inftant, the manner of their coexistence, and the effects thereby produced, ought alfo to be examined. This fubject is extensive, and it will be difficult to trace all the laws that govern its endless variety of cafes; if fuch an undertaking can be brought to perfection, it must be by degrees. The following hints may fuffice for a firft attempt.

We begin with emotions raifsed by different founds, as the fimpleft cafe. Two founds that mix, and, as it were, incorporate before they reach the ear, are faid to be concordant. That each found produceth an emotion of its own, must be admitted: but then thefe emotions, like the founds that produce them, mix fo intimately, as to be rather one complex emotion than two emotions in conjunction. Two founds that refufe incorporation or mixture, are faid to be difcordant: being however heard at the fame inftant, the emotions produced by them are conjoined; and in that condition are unpleafant, even where separately they are each of them pleasant.

Similar to the emotion raised by mixed fonnds, is the emotion that an object of fight raises by means of its several qualities: a tree, for example, with its qualities of colour, figure, fize, &c. is perceived to be one object; and the effect it produces, is rather one complex emotion than different emotions combined.

With respect to coexiftent emotions produced

by

by objects of fight independent of each other, it must be obferved, that there cannot be a concordance among fuch objects like what is perceived in fome founds. Such objects never mix nor incorporate in the act of vifion each object is perceived as it exifts, feparately from others and each raiseth its own emotion, which are dif tinct, however intimately connected the objects may be. This doctrine holds in all the causes of emotion or paffion that are independent of each other, founds only excepted.

To explain the manner in which fuch emotions exift, fimilar emotions must be diftinguished from thofe that are diffimilar. Two emotions are faid to be fimilar, when they tend each of them to produce the fame tone of mind: chearful emotions, however different their caufes may be, are fimilar and fo are thofe which are melancholy. Diffimilar emotions are eafily explained by their oppofition to what are fimilar: pride and humility, gaiety and gloominefs, are diffi

milar emotions.

Emotions perfectly fimilar, readily combine and unite*, fo as in a manner to become one

It is cafier to conceive the manner of coexiftence of fimilar emotions, than to defcribe it. They cannot be faid to mix or incorporate, like concordant founds: their union is rather of agreement or concord; and therefore I have chofen the words in the text, not as fufficient to exprefs clearly the manner of their coexiftence, but only as lefs liable to exception than any other I can. fiad.

complex emotion; witnefs the emotions prod' 1ced by a number of flowers in a parterre, or of trees in a wood. Emotions that are oppofite, or extremely diffimilar, never combine nor unite: the mind cannot fimultaneously take on oppofite tones; it cannot at the fame inftant be both joyful and fad, angry and fatisfied, proud and humble: diffimilar emotions may fucceed each other with rapidity, but they cannot exist fimultaneously.

Between these two extremes, emotions will unite more or lefs, in proportion to the degree of their refemblance, and the degree in which their caufes are connected. Thus the emotions produced by a fine landscape and the finging of birds, being fimilar in a confiderable degree, readily unite, though their caufes are little connected. And the fame happens where the causes are intimately connected, though the emotions themfelves have little refemblance to each other an example of which is a mistress in diftrefs, whose beauty gives pleasure, and her distress, pain: these two emotions, proceeding from different views of the object, have very little resemblance to each other; and yet fo intimately connected are their causes, as to force them into a fort of complex emotion, partly pleasant partly painful. This clearly explains fome expreffions common in poetry, afweet diftress, a pleafant pain.

It was neceffary to defcribe, with fome accuracy, in what manner fimilar and diffimilar emotions coexist in the mind, in order to fhow the different

effects

effects that refult from their different manner of existence; first, the effects produced within the mind; and, next, those that appear externally. Beginning with fimilar emotions, I discover two mental effects clearly distinguishable from each other, of which, the one may be reprefented by addition in numbers, the other by harmony in founds. Two pleasant emotions that are fimilar, readily unite when they are coexiftent; and the pleasure felt in the union, is the fum of the two pleasures the fame emotions in fucceffion, are far from making the fame figure; because the mind at no inftant of the fucceffio: is conscious of more than a fingle emotion. This doctrine may aptly be illuftrated by a landscape comprehending hills, valleys, plains, rivers, trees, &c.: the emotions produced by these feveral objects, being fimilar in a high degree as falling in easily and sweetly with the fame tone of mind, are in conjunction extremely pleafant. This multiplied effect is felt from objects even of different fenfes, as where a landscape is conjoined with the mufic of birds and odor of flowers; and refults partly from the resemblance of the emotions and partly from the connection of their caufes: whence it follows, that the effect must be the greatest, where the causes are intimately connected and the emotions perfectly fimilar.

The other pleasure arising from fimilar emotions coexiftent, which may be termed the pleasure of concord or harmony, is afcertained by a different

rule. It is directly in proportion to the degree of resemblance between the emotions, and inversely in proportion to the degree of connection between the causes: to feel this pleasure in perfection, the refemblance cannot be too ftrong, nor the connection too flight. The former condition is felf-evident; and the reafon of the latter is, that the pleasure of harmony is felt from various fimilar emotions, diftinct from each other, and yet fweetly combining in the mind; which excludes caufes intimately connected, for the emotions produced by them are forced into one complex emotion. This matter cannot be better illuftrated, than by the foregoing example of a landscape, where the fight, hearing, and fmelling, are employ'd: the accumulated pleafure of fo many different fimilar emotions, is not what delights us the most in this combination of objects; for the fenfe of harmony from these emotions fweetly uniting in the mind, is still more delightful. We feel this harmony in the different emotions occafioned by the visible objects; but we feel it ftill more fenfibly in the emotions occafioned by the objects of different fenfes, as where the emotions of the eye are combined with thofe of the ear. This emotion of concord or harmony, will be illuftrated, when the emotions produced by the found of words and their meaning are taken under confideration *.