Language and Folklore (Supplement). 545 
“The way in which the ALE investigates the structure of the 
_ prototype for a comparative study or the “primitive ‘melodies _ of all 
? nations, ” wrote Tobias Norlind in a review of Thuren’s above-named 
“article.! A few years later another specialist wrote as follows con- 
cerning Thuren’s work on the Eskimo: “Thuren has pointed out 
one very important fact namely that the most noteworthy deviations 
from our intervals (1. е. °/, and °/, notes, as well as the neutral third, 
«2 , 
and an interval which lies between а large third and _a pure quarter) _ 
are the same as are to be found among many Indian tribes in British 
Columbia.” ? (Cf. Thuren, p.19). — Besides the parallels with the music 
of the West Indians, Thuren draws others with the juoigos of the 
_Laplanders and the songs of the Samoyeds, and shows analogies 
‘to the native music of New Guinea and the South Sea Islands (see 
pp. 25—26, cf. 11). ; are ate 
Comparisons of this nature have scientific value only when we 
are dealing with pure material authentically noted and transcribed 
by scientists with a trained musical ear and knowledge of the theory 
of music. In my opinion many samples of so-called Eskimo music 
exist in Learn, due to incompetent or Hs transcribers (or 
“Thus it was that Thuren condemned the ° ‘Greenland” melodies fon 
South Greenland, published by Berggreen, and too, proved European 
influence in some of the melodies from northern West Greenland 
Gn my. collection) as well as the possibility of a similar influence 
in Stein’s collection from Cape York. 
2. 
Judging from my own experience, I am very sceptical as to the 
accuracy of the alleged Eskimo melody in ELisHA К. KANE’S old 
account of his travels in Smith Sound up to the NW. corner of 
Greenland”, also quoted by Thuren, (here p. 30); with its steady 
beating rhythm and well-proportioned melody in our tonal forms, it 
falls on my ears with a very un-Eskimo effect. Perhaps, however, it 
bears a distant resemblance to the actual song which Kane heard 
the natives sing. 
I must also take exception to the two melodies in Horm's “Sketch” 
from Ammassalik already quoted (see First Part, p. 126). Thuren 
1 “Danske Studier” 1908, р. 219. See also Axel Olrik’s necrology (“Mindeord”) on 
Thuren, ibid. 1912, pp. 105—108. and Angul Hammerich, Nationaltidende, July 
8, 1911. 
2 R. Hohenemser in Zeitschr. Internat. Musikgesellschaft, XIII, 1911-12, pp. 182-183. 
3 E. Kane, Arctic Explorations, etc. (Vol. I, p. 383). Philadelphia 1856. 
IL, 35 
