But the want of will or inclination is an obstacle to their governing well, still more prevalent than is the want of ability. Labour, fatigue, and difficulty are evils, to which the human mind is so naturally averse, that, unless it is urged by some strong impulse of passion, such as the fear of some superior evil, or the hope and desire of some mighty good, it will decline and evade them: what stimulum then can be sufficiently powerful to urge the habitually indolent minds of our Bengal governors to encounter the difficulties, the labour, and fatigue attending a due discharge of the duties of government; which, of all human undertakings, is the most replete with these mental evils? Yet this government, which demands a stronger stimulum than any other government that ever yet existed, is in effect urged by no one motive or consideration to discharge the duties of its office; for, as it holds no interest in the lasting welfare of the people governed, neither its hopes nor its fears are at all interested in the good or evil consequences that may be caused by its own vigilance or neglect: being altogether superior to the resentment of the subject, and independent of the sovereign’s authority, it is not impelled, by the fear of immediate danger, nor the apprehension of future punishment: and as to the prospect of glory, applause, or respect, which push the generous and ambitious mind to action, our governors aim to attain them, not by governing well, but by acquiring and bringing home a mighty fortune to their own country.