ASS 
over and over, by ruminating on them 
strongly, he so cements these two ideas to- 
gether, that he makes them almost one ; he 
never thinks on the man, but the place and 
displeasure he suffered come into his mind 
with it, so that he source distinguishes them, 
but has as much aversion for the one as the 
other. Thus hatreds are often begotten 
from slight and almost innocent occasions, 
and quarrels are propagated and continued 
in the world. 
Nor is its influence on the intellectual 
habits less powerful, though less observed. 
Let the ideas of being and matter be strong- 
ly joined, either by education or much 
thought, whilst these are still combined in 
the mind, what notions, what reasonings, 
will there be about separate spirits ? Let 
custom, from the very childhood, have joined 
figure and shape to the idea of God ; and 
what absurdities Will that mind be liable to 
about the deity ? Some such wrongs and 
unnatural associations of ideas will be found 
to establish the irreconcileable opposition 
between different sects of philosophy and 
religion ; for we cannot suppose that every 
one of their followers will impose wilfully on 
himself, and knowingly refuse truth offered 
by plain reason. Some independent ideas, 
of no alliance to one another, are, by cus- 
tom, education, and the constant din of their 
party, so coupled in their minds, that they al- 
ways appear there together, and they can no 
more separate them in tlieir thoughts, than if 
they were but one idea; and they operate as 
if they were so. 
ASSONIA, in botany, a genus of the 
Monadelphia Dodecandria plants, and of 
the natural order ofColumniferae Malvaceae 
of Jussieu. The essential character is, calyx 
double, outer one-leafed or three-leaved, 
inner one-leafed ; corol five-petalled, with- 
out any tube, affixed to the pitcher of sta- 
mens ; filament connected in form of a 
pitcher, with petal-shaped straps between 
them ; style one or five ; capsule five-celled ; 
seeds not winged, There are eleven spe- 
cies. 
ASSUMPSIT, a voluntary or verbal pro- 
mise, whereby a person assumes, or takes 
upon him to perform or pay any thing to 
another. When any person becomes le- 
gally indebted to another for goods sold, the 
law implies a promise that he will pay his 
debt ; and if he do not pay it, the writ 
indebitatus assumpsit lies against him ; and 
will lie for goods sold and delivered to a 
stranger, or third person, at the request of 
the defendant ; but the price agreed on 
ASS 
must be proved, otherwise that action does 
not lie. 
ASSURANCE, or Insurance, an en- 
gagement by which a person is indemnified 
from the loss he would sustain by the hap- 
pening of a particular event ; as by the 
capture or wreck of a ship at sea, or the 
destruction of goods by fire. Projects have 
at different times been formed for assuring 
against frauds and robbery, against losses 
by servants, the death of cattle, and almost 
every event by which unforeseen loss may 
arise ; but such schemes have always failed, 
and the business of assurance is now gene- 
rally confined to the risks of the sea, assu- 
rance against fire, and the assurance of lives. 
This mode of securing merchants against 
the dangers of navigation is said to have 
originated in the time of the Emperor 
Claudius, but during the subsequent decline 
of commerce it probably fell into disuse. 
The sea laws of Oieron, as far back as the 
year 1194, treat of it, and it was soon 
after practised in Great Britain. The sta- 
tute of 43 of Queen Elizabeth, cap. 12, 
states, that it has been time out of mind a 
usage among merchants, both of this country 
and of foreign nations, to make assurances 
on their goods, merchandize, and ships, go- 
ing to foreign parts ; for the better regula- 
tion of which, with respect to disputes 
which arose on policies of assurance, com- 
missioners were appointed, who were to 
meet weekly at the Office of Insurance on 
the west side of the Royal Exchange, to 
determine all causes concerning policies of 
assurance in a summary way, but reserving 
a right of appeal to the Court of Chancery. 
This shows that such assurances were in 
common practice, and had become of con- 
siderable importance. 
Assurance against the dangers of the sea 
appears to have been iu use in England some- 
what earlier than in many commercial cities 
on the continent, as the policies of assurance 
of Antwerp, and also of other places in the 
Low Countries, contained a clause that they 
should be construed in all things according 
to the custom of Lombard Street in Lon- 
don. In the year 1627, Charles I. granted 
a monopoly for 31 years of the right of 
making all assurances on ships or goods in 
the City of London. 
In 1712, several attempts were made to 
establish offices for assurance on marriages, 
births, &c. which all failed. In 1719 the 
Royal Exchange Assurance and London 
Assurance companies were formed, and in 
the following year obtained charters of in- 
