Spurge

“ Lady Cant. (in a whisper) . Isn't he deliciously unsophisticated? Quite a child of nature! (Aloud.) My dear Mr. Spurrell, he wants your keys to unlock your portmanteau and put out your things; you'll be able to dress for dinner all the quicker.
Spurr. Do you mean—am I to have the honour of sitting down with all of you?
Lady Culv. (to herself) . Oh, my goodness, what will Rupert say? (Aloud.) Why, of course, Mr. Spurrell; how can you ask? ”

“ One of the most important points to be considered in the composition of a fugue is the choice of a good subject. It would be possible to write a fugue of some kind—or, to speak more correctly, a piece in fugal form, on almost any subject that might be selected; but it is by no means every melody that is adapted for fugal treatment; and it is no more possible to make a really good fugue on a bad subject than it would be to make a really good coat out of rotten cloth. In this chapter we shall endeavour to show what are the essentials of a good subject. ”

“ As the last notes of this extract are the commencement of the first episode, we have here the complete exposition of the fugue. With the indications we have given of the entries of the subjects, &c., the student will easily understand it. In a fugue for so many voices and with so many subjects, it is not needful that each subject should be heard in every voice in the course of the exposition. ”

“ Thousands and thousands of birds were eating up the grain, and in the middle of them sat the little sparrow. When he saw his old enemy, the carter cried out: 'Oh! what an unlucky fellow I am!'
'Not unlucky enough yet,' answered the sparrow, 'for, mark my words, carter, your cruel conduct will cost you your life;' and with these words she flew into the air. ”

“ Rupert must be out of his senses! It's bad enough to have him here till Monday! (Aloud.) We mustn't forget, Rupert, how valuable Mr. Spurrell's time is; it would be too selfish of us to detain him here a day longer than——
Lady Cantire. My dear, Mr. Spurrell has already said he can manage it; so we may all enjoy his society with a clear conscience. (Lady Culverin conceals her sentiments with difficulty.) And now, Albinia, if you'll excuse me, I think I'll go to my room and rest a little, as I'm rather overdone, and you have all these tiresome people coming to dinner to-night. ”

“ Even the Sparrow who had jeered somewhat at him was really sorry, and consoled him so kindly, that he went to sleep with his head tucked under his wing, in a far happier frame of mind than he could have supposed possible, after such a grievous sorrow.
And the seed?
As it was being jostled on the top of the packing-case, it thought to itself:
'There's an end to me, I suppose. I shall be shrivelled up to nothing for want of nourishing earth, and shall do good to no one. What a pity that dear little Sparrow's kind intention was frustrated by that meddlesome and inquisitive bird! ”

“ They often succeed so well that the furrows look as if traced with a ruler, and exhibit curious effects of vanishing perspective. Along the furrow, just as it is turned, there runs a shimmering light as the eye traces it up. The ploughshare, heavy and drawn with great force, smooths the earth as it cleaves it, giving it for a time a ‘face’ as it were, the moisture on which reflects the light. ”

“ In the final section of a fugue, which always begins with the last return of the original key, it is imperative that all the voices be engaged, though it is not necessary that all should have subject or answer. If, however, the fugue contains stretti, it is best that all the voices take part in the final stretto, which should also be the closest. ”

“ A full cadence in a fugue (which should in all cases be sparingly used) must always be a point of departure for some new entry, if not of the subject, at all events for some important feature of counterpoint. We have referred to this above, but we repeat it as a point of vital importance in fugal writing, which will be enforced by the example just given.
331. We saw in the fugue in D (§ 308) the expediency of occasional rests in the voices (§ 319) . After a rest, the voice which has been silent may enter on any part of the bar; but it should always end before a rest, on an accented beat. ”

“ Though we occasionally meet with fugues in which the subject or answer is almost continuously present, a striking and well-known example being the first fugue in the 'Wohltemperirtes Clavier,' it is generally advisable to give variety to the composition by the introduction of episodes. An Episode, is that part of a fugue in which for a time neither subject nor answer is heard. In the majority of cases the reappearance of the subject attracts more attention and excites more interest, if it has been absent for a while. ”

“ The chief figure here is the sequence, the theme of the upper voice being a modification of the subject of the fugue. In our last example from this fugue,
the same material is used as in our quotations (a) and (b) . In its general character this episode much resembles (a) ; but the figure taken from the codetta is now allotted to the two lower voices, and is seen in the alto by free inversion, and in the treble by augmentation. ”

“ Sometimes only the first line of a choral, instead of the whole, is selected for fugal treatment. A well-known example of this is Bach's organ fugue in E flat, known in England as the 'St. Ann's Fugue.' This is a double fugue of a somewhat unusual form, in three movements. The first is a simple fugue in five parts, the theme of which we quoted at § 102 (c) , and which is the same as the first line of the hymn-tune, 'St. Ann's.' This movement ends with a full cadence in the tonic, introducing the second subject.
J. S. Bach. Organ Fugue in E flat, ('St. Ann's.')
&c. ”

“ In the morning the greedy old woman, who had been making her plans for getting the big box, made her husband tell her the way to the Sparrow’s house, and, without thinking that the Sparrow, which was now undoubtedly a fairy, might wish to retaliate upon her for the loss of its tongue, started off at once on the long tramp. ”

“ For an illustration of this, see the passage from Bach's fugue in C minor, quoted in § 215. Here the exposition ends on the first note of the ninth bar, and the following episode, which modulates to E flat, to introduce the next entry of the subject, is the beginning of the middle section of the fugue. But if the first episode does not modulate away from the tonic or dominant key, but leads either to the counter-exposition, or to an isolated entry of subject or answer in the original key (as in our example (a) § 222) this episode and the following entry belong to the first section. ”

“ A stretto may be merely for two voices, or all the voices of the fugue may take part in it in turn. Very frequently we find more than one stretto in the same fugue. In that case the interest of the music is not only maintained, but heightened by making each successive stretto closer than the preceding.
17. We sometimes find fugues in which a stretto is seen in the first exposition, that is to say, in which the answer enters before the completion of the subject, not infrequently immediately after its commencement. A fugue of this kind is called a Close Fugue. ”

“ Though Mr. Spraggon was such a cool, impudent fellow with men, he was the most awkward, frightened wretch among ladies that ever was seen. His conversation consisted principally of coughing. 'Hem!'—cough—'yes, mum,'—hem—cough, cough—'the day,'—hem—cough—'mum, is'—hem—cough—'very,'—hem—cough—'mum, cold.' But we will introduce him to our family circle.
'Mr. Spraggon!' exclaimed Spigot in a tone equal to the one in which Jack had announced himself in the entrance ”

“ In the beginning, when man began to plough, when he had cut a furrow from one end to the other, he lifted his plough on to his shoulder, and when he had carried it back to the same end that he had begun from, he began again to plough thence. The Lord, in the form of an old man, passed by and said to him, ‘Not thus, my son, but when you make a furrow, turn your plough round at the same place to which you have cut the furrow, and plough back to the end from which you began.’ And thus the ploughman learnt to plough aright, as people plough at this day. ”

“ The wind dropped, and a pale moon, struggling intermittently through the dispersing cloud rack, shed a sickly brilliance over the interminable snow.
Sprague stood at the open door, heedless of the cold. For the hundredth time he told himself that he had followed the only path of a strong man, but, then, he knew that he was not a strong man. ”

“ Oh, I'm sorry to hear that, Sir Rupert. I wish I could have got here earlier, I'm sure.
Sir Rupert. Wish we'd asked you a month ago, if you're fond of shooting. Thought you might look down on sport, perhaps.
Spurrell (to himself) . Sport? Why, he's talking of birds—not the horse! (Aloud.) Me, Sir Rupert? Not much! I'm as keen on a day's gunning as any man, though I don't often get the chance now.
Sir Rupert (to himself, pleased) . Come, he don't seem strong against the Game Laws! ”

“ The rule to be found in nearly every work on fugue respecting tonal answer is, that if a subject leaps from tonic to dominant, either direct or through the third of the tonic, the answer must be tonal—that is to say, the tonic must be answered by the dominant, and the dominant by the tonic. ”

“ My first full furrow looked like the track of a snake under the influence of liquor, but I reversed the plough and came back fairly straight. I was beginning to get the hang of it. My next furrow was respectable, but not deep. But on the second return trip I ploughed her straight, and I ploughed her deep, and that without exerting nearly so much beef as on the first try. Most things are easy when you once know how. ”

“ I have heard that a sparrow was once flitting over a sheep-fold, when he looked at it carefully and behold, he saw a great eagle swoop down upon a newly weaned lamb and carry it off in his claws and fly away. Thereupon the sparrow clapped his wings and said, “I will do even as this one did;” and he waxed proud in his own conceit and mimicked a greater than he. ”

“ The whole conception of fugue, rightly understood, is one of the most important in music, and the reasons why some contrapuntal compositions are called fugues, while others are not, are so trivial, technically as well as aesthetically, that we have preferred to treat the subject separately under the general heading of Contrapuntal Forms, reserving only technical terms for definition here. ”

“ But the starling has a sharp bill, and he hits the poor sparrow with it. Sparrow calls him all the hard names he can think of, and summons the whole sparrow community to his assistance against the mean fellow who has come to deprive him of his home. ”

“ Undershell (in the dressing-room, to himself) . I wonder how long I've been locked up here—it seems hours! I almost hope they've forgotten me altogether.... Someone has come in.... If it should be Sir Rupert!! Great Heavens, what a situation to be found in by one's host!... Perhaps it's only that fellow Spurrell; if so, there's a chance. (The door is unlocked by Tredwell, who has lighted the candles on the dressing-table.) It's the butler again. Well, I shall soon know the worst! ”

“ Spugg was standing among a little group of listening members of the club and when he said that he had decided to send his chauffeur, he spoke with a kind of simple earnestness, a determination that marks the character of the man.
"Yes," he said, "we need all the man power we can command. This thing has come to a showdown and we've got to recognise it. I told Henry that it's a showdown and that he's to get ready and start right away."
"Well, Spugg," said one of the members "you're certainly setting us a fine example."
"What else can a man do?" said Mr. Spugg. ”

“ The word “fudge,” it has been stated, was first used by him in literary composition, although it probably originated with one Captain Fudge, a notorious fibber, nearly a century before. Street phrases, nicknames, and vulgar words were continually being added to the great stock of popular Slang up to the commencement of the present century, when it received numerous additions from pugilism, horse-racing, and “fast” life generally, which suddenly came into great public favour, and was at its height in the latter part of the reign of George III., and in the early days of the Regency. ”

“ Puder, masculine, ‘powder, hair-powder,’ Modern High German only, from French poudre.
puffen, verb, ‘to puff, buffet, cuff,’ Modern High German only, properly a Low German word; compare Dutch pof, ‘thrust, blow, credit’ (whence Modern High German Puff in the sense of ‘credit’) , probably allied also to bobbien, buffen, ‘to strike,’ English buffet, substantive and verb; puff (hence the meaning of Puff, ‘puffing of a sleeve’) , and to puff (Anglo-Saxon pyffan) . “The close proximity of the meanings ‘to blow’ (inflate) and ‘to strike’ is not unusual ”

“ On touching the sponge we observe that it is of a soft, gelatinous consistence throughout, or if, as is often the case, the body is supported by a skeleton of greater or less firmness, a gentle application of the finger will still show that this framework is surrounded by material of a jelly-like nature. ”