FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39  
40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50   51   52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   >>   >|  
pediment, however, which had hitherto retarded his departure being removed, he now set out for Eton, under the conduct of the abovementioned kinsman, who placed him in a boarding-house very near the school, and took his leave, after having given him such admonitions as he thought necessary for a person of his years, when more intrusted to himself than he before had been. But Natura was not yet arrived at an age wherein it could be expected he should reap much benefit from advice. A settled resolution, and the power of judging what is our real interest to do, are the perfections of maturity, and happy is it for the few who even then attain them.--_Precept_ must be constantly and artfully instilled to make any impression on the mind, and is rarely fixed there, till experience confirms it; therefore, as both these were wanting to form his behaviour, what could be hoped from it, but such a one as was conformable to the various passions which agitate human nature, and which every day grow stronger in us, at least till they have attained a certain crisis, after which they decay, in proportion as they increased. As _wrath_ is one of the most violent emotions of the soul, so I think it is one of the first that breaks out into effects: it owes its birth indeed to _pride_; for we are never angry, unless touched by a real, or imaginary insult; but, by the offspring chiefly is the parent seen. _Pride_ seldom, I believe it may be said, _never_, wholly dies in us, tho' it may be concealed; whereas _wrath_ diminishes as our _reason_ increases, and seems intirely evaporated after the heat of youth is over: when a man therefore has divested himself of the _one_, no tokens are left to distinguish the _other_.--Sometimes, indeed, we shall see an extreme impetuosity, even to old age, but then, it is out of the ordinary course of nature, and besides, the person possessed of it must be endued with a small share of sound understanding, to give any marks of such a propensity remaining in him. It is with the utmost justice, that by the system of the _christian_ religion, _pride_ is intitled the original sin, not only as it was that of the fallen angels, but also as it is certainly the fountain-head from which all our other vices are derived.--It is by the dictates of this pernicious passion we are inflamed with _wrath_, and wild ambition,--instigated to covetousness,--to envy,--to revenge, and in fine, to stop at nothing which tends to se
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   15   16   17   18   19   20   21   22   23   24   25   26   27   28   29   30   31   32   33   34   35   36   37   38   39  
40   41   42   43   44   45   46   47   48   49   50   51   52   53   54   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

person

 

nature

 
intirely
 
evaporated
 
tokens
 

effects

 

divested

 

seldom

 

offspring

 

insult


concealed

 

parent

 

chiefly

 

imaginary

 

increases

 
reason
 

touched

 
diminishes
 

wholly

 
endued

derived

 

dictates

 
fountain
 

fallen

 

angels

 

pernicious

 

passion

 

revenge

 

inflamed

 

ambition


instigated

 
covetousness
 

original

 

ordinary

 

possessed

 

breaks

 

impetuosity

 

Sometimes

 

distinguish

 

extreme


system

 

justice

 

christian

 

religion

 

intitled

 

utmost

 
remaining
 
understanding
 
propensity
 

Natura