But when men have realized that time has upset many fighting faiths, they may come to believe even more than they believe the very foundations of their own conduct that the ultimate good desired is better reached by free trade in ideas—that the best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the market, and that truth is the only ground upon which their wishes safely can be carried out. That at any rate, is the theory of our Constitution. It is an experiment, as all life is an experiment.

Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

Abrams v. United States

Authentication Score 3

Citation

Holmes, Oliver Wendell, Jr. United States, Supreme Court. Abrams v. United States. United States Report, vol. 250, 10 Nov. 1919, pp. 616-631. Justia, supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/250/616/.