13 August 1804

Procedure

False ends

Of men in general, in a certain sense it is true, that every man on every occasion is and will ever be governed by his own interest: in another sense it is not true.

Of every man it is true to say, that on each occasion he will be governed /his conduct will be determined/ if there be but one motive acting on him at a time, by the force of that one /sole/ operating motive: if there be several, and of these several two or more acting in opposite directions, by the unbalanced of the preponderative motive or set of motives. This is not in any respect less true of psychological action, than of physical: an action without a motive /in the one instance as in the other a motive/, is an effect without a cause.