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Quote#Death

The greatest talents have been frequently misapplied and have…

Quote byThomas Robert Malthus · 1766–1834

Commonly attributed — not confirmed in an authoritative edition. Cited on Wikiquote to: An Essay on The Principle of Population (First Edition 1798, unrevised), Chapter XIX, paragraph 2, lines 1-6.

English (original)

The greatest talents have been frequently misapplied and have produced evil proportionate to the extent of their powers. Both reason and revelation seem to assure us that such minds will be condemned to eternal death, but while on earth, these vicious instruments performed their part in the great mass of impressions, by the disgust and abhorrence which they excited.

— Thomas Robert Malthus

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