Quotes About Morality

Lie to a liar, for lies are his coin; steal from a thief, for that is easy; lay a trap for the trickster and catch him at the first attempt, but beware of an honest man. (said by the author to be a Somali saying)

People have a greater tolerance for evil than for violence. If crooked gamboling, thieving and robing are covered over folks will tolerate it longer than out right violence, even when the violence may be cleansing.

There are many ways of fighting. Many a man or woman has waged a good war for truth, honor, and freedom, who did not shed blood in the process. Beware of those who would use violence, too often it is the violence they want and neither truth nor freedom.

It is brutal. Only I never could see the sense in having folks look at your tombstone and say, 'He was a man who didn't believe in violence, He's a good man... and dead.

if we are to become a land of homes and people, evil men must not be allowed to persist in their evil.

I've written all these stories without any pornography, without any obscenity. I grew up among sailors and miners and lumberjacks and the roughest kind men in the world, but I never found it necessary to use all that in the stories. I can make them real without that. I think much of that kind of writing is a coverup for lack of real skill.

The cause of right is never lost, Leal. I've often thought the biggest damned fool in the world could to down in history as a great man if he would just consistently vote for the greatest good of the greatest number - Kilkenny

When evil takes up to violence, the good have no choice but to defend themselves.

I like my fellow man, but I also realize he carried a good measure of the Old Nick in him and he can find a good excuse for almost any kind of wrongdoing or mischief.

people have a greater tolerance for evil than for violence. If crooked gambling, thieving, and robbing are covered over, folks will tolerate it longer than outright violence, even when the violence may be cleansing.

No telling what those men wanted... but in these times there were white men with bloodier hands than any Indian...

My old Greek, who was my teacher when I was a boy in my own country," I said, "taught me this. It was a Somali saying, I believe: 'Lie to a liar, for lies are his coin; steal from a thief, for that is easy; lay a trap for the trickster and catch him at the first attempt, but beware of an honest man.

As for sinning, most of the things he enjoyed were sins in the eyes of somebody. Except for reading…and most of his books were written by pagan authors.

There could be no tolerating of evil. One stamped it out or the evil grew worse.

I suspect what I was doing would be called courageous. If I rescued them, it might even be considered an heroic action, but was it? Was I not conditioned by reading, by hearing, by understanding what I should do?

Where there's no law, all the strength can't be left in the hands of the lawless, so good men use guns, too.

Holmes writes, "…I also would fight for some things—but instead of saying that they ought to be I merely say they are part of the kind of world that I like—or should like.

when Trapp was a young man, did he have sex with Annabel King

If I didn't care about doing right and didn't feel uncomfortable doing wrong, I should get on capitally.

To me, love isn't all. I must look up, not down, trust and honor with my whole heart, and find strenght and integrity to lean on

Persuasive influences are better than any amount of moralizing.

I almost wish I hadn't any conscience, it's so inconvenient. If I didn't care about doing the right and didn't feel uncomfortable when doing wrong, I should get on capitally.

It is necessary to do right; it is not necessary to be happy.

The sincere wish to be good is half the battle.