It would appear that Mr. Jefferson used both -- "by the ear" and "by the ears," to describe his thoughts on the institution of slavery. http://www.monticello.org/library/famquote.html -- web site for the Jefferson Library Wolf by the ear('s) "But as it is, we have the wolf by the ear, and we can neither hold him, nor safely let him go. Justice is in one scale, and self-preservation in the other." (Jefferson discussing the Missouri question and slavery to John Holmes April 22, 1820. Ford, Paul Leicester, ed. The Works of Thomas Jefferson, Volume 12. New York: GAP. Putnam's Sons, 1905, p. 159.) We have the wolf by the ears and feel the danger of either holding or letting him loose." (Jefferson to Mrs. Sigourney, Monticello, July 18, 1824.) Dorothea G. Martin Rau & Associates 804.359.6075 x119 To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html