312 DISEASES Class III. i. 2. $1 



the mother to her offspring. Men who have not had leifure to 

 cultivate their tafte for vifible objects, and who have not read the 

 works of poets and romance-writers, are lefs liable to fentimen- 

 tal love \ and as ladies are educated rather with an idea of being 

 chofen, than of choofing ; there are many men and more wom- 

 en, who have not much of this infanity ; and are therefore more 

 eafily induced to marry for convenience orintereft, or from the 

 flattery of one fex to the other. 



4 



In its fortunate gratification fentimental love is fuppofed to 

 fupply the pureft fource of human felicity ; and from the fud- 

 dennefs with which many of thofe patients, defcribed in fpecies 

 I. of this genus, were feized with the maniacal hallucination, 

 there is reafon to believe, that the mod violent fentimental love 

 may be acquired in a moment of time, as reprefented by Shakf- 

 peare in the beginning of his Romeo and Juliet, as originally 

 written. 



Some have endeavoured to make a distinction between beau- 

 ty and grace, and have made them as it were rivals for the pof- 

 fefiion of the human heart \ but grace may be defined beauty in 

 action ; for a fleeping beauty cannot be called graceful in what- 

 ever attitude (he may recline ; the mufcles muft be in action to 

 produce a graceful attitude, and the limbs to produce a grace- 

 ful motion. But though the object of love is beauty, yet the 

 idea is neverthelefs much enhanced by the imagination' of the 

 lover ; which appears from this curious circumstance, that the 

 lady of his pafhon feldom appears fo beautiful to the lover after 

 a few months feparation, as his ideas had painted her in his 

 abfence ; and there is on that account, always a little difappoint- 

 ment felt for a minute at their nest interview from this halluci- 

 nation of his ideas. 



This paflion of love produces reverie in its firft (late, which 

 exertion alleviates the pain of it, and by the afliftance of hope 

 converts it into pleafure. Then the lover feeks folitude, left 

 this agreeable reverie fhould be interrupted by external ftimuJi, 

 as defcribed by Virgil. 



Tantum inter denfas, umbrofa cacumina, fagos 

 AfTidue veuiebat, ibi hcec incondita folus 

 Montibus et fylvis fludio jadlabat inani. 



When the pain of love is fo great, as not to be relieved by the 

 exertions of reverie, as above defcribed ; as when it is mifplaced 

 on an object:, of which the lover cannot poflefs himfelf ; it may 

 ilill be counteracted or conquered by thQ ftoic philofophy, which 

 ftrips all things of their ornaments, and inculcates " nil admira- 

 vi/' Of which lefTons may be found in the meditations of Mar- 

 cus 



