"What is that?" I asked endeavouring to describe it. "Are they
there now?"
"No," he laughed. "That was the moon shining in. I wanted you to
hear what a difference it makes. When a ray of the sun, for
instance, strikes that 'feeler' over there, a harmonious and
majestic sound like the echo of a huge orchestra is heard. The
light of the moon, on the other hand, produces a different sound--
lamenting, almost like the groans of the wounded on a
battlefield."
"So you can distinguish between various kinds of light?"
"Yes. Electric light, you would find if anyone came in and
switched it on over there, produces a most unpleasant sound,
sometimes like two pieces of glass rubbed against each other,
sometimes like the tittering laugh of ghosts, and I have heard it
like the piercing cry of an animal. Gaslight is sobbing and
whispering, grating and ticking, according to its intensity. By
far the most melodious and pleasing sound is produced by an
ordinary wax candle. It sounds just like an aeolian harp on which
the chords of a solemn tune are struck.
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