Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-12-13
THE REED PRIMEVAL.
Antiquity Of the Nuts and III
Growth Toward Perfection.
MADE FIRsT0F AN ANIMALS BONE

L
Ths Story Of Beautiful Lsmis HAs Won
the Heart of . Prince.
FAULTS OF THE GERMAN INSTRUNKNT
wE1rrEN FOB THE DrsPkfcK1
Paper No. I.
The fute for centuries an infanB lay
Nursed in Arcadfan groves. until, at hast,
It's primal forms and ruder tones obey
The spell which knowledge Der this age
From shrill to soft, from tlageolet to flute,
To scales and chords from mournful mon
As bnd to blossom and as flower to fruit.
This reed primeval hath in splendor
HENRY CLAY WYsRAx.
Of the flute Of antiquity, little or nothing
can be asserted with certainty, for the in
strument, under different forms and names,
has been in use for more than 1000 years.
The invention of the flute was attributed
by the Greek and Roman poets to Minerva,
Pan and Apollo. This is proof Of tho great
antiquity as well as importance Of the in.
strument The testimony, however, regard
ing its inventor is 50 very conflicting that
the inventors identity must forever remain
q matter Of mystery.
Lucretius contents himself by sscribing
its origin to the breathing of Western
winds over broken reeds, and thus, he tells
Us, was suggested to man, the rural pipe,
which the ingenuity of the later ages has
improved into ono Of the most beautiful in
struments OF which art can boast Minerva
laid claim to the honor of inventing the
flute, but It is said that she found herself
laughed at when she played it In the pres
ence Of others. On examining herself in a
fountain which served as q mirror she had
been Justly derided on account OF the dis
tortion of her face. She then threw away
the flute for the lyre, and by having her
mouth free she could sing to its accompani-
ment
A Beauty Who Mastered It.
The most celebrated female flute player
Of antiquity was Lamia Her beauty and
q prodigy. The honors she received are
recorded BY several authorities, particu-
larly by Plutarch and Athenaus, and are
sufficient testimonies Of her great power
over the passions Of her hearers As she
was great traveller, her reputation soon
became very extensive. Her first journey
from Athens, the place of her birth, was
the fame of the flute players Of that country,
and her person and performances were not
long unnoticed at the court of Alexandria
But in the conflict between Demetrius
and Ptolomy for the Island of Cyprus, the
latter was defeated and his military stores
and slaves fell into the hands of Demetrius,
and Plutarch tells Us that the celebrated
Lamia was among the female captives
taken in that victory. She had been un-
usually admired at FIRST on account of her
talents, for she was wonderful performer
on the flute, but afterward her fortune be-
came greater by the charms Of her person
which found her many admirers Of rank.
The prince whose captive she became and
who is said to have vanquished as many
hearts a. cities, conceived so violent
beauty and performances on the flute that
from q sovereign and conqueror, he became
. slave. At her instigation he conferred
such favors upon Athens that the Athenians
rendered her divine honors and dedicated .
temple to her under the name of "Venus
Lamia" A superb engraving Of her head
on an amethyst can be seen In one of the
French museums, which authenticates the
accounts Of her great beauty.
The Profession of Fiutist Forbidden.
Horace tells of whole bands of female
6utists who became so numerous that their
profession was subsequently forbidden BY
the code of Theodosius. There are flutes
in sculpture OF all forms, curved,
straight, right, left, single, double, etc.
They had different names given them, ac-
cording to the country where they origin
ated, and they were applied to many pur-
poses in the classics. LIE Fevre, who un-
dertook their explanation, ended his fruit
less labors by composing Latin verse in
honor Of Minerva for throwing the flute
into the sea-
The Tibia was probably the most ancient
type of flute of which we have any record,
and was constructed Of the leg bone Of an
animal The invention OF that instrument
has been ascribed to Minerva and was held
in great esteem by the Greeks and Romans
It was familiar to the Egyptians from re-
mote period of their history and was fav-
orite pastoral instrument In Thebes,
Sparta and other places it was extensively
used. The Spartan futists were an heridi-
tary order, and the Spartan soldiers are said
to have marched to tattle "to the sound of
Dorian flutes and soft recorders" The
Thebans ided themselves on being skill
full performers on the flute. After the
total demolition of their city, which was
later in only small portion
trouble to restore any of the public monu-
ments. They, however, took great pains to
dig out of the ruins statue of Mercury and
erect it again on account of the following
inscription upon it: ''Greece declares that
Thebes wins the prize upon the flute" So
he statue stood in the old public square for
many years afterward.
The Embryo Flute Of To-Day.
The Egyptian pictures indicate that their
autes were blown in an opening at one end
ind produced the necessary modulation of
,ound by holes on the side. That was the
aute-a-bec, the earliest form Of the present
iute, and derived its name from futa, the
Latin for lamhrey inhabiting the Sicilian
,eas, whose side is perforated with seven
,oles, and from bee, the beak of q bird,
which the flutes head-joi resembled. It |
vas played in the manner of the clarinet, |
,ut contained NO keys. The flute of the |
Creeks and Romans was probably in the |
nature of the pipe and was played double
IS well es single, being composed OF two
eeds, side by side. The flute of the Egyp-
ians was from two to three feet long, while
hat of the Greeks and Romans did not ex-
eed, if it equaled, foot in length.
Until the early part of the 18th century |
he flute retained the favor of the people,
,ut later gave way to the traverse, or Ger
nan flute, played crossways. That instru-
nent consisted of tube of hard wood about
o inches long, separable into three joints
nd blown through lateral opening at the
ide of the head joint. In its improved
tate there were from one to 10 keys, which
y opening or closing, served to temper the
one to the various sharps and flats. Gallilei
nd Mersennus. authorities on ancient