If Gladstone fell into the Thames, that would be a misfortune; and if anybody pulled him out, that, I suppose, would be a calamity.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Saving a political rival from trouble would cause more harm than the trouble itself.
- In plain terms
- Helping an opponent out of a mess would be worse than letting them drown.
- What can you take from it?
- Sometimes letting an opponent fail is better than helping them succeed.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- When is letting an opponent fail acceptable?
- Is political survival worth saving?
Another view
It promotes cruelty over compassion in political conflict.
More from Benjamin Disraeli
If a man be gloomy let him keep to himself. No one has the right to go croaking about society, or what is worse, looking as if he stifled grief.
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