War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse.

The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.

Unquestionably, it is possible to do without happiness; it is done involuntarily by nineteen-twentieths of mankind.

We have a right, also, in various ways, to act upon our unfavorable opinion of anyone, not to the oppression of his individuality, but in the exercise of ours.

What distinguishes the majority of men from the few is their inability to act according to their beliefs.

Whatever crushes individuality is despotism, by whatever name it may be called and whether it professes to be enforcing the will of God or the injunctions of men.

There are many truths of which the full meaning cannot be realized until personal experience has brought it home.

We can never be sure that the opinion we are endeavouring to stifle is a false opinion; and even if we were sure, stifling it would be an evil still.

All good things which exist are the fruits of originality.

It is questionable if all the mechanical inventions yet made have lightened the day's toil of any human being.

In all intellectual debates, both sides tend to be correct in what they affirm, and wrong in what they deny.

If all mankind minus one were of one opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind.

I have learned to seek my happiness by limiting my desires, rather than in attempting to satisfy them.

I am not aware that any community has a right to force another to be civilized.

Eccentricity has always abounded when and where strength of character had abounded; and the amount of eccentricity in a society has generally been proportional to the amount of genius, mental vigor, and courage which it contained.