Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.was an American jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1902 to 1932, and as Acting Chief Justice of the United States January–February 1930. Noted for his long service, his concise and pithy opinions and his deference to the decisions of elected legislatures, he is one of the most widely cited United States Supreme Court justices in history, particularly for his "clear and present danger" opinion for a...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionJudge
Date of Birth8 March 1841
CountryUnited States of America
Most of the things we do, we do for no better reason than that our fathers have done them or our neighbors do them, and the same is true of a larger part than what we suspect of what we think.
Pretty much all the honest truth-telling there is in the world is done by children.
The character of every act depends upon the circumstances in which it is done.
The rules of evidence in the main are based on experience, logic, and common sense, less hampered by history than some parts of the substantive law.
The great act of faith is when a man decides he is not God.
A new untruth is better than an old truth.
Any two philosophers can tell each other all they know in two hours.
The rule of joy and the law of duty seem to me all one.
The main part of intellectual education is not the acquisition of facts, but learning how to make facts live.
It is very lonely sometimes, trying to play God.
Certitude is not the test of certainty. We have been cocksure of many things that were not so.
A man is usually more careful of his money than of his principles.
Man has will, but woman has her way.
Science ... in other words, knowledge-is not the enemy of religion; for, if so, then religion would mean ignorance. But it is often the antagonist of school-divinity.