--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Had I the power, I would scatter…" description: "\"Had I the power, I would scatter libraries over the whole land, as the sower sows his wheat-field.\" — Horace Mann" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5b/horace-mann-2022_book_had-i-the-power-i-would-scatter-librarie_3169118.png" --- # Had I the power, I would scatter libraries over the whole… ![“Had I the power, I would scatter libraries over the whole land, as the sower sows his wheat-field.” quote by Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5b/horace-mann-2022_book_had-i-the-power-i-would-scatter-librarie_3169118.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5b/horace-mann-2022_book_had-i-the-power-i-would-scatter-librarie_3169118.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e5b/horace-mann-2022_book_had-i-the-power-i-would-scatter-librarie_3169118.png) > “Had I the power, I would scatter libraries over the whole land, as the sower sows his wheat-field.” [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He wishes to make knowledge universally accessible by spreading libraries everywhere like seeds. **In simple terms:** Spread books everywhere like seeds. Key Takeaway Promote universal access to knowledge. Themes education knowledge access equality Mood inspired optimistic Type advocacy visionary When to use this quote - schools - rural communities - online platforms - community centers - disaster relief Key Concepts public libraries literacy information diffusion Questions to Reflect On - How can digital resources complement physical libraries? - What incentives encourage community support for libraries? A Different Perspective Funding and logistics limit widespread library distribution. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Library](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library/) [Library books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/library-books/) ## Related quotes > [Had I the power, I would scatter libraries over the whole land as the sower sows his wheatfield.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/had-i-the-power-i-would-scatter-libraries-over-the-whole-land-as-the/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) > [“The man is interested in the sowing of wheat in the field; the woman in making the bread.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-man-is-interested-in-the-sowing-of-wheat-in-the-field-the-woman/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [“Stewart got out of the truck and walked into the wheat field he’d parked beside. 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After saying his best, still something better remains to be spoken in their praise. As with friends, one finds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amos-bronson-alcott/one-cannot-celebrate-books-sufficiently-after-saying-his-best-still/) [Amos Bronson Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amos-bronson-alcott/) > [I've found that in an adult reference book, if it's not a subject I'm interested in, I just can't get into it. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-holzhauer/i-ve-found-that-in-an-adult-reference-book-if-it-s-not-a-subject-i-m/) [James Holzhauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-holzhauer/) > [I had always thought of Paradise / In form and image as a library.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jorge-luis-borges/i-had-always-thought-of-paradise-in-form-and-image-as-a-library/) [Jorge Luis Borges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jorge-luis-borges/) > [Books are the quietest and most constant of friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-william-eliot/books-are-the-quietest-and-most-constant-of-friends/) [Charles William Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-william-eliot/) > [One of the things we learned from that panel is the way poor communities use a library is very different from wealthy communities. 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Books are different from other possessions-they're more like friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blake-mycoskie/one-day-when-i-own-a-house-i-ll-keep-a-library-full-of-books-books/) [Blake Mycoskie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blake-mycoskie/) > [In a library we are surrounded by many hundreds of dear friends, but they are imprisoned by an enchanter in these paper and leathern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/in-a-library-we-are-surrounded-by-many-hundreds-of-dear-friends-but/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## More by Horace Mann > [When will society, like a mother, take care of all her children?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/when-will-society-like-a-mother-take-care-of-all-her-children/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) > [The earth endured Christ's ministry only three years;--not three weeks after his real character and purposes were generally known.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/the-earth-endured-christ-s-ministry-only-three-years-not-three-weeks/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) > [If evil is inevitable, how are the wicked accountable? 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It begets its opposite. The fanaticism of reform is only the raging of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/resistance-to-improvement-contradicts-the-noblest-instincts-of-the/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) [Explore all 191 Horace Mann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! 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