Good sense and genius beget esteem and regard: wit and humour excite love and affection.
[Footnote: Love and esteem are nearly the same passion, and arise from similar causes.

The qualities, which produce both, are such as communicate pleasures.

But where this pleasure is severe and serious; or where its object is great, and makes a strong impression, or where it produces any degree of humility and awe; in all these cases, the passion, which arises from the pleasure, is more properly denominated esteem than love.

Benevolence attends both; but is connected with love in a more eminent degree.

There seems to be still a stronger mixture of pride in contempt than of humility in esteem; and the reason would not be difficulty to one, who studied accurately the passions.