530 On the Moral Influence cf History, 



in eveiy age. • Perhaps it is Inferred from such 

 logical reasoning as the following. If moral 

 be founded in the nature of man, this moral 

 must be best learned from the largest and most 

 comprehensive view of man; and this view 

 of man, it is presumed, can only be found in 

 history. Every part of this reasoning is sound 

 but one> viz. that history is this large and 

 comprehensive view of man. While if history 

 be but a very partial view of man, of one 

 distinct class of man> and this the most vicious 

 and depraved class, and therefore history be 

 generally the record of the vices, and hardly 

 at all of the virtues of man s and in addition to 

 this narrow and partial view, if moral be not 

 the object of history, the inference will totally 

 fail, and so far as the information of history 

 goes, we rtiay be led to think infinitely worse 

 of man, than man deserves. — On this ground I 

 principally take my stand, but without omitting 

 such subsidiary arguments as I think pertinent 

 to my subject. 



In order to form a dispassionate judgment 

 of the question, it may be necessary to dis- 

 cover, if we can, the foundation of that uni- 

 versal interest in history, which every age and 

 nation- bear testimony to. For, it being an 

 acknowledged fact hat history has obtained 

 this interest with n: an, it ni^y be presumed. 



