Nothing is so contagious as opinion, especially on questions which, being susceptible of very different glosses, beget in the mind a distrust of itself.

The rights of man as the foundation of just Government had been long understood but the superstructures projected had been sadly defective

No man is allowed to be a judge in his own cause, because his interest would certainly bias his judgment.

The express authority of the people alone could give validity to the Constitution.

The smaller the society, the fewer probably will be the distinct parties and interests composing it; the fewer the distinct parties and interests, the more frequently will a majority be found of the same party; . . . the more easily will they concert and execute their plans of oppression.

Besides the obscurity arising from the complexity of objects, and the imperfection of the human faculties, the medium through which the conceptions of men are conveyed to each other adds a fresh embarrassment.

There is not a shadow of right in the general government to intermingle with religion. Its least interference with it would be a most flagrant usurpation.