"Harrington has Shewn that Power always follows Property. This I believe to be as infallible a Maxim, in Politicks, as, that Action and Re-action are equal, is in Mechanicks. Nay I believe We may advance one Step farther and affirm that the Ballance of Power in a Society, accompanies the Ballance of Property in Land. The only possible Way then of preserving the Ballance of Power on the side of equal Liberty and public Virtue, is to make the Acquisition of Land easy to every Member of Society: to make a Division of the Land into Small Quantities, So that the Multitude may be possessed of landed Estates. If the Multitude is possessed of the Ballance of real Estate, the Multitude will have the Ballance of Power, and in that Case the Multitude will take Care of the Liberty, Virtue, and Interest of the Multitude in all Acts of Government." | Quote by: | John Adams
(1735-1826) Founding Father, 2nd US President |
Source: | John Adams to James Sullivan, 26 May 1776, Papers 4:208--12
https://press-pubs.uchicago.edu/founders/documents/v1ch13s10.html |
| |
| |
- More John Adams Quotes
- Books by or about John Adams
- This John Adams quote is found in these quote Categories:
Consensus quotes, Representation quotes, Founder quotes, Government quotes, Right quotes, Property quotes, Society quotes, Dependence quotes, Vote quotes, Law quotes, Land quotes, Balance quotes, Power quotes, Liberty quotes, Virtue quotes | |
 |
More Quotations
| |
