mi 



is custom alone, determines our preference 

 of the colour of the Europeans to the Ethi- 

 opians; and they, for the same reason pre- 

 fer their own colour to ours. This he illus- 

 trates in a very ingenious manner, by say- 

 ing, that if one of their painters were to 

 paint the goddess of beauty, nobody will 

 doubt that he would represent her black, 

 with thick lips, flat nose, and woolly hair ; 

 and he would act very unnaturally, (adds 

 Sir Joshua,) if he did not ; for, by what 

 criterion will any one dispute the propriety 

 of his idea? we indeed say, that the form 

 and colour of the European are preferable to 

 those of the Ethiopian, but I know of no 

 other reason we have for it, but that we are 

 more accustomed to it. 



After observing, that neither novelty nor 

 fitness can be said to be causes of beauty 

 (in which he agrees with Mr. Burke) he thus 

 makes a sort of recapitulation : "from what 

 " has been said, it may be inferred that the 

 " works of nature, if w r e compare one spe- 

 * cies with another, are all equally beauti- 

 " ful ; and that preference is given from 



