Ambrose Bierce Quotes About Evidence

• Mad; adj. Affected with a high degree of intellectual independence; not conforming to standards of thought, speech, and action derived by the conformants from study of themselves; at odds with the majority; in short, unusual. It is noteworthy that persons are pronounced mad by officials destitute of evidence that they themselves are sane.

  Ambrose Bierce

  Crazy, Odds, Mad

  Ambrose Bierce (2009). “The Devil's Dictionary: Easyread Large Bold Edition”, p.184, ReadHowYouWant.com

• Be as decent as you can. Don't believe without evidence. Treat things divine with marked respect — don't have anything to do with them. Do not trust humanity without collateral security; it will play you some scurvy trick. Remember that it hurts no one to be treated as an enemy entitled to respect until he shall prove himself a friend worthy of affection. Cultivate a taste for distasteful truths. And, finally, most important of all, endeavor to see things as they are, not as they ought to be.

  Ambrose Bierce

  Hurt, Believe, Play

  Ambrose Bierce, S. T. Joshi (2000). “The Collected Fables of Ambrose Bierce”, p.15, Ohio State University Press

• Faith: Belief without evidence in what is told by one who speaks without knowledge, of things without parallel.

  Ambrose Bierce

  Inspirational, Faith, Atheist

  The Devil's Dictionary

• The fact that boys are allowed to exist at all is evidence of a remarkable Christian forebearance among men.

  Ambrose Bierce

  Christian, Children, Humorous

• GUNPOWDER, n. An agency employed by civilized nations for the settlement of disputes which might become troublesome if left unadjusted. By most writers the invention of gunpowder is ascribed to the Chinese, but not upon very convincing evidence. Milton says it was invented by the devil to dispel angels with, and this opinion seems to derive some support from the scarcity of angels.

  Ambrose Bierce

  Angel, Science, Agency

  Ambrose Bierce (2001). “The Unabridged Devil's Dictionary”, p.102, University of Georgia Press

• PROOF, n. Evidence having a shade more of plausibility than of unlikelihood. The testimony of two credible witnesses as opposed to that of only one.

  Ambrose Bierce

  Science, Two, Shade

  Ambrose Bierce (2009). “The Devil's Dictionary: Easyread Large Bold Edition”, p.238, ReadHowYouWant.com

• INADMISSIBLE- Not competent to be considered. Hearsay evidence is inadmissible ... but there is no religion in the world that has any other basis than hearsay evidence.

  Ambrose Bierce

  Religion, World, Evidence

• The fact that boys are allowed to exist at all is evidence of remarkable Christian forbearance among men - were it not for a mawkish humanitarianism, coupled with imperfect digestive powers, we should devour our young, as Nature intended.

  Ambrose Bierce

  Christian, Men, Boys

  "Ambrose Bierce: A Biography". Book by Richard O'Connor, 1968.

• As records of courts and justice are admissible, it can easily be proved that powerful and malevolent magicians once existed and were a scourge to mankind. The evidence (including confession) upon which certain women were convicted of witchcraft and executed was without a flaw; it is still unimpeachable. The judges' decisions based on it were sound in logic and in law. Nothing in any existing court was ever more thoroughly proved than the charges of witchcraft and sorcery for which so many suffered death. If there were no witches, human testimony and human reason are alike destitute of value.

  Ambrose Bierce

  Powerful, Law, Judging

  "The Devil's Dictionary". Book by Ambrose Bierce, 1906.

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