worthy of notice; being intended chiefly for amusement in the social circle, the words are generally considered as of secondary importance. Is this any reason why the latter should ever embrace indelicate, vicious, or profane allusions? Is poison any the less to be dreaded, when served up to us in a dish that is palatable? The work of expurgation has lately been undertaken in this country, with some promise of success. Words have been greatly changed, and unworthy specimens cast aside. Most of the volumes of glees* lately presented to the public, are a great improvement upon their predecessors; and contain much that is interesting and unexceptionable. They seem likely to advance, the interests of the secular department; if they do this, without inflicting any injury, directly or indirectly, upon the music of the church, we shall wish them every success. Serious glees have much to recommend them; and it would be well if they had some other appellation more correspondent with their real character.

All the above species of composition embrace one remarkable peculiarity; they abound in that palpable kind of the imitative, which has so strong a resemblance to mimicry, and which, in graver compositions, would be inadmissible. Serious glees, on this account, are sometimes found to border strongly on the ridiculous. Dr. Clarke has an instance of this kind set to Sir Walter Scott's translation of

*Not all of them.

"Dies Irae”—that day of wrath. Most of the piece is tender and subdued; but the miserable mimicry of the second strain to the words:

"When ling'ring like a parched scroll,
The flaming heavens together roll,"

tempt us to doubt whether, after all, the whole piece was not intended as a burlesque. His "Come, Ossian, come,"* is, in every respect, a beautiful piece. Callcott and Webbe have distinguished themselves in this department of composition-particularly the latter, whose "When winds breathe soft," has long enjoyed an enviable share of popularity. Serious glees might be made the decided advocates of everything which is refined, and virtuous, and lovely, and of good report. To this end the words should be more select, and the music more impressive.

Secular songs, properly so called, are of a higher order than ballads, and are found to exert an influence upon every class of the community. The power of a Swiss national song, in producing home-sickness among the soldiery, and the influence of the "Marseilles" upon the citizens of France, have become proverbial. The drawing-rooms in civilized nations are supplied with secular songs. The question whether such a powerful instrumentality shall be for good or for ill, is one which will never be disregarded by the

* "Come, pilgrim, come," as found in some of the American publications.

enlightened composer, who prefers the interests of the community to his own personal convenience or popularity.

Many of the lighter songs, which unfortunately are too much in favor with the public, have had, as we have said, a dramatic origin.

Their deleterious influence, both as to manners and morals, cannot be too strongly deprecated. There is no necessity for singing the vices into favor, for they are sufficiently rife for the affliction of every ingenuous mind. Better themes of song are always at hand. They are as numerous as are the pursuits and enjoyments—hopes, fears, trials, amusements, and distresses of civilized life. If these were given to song, and the rest excluded, their influence would be extensive and delightful.

Several species of vocal music, sacred and secular, remain to be considered; but we must first notice some of the claims of lyric verse, in connection with the subject of musical elocution.

CHAPTER XII.

LYRICA L THEMES.

THE subject of vocal composition relates to the character of verbal themes, as well as to the manner of treating them. We have elsewhere enumerated some of the peculiar requisites of lyric verse; but their importance has not been sufficiently illustrated. For the sake of perspicuity, we shall use the term, lyric, in its original sense, to signify such poetry as is intended for song.

I. We endeavored to show, in chapter second, the necessity of avoiding disagreeable qualities of tone in singing. But as our language abounds in harsh consonants, and short and slender vowels, it follows, that unless the poet pays special attention to the euphony of language, his verses will have either an immusical or an indistinct utterance. The Italian language is remarkable for euphony. Metastasio says, "it is itself music;" yet, while framing his regular numbers, he found, we are told, not more than one word in seven that seemed suitable for his purpose. Our poets have been far less scrupulous in this respect, though, from the character of our language, they

should have been still more particular. Mutes, aspirates, sibilants, nasals, and gutterals, have been used almost as liberally as if they occasioned no inconvenience to the vocalist. A line of Dryden's, for example, has been quoted for its imitative properties; but who can sing it, so filled with aspirates?

"And could not heave her head."

The following couplets, from the same poem, are equally immusical, from the multiplication of sibil

ants:

"Within the hollow of that shell,

That spoke so sweetly and so well."

"In dying notes discovers

The woes of hopeless lovers."-Ode for St Secilia's Day.

In the well known couplet

"Hark, they whisper, angels say,

Sister spirit come away.--Pope.

the sibilants seem intended for imitative purposes; yet, in song, their effect is more like hissing than whispering. The following couplets furnish an example of nasals:

"From harmony, from heavenly harmony,
This universal frame began."-Dryden.

"Trembling, hoping, ling'ring, flying,

O the pain, the bliss of dying!”—Pope.

Let them be compared with these, and how great is the difference in diction: