STUDY I. S 



J 



known that the paffion was extremely violent. Of 

 this I myfelf have made proof, on various occa- 

 fions ; among others, in a city where I was entirely 

 a ftranger. A gentleman of the place, one of my 

 friends, carried me to vifit his filler, a very virtu- 

 ous young lady, and he informed me, as we were 

 going, that flie was violently in love. Being ar- 

 rived at her apartments, and Love happening to 

 become the fubjed of converfation, it came into 

 my head to fay to her, that I knew the laws which 

 determined our choice in love, and that, if Ihe 

 would permit me, I could draw her lover's picture, 

 though he was utterly unknown to me. She bid 

 me defiance : upon this, taking the oppofite to her 

 tall and buxom figure, to her temperament and 

 charadler, which her brother had been defcribing 

 to me, I painted her favourite as a little man, not 

 overloaded with flefh, with blue eyes, and fair hair, 

 fomewhat fickle, eager after information. Every 

 word I uttered made her blufli up to the eyes, and 

 fhe became ferioufly angry with her brother, ac- 

 cufing him of having betrayed her fecret. This, 

 however, was not the cafe, and he was fully as 

 much aftonifhed as herfelf. 



Thefe obfervations are of more importance than 

 we, generally, imagine. They will enable us to 

 demonftrate, to what a degree our Infhitutions de- 

 viate from the Laws of Nature, and weaken the 



G 2 power 



