Excerpt from Memoir of the Late Rev. William Edward Miller: Wesleyan Minister Nothing can be conceived more hazardous than the position of this youth, with his native dispositions un checked, either by the restraints of maternal influence, or religious instruction. His father, at the time in question, was in the zenith of his popularity; was sought and caressed by the fashionable public; moved in a sphere of constant gaiety and dissipation; and was received as the friend and companion of the rich and the great. This was the society into which young Miller was introduced, and these the scenes and objects which evolved around him, so soon as he emerged from the thoughtlessness of childhood, and opened his eyes upon the world. Youths of a susceptible nature cannot help taking the impress of the moral lessons which are taught by the habits of the men and women around them. When music, poetry, and gorgeous decorations are employed, to throw a charm of beauty over dis sipating amusements, not only some of the noblest gifts of God are prostituted, but a paradise of plea sure is created - the more seductive, because of the blandishment and grossness which intermingle with each other - the one, by its softness and polish, hiding the deformity of the other. Thus, by the ingenuity of evil, those fine provisions of a bountiful Parent, which are given as the solace, the joy, the ornament, and the exaltation of man, are turned into an incitement to voluptuousness and sin. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.