Presumption Quotes
More Presumption Quotes
presumption should never make us neglect that which appears easy to us, nor despair make us lose courage at the sight of difficulties.
benjamin banneker— This appeared in Banneker's Almanac in 1794, and is commonly attributed to him, but originates earlier in "Reflections on different Subjects of Morality, by Stanislaw Leszczynski, King of Poland, Duke of Lorrain and Bar" in The Universal Magazine (1765), p. 119
Brethren, understand that the gospel is a gospel which brings a present salvation; and try to feel that it is not presumption, but simply out of the very fundamental principle of it, when you are not afraid to say, "I know that my Redeemer is yonder, and I know that He loves me."
alexander maclaren— P. 526. (Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895))
There are events which are so great that if a writer has participated in them his obligation is to write truly rather than assume the presumption of altering them with invention.
ernest hemingway— Preface to The Great Crusade (1940) by Gustav Regler
It may be that the requirement of a preliminary approval by the Grand Jury, of all accusations of a serious nature, justified the boast that a man was presumed to be innocent until he was 'found' guilty; but that presumption certainly ceased to have practical application, so soon as the Grand Jury had returned a 'true bill'.
edward jenks— Chapter XVIII, Reform In The Criminal Law, p. 332
The government of England is a government of law. We betray ourselves, we contradict the spirit of our laws, and we shake the whole system of English jurisprudence, whenever we entrust a discretionary power over the life, liberty, or fortune of the subject to any man, or set of men, whatsoever, upon a presumption that it will not be abused.
junius— No. 46 (25 May 1771).
There is no presumption in this country that every person knows the law: it would be contrary to common sense and reason if it were so.
william henry maule— Martindale v. Falkner (1846), 2 C. B. 720, and characterised by Blackburn, J., in The Queen v. Mayor of Tewkesbury, L. R. 3 Q. B. 629.
In those parts of the world where learning and science has prevailed, miracles have ceased; but in such parts of it as are barbarous and ignorant, miracles are still in vogue; which is of itself a strong presumption that in the infancy of letters, learning and science, or in the world's non-age, those who confided in miracles, as a proof of the divine mission of the first promulgators of revelation, were imposed upon by fictitious appearances instead of miracles.
ethan allen— Reason, the Only Oracle of Man: Or, A Compenduous System of Natural Religion, Ch. VI, Section III: Rare and Wonderful Phenomena no evidence of Miracles, nor are Diabolical Spirits able to effect them, or Superstitious Traditions to confirm them, nor can Ancient Miracles prove Recent Revelations (1854)
A constellation of the most pedantic , obstinate ignorance and presumption , mixed with a kind of rustic incivility, which would try the patience of Job .
giordano bruno— Declaration about the scholars of England, particularly those of Oxford.
I cannot conceive how any man can have brought himself to that pitch of presumption, to consider his country as nothing but carte blanche , upon which he may scribble whatever he pleases.
Edmund Burke— Volume iii, page 231.
The presumption of innocence only means you don't go right to jail.
ann coulter— Hannity & Colmes (24 August 2001)
Another doctrine repugnant to Civill Society, is that whatsoever a man does against his Conscience, is Sinne ; and it dependeth on the presumption of making himself judge of Good and Evill. For a man's Conscience and his Judgement are the same thing, and as the Judgement, so also the Conscience may be erroneous.
thomas hobbes— The Second Part, Chapter 29, p. 168
People talk about imitating Christ, and imitate Him in the little trifling formal things, such as washing the feet, saying His prayer, and so on; but if anyone attempts the real imitation of Him, there are no bounds to the outcry with which the presumption of that person is condemned.
Florence Nightingale— Florence Nightingale, in Cassandra (1860).
Education is a process by which the individual is developed into something better than he would have been without it. … The very though seems in a way the height of presumption. For one thing, it involves the premise that some human beings can be better than others.
richard weaver— “Education and the individual,” p. 43
Enough of good there is in the lowest estate to sweeten life ; enough of evil in the highest to check presumption; enough there is of both in all estates, to bind us in compassionate brotherhood, to teach us impressively that we are of one dying and one immortal family.
— Henry Giles, p. 41. (Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895))
An accused man should have the benefit of the presumption of integrity which arises from the virtue of a lifetime.
— Lord O'Hagan, Symington v. Symington (1875), L. R. 2 Sc. & D. 428.
It may be that the requirement of a preliminary approval by the Grand Jury, of all accusations of a serious nature, justified the boast that a man was presumed to be innocent until he was 'found' guilty; but that presumption certainly ceased to have practical application, so soon as the Grand Jury had returned a 'true bill'.
— Chapter XVIII, Reform In The Criminal Law, p. 332
It is a strong presumption that that which never has been done cannot by law be done at all.
— Russell v. The Mayor of Devon (1788), 1 T. R. 673.
Another doctrine repugnant to civil society, is that whatsoever a man does against his conscience, is sin; and it dependeth on the presumption of making himself judge of good and evil. For a man's conscience and his judgement are the same thing, and as the judgement, so also the conscience may be erroneous.
— Thomas Hobbes, in Leviathan, The Matter, Forme and Power of a Common Wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civil (1651).
When truth and reason cannot be heard, then must presumption rule .
— Barbara Tuchman, quoting Admiral Jean de Vienne, A Distant Mirror (1978), p. 559.
It is not so with Him that all things knows As 'tis with us that square our guess by shows: But most it is presumption in us when The help of heaven we count the act of men.
william shakespeare— William Shakespeare, All's Well That Ends Well (1600s), Act II, scene 1, line 152.
It is a strong presumption that that which never has been done cannot by law be done at all.
william henry ashurst— William Henry Ashurst, Russell v. The Men of Devon (1788), 1 T. R. 673.
It is certainly true, and I most ardently hope that it will ever continue to be the case, that by the law of England, as it was urged and admitted in the case of the Seven Bishops,1 no man is to be convicted of any crime upon mere naked presumption.
— Holroyd, J., King v. Burdett (1820), 1 St. Tr. (N. S.) 125.
I readily admit that the law which requires presumption or custom to be carried back for a period of nearly 700 years, is a bad and mischievous law, and one which is discreditable to us as a civilised and enlightened people, but such is the law; and while it so continues, I consider myself, in administering it, as bound to administer it as I find it; nor do I feel myself warranted in undermining or frittering it away by subtle fictions or artificial presumptions inconsistent with truth and fact.
— Cockburn, C.J., Bryant v. Foot (1867), 15 W. R. 425; S. C. L. R. 2 Q. B. Ca. 179.
A presumption of any fact is, properly, an inferring of that fact from other facts that are known; it is an act of reasoning; and much of human knowledge on all subjects is derived from this source.
— Abbott, C.J., King v. Burdett (1820), 1 St. Tr. (N. S.) 140.
There is no presumption in this country that every person knows the law: it would be contrary to common sense and reason if it were so.
— William Henry Maule, J., Martindale v. Falkner (1846), 2 C. B. 720, and characterised by Blackburn, J., in The Queen v. Mayor of Tewkesbury, L. R. 3 Q. B. 629.
I cannot conceive how any man can have brought himself to that pitch of presumption, to consider his country as nothing but carte blanche, upon which he may scribble whatever he pleases.
Edmund Burke— Reflections on the Revolution in France (1790), Volume III, p. 231.
presumption should never make us neglect that which appears easy to us, nor despair make us lose courage at the sight of difficulties .
— Stanis?aw Leszczy?ski, King of Poland, Duke of Lorrain and Bar, "Reflections on different Subjects of Morality, in The Universal Magazine (1765), p. 119.
presumption means nothing more than, as stated by Lord Mansfield, the weighing of probabilities, and deciding, by the powers of common sense, on which side the truth is.
— Best, J., King v. Burdett (1820), 1 St. Tr. (N. S.) 114.
