WIST Quotations

Cicero, Marcus Tullius -- Pro Sestio [For Publius Sestius], ch. 45 / sec. 98 (56-02 BC) [tr. Yonge (1891)]

Dave — Thu, 26 Feb 2026 17:33:51 +0000

For men ought not to be so elated by the dignity of the affairs which they have undertaken to manage, as to have no regard to their ease; nor ought they to dwell with fondness on any sort of ease which is inconsistent with dignity.

[Neque enim rerum gerendarum dignitate homines ecferri ita convenit ut otio non prospiciant, neque ullum amplexari otium quod abhorreat a dignitate.]

Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BC) Roman orator, statesman, philosopher
Pro Sestio [For Publius Sestius], ch. 45 / sec. 98 (56-02 BC) [tr. Yonge (1891)]
(Source)

Part of Cicero's discussion of otium cum dignitate ("peace with dignity"), an idealized active private life after retiring from public service. See here for more.

(Source (Latin)). Other translations:

For neither is it fitting that men be so carried away by political freedom as to make no provision for tranquility, nor to accept any tranquility which is inconsistent with freedom.
[tr. Hickie (1888)]

For just as it ill befits men to be so carried away by the dignity of a public career that they are indifferent in peace, so too it is unfitting for them to welcome a peace which is inconsistent with dignity.
[tr. Gardner (Loeb) (1958)]

Adams, John -- Letter (1776-04-16) to Mercy Otis Warren

Dave — Wed, 14 Jan 2026 22:49:29 +0000

Every Man must seriously set himself to root out his Passions, Prejudices and Attachments, and to get the better of his private Interest. The only reputable Principle and Doctrine must be that all Things must give Way to the public.

John Adams (1735–1826) American lawyer, Founding Father, statesman, US President (1797–1801)
Letter (1776-04-16) to Mercy Otis Warren
(Source)

Roosevelt, Theodore -- Essay (1918-04-06), “Citizens or Subjects?” Kansas City Star

Dave — Thu, 20 Nov 2025 17:29:37 +0000

My loyalty is due the United States, and therefore it is due to the President, the Senators, the Congressmen, and all other public servants only and to the degree in which they loyally and efficiently serve the United States.

Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) American politician, statesman, conservationist, writer, US President (1901–1909)
Essay (1918-04-06), “Citizens or Subjects?” Kansas City Star
(Source)

Regarding a bill which had just passed the Senate Judiciary Committee which would fine and imprison any one who used "contemptuous or slurring language about the President."

This passage was added to later editions of his essay, "Lincoln and Free Speech,", as printed in The Works of Theodore Roosevelt, vol. 21, The Great Adventure, ch. 7 (1925). It does not appear in the original version of the essay or book.

Roosevelt, Franklin Delano -- Speech (1937-01-20), Inaugural Address, Washington, D.C.

Dave — Wed, 05 Nov 2025 23:46:01 +0000

Government is competent when all who compose it work as trustees for the whole people. It can make constant progress when it keeps abreast of all the facts. It can obtain justified support and legitimate criticism when the people receive true information of all that government does.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1882–1945) American lawyer, politician, statesman, US President (1933–1945)
Speech (1937-01-20), Inaugural Address, Washington, D.C.
(Source)

(Source (Audio))

Adams, John -- Letter (1785-09-10) to John Jebb

Dave — Mon, 27 Oct 2025 23:44:44 +0000

The Man who offers a City or Burrough to serve them for nothing, offers a Bribe to every Elector, and the answer should be Sir you affront me. — I want a service which is worth something, I am able and willing to Pay for it. I will not lay myself under any obligation to you by accepting your Gift. I will owe you no gratitude any further than you serve me faithfully the obligation and Gratitude Shall be from you to me, and if you do not do your Duty to me I will be perfectly free to call you to an account and to punish you and if you will not accept of Pay for your service you shall not serve me —

John Adams (1735–1826) American lawyer, Founding Father, statesman, US President (1797–1801)
Letter (1785-09-10) to John Jebb
(Source)

Roosevelt, Theodore -- Essay (1918-05), “Lincoln and Free Speech,” Metropolitan Magazine, Vol. 47, No. 6

Dave — Fri, 24 Oct 2025 16:25:18 +0000

We hold that our loyalty is due solely to the American Republic, and to all our public servants exactly in proportion as they efficiently and faithfully serve the Republic. Our opponents, in flat contradiction of Lincoln’s position, hold that our loyalty is due to the President, not the country; to one man, the servant of the people, instead of to the people themselves. In practice they adopt the fetishism of all believers in absolutism; for every man who parrots the cry of “stand by the President,” without adding the proviso “so far as he serves the Republic” takes an attitude as essentially unmanly as that of any Stuart Royalist who championed the doctrine that the King could do no wrong. No self-respecting and intelligent freeman can take such an attitude.

Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) American politician, statesman, conservationist, writer, US President (1901–1909)
Essay (1918-05), “Lincoln and Free Speech,” Metropolitan Magazine, Vol. 47, No. 6
(Source)

On censorious actions by the Wilson Administration taken against critics of its handling of war efforts.

Reprinted in Appendix C of his The Great Adventure (1918), and as ch. 7 of that book in Vol. 21 of The Works of Theodore Roosevelt (1925), The Great Adventure.

Washington, Martha -- Letter to Mercy Otis Warren (1789-12-26)

Dave — Mon, 10 Apr 2023 16:14:31 +0000

I little thought, when the war was finished, that any circumstances could possibly have happened, which would call the General into public life again. I had anticipated that, from this moment, we should have been left to grow old, in solitude and tranquillity, together. That was, my dear madam, the first and dearest wish of my heart; but in that I have been disappointed. I will not, however, contemplate, with too much regret, disappointments that were inevitable. Though the General’s feelings and my own were perfectly in unison, with respect to our predilection for private life, yet I cannot blame him, for having acted according to his ideas of duty, in obeying the voice of his country. The consciousness of having attempted to do all the good in his power, and the pleasure of finding his fellow-citizens so well satisfied with the disinterestedness of his conduct, will doubtless be some compensation for the great sacrifices, which I know he has made.

Martha Washington (1731-1802) American socialite, wife of George Washington, First Lady (1789-1797)
Letter to Mercy Otis Warren (1789-12-26)
(Source)

On George Washington's election as President.

Emerson, Ralph Waldo -- Notebook F, #1, p. 28 (1836-1840)

Dave — Tue, 20 Sep 2016 04:01:45 +0000

Serve self you serve society.
Serve society serve yourself.

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) American essayist, lecturer, poet
Notebook F, #1, p. 28 (1836-1840)
(Source)

Hayes, Rutherford -- Inaugural address (5 Mar 1877)

Dave — Tue, 05 Jul 2016 21:48:03 +0000

He serves his party best who serves the country best.

Rutherford B. Hayes (1822-1893) American attorney, soldier, politician, US President (1877-81)
Inaugural address (5 Mar 1877)

Carter, Jimmy -- Speech, Southern Baptist Brotherhood Commission (16 Jun 1978)

Dave — Tue, 14 Jun 2016 19:40:34 +0000

You can’t divorce religious belief and public service. I’ve never detected any conflict between God’s will and my political duty. If you violate one, you violate the other.

Jimmy Carter (b. 1924) American politician, US President (1977-1981), Nobel laureate [James Earl Carter, Jr.]
Speech, Southern Baptist Brotherhood Commission (16 Jun 1978)

Hubbard, Kin -- (Attributed)

Dave — Fri, 20 Nov 2015 13:46:24 +0000

If there’s anything a public servant hates to do it’s something for the public.

Frank McKinney "Kin" Hubbard (1868-1930) American caricaturist and humorist
(Attributed)

Franklin, Benjamin -- Poor Richard’s Almanack (Oct 1758)

Dave — Fri, 17 Jul 2015 17:08:38 +0000

To serve the Public faithfully, and at the same time please it entirely, is impracticable.

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) American statesman, scientist, philosopher, aphorist
Poor Richard’s Almanack (Oct 1758)

Adams, Abigail -- Letter to John Thaxter (29 Sep 1778)

Dave — Fri, 26 Jun 2015 14:52:28 +0000

If we do not lay out ourselves in the service of mankind whom should we serve?

Abigail Adams (1744-1818) American correspondent, First Lady (1797-1801)
Letter to John Thaxter (29 Sep 1778)

Madison, James -- The Federalist #57 (19 Feb 1788)

Dave — Mon, 15 Dec 2014 13:12:30 +0000

The aim of every political constitution is, or ought to be, first to obtain for rulers men who possess most wisdom to discern, and most virtue to pursue, the common good of the society; and in the next place, to take the most effectual precautions for keeping them virtuous whilst they continue to hold their public trust.

James Madison (1751-1836) American statesman, political theorist, US President (1809-17)
The Federalist #57 (19 Feb 1788)

Hoover, Herbert -- Speech (1951-08-30), “Concerning Honor in Public Life,” Iowa Centennial Celebration, Des Moines, Iowa (radio broadcast)

Dave — Fri, 03 Aug 2012 12:38:44 +0000

The duty of public men in this Republic is to lead in standards of integrity — both in mind and money.
Dishonor in public life has a double poison. When people are dishonorable in private business, they injure only those with whom they deal or their own chances in the next world. But when there is a lack of honor in Government, the morals of the whole people are poisoned.
Some folks seem to think these are necessary evils in a free government. Or that it is smart politics. Those are deadly sleeping pills. No public man can be just a little crooked.

Herbert Hoover (1874-1964) American engineer, bureaucrat, US President (1929-33)
Speech (1951-08-30), “Concerning Honor in Public Life,” Iowa Centennial Celebration, Des Moines, Iowa (radio broadcast)
(Source)

Kennedy, John F. -- State of the Union address (1961-01-30)

Dave — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:29:58 +0000

I have pledged myself and my colleagues in the cabinet to a continuous encouragement of initiative, responsibility and energy in serving the public interest. Let every public servant know, whether his post is high or low, that a man’s rank and reputation in this Administration will be determined by the size of the job he does, and not by the size of his staff, his office or his budget. Let it be clear that this Administration recognizes the value of dissent and daring — that we greet healthy controversy as the hallmark of healthy change. Let the public service be a proud and lively career. And let every man and woman who works in any area of our national government, in any branch, at any level, be able to say with pride and with honor in future years: “I served the United States Government in that hour of our nation’s need.”

John F. Kennedy (1917-1963) American politician, author, journalist, US President (1961–63)
State of the Union address (1961-01-30)
(Source)

Holmes, Oliver Wendell, Jr. -- “In Our Youth Our Hearts Were Touched With Fire,” Memorial Day address, Keene, New Hampshire (30 May 1884)

Dave — Tue, 12 May 2009 12:42:24 +0000

It is now the moment when by common consent we pause to become conscious of our national life and to rejoice in it, to recall what our country has done for each of us, and to ask ourselves what we can do for our country in return.

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. (1841-1935) American jurist, Supreme Court Justice
“In Our Youth Our Hearts Were Touched With Fire,” Memorial Day address, Keene, New Hampshire (30 May 1884)
(Source)

Speaking of what the Independence Day (Fourth of July) has become in the US, separated by time from the initial cause it celebrated.

See Harding and Kennedy.

Hoover, Herbert -- Speech (1951-08-30), “Concerning Honor in Public Life,” Iowa Centennial Celebration, Des Moines, Iowa (radio broadcast)

Dave — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 10:23:57 +0000

Dishonor in public life has a double poison. When people are dishonorable in private business, they injure only those with whom they deal or their own chances in the next world. But when there is a lack of honor in Government, the morals of the whole people are poisoned.

Stevenson, Adlai -- Speech (1952-09-11), “On Political Morality,” Town Hall Luncheon, Biltmore Hotel, Los Angeles

Dave — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 14:18:04 +0000

Public confidence in the integrity of the Government is indispensable to faith in democracy; and when we lose faith in the system, we have lost faith in everything we fight and stand for.

Adlai Stevenson (1900–1965) American diplomat, statesman
Speech (1952-09-11), “On Political Morality,” Town Hall Luncheon, Biltmore Hotel, Los Angeles
(Source)

Watterson, Bill -- Calvin and Hobbes (1986-09-27)

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

CALVIN: I try to make everyone’s day a little more surreal.

Bill Watterson (b. 1958) American cartoonist
Calvin and Hobbes (1986-09-27)
(Source)

Roosevelt, Theodore -- Essay (1918-05), “Lincoln and Free Speech,” Metropolitan Magazine, Vol. 47, No. 6

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

Patriotism means to stand by the country. It does not mean to stand by the President or any other public official save exactly to the degree in which he himself stands by the country. It is patriotic to support him in so far as he efficiently serves the country. It is unpatriotic not to oppose him to the exact extent that by inefficiency or otherwise he fails in his duty to stand by the country. In either event, it is unpatriotic not to tell the truth — whether about the President or about any one else.

Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) American politician, statesman, conservationist, writer, US President (1901–1909)
Essay (1918-05), “Lincoln and Free Speech,” Metropolitan Magazine, Vol. 47, No. 6
(Source)

On war-time censorship by the Wilson Administration taken against critics of its handling of war efforts.

Reprinted in Appendix C of his The Great Adventure (1918), and as ch. 7 of that book in Vol. 21 of The Works of Theodore Roosevelt (1925), The Great Adventure.

See also Roosevelt and Roosevelt.

Confucius -- The Analects [論語, 论语, Lúnyǔ], Book 11, verse 24, sec. 3 (11.24.3) (6th C. BC – AD 3rd C.) [tr. Hinton (1998)]

Dave — Sun, 01 Feb 2004 16:00:00 +0000

What I call a great minister is one who employs the Way in serving his sovereign. If he cannot do that, he resigns.

[所謂大臣者、以道事君、不可則止。]

Confucius (c. 551- c. 479 BC) Chinese philosopher, sage, politician [孔夫子 (Kǒng Fūzǐ, K'ung Fu-tzu, K'ung Fu Tse), 孔子 (Kǒngzǐ, Chungni), 孔丘 (Kǒng Qiū, K'ung Ch'iu)]
The Analects [論語, 论语, Lúnyǔ], Book 11, verse 24, sec. 3 (11.24.3) (6th C. BC – AD 3rd C.) [tr. Hinton (1998)]
(Source)

Numbered 11.23 by Legge and other early translators, as noted. More recent translators use 11.24, though some use 11.22. All are noted below.

(Source (Chinese)). Alternate translations:

What is called a great minister is one who serves his prince according to what is right; and when he finds he cannot do so, retires.
[tr. Legge (1861), 11.23]

Those whom we call 'great ministers' are such as serve their prince conscientiously, and who, when they cannot do so, retire.
[tr. Jennings (1895), 11.23]

Men I call statesmen are those who will serve their master according to their sense of duty; who, however, when they find they cannot do that, consistently, with their sense of duty, will resign.
[tr. Ku Hung-Ming (1898)]

He who may be called a great minister is one who serves his Prince according to the right, and when that cannot be, resigns.
[tr. Soothill (1910) 11.23]

You call a man a great minister when be serves his prince honestly. and retires when he cannot.
[tr. Pound (1933), 11.23]

What I call a great minister is one who will only serve is prince while he can do so without infringement of the Way, and as soon as this is impossible, resigns.
[tr. Waley (1938), 11.23]

The so-called great minister serves his prince in keeping with The Right Way, and if that is impossible, he quits his post.
[tr. Ware (1950), 11.22]

The term "great minister" refers to those who serve their lord according to the Way and who, when this is no longer possible, relinquish office.
[tr. Lau (1979), 11.24]

What I call a great minister serves his ruler in accordance with the Way, and when it is impossible to do so he resigns.
[tr. Dawson (1993), 11.22]

A great minister is a minister who serves his lord by following the Way, and who resigns as soon as the two are no longer reconcilable.
[tr. Leys (1997), 11.24]

Those who are called great ministers use the Way to serve the sovereign. If thye cannot, they should then stop.
[tr. Huang (1997), 11.22]

The persons named as the Great Officials, should service the Lords with the benevolent way, and stop if the way does not work.
[tr. Cai/Yu (1998), #284, 11.24]

What are called great ministers are those who serve their lord with the way [dao], and when they cannot, resign.
[tr. Ames/Rosemont (1998), 11.24]

Those whom one calls great ministers serve their ruler according to the Way, and when they can no longer, they stop.
[tr. Brooks/Brooks (1998), 11:22]

What we call "great ministers" are those who seek to serve their lord by means of the Way, and who resign if unable to do so.
[tr. Slingerland (2003), 11.24]

The term “great minister” applies to someone who serves the ruler according to the Way. If he cannot do that, he retires.
[tr. Watson (2007), 11.24]

The term "great ministers" applies to those who serve their lord in a moral way. If they simply cannot, then they stop.
[tr. Chin (2014), 11.24]