sense of liberty, and that our character, our energies, and our
conscience of moral right and wrong, are mainly dependent upon this
feature in our constitution.

The subject of my present disquisition relates to the feeling of
self-approbation or self-complacency, which will be found inseparable
from the most honourable efforts and exertions in which mortal men can
be engaged.

One of the most striking of the precepts contained in what are called
the Golden Verses of Pythagoras, is couched in the words, "Reverence
thyself."

The duties which are incumbent on man are of two sorts, negative and
positive. We are bound to set right our mistakes, and to correct
the evil habits to which we are prone; and we are bound also to be
generously ambitious, to aspire after excellence, and to undertake such
things as may reflect honour on ourselves, and be useful to others.

To the practice of the former of these classes of duties we may be
instigated by prohibitions, menaces and fear, the fear of mischiefs
that may fall upon us conformably to the known series of antecedents
and consequents in the course of nature, or of mischiefs that may be
inflicted on us by the laws of the country in which we live, or
as results of the ill will and disapprobation felt towards us
by individuals. There is nothing that is necessarily generous or
invigorating in the practice of our negative duties. They amount merely
to a scheme for keeping us within bounds, and restraining us from those
sallies and escapes, which human nature, undisciplined and left to
itself, might betray us into. But positive enterprise, and great actual
improvement cannot be expected by us in this way. All this is what the
apostle refers to, when he speaks of "the law as a schoolmaster to bring
us to liberty," after which he advises us "not to be again entangled
with the yoke of bondage."

On the other hand, if we would enter ourselves in the race of positive
improvement, if we would become familiar with generous sentiments, and
the train of conduct which such sentiments inspire, we must provide
ourselves with the soil in which such things grow, and engage in the
species of husbandry by which they are matured; in other words, we must
be no strangers to self-esteem and self-complacency.

The truth of this statement may perhaps be most strikingly illustrated,
if we take for our example the progress of schoolboys under a preceptor.
A considerable proportion of these are apt, d