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
Knowledge-it excites prejudices to call it science-is advancing as irresistibly, as majestically, as remorselessly as the ocean moves in upon the shore.
Where we stand is not as important as the direction in which we are moving.
From forty to fifty a man must move upward, or the natural falling off in the vigor of life will carry him rapidly downward.
I find the great thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving: To reach the port of heaven, we must sail sometimes with the wind and sometimes against it, but we must sail, and not drift, nor lie at anchor.
Reason may be the lever, but sentiment gives you the fulcrum and the place to stand on if you want to move the world.
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.