Tracing Quotations
Oliver Cromwell? John Andrewes? Earl of Chichester? Mark Antony Lower? Viscount Fauconberg? Apocryphal? Dear Quote Investigator: A popular saying extols continuous improvement. Here are four versions: He who ceases to be better ceases to be good. He who ceases to improve, ceases to be good. If I cease becoming better, I shall soon cease to …
Continue reading “If I Cease Becoming Better, I Shall Soon Cease To Be Good”
William Butler Yeats? William B. Sprague? Benjamin Franklin? Richard Sharp? Charles Lamb? Charles Caleb Colton? Oliver Cromwell? Peleg Sprague? Ernest Hemingway? Anonymous? Dear Quote Investigator: A popular proverb highlights the limited duration of an opportunity: Strike while the iron is hot. This metaphor has been astutely extended with advice for greater challenges: Make the iron …
Continue reading “Do Not Wait To Strike Till the Iron Is Hot; But Make It Hot By Striking”
John Nalson? Oliver Cromwell? Tom Quick? Anonymous? Question for Quote Investigator: Historically, non-combatants have sometimes been deliberately attacked during warfare. A cruel motto has been employed to rationalize the targeting of young people. Here are three versions: Nits make lice. Nits will become lice. Nits will be lice. A “nit” refers to the egg of …