"I only regret that I have but one life to (lose)(give) for my country." . . . which is it? . . .

[OneBlueSky]

when I was growing up, EVERY schoolkid in America knew that Nathan Hale was a "rebel" spy during the American Revolution who was captured by the British . . . and knew that, just prior to his being hung, Hale said "I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country" . . .

I'm currently reading David McCollough's 1776, in which the Hale quote is reported as "I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country" . . . a Google search reveals that while a few sources still use the "give" quote, the vast majority are now reporting that what Hale said was "lose" . . .

to me, changing "give" to "lose" somehow diminishes Hale's intent and alters the meaning of the quote ("give" implies intent, while "lose" implies mere happenstance) . . . and I'm wondering why the change? . . . was some new source uncovered that confirms that Hale said "lose"? . . . or is this in some way related to the by now well-documented influence of the right wing in determining the content of history texts? . . . and, if so, what might be the purpose of the change? . . .

I'm curious to know how and why this quote was changed . . . anyone know the story? . . . history buffs? :shrug:

[sweetheart]

1. patton:

"..no bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. You won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country."

[valerief]

2. If you're a woman, you can give a lot of lives for your country. A

woman can pump out lots of cannon fodder.

[madeline_con]

3. The writer forgot the actual quote, made it up as he went along.

It happens too often.

[mcscajun]

4. There's a bit of it here...but nothing on why it was changed.

http://www.laughtergenealogy.com/bin/histprof/misc/nathanhale.html

More here: http://www.connecticutsar.org/patriots/hale_nathan_2.htm