The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-08-03
nrythologieal Songs.
lFrom Atheneus.

Psychological SOngss (From Atheneus.) At the genial board I sing
 Pleasures which from plenty spring While the wreath adorns our browS, Ceres well deserves our vows. Plutus, thy great name we'll join,
 And thy sister Proserpine.
 Ye our social joys augment, From your bounty flows content. Bless our city with increase.
 So our praise shall never cease' (To Pan.)
 l 70 Pan, delight of nymphs and swains, Protector of Arcadias plains, Who lead'st the frolic dancel The laughing fair, who plays the prude But flies thy steps to be pursued, Her favour to enhance.
 She loves thy rustic, oaken reed; She knows thy genius, force and speed, And feigns modest fear 1 Our jocund strains shall swell for thee, In them, as in our hearts. shall be Thy name forever dear"
 Patriotic Songs, On the patriots Harmodius and Aris- l ltogiton, whose courage gave the signal to the Atheniahs to recover their lost Liberty:
 "Cover'd with myrtle wreaths, I'll wear my sword.
 | Like brave Harmodfus and his patriot friend.
 lAristogiton. who the laws restored, I Thy tyrants slew, and bade oppres- | son end.
 "Harmodius dear, thou art not dead lThy soul is to Elysium fled; Tiny virtue there a place had won, IWith Diomede, great Tydeus' son lWith swift Achilles too. thourt joined, And every friend of human kind"
 Before the art of writing was invent ed the simple means were employed for Iperpetuating the remembrance of inn portant events Among these none were more generally resorted to than festivals, plays and songs. In the latter, national calamities and success es were rehearsed, the anniversaries of defeats and losses lamented, and those of victories, births and marriages, .l commemorated and celebrated. Hence the ancients, besides those enumerat- ed above, had songs proper to the dif- lferent professions such as the Bucoll- asm or song of the shepherd, the Lyti- erse. or song of the reapers, the Hymee, or song of the millers, the lEIine. or song of the weavers, the Yule, or song of the wool-carders, the lNunia or song of the nurses, the Mo- mion or song of lovers, the Calyce or song of the ladies, and the Harpalyce for song of young girls. To these are to be added the Marriage Song, called ITymenea, the song Datis for merry occasions, for lamentation, the song Jalema; and for funerals, the song Limos. There were love and drinking songs also.
 Love is the inspirer of music and lpoetry" was one of their most memor- able maxims, Plutarch says as fol- flows. Love, like wine, inspires vivac- itv. cherefulness and passion and in those dispositions it is natural to sing and to give energy and emphasis to our expressions Besides, when any one is in love, he naturally uses a Asnratiye and measured language, in
 order to enforce his sentiments as gold is used in embellishing stat ues. Whenever a beloved object IS mentioned her perfections and beautles are published in songs which impress Ithern m the memory in more hVely land durable manner. If we send our mistress either letters or presents, we fry to augment their value by a copy Iof verses or a song. In short, mere are three indictments to singing-sor-
 row. joy and enthusiasm. During sor'
 row our complaints are expressed IT llenpthenad tones resembling those oi Imusic; the voice, too, of an orator, pe'
 speaking the favor of an audience, iS
 mcdulated into a kind of song as are
 tb, grief and lamentation of actors 1T
 tragedy. Joy causes violent agitations land stimulates the vulgar to skip ane
 dance while persons more decorous ant
 better educated are inclined to sing
 Enthusiasm agitates and transports tt
 a degree of madness and tury-wftnes'
 the cries of the Bacchanals and thu Iaeonies of the Pythia, both of Whlcl
 are uttered in measure and cadence
 Now there can be no doubt but tha
 the nassion of love occasions exquisit
 nain as well as pleasure. This passion
 therefore, uniting all the three propen
 sities of song, must at all times hay
 been regarded as the most proper t
 excite a desire of singing"
 If among Greek songs, those dedi cated to love and wine are the best
 the hest again of these are the lyric
 of ,Anacreon. Their native eleganc
 and grace have produced more imita tors of their authoh than Pindar ob
 taired by his odes.
 We now come to the Grecian lnstru ments. They appear to have been Q three kinds: inhatile, stringed and per , lcussive. The first kind consisted of tn flute, horn, syrinx, trumpet and wate organ. The second comprehended tn lvro and psaltery The third, the drum cymbal, crotalum and bells. The ancient musicians must hay , beer possessed of great skill to per form upon their instruments both a accompanists to the voice as well a instrumental music alone. It is to b f regretted that there is no definite rec ] ord of the ahrmony produced by thes lvarious instruments when they wer
 played in concord. The musician of th e present day must be staggered at tn s wonderful results they accomplished F that early day although the age ( a contra-point was not then known. . MORRIS STEINERT.