262 Proceedings of the Royal Society 
no boy companions, and the animal need of physical action was 
satisfied by walking, his amusements, which were mostly solitary, 
were in general of a quiet if not bookish turn, and gave little 
stimulus to any other kind of mental acting than that which was 
already called forth by his studies. He consequently remained long, 
and in a less degree always remained, inexpert in everything re- 
quiring manual dexterity, and his mind as well as his hands did 
its work lamely, when it was applied to the practical details which 
are the chief interest of life to the majority of men. He was con- 
stantly meriting reproof by inattention, inobservance, and general 
slackness of mind in matters of daily life. 
Beauchamp’s “ Analysis of the Influence of Natural Religion 
on the Temporal Happiness of Mankind ” (papers of Bentham 
edited by G-rote) was read by young Mill. This was an examina- 
tion not of the truth, but of the usefulness of religion, and suited 
his mental condition well. His father had educated him from the 
first without any religious belief. The elder Mill, “ finding no 
halting-place in Deism, had yielded to the conviction that nothing 
whatever can be known concerning the origin of things.” He 
impressed upon his son from the first that the manner in which the 
universe came into existence was a matter on which nothing was or 
could be discovered; that the question, “ Who made me ? ” cannot 
be answered, because we can have no experience from which to 
answer it; and that any answer only throws the difficulty a step 
further back, since the question immediately presents itself, “Who 
made G-od ? ” He assumed it to be impossible that a world so full 
of evil could be the production of a cause combining infinite power 
with perfect goodness. John Mill was thus, he says himself, 
“ one of the very few examples in this country of one who has 
not thrown off religious belief, but who has never had any.” He 
looked upon the modern exactly as he did upon the ancient religion, 
as something which in no way concerned him. If a philosopher 
has to comprehend what exists, it was unfortunate for Mr Mill, and 
unfavourable to the comprehensiveness of his philosophy, that he 
should have thus been trained to overlook Christianity, the greatest 
fact in European life. 
Other than home influences now began to have play. In May 
1829 his professional occupation was determined. He became a 
