text:  They were disciples of a school which rejects facts and cleaves implicitly to theory--men who threw considerations of circumstance time and national characteristics aside as prejudices too low for even the momentary regard of a philosopher; in short they wished to introduce the standard of an untried rule as the _ne plus ultra_ of human sagacity and remorselessly to overturn every existing institution--no matter at what sacrifice or risk--if it only seemed to stand in the way of the operation of their darling theories