REVIEWS OF BOOKS.
The editor states that this edition of Mill's chief ethical writings is designed for the use of beginners in moral science, and "has been prepared in the belief that there is no better introduction to this subject than an accurate knowledge of Mill's ethical theory." Such a statement from one who is known to be neither a disciple of Mill nor even a member of the Utilitarian school, may at first excite surprise; but there is at least a good deal to be said for this view of the pedagogical value of Mill's ethical writings. In his brief preface, the editor sums up his claim as follows: "Mill's simplicity, his seriousness, the fervor of his appreciation of morality, and his largeness of outlook, help to make his work a real introduction to ethical studies. That his errors are not the least instructive part of his writings is one of the many good results of his singular and unfailing candor."
All this, and more, can be claimed for Mill with perfect confidence. The fact that his ethical writings, in particular, abound in inconsistencies is by no means, in itself, a fatal objection to using them with elementary classes. The same objection might be urged against including the writings of Leibniz in an elementary course in metaphysics; and yet it would be hard to name a philosopher whose works will more speedily arouse in the average student a genuine appreciation of the essential problems of philosophy. The real proof or disproof of the editor's contention, then, must be his own success or failure in producing a satisfactory introduction to ethics in this carefully arranged edition of Mill's principal writings on the subject. For of Dr. Douglas's eminent qualifications for such a task, no one can doubt who is acquainted with his earlier book entitled John Stuart Mill: A Study of His Philosophy.
The present volume contains, besides three introductory essays by the editor, and an analysis (hardly needed) of the two writings of Mill, the text of which occupies much the greater part of the book, the first five chapters of Book VI of the Logic, "On the Logic of the Moral Sciences"; the Utilitarianism; and an appendix in which are given together representative passages illustrating Mill's views on 'causality and induction,' his 'theory of the self,' his
