Page:The Theory of Moral Sentiments.pdf/14

4 conceive at the miery of thoe wretches affects that particular part in themelves more than any other; becaue that horror aries from conceiving what they themelves would uffer, if they really were the wretches whom they are looking upon, and if that particular part in themelves was actually affected in the ame mierable manner. The very force of this conception is ufficient, in their feeble frames, to produce that itching or uneay enation complained of. Men of the mot robut make, oberve that in looking upon fore eyes they often feel a very enible orenes in their own, which proceeds from the ame reaon; that organ being in the tronget man more delicate than any other part of the body is in the weaket.

Neither is it thoe circumtances only, which create pain or orrow, that call forth our fellow-feeling. Whatever is the paion which aries from any object in the peron principally concerned, an analogous emotion prings up, at the thought of his ituation, in the breat of every attentive pectator. Our joy for the deliverance of thoe heroes of tragedy or romance who interet us, is as incere as our grief for their ditres, and our follow-feeling with their miery is not more real than that with their happines. We enter into their gratitude towards thoe faithful friends who did not deert them in their difficulties; and we heartily go along with their reentment againt thoe peridious traitors who injured, abandoned, or deceived them. In every pa-