I shall be an autocrat: that’s my trade. And the good Lord will forgive me: that’s his.

An appeal to the reason of the people has never been known to fail in the long run.

Written laws are like spiderwebs: they will catch, it is true, the weak and poor but would be torn in pieces by the rich and powerful.

No human life, not even the life of a hermit, is possible without a world which directly or indirectly testifies to the presence of other human beings.

You should never have your best trousers on when you go out to fight for freedom and truth.

A riot is at bottom the language of the unheard.

To be turned from one’s course by men’s opinions, by blame, and by misrepresentation shows a man unfit to hold office.

I am no courtesan, nor moderator, nor tribune, nor defender of the people: I am myself the people.

The poor have sometimes objected to being governed badly; the rich have always objected to being governed at all.

Treaties, you see, are like girls and roses: they last while they last.

There is no method by which men can be both free and equal.

No free man shall be taken or imprisoned or dispossessed or outlawed or exiled, or in any way destroyed, nor will we go upon him, nor will we send against him except by the lawful judgment of his peers or by the law of the land.

You have all the characteristics of a popular politician: a horrible voice, bad breeding, and a vulgar manner.