Quotes by Famous Americans Past and Present
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Quotes by Famous Americans Past and Present
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Theodore Roosevelt Quotes Click here for Theodore Roosevelt books Theodore Rex (Modern Library Paperbacks) "Delighted!" "Do what you can, with what you have, where you are." "Gentlemen: you have now reached the last point. If anyone of you doesn’t mean business let him say so now." "Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in that grey twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat." "I have always been fond of the West African proverb 'Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far.'" "A good many of you are probably acquainted with the old proverb, “Speak softly and carry a big stick — you will go far.” If a man continually blusters, if he lacks civility, a big stick will not save him from trouble, and neither will speaking softly avail, if back of the softness there does not lie strength, power." "I'm as strong as a bull moose and you can use me to the limit." "Probably the greatest harm done by vast wealth is the harm that we of moderate means do ourselves when we let the vices of envy and hatred enter deep into our own natures." "A man who has never gone to school may steal from a freight car; but if he has a university education, he may steal the whole railroad." "The first requisite of a good citizen in this Republic of ours is that he shall be able and willing to pull his weight; that he shall not be a mere passenger, but shall do his share in the work that each generation of us finds ready to hand; and, furthermore, that in doing his work he shall show, not only the capacity for sturdy self-help, but also self-respecting regard for the rights of others." "A man who is good enough to shed his blood for his country is good enough to be given a square deal afterwards." "We demand that big business give the people a square deal; in return we must insist that when any one engaged in big business honestly endeavors to do right he shall himself be given a square deal; and the first, and most elementary, kind of square deal is to give him in advance full information as to just what he can, and what he cannot, legally and properly do." "Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing." "No man is above the law and no man is below it; nor do we ask any man's permission when we require him to obey it. Obedience to the law is demanded as a right; not asked as a favor." "A thorough knowledge of the Bible is worth more than a college education." "Men with the muckrake are often indispensable to the well-being of society, but only if they know when to stop raking the muck, and to look upward to the celestial crown above them." "If I must choose between righteousness and peace I choose righteousness." "To waste, to destroy, our natural resources, to skin and exhaust the land instead of using it so as to increase its usefulness, will result in undermining in the days of our children the very prosperity which we ought by right to hand down to them amplified and developed." "There is no room in this country for hyphenated Americanism." "Any man who says he is an American, but something else also, isn't an American at all." "Every man holds his property subject to the general right of the community to regulate its use to whatever degree the public welfare may require it." "Political parties exist to secure responsible government and to execute the will of the people." "We stand equally against government by a plutocracy and government by a mob." "In life, as in a football game, the principle to follow is: Hit the line hard." "To announce that there must be no criticism of the president, or that we are to stand by the president, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public." "In any moment of decision the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing." "In our complex industrial civilization of today the peace of righteousness and justice, the only kind of peace worth having, is at least as necessary in the industrial world as it is among nations." "We must ever bear in mind that the great end in view is righteousness, justice as between man and man, nation and nation, the chance to lead our lives on a somewhat higher level, with a broader spirit of brotherly goodwill one for another." "We despise and abhor the bully, the brawler, the oppressor, whether in private or public life, but we despise no less the coward and the voluptuary." "All really civilized communities should have effective arbitration treaties among themselves." "Each nation must keep well prepared to defend itself until the establishment of some form of international police power, competent and willing to prevent violence as between nations." "Friends, I shall ask you to be as quiet as possible. I don't know whether you fully understand that I have just been shot; but it takes more than that to kill a Bull Moose." "Friends, I will disown and repudiate any man of my party who attacks with such foul slander and abuse any opponent of any other party." "Among the wise and high-minded people who in self-respecting and genuine fashion strive earnestly for peace, there are the foolish fanatics always to be found in such a movement and always discrediting it — the men who form the lunatic fringe in all reform movements." "Courtesy is as much a mark of a gentleman as courage." "I abhor unjust war. I abhor injustice and bullying by the strong at the expense of the weak, whether among nations or individuals. I abhor violence and bloodshed." "Each nation has its own pet sins to which it is merciful, and also sins which it treats as most abhorrent. In America, we are peculiarly sensitive about big money contributions for which the donors expect any reward." "Character, in the long run, is the decisive factor in the life of an individual and of nations alike." "As regards capital cases, the trouble is that emotional men and women always see only the individual whose fate is up at the moment, and neither his victim nor the many millions of unknown individuals who would in the long run be harmed by what they ask." "A vote is like a rifle; its usefulness depends upon the character of the user." "I am only an average man but, by George, I work harder at it than the average man." "People ask the difference between a leader and a boss. The leader leads, and the boss drives." "The American people are slow to wrath, but once that wrath is kindled, it burns like a consuming flame." "The best executive is one who has sense enough to pick good people to do what he wants done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it." "To educate a man in mind and not in morals is to educate a menace to society." "When they call the roll in the Senate, the Senators do not know whether to answer 'Present' or 'Not guilty.'" "The [Panama] canal was by far the most important action I took in foreign affairs during the time I was President. When nobody could or would exercise efficient authority, I exercised it." "The one thing I want to leave my children is an honorable name." |
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