Project Gutenberg's The Philosophy of the Moral Feelings, by John Abercrombie

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org

Title: The Philosophy of the Moral Feelings

Author: John Abercrombie

Release Date: August 21, 2007 [EBook #22364]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MORAL FEELINGS ***

Produced by Thierry Alberto, Janet Blenkinship and the
Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net

THE

PHILOSOPHY

OF THE

MORAL FEELINGS.

BY

JOHN ABERCROMBIE, M.D. OXON. & EDIN.

V. P. R. S. E.

FELLOW OF THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANS OF EDINBURGH;
MEMBER OF THE ROYAL ACADEMY OF MEDICINE OF FRANCE;
AND FIRST PHYSICIAN TO HER MAJESTY IN SCOTLAND.

FIFTH EDITION.

LONDON:
JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET.
MDCCCXXXIX.

EDINBURGH:

Printed by Balfour and Jack, Niddry Street.

PREFACE.

In a former work, the Author endeavoured to delineate, in a simple and
popular form, the leading facts relating to the Intellectual Powers, and
to trace the principles which ought to guide us in the Investigation of
Truth. The volume which he now offers to the public attention, is
intended as a sequel to these Inquiries; and his object in it is to
investigate, in the same unpretending manner, the Moral Feelings of the
Human Mind, and the principles which ought to regulate our volitions and
our conduct as moral and responsible beings. The two branches of
investigation are, in many respects, closely connected; and, on this
account, it may often happen, that, in the present work, principles are
assumed as admitted or proved, which, in the former, were stated at
length, with the evidence by which they are supported.

In presenting a fifth edition of this volume, the Author feels most
deeply the favourable manner in which it has been received, and the
notice which has been bestowed upon it by those whose approbation he
regards as a distinction of the most gratifying kind. He had two objects
chiefly in view when he ventured upon this investigation. The one was to
divest his inquiry of all unprofitable speculation, and to shew that the
philosophy of the moral feelings bears directly upon