Ulysses S. Grant? Apocryphal?
Question for Quote Investigator: Distinguishing between true friends and fair-weather friends can be difficult. A former U.S. president stated that he cherished most those who remained friends when he was facing adversity. They relieved the gloom of his darkest hours.
Apparently, Ulysses S. Grant said something like this. Would you please help me to find the correct phrasing together with a citation?
Reply from Quote Investigator: In January 1869 several newspapers reported comments made by Ulysses S. Grant to a journalist of “The World” in New York. Grant was asked his opinion of Elihu B. Washburne. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:1
Washburne was my friend when I needed friends—when it was no advantage to be my friend, and when I had very few friends anywhere—scarcely any outside of the army. My friends are very numerous now. I often wonder how many of them would remain my friends if my position and patronage were taken away from me.
The friends of my adversity I shall always cherish most. I can better trust those who helped to relieve the gloom of my dark hours than those who are so ready to enjoy with me the sunshine of my prosperity. The newspapers cannot alienate me from Washburne by any abuse of him or ridicule of his supposed influence with and over me.
Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.
In 1903 “The Chattanooga Sunday Times” of Tennessee printed the following item under the title “Gems of Thought”:2
The friends of my adversity I shall always cherish most. I can better trust those who helped to relieve the gloom of my dark hours than those who are so ready to enjoy with me the sunshine of my prosperity.—Gen. Grant.
In 1913 “Echoes From The Nation” edited by Mary Neely printed an instance of the quotation. The word “trust” was incorrectly changed to “help”:3
The friends of my adversity I shall always cherish most. I can better help those who helped to relieve the gloom of my dark hours than those who are so ready to enjoy with me the sunshine of my prosperity. Grant.
In 1914 “The Word and Way” religious periodical of Kansas City, Missouri printed an instance. The word “friends” was incorrectly changed to “friend”:4
The friend of my adversity I shall always cherish most. I can better trust those who helped to relieve the gloom of my dark hours than those who are so ready to enjoy with me the sunshine of my prosperity.—General Grant.
In 1947 an instance appeared in “I Quote: A Collection of Ancient & Modern Wisdom & Inspiration” edited by Virginia Ely. This version also changed “friends” to “friend”. Ulysses S. Grant received credit.5
In 1962 the quotation credited to Grant appeared in “Lifetime Speaker’s Encyclopedia” compiled by Jacob Morton Braude. The word “friends” was changed to “friend”.6
In 1997 the quotation credited to Grant appeared in “The Forbes Book of Business Quotations”. The word “friends” was changed to “friend”.7
In conclusion, Ulysses S. Grant deserves credit for the statement published in 1869. Subsequent instances attributed to Grant were sometimes slightly altered.
Image Notes: Silhouettes of two people climbing from sasint at Pixabay. The image has been cropped and resized.
Acknowledgement: Great thanks to Gil Whalen whose inquiry led QI to formulate this question and perform this exploration. Whalen knew the version of the quotation using the word “friend”.
- 1869 January 6, Richmond Dispatch, Grant’s Views by Special Correspondent of the World, Quote Page 3, Column 1, Richmond, Virginia. (Newspapers_com) link ↩︎
- 1903 October 11, The Chattanooga Sunday Times, Gems of Thought, Quote Page 13, Column 4, Chattanooga, Tennessee. (Newspapers_com) ↩︎
- 1913 Copyright, Echoes From The Nation, Edited by Mary Neely, Chapter: Quotations: Civil War to Present Time, Quote Page 33, Johnston-Taylor, Wichita, Kansas. (Internet Archive at archive.org) link ↩︎
- 1914 November 19, The Word and Way, Personals and Comments, Quote Page 3, Column 1, The Western Baptist Publishing Company, Kansas City, Missouri. (Newspapers_com) ↩︎
- 1947 Copyright, I Quote: A Collection of Ancient & Modern Wisdom & Inspiration, Edited by Virginia Ely, Topic: Friendship, Quote Page 140, George W. Stewart Publisher, New York. (Verified with scans) ↩︎
- 1962 Copyright, Lifetime Speaker’s Encyclopedia, Compiled by Jacob Morton Braude, Topic: Friendship, Quote Number 2318, Quote Page 288, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey. (Verified with scans) ↩︎
- 1997, The Forbes Book of Business Quotations: 14,173 Thoughts on the Business of Life, Edited by Ted Goodman, Topic: Friendship, Quote Page 309, Column 2, Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers, New York. (Verified with scans) ↩︎