Quote Origin: Measure Their Progress, Not From the Heights to Which They May In Time Attain, But From the Depths From Which They Have Come

Frederick Douglass? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: Whenever a person is being evaluated it is necessary to consider the adversities that have impeded their progress. One should measure the heights achieved, but one should also consider the original challenging depths experienced by an individual. The famous orator Frederick Douglass said something like this. Would you …

I Prayed That God Would Emancipate Me, But It Was Not Till I Prayed With My Legs That I Was Emancipated

Frederick Douglass? Richard Theodore Greener? Samuel Byron Brittan? Rufus K. Noyes? James Clear? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: You must be willing to take constructive actions to resolve your own problems. If you rely solely on the help of others you will be disheartened. Also, if you depend solely on supernatural intervention you will be disappointed. …

I Have Seen Dark Hours in My Life, and I Have Seen the Darkness Gradually Disappearing and the Light Gradually Increasing

Frederick Douglass? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: The famous anti-slavery orator Frederick Douglass once stated that society was slowly improving. He believed that he was seeing “the darkness gradually disappearing and the light gradually increasing”. Would you please help me to find a citation? Quote Investigator: On October 22, 1890 “The Evening Star” newspaper of Washington …

Ballot Box, Jury Box, Cartridge Box

Frederick Douglass? Stephen Decatur Miller? Woody Jenkins? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: A prominent public speaker once asserted that the preservation of liberty depended on three boxes: The ballot box, the jury box, and the cartridge box. This statement employed metonymy: the “ballot box” referred to input from the populace via the electoral process; the “jury …