An ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of cleverness.
Genuine
Yes. In A Message to Garcia (1899), ‘Horse Sense’, prefatory material in the 1914 edition of A Message to Garcia.
Found word for word by program in the full text.
Checked against Elbert Hubbard, A Message to Garcia (East Aurora, New York: The Roycrofters, 1914), ‘Horse Sense’, in a full-text transcription.
- Work
- A Message to Garcia, 1899
- Where
- ‘Horse Sense’, prefatory material in the 1914 edition of A Message to Garcia
- Found at
- Paragraph 11 of the text
- Source
- Elbert Hubbard, A Message to Garcia (East Aurora, New York: The Roycrofters, 1914), ‘Horse Sense’
- Checked
- In a full-text transcription
Researched by AI; checked by program against the full text on 31 October 2026. Editorial review: pending. How we check
On the page
Done into a Printed Book by the Roycrofters at Their Shop, Which Is in East Aurora, Erie County, N.Y. Copyright 1914 by Elbert Hubbard
[…] If he pays wages that supply you your bread and butter, work for him, speak well of him, think well of him, and stand by him, and stand by the institution he represents. I think if I worked for a man, I would work for him. I would not work for him a part of his time, but all of his time. I would give an undivided service or none. If put to the pinch, an ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of cleverness. If you must vilify, condemn, and eternally disparage, why, resign your position, and when you are outside, damn to your heart’s content. But, I pray you, so long as you are a part of an institution, do not condemn it. […]
[Sidenote: A trying day]
This literary trifle, “A Message to Garcia,” was written one evening after supper, in a single hour. […]
The scene
In the prefatory ‘Horse Sense’ paragraph Hubbard tells an employee to give an employer undivided service. He follows the sentence by saying that someone who persistently condemns the institution should resign before attacking it. This is workplace loyalty, not a statement addressed to a friend or lover.
What it means
When a choice has to be made, reliability and allegiance to the employer matter more to Hubbard than ingenuity.
Often misread
The isolated line can sound like advice about personal friendship. Its immediate application is an employee’s duty to an employer, including Hubbard’s opposition to criticizing an institution while working for it.
Topics
Related quotes
- Freedom cannot be bestowed — it must be achieved.
- Plato is dear to me, but dearer still is truth. (paraphrase) Aristotle
- That which is not good for the swarm, neither is it good for the bee. (paraphrase) Marcus Aurelius
- We are not born for ourselves alone. Marcus Tullius Cicero
- The art of living is more like wrestling than dancing. (paraphrase) Marcus Aurelius
Sources
Cite it
Elbert Hubbard, A Message to Garcia (1899), ‘Horse Sense’, prefatory material in the 1914 edition of A Message to Garcia. Checked at Quotogeny, https://quotogeny.com/q/an-ounce-of-loyalty-is-worth-a-pound-of-cleverness/ (31 October 2026).
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Checked by people
People who checked this entry against its source, under their own names. Their checks do not change the verdict: an editor reviews every entry.
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