Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-10-31


which has a tapering mouthpiece. 1t
possesses four sound holes and yields
five notes.
very ugly looking earthenware al
ligator, when correctly used. produces
the richest and. most melodious tones
of all, while tiny whistle gives a
rather annoying sound. due to its
extreme shrillness and penetrating
qualities. -'--- -- ,-----' 49,
A unique specimen is a whistling vase
from Costa Rica. 1t is round-bottomed.
with a handle on one side representing
an animal head holding the edge of
the rim in its mouth. The air passage
is from the inside of the vessel, con-
Meeting with vent hole on the outside
of the animals neck To produce
sound the lips must be placed against
the mouth of the vessel in the same
manner as would be done on the large
note is decidedly shrill and piercing.
1t Is characteristic of most of these
strange musical instruments. with
shapes of animals or humans, to have
the vent holes in the foreheads, ears
or cheeks.
Some of the rattles. which. perhaps.
were modelled after the. gods which
prehistoric man worshiped. are SO nor
rible in appearance that. If they were
used to amuse the babies of those by
gone days as rattles are used at the
present time, 1t is wonder the chill
dren ever got any enjoyment out OF
them. The prehistoric figures do not
grin; to the contrary, they send forth
the most malignant glances, with their
carved mouths stretched from ear to
ear in a terrifying leer
Several shofars exhibited are made of
rams horns Strengthened and f1attened
by heat The bore of the instrument is
a cylindrical tube of very small caliber.
which opens into kind of bell of para
bolic FORM From the Talmud 1t is
learned that the use of the shofar as a
note of alarm of war was transferred
to other seasons of danger and dis
tress Famine, plague of locusts and
drought occasioned the blowing of the
shofar 1t was also employed at the
Dublic ceremony of communication.
very curious use Of the shofar In
later times was in funeral ceremonies:
AS signal instrument of war 1t mad
it's various uses possibly ACCORDING 70
the note that was blown. 1t was the
signal for going out to battle, for the
announcement of a victory and for
recall of the troops.
The horn of an antelope was USED 10
make an African war trumpet. Ine
natural cavity of the horn forms the
bore of the instrument. The smaller
end has not been cut on. but Is le1t
pointed as in nature. About one-fourth
lateral opening has been made into the
original cavity which forms a mouth
piece, and through this the instrument
is blown.
Islands Four pieces of cane of differ
ent lengths are placed together parallel
and fastened by fine wire which has
been passed around each of the four
and then drawn into several strands
between each, cane. respectively. thus
forming a solid piece. The open ends
are on a line. their orifices smooth,
4 and the lower ends are closed by being
cut at joint OF the cane. The Greek
god Pan is represented as playing on
this instrument, blowing in the open
holes as he passed them back and forth
on his lips. each pipe sounding diner
ent note.
primitive instrument in the collec-
ton is marked Los Huesos (the bones)
SPAIN" but otherwise the record is
silent. 1t Is a rattle of eight leg bones
of sheep. each perforated near the
ends and strung on two cords. making
the instrument like a ladder. The
sound is made by the bones being rasp-
ed one or both ways with another bone
or piece of shell.
The numerous rattles contained in
this collection of musical instruments
are mostly made of cedar, usually in
sections neatly Joined, deliberately
carved and painted with appropriate
hollow wooden chamber with a dozen
or more small pebbles in 1t.
An interesting instrument is bone
flute from an ancient grave near Lima,
Peru. 1t is formed of part of the ulna
of the brown pelican. the ends having
been cut off and the cellular portion of
the bone removed.
The smaller whistles are very simple
in construction, and sound is produced
by blowing into the open end Of the
concretion. These look like round
stones with hole in the center.
The whistles and fageolets in most
~ Hun0A and hnna-