have often noticed that
ancestors never boast
the descendants who boast
of ancestors i would
rather start a family than
one blood will tell but often
it tells too much" - Meaning and context.">
a roach of the taverns
“

i
have often noticed that
ancestors never boast
the descendants who boast
of ancestors i would
rather start a family than
one blood will tell but often
it tells too much

— Don Marquis

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "i
have often noticed that
ancestors never boast
the descendants who boast
of ancestors i would
rather start a family than
one blood will tell but often
it tells too much" in the context of "a roach of the taverns" to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "Don Marquis" (Quotes, archy and mehitabel (1927)) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Don Marquis

About Don Marquis

Donald Robert Perry Marquis (29 July 1878 – 29 December 1937) was an American humorist, journalist, novelist, poet, cartoonist, newspaper columnist, and playwright most famous for creating the characters "Archy" the cockroach, and "Mehitabel" the cat.