Marie-Henri Beyle – Quote Investigator®

Quote Origin: God’s Only Excuse Is That He Does Not Exist

Stendhal? Marie-Henri Beyle? Friedrich Nietzsche? Albert Camus? Prosper Mérimée? Apocryphal? Question for Quote Investigator: An atheist who was angry about the state of the world crafted the following comically paradoxical saying: The only excuse for God is that he does not exist. This remark has been attributed to the French Romantic novelist Marie-Henri Beyle (known …

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Quote Origin: If You See a Swiss Banker Jump Out of a Window, Jump Right After. There Is Bound To Be a Profit In It

Voltaire? Cardinal Richelieu? Étienne François de Choiseul? Catharine Sedgwick? Marie-Henri Beyle? Lionel de Rothschild? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Bankers in Switzerland are world-renowned for their financial acuity. Here are three remarks which illustrate this perception: (1) If you ever see a Swiss banker jump out of a window, jump after him; there is a …

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Quote Origin: A Donkey Is a Horse Translated Into Dutch

Georg Christoph Lichtenberg? Stendhal? Marie-Henri Beyle? W. H. Auden? Bayard Taylor? Question for Quote Investigator: A German humorist who lived in the 18th century thought the Dutch language sounded ridiculous as indicated by the following quip: A donkey appears to me like a horse translated into Dutch. Would you please help me to find the …

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