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CHINESE :r.-rusrc. 17 Only the modern names of notes are used. The ancient denominations of the notes are now only met with in books. They are the 8Ciontific terms of the five sounds. The modern names are much easier, and besides present the advantage that by means of a little sign affixed to the left of the note, the octave higher i.s at once expressed ; thus, I is A grave, and 1I becomes A acute. Some instruments, as the ch'·irn, the se, and the 71ien-chung, require, on account of their special construction, quite a different musical notation, which will be given further on. Each of the primitive names of notes had a particular meaning. Th@Chinese, who are so fond of comparing and con t\:asting, could not fail to find some relation between the five notes and- The five planets : Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, hlars. points : north, east, centre, west, soYth. ,, colours: black, violet, yellow, white, red. elements : wood, water, earth, metal, fire. The affinity of the five souuds with the five relations of men and things is explained a fo llows by the Chinese :- . 1 °. 'g ~ :g- (lc'U.tng shu churn). The note lcu11g corresponds to the chief, the ruler, the Emperor. 2 °. ~ J, ~ (shang shii ch'erv). The note shang corresponds to the mini8ter. 3°- :flj Ii ~ (chiao shii min). The note chiao is related to the people, the nation. 4°. 11 fB& 4}i: (chih shu shih). The note chih represents the affairs of the State. 5°- ~ Ji ~ (yu shu wu). The note yu represents material object . In our Western music the position of a note on the stave determines its pitch. In a.ncient Chinese music, with only five characters to represent the different sounds, ·t must have been next to impossible to read a written piece of music. By inspection of the scale given above, it may be seen that the modern Chinese have a special sign for nearly every note of their melodic system. Th!:lir characters not only express the sounds, but also indicate the pitch-that is, their position in the gamut. The music of the Chinese, like their language, is written in vertical rows of characters from right to left. They never trespass beyond the limits of 14 sounds; finding within the compass of that scale an infinite variety of tunes to which Chinese ears only can become accustomed. OF THE STA K Their hieroglyphic notation, permitting the r cognition of the pitch as well as of the name of a written note, ha spared the Chinese the use of a stave. Besides, their habit of writing characters in columns from top to bottom would never admit of the adoption of a sto,ve like our .