Traditional Folk Songs Of Many Nations

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	Preface. It has been my effort, in this volume, to present several characteristic songs of various nations, in contrast with each other. Instead of writing a long fore-word, it has seemed better to give such notes and comments as were necessary, upon the music of each song, so that the singercan easily become familiar with the chief facts of the history or the musical construction of each number. Yet one point may be earnestly impressed upon 'he reader and musician at the outset. There is no def�inite scale that can be traced to any immutable physical law! The scale has been a veritable Tow�er of Babel in Music, and just as nations differ in languages, they may vary in their musical scales. We are so prone to imagine that our scale (major and minor) is the sum of all music, that it may be well to give a few scales here that are not in consonance with our system. The Hindoo scale divides into third-tones and quarter-tones, in a manner that defies notation by our system, or performance upon our keyed instruments.