“The defilement of the human soul is worse than the destruction of the human body. A fuller realization of this is essential.”

—  Arthur Ponsonby

Falsehood in Wartime (1928), Introduction
Context: In calm retrospect we can appreciate better the disastrous effects of the poison of falsehood, whether officially, semi-officially, or privately manufactured. It has been rightly said that the injection of the poison of hatred into men's minds by means of falsehood is a greater evil in war-time than the actual loss of life. The defilement of the human soul is worse than the destruction of the human body. A fuller realization of this is essential.

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Arthur Ponsonby 31
British Liberal and later Labour politician and pacifist 1871–1946

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