titles are otherwise equal, and will even be sufficient
sometimes to sanctify the weaker title. What degree of force
they have is difficult to determine. I believe all moderate
men will allow, that they have great force in all disputes
concerning the rights of princes.]

When neither long possession, nor present possession, nor conquest take
place, as when the first sovereign, who founded any monarchy, dies; in
that case, the right of succession naturally prevails in their stead,
and men are commonly induced to place the son of their late monarch
on the throne, and suppose him to inherit his father's authority. The
presumed consent of the father, the imitation of the succession to
private families, the interest, which the state has in chusing the
person, who is most powerful, and has the most numerous followers; all
these reasons lead men to prefer the son of their late monarch to any
other person.

[Footnote 24 To prevent mistakes I must observe, that this
case of succession is not the same with that of hereditary
monarchies, where custom has fix'd the right of succession.
These depend upon the principle of long possession above
explain'd.]

These reasons have some weight; but I am persuaded, that to one, who
considers impartially of the matter, it will appear, that there concur
some principles of the imagination, along with those views of interest.
The royal authority seems to be connected with the young prince even in
his father's life-time, by the natural transition of the thought; and
still more after his death: So that nothing is more natural than to
compleat this union by a new relation, and by putting him actually in
possession of what seems so naturally to belong to him.

To confirm this we may weigh the following phaenomena, which are pretty
curious in their kind. In elective monarchies the right of succession
has no place by the laws and settled custom; and yet its influence is
so natural, that it is impossible entirely to exclude it from the
imagination, and render the subjects indifferent to the son of their
deceased monarch. Hence in some governments of this kind, the choice
commonly falls on one or other of the royal family; and in some
governments they are all excluded. Those contrary phaenomena proceed
from the same principle. Where the royal family is excluded, it is
from a refinement in politics, which makes people sensible of their
propensity to ch