Quote
By Alexander Hamilton
It has been frequently remarked, that it seems to have been reserved to the people of this country, by their conduct and example, to decide the important question, whether societies of men are really capable or not, of establishing good government from reflection and choice, or whether they are forever destined to depend, for their political constitutions, on accident and force.
- Source
- The Federalist No. 1, October 27, 1787 · The Papers of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 4, pp. 301-306
- Read at
- Founders Online, National Archives (The Papers of Alexander Hamilton, vol. 4)
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About this quote
From the opening of Federalist No. 1, written by Alexander Hamilton under the name Publius and first published in New York on October 27, 1787. Founders Online lists the author as Alexander Hamilton. Its text prints "ref[]ection", with empty brackets where a letter is missing in the source; the quote gives it as "reflection," as the 1818 printing does.