Wish I'd Written That...

By Mitchell

"[John] Wilkes habitually skewered his critics with verbal thrusts, more than one of which were appropriated by subsequent sharp tongues. After Wilkes entered politics a constituent vowed he would vote for the devil over Wilkes. 'Naturally,' retorted Wilkes. 'But if your friend is not standing, may I hope for your support?' The Earl of Sandwich predicted that Wilkes would die on the gallows or of venereal disease. 'That depends, my lord,' Wilkes replied, 'on whether I embrace your principles or your mistress.'"

H.W. Brands, The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin