Besides this, the negro's chief instrument was the drum, as already indicated. There were two principal sizes, made of a hollowed log (the smaller one often of bamboo sections) over the end of which sheep or goat skin was stretched. These drums were played in a horizontal position, the player sitting on the instrument astride. Then there were rattles, some like the Indians', some consisting of a jaw-bone of an animal, across which a piece of metal was 'rasped'; also the _morimbabrett_, consisting of a small shallow box of thin wood, with several sections of reed, of graduated lengths, placed across it, the ends of which were plucked by the player. The familiar Pan's pipes, made from two joints of brake cane ('quills') and various noise instruments--'bones,' triangle, tambourine, and whistles--were all made to do duty. But when the negro had become thoroughly civilized the violin became his favorite instrument, and the 'technique' he achieved upon it without any real training has often astonished the white listener. III Attention was not directed to the value of negro songs till the middle of the nineteenth century. Considerable research resulted finally in the publication of several collections, of which the 'Slave Songs of the United States,' already mentioned above, was the first. This collection of songs represents every phase in the gamut of expression. The so-called 'sorrow' songs, the oldest surviving negro songs, are perhaps the most expressive. Some of them have sprung from the memories of a single act of cruelty, or an event of such tragedy as to create a really deep impression. Others echo simply the hardships encountered day by day. There are songs, too, that reflect the sunshine and gaiety that was not altogether foreign to plantation life, but those inspired by grief are the most beautiful. Then there are the 'occupational' songs suggested by the rhythm of labor which form a part of every kind of folk-song the world over. The value of such songs was fully recognized by the slaves' masters, for they were unfailing accelerators of labor, and it is known that the slaves who led the singing in the field were given special rewards. In consequence of this the negroes generally came to abhor that class of songs, and it is significant that very few of the 'corn songs,' 'reel tunes,' 'fiddle songs,' and 'devil songs' have been preserved, while hundreds of the religious songs--'spirituals,' etc.--are now common property.[70]