Mackay, Charles -- Poem (1884), “No Enemies”, Interludes and Undertones, Poem 121

Dave — Mon, 01 Sep 2025 18:13:43 +0000

You have no enemies, you say?
Alas, my friend, the boast is poor;
He, who has mingled in the fray
Of duty that the brave endure,
Must have made foes! If you have none,
Small is the work that you have done,
You’ve hit no traitor on the hip,
You’ve dashed no cup from perjured lip,
You’ve never turned the wrong to right,
You’ve been a coward in the fight.

Charles Mackay (1814-1889) Scottish poet, journalist, song writer
Poem (1884), “No Enemies”, Interludes and Undertones, Poem 121
(Source)

The hitting on the hip is an allusion to Genesis 32:35.

A third-person version of the poem, titled "Not In It," was "Selected" as filler in The Medical and Surgical Reporter, Vol. 69, No. 19 (1893-11-04), uncredited:

He has no enemies, you say.
My friend, your boast is poor.
He who hath mingled in the fray
Of duty that the brave endure
Must have made foes.
If he has none,
Small is the work that he has done.
He has hit no fraud upon the hip;
He has shook no cup from perjured lip;
He has never turned the wrong to right;
He has been a coward in the fight.

Russell, Bertrand -- Lecture (1948-12-26), “Social Cohesion and Human Nature,” Reith Lecture, No. 1 (14:16), BBC Radio

Dave — Wed, 14 Aug 2024 18:42:55 +0000

Instinctively we divide mankind into friends and foes — friends, towards whom we have the morality of co-operation; foes, towards whom we have that of competition. But this division is constantly changing; at one moment a man hates his business competitor, at another, when both are threatened by Socialism or by an external enemy, he suddenly begins to view him as a brother. Always when we pass beyond the limits of the family it is the external enemy which supplies the cohesive force. In times of safety we can afford to hate our neighbour, but in times of danger we must love him.

Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) English mathematician and philosopher
Lecture (1948-12-26), “Social Cohesion and Human Nature,” Reith Lecture, No. 1 (14:16), BBC Radio
(Source)

As collected, with edits, in Authority and the Individual (1949).

WIST Quotations

Mackay, Charles -- Poem (1884), “No Enemies”, Interludes and Undertones, Poem 121

Russell, Bertrand -- Lecture (1948-12-26), “Social Cohesion and Human Nature,” Reith Lecture, No. 1 (14:16), BBC Radio