There is no cause half so sacred as the cause of a people. There is no idea so uplifting as the idea of the service of humanity.

governor of New Jersey, presidential campaign address, Madison Square Garden, New York City, October 31, 1912.—The Papers of Woodrow Wilson, ed. Arthur S. Link, vol. 25, p. 493 (1978). Wilson spoke to an audience estimated at between 12,000 and 16,000 persons. For two hours before he arrived, the crowd listened to various other speakers. Upon his arrival there was a "tumultuous ovation which lasted for more than an hour. Wilson was so moved that he forgot his prepared speech" (p. 493, footnote).