Let me ask you, sir, when is the time for brave men to exert themselves in the cause of liberty and their country, if this is not?

The eyes of all our countrymen are now upon us, and we shall have their blessings and praises, if happily we are the instruments of saving them from the tyranny meditated against them.

I am again called upon by the voice of my country to execute the functions of its Chief Magistrate.

Thirteen sovereignties pulling against each other and all tugging at the federal head, will soon bring ruin on the whole.

Almighty and eternal Lord God, the great Creator of heaven and earth, and the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ; look down from heaven in pity and compassion upon me thy servant, who humbly prostrate myself before thee.

My death has not yet quite arrived, but it is near and inevitable as night follows day.

If we desire to avoid insult, we must be able to repel it; if we desire to secure peace, one of the most powerful instruments of our rising prosperity, it must be known, that we are at all times ready for War.