Even the Italian master in politicks, the subtle and renouned Machiavel acknowledges, that no republic ever yet stood on a stable foundation without … - Mercy Otis Warren

Our situation is truly delicate & critical. On the one hand we are in need of a strong federal government founded on principles that will support the prosperity & union of the colonies. On the other we have struggled for liberty & made costly sacrifices at her shrine and there are still many among us who revere her name too much to relinquish (beyond a certain medium) the rights of man for the dignity of government.

The thorns, the thistles, and the briers, in the field of politics seldom permit the soil to produce anything, but weariness to the body, vexation to the mind, and ruin to the adventurer.

The waves have rolled in upon me, the billows have repeatedly broken over me: yet I am not sunk down.