The daily morning journal and courier., 1907-05-27

of his native hills. His arms drop from his palsied hand-he sheds tears of despondency-he has seen a vision of his mountain home, and the rest of the world is as a blank in his eyes.
 We also read in Scripture of the song of Deborah and Barak; and of the unfortunate daughter of Jephtha, going out to meet her father with timbrels and with dances. From this time, till Saul was chosen King, 1885 B. C., the Scriptures are silent about every species of music, except the warlll1e blast of the trumpet, sounded on military expeditions. Prophet, in some parts of Scripture appears to mean little more than poet, who sung extempore verses to the sound of an instrument, as the Improvisation of Italy and Spain do at present.
 According to Eusebius, David car ried his harp or Tyre with him, wher- ever he went, to console him in his affliction, and to sing to it the praises of God; and without having recourse to miracle in the case of Saul, the whole of David's power over the dis order of that king might be attribut- ed to his skillful and affecting manner of performing upon his harp.
 It was in the reign of King David that the Hebrews held music in the highest estimation. It was then first admitted in the worship of the ark and the ministry of sacrifice.
 4I- ,f flute players, who led the processlons lat the Jewish funerals, amounted sometimes to several hundred. From these and various other instances, we infer that music was in general use Iamong the Hebrews from the time of their quitting Egypt, till they ceased to be a nation, Their first music and instruments were. certainly borrowed from the Egyptians; but these seem to have remained in rude state until the reign of David and Solomon. And even then the multitudes of singing men and women, of trumpets, shawns, comets, sacbuts, eymbals and timbrels must have been more calculated to produce sounds of joy and triumph | than of musical harmony.
 With regard to modern music amongst the orthodox Hebrews, all in- Istrumental and even vocal perform lances have been banished from the synagogue since the fall of Jerusalem because the Jews think it wrong to rejoice before the coming of the Mes siah. The only Jews who permit music in their synagogues are the Germans, who sing in parts, and who preserve some old melodies, said to be Hebrew, and supposed to be very anci ent, but altogether on doubtful testi- mony.
 l It is in vain to attempt to trace the history of music from higher source than the history of Egypt, since no na- | ton can produce proofs of antiquity so indisputable as theirs. There the study of music was in ancient times confined to the priesthood, who used it only on religious and solemn occa- sions. Most of the ancient musical in struments of Greece were of Egyptian invention; such as the triangular Tyre the monaulos, or single flute, the cym. bal or kettle-dnhm and the sistrum, SC much used by them that Egypt has in derislon, been called the country oi sistrums, while Greece is often said tC be governed by the Tyre.
 The profession of music in Egypt was hereditary and, like their sculp. ture, was circumscmbed by law, ant continued invariable for many ages On an Egyptian obelisk known al Rome by the name of the Guglla rot ta, or broken pillar, there is represent ed q musical instrument with two strings, having a neck to it, thus prov ling that the Egyptians in remote an tiquity had discovered the means O Iextending their scale and multiplying the sounds of a few strings by a sim pie and commodious expedient.
 The Egyptian Hermes or Mercury surnamed Trismegistus, or Thrice Il lustrious, and supposed by Sir Isaa, Newton to have been the secretary O Osiris, is celebrated as the inventor O
 the Tyre. It was said, that watkins Ealong the banks of the Nile he strucl his foot against a tortoise shell, whicl emitted a sonorous sound. The idet of a Tyre occurred to his imagination and he constructed one in the form o Ia tortoise, and strung it with tn
 sinews of dead animals
 The monaulos, or single flute O
 Egypt, was in the form of bull horn, and was at first, probably m
 other than the horn itself But tn lmost astonishing proof of the, cultiva
 tion of music in Egypt exists in tn Iexquisite beauty of the Theban harp
 a drawing of which was taken b,
 Bruce from a picture of fresco, foun,
 by him in the sepulchral chambers be
 hind the ruins of Egyptian Thebes.
 This harp has thirteen strings, want
 ing only two strings of two complet
 octayes. Its form is elegant, more S
 than the modern harp, which it re ,sembles, except in having no fore par
 to the frame. The sounding board i
 at the back. 1t is ornamented on tn
 top with the figure of a sphynx ain
 lotusi the frame appears to be inlai
 with ivory, tortoise shell and mother Iof-pearl, and the ornaments are taste
 full and beautiful Perhaps in the fin
 evenings of Egypt. her yelled maiden
 used to sail down the Nile, with 1t
 lotus-crowned banks. singing to thes
 harps the praises of their gods.
 The mind is lost in contemplatin
 the immense antiquity of the paintin
 which represents this instrument. l
 has encouraged a belief in many, tha
 what is usually considered in Egyr
 the invention of the arts, was in fac
 the era of their restoration; that afte
 having attained to great perfection
 they had been again lost and again in