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82 CHINE E l\fUSIC. The scale I have myself ascertained to be as follows:- i J ~i ~ - ~ , -,- ~-,- :1 J ~ I Notes: R I }L ...L Ji J: 1R 1I 1Ji. 'it /\ Tubes: 15 7 5 14 4 3 2 12 l I IO 13 or or 8 6 The R of the shl r1,g is about om A (902 vibrations per second). At the Confucian ceremonies there a.re six she"ng, three on the east and three on the west side of the hall. They play exactly the same music and the same notes as the ti-tzu, or " flute." The sheng is never used in popular orchestras ; at Buptial a.nd funeral processious the she"°'ng is sometimes seen, but it is there merely for form's sake, in accorda,nce with the requi.J:ements of the rites, and the hired coolie who ca1·ri es it simply simulates playing. Dr. EASTLAKE further says :- " One very rarely hears the sheng nowadays, ou account of a curious superstition. The Chinese say that a skilful pe1former ou the slieng becomes so wedded to its music that he is ever playing ; but the instrument is played by sucking in the brea th , au d a long continuance of this brings ou inflammat ion of t he bronchial t ubes and diseases of the lungs. So no performer is ever known to live loncter than -1-o yeai·s ! The instrument, in playing, is inclined slightly towards the right shoulder ; the furefinger of the right hand commands pipes 3 a,ncl 4, the th umb 2 , 5, 6, 7. The other pipes are controlled by the first and second fingers and thumb of the left hand. "That the shim,g is one of the most important of Chinese musical instrnments is apparent. No other instrument is nearly so perfect, either foT sweetness of tone or delicacy of construction. The principles embodied in it are su_hstantially th e s~me ~ those of our grand organs. Indeed, according to var ious writers, the introd uct10n of th e sheng mto Europe led to the invention of the accordion and the harmonium. KRATZENSTi,;rn, an organ-b~ilder of 8t · Petersburg, having become the possessor of a .1 Mng, conceived the idea of apply ing t\1e principle to organ-stops. ,, 8°. EARTH. It was of absolute necessity that ear th , t~e common mother of all things, should occupy A, l'espectable place in music, and therefore the hsiici,n was invented. · No. 47.-The Hsuan (!ffi), or "Chinese ocarina," was invented by P'Ao Hst (}@; 'l'il) some 2 , 700 years before our era.