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 McGraw Hill

500
ACT Science
Questions
to know by test day

fm.indd 1 21-12-2021 13:50:28

 Also in the McGraw Hill 500 Questions Series
500 ACT English and Reading Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
500 ACT Math Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
500 GRE Math Questions to Know by Test Day, Second Edition
500 HESI A2 Questions to Know by Test Day, Second Edition
500 SAT Math Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
500 SAT Reading, Writing, and Language Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP Biology Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP Calculus AB/BC Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP Chemistry Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP English Language Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP English Literature Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP European History Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP Human Geography Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP Macroeconomics Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP Microeconomics Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP Physics 1 Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP Physics C Questions to Know by Test Day
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP Psychology Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP Statistics Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP U.S. Government & Politics Questions to Know by Test Day, Second Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP U.S. History Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition
5 Steps to a 5: 500 AP World History Questions to Know by Test Day, Third Edition

fm.indd 2 21-12-2021 13:50:28

 McGraw Hill

500
ACT Science
Questions
to know by test day

Third Edition

Anaxos, Inc.

New York Chicago San Francisco Athens London Madrid

Mexico City Milan New Delhi Singapore Sydney Toronto

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Copyright © 2022, 2018, 2015 by McGraw Hill. All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the
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 CONTENTS

Introduction vii
Diagnostic Quiz 1
Getting Started: The Diagnostic Quiz 3
Diagnostic Quiz Questions 5
Questions 1–20
Diagnostic Quiz Answers 13
Chapter 1 Test 1 15
Questions 1–40

Chapter 2 Test 2 29
Questions 41–80

Chapter 3 Test 3 45
Questions 81–122

Chapter 4 Test 4 59
Questions 123–161

Chapter 5 Test 5 73
Questions 162–203

Chapter 6 Test 6 87
Questions 204–245

Chapter 7 Test 7 101

Questions 246–283

Chapter 8 Test 8 115

Questions 284–327

Chapter 9 Test 9 133

Questions 328–369

Chapter 10 Test 10 149

Questions 370–412

Chapter 11 Test 11 163

Questions 413–460

Chapter 12 Timed Test 183

Questions 461–500

Answers 203

‹ v

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 INTRODUC TION

Congratulations! You’ve taken a big step toward ACT success by purchasing

McGraw Hill 500 ACT Science Questions to know by test day. This book and the
others in this series were written by expert teachers who know the ACT inside
and out, and working on these questions will expose you to many kinds of
questions that are likely to appear on the exam. We are here to help you take the
next step and score high on your ACT exam so you can get into the college or
university of your choice.
This book provides 500 ACT-style, multiple-choice questions that cover a
wide variety of science topics. Each question is clearly explained in the answer
key. The questions will give you valuable independent practice to supplement the
material you have already covered in your science classes.
You may be the kind of student who needs extra study a few weeks before the
exam for a final review, or you may be the kind of student who puts off preparing
until the last minute. No matter what your preparation style, you will benefit
from reviewing these 500 questions, which closely parallel the content and degree
of difficulty of the science questions on the actual ACT. These questions and the
explanations in the answer key are the ideal last-minute study tool for those final
weeks before the test.
As you go through each chapter, you’ll want to practice your pacing as you
read the passages and answer the questions because time is a critical factor during
the ACT test. After reading or skimming the passage, a good rule of thumb is
to allow yourself 30 seconds per question. Determine what pace enables you to
be most successful in answering the questions. Chapter 12 provides a complete
35-minute practice test with seven passages containing 40 questions that mirror
the format of the ACT test.
If you practice with all the questions and answers in this book, we are certain
you will build the skills and confidence you will need to excel on the ACT.
Good luck!

—The Editors of McGraw Hill

‹ vii

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 Diagnostic Quiz

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 GE T TING STARTED:
THE DIAGNOSTIC QUIZ

The following questions refer to different units in this book. These questions will
help you test your understanding of the concepts tested on the ACT exam by
giving you an idea of where you need to focus your attention as you prepare. For
each question, simply circle the letter of your choice. Once you are done with the
exam, check your work against the given answers, which cover the corresponding
material in the book.

Good luck!

‹ 3

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 DIAGNOSTIC QUIZ QUESTIONS

Passage A
One of the leading problems that humanity is dealing with today is climate
change. While a majority of respected scientists believes that humans have
contributed to climate change, there are some disparities in the scientific
community.

Scientist A
The idea that humans have contributed to climate change is impossible to
challenge. Through the addition of greenhouse gases (via fossil fuel use and
excessive emissions), the cutting down of forests, and other human activity,
humans have significantly contributed to climate change. The year 2019 was the
hottest year on record, and the many extreme weather events show that urgent
steps are needed to ensure that the Earth continues to be habitable. The current
measures and international systems designed to tackle climate change are not
achieving any of the necessary goals as climate change continues contributing to
rising sea levels and higher temperatures around the globe. The switch to more
sustainable sources (such as bioenergy) is going far too slowly, and the existing
idea of subsidizing renewable energy while the use of fossil fuels continues is
not sustainable. Using newer technologies that can deal with the existing carbon
dioxide in the atmosphere is essential. For example, metal oxides can be utilized
in the carbon-sequestration process.

Scientist B
While there is a definitive trend of changes in the climate, they are not entirely
because of human activity. Another factor that should be noted is the natural
changes in the Earth’s trajectory orbiting around the sun. Such changes, as
well as natural changes in the environment—such as solar radiation or volcanic
activity that increase the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere—may also be
major contributors to climate change.
When you think about the many changes that the Earth has undergone, many
of them precede humanity. It is entirely possible that after the current warming,
we will face another ice age because of the shifting trajectory of the Earth’s
orbit as well as the angle at which the Earth rotates around its axis. Many of the
measures done today are entirely counterproductive. Cap-and-trade systems do
not make any sense; they just leave room for redundant spending. Some new
technologies, such as carbon capture, are not energetically effective because the

‹ 5

diagnosticquiz.indd 5 22-12-2021 10:44:24

 6 › McGraw Hill 500 ACT Science Questions

energy necessary to implement them results in more carbon emissions than they
actually capture.

1. Which of the following is something Scientists A and B could agree on?

(A) The impact of humans on climate change is negligible.
(B) Greenhouse gases contribute to climate change.
(C) Natural causes are the key reason why climate change is a problem.
(D) The transportation sector is the key aspect contributing to climate
change.

2. Which of the following would best support the ideas of Scientist B?

(A) The Milankovitch theory of planetary orbital cycles
(B) Anthropogenic global warming
(C) The theory of the ocean’s thermohaline circulation
(D) The biothermostat theory

3. Based on information from the passages above, which of the following

steps would Scientist A most likely recommend?
(A) Subsidizing renewable energy companies
(B) Cap-and-trade systems
(C) Carbon capture
(D) Voluntary emission caps

4. Why do Scientists A and B disagree on the value of carbon capture?

(A) Scientist B does not believe in the danger of climate change.
(B) Scientist B believes in the effectiveness of cap and trade.
(C) Scientist A is more in favor of multilateral solutions such as the Paris
Treaty.
(D) Scientist A does not account for the energy necessary to enact carbon
capture.

5. Which of the following is a necessary component in the carbon

sequestration process?
(A) Magnesium oxide
(B) Oxygen
(C) Calcium carbonate
(D) Natrium chloride

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 Diagnostic Quiz Questions ‹ 7

6. Only 0.1% of carbon dioxide came from solar radiation and volcanic
activity in the past 15 years. An increase of 48% of additional carbon
dioxide in the atmosphere in the past 20 years derives mostly from human
activity. How does this information influence the opinions of the two
scientists?
(A) It shows that despite the increase in carbon dioxide, the dangers
presented by Scientist A, are overexaggerated.
(B) It mostly invalidates the opinion of Scientist B that existing measures
of targeting climate change do not work.
(C) It mostly invalidates the ideas from Scientist B that natural processes
are causing climate change.
(D) It shows that Scientist A’s views about the necessity of renewable
sources are inaccurate.

Passage B
Flies are often considered to be pests, but many studies are focused on
understanding their behavior. This experiment tests the preference of flies in
eating different types of sugar, as well as a sugar substitute called saccharin. All
live beings depend on different chemical receptors in order to taste their food
of choice. In the case of flies, the fly is able to test food by walking on it. Such
experiments about food preferences are important because they have relatively
simple sensory-response systems.
The experiment was conducted by sticking flies to popsicle sticks. After that,
a dilution series of glucose, maltose, and sucrose was made. Different levels of
sugars—0.003M, 0.01M, 0.03M, 0.1M, 0.3M, and 1M—were made through
that dilution process. The sensory perception of the flies was then tested, but the
flies were rinsed in diluted water between every test. Flies were offered different
sugars beginning with the lowest concentrations and then working up. A positive
response was detected if the fly lowered its proboscis. Another reason why the
diluted water was significant was to ensure that the positive response was toward
the sugar rather than toward the water. The results are presented in Table 1.

Table 1. The average number of flies in each lab group that fed from
0.3 M concentrations of each chemical tested. The mean ± standard
deviation is shown.

Chemical tested Number of 10 flies responding

Glucose 3.2 ± 1.5
Maltose 7.8 ± 2.3
Sucrose 8.6 ± 2.1
Saccharin 0.2 ± 0.5

diagnosticquiz.indd 7 22-12-2021 10:44:24

 8 › McGraw Hill 500 ACT Science Questions

The different ways the flies responded to various concentrations are shown in
Figure 1.
Number of flies feeding
100 Succrose
Moltose
80 Glucose
Number of flies feeding

60

40

20

0
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
Concentration
Figure 1. Number of flies responding to different types of sugar

7. Based on information from Figure 1, if the scientist had only done the
experiment with a concentration of 0.003M, what would they have
concluded?
(A) They would have arrived at the same conclusion.
(B) They would have learned that flies are more partial to artificial sugars.
(C) They would have learned that the sugar the flies prefer the most is
maltose.
(D) They would have found no significant difference in fly sugar
preferences.

8. What is the dependent variable in this experiment?

(A) The number of flies feeding
(B) The quantity of sugar
(C) The type of sugar
(D) The amount of water

9. How has the experiment avoided spurious or unverified results?

(A) By using different amounts of sugar
(B) By letting the flies test distilled water between tests
(C) By using both artificial and real sugars
(D) By using multiple independent variables

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 Diagnostic Quiz Questions ‹ 9

10. What could be a practical application of the information from the

experiment?
(A) Developing fly repellants based on sucrose could be a valid option.
(B) Artificial sugar is less likely to attract flies compared to glucose.
(C) Based on the high value of the standard deviation, there is no
difference between the sugar types.
(D) Some type of fly trap could be developed from sucrose or maltose.

11. Based on the value of the standard deviation in the experiment, what is the
smallest value of 10 flies responding for maltose?
(A) 3.2
(B) 5.5
(C) 6.27
(D) 7.8

12. Based on Figure 1, which of the following can be inferred?

(A) The control variable should not have been used since multicollinearity
is present.
(B) There is no statistical significance between concentration and fly
preferences for different sugars.
(C) There is a strong positive correlation between the concentration of
sugar and the number of flies feeding.
(D) There is a weak negative correlation between the concentration of
sugar and the number of flies feeding.

13. The scientists have decided that they should test for the impact of fructose
on fly preferences. How would this impact the original experiment?
(A) It would include another control variable.
(B) It would change the dependent variable.
(C) It would create a new instrumental variable.
(D) It would include another independent variable.

diagnosticquiz.indd 9 22-12-2021 10:44:26

 10 › McGraw Hill 500 ACT Science Questions

Passage 3
A group of students has decided to investigate some of the chemical traits of
commonly used compounds.

Table 2. Substance list and chemical traits

Substance Molecular Density (g/cm3) Melting Boiling

weight point (°C) point (°C)
Sodium chloride 58.44 2.16 801 1,413
Magnesium oxide 40.3 3.58 2,852 3,600
Aluminum potassium 258.21 1.757 92 200
Potassium chloride 58.09 2.48 858 1,505
Barium hydroxide 171.36 3.74 78 780

After considering the possible options, the students decided to experiment

using magnesium oxide. By doing an experiment with magnesium and
magnesium oxide, the students aimed to practically demonstrate Hess’s law. The
first trial was conducted by including magnesium, and the second was conducted
by including magnesium oxide. Both were separately put in a constant-pressure
calorimeter to determine the amount of energy that was generated from the
reaction. The information from trial 1, conducted with magnesium oxide, is in
the figure below.
35

30

25
Temperature (°C)

20

15

10

0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Time (s)
Figure 2. Temperature change over time

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 Diagnostic Quiz Questions ‹ 11

The information about trial 2 is shown in the figure below. Trial 2 was
conducted utilizing magnesium and is shown in the figure below.
50

45

40

35
Temperature (°C)

30

25

20

15

10

0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
Time (s)
Figure 3. Temperature change over time

The experiment determined that the overall energy utilized was –25,020KJ/Kg.
The students were very satisfied with the results since they were almost identical
to the theoretical value the equation should have.

14. What can you infer about the relationship between density and the melting
point based on the information in Table 2?
(A) Denser elements have stronger molecular bonds and thus have a
higher melting point because more energy is required to break down
these bonds.
(B) Less dense elements have a stronger connection between the remote
molecules and thus have a higher melting point.
(C) There is no connection between density and the melting point
because different compounds of comparable melting points have
highly different densities.
(D) Denser elements on average tend to have a higher melting point, with the
exception of oxides, which have stronger bonds than other elements.

15. How many of the substances listed in Table 2 would be in liquid form at
100°C?
(A) 0
(B) 1
(C) 2
(D) 3

diagnosticquiz.indd 11 22-12-2021 10:44:27

Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
generally designate as our 'popular music' that such an art will
emanate; from the street, the theatre, the dance hall, and more
particularly from the sentimentalities of the popular songs which
periodically hold the affections of such a vast public. Ephemeral as is
the mass of this music that annually sweeps over our country, each
phase of it leaves its mark, some deeper than others, but all
contributing to the upbuilding of the national character of our music.

I
Let us turn our attention to a brief survey of some of these phases of
the popular music, both past and present.

Generally speaking, the bulk of this music may be classified into the
two form-divisions which distinguish the main orders of all musical
art—the dance and the song form, the rhythmic and the lyric. While
the latter predominated in the popular music of past decades, the
present-day tendencies give greater importance to the dance and
even the larger part of our popular songs are set to the more
enlivening rhythms of the prevailing dance measures. We have seen
that the 'minstrel show' provided the medium whereby the first
purveyors of popular music reached the public. It was through the
means of this popular entertainment that many of the early favorites
reached fame. With the rise of the vaudeville or 'variety show' the
character of popular music underwent a considerable change. The
introduction of the comic song brought a new element into its nature
and then came that slough of sentimentalism which was to remove
from our popular music the naïve but sincere appeal of the old
ballads and replace them with the more sophisticated but vulgar
frivolities.

The sentimental song has, however, never entirely disappeared from

the popular répertoire; it has, indeed, persistently maintained a
considerable place in the affections of every period. Even the
younger of our own generation can recall the phase of popular taste
that existed just before the inauguration of a new order in the
appearance of 'ragtime.' Almost all of the then popular melodies
consisted of songs replete with the so-called 'heart quality.' The mild
eroticism of 'Sweet Marie' and 'The Sweetest Story ever Told' shared
the popular favor with the patriotically sentimental 'Comrades' and
'Just Break the News to Mother,' songs in which the memory of the
war lingered and which were prompted by the success of the military
drama. While the popularity of these songs has been great, the
public has been indifferent to the composers, and they have had to
be content with an almost anonymous fame. Some of the men who
represent this past decade of the sentimental song are: Charles K.
Harris, whose greatest success was 'After the Ball'; Charles Graham,
Felix McGlennon, H. W. Petrie, and Paul Dresser.

The reappearance of the negro-element in the form of the 'coon

song' marks an important epoch in the evolution of our popular
music. The 'coon song' presents to us the light-hearted side of the
negro; the pathos of the slave is never presented in these later negro
songs—only the 'darky's' picturesqueness, his quasi-humorous
vagabondage, and, in the more vulgarized types, his frenzied
ribaldry.

The coon song has passed through a number of development

stages. The first examples, such as 'Kentucky Babe' and 'Little
Alabama Coon,' were of a naïve variety which contained but the
merest suggestion of the real negro element. There has been a
subsequently wider utilization of the syncopated rhythms which
constitute the popularities of 'ragtime' and present-day examples,
such as 'Waitin' for the Robert E. Lee,' represent a rather
complicated and decidedly more characteristic type than do the coon
songs of preceding seasons.

Following the success of the coon song there was an exploitation of

the 'Indian' song. These songs were even less genuine in origin than
their antecedents. The Indian element was often obtained by the
employment of a sort of garbled Oriental ragtime or of a disguised
Celtic idiom, and only the titles revealed these compositions as
Indian. 'Hiawatha' and 'Tammany' were among the first of these
songs, and they were followed by a large number of imitations.

Besides these two principal classes of popular music employing a

local color in its idiom, countless experiments have been made with
other varieties. The Oriental has been much used and the refrain of
the once popular 'Streets of Cairo' has served as the 'leitmotif' of a
thousand and one pieces partaking of a pseudo-Orientalism. The
Irish song has had a persistent vogue; it has several representative
types; the sentimental 'Annie Rooney' and 'Maggie Murphy' of earlier
days have been succeeded by the more boisterous 'Bedelia' and the
perennial 'Mr. Dooley.' There is usually a saving grace of humor in
these Hibernian offerings which palliates even their most patent
vulgarity.

The vogue of the more recent popular music has been dictated by
the various dance fads which have lately seized the public fancy.
First the 'turkey trot' and 'barn dance' brought forth such originalities
as 'Alexander's Rag Time Band' and 'Everybody's Doin' It,' these to
be followed by an avalanche of various 'glides' and 'rags.' The music
of the dances and dance songs is unique in its blending of certain
negro qualities of rhythm and melody with a strange indeterminate
sense of something Slavic or Oriental in their abandon. The last
aspect of popular dance music is that furnished by the importation of
the 'tango,' maxixe and other Latin American dances. Most of the
more popular tunes to which these steps are danced are
pronouncedly Spanish and have in most cases been imported with
the dances themselves.

An ingenious procedure on the part of the popular composer has

been to weave into the verse or refrain of a song a few measures of
some well-known popular classic. One of the first and perhaps the
best known example is the use of Mendelssohn's 'Spring Song' in
the refrain of the song so disrespectfully called 'That Mendelssohn
Rag.' Following this there have appeared many such appropriations
and nearly the entire list of the popular melodies of the standard
classics has been thus utilized.
Viewed as a whole, the popular music of to-day presents an
expression far in advance of that of even a few years ago. Some of it
contains subtleties of harmonic and rhythmic design that would have
been caviar to the public of yesterday. It is to be regretted that this
advance in form has been made at the sacrifice of the more
ingenious spirit of the early popular music, and that the tone of most
of our popular music to-day is so uniformly vulgar.

II
There is a middle world of music that touches, on its one side, the
more elevated regions of art, while, on the other, it does not lose its
hold on the larger world of popular taste. This is the world of comic
opera—using the term in its general sense of a stage piece with
music of a lighter variety.

The American public was early taught to appreciate this form of

artistic amusement; the history of opera in this country shows a
continuous record of the production of such works in all the larger
cities. Important agencies in the popularizing of comic opera were
the early performances of the Gilbert and Sullivan operettas, the
brilliant seasons of French and Viennese opera at the Casino
Theatre in New York, and the excellent services of the Bostonians in
presenting ideally some of the most charming of the standard
répertoire, besides revealing the merit of our native composers, in
giving with success some of the first American comic operas to
reach public hearing.

Up to the time of the Bostonians' championship of the American light

opera composer there has been but an occasional performance of
some work of local interest. Julius Eichberg is generally accredited
with being America's first comic opera composer, his fame resting
largely on a popular work entitled 'The Doctor of Alcantara' that was
produced in Boston in 1862. Eichberg could be called an American
composer only in that an American city happened to be the scene of
his activities. There is nothing about his work to give it any special
significance as American.

In fact, as we look over the entire product of our light opera

composers, we are forced again to deplore the lack of a distinctive
vein or local sense that would put the national seal on America's
many and notable achievements in this field. Even England, whose
cultivated art is almost as devoid of a national feeling as is
America's, has, in the Gilbert and Sullivan operettas, works of a truly
national significance. Mr. Krehbiel has observed that George Ade
has the requisite equipment of an American Gilbert, but that as yet
there has not been found the composer who could be his Sullivan.

To assert convincingly America's claims to having contributed largely

and valuably to the world's comic operas we have only to put forward
these names: Reginald de Koven, Victor Herbert, and John Philip
Sousa. The first name in this group is of one who is perhaps more
closely identified with the comic opera stage than any other living
composer. Reginald de Koven was born in 1861 at Middletown,
Conn. After graduating at Oxford University in 1880 he began his
career as a musician by studying in several European cities. The
studies which were to bear the greatest fruit were those pursued
under that master of comic opera, Suppé. On returning to America
Mr. de Koven resided for some years in Chicago, where he did
musical journalism and wrote the experimental scores that preceded
his first and greatest success, 'Robin Hood.' Mr. de Koven's career
since coming into the fame to which this work has brought him has
been too familiar to need recounting. He is as well known for his
songs as for his operas and his place in the lists of American lyricists
is noted in Chapter XII.

If any of our younger composers of comic opera are possessed of an

artistic ideal, doubtless in nine out of ten cases it is to write an opera
that shall combine the sterling worth of good music with telling
popular qualities in the measure that 'Robin Hood' does it. It is too
late a day to write either a description or analysis of a work every
page of which is familiar to the great majority of our music-loving
public. It alone, of all the successes of past years, survives in the
popular affection; and it is reassuring to those who fear an ultimate
total depravity of taste that his work of charming grace and color can
still hold the boards. 'Robin Hood' was the third opera which de
Koven wrote. It was produced in 1890 by the Bostonians. Its success
was not at first marked, but it did not take long for it to find its place,
and it is estimated that the work now has over three thousand
performances to its credit.

De Koven in this appealing work has successfully simulated the hale

and hearty style of the English ballad and the idyllic simplicity of the
country dance and pastoral scene. With these qualities he has
combined the richer warmth of a glowing romantic melodiousness
and a graceful and lilting gaiety after methods of the Viennese and
French schools. Vocally stirring and effective in both its solo parts
and ensembles, colorful if not brilliant in its orchestration, 'Robin
Hood' is a masterpiece of its genre. Withal de Koven is always
natural and spontaneously straightforward—traits that have laid him
open to the accusation of persistent plagiarism. Mr. de Koven does
at times employ themes that suggest other works, but this is true of
many another composer whose integrity is unquestioned, and there
is much truth in Mr. Hughes' designation of de Koven as 'the best
abused composer in America.'

Since the success of 'Robin Hood' Mr. de Koven has been in the
unfortunate position of a man attempting to repeat a success along
similar lines. Once only has he made any near approach to it and
that in his seventh opera, 'Rob Roy' (produced in 1894). There is in
this score much of the same freshness that characterizes 'Robin
Hood,' and its melodies are not too reminiscent of the earlier works.
The same cannot be said of many of de Koven's other operas, for in
his less inspired moments the composer's heartiness becomes a
rather too square pomposity and his lighter moments often descend
to a banality unworthy of his best style. The following are among the
other operas of de Koven, with the dates of their productions: 'The
Begum' (1887), 'Don Quixote' (1889), 'The Fencing Master' (1892),
'The Knickerbockers' (1893), 'The Algerian' (1893), 'The Tsigane'
(1895), 'The Mandarin' (1896), 'The Paris Doll' (1897), 'The
Highwayman' (1897).

Victor Herbert in his comic operas has contrived to write in a vein

somewhat more varied than de Koven. While he has never achieved
a success to equal that of 'Robin Hood,' his operas taken as a whole
exhibit a more sustained power of invention and inspiration than
those of de Koven. Herbert's style is more marked by piquancy and
lightness, but he is not lacking in a melodic sense both charming and
natural.

Herbert's style has undergone an evolution since his entrance into

the comic opera field. His earlier works, such as 'The Wizard of the
Nile,' 'The Serenade,' and 'The Idol's Eye,' are very simple in
structure, while in some of his later works he employs an ambitious
scheme that the laity are wont to identify with 'grand' opera. Some of
Herbert's later scores are: 'The Red Mill,' 'Mlle. Modiste,' 'Algeria,'
and 'Sweethearts.' Mr. Herbert was born in Ireland in 1859, was
musically educated in Germany, and came to America at about the
age of twenty-seven as solo 'cellist to the Metropolitan Opera House.
His 'Americanism' is, therefore, acquired.

John Philip Sousa's fame, as is well known, is not primarily that of an

opera composer. As the 'march king' Mr. Sousa's fame is as unique
as it is deserved. Sousa is of German-Spanish descent. He was born
in Washington in 1859. His career has been one of rich practical
experience and opportunity, leading to an engagement as the leader
of the United States Marine Band. In 1892 he organized the band
which bears his own name and that organization has, perhaps, a
more world-wide fame than any other feature of our musical life.

Mr. Sousa has been often held up as the most representative of

American composers, an estimate that is not without considerable
truth. An analogy has been made between the Strauss waltzes and
the Sousa marches: the latter have not perhaps so much art as the
former, but they are all admirable pieces of composition, solid in
harmonic structure, and stirring in their melodic directness. 'The
Washington Post,' 'The Liberty Bell,' 'The High School Cadets,' and
'King Cotton' have each, in turn, inspired the land with their martial
vigor, while 'The Stars and Stripes Forever' has become permanent
in the people's affections, being, indeed, a national anthem more
eloquent in Americanism than many of the tunes that bear the official
seal as such.

Sousa has written several comic operas. One only of these, 'El
Capitan,' has met with success. It contains much music of an
agreeable brilliancy and gracefulness, notably one of the best
examples of the composer's marches. There is lacking, however, in
Sousa's music a quality very essential to the rounding out of a
successful opera score. We refer to the more sensuous melodic line
which lends color to the sustained portions of a work. Later operas of
Sousa include: 'The Bride Elect,' 'The Charlatan,' 'Chris and the
Wonderful Lamp,' and 'The Glass Blowers,' and it may be added that
Mr. Sousa has made several incursions into the field of more serious
music, having written a symphonic poem and several other works for
orchestra.

One of the most prolific composers of American light opera was

Julian Edwards (1855-1910). Mr. Edwards' list of about twenty
operas includes the names of several that have had remarkable
success. 'Brian Boru' and 'Dolly Varden' are more than names to
many. In 1904 Mr. Edwards wrote the opera 'Love's Lottery,' which
served as the vehicle whereby Mme. Schumann-Heink entered the
comic opera field.

Ludwig Englander and Gustav Luders are other names endeared to

American comic opera lovers. Both are of foreign birth, however. The
operas of the latter include 'King Dodo,' 'Grand Mogul,' and 'The
Prince of Pilsen,' all works which, though neither marked by
originality nor over-refined, contained enough of musical vitality to
have won a place in the public esteem.
Less known writers who have from time to time added their quota to
the country's enlivening and tuneful music include: G. Thorne, whose
opera, 'A Maid of Plymouth,' was one of the first in the répertoire of
the Bostonians; Henry Waller, the composer of 'Olgallalas,' which
was also produced by the Bostonians; Carl Pflueger, who wrote
'1492,' given by the Boston Cadets, an amateur organization, in one
of their excellent productions; and Barnet, whose 'Jack and the
Beanstalk' was also sung at one of the Cadets' 'shows.'

Several of the more serious composers have essayed the comic

opera, not always successfully. George W. Chadwick's 'Tabasco,'
first produced by the Boston Cadets, had a fair success when
subsequently given professionally, but Edgar Stillman-Kelley's
'Puritania' and Henry Hadley's 'Nancy Brown' were decided failures.
One of the recent successes was Deems Taylor's 'The Echo,'
originally written as a college 'show' but achieving a long run on New
York's Broadway.

Viewed in the light of present-day conditions and compared with the

class of works that constitute the large part of modern musical stage-
works, most of the foregoing operas may be classed as hopelessly
old-fashioned and passé. The decline of comic opera commenced
with the ascendency of the English 'musical comedy.' There are, it is
true, many works of the latter order that contain pages of music far
better than what is to be found in many of the more strictly operatic
works. Such works as 'Florodora' and 'The Geisha,' as well as many
later ones, have had much charm and refinement. It is the tendency
of these works to abolish the romantic strain of the old-fashioned
opera that constitutes its baneful influence. The play and the music
have become gradually more and more divorced and to-day the
musical portions of such a work have little or no bearing on the
action or the scene, but consist almost entirely of topical songs
introduced in much the same irrelevant manner in which they are so
ingeniously brought into a vaudeville 'act.' Paraphrasing Voltaire, the
majority of this degenerate class is neither musical nor comic.
This is the direction followed by our lighter musical plays of most
recent times. It is to be regretted that the grace and refinement that
marks many of the English musical comedies is so entirely lacking in
the American imitations of the same class. A note of vulgarity
insinuates itself unfailingly into the bulk of our contemporaneous
popular music. Flagrant examples of the ultimate type of musical
play above described are those of George M. Cohan, in whose
inspiration some have seen the first manifestation of the American
'genius.' The titles of some of Mr. Cohan's plays, such as 'Yankee
Doodle Boy,' 'Little Johnny Jones,' and 'George Washington, Jr.,'
reveal the jingoistic qualities of his inspirations. The musical
numbers of these works are expressed in terms more or less Mr.
Cohan's own. He has utilized 'ragtime' largely and in the rhythmical
excitement of his songs lies their strongest appeal. Other authors
whose works follow generally either the Americanized form of the
English musical comedy or the more distinctly native form of Mr.
Cohan's 'musical shows' are: Jean Schwartz, Silvio Hein, Gus
Edwards, Manuel Klein, Raymond Hubbel, and Robert H. Bowers.

It is to be hoped that there will be a return to the more legitimate

forms of lighter operas and that a revival of taste for the more refined
forms of stage work may soon offer again to the American composer
opportunities to demonstrate the very suitable field which this branch
of the art offers to his talent. An optimistic observer of present
conditions may see in the unqualified vulgarity of our popular music
to-day only the token of a vitality which, when softened by the
refining touch of the next decade, shall result in an expression of
individual charm.

B. L.
LITERATURE FOR VOLUME IV
In English

William F. Allen: Slave Songs of the United States (1867).

W. G. Armstrong: A Record of Opera in Philadelphia (Phila.,

1884).

Rudolph Aronson: Theatrical and Musical Memories (New York,

1913; Boston, 1913).

W. J. Baltzell: Music in American Cities (The Musician, vol. 18,

No. 6, pp. 369-373; No. 9, pp. 587-590).

Henry Clay Barnabee: Reminiscences of Henry Clay Barnabee;

ed. by Geo. L. Varney (Boston, 1913).

Frederick R. Burton: American Primitive Music (New York,

1909).

Cabin and Plantation Songs as Sung by the Hampton Students

(New York, 1874).

Louis C. Elson: The National Music of America and Its Sources

(Boston, 1900).

Louis C. Elson: The History of American Music (New York,

1904).

Arthur Farwell: New York's Municipal Music (Review of

Reviews, Vol. 44, pp. 451-458).
Arthur Farwell: Folksongs of the West and South, Negro,
Cowboy, and Spanish-Californian, Harmonized (Newton Center,
Mass., 1905).

D. B. Fisher: The Story of New Orleans' Rise as a Music Center

(In Musical America, Vol. 19, No. 19, pp. 3-5).

Henry F. Gilbert: The American Composer (Musical Quarterly,

Vol 1, pp. 169-180).

Henry F. Gilbert: Nationalism in Music (The International, New

York, Dec., 1913).

Lawrence Gilman: Edward MacDowell (New York, 1909).

Philip H. Goepp, ed.: Annals of Music in Philadelphia (Phila.,

1896).

Octavia Hensel: Life and Letters of Louis M. Gottschalk (Boston,

1870).

History of the American Stage, 1773-1870 (New York, 1870).

Richard Hoffman: Some Musical Recollections (New York,

1910).

Rupert Hughes: American Composers (Boston, 1914).

J. N. Ireland: Record of the New York Stage (New York, 1866-

67).

F. O. Jones: Handbook of American Music and Musicians

(Buffalo, 1887).

H. E. Krehbiel: Indian Melodies; Interesting Experiments with

Their Settings, etc.; Ojibway Songs (1902).

H. E. Krehbiel: Afro-American Folksongs (New York, 1914).

H. E. Krehbiel: Chapters of Opera (New York, 1909).

Max Maretzek: Crotchets and Quavers (New York, 1855).

J. B. T. Marsh: The Story of the Jubilee Singers with their Songs

(Boston, 1880).
Lowell Mason: Musical Letters from Abroad (New York, 1854).

William Mason: Memories of a Musical Life (New York, 1901).

W. S. B. Matthews: A Hundred Years of Music in America

(Chicago, 1889).

Musical Courier (Vol. 37, No. 1, pp. 27-29): Musical Statistics of

San Francisco from 1849-1898.

Musical Courier (Vol. 47, No. 10, p. 8): The French Opera in
New Orleans.

L. O'Connell: Music in Mayflower Days (The Musician, Vol. 11,

No. 9, p. 435).

J. L. Onderdonck: Colonial Patriotism in Song (Amer. Hist.

Register, Vol. 3, pp. 472-80, 1896).

C. C. Perkins and J. S. Dwight: History of the Handel and

Haydn Society of Boston (Boston, 1883-93).

Frederic Louis Ritter: Music in America (New York, 1883).

Thomas Ryan: Recollections of an Old Musician (New York,

1883).

T. F. Seward: The Story of the Jubilee Singers with Their Songs

(London, 1897).

O. G. Sonneck: Early Concert Life in America (Leipzig, 1907).

O. G. Sonneck: Early Opera in America (New York, 1915).

O. G. Sonneck: Francis Hopkinson and James Lyon

(Washington, D. C.).

O. G. Sonneck: Report on 'The Star-Spangled Banner,' 'Hail

Columbia,' 'Yankee Doodle' (Washington, D. C., 1909).

Vance Thompson: The Life of Ethelbert Nevin (Boston, 1913).

Julien Tiersot: Folk Music of Canada and the United States

(New York).
Charley White: Negro Minstrelsy's Origin (Diary of the late
Charley White, N. Y. Sun, April 20, 1902).

In German

Albert Friedenthal: Musik, Tanz und Dichtung bei den Kreolen

Amerika's (Berlin, 1913).

J. C. Griggs: Studien über die Musik in Amerika (Leipzig, 1894).

A. Laser: Musikleben in Amerika (Die Musik, Vol. 4, pp. 244-246).

E. Hanslick: Aus dem Tagebuch eines Musikers (Berlin, 1892).

Maurice Halperson: Symphonie-Musik in New York (Allgemeine

Musikzeitung, Vol. 39, Nos. 32-33).

H. Mosenthal: Geschichte des Vereins 'Deutscher Liederkranz'

in New York (New York, 1897).

In French

Henri Herz: Mes Voyages en Amérique, (1866).

Jacques Offenbach: Notes d'un musicien en voyage (Paris,

1877).

Julien Tiersot: La musique chez les peuples indigènes de

l'Amérique (Notes d'ethnographie musicale) (Paris, 1910).
 INDEX FOR VOLUME IV
N. B.—Figures in italics indicate major references.

Abbey, Henry E., 136f, 142f.

Abbott, Emma, 160f, 168.

à Becket, Thomas, 326.

Aborigines. See Primitive music; also Indians.

Aborn, Milton and Sargent, 155ff, 173.

Abt, Franz, quot., 309f.

Ade, George, 457.

Adgate, Andrew, 73, 87, 235.

Ainsworth, Henry, 19.

Albany (N. Y.), early concerts in, 68.

Alda, Frances, 153.

Allen, Paul, 449.

Allen, William Francis (quoted on negro music), 289, 295, 301, 304.

Alvary, Max, 140, 145, 147.

Amato, Pasquale, 153.

'America' (national anthem), 324.

American Institute of Applied Music, 255.

American Opera Company (of 1885), 140f.

Americanism. See Nationalism.

Anderson, Arthur Olaf, 400.

Andrews, Mark, 358f.

Annapolis (Md.), 80f, 108.

Anschütz, Carl, 132ff.

Anthems. See Church music.

Antognini, 125.

Appreciation (musical) in America, etc., xii-ff.

'Archers (The),' first American opera, 112.

Arditi, Luigi, 126f, 135, 171.

Aretinian Society (of Boston), 98.

Aronson, Rudolph, 144, 177f.

Arne, (Dr.) Thomas, 39, 69f.

Arnold, Maurice, 346f, 433.

Ash, Gilfert, organ-builder, 64.

Aston, Tony, 105ff.

Astor Place Opera House, 128f.

Avery, Stanley R., 400.

Ayres, Frederick, 415ff.

Baermann, Carl, 250.

Bailey, Daniel, 29ff.

Bailey, William, 29.

Baker, Benjamin F., 222.

Balfe's 'Bohemian Girl,' in New York, 126.

Ballad opera in America, 104ff. See also English opera.

Ballantine, Edward, 442.

Baltimore, early musical activities in, 41f, 81f, 87, 101, 234.

Bangor (Me.), music festivals, 223.

Banjo, primitive and modern, 296.

Bardin, Edward, 65.

Barnabee, Henry Clay, 175, 177.

Barrère, Georges, 205.

Barrère Ensemble, 205.

Bartlett, Homer N., 383f.

Battell, Robbins, 224.

'Battle Hymn of the Republic,' 329.

Bauer, Clara, 250f.

Beach, John, 390f.

Beach, [Mrs.] H. H. A., 342.

Beale, Frederick Fleming, 401.

Beethoven, in early American concerts, 95, 97;

influence of in America, 360f.

Beethoven festival (in New York), 186.

Bentley, John, 72.

Bergmann, Carl, 131f, 183, 185, 189, 203, 208, 209.

Bergh, Arthur, 391ff.

Bertucca (Signora), 128.

Berwald, W., 358f.

Bethlehem (Pa.), choral music in, 214, 233f.

Billings, William, 39, 49ff, 61;

as singing teacher, 98;
original compositions of, 234f;
patriotic songs of, 322.

Bird, Arthur, 402.

Bispham, David, 147.

Bliss, P. P., 245.

Bohemian Club of San Francisco, 228f, 396ff.

'Bohemian Girl' (Balfe), 126.

Bori, Lucrezia, 155.

Boston, early musical activities, 31ff, 236ff, 240ff;

early public concerts, 56ff, 83;
early musical societies, 98ff;
early opera, 109f;
opera, 172f;
orchestral organizations, 188ff;
chamber music in, 203f;
choral societies, 206ff;
music festivals, 223;
'Boston group' of composers, 335ff.

Boston Conservatory, 250.

Boston Symphony Orchestra, 190.

Bostonians (light opera troupe), 176f;

their influence on comic opera, 457.
Bottesini, 127.

Boudousquie, and New Orleans opera, 161ff.

Bradbury, William B., 222, 244f.

Brahms, influence of, in America, 348, 362.

Brahms festival, 186.

Brand, Michael, 193f.

Brandt, Marianne, 138, 140.

Branscombe, Gena, 438f.

Brattle, Thomas, 19.

Bremner, James, 69, 85.

Brewer, John Hyatt, 358.

Brignoli, 132.

Bristow, George F., 334;

(quoted) 182.

Broadhurst (Miss), 74f, 111.

Brockway, Howard, 382f.

Brooklyn (N. Y.), choral societies of, 213.

Brooklyn Philharmonic Society, 185.

Brounoff, Platon, 450.