or viol, with the belly of polished brass instead of wood. We see that even in the open air, the wirestring is sweeter than the string of guts. And we see that for reflection water excelleth ; as in music near the water, or in echos.

230. It hath been tried, that a pipe a little moistened on the inside, but yet so as there be no drops left, maketh a more solemn sound, than if the pipe were dry: but yet with a sweet degree of sibilation or purling; as we touched it before in the title of equality. The cause is, for that all things porous being superficially wet, and, as it were, between dry and wet, become a little more even and smooth; but the purling, which must needs proceed of inequality, I take to be bred between the smoothness of the inward surface of the pipe, which is wet, and the rest of the wood of the pipe unto which the wet cometh not, but it remaineth dry.

231. In frosty weather music within doors soundeth better. Which may be by reason not of the disposition of the air, but of the wood or string of the instrument, which is made more crisp, and so more porous and hollow: and we see that old lutes sound better than new for the same reason. And so do lutestrings that have been kept long.

232. Sound is likewise meliorated by the mingling of open air with pent air; therefore trial may be made of a lute or viol with a double belly; making another belly with a knot over the strings; yet so, as there be room enough for the strings, and room enough to play below that belly. Trial may be made also of an Irish harp, with a concave on both sides; whereas it useth to have it but on one side. The doubt may be, lest it should make too much resounding; whereby one note would overtake another.

233. IF you sing in the hole of a drum, it maketh the singing more sweet. And so I conceive it would, if it were a song in parts sung into several drums; and for handsomeness and strangeness' sake, it would not be amiss to have a curtain between the place where the drums are and the bearers.

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234. 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. 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. It is true that it is done with time, and by little and little, and with many essays and profers : but all this dischargeth 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 predisposition 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 sips, 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.

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. E.rperiments in consort touching the reflection

of sounds. THERE be three kinds of reflections of sounds; a reflection concurrent, a reflection iterant, which we call echo ; and a super-reXection, 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 reflection of species visible by mirrors you may command; because passing in right lines they may be guided to any point: but the reflection 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 farther 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 softly 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 hethat 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 ecbos 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

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