"I consider the present crisis as an occasion for the friends of the Government to rouse and exert themselves."

"Government is instituted for the common good; for the protection, safety, prosperity and happiness of the people; and not for the profit, honor, or private interest of any one man, family, or class of…"

"The sacred rights of mankind are not to be rummaged for among old parchments or musty records. They are written, as with a sunbeam, in the whole volume of human nature."

"I am a man of strong passions."

"Energy in the Executive is a leading character in the definition of good government."