I am mortified to be told that, in the United States of America, the sale of a book can become a subject of inquiry, and of criminal inquiry too.

Take more pleasure in giving what is best to another than in having it for yourself, and then all the world will love you.

For a people who are free, and who mean to remain so, a well-organized and armed militia is their best security.

Our civil rights have no dependence upon our religious opinions more than our opinions in physics or geometry.

All authority belongs to the people.

We do not mean to count or weigh our contributions by any standard other than that of our abilities.

Question boldly even the existence of God.