I have now disposed of all my property to my family. There is one thing more I wish I could give them, and that is the Christian religion.

Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction?

Adversity toughens manhood, and the characteristic of the good or the great man is not that he has been exempt from the evils of life, but that he has surmounted them.

The question before the House is one of awful moment to this country. For my own part, I consider it as nothing less than a question of freedom or slavery

I am not a Virginian, I am an American.

If this be treason, make the most of it!

The first thing I have at heart is American liberty; the second thing is American union.