Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-05-31

little squirrels, listening to
him with an apparently delighted expression.
Spiders are often drawn from their webs by
music. Gretry has left a record of the spider
that always appeared on his hSrpsichord when
he PLAYED, and Michelet nafrates the tragic
history of a similar enthusiast that lost its
life through devotion to youthful viollnist.
Isidore BerthauIne, noted v1rtuoso OF the
eighteenth century, as child was condemned
to many lonely hours of practice on his violin.
spider, first listening from nook in the
wall, little by little gained sufficient courage
to creep on the music stand, and finally went
SO far as to station itself on the bow arm OF
the delighted child Unfortunately he had
stepmother who came in one day and saw the
music loving insect on his arm. She killed 1t
with blow of her slipper. The death of his
pet was great shock to the boy that he
fell fainting to the floor and was III tor three
months.
Even the tirnid mouse forgets fear in its
love for music. 1t will venture boldly into
well lighted room under its influence. 1t often
seems to be hypnotized. Even after 1t ceases
it is motionless or moves only with d1fhcuity
Singing mice, too, are not unknown They
chirp in high, clear tone not unlike that OF
canary, though this is rare accomplishment.
Dogs Tone Interpreters
THE most interesting experiments were
those designed to test the ability of dogs
to distinguish tones of different pitch, re-
Gently carried to successful issue by German
scientist. He fed the dog during the sound
ing of certain tone, first using small organ
containing nine pipes, each producing differ,
ent octave of the same tone; later piano and
harmonium were employed with similar re-
suits. After feeding the animal two or three
times in this manner, he struck different
pitch, and while this was heard he held the
food in his clenched hand SO that the animal
could not reach it. 1t often took but five or
six tests of this nature to accustom the dog to
the difference between the two sounds: 1t
seized the food with certainty when the trst
was heard, but patiently refralned with the
latter, whether the hand was held open or
not.
As the experiments proceeded they were
designedly made more complicated, and 1t
was discovered that dogs possess an extremely
fine ear for variations In pitch. At first the
two tones were made far apart, then gradually
brought together until they were only half
step apart; but their sense of pitch still re-
NAMED unerring; the food tone was always
recognized, no matter how near its nelghbor
might be:
Not only this, it was found after the train
ing had lasted sometime that this tone could
be distinguished in combination with other
tones, and not merely in harmonic relation
with them, but in discords that would puzzle
a musician to decide whether it was present
or not.
Different dogs were schooled on different
pitches, some on high and others low,
but the result was the same in all cases, though
naturally the time required for training varied
IN individual instances. Moreover, 1t was
found not specially difficult after dog had
been trained on one tone to change it and to
accustom it to another.
In view of the scope of these tests, it would
seem that the gift of absolute pitch cannot
be denied the dog. since the selected tone was
always distinguished at once, not only at the
beginning of everyone, but even when days
intervened between them.