the means by which the effects are produced. This power is,
perhaps, given by nature, but is doubtless improvable, if
not acquirable, by art. It may, possibly, consist in an
unusual flexibility or exertion of the bottom of the tongue
and the uvula. That speech is producible by these alone must
be granted, since anatomists mention two instances of
persons speaking without a tongue. In one case, the organ
was originally wanting, but its place was supplied by a
small tubercle, and the uvula was perfect. In the other, the
tongue was destroyed by disease, but probably a small part
of it remained.

This power is difficult to explain, but the fact is
undeniable. Experience shews that the human voice can
imitate the voice of all men and of all inferior animals.
The sound of musical instruments, and even noises from the
contact of inanimate substances, have been accurately
imitated. The mimicry of animals is notorious; and Dr.
Burney (Musical Travels) mentions one who imitated a flute
and violin, so as to deceive even his ears.

**--Peeps through the blanket of the dark, and cries Hold!
Hold!--SHAKESPEARE.

Chapter XXIII

"My morals will appear to you far from rigid, yet my conduct will fall
short of your suspicions. I am now to confess actions less excusable,
and yet surely they will not entitle me to the name of a desperate or
sordid criminal.

"Your house was rendered, by your frequent and long absences, easily
accessible to my curiosity. My meeting with Pleyel was the prelude to
direct intercourse with you. I had seen much of the world, but your
character exhibited a specimen of human powers that was wholly new to
me. My intercourse with your servant furnished me with curious details
of your domestic management. I was of a different sex: I was not your
husband; I was not even your friend; yet my knowledge of you was of that
kind, which conjugal intimacies can give, and, in some respects, more
accurate. The observation of your domestic was guided by me.

"You will not be surprized that I should sometimes profit by your
absence, and adventure to examine with my own eyes, the interior of your
chamber. Upright and sincere, you used no watchfulness, and practised
no precautions. I scrutinized every thing, and pried every where. Your
closet was usually locked, but it was once my fortune to find the key on
a bu