474 Parental Love. [Book X, 



duty, and the example of others, tend to increafe the 

 paflion ; afterwards cuftom, and the little cares about 

 them. In is obfervable, that the love of parents is 

 weak at firft j but love ruihes in by little afibciations 

 as from a thoufand fources. 



On this principle depend fome of the ftrongeft affec- 

 tions that fway the human race. Every defire, for in- 

 ftance, is attended with a degree of uneafmefs j to re- 

 move it, therefore, is pleafure. Now, when men once 

 perceive certain agreeable coniequences from obtain- 

 ing an object, a defire of obtaining it enfues ; this de- 

 fire will be liable to be renewed, and will be renewed 

 (imply as a defire, without any retrofpect to the firft 

 motives. This is evidently the cafe in avarice, where, 

 dropping the immediate fteps between money and 

 happinefs, men form a connection, which does by nq 

 means naturally and immediately exift, and love the 

 treafure for its own fake. The fame might be ob- 

 ferved concerning the defire of knowledge, the delight 

 of reading, planting, &c. Thefe were firft entered on 

 with a view to fome farther end, but at length become 

 habitual amufements ; the idea of pleafure is affociated 

 with them, when the rirft reafon is quite vanifhed out 

 of our minds ; nay, we find this power of affociation fq 

 great, as not only to tranfport our paflions and affec- 

 tions beyond their juft bounds, both as to intenfenefs 

 and duration, but alfo to transfer them to improper 

 objects, and luch as are of a quite different nature 

 from thofe to which our reafon had at firft directed 

 them*.'' 



I mall clofe this (ketch of the paOions by a fhort 

 account of fympathy or focial affection, and afterwards^ 



* Preliminary Differtation to Law's Tranflation of King's 

 Origin of Evil. 



by 



