Robert Green Ingersoll was an American lawyer and orator born on August 11, 1833. He is known for his advocacy of free thought and secularism, often speaking out against religious dogma and promoting rationalism. Ingersoll was a prominent figure in the 19th-century American intellectual landscape and is remembered for his eloquent speeches and writings on topics such as religion, politics, and human rights. His legacy includes his contributions to the discourse on freedom of thought and expression.

"The true civilization is where every man gives to every other every right that he claims for himself."



"Reason, observation, and experience; the holy trinity of science."



"It is a blessed thing that in every age some one has had the individuality enough and courage enough to stand by his own convictions."



"A fact never went into partnership with a miracle. Truth scorns the assistance of wonders. A fact will fit every other fact in the universe, and that is how you can tell whether it is or is not a fact. A lie will not fit anything except another lie."



"Happiness is not a reward - it is a consequence. Suffering is not a punishment - it is a result."



"The inspiration of the Bible depends upon the ignorance of the gentleman who reads it."



"When the will defies fear, when duty throws the gauntlet down to fate, when honor scorns to compromise with death - that is heroism."



"In nature there are neither rewards nor punishments; there are consequences."



"It is a thousand times better to have common sense without education than to have education without common sense."

