took the under part in this duet, was once or twice out, though the passages were not more difficult than those in the upper one; on which occasion the sou looked back with some anger, pointing out to him his mistakes, and setting him right. He not only however did complete justice to the duet, by singing his own part in the truest taste, and with the greatest precision: he also threw in the accompaniments of the two viclins, wherever they were most necessary, and produced the best effects. It is well known that none but the most capital musicians are capable of accompanying in this superior style.

When he had finished the duet, he expressed himself highly in its approbation, asking with some eagerness whether Mr. B. had brought any more such music. Having been informed, however, that he was often visited with musical ideas, to which, even in the midst of the night, he would give utterance on his harpsichord; Mr. B. told his father that he should be glad to hear some of his extemporary compositions. The father shook his head at this, saying, that it depended entirely on his being as it were musically inspired, but that Mr. B. might ask him whether he was in humour for such a composition. Happening to know that little Mozart was much taken notice of by Manzoli, the famous singer, who came over to England in 1764, Mr. B. said to the boy, that he should be glad to hear an extempore love-song, such as his friend Manzoli might choose in an opera. The boy on this, who continued to sit at his harpsichord, looked back with much archness, and immediately began 5 or 6 lines of a jargon recitative proper to introduce a love song. He then played a symphony which might correspond with an air composed to the single word Affetto. It had a 1st and 2d part, which, together with the symphonies, was of the length that opera songs generally last: if this extemporary composition was not amazingly capital, yet it was really above mediocrity, and showed most extraordinary readiness of

invention.

Finding that he was in humour, and as it were inspired, Mr. B. then desired him to compose a song of rage, such as might be proper for the opera stage. The boy again looked back with much archness, and began 5 or 6 lines of a jargon recitative proper to precede a song of anger. This lasted also about the same time with the song of love; and in the middle of it, he had worked himself up to such a pitch, that he beat his harpsichord like a person possessed, rising sometimes in his chair. The word he pitched on for this second extemporary composition was, Perfido.

After this he played a difficult lesson, which he had finished a day or two before:* his execution was amazing, considering that his little fingers could

* He published 6 sonatas for the harpsichord, with an accompaniment for the violin, or German flute, sold by R. Bremner, in the Strand, and are intitled, Oeuvre Troisieme. He is said in the title page to have been only 8 years of age when he composed these sonatas. The dedication is to

scarcely reach a 5th on the harpsichord. His astonishing readiness however did not arise merely from great practice; he had a thorough knowledge of the fundamental principles of composition, as, on producing a treble, he immediately wrote a base under it, which, when tried, had a very good effect. He was also a great master of modulation, and his transitions from one key to another were very natural and judicious; he practised in this manner for a considerable time with a handkerchief over the keys of the harpsichord. These facts Mr. B. was, an eye-witness of; to which he adds, that he had been informed by two or three. able musicians, when Bach the celebrated composer had begun a fugue, and left off abruptly, that little Mozart has immediately taken it up, and worked it after a most masterly manner.

Mr. B. made frequent inquiries with regard to this very extraordinary genius, after he left England, and was told in 1769, that he was then at Saltzbourg, where he had composed several oratorios, which were much admired. He was also informed, that the Prince of Saltzbourg, not crediting that such masterly compositions were really those of a child, shut him up for a week, during which he was not permitted to see any one, and was left only with music paper, and the words of an oratorio. During this short time he composed a very capital oratorio, which was most highly approved on being performed.

Having stated these proofs of Mozart's genius, when of almost an infantine, age, it may not be improper perhaps to compare them, with what has been well attested with regard to other instances of the same sort. Among these, John. Barratier has been most particularly distinguished, who is said to have understood. Latin when he was but 4 years old, Hebrew when 6, and 3 other languages at the age of 9. This same prodigy of philological learning also translated the. travels of Rabbi Benjamin when 11 years old, accompanying his version with notes and dissertations. Before his death, which happened under the age of 20,. Barratier seems to have astonished Germany with his amazing extent of learning; and it need not be said, that its increase in such a soil, from year to year, is commonly amazing. Mozart, however, is not now much more than 13 years of age, and it is not therefore necessary to carry the comparison further.

The Rev. Mr. Manwaring, in his Memoirs of Handel, has given us a still more apposite instance, and in the same science. This great musician began to play on the clavichord when he was but 7 years of age, and is said to have composed some church services when he was only 9 years old, as also the opera of Almeria, when he did not exceed 14. Mr. Manwaring likewise mentions that Handel, when very young, was struck sometimes while in bed with musical ideas, but 09 Ju

the queen, and is dated at London, Jan. 8, 1765. He subscribes himself,

tres humble, et tres. obeissant petit serviteur. These lessons are composed in a very original style, and some of them are masterly.Orig. nd of bereggo zah

and that, like Mozart, he used to try their effect immediately on a spinnet, which was in his bedchamber.

IX. A Determination of the exact Moments of Time when the Planet Venus was at External and Internal Contact with the Sun's Limb, in the Transits of June 6, 1761, and June 3, 1769. By Samuel Dunn. p. 65.

The telescope being properly adjusted, and having a most clear and distinct sight of the sun's limb where the external contact was expected to happen; at 11h 56m 32s per clock (which, reduced by the Astronomer Royal to apparent time, is 7h 10m 335) while Mr. D. was moving his eye gently along that part of the sun's limb where the contact was expected, there appeared as though a kind of lucid wave of transparent matter, of the colour of that part of the lucid annulus (which afterwards appeared round Venus), which was nearest to the limb of Venus, and taking up the space of about a 5th part of a minute of a degree along the sun's edge, this lucid wave seemed to strike gently against the sun's limb, and in an instant the little tremulous vibrations on the sun's limb were totally stopped, and that part of the limb was rendered thereby a little obscure. A second and half of time after this, at the same place of the sun's limb, arose, first gently, and then more violently, a ferment, or boiling, very different in eolour as well as magnitude, from the tremulous vibrations at other parts of the sun's limb, for it was darker and much more violent, and at 11h 56m 36 per clock, or 7h 10m 37s apparent time, this fermentation was enlarged along the limb of the sun, and the limb of Venus was entering on the sun's limb.

Mr. D.'s attention being at this time engaged in examining the place around the point of contact, he endeavoured to see a kind of brown penumbra precede the limb of Venus, but saw none; instead of it, a kind of whitish light, at first very faint, and afterwards as it advanced on the sun's disk becoming more strong, preceded the limb of the planet; which light gradually diminished nearer to Venus, and formed a narrow margin of lucid matter, by which the limb of the planet became a little ill defined. Almost the same circumstances happened in the exterior contact 1761, but with this difference, the lucid border then following, the limb of Venus was more clear and transparent. Mr. D. was the more particular in these circumstances, to be able to determine what differences might arise from observations made with telescopes and eyes equally good, and con cluded from the phenomena, that two such observers, with but little inequality in their judgments, might differ from each other 10 seconds of time. Before this contact and a little after it, he endeavoured to find a faint illumination on the exterior limb of Venus; but could find none, till the time of internal contact drew near. Another circumstance attending the phenomenon was this; the limb of Venus which first entered on the sun's disk appeared to be the arch of a

very small circle, but as the planet advanced onward on the solar disk, that same preceding part of Venus appeared to enlarge and expand itself, and the subsequent part of Venus, which was on the sun's limb, appeared as though it was the portion of a smaller circle; and thus the planet appeared to the time of central ingress, at which time half the planet appeared a semi-ellipsis, the conjugate diameter forming the notch in the sun's limb. After the time of central ingress, while the latter half of the planet was passing over the sun's limb, the like appearances occurred; so that, though that circumference was really concave to Venus's centre, a little after the central ingress, it appeared a little convex to that centre, and so the planet advanced, that part of it which was nearest the sun's limb appearing contracted, but enlarging itself a little farther on the disk. The planet being considerably past the central ingress, and being at broad black contact with the sun's limb, but of an irregular form on account of the above-mentioned circumstances, and it being hard to judge what kind of contact would appear, Mr. D. perceived a very faint luminous crescent exterior to the limb of the sun; and nearly coinciding with the preceding limb of Venus continued over the sun's limb. This crescent was very faint, but steadily defined at certain fits and returns till 7h 28m 30' apparent time. When this crescent being come near to the limb of the sun it vanished, and seemed to fall in with a kind of confused slight illumination in the limb of the sun itself, where the internal contact was to happen. At the same time a kind of partial and very faint illumination took place, both a little without, and a little within the sun's limb, as well as in the limb itself, where the contact was to be, and a gentle ebullition or boiling arose a little without the sun's limb on the limb of Venus, which continued till the dark body of the planet was wholly within the sun's disk, or 7h. 29m 28s apparent time, when Venus's circumference was not passed coinciding with the sun's circumference above 3 or 4 seconds of time. While attentively viewing this, and judging it difficult to determine the exact moment of circular contact, on account of the circumstances described, the ebullition or boiling between the limb of Venus and the sun became more violent, and the partial illumination increased; and at 7h 29m 38' he saw the planet as it were held to the sun's limb by a ligament forined of many black cones, whose bases stood on the limb of Venus and their vertexes pointing to the limb of the sun. These cones put on various positions, and as Venus advanced they alternately contracted themselves towards the limb of Venus, and expanded themselves towards the sun's limb, performing their undulations always regularly and in the same time as the planet advanced on the disk, till 7h 29m 48′ apparent time. At the end of this interval, the agitation or fermentation was exceedingly violent, for the whole limb of Venus would sometimes librate towards the limb of the sun, and some times the limb of the sun would turn convex in yielding towards Venus; but the

thread of light was not yet formed, for still 3 or 4 broad parts of the ligament never had yet broken from the sun, and therefore the thread of light was not yet formed. He carefully examined the sides of those black cones connected with. the limb of the sun, and saw the fissures or spaces between them to be filled with a steady illumination, of the colour of twilight compared with the light of the sun; and while steadily attending to these circumstances, he saw the pure and genuine light of the sun break in between some of those fissures like streaks of lightning, which made the partial light become in 2 or 3 seconds of time, of the same colour as the light of the sun, yet still the undulating ligament, though reduced, was not broken. And now,

In an instant, the northern part of the divided ligament withdraws itself from the sun's limb about half way towards Venus, and instantly but gently it returns and again unites the limbs of the sun and Venus; instantly after, another less northern part of the ligament does the like, and then breaks off again, and so does each part of the divided ligament, till 7h 29m 51s apparent time, when the ends or vertexes of the black cones between Venus and the sun's limb appear to be separated from the sun's limb, retreating to that of Venus, and dissolving or dying away like a drop of tinge thrown into water, and now the thread of light becomes complete.

The internal contact being past, and Venus being wholly on the sun, Mr. D. examined the space surrounding Venus, and saw such a lucid annulus around the planet as appeared in 1761. The part of this annulus next to the limb of Venus appeared a little dusky, but much more clear than in 1761, when it appeared more confused, and as a penumbra; but that part of the annulus farthest off from the circumference of Venus appeared a little tinged with blue. The breadth of the annulus about 5 or 6 seconds. On hearing a gentleman in the lower apartment call out to be showed the atmosphere of Venus, Mr. D. now left his telescope, went down stairs to Mr. Nairne and Mr. Dollond, and desired them to be attentive at their telescopes, and they would see this shining annulus, which they attended to, and after a little while saw it plainly, though for some time they could not perceive any such thing. Then the other gentlemen present also saw it.

These observations being made, Mr. D. states the first external contact at 7h 10m 37s apparent time for Greenwich. Circular contact internally at 7h 29m 253. Completion of the thread of light at 7h 29m 48s, under the circumstances above described.

Though he would not willingly form any hypothesis from the aforementioned phenomena, there is one of them, namely, the appearance of the well defined streaks of light between the fissures, which seems accountable for thus. The partial light which preceded it, he takes to be rays scattered by refraction and