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

The power of making war often prevents it, and in our case would give efficacy to our desire of peace.

I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than those attending too small a degree of it.

Experience has already shown that the impeachment the Constitution has provided is not even a scarecrow.

Born in other countries, yet believing you could be happy in this, our laws acknowledge, as they should do, your right to join us in society, conforming, as I doubt not you will do, to our established rules. That these rules shall be as equal as prudential considerations will admit, will certainly be the aim of our legislatures, general and particular.

He who receives an idea from me, receives instruction himself without lessening mine; as he who lights his taper at mine, receives light without darkening me.

A man has a right to use a saw, an axe, a plane, separately; may he not combine their uses on the same piece of wood? He has a right to use his knife to cut his meat, a fork to hold it; may a patentee take from him the right to combine their use on the same subject? Such a law, instead of enlarging our conveniences, as was intended, would most fearfully abridge them, and crowd us by monopolies out of the use of the things we have.