Page images
PDF
EPUB

284. WHEN a sound is created in a wind-instrument between the breath and the air, yet if the sound be communicated with a more equal body of the pipe, it meliorateth the sound. For, no doubt, there would be a differing sound in a trumpet or pipe of wood; and again in a trumpet or pipe of brass. It were good to try recorders and hunters horns of brass, what the sound would be.

235. SOUNDS are meliorated by the intension of the sense, where the common sense is collected most to the particular sense of hearing, and the sight suspended: and therefore sounds are sweeter, as well as greater, in the night than in the day; and I suppose they are sweeter to blind men than to others: and it is manifest that between sleeping and waking, when all the senses are bound and suspended, music is far sweeter than when one is fully waking.

Experiments in consort touching the imitation of

sounds.

It is

236. It is a thing strange in nature when it is attentively considered, how children, and some birds, learn to imitate speech. They take no mark at all of the motion of the mouth of him that speaketh, for birds are as well taught in the dark as by light. The sounds of speech are very curious and exquisite: so one would think it were a lesson hard to learn. true that it is done with time, and by little and little, and with many essays and profers: but all this dis chargeth not the wonder. It would make a man think, though this which we shall say may seem exceeding strange, that there is some transmission of spirits; and that the spirits of the teacher put in motion, should work with the spirits of the learner a predisposition to offer to imitate; and so to perfect the imitation by degrees. But touching operations by transmissions of spirits, which is one of the highest secrets in nature, we shall speak in due place; chiefly when we come to inquire of imagination. But as for imitation, it is certain that there is in men and other creatures a pre-disposition to imitate.

We see

how ready apes and monkeys are to imitate all motions of man; and in the catching of dottrels, we see how the foolish bird playeth the ape in gestures: and no man, in effect, doth accompany with others, but he learneth, ere he is aware, some gesture, or voice, or fashion of the other.

237. IN imitation of sounds, that man should be the teacher is no part of the matter; for birds will learn one of another; and there is no reward by feeding, or the like, given them for the imitation; and besides, you shall have parrots that will not only imitate voices, but laughing, knocking, squeaking of a door upon the hinges, or of a cart-wheel; and, in effect, any other noise they hear..

238. No beast can imitate the speech of man but birds only; for the ape itself, that is so ready to imitate otherwise, attaineth not any degree of imitation of speech. It is true, that I have known a dog, that if one howled in his ear, he would fall a howling a great while. What should be the aptness of birds in comparison of beasts, to imitate the speech of man, may be further inquired. We see that beasts have those parts which they count the instruments of speech, as lips, teeth, etc. liker unto man than birds. As for the neck, by which the throat passeth, we see many beasts have it for the length as much as birds. What better gorge or artery birds have, may be farther inquired. The birds that are known to be speakers, are parrots, pies, jays, daws, and ravens. Of which parrots have an adunque bill, but the rest not.

239. But I conceive, that the aptness of birds is not so much in the conformity of the organs of speech, as in their attention. For speech must come by hearing and learning; and birds give more heed, and mark sounds more than beasts; because naturally they are more delighted with them, and practise them more, as appeareth in their singing. We see also that those that teach birds to sing, do keep them waking to increase their attention. We see also, that cock birds amongst singing birds, are ever the better singers; which may be because they are more lively and listen more.

[ocr errors]

240. LABOUR and intention to imitate voices, doth conduce much to imitation: and therefore we see that there be certain pantomimi, that will represent the voices of players of interludes so to life, as if you see them not you would think they were those players themselves; and so the voices of other men that they hear.

241. THERE have been some that could counterfeit the distance of voices, which is a secondary object of hearing, in such sort, as when they stand fast by you, you would think the speech came from afar off, in a fearful manner. How this is done may be further inquired. But I see no great use of it but for imposture, in counterfeiting ghosts or spirits.

Experiments in consort touching the reflexion of sounds.

THERE be three kinds of reflexions of sounds; a re flexion concurrent, a reflexion iterant, which we call echo; and a super-reflexion, or an echo of an echo; whereof the first hath been handled in the title of magnitude of sounds: the latter two we will now speak of.

242. THE reflexion of species visible by mirrors you may command; because passing in right lines they may be guided to any point: but the reflexion of sounds is hard to master; because the sound filling great spaces in arched lines, cannot be so guided: and therefore we see there hath not been practised any means to make artificial echos. And no echo already known returneth in a very narrow room.

243. THE natural echos are made upon walls, woods, rocks, hills, and banks; as for waters, being near, they make a concurrent echo; but being farther off, as upon a large river, they make an iterant echo : for there is no difference between the concurrent echo and the iterant, but the quickness or slowness of the return. But there is no doubt but water doth help the delation of echo; as well as it helpeth the delation of original sounds.

244. IT is certain, as hath been formerly touched, that if you speak through a trunk stopped at the far

ther end, you shall find a blast return upon your mouth, but no sound at all. The cause is, for that the closeness which preserveth the original, is not able to preserve the reflected sound: besides that echos are seldom created but by loud sounds. And therefore there is less hope of artificial echos in air pent in a narrow concave. Nevertheless it hath been tried, that one leaning over a well of twenty-five fathom deep, and speaking, though but softly, yet not so soft as a whisper, the water returned a good audible echo. It would be tried, whether speaking in caves, where there is no issue save where you speak, will not yield echos as wells do.

245. THE echo cometh as the original sound doth, in a round orb of air: it were good to try the creating of the echo where the body repercussing maketh an angle: as against the return of a wall, etc. Also we see that in mirrors there is the like angle of incidence, from the object to the glass, and from the glass to the eye. And if you strike a ball side-long, not full upon the surface, the rebound will be as much the contrary way: whether there be any such resilience in echos, that is, whether a man shall hear better if he stand aside the body repercussing, than if he stand where he speaketh, or any where in a right line between, may be tried. Trial likewise would be made, by standing nearer the place of repercussing than he that speaketh; and again by standing farther off than he that speaketh; and so knowledge would be taken, whether echos, as well as original sounds, be not strongest near hand.

246. THERE be many places where you shall hear a number of echos one after another: and it is when there is variety of hills or woods, some nearer, some farther off: so that the return from the farther, being last created, will be likewise last heard.

247. As the voice goeth round, as well towards the back, as towards the front of him that speaketh ; so likewise doth the echo: for you have many back echos to the place where you stand.

248. To make an echo that will report three, or four, or five words distinctly, it is requisite that the

body repercussing be a good distance off: for if it be near, and yet not so near as to make a concurrent echo, it choppeth with you upon the sudden. It is requisite likewise that the air be not much pent: for air at a great distance pent, worketh the same effect with air at large in a small distance. And therefore in the trial of speaking in the well, though the well was deep, the voice came back suddenly, and would bear the report but of two words.

249. FOR echos upon echos, there is a rare instance thereof in a place which I will now exactly describe. It is some three or four miles from Paris, near a town called Pont-Charenton; and some bird-bolt shot or more from the river of Sein. The room is a chapel or small church. The walls all standing, both at the sides and at the ends. Two rows of pillars, after the manner of isles of churches, also standing; the roof all open, not so much as any embowment near any of the walls left. There was against every pillar a stack of billets above a man's height; which the watermen that bring wood down the Sein in stacks, and not in boats, laid there, as it seemeth, for their ease. Speaking at the one end, I did hear it return the voice thirteen several times; and I have heard of others, that it would return sixteen times: For I was there about three of the clock in the afternoon

and it is best, as all other echos are, in the evening. It is manifest that it is not echos from several places, but a tossing of the voice, as a ball, to and fro; like to reflexions in looking-glasses, where if you place one glass before and another behind, you shall see the glass behind with the image, within the glass before; and again, the glass before in that; and divers such super-reflexions, till the species speciei at last die. For it is every return weaker and more shady. In like manner the voice in that chapel createth speciem speciei, and maketh succeeding super-reflexions; for it melteth by degrees, and every reflexion is weaker than the former: so that if you speak three words, it will, perhaps, some three times report you the whole three words; and then the two latter words for some

« PreviousContinue »