On the recordJanuary 1, 1791
In a country of such vast extent and population as France the natural means cannot be wanting, and the political means appear the instant the nation is disposed to permit them.
Said by
Thomas Paine
Source
gutenberg.orgThomas Paine: “In a country of such vast extent and population as France the natural means cannot be wanting, and the political means…”
Editor's note · Context
Paine asserts that a nation's inherent resources are always present, and political solutions emerge when the people are ready to act.
Share
More from Thomas Paine
Jan 1, 1791
Reason and discussion, persuasion and conviction, become the weapons in the contest, and it is only when those are attempted to be suppressed that recourse is had to violence.
Jan 1, 1791
In those which proceed from the former cause, the temper becomes incensed and soured; and the redress, obtained by danger, is too often sullied by revenge.
Jan 1, 1791
I have no idea, considering the reforms which are now passing and spreading throughout Europe, that England will permit herself to be the last; and where the occasion and the opportunity quietly offer, it is better than to wait for a…