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John Adams Quotes - Page 16

All Quotes 4th Of July Abuse Ambition Art Atheism Atheist Balance Bible Character Children Christianity Community Constitution Country Declaration Of Independence Democracy Design Desire Dignity Doubt Duty Earth Education Evil Exercise Family Fate Freedom Giving Glory God Grief Guilt Heart Heaven History Home Honesty Honor Human Nature Hypocrisy Ignorance Independence Innocence Inspiration Inspirational Jesus Joy Judging Justice Liberty Life Lying Mankind Money Morality Motivational Office Opportunity Passion Peace Philosophy Politics Power Prejudice Pride Property Reading Reflection Religion Reputation Revenge Revolution Safety School Second Amendment Slavery Society Son Soul Success Suffering Understanding Virtue Voting War Wisdom Writing

There never was yet a people who must not have somebody or something to represent the dignity of the state.

There never was yet a people who must not have somebody or something to represent the dignity of the state.

Government, People, Dignity

John Adams (1851). “The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: With a Life of the Author, Notes and Illustrations”, p.583

The proposition that the people are the best keepers of their own liberties is not true. They are the worst conceivable, they are no keepers at all; they can neither judge, act, think, or will, as a political body.

Patriotic, Thinking, People

"The Life of Thomas Jefferson". Book by Henry S. Randall, p. 587, 1857.

Mr. Jefferson has reason to reflect upon himself. How he will get rid of his remorse in his retirement, I know not. He must know that he leaves the government infinitely worse than he found it, and that from his own error or ignorance.

Retirement, Ignorance, Errors

Yesterday, the greatest question was decided which ever was debated in America; and a greater perhaps never was, nor will be, decided among men. A resolution was passed without one dissenting colony, that those United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States.

4th Of July, Patriotic, Independent

John Adams (2003). “The Letters of John and Abigail Adams”, p.114, Penguin

The dons, the bashaws, the grandees, the patricians, the sachems, the nabobs, call them by what names you please, sigh and groan and fret, and sometimes stamp and foam and curse, but all in vain. The decree is gone forth, and it cannot be recalled, that a more equal liberty than has prevailed in other parts of the earth must be established in America.

Names, America, Liberty

John Adams (1854). “The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: With a Life of the Author, Notes and Illustrations”, p.387

Numberless have been the systems of iniquity contrived by the great for the gratification of this passion in themselves; but in none of them were they ever more successful than in the invention and establishment of the canon and the feudal law.

Success, Passion, Law

John Adams, Charles Francis Adams (1851). “The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: With a Life of the Author, Notes and Illustrations”, p.449

Thomas Jefferson survives.

Life, Death, Life And Death

Quoted in Susan Boylston Adams Clark, Letter to Abigail Louisa Smith Adams Johnson, 9 July 1826. In fact, Jefferson had died a few hours earlier on this, the fiftieth anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Eliza Quincy, in her 1861 memoirs, wrote that the last words Adams spoke distinctly were "Thomas Jefferson"; the rest of the sentence, she noted, was inarticulate. See Jefferson 55

I didn't grow up imagining myself as an opera composer. Only once in my entire adolescence did I attend an opera. I went and saw Aida at the old Met, didn't understand a thing about it, and thought it was pretty awful. But I think I had it in my genes without even realising it.

Growing Up, Thinking, Opera

Suppose a nation, rich and poor, high and low, ten millions in number, all assembled together; not more than one or two millions will have lands, houses, or any personal property; if we take into the account the women and children, or even if we leave them out of the question, a great majority of every nation is wholly destitute of property, except a small quantity of clothes, and a few trifles of other movables.

Children, Land, Two

John Adams, Charles Francis Adams (1851). “The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: With a Life of the Author, Notes and Illustrations”, p.8

It already appears, that there must be in every society of men superiors and inferiors, because God has laid in the constitution and course of nature the foundations of the distinction.

Men, People, Foundation

John Adams (1787). “A Defence of the Constitutions of Government of the United States of America”, p.159

My history of the Jesuits is not elegantly written, but is supported by unquestionable authorities, is very particular and very horrible. Their restoration is indeed "a step toward darkness," cruelty, perfidy, despotism, death and I wish we were out of danger of bigotry and Jesuitism.

Darkness, Historical, Wish

We electors have an important constitutional power placed in our hands; we have a check upon two branches of the legislature.

Hands, Two, Voting

John Adams, Charles Francis Adams (1851). “The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: With a Life of the Author, Notes and Illustrations”, p.437

Set before us the conduct of our own British ancestors, who defended for us the inherent rights of mankind against foreign and domestic tyrants and usurpers, against arbitrary kings and cruel priests; in short against the gates of earth and hell.

Kings, Rights, Tyrants

John Adams, Charles Francis Adams (1851). “The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: With a Life of the Author, Notes and Illustrations”, p.462

Upon this point all speculative politicians will agree, that the happiness of society is the end of government, as all divines and moral philosophers will agree that the happiness of the individual is the end of man. From this principle it will follow that the form of government which communicates ease, comfort, security, or, in one word, happiness, to the greatest numbers of persons, and in the greatest degree, is the best. All sober inquirers after truth, ancient and modern, pagan and Christian, have declared that the happiness of man, as well as his dignity, consists in virtue.

Christian, Men, Numbers

John Adams, Charles Francis Adams (1969). “The Works of John Adams: Controversial papers of the Revolution (continued) Works on government”

Pray how does your asparagus perform?

Food, Vegetables, Cooking

Abigail Adams, John Adams, L. H. Butterfield, Marc Friedlaender, Mary-Jo Kline (1975). “The Book of Abigail and John: Selected Letters of the Adams Family, 1762-1784”, p.174, UPNE

The furnace of affliction produces refinement in states as well as individuals. And the new Governments we are assuming in every part will require a purification from our vices, and an augmentation of our virtues, or there will be no blessings.

Blessing, Government, Vices

John Adams, Charles Francis Adams (1854). “The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: With a Life of the Author, Notes and Illustrations”, p.418

If there is a form of government, then, whose principle and foundation is virtue, will not every sober man acknowledge it better calculated to promote the general happiness than any other form?

Men, Principles, Foundation

John Adams (1851). “The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: With a Life of the Author, Notes and Illustrations”, p.194

July 4th ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance by solemn acts of devotion.

4th Of July, Declaration Of Independence, Deliverance

Letter to Abigail Adams, 3 July 1776

Were I to define the British constitution, therefore, I should say, it is a limited monarchy, or a mixture of the three forms of government commonly known in the schools, reserving as much of the monarchical splendor, the aristocratical independency, and the democratical freedom, as are necessary that each of these powers may have a control, both in legislation and execution, over the other two, for the preservation of the subject's liberty.

School, Government, Two

John Adams, Charles Francis Adams (1851). “The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: With a Life of the Author, Notes and Illustrations”, p.480

There exists, I believe, throughout the whole Christian world, a law which makes it blasphemy to deny or doubt the divine inspiration of all the books of the Old and New Testaments, from Genesis to Revelations. In most countries of Europe it is punished by fire at the stake, or the rack, or the wheel... Now, what free inquiry, when a writer must surely encounter the risk of fine or imprisonment for adducing any argument for investigating the divine authority of those books?

Christian, Country, Inspiration

Thomas Jefferson, John Adams (2006). “"Ye Will Say I Am No Christian": The Thomas Jefferson/John Adams Correspondence on Religion, Morals, and Values”

Politics are the divine science, after all.

Divine

John Adams, Charles Francis Adams (1854). “Works: with a life of the author”, p.512

Without wishing to damp the ardor of curiosity or influence the freedom of inquiry, I will hazard a prediction that, after the most industrious and impartial researchers, the longest liver of you all will find no principles, institutions or systems of education more fit in general to be transmitted to your posterity than those you have received from your ancestors.

Voting, Curiosity, Wish

It is much easier to pull down a government, in such a conjuncture of affairs as we have seen, than to build up, at such a season as the present.

Government, Democracy, Affair

John Adams (2016). “Papers of John Adams, Volume 18: December 1785 - January 1787”, p.539, Harvard University Press

Human government is more or less perfect as it approaches nearer or diverges farther from the imitation of this perfect plan of divine and moral government.

Government, Perfect, Moral

John Adams, Lyman Henry Butterfield (1961). “Diary and Autobiography: Diary, 1755-1770”

During the whole time I sat with him in Congress, I never heard him utter three sentences together.

Together, Revolution, Three

John Adams, Charles Francis Adams (1850). “The Works of John Adams, Second President of the United States: Diary, with passages from an autobiography. Notes of debates in the Continental Congress, in 1775 and 1776. Autobiography”, p.511

Born: October 30, 1735 - July 4, 1826
Occupation: 2nd U.S. President

Quotes: 406

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