Colonial Sense: Society-Lifestyle: Colonial Quotes

'Tis the business of little minds to shrink; but he whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his principles unto death.	— Thomas Paine
A little matter will move a party, but it must be something great that moves a nation. — Rights of Man, 1792	— Thomas Paine
A long habit of not thinking a thing wrong gives it a superficial appearance of being right.	— Thomas Paine
A nation under a well regulated government, should permit none to remain uninstructed. It is monarchical and aristocratical government only that requires ignorance for its support. — Rights of Man, 1792	— Thomas Paine
A thing moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle is always a vice.	— Thomas Paine
All national institutions of churches, whether Jewish, Christian or Turkish, appear to me no other than human inventions, set up to terrify and enslave mankind, and monopolize power and profit.	— Thomas Paine
An army of principles can penetrate where an army of soldiers cannot.	— Thomas Paine
Any system of religion that has anything in it that shocks the mind of a child, cannot be true.	— Thomas Paine
Arms discourage and keep the invader and plunderer in awe, and preserve order in the world as well as property... Horrid mischief would ensue were the law-abiding deprived of the use of them. — Erroneously attributed to Paine	— Thomas Paine
As parents, we can have no joy, knowing that this government is not sufficiently lasting to ensure any thing which we may bequeath to posterity: And by a plain method of argument, as we are running the next generation into debt, we ought to do the work of it, otherwise we use them meanly and pitifully. In order to discover the line of our duty rightly, we should take our children in our hand, and fix our station a few years farther into life; that eminence will present a prospect, which a few present fears and prejudices conceal from our sight. — Common Sense, 1776	— Thomas Paine
Belief in a cruel God makes a cruel man.	— Thomas Paine
But such is the irresistable nature of truth, that all it asks, and all it wants is the liberty of appearing.	— Thomas Paine
Character is much easier kept than recovered.	— Thomas Paine
Every religion is good that teaches man to be good; and I know of none that instructs him to be bad.	— Thomas Paine
Every science has for its basis a system of principles as fixed and unalterable as those by which the universe is regulated and governed. Man cannot make principles; he can only discover them.	— Thomas Paine
Freedom had been hunted round the globe; reason was considered as rebellion; and the slavery of fear had made men afraid to think. But such is the irresistible nature of truth, that all it asks, and all it wants, is the liberty of appearing. — Rights of Man, 1791	— Thomas Paine
Government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state, an intolerable one.	— Thomas Paine
He that rebels against reason is a real rebel, but he that in defence of reason rebels against tyranny has a better title to Defender of the Faith, than George the Third.	— Thomas Paine
He that would make his own liberty secure, must guard even his enemy from oppression; for if he violates this duty, he establishes a precedent that will reach to himself. — Dissertation on First Principles of Government, December 23, 1791	— Thomas Paine
He who dares not offend cannot be honest.	— Thomas Paine
He who is the author of a war lets loose the whole contagion of hell and opens a vein that bleeds a nation to death.	— Thomas Paine
Human nature is not of itself vicious.	— Thomas Paine
I believe in the equality of man; and I believe that religious duties consist in doing justice, loving mercy, and endeavoring to make our fellow-creatures happy.	— Thomas Paine
I love the man that can smile in trouble, that can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of little minds to shrink, but he whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves his conduct, will pursue his principles unto death.	— Thomas Paine
If there must be trouble, let it be in my day, that my child may have peace. — The American Crisis, No. 1, December 19, 1776	— Thomas Paine
If we do not hang together, we shall surely hang separately.	— Thomas Paine
If, from the more wretched parts of the old world, we look at those which are in an advanced stage of improvement, we still find the greedy hand of government thrusting itself into every corner and crevice of industry, and grasping the spoil of the multitude. Invention is continually exercised, to furnish new pretenses for revenues and taxation. It watches prosperity as its prey and permits none to escape without tribute. — Rights of Man, 1791	— Thomas Paine
Is it not a species of blasphemy to call the New Testament revealed religion, when we see in it such contradictions and absurdities.	— Thomas Paine
It is an affront to treat falsehood with complaisance.	— Thomas Paine
It is error only, and not truth, that shrinks from inquiry.	— Thomas Paine
It is necessary to the happiness of man that he be mentally faithful to himself. Infidelity does not consist in believing, or in disbelieving, it consists in professing to believe what he does not believe.	— Thomas Paine
It is not a field of a few acres of ground, but a cause, that we are defending, and whether we defeat the enemy in one battle, or by degrees, the consequences will be the same.	— Thomas Paine
It is not a God, just and good, but a devil, under the name of God, that the Bible describes.	— Thomas Paine
It is the direction and not the magnitude which is to be taken into consideration.	— Thomas Paine
It is the madness of folly, to expect mercy from those who have refused to do justice; and even mercy, where conquest is the object, is only a trick of war; the cunning of the fox is as murderous as the violence of the wolf. — The American Crisis, No. 1, December 19, 1776	— Thomas Paine
Laws that forbid the carrying of arms disarm only those who are neither inclined, nor determined to commit crimes. Such laws make things worse for the assaulted and better for the assailants. They serve rather to encourage than prevent homicides from an unarmed man, may be attacked with greater confidence than an armed man.	— Thomas Paine
Lead, follow, or get out of the way. — Erroneously attributed to Paine	— Thomas Paine
Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle is always a vice.	— Thomas Paine
My country is the world, and my religion is to do good.	— Thomas Paine
My mind is my own church.	— Thomas Paine
Not all the treasures of the world, so far as I believe, could have induced me to support an offensive war, for I think it murder; but if a thief breaks into my house, burns and destroys my property, and kills or threatens to kill me, or those that are in it, and to bind me in all cases whatsoever to his absolute will, am I to suffer it? — The American Crisis, No. 1, December 19, 1776	— Thomas Paine
Now is the seedtime of continental union, faith and honor. The least fracture now, will be like a name engraved with the point of a pin on the tender rind of a young oak; the wound would enlarge with the tree, and posterity read in it full grown characters. — Common Sense, 1776	— Thomas Paine
Of all the tyrannies that affect mankind, tyranny in religion is the worst.	— Thomas Paine
One good schoolmaster is of more use than a hundred priests.	— Thomas Paine
Persecution is not an original feature in any religion; but it is always the strongly marked feature of all religions established by law. Take away the law-establishment, and every religion re-assumes its original benignity. — The Rights of Man, 1791	— Thomas Paine
Reason obeys itself; and ignorance submits to whatever is dictated to it.	— Thomas Paine
Reputation is what men and women think of us; character is what God and angels know of us. — Erroneously attributed to Paine	— Thomas Paine
Rights are not gifts from one man to another, nor from one class of men to another. It is impossible to discover any origin of rights otherwise than in the origin of man; it consequently follows that rights appertain to man in right of his existence, and must therefore be equal to every man.	— Thomas Paine
Society in every state is a blessing, but government, even in its best state, is but a necessary evil; in its worst state an intolerable one; for when we suffer or are exposed to the same miseries by a government, which we might expect in a country without government, our calamity is heightened by reflecting that we furnish the means by which we suffer. — Common Sense, 1776	— Thomas Paine
Suspicion is the companion of mean souls, and the bane of all good society.	— Thomas Paine
That God cannot lie, is no advantage to your argument, because it is no proof that priests can not, or that the Bible does not.	— Thomas Paine
That which we obtain too easily, we esteem too lightly.	— Thomas Paine
The abilities of man must fall short on one side or the other, like too scanty a blanket when you are abed. If you pull it upon your shoulders, your feet are left bare; if you thrust it down to your feet, your shoulders are uncovered.	— Thomas Paine
The balance of power is the scale of peace. The same balance would be preserved were all the world not destitute of arms, for all would be alike; but since some will not, others dare not lay them aside ... Horrid mischief would ensue were one half the world deprived of the use of them ... the weak will become prey to the strong. — Thoughts on Defensive War, Pennsylvania Magazine, July 1775	— Thomas Paine
The cause of America is in a great measure the cause of all mankind. — Common Sense, 1776	— Thomas Paine
The government is best which governs least. — Erroneously attributed to Paine	— Thomas Paine
The greatest remedy for anger is delay.	— Thomas Paine
The Grecians and Romans were strongly possessed of the spirit of liberty but not the principle, for at the time they were determined not to be slaves themselves, they employed their power to enslave the rest of mankind. — The American Crisis, No. 5, March 21, 1778	— Thomas Paine
The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.	— Thomas Paine
The instant formal government is abolished, society begins to act. A general association takes place, and common interest produces common security.	— Thomas Paine
The most formidable weapon against errors of every kind is reason.	— Thomas Paine
The preservation of a free Government requires not merely, that the metes and bounds which separate each department of power be invariably maintained; but more especially that neither of them be suffered to overleap the great Barrier which defends the rights of the people. The Rulers who are guilty of such an encroachment, exceed the commission from which they derive their authority, and are Tyrants. The People who submit to it are governed by laws made neither by themselves nor by an authority derived from them, and are slaves. — Memorial and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments, 1785	— Thomas Paine
The real man smiles in trouble, gathers strength from distress, and grows brave by reflection.	— Thomas Paine
The reformation was preceded by the discovery of America, as if the Almighty graciously meant to open a sanctuary to the persecuted in future years, when home should afford neither friendship nor safety. — Common Sense, 1776	— Thomas Paine
The strength and power of despotism consists wholly in the fear of resistance.	— Thomas Paine
The Sun never shined on a cause of greater worth. — Common Sense, 1776	— Thomas Paine
The Vatican is a dagger in the heart of Italy.	— Thomas Paine
The whole religious complexion of the modern world is due to the absence from Jerusalem of a lunatic asylum.	— Thomas Paine
The World is my country, all mankind are my brethren, and to do good is my religion.	— Thomas Paine
There are matters in the Bible, said to be done by the express commandment of God, that are shocking to humanity and to every idea we have of moral justice.	— Thomas Paine
There are two distinct classes of what are called thoughts: those that we produce in ourselves by reflection and the act of thinking and those that bolt into the mind of their own accord.	— Thomas Paine
These are the times that try men's souls.	— Thomas Paine
This new world hath been the asylum for the persecuted lovers of civil and religious liberty from every part of Europe. Hither have they fled, not from the tender embraces of the mother, but from the cruelty of the monster; and it is so far true of England, that the same tyranny which drove the first emigrants from home, pursues their descendants still. — Common Sense, 1776	— Thomas Paine
Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must, like men, undergo the fatigues of supporting it. — The American Crisis, No. 4, September 11, 1777	— Thomas Paine
Time makes more converts than reason.	— Thomas Paine
Titles are but nicknames, and every nickname is a title.	— Thomas Paine
To argue with a man who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead. — The American Crisis No. V, 1776	— Thomas Paine
To establish any mode to abolish war, however advantageous it might be to Nations, would be to take from such Government the most lucrative of its branches.	— Thomas Paine
To say that any people are not fit for freedom, is to make poverty their choice, and to say they had rather be loaded with taxes than not.	— Thomas Paine
Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. — The American Crisis, No. 1, December 19, 1776	— Thomas Paine
Virtues are acquired through endeavor, which rests wholly upon yourself. So, to praise others for their virtues can but encourage one's own efforts.	— Thomas Paine
War involves in its progress such a train of unforeseen circumstances that no human wisdom can calculate the end; it has but one thing certain, and that is to increase taxes.	— Thomas Paine
We can only reason from what is; we can reason on actualities, but not on possibilities.	— Thomas Paine
We fight not to enslave, but to set a country free, and to make room upon the earth for honest men to live in. — The American Crisis, No. 4, September 11, 1777	— Thomas Paine
We have it in our power to begin the world over again. — Common Sense, 1776	— Thomas Paine
What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly: it is dearness only that gives every thing its value. — The American Crisis, No. 1, December 19, 1776	— Thomas Paine
When men yield up the privilege of thinking, the last shadow of liberty quits the horizon.	— Thomas Paine
When we are planning for posterity, we ought to remember that virtue is not hereditary. — Common Sense, 1776	— Thomas Paine