THE WEALTH OE NATIONS,
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favour of those whose service it requires. A puppy fawnsupon its dam, and a spaniel endeavours by a thousand at-tractions to engage the attention of its master who is at din-ner, when it wants to be fed by him. Man sometimes usesthe same arts with his brethren, and when he has no othermettns of engaging them to act according to his inclinations,endeavours by every servile and fawning attention to obtaintheir good will, lie has not time, however, to do this uponevery occasion. In civilized society he stands at all timesin need of the co-operation and assistance of great multitudes,while his whole life is scarce sufficient to gain the friendshipof a few persons. In almost every other race of animals,each individual, when it is grown up to maturity, is entirelyindependent, and in its natural state has occasion for the as-sistance of no other living creature. But man has almostconstant occasion for the help of his brethren, and it is invain for him to expect it from their benevolence only. Hewill be more likely to prevail if he can interest their self-lovein his favour, and shew them that it is for their own advan-tage to do for him what he requires of them. Whoever of-fers to another a bargain of any kind, proposes to do this:Give me that which I want, and you shall have this whichyou want, is the meaning of every such offer; and it is inthis manner that we obtain from one another the far greaterpart of those good offices which we stand in need of. It isnot from the benevolence of the butcher, the brewer, or thebaker, that we expect our dinner, but from their regard totheir own interest. We address ourselves, not to their hu-manity but to their self-love, and never talk to them of ourown necessities but of their advantages. Nobody but a beggarchooses to depend chiefly upon the benevolence of bis fel-low-citizens. Even a beggar does not depend upon it en-tirely. The charity of well-disposed people, indeed, sup-plies him with the whole fund of his subsistence. But thoughthis principle ultimately provides him with all the necessa-ries of life which he has occasion for, it neither does nor canprovide him with them as he has occasion for them. Thegreater part of his occasional wants arc supplied in the samemanner as those of other people, by treaty, by barter, and bypurchase. With the money which one man gives him hepurchases food. The old clothes which another bestowsupon him he exchanges for other old clothes which suithim better, or for lodging, or for food, or for money, with