ABSTRACT
TO delineate the thoughts of Charles, as he stept into bed, is what we cannot now attempt; his mind was involved in obscurity, every new object added perplexity to perplexity, and he even suspected that the systems he had adopted from his youth might possibly not be less absurd. Such is the first state of a mind, that, partially enlightened, sees much and comprehends little; and, if ingenuous, either closes in extravagant scepticism* / and habitual apathy; or patiently investigating the phenomena of human life, perfects its observations, arranges the facts it assembles, and takes a human interest in whatever relates to humanity. Between the glowing reveries of a Shaftesbury, and the congealing misanthropy of a Mandeville, 137 Charles stood poised by the solid judgment which exercise had fortified, and with the sensibility with which nature had touched his frame. Without any indecision, he yet hesitated to decide; for although he trusted to the prompt energies of his heart, he yet was not assured that its sensations were faithful, and its impulses unerring.
