The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1874-02-13
JOHN STUART MILL.

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The autobiography of this distinguish,
ed man is, to us, the saddest and most
pitiful commentary upon the evil effects
of a warped and One-sided education
an education which isolated q man from
all human influences, and crushed his
affectional nature.
His father was an austere philosopher,
believing that there was evil in every
thing in life, which was at best the sad
dest of all sad tales.
The son was early taught that religion
vas the greatest enemy of morality, and
the creed of Christianity the M plus ul-
ira of wickedness. At fourteen he had
40 more to learn, and was turned out OF
the educational workshop as a leader OF
men, one of the founders of the West
minister Review which has done a better
fight for intidelity than any periodical
that the world has ever seen.
John Stuart Mill relates his long sea
Sous of gloom and despair, when all his
educational only served to
make the darkness more visible. He
was the leader of the Q school which
attack all the duties OF the individual to
God and society, in the interests of the
rights and liberty of nan
We will not enter into the peculiar
opinions of this so-called RefOrmer, for
we only touch upon him to illustrate the
evil effects of an evil education. Natu-
rally affectiOnate and imaginative, the
affection eliminated in a devoted attach
ment to a married woman, whom he af-
forwards married, and his imagination
revelled in the idea of Utopia, where
men would cast aside the superstition of
God, and only worship Reason. With
his wonderful gifts of mind and educa-
ton John Stuart Mill has done little for
mankind, and his works will only live
after him in an evil system of Philoso-
ply which travels in a circle, and that
circle a narrow II e
As we said before, his autobiography
is the saddest reading of the age. A
christian child could have taught the
inan of science, the mental athlete, more
wisdom in an hour than his whole life
had garnered. He was laborious to a
degree; but he only gathered the tares
among the wheat, the Embellishments
the flowers. They pricked him sorely,
to 10 sure, but he knew nothing sweeter
nor better than to be prieked by them.
He wa a good man by nature, but he
has done a deal of evil, aud wronged
himself most of all.
THE RECENT PARDoNs.-We publish
i Communication in regard TO the par
don of certain cenvicts from this par
ish ia the State penitentiary. One of
them has already returned. a petition
to the Governor, for his pardon was
signed, We reinfOrmed, by abouttwelye
hundred parties in this parish. This
large number of petitioners certainly
had it's weight; but strange to say, some
of the petitioners now censure the Cow
error very barshly for granting their
petition,
Without any personal feeling in the
matter, we fear that it viii have 4 bad
effect in the parish. The District At
torney thinks it useless for him to spend
his time and energy in prosecuting and
securing the convictions of criminals, if
they are to be turned loose on the petit
ton of Tom, Dick and Harry, who do
mot mean what they say, especially the
big criminals while the small ones have
foreman In the penitentiary. Hethinka
they might just as well be turned loose
before trial, SO as to save the expense to
the parish. ACTIONS speak louder than
words and on. reference to our Court
report in this issue, it viii be seen that
u mol pros. has already been entered in
one case where theParties were indicted
for murder and were in custody and had
been refused bail.
No one, after the history of the past.
can doubt the energy and ability Of the
District Attorney in bringing criminals
to Justice; but we fear that "masterly
inactivity will be his policy hereafter,
until be receives sufficient assurance
that high criminals, whom he has spent
and nights and years of bis life Id
bringing to judic ID trial and conviction,
Will Be left to undergo the sentence De
The turning loose OF q few criminals
may not do much damage, but the gen
pral effect may do great injury to the
of the parish.
P~aFd0neds
We learn that Gov. Kellogg, if ho has
not already done so, will soon pardon
AIYaalna n pradfl1npanfa Tnaw yTYnIAo.1