Forgiveness Is the Fragrance the Violet Sheds on the Heel That Has Crushed It

Mark Twain? George Roemisch? Sophia May Eckley? Ella A. Giles? Elizabeth Reeves Humphreys? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The following evocative metaphorical definition of forgiveness is often attributed to Mark Twain: Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it. But I have seen the quotation below credited to someone …