“License they mean when they cry, Liberty!
For who loves that must first be wise and good.”
On the Detraction which followed upon my writing certain Treatises, reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919)
Help us to complete the source, original and additional information
John Milton 190
English epic poet 1608–1674Related quotes

The Anatomy of Influence (2011), p. 142.

“None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license.”
Tenure of Kings and Magistrates (1649)

“What do we mean when we say that first of all we seek liberty?”
“The Spirit of Liberty” - speech at “I Am an American Day” ceremony, Central Park, New York City (21 May 1944).
Extra-judicial writings
Context: What do we mean when we say that first of all we seek liberty? I often wonder whether we do not rest our hopes too much upon constitutions, upon laws and upon courts. These are false hopes; believe me, these are false hopes. Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; when it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it; no constitution, no law, no court can even do much to help it… What is this liberty that must lie in the hearts of men and women? It is not the ruthless, the unbridled will; it is not the freedom to do as one likes. That is the denial of liberty and leads straight to its overthrow. A society in which men recognize no check on their freedom soon becomes a society where freedom is the possession of only a savage few — as we have learned to our sorrow.
What then is the spirit of liberty? I cannot define it; I can only tell you my own faith. The spirit of liberty is the spirit which is not too sure that it is right; the spirit of liberty is the spirit which seeks to understand the minds of other men and women; the spirit of liberty is the spirit which weighs their interests alongside its own without bias; the spirit of liberty remembers that not even a sparrow falls to earth unheeded; the spirit of liberty is the spirit of Him who, near two thousand years ago, taught mankind that lesson it has never learned, but has never quite forgotten; that there may be a kingdom where the least shall be heard and considered side by side with the greatest.

Part of the Plan.
Song lyrics, Souvenirs (1974)

“When love could teach a monarch to be wise,
And gospel-light first dawn'd from Bullen's eyes.”
Education and Government; reported in Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, 10th ed. (1919)
Accepting a proposal of marriage from George Burns in December 1925, after a long period of reluctance, and dismissal of his overtures, as quoted in Gracie : A Love Story (1988) by George Burns, p. 17

“A wise skepticism is the first attribute of a good critic.”
Shakespeare Once More
Literary Essays, vol. III (1870-1890)

“To be old and wise, you must first be young and crazy.”
Original: (it) Per essere vecchi e saggi, bisogna prima essere giovani e folli.
Source: prevale.net

A Magazine of People and Possibilities interview (1998)