Wolf by the ear Thomas Jefferson used this phrase several times: But, as it is, we have the wolf by the ear, and we can neither hold him, nor safely let him go. Justice is in one scale, and self-preservation in the other. - Thomas Jefferson to John Holmes, (discussing slavery and the Missouri question), Monticello, 22 April 1820.[1] we have the wolf by the ear and feel the danger of either holding or letting him loose. - Thomas Jefferson to Lydia Huntley Sigourney, Monticello, 18 July 1824[2] Wolf by the ears is a phrase attributed to the emperor Tiberius by the biographer Suetonius: The cause of his hesitation was fear of the dangers which threatened him on every hand, and often led him to say that he was holding a wolf by the ears.[3] Thomas Jefferson owned a 1718 edition of Suetoniuss works.[4] therealnews/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=767&Itemid=74&jumival=12045
Posted on: Fri, 27 Jun 2014 18:26:44 +0000
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