There is a certain right by which we many deprive a man of life, but none by which we may deprive him of death; this is mere cruelty.

Summary

This quote suggests that while it may be justifiable to take a person's life in certain circumstances, it is never just or humane to withhold death from them. In other words, refusing someone the right to die constitutes unnecessary cruelty. It implies that death itself is a natural consequence or release, and denying someone of this natural end poses an unjust hardship on them. The quote challenges the notion that depriving someone of death can ever be morally acceptable.

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