WIST Quotations

Holmes, Oliver Wendell, Sr. -- Letter (1882-03-18) to James Russell Lowell

Dave — Wed, 11 Jun 2025 15:50:59 +0000

I have always considered my face a convenience rather than an ornament.

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. (1809-1894) American poet, essayist, scholar
Letter (1882-03-18) to James Russell Lowell
(Source)

Messerschmitt, Willy -- (Attributed (1934))

Dave — Thu, 17 Aug 2023 17:41:19 +0000

You can have any combination of features the Air Ministry desires, so long as you do not also require that the resulting airplane fly.

[Natürlich können Sie dem Luftfahrtministerium ein Flugzeug mit allen gewünschten Eigenschaften bauen — solange Sie nicht zwingend voraussetzen, dass es dann auch fliegt.]

Wilhelm Emil "Willy" Messerschmitt (1898-1978) German aircraft designer and manufacturer
(Attributed (1934))

Alternate translation:

Of course, you can build the Air Ministry an airplane with whatever characteristics you want -- as long as you don't necessarily expect it to fly.

Shakespeare, William -- Henry V, Act 5, sc. 2, l. 164ff (5.2.164) (1599)

Dave — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 11:55:14 +0000

HENRY: A speaker is but a prater, a rhyme is but a ballad, a good leg will fall, a straight back will stoop, a black beard will turn white, a curled pate will grow bald, a fair face will wither, a full eye will wax hollow, but a good heart, Kate, is the sun and the moon, or rather the sun and not the moon, for it shines bright and never changes but keeps his course truly. If thou would have such a one, take me.

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) English dramatist and poet
Henry V, Act 5, sc. 2, l. 164ff (5.2.164) (1599)
(Source)

Quoted by Walter Mondale as a eulogy for Hubert Humphrey.