place me behind prison walls- walls of stone ever so high, ever so thick, reaching ever so far into the ground- there is a possibility that in some way or another I might be able to escape; but stand on me on the floor and draw me a chalk line around me and have me give my word of honor never to cross it. Can I get out of that circle? No, never! I'd die first."- Karl G. Maeser

What this quote means is that if you put him in a certain spot and don’t tell him to stay their and he does not give you hes word he will leave with out thinking about it but if he gives you hes word and he says he not ganna do a certain something then he saying that he would prefer to dying than breaking hes word and not accomplishing it.