Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1888-08-20
ANIMALS AND MUSIC.
THE TukEFuLNESS OF TINY LoITER-
ERs OF A SUMMERS DAY.


August Afternoon-soft Sounds to he
Heard in the HayfieId - Crickets and
Katydids.
Some animalt abhor music. at least
some music; but most animals love music.
A cow likes nothing better than singing
and whistling, and her milk flows gladly
for chap that will sing to her, as she
turns her head and kisses him with her
tongue. A dog, so far as know. hates
music, except singing and whistling. A
piano sets him on edge, and drum or fife
makes him howl. Horses, believe, love
martial music best. Every horse is nat
urally war horse, and likes parade and
the dash of military life. Next to this
he is in his element running with a
fire engine. / know of no decent music
that he dislikes. Cats. unlike dogs like
pianos and organs. OF course, we un-
derstand that nearly all birds have some
musical taste, although few have real
skill. know of but two real masters of
song in our northern states, the bobolink
and catbird; although there are many
moro really sweet singers. The liquid,
silvery notes of the bobolink are like the
dow of the early, pure morning. One al
ways associates them with waterfalls and
the music of silver instruments. But the
catbird is the marvel of all musicians.
He is able to do about what he will.
But what led me to sit down to write
was the music of the insects-'tiny
loiterers of summers day" 1t is mis-.
take to suppose the chief occupation of
these dipteras and hymenopteras is eating
and working-it is making music. You
should go out In haying time and sit down
on cock of hay in the middle of the day;
and then again in the evening, and you
will, If you give yourself to listening,
have revealed to you a new world. no,
you must not be thinking of other things
Close your eyes and lay your head back ON
the sweet hay. Therel Are you not now
conscious of several stratas of music,
reaching far up into the sky? The upper
air is full Of bees-horlets in part, it may
be-and there are millions of them. Then
lower down are all sorts. of flies and work
ing bees, while in the trees and grass
there is fully as vast number of crickets,
katydids and other music makers. Now
you must open your ears as carefully as
you close your eyes, and listen attentively;
for | assure you there are myriads of
sounds close by you that you never heard
Is it not SO? You are surprised. Indeed,
we live inside big music box; and you
never knew it.
The fact is these musical notes blend
together about us in a vast harmony
that lulls our sense of hearing instead of
quickening it. | am sure our hearing
needs great deal morel education than it
generally gets. If you try you can sep
arate the sounds that now you discover,
and pick out the different instruments in
the orchestra Plainly enough was
right, that working and eating do not
predominant as employments of the insect
world. Here is a cluster of humble or
humble bees, bent on sport, as you can
see. Flies dance about in circles under
that apple limb, and are playing at some
game, quite like tag. There is very
soft and gentle murmur of their wings,
hardly audible. They have no other
musical Instruments, but am quite sure
they enjoy not only the motion, but the
sound. Crickets, however, are real musi-
clans, using their wing covers as instru-
ments. When he wishes to pipe tho
cricket raises these covers and moves
them together lengthwise, so that they
work as boys cornstalk fiddle works. |
confess the music is not sweet, but it Is
better than Scottish bagpipe or hurdy
gurdy. But the fun of cricket's music
is in its element of ventriloquism. /
should like to see you select one of these
fellows just now and go directly to him,
following up his music. You will go half
dozen ways before you find him. Nearly
all the insects have this power, and it is
no doubt used in self protection.
The handsome green katydid plays an
instrument more like the sheepskin drums
of the Africans, or o primitive taboret.
In each wing cover there is q triangular
space, over which is,situated thin mem
brane. The opening and shutting Of the
wing covers, moro or less rapidly. pro-
duces the notes thatsound like katy did.
Only once in awhile there is as distinct
katy didn't Perhaps both are true.
Crickets and katydids of both sexes are
musicians, and all night long are to be
heard calling and responding like the
shepherd boys of eastern lands. The
cicadas are musical only in the male sex,
and that is quite enough; forif both sexes
could beat the kettle drums we should be
dinned deaf with the noise On their
sides are membranes plated over each
other and covering hollows. These arc
beaten with cords that relax and contract
as BOYS pull rubber bands in contact with
resDunding material. These fellows
keep it up all day, however, and as they
are abundant there is no lack of their
music.
have By no means recounted all the
musical instruments one can hear at mid
day or If evenings in July or August.
Many of the tiny bugs have power to
emit singing sounds. From the greatest
to the least forms of life there is some
way of expressing emotion. So like to
sit on these llillocks of hay and listen
Just listen 1t is love that. after all, fills
nature and gives voice TO it. Only when
love fails some harsh shrek indicates the
presence of hate. Have / forgotten the
frog and the tree toad2 BY no means;
and you need not recall them with a
Bncer. a frog is a gentleman every way,
and his music is far from being despicable.
In early spring it is truly delightful to
bear the first CRY fron the pools. 1t is
thin and watery and full Of inquiry, but
1t means spring and green grass and
aoEers Mary E. Spencer in Globe
Democrat