young lover: Delia was always in his head, and none of the diversions
he took with his companions could banish her from his thoughts; yet
did she not so wholly engross his attention, as to render him remiss
in his studies; his ambition, as I said before, would not suffer him
to neglect the means of acquiring praise, and nothing was so
insupportable to him as to find at any time another boy had merited a
greater share of it: by which we may perceive that this very passion,
unruly as it is, and in spite of the mischiefs it sometimes occasions,
is also bestowed upon us for our emolument; and when properly
directed, is the greatest excitement to all that is noble and
generous, Natura seldom had the mortification of seeing any of the
same standing with himself placed above him; and whenever such an
accident happened, he was sure to retrieve it by an extraordinary
assiduity.

But to shew that love and business are not wholly incompatible, his
attachment to Delia did not take him off his learning, nor did his
application to learning make him forgetful of Delia. He frequently
thought of her, wished to see her, and longed for the next
breaking-up, that he might re-enjoy that satisfaction, as he knew she
intended to stay the whole winter at his father's; but now arrived the
time to prove the inconstancy of human nature: he became acquainted
with some other little misses, and by degrees found charms in them,
which made those he had observed in Delia appear less admirable in his
eyes; the fondness he had felt for her being in reality instigated
chiefly by being the only one of his own age he had conversed with, a
more general acquaintance with others not only wore off the impression
she had made, but also kept him from receiving too deep a one from the
particular perfections of any of those he now was pleased with:--it is
likely, however, that the sight of her might have revived in him some