in the preceding 
table. 
A. very ingenious leader, previous to his 
conduéting Graun’s Te Deum, ftudied the 
time of the various movements, and ob-. 
ferved, by his watch, what were their re- 
{pective durations. This method appears 
to met tedious, and of no ufeat a rehearfal 
or concert, as each movement might be 
tried over very often before its real time 
could be obtained ; and each fucceeding 
leader would have the fame experiments to 
make, which gave fo much trouble to his 
predeceffor. 
The objeStions of Monfieur Diterot to 
the ufe of a chronometer are by no means 
infurmountable ; and fome of them are in- 
genioufly anfwered by Roufleau*.—M. 
Diderot remarks, that, ** in a movement 
there are, perhaps, not two bars of the 
fame duration!’ Happily, however, we 
have no fuch mufic; it never exifted out 
of France ; and is at length banithed its 
only afylum. Healfo remarks, that ‘It is 
impoflible for a leader to have his ear at- 
tentive to the found of the pendulum, and 
his eye on his book, throughout the whole 
ofa movement.”? And this were an ar- 
duous tafk indeed ! but the obje&tion does 
not apply to my propofal.—T he pendulum 
IT recommend makes no noife; it is only 
to be fet in motion before a movement be- 
gins at a rehearial, or perhaps in the lead- 
er’s own room, but certainiy not at a per- 
formance. A leader of the moft ordinary 
abilities may remember an‘ prefirve the 
time of a piece of mufic he has ever heard. 
But it is a very different, and far more 
difficult thing to difeaver that time; which, 
indeed, can cnly be effeéted by repeated 
trials, great Jofs of time, and unneceffary 
trouble. Infongs, folos, and all other per- 
formances of taite and execution, the time 
muft be entirely regulated; as ufual, by the 
principal performer. But in aj} full pieces, 
I think the time fhould be left to the di- 
rection of the compofer. What leader, 
playing at fight, could judge of the time 
of Gluck’s Overture to Iphigenie? Or 
what conduétor could forefee, that in the 
chorus of ‘* Wretched Lovers,”’ after its 
folemn beginning, which confifts of flow 
notes, arapid and animated counter-fub- 
ject fhould burf forth, and totally alter the 
original character of the movement? 
Some may urge, that the time of mufic 
is not of fo much confequence as the ex- 
preffion ; and that the attention will con- 

* Under the article Chori/fer, Roufleau re- 
@ommends the ufe of a chronometer. 
Defence of Commerfan on the Otaheitanse 
943 
fequently be diverted from an important to 
an unworthy object. Tothis I anfwer, 
that I have not the leaft with that my plan 
fhould interfere with the expreffion, which 
I think of far greater importance than ac- 
curacy of time; I therefore wif all com- 
pofers to retain the words eraziofo, fpiri- 
tofo, cantabile, fofrenuto, fiaccato, macftofoy 
agitato, and all other terms of expreffion, 
as well as to adopt definite characters of 
time. 
It may be urged, that, if the prefent 
terms convey but an obfcure meaning, the 
propofed characters wou!d convey none at 
all, unjefsa pendulum were at hand. But 
that fituation were ferlorn indeed, where a 
firing, a weight, and a f{cale of inches, 
could not be procured ; and fhould this 
fcheme be approved and adopted, the chro- 
‘nometer would become as much an ap- 
pendageto a mufical inflrument, as adefk 
is at prefent to a piano-forte, or a bow to 
a violin. : 
Finally, the chronometer would be found 
of the -higheft ule to {cholars; who, in the 
abfence of their mater, are frequently at 
a lofs to dif{cover, remember, and retaia, 
the time of any movement. 
I could advance much more in favor of 
my plan; butam confcious, that I ought 
rather to apologize for having troubled 
you with fo much already. I therefore 
haften to fubfcribe my felf 
Your humble fervant, 
e ° 

To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
S a reader of your Monthly Maga- 
A zine, and a friend to liberal difcuf- 
fion, I was forry to fee-a departure from 
it in the remarks of Sobrius on fome part 
of Commerion’s Defcription of the People 
at Otaheite ; and though it be of little 
confequence to thofe children of nature, 
yet they appear to me to have been equally 
calumniated with Commerfon. 
Difcuffion is the high road to truth sand, 
in the attack of immoral and unphilofo- 
phical opinions, perfonal abufe, infinuation 
of improper motives in the mind and im- 
purity in the conduct of literary comba- 
tants fhould be avoided.—lIt is, however, 
too much the cuflom cf fome men to attack 
the conduct cf their opponents, inftead of 
their arguments ; and the world in cafe of - 
a rejoinder, muft be the wiinefs of an un- 
meaning literary duel, inftead of beholdiag 
the fublime effufiors of truth emanating 
from temperate and ingenious difcuffion. 
Commerfon, by faving thatthe Otaheitans 
6E 2 ‘6 are 



