It cheers the sorrowful, smooths the troubled brow»
stimulates the valour of the bra^e and the devotions
of the pious ; it is a comfort to all, a medicine to many*
To be ignorant of music is as disgraceful as not to have
learned to read. The Irish excel in instrumental music
all other nations with whom he was acquainted,
although some held that Scotland was then the equal,
and perhaps the superior, of Ireland, her teacher. The
Irish (like the Spanish) wailing at funerals, although it
may seem to add to the present grief, may tranquiDise
the mind, he thinks, when the outbreak has passed.
