Thus the house decaying as it decays lofes its capacity. A town befieged abides and endures. Capacity in the besiegers to be refifted concurs to power in that respect: but by re-inforcement, after reinforcement, this capacity in the besiegers gradually fubfides and finally is gone. This was remarkably exemplified in the siege of Jerufalem by the Romans. Thus alfo filver reduced to a calx by aquafortis has no longer capacity in respect of the ability of aquafortis. A culprit has capacity to be tried by a court, but when in confequence condemned and executed, capacity for trial, condemnation and execution no longer exifts.

We may remark alfo, that ability in one thing. and capacity in another is generally obvious, yet, that, fometimes ability in one thing is combined in the fame thing with fome capacity which like the ability has a related object in the other thing. Calamin has ability and copper capacity in regard to its becoming brass: but if we reflect that after the operation the brass will weigh more than the copper did, though not fo much as both the copper and calamin did, we rationally conceive a leffer capacity alfo in the calamin, and ability in the copper in respect of it. The primary essentials of matter in all cafes remain, extenfion and folidity are somewhere existing.

Were it needful to give inftances in this place for illustration of abiding, enduring, and changes

of mind: I might say respecting the first, Thus aman continues, as we fay, in the same mind : Respecting the second, that, Thus a man under affliction poffeffes calmnefs without murmuring, or a martyr retains his faith and fortitude though at the ftake. And refpecting changes, that fight of an alms moves a beggar to your door, and a fignal puts an army in motion.

Before we pass on to fay fomething of operation, influence and efficiency, it may be observed, that, our knowledge that one thing actually existing possesseth an affigned active property, and another an affigned paffive property can rise no higher than the greatest probability, fince it depends on obfervations made on experiments, wherein we have ever found that like changes have ever attended like application, confequently as we cannot make an infinite number of trials, we cannot be infinitely certain that a future experiment may not fail our expectation.

We may also observe, that if all the active properties of matter, according to the hypothefis of a modern philofopher, may be truly resolved into attractions and repulfions, we must admit a related paffive property in the attracted to the attracting, and a related passive property in the repulsed to the repulfing, or no operations, influence, and efficiency can exist.

We now procced to difcufs fome confequents of power which co-exift with it, that we may at

once

once obtain a more extended view of

power, and elucidate these objects. With this double end, a more comprehenfive conception of power, and enlarged acquaintance with these objects; let us immediately give some attention to operation, influence, and efficiency.

SECTION II.

Of Operation, Influence, and Efficiency.

IN all cafes of the exiftence of ability, a related

capacity to that ability, and fuitable circumftances, I hope it is fufficiently evident, that power is conftituted, or co-exifts with that junction. For myself I judge it no less evident that wherefoever there is power, there is valuable operation, influence, and efficiency. As ability, capacity and opportunity, are in order of nature prior to power, although co-existent with it: so, power itself is in order of nature prior to operation, the firft of the articles now before us.

We have much earlier in life a notion of action than a notion of operation at large. Motion, the action of body catches the eye of an infant, and foon becomes familiar to his conception. As intellect advances, the child reflects on his own

thoughts,

thoughts which feem the acts of his mind. Both these kinds of action become now familiar to him. By degrees he conceives and forms notions of motion and thinking, under various modifications or affections. Thus in both cafes the notion of action is generalized. The mind proceeds to remark signs of action under various modifications, and hence by analogy, we extend a notion of action wherefoever we perceive the marks or figns, whether we have any conception of the action or not. To this notion fo much abftracted and generalized, we affix the name operation. That is not firft which is mental but that which is material. And that it is not next in fucceffion which is abftract, but that which is the object of consciousness or fenfation: respecting the progreffion of knowledge.

Our conception of action may be distinguished into abfolute and relative. To walk, to dance, to fly, without any farther refpect feem inftances of abfolute action, the action is supposed to terminate in the actor, and is expressed by intransitive verbs: But action is alfo confidered as relative, and the term used relatively, or in relation to an object acted on, and to an actual influence. Abfolute action is what we call mere exercife. The exercise of foldiers is one thing, but a military action or the operation of an army, is another thing. Action as relative I conceive to be a species of operation: for operation may be dif

tinguished

tinguished into fuch as we have ideal conception øf, and fuch as we can obtain no other than a notional conception of, and then, action is that fpecies of operation of which we may have ideal Conception.

Operation, or working, I conceive to be always relative, and to be the immediate refult of power, or its abfence, and the medium of influence.

Operation is not power, but is the immediate result of power: It owes its existence immediately to power, and is attributed to the object that has active property. Thus we fay the ability of an artift, and the operation of an artift. The ability of aquafortis, and the operation of aquafortis. The ability of rhubarb, and the operation of rhubarb. Every operation requires an operator, this may be a perfon, or a thing, and is always that person or thing, that poffeffeth active property, that is ability, in respect of power and the operation. In common language we say, he operates, fhe works, and it operates.

Every operation requires also a subject to be operated on, this alfo may be a person or mere thing.

In whatever respect there is power, in that refpect there is alfo operation. If, as in fome cafes, the power is evident, but we cannot reach a conception of the operation: Power is an indubitable mark or fign of the existence of operation : And we rationally infer the existence of an ocult operation.